How to Build a Chicken Tractor

by Patti Moreno
Read the original article

Why is it called a chicken tractor? I’ll tell you why  – A chicken tractor is kind of like a  tractor in that it’s a movable structure that’s easily moved around in your garden allowing you to choose which areas of the garden need fertilizing and/or cleaning up. A chicken tractor works similarly to an electric tractor is that it goes where work needs to be done.

Chickens are awesome at cultivating soil with their sharp-clawed feet and while they’re at it, they are also feasting on everything green and catching bugs and leaving deposits of their nitrogen-rich manure. The digging and scratching action will incorporate rich manure into the soil, making the soil perfect for plant growing.

The most light weight and efficient chicken tractor is made from a wood frame with chicken wire around the sides and the top to allow for freedom of movement and fresh air to come in. Never put mesh wire on the bottom of the tractor because the chickens need unobstructed access to the soil. I always suggest adding doors for easy access to feeding as well as moving the chickens in and out. You will see that I have added a tarp to the top of the tractor which will provide shade.   In the video, I show you how to make my version of a chicken tractor that fits into a raised bed.  I house my chickens on the raised bed once all of the vegetables have been harvested for the year.  They live on the raised bed for about 1 month then I move them to another raised bed in my garden.  The raised bed that the chickens were in is allowed to lay fallow for 3 months then it’s ready for planting.
All you’ll need to build my style chicken tractor is lumber, 19 gauge Hardware cloth, screws, washers, a tarp, a hand saw or chop saw and a screw gun!

Getting Started: The Basics

You can do this! Building your own raised bed is a somewhat ambitious project, but it is very doable and if I can do it, anyone can! Spend the next 20 minutes with me and I will show you step-by-step how to build a chicken tractor from scratch (pardon the pun). You can build your own lightweight tractor so that one person, like you, can easily move it around the garden.

The lumber that I use is 2×3 untreated pine wood.  Pre-drilling holes before you begin to assemble the cage helps to prevent the wood from splitting and makes screwing the wood together easier. I recommend that you start to assemble the back of the cage first. You would use the same type of screws that you used building your raised bed. In addition to the 2X3 pieces of wood, you will also need some strapping pieces which are very thin pieces, that you will see, provide the “seams” of structure. Once you have established the overall shape and dimensions for the tractor you could start to assemble the doors and just set them aside.  Watch me.

• Measure the inside of the raised bed so that your chicken tractor will fit into it
• Pre-drill your holes so it is easier when you are putting it together and to prevent splitting
• Lay out all of your pieces on the ground so you can see the dimensions of what you are building
• Measure the sides to know where you will put your door. (I recommend a front door and a side door – more on that later)
• Never use pressure treated wood when animals are involved. Animals tend to chew on wood and you don’t want them to ever ingest the chemicals used in treating wood.

You know the saying, “measure twice and cut once.” So make sure your measurements are correct!

Framing and Making the Doors

Next in this video I explain the importance of having two doors in your structure for easier access to feeding.

• Write down your measurements
• Make sure your strapping is flush with the main pieces of the structure…
• Put your side door closer to the back
• Make a roost for your chickens. They will love it!

Voila!

Well my chicken tractor is almost done. Once the framing is complete, all that’s left to do is “skin” it with the 19 gauge wire which is 2’ wide. The wire is also known as hardware cloth. You’ll see me run into a little glitch with my strapping – one of the pieces is slightly warped, but I can improve on that once I nail it in.

When your framing is complete, it’s time to put your wire on the frame
Just be aware that strapping is sold in bundles and it is hard to see if one or two of them are slightly warped, but it’s not the end of the world.

Skinning it

Now you see me wrapping the wire around the entire frame of my chicken tractor. The wire that is buckling at the doorway will be cut later, so the door will also be perfect! Next I prep the roof for the wire with a simple hammer and nails.

• The wire around the door may buckle when you attach the wire, but since you will be cutting it, it will smooth out
• Use washers to easily secure the wire against the frame
• Instead of washers you can use a staple gun, but I like using washers.

Tarping it!

We are in the home stretch! After I attach the wire to the roof I remove the excess wire with my wire-cutters. Then I secure the roof by placing an 8’X6’ tarp on top of it. I secure the tarp by adding another layer of strapping to it, which will “sandwich” in the tarp to make it super secure.  The tarp is a little larger than the structure and if you want you can trim it to make it fit perfectly.

