Regular readers (there are a few) may remember we had to kick the ducks out of the outside pen because a raccoon was ripping the poultry netting and using that space to enter the barn and take a bite out of a different chicken every night. All the birds had one entrance, through the barn, so now everyone stays locked in the barn all night, not a mode the ducks prefer but at least the predation has stopped for now.
So Risa moved several years' accumulation of extremely rich bedding from the pen, found the soil very compacted, tilled the remaining rich dirt, and started a fall garden in July. That might have been a bit early, but you do things things when you can do them; who knew all of our summer heat would come in September?
Here's the pen right before tilling:
Here's the garden growing:
And here's the "greenhouse."
Well, really, just a very kludged lean-to grow tunnel. The budget did not really admit of anything pretty; so Risa spread three odd-shaped pieces of plastic (left over from other jobs) over the poultry netting as best she could, then salvaged boards to attach the bottoms and is holding the whole thing down with salvaged eighteen-gauge wire from around the place. The idea is to keep the family in kale, collards, beets, onions, peas, cabbage, and chard in her absence. These things sometimes make it through the winter here, but sometimes they don't. The polyethylene is insurance.
Also, the cover is intended to have these plants get by on well water instead of rain water. In times like these, that's insurance too. Such as it is.
Those plants must be loving that rich soil! I had the most surreal moment yesterday when I went to collect my mail. Across the street at the house that has stood empty for months, there were about 3 dozen sheep in the yard. I did a double-take, collected my hubby for a gander, and we pondered why the owners would have deposited sheep in a barren yard. Shaggy ones, too, badly in need of shearing.
ReplyDelete'Course my first thought was, "I wonder if they'll produce enough droppings to be worth raking up for the garden?"
To produce droppings, they must eat. Any sign yet that they're providing food/water?
ReplyDeleteThe back and side yards are not visible from the road, so I have no idea. In fact, we haven't seen the sheep today since early morning, so I'm assuming they've moved behind the house (it's on an acre of land). For all we know, the sheep may have been there for some time but not come to the front. I'll have to wait until I run into one of the other neighbors to get the gossip...
ReplyDelete"You do things things when you can do them." That's so very true. Good for you for finding time early for the fall garden rather than late! Your greenhouse looks pretty good to me.
ReplyDeleteTYVM; we'll see when the fifty mile an hour winter winds test it!
ReplyDelete