The Beginner's Garden: A Starting Point

At this point I would like to point out that I wrote this article for submission on Ezine Articles. More details on composting is below this post. Without further delay, the article that I wrote!

Gardening: You have wanted to begin a new hobby, but have no idea how to start. Or maybe you have never been exposed to planting a crop and watching it grow. What is fertilizer and how do you apply it? What types of fertilizer will help plants to grow, and what happens if you use too much of them? How are fertilizers categorized? All of these questions and more will be answered in the following. If you want to know about gardening, growing edible plants, herbs or just flowers, then please, read on.

Gardening can be a very rewarding hobby whether you want to beautify your yard, or help feed your family. On the other hand, however, the other side of this hobby can be frustrating and feel like a genuine waste of time. Worst yet, any mistakes you made during the planting, growing, or general care of your crop will not be discovered until weeks or even months later. The purpose of this article is to help correct or even avoid those mistakes that will devastate your crop. With that said I would like you to understand one thing before I go any farther: if this will be your first garden, do not over expect anything. What do I mean by this? I mean this: You will still make mistakes. That is certain, and no matter how much knowledge you have of gardening will stop that process. But there is hope. The hope that is there is simple. Turning your knowledge from reading articles like this one, researching the crop you want to plant, and other sources into experience. Once you have done that, the mistakes will subside, and your crops will look like those in a magazine. With all of that said, let us jump straight in head first.

The first thing that you must decide when pursuing this hobby is to pursue this hobby from an interest in it. I assume since you are reading this article, you have already accomplished this. The second thing that you must do is to decide where to put your garden. Here are some things that you must consider when attempting to make this decision.

Is there adequate sunlight? The area for your proposed garden must have a good supply of sunlight. As you know, you will be planting plants. Also, as you know, plants depend on sunlight in order to complete their life cycles. One of these life cycles is especially important to you, reproduction. Yes, I said reproduction. A great deal of the fruits and vegetables that you currently enjoy are the offspring of their parent plants. Another life cycle that you are concerned about is the fruit bearing. In some plants this cycle happens just before the reproductive action. One factor in all of these cycles is sunlight.

How much shade is in the possible spot, and at what positions do the shadows cover during the times of day? Shade can exist in your proposed garden, but care must be exercised when deciding how and where to place your plants. The really big thing about shade is the fact that it can’t stay in the same place. For example, if you have one tree cast a shadow on one area of the garden from 6 in the morning to 2 in the afternoon, and another tree close by that casts shade on the same space for the rest of the day, this would not be a good place to plant corn because corn requires a lot of sun light to be at its best.

Is there a possibility of effective irrigation? Irrigation is another factor that must be considered. This consideration will also affect the size of your garden. But, just watering your plants is not quite good enough. You must also consider how the water will be delivered to the garden, and what ingredients are in the water. For example, if there is a great deal of chlorine in the water, this may impede growth of the garden. Another thing that must be considered when watering is run off. Run off is simply the direction that extra water that is not absorbed into the ground travels. If you water your garden for two hours every night, but only the first thirty minutes are absorbed into the soil, where does the rest of the water go? Does it just stay in the garden, or does it end up in your neighbor’s basement?

Can you defend this area from neighborhood animals (dogs, cats, other animals)? The dog down the street will be delighted in the new burial ground that you have just made for him. I know that is not what you intended, and the crop that you planted won’t matter much to him. But the point is this: you must be able to defend you garden against the lovable animals that you look at every day. It may only take a fence, and in most cases, that is all it will take. The other kind of intruders is pests. Bugs will eat your crop before you have a chance to. Be sure that you properly treat your garden against bugs, but be equally sure that the pesticide won’t contaminate your crop.

Where is your septic tank if you have one? The location of your septic tank is important because you simply do not want to plant your garden on top of it. This is especially true if you plan to use a tractor in your garden. But why wouldn’t you want to plant on top of a septic tank? Well, you take the time to plant the best garden that you have ever planted, and it looks great. You can’t wait until the harvest, and you can almost taste your crop. That is until your septic tank backs up. You call a plumber, and he gives you the bad news. He has to dig the tank up to repair it. You know what this spells for your perfect garden: destruction.

How close are your neighbors to the garden? The location of your garden will also be determined by the location of your neighbors. This factor will be important when it comes time for fertilization, which will be covered later.

Are there any underground wires that may be snagged during tilling or plowing? If you live in an area where shallow buried wires may exist, then you must be extremely careful to avoid them. These wires usually are limited to cable television, telephone or the like. To find out whether there are wires buried and where they are, the local telephone, cable, or power companies can provide this information with a simple phone call.

Are there any rocks, gravel or concrete in the area? Finally, any rocks or concrete will be a problem when it comes time for tilling, but these problems will be corrected by a good quality tiller. Usually the tiller will dig up these foreign bodies and all you will have to do is to pick them up and cast them aside.

After these questions have been answered, then you may choose a good place for your garden. 

After you have decided on a suitable place for your garden, then the preparation of the soil for fertilization can begin. Fertilization can either make or break your crop. If used incorrectly, then you could burn your plants. However, if used correctly your garden will flourish. There are different kinds of fertilization that you can use for your garden. I categorize fertilizers into two categories: natural and artificial. Some may call these categories organic and inorganic. An example of natural fertilizer is compost or manure. To learn more about what compost is, how to make it, and its many uses, visit this very useful blog: www.hometownfarming.blogspot.com. Artificial fertilizers are commercially sold nitrogen and other chemicals that are used to feed the plants directly. One advantage that I have noticed about artificial fertilizers is the fact that they can be mixed with water, being able to be absorbed by the plants quicker than terrestrial based fertilizers. However, I would like to point out that I have had much better experience with organic fertilizers such as compost. Compost and manure can be put into the soil before planting season by “plowing them under” after scattering them. To scatter, just spread the manure or compost as you would sand. After the scattering is done, use a tiller to till it under. By the term “till or plow it under” I simply mean to mix it with the soil. After that is done, wait for the last frost of the year, and the planting can begin. For more information anything farming or gardening, visit www.hometownfarming.blogspot.com.

Compost, what it is and how to make it.

I spent about 6 hours painting our little farm house today. Thankfully, I got it all done. Now, without further delay, the topic for today: Compost!!! First of all, what is compost? Compost is the decayed remains of plants or food scraps. However, compost does not smell if it is prepared properly. It looks like a brown powder, and is incredibly easy to apply as top dressing, regular fertilizer to be plowed under, or even side dressed. I have never heard of anyone side dressing compost, but I am quite sure it could be done. One of the advantages of using compost for fertilizer is the fact that it is less likely to burn the plants you are attempting to feed. I usually apply compost well before the planting season, and I usually plow it under to allow it to fertilize the ground before planting. Now, with all of that said, what is compost? I know, I know. It seems that I have already answered that question, but this is more in depth. Or more accurately, what is compost composed of? I obtain my compost from food scraps, straw, chicken droppings and grass clippings. At harvest time, I even use the clippings from mowing down the remains of my garden. All of these things go into quality compost. Some even use mulch for their compost pile. One of the biggest questions that I am posed with is, "if compost is decaying plants and such, wouldn't it have a rotting smell to it?" My answer is no.  The difference, as I understand it, between "rotting" matter and composting it is one simple thing: air. If the pile has a continuous supply of air in it, this allows certain bacteria to feed off of the pile, thus producing compost that is usable. How does one keep air in the compost pile? Before I go into that, let me cover the types of compost bins that can be used. First of all, no bin is needed for composting. My first compost pile was just that, a pile. It was small, and in a good location on the property. Then there are the traditional "bins" that can be bought or built. These can be as simple as a wooden box with holes drilled in it. Then there is the open air or fenced in compost area. This is almost like a pile, except it is fenced using chicken wire or something of the like. At last, there is my favorite: the rotating compost bin. This is the type of bin that I use, and I get usable compost in about 3 weeks. With this type of bin, the entire containment area rotates, this stirring the compost while it is "cooking". Now we can cover the ways of keeping air to the pile. If you are using a square bin, pile, or fenced in area, the compost should be stirred often. I stirred mine once per day. This ensures adequate air supply throughout the entire pile. The reason that I like the rotating composter is the simple fact that with one turn of a lever, the entire containment area (containing the compost) is stirred much like clothes in a dryer. There is also PVC pipe contained within the containment area that have holes drilled in them. This allows the pile to get the air it needs to speed it along. The containment area is nothing more than a plastic 50 gallon food grade drum mounted on a wooden platform. When the compost is ready, it is high enough for me to back a small trailer under it with a tractor and dump it in one swoop. The plans that I used to build my composter will be coming in a later post. How does one go about composting? My process is beautiful in its simplicity. I don't worry about the actual pattern in making up the pile simply because I know the whole pile will be turned and turned. I simply put my hay, or other dry matter in the barrel, followed by wet matter (food scraps, etc.) and keep the pattern going there. I generally don't worry about adding this then adding that. Just worry about adding the dry and wet in tandem. At that point I close the door, and let it cook. I would like to make one small note here: if you choose to use a rotating composter, do not fill the composter over half full of raw material (uncomposted material) because this would take away adequate space for the pile inside of the barrel to shift when it is being rotated.

Chickens, Chickens, Chickens!!!

We have 10 chickens that we added to our little farm about 6 months ago. We got them even before I got the coop and pen built. Talk about faith!!! Allow me to tell the story... My wife and I decided to buy 6 chicks because I had gone around the house talking about the things that I wanted to do in turning our home into a small homestead. She suggested we get chickens, partly because she had them as a little girl and missed them, and after all, what farm would be complete without them? So we started our search trying to find out where to buy them. I knew nothing about buying them, caring for them or anything else about them other than the way they tasted on my dinner plate. We found someone who had some already, and offered to hatch us some for a small fee. The fee was around $1.00 per chick. I got a crash course in caring for them. We got a big box and put the chicks (day old) in our bathroom simply because I didn't have a coop built yet that could accomodate them. So we cared for them this way until they got their feathers and were big enough to go in the yard. By the time this happened, I had their coop built. I am especially proud of their coop because it costed me a grand total of about $50 for the materials, and it had been years since I had built anything. I was pleasantly surprised when it was finished. The chicks (full-grown) are about 6 months (give or take) old now, and we are eagerly waiting for their first eggs. Even though I was surprised and proud of their coop, it has had its problems. One of these problems is the simple fact that I made their yard, which is totally fenced in, taking into the calculation of 2 square feet per chicken. This is fine for them having plenty of room to move, however, as you probably know, chickens love to scratch and peck the ground in search of bugs that are tasty to them. This has left their little yard with no grass left, and every time it rains, it turns into a mud pit. So, in the near future, I will be building a new coop which will accomodate about 30 chickens, and the running yard will be 4 square feet per chicken. I am planning to do this so I can block off about half of their yard to allow grass to grow. This will also allow for more bugs to find their way into the stomachs of my little chicks. If you would like to learn how to build a simple coop, with the yard problem corrected of course, feel free to leave me a post and ask for the plans. I would be very happy to share my experience and knowledge that I have gained through this experience with you.