• Have a tarp covering that is around 8X6 which will fit perfectly over this tractor
• You’ll need wire cutting scissors for this part
• You’ll also need more strapping

Closing the DOORS on this project!

“4 pieces of wood – make a box and that’s it!”

Which is really all you have to do to make the two doors that I suggest for your chicken tractor; one in the front and one near the back. Once you have put these four pieces of wood together (the box), you will just need to add the wire which is the same process you have been using all along. The last step is adding hinges to the doors which will make them work better as doors. Once you have put them in their perfectly measured space – this baby is done and ready for chickens!

Let’s go outside…

Once outside, the chicken tractor looks great and ready to do what it’s supposed to do. Here are some more tips so you can make your own chicken tractor.

• Don’t forget to buy your hinges!
• Don’t forget to slide a thin piece of wood at the bottom of the door – to give you a “threshold area” so that the door is not brushing against the soil. (see the video)
• Chickens are very efficient at digging up plants and catching bugs but if you let them loose in the garden they will eat everything, weeds and tomatoes.
• Always put fresh water daily in the tractor for your chickens – it’s hot out there!
• The tractor I build in the video can house no more than 8 bantam chickens or 6 regular size chickens comfortably.
• The more grazing your chickens do, they less expensive they are to keep. feed them weeds and kitchen scraps daily.
• Make sure the tractor fits snuggly inside the raised bed, not on top of the edge of the bed.

Videos about Organic Gardening, Permaculture future farms.

Organic gardening: How to grow an organic vegetable garden

How To Build A Bio-Intensive Garden

Organic pest control – Natural bug and insect repellents

How To Raise Egg-Laying Chickens

Gardening with Chickens, Regarding Chickens

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Permaculture with Claude Genest

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A Farm for the Future 01

A Farm For the Future is a documentary that aired on the BBC last year. It explains just how oil-dependent our agriculture is: every calorie of food produced in the western world requires ten calories of fossil fuel energy. The film looks at the challenge of dwindling oil supplies and tries to find out what kind of farming – and food – might we be expected to see in a post-peak oil world.

A Farm for the Future 02

A Farm for the Future 03

A Farm for the Future 04

A Farm for the Future 05

Ten steps to an Organic Permaculture no-dig Garden

Read the original article here

This page was researched and produced by Anne Goddard, who lives on a 5-acre property called “Gaya’sGift” close to Bundaberg, Queensland.

Introduction

Permaculture is a method of producing foodstuff in a closed loop that maintains a self-sufficient system. In any habitat animals, plants and micro-organisms work together in harmony.

Organic permaculture takes the closed loop one step further to include insects – both pest and predator. When pesticides are used against insect pests, both pest and predator are eliminated. As most insect pests breed much faster than predators in the food chain, the pests will return quicker than the predators, eventually causing havoc which will result in further applications of pesticides being necessary.

The need for continual pesticide application causes the evolution of pests which are immune to pesticides and stronger and stronger applications become necessary.

In an organic permaculture garden, the balance is retained. There is no need for applications of pesticides, the predator and prey are maintained in a balanced loop with plants, animals and insects. Once an organic permaculture garden is fully established the human need do nothing but add mulch, plant, water and harvest the crops as they ripen.

As the food produced originates from the elements (organic, permanent), the natural elements of a permaculture garden are fully utilised and permanently protected.

The Soil

In designing the no-dig organic permaculture garden, I have started with soil. The protection, enrichment and the location chosen with regards to daily sunlight are all interlinked if a successful productive garden is to work long term.

Micro-organisms and worms are an essential part of healthy soil, keeping it friable and loose. Minerals and trace elements produced by worm castings continually enrich the soil.

Chickens

Organically produced chicken manure is high in nitrogen and essential elements and minerals that soils will begin to lack when asked to produce heavily.

Therefore, chickens become an essential ingredient for the soil. Chickens will also clean up most garden pests when allowed to roam in a free-range situation. Spent chicken shed bedding produces a very rich and protective organic mulch that is ideal for the soil and the plants that feed off the soil.

The bedding I choose in the chicken shed is a combination of Lucerne hay and straw. Lucerne can become sticky, heavy, and mouldy when damp and straw lightens it up. Lucerne was added to the hay as hay can strip the soil of nitrogen while Lucerne will return nitrogen as it breaks down. Hay breaks down slower than Lucerne. Mixing the two maintains a balance.

The chickens’ main diet of insects and worms from the worm farm are supplemented on vegetable peelings and scraps from the kitchen and table.

