I may make a small hot house for sprouting seedlings, etc. but the main garden will remain mostly open except for trellis work tbd. I'm leaning towards using the wine crates with the bottoms knocked out to form a border for the raised beds and path and use each crate for a different herb/crop etc. with the main bed used for larger crops. Then I can even adjust each box for soil type to suit the plant and keep a track on crop rotation as well. Plus the crates look rustic and I can peice them together into a pattern. I'll try to scan a design image or picture when I can. Shooting for saturday to do the layout. Keep you posted!

 

Oh and I pinched that gardening segment off one of Galla's links! Hehe!

2/21: Alright I finished the bed borders and most of the toolbox/garden "shed". I ended up using a combination of salvage lumber and wine crates so that there is a main raised bed along with some single boxes sunken into it on either end for specific herbs. Got great responses so far from other gardeners. Beds are about 6-7" high from ground level with an additional 6-7" of great loam below that.

 

Next is how to get around in there! Also will be making seedling trays and a sprouting area. Does anyone know if sprouting and transplanting was used during middle age gardening or was direct sowing practiced more widely? Seems that direct sowing would have been easier for most, but perhaps there were savvy gardeners back then also?

Every thing that was then we are now.

Seedlings and direct sowing depends on what they were planting and there were green houses and/or hot houses very far back in history.

 

Your garden is really taking shape.

Thanks. I'll go there tommorow to hopefully finish the construction and tidy up. I think I'm gonna use the wine crate "innards" -you know those pieces that hold the bottles in place- and peice them together into bean poles and stakes. Also will make seedling trays from remaining scrap wood, etc. and I think a wind barrier. Still have to send away for seeds! I can get many cuttings from the area and from friends for herbs so I don't think I'll have to start from seed on those except for a few specialty herbs that I can't find here like savory and chervil. The garden is up in a cool valley so I think they will do fine. :please please: More later....

March 5th: OK...tool shed complete sans the painting and 3 large seedling trays built. Seeds sown thus far, all open pollinated/heirloom varieties:

 

Provider Pole beans, Rocdor Wax beans, Hawaiian Pole beans-sown directly in beds.

 

Royal Chantenay carrots, Little Finger carrots, Yellow Sunshine carrots-sown in flats to be thinned later.

 

Peron Sprayless tomato, Yellow and Red Pear tomato, Pink Brandywine, Anahu (local)- flat sown

 

Ruby Chard, Black Seeded Simpson lettuce, Santa Fe lettuce, Crispy Frills lettuce, mesclun mix, Bibb lettuce all broadcast sown in flats to be thinned later. Also a bit of Chinese Broccoli.

 

For the flat mix I simply screened out rough compost from a nearby pile through a plastic screen with 1/4" holes and mixed it with soil form the bed screened the same way in a ratio of 1:1. I also used a smaller mesh screen to further sift the mix a couple times to remove any obvious larger peices. It worked well so I recommend it as good method for germinating seeds. You can recycle the flat mix with more sifted compost and soil for future flats.

 

The seeds I used were pretty old but looked to be in good shape, so I'm hoping for a decent germination rate. Back with more later.....

Sounds good Cleav ,

You have done a lot of work and I am sure the plants will reward you for it. I can not remember what I did with my pictures of old gardens.

I am sure there are very many prints of them around. Even the Culpeper Herbal book was published in the late date of 1649 and Gerard Herbals were published in 1597. Gardens go back many centuries and are portrayed in many places and times.

Now do you want to come over and get my garden in order. We are still freezing at nite. But the Onions, Garlic, Chives are making there presents known. Time for our cold weather crops potatoes, cauliflower, broccoli ect....

Good luck on your old seeds we planted some years old last year and about 1 in 10 came up and some packets never even sprouted.

Thanks for the Old Garden tips. I'll maybe do a search on them. I'm not getting my hopes up on the old seeds but I think they will mostly sprout. Some packets I had were sealed and they looked good. I ordered a bunch of lettuce, herbs and beans from Heirloom Seeds so they should do well.

 

Come over and put your garden in shape? Sounds delightful but then who would take care of mine? I'm jealous BTW. Onions and cold weather crops do poorly here so I don't get to have fun with a lot of things that I like to eat. On the other hand, though, we have year round growing so I guess that's a trade off. Keep you guys posted.....

You do know that I would not know where to begin with a year long garden. The closet I have here is my greenhouse. I did enjoy fresh oranges and tomatoes all year long. All of the citrus and avocado trees are blooming. I need to go outside and remove some of the straw covering my delicate plants, before the momma rabbit makes her nest.

Its still too cold here even think about gardening. I can't wait to head south.

Laureen maybe we should go visit Thecleaver. Always warm and always able to have fresh veggies.