Garden Update
Greetings All!! Today I’ll be giving an update on my garden, what I’m growing this season, things I’ve encountered and what I did to fix them. I will link some specific products that I use, as I am an Amazon Associate. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a commission from qualifying purchases.
First, let’s talk about what I’m growing. I am a container gardener as I live in an area where the soil has some questionable properties. So I chose to use containers. I use 5 gallon grow bags. I also want to note that my garden is on the uncovered portion of my patio, since it gets the most sun during the day. For my growing medium, I use 10lb coco coir block with added perlite, worm castings and compost. I get my perlite, worm castings and compost from Menards. I am actually making my own compost for the first time and it has been an experience! I started out in a small bucket because I said I wasn’t going to make a lot. I just wanted to see if I could do it and what the process was like. Needless to say, I have upgraded from a small 3-gallon bucket to an 18-gallon container. I can see the contents starting to break down. I just have to remember to keep the contents of green and brown matter balanced.
What am I growing? I started my garden officially on April 20th. I started some of my seeds outside and some of my seeds inside. I moved my seeds that I started indoors outside today. I am growing the following fruits and vegetables:
- Tomatoes
- Strawberries (bare root)
- Watermelon
- Cantaloupe
- Onions
- Carrots
- Lettuce
- Spinach
- Cucumbers
- Green Beans
- Sweet Corn
- Bell Peppers
I also added some flowers to attract pollinators such as butterflies and bees. I have Marigolds, Wildflower Pollinator Blend which has several different types of flowers and Nasturtiums.
Being in growing zone 7a, we experienced some unexpected nights with frost and low temperatures, which caused a delay in my plants sprouting. Nevertheless, they eventually did. So even though the seeds were started on April 20th, they’ve only had about 5-6 weeks of optimal growing weather. In that short amount of time, I have managed to harvest some strawberries, carrots, lettuce, spinach and green beans. The harvests were small, but my next harvest will be bigger. Everything is growing at a great rate. This is the biggest my garden has ever been and I’m super excited!
As far as issues I’ve encountered, there have been two. The first is bugs! I started noticing holes in my leaves, especially my strawberries and cucumbers. I am going for organic gardening, so I didn’t want to buy any chemicals to spray on my fruits and vegetables. I wanted something natural, so I took to Pinterest to find a natural pest solution. I found several recipes for sprays, and I had to do some extra research to ensure that they were safe for all my plants. One that I found that was pretty straightforward in addition to non-harsh ingredients was one that consisted of water, vinegar (white or apple cider) and dish soap. Once mixed, simply spray on the leaves of the plants. In my opinion, this only worked for certain garden pests. Another one I found used water and turmeric. Again once mixed, simply spray on plant leaves and/or soil around the plants. I had the same outcome with this spray.
I finally went to Menards and looked for something organic for garden pest control. After reading several labels, I found the following, Maggie’s Farm 3-in-1 Garden Spray, which uses natural ingredients such as essential oils to deter unwanted visitors. There are no harsh chemicals in the ingredients list. In addition, it has essential oils that certain common garden pests despise such as peppermint, thyme and cinnamon oil. I have also adapted to adding things such as citrus peels in my garden to further deter the pests. The great thing about this spray is that it doesn’t deter the pollinators such as bees that are needed.
I have also started using sticky traps that stick directly down in the soil and attract undesirable bugs. So far they have been working, but of course they don’t catch them all. I have added some additional plants that deter certain bugs such as lavender and lemon grass. I am trying to find some citronella plants to add to the barrier I have already created.
I have also added a fine mesh netting to assist with keeping out certain other invaders, which leads me to my second issue I’ve encountered. Something had been stealing and eating my strawberries. It was either my backyard bunnies or squirrels or it could have been the neighborhood cats or possums. I had to put up fencing around my garden in order to stop them from visiting and snacking. Since my garden is on the uncovered part of my patio, I couldn’t put up the type of fence that I wanted, which is an iron/metal fence with a door that is inserted in the ground. I chose to go with a plastic ¾ inch mesh fence to surround my garden.
With all the barriers I’m using, I think I have a good handle on the pest situation so I can focus on my fruits and vegetables and make sure they are growing. Given that I am using grow bags, they tend to dry out faster than in ground growing or raised garden beds. The temperatures over the last few weeks has ranged from 80-90 degrees, so I do daily soil checks to make sure the soil isn’t getting overly dry. In addition to warm temperatures, we have had a considerable amount of rain, which has decreased the amount of watering I have done. In the periods where we don’t have constant rain, I have added water globes to my plants to add water during the day is the soil should become dry.
One thing that I’ve had to focus on is making sure that my fruits and vegetables are getting all the nutrients they need. Compost was added to my soil when I first planted everything, but over time with the plants absorbing the nutrients, watering and the rain, the nutrients are being depleted. I make sure to add some type of organic matter to my plants every 2-3 weeks in the form of a liquid. Most of the fertilizers/food that I make need to sit for 24-48 hours before feeding and are all easy to make. I make sure that they are full of nutrients that are needed. The ingredients are all things that I had around the house which makes it even better. It is also important to add things that overall help the soil structure. I have used the following liquids in my garden:
- Yeast fertilizer – made with yeast, brown sugar and water, mixed in 5 gallon bucket, and diluted before using. Helps improve the soil structure in addition to providing a quick boost to plants that may be growing experiencing stunted growth.
- Quick compost tea – made with food waste, composted manure and worm castings. Ingredients are combined in a nut milk bag and steeped like a tea bag in water inside of a 5-gallon bucket. Provides nutrients directly to the roots of the plants for quick absorption.
In the future, I plan to use other liquid fertilizers such as Epsom salt mix for tomato and pepper plants, water from soaked banana peels and diluted milk.
I am seeing growth on all my plants and with continued consistency with pest control, watering, fertilizing, pruning and succession planting, my garden will continue to thrive and provide fresh fruits and vegetables for my family.
Of course I’m already planning for my fall/winter garden. I’ll be starting those seeds indoors in mid to late July to be transplanted outside end of August to early September. I am going to try to plant my last round of cucumbers late in July as well to get an end of season harvest. I am using my Garden Planners from my shop and they are helping out with every step! Check them out:
Add comment
Comments