The benefits of healthy, happy, free-range chickens will be healthy soil, few insect pests and an abundant supply of rich eggs which are a delicious deep gold, eggs free of antibiotics, steroids or other damaging chemicals including pesticides.

Worm farms

Worm farms are not an essential item of a permaculture garden, though the compost, castings and liquid produced are an added bonus to the health and vitality of soil structure when added to compost. Worms also add to the removal of vegetable scraps, weeds and even old newspapers. For more information about vermiculture and worm farms, see our vermiculture page.

Compost Heaps or Bins

Compost heaps are an essential part of the organic permaculture garden and utilise any extra organic matter that may be discarded. Nothing organic should be wasted in a permaculture garden. In fact having enough waste for a continual supply can be the hardest hurdle to overcome. The best system is a rotation of three large compost bins. Filling the first by the time the last is ready for use. Adding grass clippings and chicken bedding to any remnant vegetable scraps the chickens or worms do not clean up produces a fine rich compost. Do not use meat scraps in compost bins as vermin will be attracted.

Water

Water in the permaculture garden is important not only for keeping the soil and plants hydrated but also for attracting insects and native birds, which will also feed on insect pests. A water feature with a small amount of mud, encourages predators such as dragon flies, frogs and wasps.

Protective habitats for predators and pests

Rocks, logs and other places to hide are important for large and small native predators such as lizards, frogs, snakes and spiders. A water feature is the perfect spot for the placing of a predator habitat, having a two fold benefit of being pleasing to the eye, and a daily sanctuary for predators (and pests). Some people may not like the idea of sharing their garden with snakes, wasps, spiders and other predators. It must be understood that in a closed loop system, a mini “garden of Eden” is being created, and all must be welcome. With a suitable habitat as a sanctuary, these creatures will keep to themselves while retaining their rightful place in helping to keep pests and vermin at bay.

Pests and predators are kept at healthy levels at all times. Obviously some small loss of produce will result from a healthy population of pests. If pests become out of hand, then something is lacking in the garden – the solution is to deal with the problem, by encouraging the missing link, without ever needing to reach for a commercial pesticide.

Depending on the size of land that will be devoted to crops, the below steps are easily multiplied according to size.

Ten Steps to create an Organic Permaculture Garden

How to redesignate a ¼ acre backyard block, normally approximately 20 square meters, to Organic Permaculture

1. The Chicken Shed
Erect a 5’x 5′ snake proof chicken shed with 2 to 4 perches at shoulder height or higher. Line the floor with a mixture of one biscuit of Lucerne hay and one biscuit of straw. There are approximately 7-8 biscuits in a bale. The shed will house 5-10 chickens. For a 20 square meter block I would recommend no more than 10 chickens. Allow this shed to open out (and close off) to the land to be put under cultivation. There should be another opening to the shed leading to a run (or section of yard) that is not attached to the cultivated land to allow the chickens to run when not in the vegetable section while seedlings are establishing. Chickens like to scratch, and their claws can be hazardous in newly made beds with young seedlings.

2. Water feature & habitat
Create a small shallow pond (about bath-tub size) with a square meter mound of rocks either within the vegetable plot or nearby.

3. Protection
Fence off the cultivation area using chicken wire and star pickets. This is to keep the chickens out while the seedlings are establishing themselves. The wire should be buried into the ground and/or folded in an L shape outwards to keep out rabbits if they are a pest species in your area. A screen of mixed natives for windy areas may be necessary, ideal plants include species such as Grevillia and Bottle Brush (which will encourage birds and insects), Wattle (fix nitrogen in the soil and fast growing), and paperbark for badly draining areas. Mixing these types of plants in a screen is inexpensive and efficient. Remember not to block out sunlight with your screening plants. If your plot suffers from dampness, or poor drainage, placing a water-loving tree (such as a paperbark) in or near the damp area will correct the problem.

4. Beds and paths
Mark out the beds onto the lawn or soil with string. I like beds that are no wider than 4 feet, and at least 10 feet long with a path of 2 feet in between – this allows for ease of access from both sides of the beds without having to walk on (and subsequently compact) the soil.

Paths are best covered with weed retarding matting such as old carpets or similar porous materials.

5. Watering system
A watering system is laid out and set up directly onto the lawn or soil. Depending on the quality of the soil, a deep soak is usually necessary prior to cultivation. Once well watered, I liberally fork the soil of the vegetable beds penetrating the tongs of the fork at least 6-8 inches into the ground.

