After celaning up our building remnants, we got to work on our raised no-dig garden bed and have since planted a range of seeds. We've over-planted with the expectation that some will not surface and others will suffer from the slaters and millipedes - natural attrition in other words!
So, we have from top left to right: yellow beans, radish, Swiss chard, climbing beans; Middle L to R: baby carrots, leeks (Musselwhite), peas; Bottom L to R: pansies, beetroot, peas.
The radish and beetroot have both sprouted so far (not quite a week since sowing the seeds), they got a head start with the warm weather and the bit of rain we've had since.
We've scattered a healthy layer of coffee grounds too, to try to deter the slaters and millipedes and are keeping our fingers crossed. I'm going to try to bring in the potted mints to see if that will help deter pests too - worked a treat in our Canberra garden, I recall!
Autumn is such a beautiful time of the year: everything seems to rest, the weather goes calm and if you make it to the beaach, the water is like glass for much of the day. Stunning!
Happy Autumn gardening!
Showing posts with label raised_beds. Show all posts
Showing posts with label raised_beds. Show all posts
Sunday, April 14, 2013
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
It's Autumn, what shall we plant?
Clancy and I are looking at the Gardening Australia Vegie Guide to see what we can plant in our garden beds, now the Summer seems to be over.
We found this article by Millie Ross which shows how to plant out a bean chubby house! Clancy thought that would be very cool :o). As our grapevine is beginning to lose its leaves, it would be good to plant beans at the end of the raised bed that is next to the vine so we can string the beans across to it to provide a tent-like cover for Clancy (and Alfie) to play under. Worth experimenting anyway.
Other things Clancy would like in the garden include beetroot, potatoes (we haven't planted them in our Perth garden yet, only back in Canberra, Clancy says), sweet potatoes and of course some purple, yellow and orange flowers!
Happy gardening!
We found this article by Millie Ross which shows how to plant out a bean chubby house! Clancy thought that would be very cool :o). As our grapevine is beginning to lose its leaves, it would be good to plant beans at the end of the raised bed that is next to the vine so we can string the beans across to it to provide a tent-like cover for Clancy (and Alfie) to play under. Worth experimenting anyway.
Other things Clancy would like in the garden include beetroot, potatoes (we haven't planted them in our Perth garden yet, only back in Canberra, Clancy says), sweet potatoes and of course some purple, yellow and orange flowers!
Happy gardening!
Monday, July 4, 2011
Winter plantings and seedlings
Our garden is going really well at the moment and Perth has had some decent rainfall over the last month - a refreshing sight!
Clancy and I had planted beans and peas about 3 weeks ago and they are doing well too, as you can see in the foreground. We picked up some marigolds at the local gardening shop - they were going cheap - and have popped them around the outside of the bed as well. So far we haven't had any issues with insects or mildew, etc.
The brocolli is heading up well - not sure about the caulies just yet - one has bolted (the mild winter doesn't help!), but others looking OK for now.
Our backyard project is also about to get underway. We are terracing some parts of the yard so we can plant extras like lemongrass, rhubarb and comfrey (near the compost, as its a good composting agent). Then this weekend past I began preparing the ground running up to the garden bed for some lawn seed to get some grass coverage there - its all sand and ends up in the house after a bit of gardening! :o)
Next we are working on another raised bed made from some beautiful salvaged limestone blocks (why anyone would want to throw them out is beyond me!) and a sandpit under an old grapevine for the kiddies. We will take a leaf out of Josh's book (see Ollie's garden) and make some blocks into stepping stones around the sandpit too - just for fun!
The back patio is all concrete and being westerly-facing was radiantly hot over the summer months, so we want to get some shade up now while its cool, and have plans to put in two passionfruit vines. These grow really well in Perh's mild to hot climate and are great for kids too, as they can search for fallen fruit. I especially love their flowers.
Clancy and I have been putting together some "garden art" pieces as well, to brighten things up, involve the kids and add some interest to the large, open backyard - more on this in another post shortly!
Until the, happy Winter gardening!
Clancy and I had planted beans and peas about 3 weeks ago and they are doing well too, as you can see in the foreground. We picked up some marigolds at the local gardening shop - they were going cheap - and have popped them around the outside of the bed as well. So far we haven't had any issues with insects or mildew, etc.
The brocolli is heading up well - not sure about the caulies just yet - one has bolted (the mild winter doesn't help!), but others looking OK for now.
Our backyard project is also about to get underway. We are terracing some parts of the yard so we can plant extras like lemongrass, rhubarb and comfrey (near the compost, as its a good composting agent). Then this weekend past I began preparing the ground running up to the garden bed for some lawn seed to get some grass coverage there - its all sand and ends up in the house after a bit of gardening! :o)
Next we are working on another raised bed made from some beautiful salvaged limestone blocks (why anyone would want to throw them out is beyond me!) and a sandpit under an old grapevine for the kiddies. We will take a leaf out of Josh's book (see Ollie's garden) and make some blocks into stepping stones around the sandpit too - just for fun!
The back patio is all concrete and being westerly-facing was radiantly hot over the summer months, so we want to get some shade up now while its cool, and have plans to put in two passionfruit vines. These grow really well in Perh's mild to hot climate and are great for kids too, as they can search for fallen fruit. I especially love their flowers.
Clancy and I have been putting together some "garden art" pieces as well, to brighten things up, involve the kids and add some interest to the large, open backyard - more on this in another post shortly!
Until the, happy Winter gardening!
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Raised garden bed - 1 month on
Well our seedlings are coming along nicely now, after a month in the ground plus a couple of good rainfalls. Interestingly, the last line of brassicas - caulies and brocolli (to the right of the picture) - are more damaged by white cabbage moth than the others - I'm putting it down to the interplanting with fennel, as nothing seems to attack that and it is quite fragrant when it's a warm day.
Clancy and I also planted some peas and beans up the other end of the bed, with some parsley as well. I had planted some Aussie red garlic in between the brassicas a couple of weeks ago too. They are sprouting well now.
Clancy also planted what we think is a kohlrabi and a broccoli given to her by her Ah Mah and she's looking after them well (i.e. hands off - it's the best way so they'll survive!!).
We have some backyard design plans in the wind - will post about that soon, once plans are firmed up. Going to be an edible back yard with interactive spaces for kids!
Until then, happy gardening!
Clancy and I also planted some peas and beans up the other end of the bed, with some parsley as well. I had planted some Aussie red garlic in between the brassicas a couple of weeks ago too. They are sprouting well now.
Clancy also planted what we think is a kohlrabi and a broccoli given to her by her Ah Mah and she's looking after them well (i.e. hands off - it's the best way so they'll survive!!).
We have some backyard design plans in the wind - will post about that soon, once plans are firmed up. Going to be an edible back yard with interactive spaces for kids!
Until then, happy gardening!
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Raised garden bed: no-dig layers
We have finally completed our no-dig garden bed and just in time for some decent rain!
The following pictures depict the layers (as ably demonstrated by our mini-gardener, Clancy), starting with wet newspaper, then sugarcane mulch, homemade compost and a wetting agent, another mulch layer, sheep manure and a dusting of blood and bone, then more mulch to finish.
Layers 1 and 2: Newspaper and sugarcane mulch
Layers 3 and 4: Compost, wetting agent, then more mulch
Today (and after letting the bed settle for almost 2 weeks) we planted some mini broccoli and mini cauliflower seedlings, plus some fennel. The bed is holding moisture really well - something to be tested this week as the temperatures warm up again to about 27 degrees. The bed also gets a decent 8 hours of sunshine on most of its 5 metre length - another bonus as the weather cools.
The final addition will be a drip hose watering system, for both grey water (filtered) and potable water (although hoping this can be kept to a minimum). We would like to put in a rainwater tank at some point, but that will need further planning (given we are renting). Would ideally love to set up something similar to the greywater system Josh demonstrated on Gardening Australia (2006)!
So far so good! And to all, happy gardening!
The following pictures depict the layers (as ably demonstrated by our mini-gardener, Clancy), starting with wet newspaper, then sugarcane mulch, homemade compost and a wetting agent, another mulch layer, sheep manure and a dusting of blood and bone, then more mulch to finish.
Layers 1 and 2: Newspaper and sugarcane mulch
Layers 3 and 4: Compost, wetting agent, then more mulch
Today (and after letting the bed settle for almost 2 weeks) we planted some mini broccoli and mini cauliflower seedlings, plus some fennel. The bed is holding moisture really well - something to be tested this week as the temperatures warm up again to about 27 degrees. The bed also gets a decent 8 hours of sunshine on most of its 5 metre length - another bonus as the weather cools.
The final addition will be a drip hose watering system, for both grey water (filtered) and potable water (although hoping this can be kept to a minimum). We would like to put in a rainwater tank at some point, but that will need further planning (given we are renting). Would ideally love to set up something similar to the greywater system Josh demonstrated on Gardening Australia (2006)!
