Here we are for another segment of #TYSKT (things you should know Thursday). Last month’s post can be found here along with the explanation of what this is all about. I hope you’ll join in the fun and post a link to your own #TYSKT post in the comments below.
So here we go! I enjoy gardening – both flowers and food. I’ve been busy prepping our garden boxes for what I hope to be a nice harvest in the fall. We have to use raised bed garden boxes here because our soil is nearly all clay and is terrible to try to grow anything in. The first year we gardened, we didn’t realize how bad it would be until we pulled out carrots that were about 3 inches wide and only 2 inches long…yep, short and fat carrots. The kids refused to eat them. However, since I can sometimes be rather clever, I pureed the carrots and put them into spaghetti sauce and the boys were none the wiser. Ha ha ha
The organic snow peas have been planted. This year, I decided to try making bamboo teepees for them to climb up. Last year’s peas were so delicious that the kids and I were snacking on them right off the vine. As the summer progressed, the peas went to seed and I saved a lot for re-planting this year. It’s my first attempt at seed saving and I really hope it works.
On the other side of the teepees, I have planted a mesclun variety of lettuce and spinach, both of which I purchased from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds.
The strawberry beds still have some leaves on them from the fall and, if this rain ever stops, I will get out there to finish cleaning them up. This year, my goal is to deal with the birds who swoop in and snatch up all the red deliciousness. I’ve got a plan to put in some stakes around that box and top it with tulle. This better work cuz last year we tried all sorts of distraction techniques and it didn’t seem to phase them. We perched a fake owl, hung wind chimes, and stuck pinwheels into the ground, all in an attempt to dissuade the feathered thieves from the sweet strawberries. None of that worked.
We still have a lot more seeds to plant, but need another box or two to put them in. Right now, we only have two, but I’d like to add two more, surround them with a fence and put mulch between the boxes. This would help keep critters out and would be a lot easier to mow around rather than trying to squeeze between the boxes. Maybe something like this:
Do you garden? I’d love to hear about it and see what you are growing this season.