Paths are best covered with weed retarding matting such as old carpets or similar porous materials.

6. Soil conditioning & fertilisation
The beds for cultivation can then be fertilised with a layer of pre-purchased organically produced animal manures and a sprinkling of lime if necessary according to the PH level of the soil.

7. Bed preparation
Following a generous application of compost, the beds are then heavily mulched with a cover of at least 8 inches of well-aerated straw and Lucerne hay. When available, I like to place as much seaweed as possible on top of the straw mix. A good soaking with organic seaweed emulsion tea keeps the straw in place. The tops of the watering system risers should be just visible through the straw, and will allow the rows (and hoses) to be easily traced. I then leave the beds for at least 6 weeks, allowing any weeds that are going to grow through to do so. Weeds are easily removed at this stage, as their root systems will be spindly and weak and not well established.

8. Earthworms
Introduce purchased earthworms to the surface if they were lacking in the soil prior to preparation. See our vermiculture page!

9. Planting of seedlings
In the no dig garden, it is difficult to grow seeds through the heavy layer of mulch, though not impossible. The best solution in the first year is to grow your seeds in seed raising mix and compost (planting the seeds on the day following the laying of the straw), and plant the seedlings into the beds when the weeds have been removed. If you decide to plant seeds direct the seeds should be sewn into the compost and soil below prior to the mulch being laid.

10. Introduce chickens
When seedlings are established allow the chickens to roam freely in the patch to keep insects at bay and freely fertilise the garden.

Further information

In subsequent years the waste from the chicken shed can be utilised as mulch. As the beds mature, you may wish to “turn them over”, if you choose to do so, seeds may be planted directly into the soil, and allowed to grow on before further mulching takes place.

Remember to rotate the main crops from bed to bed each year following the basic cycle of Brassica, root crop, corn/tomatoes, legume.

Monocultures cannot be avoided when crops such as corn are grown in a bed – cross fertilisation via close grouping is necessary for this crop. Planting garlic, onions, herbs and various Brassica as an under-story helps to retain diversity in a bed. To replace nitrogen in the soil, use the spent stalks as steaks for peas the following year if they remain strong enough.

Diversity and healthy soil is the key to pest and disease outbreaks, avoiding monocultures avoids losing a large crop to the same outbreak. Confusing pests is simple with an assortment of crops, use a different location for each crop type within the same bed each cycle maintains the health of the soil.

Mapping your beds each year in a note-book is a wise necessity.

More resources:

Action for World Development – As part of its campaign for sustainable development, since 1987 AWD has explored approaches that link environment and development, attempting to raise common concerns that face people living in urban and rural situations. In 1993, AWD started to trial the running of permaculture courses and workshops and in 1996 moved on to a comprehensive permaculture education program.

http://www.awd.org.au/

Sharelynx: Australian Sites. The Cairns Net “….monster collection of links to Alternative Self-Sufficiency Survival Information sites where you can find out anything that is of interest in protecting yourself and your family….”

http://www.cairns.net.au/~sharefin/Markets/Alt27.htm

Sharfin: Self-Sufficiency Survival Information sites. Another page from the same Site as quoted above.

http://www.cairns.net.au/~sharefin/Markets/Alternative.htm

Permaculture International Limited. Permaculture International Limited (PIL) provides services to members in support of their work in permaculture design.

http://www.nor.com.au/environment/perma/

Permaculture Magazine. Permaculture magazine is published by Permanent Publications. This site covers most of our activities as well a wide range of permaculture topics and resources and is divided into four sections for easy browsing: Permaculture Magazine – Solutions For Sustainable Living, Magazine Information Service, Earth Repair Catalogue, Permanent Publications.

http://www.permaculture.co.uk/

Permaculture Visions. Permaculture Visions International© – Permaculture by Distance Learning – With students from Alaska to Outback Australia.

http://members.ozemail.com.au/

Permaculture and Sustainable Living & Livelihood. Communications for a Sustainable Future (CSF) [at Colorado University] was founded on the idea that computer networking could be used to enhance communications with the objective of working through disparate views and ideologies to secure a more promising future. The contents of the archives and the quality of communications on CSF are intended to reflect this purpose.

http://csf.colorado.edu/perma/

ATTRA: Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas. The ATTRA Project is operated by the National Center for Appropriate Technology under a grant from the Rural Business – Cooperative Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture.

