A New Old Garden: Part One

This area along the creek has gotten a major make over. The ground sloped a lot and around 2015 I hauled in about 8 truckloads of mixed manure and leveled it out. That year I grew huge amounts of summer squash. But the next year I had root knot nematodes and got nothing. So I turned it into a chicken pen. 

Here you can see how much it’s built up as a chicken pen. 

I knew I wanted to use a cute gate and decorative fence my daughter picked up on heavy trash day on this end. I also knew I’d need to work on the elevation change. So I scrounged up bricks from all over the yard. 

I had to dig the bottoms of some fence panels out. 

Making pretty good progress. I added old tin along the fence to help keep out rabbits and keep the soil in. 

Mmmm. How many more steps will I need.  

Mmm. One big damn rock

My 6’ pry bar was a big help

Took an afternoon to get this far. 

I ended up having to move most of the bricks out of the way 

But I got it over to the corner out of the way

Laying out the gate and fence. 

Trial fit. 

The post slides easily into the eyes on the gate but there is nothing to keep the gate from sitting on the ground. I slipped some small bits of plastic pipe under the bottom eye.  It’s not perfect but it helps I’m thinking some bit of hardware is missing. 

I added regular weld wire down the side and far end. Then 2 16’ cattle panels as tomato trellises in the middle. Next year I’d like to make an arch all the way down the center. 

From the other end. I added gypsum and other soil amendments where I’m planting. Flowers along the outside fence, tomatoes on the cattle panels. 

22 tomatoes are in. 

Along the outside edge here are sweet alyssum and calendula. The green fence is to keep Giotto from laying on them. On the inside are gladiolus, baby’s breath with nasturtium and cosmos seed thrown in. 

Beside the gate is a Fragrant Cloud rose. Maximilian sunflowers are on the other side of the gate. There’s  lots more space to plant in but some of the ground is rough and on a steep slope at the back end with a catclaw tree in the way. 

Tomatoes on the cattle panels. San Marzano, Italian Heirloom, Yellow Brandywine, Amish paste and Cherokee Purple 

#appreciation

I’m glad to have this space back in production again. Stay tuned for more planting