Friday, March 10, 2023

Garden Friday

 
 

 
candytuft and tulips
 
Welcome to Garden Friday!
Spring is still weeks away, 
but you'd never know it by what's popping up!


 
The sweet potatoes leftover from last season
were added to a baking tray filled with soil.
This is the new way I'm creating slips to plant 
out in the garden later on.
For now, they reside in our funky space
we affectionately deem "the spa room".
Once the slips start forming,
they will be pinched off and added to a jar with water to form roots.

 
These pots were found at the big box store
and are being saved to transplant our blueberry bushes.
Although I've amended the soil two years in a row,
our pH was still much too high for them to thrive.
The containers will buy me at least a year,
so that I can try to remediate the problem and test again.
These pots are not only made in the USA,
but they are fashioned from ocean plastic!

 
Our first Birdie bed has been assembled.
Big K helped with this project,
as he is a master of all things nuts-n-bolts.
Truth be told, I could have easily done the job myself,
it was that easy.

 
The bed will be used strictly for strawberries,
which I've ordered from our local Cooperative Extension office.
I still have some fairly healthy plants that I will transplant as well.
The bottom of the bed was filled with twigs and dried leaf mulch.

 
The potting soil was added and there will be room at the top
for homemade compost and more shredded leaves.
I love the look and plan to replace the existing beds with Birdie's
as the budget allows.
The washtub (behind and to the right),
will be repurposed as a dust bathing vessel for the chooks.
They can use another place to primp and preen themselves.
 

 
Lettuce has been transplanted into the Mr. Stacky pots.
There are two more tiers to this system,
but I just wanted to start with a few to see
how well they do on the back deck.
After they grow a bit more,
the wire (used to deter squirrels from digging)
will be removed and the pots will be stacked.

 
One of our tasks this week was cleaning out
all of the birdhouses on the property.
C enjoys helping with this
and the weather couldn't have been better!
We're ready for all of our feathered friends to join the family!


 Spring is almost here,
and all of the gardeners I know are SO excited!
What a blessing this season is for so many.
Enjoy your week!
 
 

10 comments:

  1. That's very cool about the blueberry pots. What a great use of our cleaned up trash. Of course, moving away from plastic would be the best solution, but in the meantime, it's wonderful to make use of it. What an exuberant peach (apricot?) in your last photo! J looked into buying one of the big troughs for planting potatoes, but they were more than he wanted to spend, so he opted to get some potato bags to grow in this year. Gardening is always a bit of experimentation each year, isn't it?

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    Replies
    1. Yes, I agree about the plastic. I am switching to soil blocker from here on out for some of the seed starting.
      That's a neighbor's cherry tree in bloom. Isn't it glorious?
      Yes, the Birdie's are pricey, but they will last the rest of my life, or the rest of the time we are on this property, so it's worth the investment to me. I've seen neighbors build similar beds on their own. Grow bags work well. I've also made growing crates out of pallet wood which work well for spuds.
      Yes, I love the new ideas all along the way. ;0D

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  2. The tulips are beautiful. Unfortunately, we received a foot of snow the end of last week and we are expected to receive quite a bit more on Tuesday. So, no early spring for us. With the sweet potatoes, I'm assuming you keep the soil moist? The containers for the blueberry bushes are a great idea. We've had a hard time with the soil for ours as well. I can't wait for the birds to return to our bird houses! Have a wonderful weekend!

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    Replies
    1. Yes, we will be getting a blast of cold air this week. March is so fickle.
      The soil for the sweet potatoes is kept moist and I keep it covered with a flour sack overnight to avoid it drying out too much.
      I'll bet the birds are on their way to you very soon! Thanks for stopping by.

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  3. It will be cold here next week so I must wait! Dang it!
    hugs
    Donna

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  4. Look at all that color! But then you're in the south; right? Up here in Ohio it's still cold, with a bit of snow on the ground. Love seeing your ideas...they give me inspiration on how to improve my own garden, thanks so much. Enjoy your week - Mary

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    1. Yes, Mary, we are in Central North Carolina.
      So glad you found something helpful here.
      Enjoy some snow for me! Doesn't look like we'll be getting any this year.

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  5. Oh, I love your spring flowers. Spring is so beautiful in North Carolina! The Birdie bed is really cool. Can't wait to see how your strawberries do in it!

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    Replies
    1. Yes, it's quite a treat to be here in springtime. Everything is awakening! Thank you for visiting.

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