So far so good! And to all, happy gardening!
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Raised garden bed: reinforcing the sleepers
Stage 2 of our raised garden bed construction is reinforcing the sleepers. This seems especially useful in the sandy soil, given the plot is on a slope. Simon used large galvanised coach screws to keep the sleepers in place and set the reinforcing stakes at the joins of each sleepers to minimise any movement and water run-off (we hope).
With the sleepers now in place we are ready to constructt the layers of our no-dig garden. First off, however, we will do some minor pulling out of grass (that you can see by the fence/retaining wall) just to minimise regrowth, as the bed is not as deep as we had first envisaged. We should get approx 30-40 cm depth with the no-dig layers, probably higher at first until the layers settle over time.
Next: no-dig layers! :o)
With the sleepers now in place we are ready to constructt the layers of our no-dig garden. First off, however, we will do some minor pulling out of grass (that you can see by the fence/retaining wall) just to minimise regrowth, as the bed is not as deep as we had first envisaged. We should get approx 30-40 cm depth with the no-dig layers, probably higher at first until the layers settle over time.
Next: no-dig layers! :o)
Monday, March 7, 2011
Setting up a raised garden bed
Stage 1 of our raised garden bed is in progress. Simon laid the old sleepers reclaimed from the vacant lot behind us. The whole lot gives us approx 10-12 square meters of garden which should be ample space. Now for the fun bits in pulling out the worst of the grass and getting the layers happening for our no-dig garden!
Stay tuned!
Friday, February 25, 2011
Perth's sandy soil
Welcome to our new gardening blog! We have travelled across the continent from Canberra where we enjoyed pottering about in our garden there, to take up residence here in sunny, sandy Perth!
We are currently renting so there are a few things we are thinking about in terms of how we go about setting up our new garden here. Firstly and most pressing is the very sandy soil. Perth literally sits on a sand dune, making gardening a real challenge.
Being a Gardening Australia viewer, I always enjoy Perth-based presenter, Josh Byrnes's advice, and he shares some tips for dealing with sandy soil as well as his ideas for those who live in rentals. Josh reckons the sandy Perth soil is "gutless", especially for fruit trees, which we'd love to grow (probably in pots though):
We are choosing to put in some raised beds along a north-facing fenceline. This way we avoid much of the sandy soil and can contain the garden in an otherwise large open space in the backyard of the property. We also have an opportunity to do these in "no dig" style - great for me as I'm 6 months pregnant! Again, there's a good step-by-step how to guide via the Gardening Australia website.
We have a compost bin going already and will also set up our worm farm once more, so just a matter of spending a small amount of time on these preparations and we are underway! To start, we have put in two large planter boxes for herbs - it's nice to have just that little bit of green (Clancy has a pot of flowers too).
I can't wait - we've only been away from Canberra for about 4 weeks and I miss my gardening heaps!
Anyway... happy gardening!
We are currently renting so there are a few things we are thinking about in terms of how we go about setting up our new garden here. Firstly and most pressing is the very sandy soil. Perth literally sits on a sand dune, making gardening a real challenge.
Being a Gardening Australia viewer, I always enjoy Perth-based presenter, Josh Byrnes's advice, and he shares some tips for dealing with sandy soil as well as his ideas for those who live in rentals. Josh reckons the sandy Perth soil is "gutless", especially for fruit trees, which we'd love to grow (probably in pots though):
"To fix this type of soil add some key ingredients. Bentonite clay helps retain nutrients, compost adds organic matter to the soil, rock minerals provide trace elements, pelletised manure adds a slow release fertiliser, and blood and bone."Basically, Josh says to use four basic ingredients to help build up sandy soil:
- a surfactant-based wetting agent, to beat hydrophobia
- organic matter, like aged sheep manure
- ground rock dust (for trace elements and minerals)
- mulch to minimise evaporation, something like pea straw, for example.
We are choosing to put in some raised beds along a north-facing fenceline. This way we avoid much of the sandy soil and can contain the garden in an otherwise large open space in the backyard of the property. We also have an opportunity to do these in "no dig" style - great for me as I'm 6 months pregnant! Again, there's a good step-by-step how to guide via the Gardening Australia website.
We have a compost bin going already and will also set up our worm farm once more, so just a matter of spending a small amount of time on these preparations and we are underway! To start, we have put in two large planter boxes for herbs - it's nice to have just that little bit of green (Clancy has a pot of flowers too).
I can't wait - we've only been away from Canberra for about 4 weeks and I miss my gardening heaps!
Anyway... happy gardening!
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