Urban Farming Gains Popularity
Growing tomatoes, cucumbers and even peppers has been a past time for many American families. In recent years however the idea of a few plants for that "fresh homegrown taste" has taken an enormous turn toward year round gardens designed to not only feed the family but make a move away from pesticides and chemicals.
One of my many chores as a youngster was to dig the annual holes for Dad's "garden". We regularly planted three or four tomato plants, at least one cucumber and both bell and hot peppers. The garden was planted along the wall of the carport side of the house. Dad's idea of "crop rotation" was to simply dig next year's holes in between the previous year's holes. When digging the holes we would hit good ole Georgia red clay about an inch and a half down. To fix this we took the little red wagon down the dead end street where the woods started and found areas with rich black dirt to use in the planting process. When it came to gardening we kept things pretty simple.
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| PESTO TIME! |
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| The start of a new garden |
Whether starting from small plants from the local gardening store or from seeds we no longer just dig holes in the ground. Seeds are started in homemade green houses, replanted into pots; and raised garden beds are built in lieu of holes in the ground. Soil has been purchased to fill the gardens and food scraps are composted in a fancy compost barrel. Yes, the family garden has definitely taken a more technical approach.
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| Compost Barrel, making rich soil |
Composting is a great way to lessen the amount of garbage. You don't have to spend a lot of money on a fancy barrel but it does help eliminate some of the critter issues. Though a rat did naw it's way in through the wire covering the air hole. I recommend a thicker wire screen from the start. If you have a large amount of yard debris to compost simply build an area off to the side of your yard to churn it all up. Over time add some of that with your food compost and you'll save a small fortune vs. buying compost from the garden store.
Toby's Christmas Present:
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| 10+ foot tall cherry tomato plants |
Two pallets worth of landscape blocks, a few hundred pounds of dirt, some wire mesh (to keep the moles out), and your in business. One pallet will build one 15ft by 4 ft garden bed with two blocks left over. Couple of reasons for the blocks; wood rots, termites (previous year's bed eaten in less than a year), just plain general maintenance; concrete doesn't rot and bugs don't eat it. I have however, seen some great wooden raised beds, usually old beams or other recycled pieces of lumber.
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| Basil, Cherry Tomatoes, Scallions, Beans, other Herbs |
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| Basil at its best |
Yes, the one garden bed was short some dirt, hence everything was still in pots.
As summer wore on, hottest in Savannah since 18_something, the tomato plants took a beating with the heat. Note for future gardens, plan ahead with stakes to tie up the rapidly growing plants. The tomato plants grew so fast I was unable to stay on top of keeping them from getting tangled together.
Regardless of what approach you choose to take gardening can be a lot of fun....and a royal pain if you bite off more than you can chew. Be sure to keep in mind how much you will actually use and what you might be able to give to neighbors. Cost is certainly an issue as you begin to expand. Just getting the beds built or enough dirt can make this actually cost more than buying vegetables at the grocery. Over time though the cost will balance out. Enjoy and happy gardening.
as always,
bkd
"The best way to garden is to put on a wide-brimmed straw hat and some old clothes. And with a hoe in one hand and a cold drink in the other, tell somebody else where to dig."
- Texas Bix Bender, Don't Throw in the Trowel
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Regardless of what approach you choose to take gardening can be a lot of fun....and a royal pain if you bite off more than you can chew. Be sure to keep in mind how much you will actually use and what you might be able to give to neighbors. Cost is certainly an issue as you begin to expand. Just getting the beds built or enough dirt can make this actually cost more than buying vegetables at the grocery. Over time though the cost will balance out. Enjoy and happy gardening.
as always,
bkd
"The best way to garden is to put on a wide-brimmed straw hat and some old clothes. And with a hoe in one hand and a cold drink in the other, tell somebody else where to dig."
- Texas Bix Bender, Don't Throw in the Trowel
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