http://www.attra.org/attra-pub/perma.html

Vegetable Garden Soil
by C. Colston Burrell
read the original article by clicking here

Vegetable Garden Soil Overview

Good soil is 50 percent solids and 50 percent porous space, which provides room for water, air, and plant roots. The solids are inorganic matter (fine rock particles) and organic matter (decaying plant matter). The inorganic portion of the soil can be divided into three categories based on the size of the particles it contains. Clay has the smallest soil particles; silt has medium-size particles; and sand has the coarsest particles. The amount of clay, silt, and sand in a soil determine its texture. Loam, the ideal garden soil, is a mixture of 20 percent clay, 40 percent silt, and 40 percent sand.

In the interest of harvesting a bigger and better crop of vegetables, you’ll want to improve the texture and structure of your soil. This improvement, whether to make the soil drain better or hold more water, can be accomplished quite easily by the addition of organic matter.

Organic matter is material that was once living but is now dead and decaying. You can use such materials as ground corncobs, sawdust, bark chips, straw, hay, grass clippings, and cover crops to serve as organic matter. Your own compost pile can supply you with excellent organic matter to enrich the soil.

Each spring, as you prepare the garden for planting, incorporate organic matter into the soil by tilling or turning it under with a spade. If non-composted materials are used, the microorganisms that break down the materials will use nitrogen from the soil. To compensate for this nitrogen loss, increase the amount of nitrogen fertilizer that you incorporate into the soil.

Preparing the Soil for a Vegetable Garden

An important step in any soil-improvement program is to have the soil tested for nutrient levels. The local county Cooperative Extension office can advise you on testing the soil in your area. Your soil sample will be sent to a laboratory to determine any deficiencies of the necessary nutrients needed for successful plant growth.  Be sure to tell the laboratory that the samples came from a vegetable garden plot. The test report will recommend the amount and kind of fertilizer needed for a home garden. Follow the laboratory’s recommendations as closely as possible during the first growing season.

The necessary nutrient levels are relative to the soil type and the crop being grown. Although different vegetable plants have varying requirements, the soil test institution calculates an optimum average for fertilizer and lime recommendations.

Reading a Vegetable Garden Soil Test Report

The results of the soil test will indicate the pH (acid-alkaline balance) of the soil as well as the nitrogen content, phosphorus content, and potassium content. The pH is measured on a scale of 1 (most acid or sour) to 14 (most alkaline or sweet), with 7 representing neutral. Most vegetable plants produce best in a soil that has a pH between 5.5 and 7.5.

The pH number is important because it affects the availability of most of the essential nutrients in the soil. The soil lab will consider the type of soil you have, the pH level, and the crops you intend to produce and make a recommendation for pH adjustment.

Phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) levels will be indicated by a “Low,” “Medium,” or “High” level. High is the desired level for vegetable gardens for both nutrients. If your test results show other than High, a recommendation of type and amount of fertilizer will be made.

Although nitrogen (N) is also needed in large amounts by plants, the soil nitrates level is not usually routinely tested because rainfall leaches nitrates from the soil, which easily results in low levels. Additional nitrogen through the use of a complete fertilizer is almost always recommended.

Tests for other elements are available on request but are needed only under special circumstances. To learn how to read a soil test report, go to the next page.

Testing the nutrient levels in your soil is an important step toward improving your vegetable garden soil. The soil test results may advise you to raise the pH by adding a recommended amount of lime to the soil. Ground dolomitic limestone is best and can be applied at any time of the year without harm to the plants.

You may be advised to lower the pH by adding a recommended amount of a sulfur product. Ammonium sulfate is the sulfur product most commonly used. Spread the lime or sulfur evenly through your garden and incorporate it into the soil by turning or tilling.  You might decide to add fertilizer to your garden as a result of your soil test.

Fertilizing Vegetable Garden Soil

Many inexperienced gardeners think that since their vegetables have done fine so far without fertilizer, they’ll continue to do fine without fertilizer next year. But it’s not quite that simple. Although your plants will probably provide you with vegetables without using fertilizer, you won’t be getting their best effort. Properly fertilized vegetable plants will be healthier and better able to resist disease and attacks from pests, providing more and higher-quality produce.

Organic fertilizers come from plant and  animal sources. There are two types of fertilizers: organic and inorganic. Both contain the same nutrients, but their composition and action differ in several ways. It makes no difference to the plant whether nutrients come from an organic or an inorganic source as long as the nutrients are available. However, the differences between the two types are worth your consideration.

