Cohutt builds a garden, Chapter 2

[cohutt]

This evening after work I put the season's second direct sowing of seeds out - 4 squares or 64 each of St Valery & Dragon carrots from SSE-
Last Sunday I put 3 types of spinach in, a total of 10 squares or 90 plants (assuming the sprout). 

It is finally beginning to feel like spring is coming. These plantings compliment what is already in having overwintered successfully- 9 squares of lettuce, 5 of Spartan's gifted garlic, and 6 of Bloomsdale spinach that has come back to life. 

A minute ago I couldn't help messing with the light set up some more to see how it cood hone in on one flat of plants, so the lettuce seedlings that are up are currently soaking it in:

[KnoxMan]

Hey cohutt. the set up looks great .... the only thing that troubles me is that I believe that you usually put garlic out in the fall . Sometime around September ... I could be totally wrong .... might want to check into it .... Just trying to help out ...

[cohutt]

True dat Knox. 

It must have been lost in the grammar, but all this was planted last fall 

These plantings compliment what is already in having overwintered successfully- 9 squares of lettuce, 5 of Spartan's gifted garlic, and 6 of Bloomsdale spinach that has come back to life. 

[pappabear]

Cohutt... ur lettuce looks great.  When do I get my invite for a salad?   

Pappa Bear

[jawjaboy]

Looking good C.

That roll of tape looks very familiar.

[KnoxMan]

Sorry . I must have been skimming again ..... I do that when I am in a hurry ...... and with a 2 year old , I am always in a hurry LOL..... Looks great man .

[cohutt]

Looking good C.

That roll of tape looks very familiar.

it should.

[cohutt]

pretty day here.
got some stuff done

the only thing documented was some more soil mixing slowly filling the mega-beds before planting next month.

I lay the tarp over the bed then layer the compost, vermiculite and peat on it.  To mix it up really well it only takes a couple rolls of the tarp. the mix always looks light colored due to the dry vermiculite and peat; after it rains the color changes to a nice dark potting soil look.

This was early on and by the time i quit I had all the beds to 8" deep or so. I may go a little further but this will do it I can't.



after:



I managed to mix almost 25 cf of it today. This doesn't sound like a lot until you do it, but it gets old.

I also chainsawed some stuff for a neighbor and moved a bunch of brush and limbs to the curb.

[pappabear]

sounds like a fun day cohutt, had to mostly get running done with Momma, so I didn't get much done.

Pappa Bear

[Crispy Critter]

The fence and beds look fantastic, Cohutt. I can tell you really enjoy your work.

Thanks for the tip on mixing large volumes of soil using a tarp, I'll be using that method later in the spring.

[nimzy88]

Cohutt thats a great tip for mixing soil, I mixed mine to day, and it being my first sfg I had already put the twine across the box before the soil so I ended up mixing the soil by hand on a tarp next to it and then dumping bucketfuls into the sf box.
I was also happy to see you mention the soil will get darker with some water. I was a little worried that I put to much vermiculite in the mix as it looked really light compared to regular potting soil.
Great job and thanks for letting us learn with you.
Nimzy

[cohutt]

Great nimzy, glad you are taking the plunge.  Mel's SFG book has lots of pictures on tarp mixing; made sense to me after I tried a bed by hand last year. 

[Crispy Critter]

Chapter 2 has begun

It rained here today, so I was able to spend more time on the forum reading. I finally made the time to read "Cohutt builds a garden, Chapter 1" from beginning to end.

I laughed out loud at some of the banter between you and commenters     (and your "Shazam!" comment still has me laughing  ...goober peas!)
I cried at the windstorm damage and was disgusted by the Dog Vomit Slime Mold  )

I felt your pain and your joy as I read each entry.

Now, I have a better idea of how to integrate my rain barrels into this year's rainwater harvesting project. I have a similar run and grade to my garden patch and also have been wanting to extend my potable, pressurized line to the same area.

I will be on the lookout for one of those Weed Wrenches...the native mesquite here in central Texas is a tough, repeat, unwanted customer on my property...at least the deep-rooted ones are. I will likely have my neighbor with mad welding skills fabricate a "grubber" of some sort...this will be the concept I take to him.

After seeing pictures of your carpentry jigs, and the way you work, I have to say that I would loan you my tools any day of the week. (High praise, and you know it.  )

The trellis netting is something I will incorporate this year.

Finally, seeing pictures of your lush veggie garden from last summer has given me a much needed kick in the pants to broaden my horizons even further.

Thanks for opening up your world to us, Cohutt. The word 'inspirational' is not quite powerful enough, but it will suffice for now. You certainly imparted volumes of experience, research and knowledge in that excellent thread. +1

[CenTexPrep]

...the native mesquite here in central Texas is a tough...

