Planting Veggies

Now that I had a nice mound of dirt in the front yard, today was the day to plant! I am going for something between row planting and square foot gardening. We'll see how this turns out.

I planted onions on top, tomatoes around the back, fennel around the front. And greens, spinach, lettuce, and a mesclun mix, on the lower slope.

In particular I was a little unsure of where to put the plants relative to the slopes, troughs, and ridges along the side of the mound. So I did a little of each and will try to pay attention to what does best.

I planted a few herbs on the other mound between the path and the driveway. This will get a little less frequent water and seemed like a better place for some herbs: basil and parsley. I also planted a zucchini squash as much as a ground cover as for the food.

Vegetable Garden 2012

Today was the day to prep the front yard vegetable garden bed. I had a small bag of worm compost and some glacial rock dust to use for amendments. I probably should have used more compost, but that was what I had on hand. I also had a pile of semi-composted leaves that I worked in to the deep part of the soil to improve water retention and provide some organic matter in time. 

The basic plan was to double dig, except I was working with a mound so I had a little bit of slope to contend with. Also the area wasn't rectangular but was more of a lens shape. So I had to play it by ear somewhat.
I like the long handled spade I got at Red Pig Tools specifically for this kind of work. 

Still the basic principle was:
* Cover the whole area with the amendments.
* Remove a foot or so of dirt in a strip about the width of the spade. * Put in some leaves.
* Work them in a little.
* Repeat. 

Once I was done with the digging, I broke up the biggest of the clods and raked the dirt into a nice mound. Then I flattened the top, and created two tiers on the way down. I tried to make the tiers level with a little bit of a lip so water would fill the whole ditch and percolate in without overtopping the levies. These are basically mini-swales. 

Next up: Planting vegetables!

Incredible Edibles Plant Sale -- May 5

This weekend, on May 5, the Multnomah County Master Gardeners are putting on an Incredible Edibles Plant Sale,10am to 3pm, on the grounds of All Saints School, 601 NE Cesar E. Chavez Blvd (formerly NE 39th Avenue).

Tree Climbing

Today in my Fall Tree Care class we did our tree climbing test. 

First thing Spencer had to get a line up into the tree to get things started. 

 I got harnessed up and and tied my knots: two half hitches, a blake's hitch on the climbing line, and some figure eight stopper knots.

Climbing the tree using a double rope system.

 Made it up the tree.

 The instructor sent up a little extreme ironing for me to do while I was up there.

It was a lot easier to repel down than it was to climb up.

 Back on the ground it was time to undo all the knots.

Good day.

Stuff I want to know ...

• How to efficiently process hazelnuts in the shell
• A good system for cleaning my garden tools. What kind of oil should I use? 

Rain Garden Construction

Time to mark out a rain garden to capture the water from the gutters that are about to be installed. This looks like a good place for a garden. Needs to be 48 square feet (which is one tenth of the roof area this downspout covers). Time to start marking the outline with a shovel to begin to remove the turf.

Shasta helpfully supervises.

Keep marking.

There. I now have the boundary delineated. Now we pull the turf out of the interior.

The dirt I remove I use to build up a berm around the outer edge, and a bigger berm between the garden and the sidewalk that I'll use to plant a hedgerow.

Adding some compost to the base of the berm to improve organic matter and water holding.

Dig in the compost a little.

Lay some branches to decay in place, add some soil, then sprinkle with glacial rock dust for good measure.

Now for some serious earth moving.

Shasta keeping a close eye on things.

Hey look, it works!

Pruning with Friends of Laurelhurst Park

Once a month, the Friends of Laurelhurst Park gather at, you guessed it, Laurelhurst Park to work: weeding, mulching, pruning.
This week I spent most of my time pruning a Pieris japonica.

Before:
After: