Garden Friday

     Welcome to Garden Friday!

We are in the midst of rebuilding our veggie garden.

The photo above shows what it looked like just a few months ago.       

This shot was taken yesterday.

I've been working on getting most of the tear out done

to enable the leach field to work properly for our septic system.

You can read the back story here.

The arches will be moved by the weekend,

and the old chicken coop will be listed for sale.

Read about our new chicken coop here.

It's been a slow process, which is why I actually took this week off from work.

The first step was to remove the layers of bark mulch.

I added it to the pathway in the back of the house.

This used to be our watermelon patch.

We will definitely be planting this again next year.

Just look at those roots!

I have to admit, tearing out the newly planted asparagus hurt.

I know Cooperative Extension usually offers it for sale in the spring

during their annual plant sale.

This will be on the list.

The soil that was in the beds was removed,

and placed in a pile to be used only for ornamentals.

There's just no way of knowing if it was contaminated,

so it can't be used for growing food.

Before all of the boxes were cleaned out,

the girls decided to do some digging for treats.

The beds have been taken apart, and thankfully,

can be reused in the new location.

We did get some good news from the septic company,

who came by to give us an estimate on some work that needs to be done.

Since the pipes in the leach field were buried so deeply,

there's not much chance that the adjoining sloped area

will have any problems.

Originally, I was planning to use pallets to keep my containers off the ground,

and only grow in pots, thereby ruling out any fear of contamination.

Reassured by the experts, I know that I can safely grow in my raised beds.

With a new focus on the fall garden,

I resowed all of the crops that had not germinated.

Thankfully, we have lots of goodies coming up in our toilet paper roll "pots".

The chooks got moved to a new spot as well

and seem to be enjoying their new digs.

I can't tell you what a thrill it is to head out there at dusk,

and see them all tucked in and ready for bed.

They have been foraging every morning while I've been working on the garden.

They have brought so much purpose to my life

and solidify my belief in the homesteading lifestyle.

It only took them a couple of days to figure this treat container out.

They peck at the sides and the slits release sunflower seeds.

This trellis needs to be moved,

but I'm hesitant as the hyacinth bean has just started to bloom.

 

I'd love to see it covered in these gorgeous orchid-like blossoms.

We will rise again!

I adore this photo that my sister took of me.

It was taken before the squirrels decimated our sunflowers.

Just like those beautiful flowers,

our new garden will thrive and grow gangbusters!

You can count on that.

(I have no idea why the new blogger format spaces out my sentences.

If you can help me fix this, I would appreciate it.)