Where abouts in central TX.

Georgetown here

[cohutt]

Crispy Critter,

I wondered where Karma #50 came from .

Seriously, that's all very kind of you to say.

When I started I really had no idea; I still don't know exactly where it will lead but I do know I'm not there yet. 

[Crispy Critter]

Where abouts in central TX.

Georgetown here

The closest town between us is Lockhart. I'm in the northern tip of Gonzales county, in the southern section of the Texas Post Oak Belt. That means I've got native oaks and pines and rolling topography...at least a 2-acre slice of it.

[cohutt]

Strawberry pyramid ??

I came up with this idea last night as I was dozing off and actually remembered it today.

The center bed of last year's project is 4x4 and I always figured I could do something a little different with it and figured some sort of strawberry pyramid might work.  

I put some Pythagorean brain cells on the idea and came up with the dimensions to cascade each square 45 degrees off from the one below it.   The scrap came from the fence project, tonight cut it to length+ then ripped it all to 2 1/2".  

I stacked it roughly where it would be and asked Mrs C for an opinion.  She said "cool, when can I pick strawberries?", so it is officially a "go" now.

Crackberry picture is phuzzy but it was what I had before I moved the wood out of tonight's approaching rain and ate some dinner.   The existing bed kind of disappeared into the dark; hopefully you get the idea.

[fritz_monroe]

Looks good.  I have a strawberry pyramid coming.  I didn't even think about building it myself.  Good show.

[Roswell]

Very nice sir. That is going to look awesome when they are in full bloom.

[CenTexPrep]

I was planning on putting a pyramid in the center of my raised beds.  Now I'm doing that!  Wife loves it too.  Thanks.

I feel I should be paying Cohutt a consulting fee for all the great info over the last year

[cohutt]

Cash or precious metals only please.






6 inches of rain here since bedtime last night.

It made for some cool plump lettuce for dinner tonight.  (I'm still just clipping the bottom leaves off of the 3x3 grid I planted last October. )



The speckled leaves might look a little spoiled or something in the light, but it is just speckled Romaine ( "Forellenschuss" from SSE)

[CenTexPrep]

Do you accept prepaid phone cards? 

[buddha]

you're making me hungry, cohutt.  looks delicious!

[cohutt]

The rain stopped this afternoon.  

This evening I felt productive and made 2 more beds.  

One is 3x3' and was made from the leftover 2x12" I had.  Potatoes maybe?

The other is the first of maybe 3 I plan to build this size - 2x8'.  These are for pole beans; I have an idea for trellissing and narrower beds work better.  Pictures to follow this summer.

[DeltaEchoVictor]

That's good stuff Cohutt.

Very inspirational & I should have stickied these threads ages ago.  

[OKGranny]

I have read all of chapter 1 and now am caught up on chapter 2. It looks wonderful and so productive but totally exhausting to even contemplate that much work. Of course I'm nearly a decade older and definitely out of shape so maybe that 'splains it. I love the looks of you BOL too, it's going to be awesome.

[cohutt]

Thanks OKgranny, it has been more than I intended on- I'll slow down pretty soon and enjoy the "fruits and vegetables of my labor".


Yesterday I got the lettuce seedlings into the garden, then made the finish cuts on the strawberry pyramid and got each layer screwed together. 
In the afternoon I made the trip to the mountains to repair the pump plumbing; i had to go back into town to get a part (watch male vs female and vice versa when dealing with threaded pvc lol) then it took forever to get the old pvc threaded section out of the brass valave threads.  I had to scribe the brass threads with a framing nail several times to partially repair the damage to the threads where I cut the pvc out too.   Eventually i got it repaired but I had to soften the new male pvc threads with some pvc cement to get it to thread.

While I was letting the repairs cure some before testing I attacked part of the overgrown grape trellis - underneath I found several  "vinezillas" that out to produce this year once i finish the pruning and touch up the training a bit.  Sorry for the quality- it was raining and almost dusk when i took these with my crackberry.

The queen of the vines, bigger around than my forearm 3 ft off the ground:



others

[digitalartranch]

vinezillas....

yeah those should produce!!!

[Hare of Caerbannog]

wow
I bet those vines were producing even before that cabin was built.

[cohutt]

I staiined the parts to the strawberry pyramid this morning then put it in this afternoon.

Easy on the back painting hanger:



El Cheapo Cohutt removed the mix from the center of the bed (in wheelbarrow in background) and then tacked old bricks and rocks in a pile underneath the pyramid so I wouldn't waste a bunch more Mel's mix






I filled it back with the excavated mix and still needed to to add a partial wheelbarrow more to get it level. I soaked it after the picture and lit settled a good bit so I'll add more and repeat this week before I plant next weekend.