Oh sure, the acreage is much less. Only about 120 (square feet). And i don't have the machinery Frank has... And nothing I put in will make me any money or feed any people. But other than that it's the same. No?
Ok, no. I hate yard work. When I moved in here 10 years ago there was some sickly azalea bushes, and a couple of rose bushes that became more sickly under my care on my front exposure. The previous owner were decent landscapers and there are bulbs and all sort of nice plantings in other parts of my yard that are maintenance free, for the most part. But the azaleas got choked with weeds and I was tired of looking at them. I had a landscaper that mows Archie's lawn come and yank them. Mainly because he would then HAUL AWAY the unwanted vegetable matter.
We had a wet spring, but nothing like the Midwest. It was enough to make the dirt patch I had easy to turn over and rake. And it allowed me to plant without any watering, as nature was doing that for me nearly every other day.
So what did I plant? Wildflowers perennials. I'd never bought a see in my entire life, so this is a new thing for me.
Not much to look at yet, but lots of little flowering weeds will be peaking here in a month or so. It'll add some color to my front yard, and the roots will keep the soil in place. And they should be summer drought resistant.
Lessons learned:
I left the sickly rose bushed. If I had it all to do over again I'd just junk them. Also, 3 packets of wild flowers wasn't enough. I planted some Black-Eyed Susans, too, but no luck just yet with them. It's our state flower you know. And will volunteer year after year if you let it.
No fertilizer or mulch or topsoil. I hate yard work, remember? Bare minimum of effort expended.
Next year, I have a unused bed in the back yard. Maybe potatoes? Just to see if I can. And that is really the point of breaking out the shovel. and hoe.
2 comments:
The way this world is going, planting Food might not be a Bad Idea. Lots of stuff can go into the bed still this year, in spite of the Weather.
starting small is key.
if you do vegetables (like tomatoes, etc) next year, i find containers tend to be the easiest, particularly for folks who haven't really done much of that before. they're also not overwhelming in the least, and sometimes require less work (but absolutely require more water).
potatoes you can do in a stack of old tires, and once they're ready for harvest, just kick over the stack. from what i understand they're pretty easy.
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