If you have anything that needs cold status and you have not already gotten the seeds into fridge, get them in there this week.

As a example, I have huge rose hip seeds that have been in the crisper since fall and they will be heading into seed trays this coming week to start new rose bushes.. These rose's will be grown out with a strong eye for culling those I do not like certain things on and will be joining in being interplanted in a number ways, the biggest line will be worked in under the power line on the pull back edge of the ditch line, they are on the list of being allowed and I want large numbers of them, some for our own use and if we needed it dried rose hips for tea's but at this point in time, the bigger push is for use in regards to being able to overtake and out grown the wild parsnip in the ditch line but far enough back that it will not be cut by the township and is regards so it will not be cut down by the power gents either.

Well, lets start a basic overall Gardening thread for everyone for 2019.

I walked outside this morning and I can feel spring in the wind, smell it in the yard despite my whole farm being under feet of snow and covered in sheets of ice LOL

Its March 11th.. So where is your garden or garden plans at?

For most of us, we are going to be frozen outside but we have a few things to do this week..

Fruit Tree Pruning is coming for the next few weeks, keep a close eye on your buds because you want that pruning done before they start to break.

but the real work is starting in the house.. there are a few things that ideally you want to start 8 weeks before last spring frost date and for many of us that means we might want to be checking our seed packages and getting our seed trays, soil ready and so forth..

What have you started so far? In house, in Greenhouse(heated or unheated).. Where are you at in your garden zone?

Gardening plans are next to zero, only growing a few things for seed/stock reasons...this year and maybe a large part of next year as well are building other gardening spots, finishing the green house. To little time for actual gardening right now.
The green house plans kind of expanded into a multi use addition to the house...this will take a lot of time to finish, just removing the glass from all the window frames I was given (with out breaking them) and installing them into my steel framing takes lots of time.

Hi Peppercorn, That makes sense on the timing and the amount of work involved.. going from Greenhouse to Multi use addition sounds like it would indeed require a lot more effort, I hope you will continue to share as you go.. And while the answer might be no.. are you going to be using your homemade raised beds again this for what you are working on. I hope so as I like seeing your results. I was very impressed with how they did in the difficult growing season you had last year.

FG

Spring still feels a long.. LONG way off on the farm. so much snow, still so cold.. According to my blog looking backwards, I am about 3 weeks behind already.. so be it.

I hauled out a storage horse trough, filled it up 1/3rd with horse manure, filled the other 1/3 up with a mix of rabbit poo blend, covered the whole thing in thick plastic, moved it into full sun in a sheltered microclimate and I have a temp gage in there.. I will work with it to create a hot compost manure based covered garden to try and get some greens going sooner then later..

My normal "big" trough hubby shoveled it out so at least the metal sides now gets sun, instead of being banked by snow up and over its three foot height, he cleared the top off as well.

Certainly not very far garden wise owing that there are still 18 or so inches of snow all over the garden. In zone 3 so it will be a little while with the old “last frost” being a couple months away.

Seedling trays started indoor with my new grow lamp. Mrs HP got a little freaked out going to utility room with the weird pink light emanating, very spooky sci-fy when unexpected I guess. I should have told her what I did of my day off today...

Went to Seedy Sunday yesterday and picked up a few more seeds in addition to a great door prize. We got a neat container of 18 different beans coming from all corners of the country. Something neat to do this year with the family. The deer fence around the garden is going to look really cool... unless the deer get them through the chain link fence turn treillis.

I have a decent pilot of compost going with chicken manure and coop pine shavings mixed with a winter’s worth of kitchen scraps. Anyone has an opinion about that compost (FarmGal??).

Morning HP

So I am assuming that compost pile is still frozen pretty solid, so the first thing to do is to get it covered with either a large tarp (brown or black is awesome for solar heating) to start melting it out faster and it will come back alive with the heat and water working with the microbes etc. After you get at least 6 to 8 inches of melt out, and you can smell it starting to compost, you can turn it, fluff it up and if needed add more water to it if it needs it.

As it keeps melting out and keeps heating up, once a week turn it over and blend it back up and re-pile it up and cover it back up and let it go again.. it will really start dropping in size as it goes, remember to turn the outer edges in to the middle as you blend it together and pile it back up to heat up and compost down.

Let me know how its going in may and we can talk again after you show me some photos of how its going and where its at in the process 🙂 Start a new pile for spring stuff, you want this one to compost and adding new stuff will not help in that regards at this point 🙂

Morning HP

So I am assuming that compost pile is still frozen pretty solid, so the first thing to do is to get it covered with either a large tarp (brown or black is awesome for solar heating) to start melting it out faster and it will come back alive with the heat and water working with the microbes etc. After you get at least 6 to 8 inches of melt out, and you can smell it starting to compost, you can turn it, fluff it up and if needed add more water to it if it needs it.

