Back to Eden Method

Well a good friend of ours shared this link with us and I think it is a really great concept for gardening, so much so that my wife and I added a 15'x25' bed this past week end and will be trying it out! 
As far as our old beds we now have our 49sq. ft. herb garden that survived the almost non existent winter, 4 beef steak tomato plants, 2 cherry tomato plants, 2 black berry plants, 2 blue berry plants, 2 raspberry plants and bell peppers. We planted a peach tree, apple tree, lemon tree, lime tree and satsuma orange tree!! Yum! All of the tree varieties we planted are self fertile varieties which means we do not have to worry about pollination of buds to produce fruit. All of this in the city!! and we haven't even planted in the new bed yet. The list for the new bed is not completed yet, but it will have watermelon, beans, onions, potatoes,  corn, squash and more!! 


So check it out. Do make sure you have a good 1 1/2hrs or 2 as this is a free full feature documentary film. http://www.backtoedenfilm.com/

Happy Homesteading!!

Spread the Word!!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and that time was well spent with your family's and memories created for your little ones. I know it's been a while since I last posted, and apologize. I have been very busy around the house and work as most of you have I'm sure. I did want to take this moment to just encourage ya'll during these winter months. This is a great time to plan your spring gardens. You can add new beds, take out the dead plants, weed your beds. replace any wood in your raised beds that may have suffered any rot. Also plan and install rain barrels, compost bins, order seeds the list goes on and on!! I would encourage you to pick up a copy of the 2012 Farmers Almanac also as a good guide to what days are good for certain jobs around the homestead. Lastly, if you are enjoying the rewards of what you are sowing in the back yard then spread the word and encourage your family, friends and co workers to get out there and get their hands dirty! Home Grown just tastes better!!

Happy Homesteading!!

Where's the rain?

Well, it sure has been one hot and Dry summer!! My water bill has doubled compared to last year! (ouch) Well part of trying to homestead is saving money and making your dollar stretch as far as possible and how am I supposed to do that doubling my water bill right? Well, as much as some of us may hate change theres a time and place for change to be a positive and comfortable adjustment, and thats exactly what I'm doing. Doing what you ask? Collecting rain water!! Why not, it's free!! I picked up 3- 55 gallon food grade plastic barrels for $15 each (craigslist), and plan on building my own 165 gallon water collection system for my garden irrigation!! I'll post the pics when its finished.

Happy Homesteading

Shake them tomato plants!

Did I just say shake your tomato plants? Believe it or not shaking your tomato plants daily can help to increase the pollination, therefore resulting in more fruit output from your tomato plants. Tomato plants are self pollinating so if you have been having a low output from your plants give em a shake.

Happy Homesteading!!

Building your raised bed garden.

So you've decided to garden using a raised bed garden box! Congratulations, it is well worth it. The very first step in this project is to decide whether you want to build it or buy it, and how large. Keep in mind that you do not want to go any wider than 3'-4'. This is so that you may still weed the beds, trim the plants and harvest the vegetables without having to step into these beds. This will prevent the soil from compacting. You can make the beds as long as you like 3'x3', 4'x6', 3'x9' and so on. It is a good idea to monitor the amount of sunlight in the area of the yard you plan on building the raised bed garden box. Vegetables like sunlight and need proper amounts of direct sunlight to grow and produce good harvests. I chose to use some twine and stakes. I measured and staked the corners of where my raised garden box would be, and used twine to mark the perimeter around to form the outline. Over the next day I looked at the area to record the amount of sunlight that cast into the box. I was achieving 10+ hours!! Next outline the area using a can of orange spray paint. If you have a level yard chances are you can build the box directly on top of the area. My yard on the other hand slopes, so I decided to build mine partially buried so that the end result was a level garden box. It is very important to have a level garden box or your plants can suffer from water running to one side and leaving the other side dry. If your yard is level lay out some landscape weed blocker material inside the marked area to help slow any weeds or grass from growing up into your garden. It won’t eliminate it, but you will see noticeably less. Next decide what materials you will be using to build your box. (if you bought a kit, then go ahead and assemble in area). I used white pine boards from my local Home Depot. For those of you that know wood I know this is not the best choice, but was what I could spend at the time. My top choice would have been to use cedar due to it outstanding slow rate of rotting. The gentleman that was at Home Depot tried to sell me pressure treated decking boards. He said that they will last 10x longer. This is NOT a good idea, over time the chemicals used in pressure treated wood seeps into the soil and is very toxic. Your plants will be in that soil!

