Fall Veggies

This homemade PVC seed starting shelf works great to start seeds inside the house in a controlled environment.  The golden beets on the left just started to poke through the soil today.  The rutabagas on the right are almost ready for the outdoors.

New seedlings will be moved outside to wait with the other "ladies in waiting".  Planting up to the next pot size helps keep them from drying out too fast.  Bird netting protects from squirrels and birds.

This year the hot temperatures kept me from planting in September.  Four inch transplants were potted in 1 gallon pots where they waited until temperatures were more hospitable.  The planting date was October 2nd, but these plants were purchased 2-3 weeks earlier. 

These 4 inch transplants of brussel sprouts and chinese cabbage purchased on October 1st, went right into the garden on October 2nd thanks to bird netting and shade cloth.

"No girls, I don't need any help, but thanks for asking"

Time to close up shop before the girls get any ideas.  Chickens love cabbage and broccoli.  Out here in the country, there are lots of critters that think new veggie transplants are yummy.

No Naked Soil Please!

I recently learned that naked soil is a bad thing.  Who knew.... Well, I guess I already knew in my heart that there was something sad, and not very stylish about bare soil.  I've always tried to keep my soil properly dressed.  Whether with shredded leaves or bark, hay, or pine straw, here's how I like to mulch.

When mulching a new area, I like to weedwack down any existing weeds or grass.  Newspaper makes excellent weed block.  Lay the newspaper down overlapping each section as shown below.

   Wet the newspaper to keep it firmly in place.

Bring in a load of mulch and dump it carefully on the wetted newspaper.

Continue adding loads of mulch until there is enough to cover the area.

Rake the mulch smooth to a depth of about 4 inches.

  Leave an edge to overlap the next section of newspaper.

Continue until the desired area is covered with mulch, and all your soil is fully clothed.  Remember... No naked soil please!