Art Design 4 Garden

Fence

Our plan for the weekend is to get a fence up around my new garden. (Hopefully we can do this in between the rain drops!) For now, well put a simple metal fence around half of the beds. I think well go with a 5 or 6 ft fence. We have lots of deer, so the main purpose of the fence is to keep them out. We also have raccoons and rabbits that Id rather not share my vegetables with.

At the community garden I manage, we talk a lot about fencing. Our recommendation there is 4 or 5 foot metal fencing, with wood or metal posts. We like the 1 inch grid, stainless fence with a 12 inch layer of chicken wire or poultry cloth at the bottom, 6 inches dug in and 6 inches above ground. The tall fence protects against human theft, the dug in wire protects against woodchucks and rabbits. We dislike any type of plastic fencing as its not a sustainable option. Plastic is damaged by mowers and gets scattered in the local environment. While a little bit here and there seems innocuous now, plastic is forever. If we let it accumulate, it wont be pretty later. Our main criterion for fencing recommendation is that they are safe for gardeners using the paths. Secondary concerns are esthetic and environmental issues.

With my new home fence, Ill avoid plastic. Metal is more functional and long lasting. Over the long term, it degrades into an innocuous form and is a more sustainable choice.

Soil

We have a fantastic community farm near us and Ive discovered they are a source for not only CSA meats, eggs and vegetables, but also for organic aged manure compost. Our plan to fill the new raised beds is to bring in local loam to fill beds within a couple inches of the top, then top off with local compost. Ill vary the amount of compost according to what I plan to plant: 1 inch of compost for root beds, 2 inches in beds for greens, at least 3-4 inches in beds for tomatoes, peppers, squashes, cucumbers and corn. I ordered a loam delivery for midweek, but well start bringing in compost this weekend.

Fruit trees

I have specific varieties of fruit trees Id like to grow: Honey Crisp and Golden Grimes apples, Contender peach and a pie cherry. It will be fun to see what we can find in local nurseries this weekend.

Planting

I have seed potatoes to go in this weekend. Yukon Gold, Kennebec Red, Burbank Russet, and Adironac Blues. Also, Id like to transplant seedlings of lettuce and other greens. Its time to start seeds indoors for pumpkins and winter squashes.

Im a bit behind (we had a medium hard frost overnight), but Im ready to put plastic over bamboo and river cane supports to create low hoop tunnels. 

Arundinaria gigantea is one of our native bamboos in the SE US, and its young canes make lovely supports, as theyre flexible and an attractive purple green color.

river cane hoops ready for protection

But young canes of Asian bamboo (overly robust where planted around here), work well too. 

When green, theyre flexible, and have the advantage over PVC pipe of being sustainable (that is, biodegradable) and attractive.

Transforming lawns to a vibrant wildlife habitats, growing vegetables, and carefully tending our patches of land are sustaining activities, ones that ground me in what I can do, and away from worrying about the difficult environmental times that face us.

My work (as a garden educator) is also encouraging: I help folks learn how to be better stewards by being better gardeners, promoting native plants and restoring wildlife habitats, and am definitely an encouraging voice about growing more vegetables and fruits in the open spaces (lawn or not) that many Americans have access to, whether on their own property or not.

I love the idea of guerrilla gardening - planting plants where they should be, but arent! These are the curbside planting areas, empty hell strips between sidewalks and roads, and barren parking lot edges.

Gardening and stewardship provides hope, for restoration of both native and created garden space. At least thats what true for me.

I like to encourage folks to keep their gardening manageable and focused on what they enjoy (in programs at the botanical garden where I work).  But plants grow, reproduce, and need editing, and its not always easy.

In our acre and half in the Piedmont, Im finding myself doing more heavy-lifting tasks than Id like (with my gardening companion doing field work in the mountains).  Hmm, I guess I havent appreciated how important mowing and weed-whacking have been to keeping even our natural garden in shape.  Yuck -- not pleasant gardening tasks, and weed-whacking has produced a small back strain.  Phooee.

I worry about NOT having enough gardening to do in the mountains, when we eventually decamp to our small house and garden there (hey, theres plenty of gardening work to be done in local community gardens, etc.)  But its hard not to appreciate what having a smaller gardening footprint means.  There are other things to do, after all.

At Chau Ram County Park (with camera and binoculars)

In a mild winter climate, theres not much excuse for retreating indoors at the first sign of gloom. 

OK, Im as susceptible as the next normal Southern U.S. gardener to whine when we have long dark rainy days for more than two days in a row.  Hmm, are we wimpy, or what?

But what our long seasons mean is that we can grow winter vegetables (some with a bit of protection) quite well, and that we can have winter interest in our gardens from berries, bark, seed heads, dried foliage, etc. that continue our gardening season through the winter and beyond.

I was reminded of this today by an excellent article by Piet Oudolf in Fine Gardenings regular e-mail. 

In the long winter days in the Netherlands, he relies on many of our North American natives for winter interest in perennial borders.  He includes plants whose fruits, seedheads, or berries are interesting to look at throughout winter.  Totally wonderful.