Organic fertilizers come from plants and animals. The nutrients in organic fertilizers must be broken down over a period of time by microorganisms in the soil before they become available to the plants. Therefore, organic fertilizers don’t offer instant solutions to nutrient deficiencies in the soil. Dried blood, kelp, and bone meal are types of organic fertilizers.

Manures are also organic. They are bulkier and contain lower percentages of nutrients than other natural fertilizers. However, they offer the advantage of immediately improving the texture of the soil by raising the level of organic matter.

Because organic fertilizers are generally not well-balanced in nutrient content, you’ll probably need to use a mixture of them to ensure a balanced nutrient content. The directions on the package may be used as a guide to making your own mixture. Incorporate the mixture into the soil while preparing your spring garden. Apply it again as a side-dressing midway through the growing season.

When you fertilize with an inorganic fertilizer, nutrients are immediately available for the plant’s use. Any container of fertilizer has three numbers printed on it, such as 5-10-20, to indicate the percentage of major nutrients it contains. Nitrogen is represented by the first number (5 percent in this example); phosphorus is represented by the second number (10 percent); and potassium by the third (20 percent). The remaining 65 percent is a mixture of other nutrients and inert filler. A well-balanced complete fertilizer consists of all three major nutrients in somewhat even proportions. A complete fertilizer is recommended for vegetable garden use as long as the nitrogen content isn’t more than 20 percent. A typical complete fertilizer used in vegetable gardens is 10-10-10.

Analysis of Organic Fertilizers for Vegetable Gardens

A variety of organic fertilizers are available to vegetable gardeners. Different fertilizers are good for different soil deficiencies; because these fertilizers tend to be unbalanced, you’ll probably want to use a mix of two or more fertilizers to meet your soil needs.

How to Fertilize Vegetable Garden Soil

Fertilizing your vegetable garden is a two-stage process, performed before planting and again midway through the growing season.

1. Broadcast Fertilizing: When you’re preparing the bed for spring planting, apply a complete fertilizer — such as 10-10-10 — evenly to the entire garden according to the soil test recommendations. Do not overfertilize. A hand spreader helps keep the job neat as it distributes the granules. Turn the fertilizer into the soil with a hand spade or tiller and smooth out the surface to prepare for planting. This first fertilizing step will see most of your vegetables through their initial period of growth. Halfway through the growing season, the plants will have used up a lot of the nutrients in the soil, and you’ll have to replace these nutrients.
2. Side dressing: As the nutrients are used up by the plants, a second boost of fertilizer will be needed to supply the plants with essential elements through the remainder of the growing season. Use the same complete fertilizer at the same rate as used in the spring, but this time apply it as a sidedressing to the plants. With a hoe, make a four-inch deep trench along one side of the row, taking care not to disturb the plant’s roots. Apply the fertilizer in the trench and then cover the trench with the soil you removed. Rain and irrigation will work the fertilizer into the soil, becoming available to the plants.

Side dressing Individual Plants

When long-season vegetables such as tomatoes, eggplant, and peppers need a second application of fertilizer, there’s no need to trench an entire row. Cut a four-inch-deep collar-trench around the plant 12 to 18 inches from the stem. Spread about 1/2 cup of the same fertilizer used in the spring around each plant and cover it with soil. Water the garden well after fertilizing.

By Christine Arpe Gang
Posted June 13, 2008 at 12:05 a.m.
read the original article here

Vegetable gardening had fallen out of favor in recent years, as gardeners turned their attention to ornamentals.

But during tough economic times, when everyone starts to think about saving money on food and the gasoline it takes to get to the supermarket, growing some vegetables in a backyard garden seems like a good idea.

The National Gardening Association found in its 2007 survey that while expenditures on all garden-related products declined a bit, sales of products for vegetable gardening rose 22 percent over 2006 figures, and sales of products for herb gardening increased 52 percent.

If you join in this trend, you will find yourself with lots of great-tasting food for your table and freezer and some extra change in your pocket.

You may think you need a lot of space or equipment to get started growing tomatoes, green beans, squash and other edibles. Or that startup costs are so high you won’t see savings for years.

But neither is true.

Edibles can be integrated into ornamental beds that are already prepared. I’ve been eyeing some gaps in two of my perennial beds. Maybe I’ll tuck a small patio tomato plant, a colorful pepper or an eggplant next to the shrub roses and Becky daisies. Why not?

