A little garden of good ideas
Creativity and gardening are a natural match by Stephie McCarthy
A view of the pocket sized, no-mow meadow that we are making to surround the vegetable garden. Edible chicory, lily, and berries are woven into the mix.
1) Bosco the boxer-mix relaxes on straw, a comfortable bed that also suppresses crabgrass; 2) small baby pool corrals herbs and alpine berry containers, and can move later in the season. On scorching days 2 inches of water in the bottom keeps plants hydrated; 3) wood slats salvaged from an old house, plus driftwood branches are being lashed to a wire fence with cable ties to form a rustic boundary around food beds (not quite complete); 4) no-mow perennials, herbs, meadow plants and roses in early stages of project launched last year; 5) recycled wool carpet under the mulch, terraced with wood, makes a low maintenance path through the meadow border; 6) wooden swing frame painted soft green is a trellis for vegetables and also holds hanging baskets. Beneath are row covers protecting potatoes and eggplants from flea and potato beetles.
South-east edge of vegetable bed
1) Soap (Lemon Joy) and water in this bucket for dumping diseased leaves and harmful insects; 2) up-ended container with hole in the bottom covers straw, manure, and shiitake mushroom stems. We made this mini compost set-up just for compostingfresh shiitake stems (we eat a lot of shiitakes). If any of the stems have spores (and I think they might) I'm hoping they will seed here. 3) transplanted runners from our best strawberries; 4) Chiogga (bulls-eye) beets and edible tops; 5) detroit beets below, malabar spinach, Juliette tomatoes vines climb a green-painted swing set and drift wood frame. Italian parsley, spearmint, and violets in the shade beneath. The double metal swingset took just one hour to paint with a sponge brush, garden green.
Companion corner
1) These sunflowers grew from raw, hulled, grocery-store seeds which we sprouted. 2) first batch of basil ready to pick before flowering; 3) sage, chard, dill, lacinato kale, and volunteer mini-pumpkin growing in a lovely natural jumble.
goddess designs
Apple Goddess design is available on fine stationery products from 123Print. See the harvest card collection here.
garden talk
