Gardening Thread - Show me your gardens!

Cool

 

Yes, and No.
I have a local supplier that sells S4S 1x6x8's for $3.50 per. They're so cheap that I use them as hobby/project boards for pretty much everything, and since I don't have to worry about rot issues they're also what I built the chicken coop and the duckhouse out of, and I used them as fence boards for the front yard too.
They're not kiln dried, which is fine with me because it saves me the trouble of pre-drilling them (Kiln dried has a tendency to split if you put screws in the ends)
They're not quite as rugged as the 2x6x8's that I used on the first couple of beds, but at less than 1/4 of the cost I'll be able to totally rebuild them 4 times if necessary before I even break even vs 2x6x8's. And at this point they're 6 years old and aren't showing any signs of degrading, so... winning


New (2013):

Last summer:


Now, if I could find them for a reasonable price, I'd totally jump on 2 inch wide boards, but everything I've found around here is $$$


FWIW, you can also use PT without concern. They changed the formula on it about 20 years ago, so you don't have to worry about it leaching arsenic into the soil any more.

 

Yeah the local lumber carriers around here are charging about $30/board of 10x12 boards. Its like $400 for two beds. Shoot me now lol


PT is much much cheaper.

 

Exactly. I built my entire garden for something like $250 in lumber, including the cold frames against the house.

 

6 days on the heat mat and the peppers are germinating.

 

Whut kind of peppers?

 

Several different kinds of sweet and hot peppers.

 

The freeze we had for a few days wreaked havoc on our citrus trees. They are only a year in ground so I pulled them all except for the Moro blood oranges which seem to be doing OK. I like to keep them fresh for my ice tea so I only pick two each week. They look bad on the outside but I made some lemonade and they were all perfect inside.

 

Weekend build. A redwood trellis for grapevines to grow on. There are Flame Seedless at both posts.



I wanted it to match the Pergola over the spa.



I also put in another Moro Blood Orange and a 4-in-1 Pluot.

 

I have somewhere around 4000 sq ft of yard down by my river. Some of it is going to be devoted to a fire pit and such, some is too close to the river and can flood, but it leaves me with about 1000 sq ft that I could use for a garden. It's sunny and because of where it is, it's not convenient to use for anything else. Any ideas on good veggies to start with?

The area looks like this:

 

Things you like to eat.

Start simple with only a few things, and add more every year. With a 1000 square foot garden you will produce enough that you won't be able to eat it all fresh, so you will have to have a way to store it or it will go to waste. Some things are easy to store, like potatos, onions and winter squash. Other things will have to be frozen, dried or canned.

 

Tomato's, Okra, Squash.... Cucumbers are good but they run all over. That's what we usually plant. Never really had any luck with Bell Peppers but we try every year.

 

I never had much luck with peppers until I build my greenhouse. Peppers love heat.

 

I guess 98 degrees with 478% humidity in Alabama isn't enough for em over the summer LOL. I'd like a small greenhouse in the future. My Grandad always had one when I was a kid.

 

What do you like eating? No point in growing anything else, lol.
One thing that I'd recommend is buying your seeds locally, either from a local garden shop/farmer's union, or from someplace like Johnny's. They're a lot less likely to have stuff that won't go in your climate. But there again, stick with stuff that you like, otherwise it's just a waste of effort.

I'm still searching for a whisky bush.

 

If I lived in a cooler climate like yours I would love to grow cauliflower and broccolli. Oh, and strawberry's! I agree with others on starting small.

 

whats your soil like? Im guessing its quite sandy? I know in Texas theres a lot of sandy soil and they grow peanuts. but Like everyone is saying grow what you like.

 

Someday I would like to be harvesting in winter like "One Yard Revolution" did in the brutal -23 F Chicago winter:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dd-FOj7cuLc

 

Thanks, everyone. Mainly, I was looking to start with relatively easy stuff so I don't get discouraged. There aren't many fruits or vegetables that I don't like. Ironically, I'm not big on rhubarb but have two giant rhubarb plants that were here when I bought the house. They grow amazingly quickly and I never do a thing to them. I give all of it away.

It doesn't seem to be. It's very dark and doesn't seem to dry up very much. There is some sandy soil closer to the river, but I am planning on staying up past the section of the yard that I've seen flood.

 

sounds like good soil
if its got good drainage try some red or russet potato's. Corn and beans work well together and you never lose on zucchini or yellow squash. Green beans also are hearty.