As it keeps melting out and keeps heating up, once a week turn it over and blend it back up and re-pile it up and cover it back up and let it go again.. it will really start dropping in size as it goes, remember to turn the outer edges in to the middle as you blend it together and pile it back up to heat up and compost down.

Let me know how its going in may and we can talk again after you show me some photos of how its going and where its at in the process 🙂 Start a new pile for spring stuff, you want this one to compost and adding new stuff will not help in that regards at this point 🙂

Thanks FarmGal!

I was more wondering about the effect on large amounts of coop’s pine shavings and manure. Would it risk make my compost too acidic to use in the garden?

I have to admit that i hadn’t thought of a tarp; I’ll put one on today.

Once its composted down, it will be fine, I have used wood chip bedding in the coop at times as does many, and by the time its composted down its just fine.. The odds are you are not going to be able to get it properly composted and used till this fall when you will be able to dress it out on all your beds before you put them to rest for the winter..

It will go a long way to increasing production in your garden for 2020..

I transplanted some seedlings into individual pots...put about 15 gallons of rabbit poop with used straw and hay in the compost...

Not really sure what to do with my cherry tree... last 2 years seemed to be fine so probably nothing... except netting. Those darn birds...

I have plans for an eventual greenhouse but city permits are a pita.... for now I have plans for a pergola over a portion of my deck, and will have upcycled gutters as planters for strawberries.

Hi Vay.. Where you located in general, if nothing else, what zone are you gardening in? Nice on the rabbit compost, if you work it right, it will be moving along nice and fast this year, as rabbit is a cool manure, just need to heat it enough to cook some of those hay seeds and you are golden.

Are you doing any trimming on the cherry tree this spring or has that time passed? Yes the birds can be a issue for sure.. I am not looking forward to trying to deal with the tree rats when it comes to my nut bushes.. thankfully the farm cats keep them down big time.. they do love to hunt them.

A pergola sound lovely, are you planning mostly annual climbing garden producing or thinking Grapes?

I am expanding my strawberry bed, we pulled x amount of pots out of the normal bed which was total gone with the yard shake up and put them in rough for the winter.. this spring, I will need to go back and split them up and replant them all out into their new big bed and rows.

My garden is in...not a lot of enthusiasm this year too many things going on

I still love the raised beds, so little work to weed. I must build more, maybe I can get two more built this year. Progress is incremental. We are going into June and there has been next to nothing for rain. This is becoming the new normal. Planted 30 small spruce.

I think it was 3 days ago and I was up at 5:30- 6 o clock and the temperature on the deck, highest spot on the property read .5 degrees. Could not see frost on anything but still, now today the temp hit 31 degrees...crazy, and no rain to speak of.

OK, so here's the deal and I need advice.
We were looking at fruit and nut trees this year...a real hard look!
However, we will be moving in the next 2 years or so to my MIL's property. We do have access to it now and could have planted this year, but there is noone there full time to keep an eye on things and water them, etc.
In the end, we decided pretty much on what we wanted to plant, and where we wanted to put them on the new property and decided to wait until we are there full time. Problem solved right? NOT!
Last night the kids came home with a bare rooted walnut tree each from school! Great, we were planning on a few walnuts anyways.
The issue is, how do we plant these at the new property now and keep them alive.
We are usually there for a visit once a week, but some sort of automatic watering system seems to be in order.
Any suggestions?

Well, lets see if any of these photos are small enough for uploading, we have been working on redoing the yard and leveling and putting in mixed fruit and herb gardens with annuals intermixed.

The first garden plot 1 is 6 feet wide and 22 feet long, its got a mix of annual flowers to fill in space until the second row of fruit bushes, herbal tea plants and so forth can grow enough to fill that space in.. the rows are seeded out into a mix of things.

The second garden plot 2 is 3 feet wide and only 14 feet long as it back up to the cemented raised strawberry bed (which hosts 54 strawberry plants, its fully planted out with a mix of fruiting bushes, rhubarb plant, and come again herbs and chives and garlic chives, along with some edible violets

The third Garden Plot 3 is 7 feet wide and 22 feet long. It is back planted into fruiting bushes, flowering bushes, spice bushes and more.. the front row is doing into cold crops, including cabbage and so forth.. the second row will be peppers once it finally warms up enough to put them out.

The round garden is just a pretty, no food value but its been done into pollinator drawing plants.

I will try and take photos of Garden Plot 5 and 6 soon as they are done but need to be planted out yet. Plot 9 still needs to be built this year.