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!!!

In ground or raised bed gardening? Which is right for me?

    When planting your garden you have the choices of doing an in ground, raised bed or potted. With in ground gardening you will be tilling up the ground and mixing in compost, humus and additional additives depending on what type of soil you have to achieve the best soil to plant your garden. This option is a good option if you have lots of space and a decent soil type already in place. With in ground gardens your seeds will tend to germinate a little later due to the slower warming of the soil. Weeds can be a bit of a problem if not carefully weeded and rabbits or other critters can easily walk into the garden for a free buffet.
    The next choice is gardening with a raised bed system. With this method you build a wooden box on top of the area you will be gardening and fill it with a good base soil/top soil, humus and manure (do not use manure from meat eating animals) to create the perfect soil bed for your garden. I would recommend laying some landscape barrier material down and then building your boxes on top. this will slow the intrusion of weeds while still allowing good drainage. Do not build the beds any wider than 3'. This is so you may reach to the middle of the beds with out having to step in them, thus limiting soil compaction. Limiting compacting the soil will allow the beds to breath and root system to spread out. This also makes weeding a snap. Raised bed gardens tend to warm up quicker meaning your garden can be planted slightly sooner allowing you to get a jump on the growing season. This also means of course that they will dry out a little sooner so keep an eye on soil moisture and water deeply as needed.
    The last choice is potted gardening. A perfect option for those living in apartments or very limited space. These are easy to set up and can be moved indoors to extend the season or save from a late or early frost. You want to make sure you select a size pot for the plant to grow into. Soil selection would be that of a potting mix. Look for a vegetable potting mix versus a flower mix because you don't want to be eating all those extra chemicals. I prefer an organic vegetable potting mix from scotts. Lastly one important thing to remember with potted gardens is that they dry out quickly so always remember to watch the soil moisture and water as needed.

Happy Homesteading!!!!

What is homesteading?

Homesteading is a way of living simpler and going back to the land. Adopting a sustainable and self sufficient way of life. This can be achieved by many ways and is up to you as to how far you would like to take it. You may be trying to save energy, therefore lowering your electric bills. Growing your own foods (vegetables, fruits, berries, grains), or even can involve live stock (chickens, pigs, sheep, goats, milk cow, or cattle for beef). It's up to you as to how far you want to go, but keep in mind if you live in the city as I do you will have city codes and regulations to abide by. As for me my city does not allow any fowl (birds), so no chickens for me yet.

If homesteading is new to you it is important to start small and learn to manage what you have before going large scale. You could become overwhelmed and loose everything invested. So start small and look at adding 1 or 2 things to each growing season as long as you are able to manage what you have.

Happy Homesteading!!!

Welcome to the Backyard Homestead

Thank you for taking the time to visit, as you can see this is a new blog and I hope that you will return as I believe this will be an informative and exciting place for all of us.