            So once you have decided where to build and what material you will be using, you need to figure out how much material you will need. If you are building a 3’x6’ bed you will need 18’ of material. If you are going to build up 2 levels high as I did, then you will need 36’ of material. The higher you build up allows you to not have to bend over as far to weed the beds and care for plants. I used deck screws as these do not rust. I also bought some metal tie straps to attach the second level of the box to the first level.  If building on top of the ground then you have what you need to begin assembling. If your yard is sloping we have a little ways to go.

         If you are going to level the area before building I recommend using my technique. I rented a tiller from Home Depot and tilled the entire area that the box would be. Removing the grass and roots. Next I dug a trench around the perimeter of box to lay my 1^st level in. I bought 2”x12” for the first layer knowing that a lot of the board would be buried. Build the first level of the raised garden box in the trench. Use a 4’ level and level each board as you begin assembling making certain that box is level all around. You can use a hammer and block of wood to tap on boards to level. When screwing the boards together drill a pilot hole for the screws slightly smaller than threads to make it easier to screw together. You will also want to check that corners are square (90 Degrees).   Next assemble 2^nd level of box on top of 1^st level. Attach to 1^st using the metal tie straps. Fill around the outside parameter of the box with the dirt that was dug out. Next you will be filling the box with good garden soil, humus and manure for the perfect blend of soil for your garden. I bought 40lbs bags and mixed in the box as I added bags.  Lastly plant your seeds or plants, fertilize and add a good layer of mulch and water deeply. Congratulations on a job well done!!

Happy Homesteading!!!

Independence Day Weekend 2011!!!!!!!!

Well the 2011 year is half way over and Independence weekend is here!! It is important to remember the meaning of this day. This is the celebration of Who We Are!! Commemorating the adoption of the  Declaration of Independence July 4, 1776 declaring our independence from Great Britain. This is America's birthday.

Happy Birthday America!!!
235 years of freedom!

So which did I choose you ask?

I chose to use the raised bed and potted plant garden methods. I built 1 6x7' box for my kitchen herb garden, this gave me 42 sq ft of garden space to use for herbs!! I would recommend not going any wider than 3' for ease of reaching the middle, but with the herbs it did work well. In the herb garden I planted dill, fennel, rosemary, chive, oregano, basil 2 types, thyme, sage chamomile and lavender. I'm happy to say that I have saved quite a bit of money not having to buy these herbs and they have performed quite well this season in the DFW area!! Do be aware that with the fennel and dill you will only need 1 plant of these. I planted 2 and swear they grow about 1 foot a day, so be careful they will take over.

On the other 2 raised beds I built them 3x8' each and planted a total of 6 tomato plants. Yup, I said 6!! I planted 2 sweet 100 cherry tomato plants. These are a low acidity higher sugar content tomato. I am harvesting like 10-15 ripe and ready a day, and they produce rather quickly!! I also planted 3 San Marzano tomato plants. These are of the plumb shaped, like Roma tomatoes and are supposedly considered the best paste tomatoes in the world. I agree! and they are producing well also. have been picking these and blanching to make some homemade pasta sauces! I do want to let you know that the birds have also become quite fond of these also, so you will need to put up some netting to keep the winged bandits at bay. The last of the tomatoes planted was a Mr Stripey tomato plant. This is a larger tomato, a beef steak type and makes a good slicer. When fully ripe they are supposed to have a sweet and mild taste. The fruit size can range between 6-24oz!! This plant was planted a little later than the rest and has taken off in the last month. Still waiting for this to produce, but I'm sure I will not be disappointed.

The last plants I decided to plant into pots. I planted 6 sequoia strawberries in a half wine barrel. The few strawberries that we were able to eat (darn birds) were excellent. I plan on putting up a netting this weekend. There is some debate as to wether these are ever bearing or not, so I will just have to wait and see. I also planted one green bell pepper plant and 1 jalapeno plant each in their own pot. Make sure you have a support stake in the pot for the jalapeno plant. Mine is producing so fast it laid all the way over on it's side with all the peppers!! I also planted 1 spearmint and 1 peppermint plant in their own pots!!

Over all I am well pleased with this first growing season and am looking forward to the cool season and all of the delicious things to come. It's hard to beat stepping out the back door to get fresh ingredients, and the taste of adding the fresh herbs is amazing! Food has never tasted so good, and I grew it myself!

Happy Homesteading!!!