Or maybe I’ll grow a few plants in containers while my soil is being prepared next year.

Master gardener Carl Wayne Hardeman uses large plastic feed containers purchased for about $5 at feed stores for growing vegetables. He drills several drainage holes in the bottom before adding a thick layer of hay and then a mixture of potting soil and topsoil.

Hardeman and fellow master gardeners Jim Gafford and Jeff Golladay are also growing vegetables without a lot of equipment on a plot behind Collierville Christian Church. They donate their harvest to the Collierville Food Bank, the Food Bank in Memphis and Page Robbins Adult Day Care Center in Collierville.

They began preparing the beds last fall using a thick layer of newspaper topped with lots of grass clippings and finely ground leaves. They did not do deep tilling.

As an experiment, they removed the sod on one bed and left it on others. They tilled one bed about 2 inches deep. There appears to be no advantage to shallow tilling of 2 inches or removing the sod.

They also added aged cow and horse manure and alfalfa tea to the beds.

They continue to lay grass clippings and leaves on top of the beds as a mulch to hold down weeds. As these organic materials decompose, the soil improves.

Last year they harvested 3,000 pounds of food at another site and spent about $500, including payment for water. That’s about 20 cents per pound. This year they expect to harvest a little less because they had to move the garden to its new site.

“We are not organic, but we are sustainable,” Hardeman said. Birds and other natural predators have kept Colorado potato beetles away so well, none of the potato plants has had to be sprayed.

But Hardeman did treat the squash and crowder peas with Sevin to control harmful insects. And the master gardeners find they need to add some synthetic nitrogen to the soil, too.

Cutworms are deterred with foil wrapped around the stems of squash and other susceptible plants.

But the volunteers were no match for hungry rabbits that devoured all of the 100 cauliflower plants and much of the broccoli.

You can learn more about vegetable gardening at the educational open gardens held at the plot from 4 to 6 p.m. on the fourth Sunday of the month. The church is at 740 Gunnison at North Byhalia Road.

Another group of master gardeners volunteers in a 7,500-square-foot community garden plot at Shelby Farms. The produce they raise is donated to the Food Bank in Memphis.

“We’ve already harvested 400 pounds of food,” said Tom Mashour, chairman of the project.

Last year the plot produced 8,000 pounds of food at a cost of about 12.5 cents per pound. Mashour started many of the plants from seed in his small greenhouse.

“A package of broccoli seeds will make 200 plants,” he said. “A rule of thumb is you can produce your own vegetables for about one-seventh the cost in a supermarket.”

This year the group will save money on plants because it has gotten donations from Bonnie Plants, the Alabama company that supplies several big chains, and from the Memphis Botanic Garden, which donated unsold vegetable plants from its spring plant sale.

But there is an added cost in a new drip irrigation system, expected to serve the site for many years. There are no water costs for the plots at Shelby Farms.

Landscape architect Suzanne Askew heads up a group of volunteers from local garden clubs in the 1850s Irish kitchen garden at the Magevney House, a historic home Downtown.

“If I had a really sunny spot at the garden, I would devote it to asparagus,” she said. “A bed takes two years to establish, but lasts a lifetime.”

She notes that one bag or box of fresh herbs purchased at a supermarket costs about the same as a packet of seeds that will produce edible leaves all summer. Depending on the variety, many herb plants return for many years with no added investment.

“I have pots of basil, thyme, oregano, sage, cilantro and parsley at my kitchen door,” said Askew, who helped tend a half-acre vegetable garden as a child.

Tomatoes, the most popular of all home-grown vegetables, require the purchase of stakes or cages and some fertilizer. But if you choose indeterminate varieties (check the label) a plant will produce fruit almost all summer, typically with a rest in July, the hottest month.

“Homegrown tomatoes taste so much better than store-bought varieties,” Askew said.

So what if you missed the prime time for planting vegetables in late April and early May?

You can still find vegetable plants and even seeds to plant for fresh produce this year. But you will have to baby plants, seeds and seedlings with lots of water as they struggle to get established in the heat.

I saw healthy looking cucumber, zucchini, watermelon, pepper, squash plants and more at the Lowe’s Home Improvement Warehouse in Germantown.

There were numerous tomato varieties, including Big Beef, Better Boy, Better Bush, Big Boy and Early Girls, as well as grape and patio tomatoes.

Seed packets were nowhere to be found at Lowe’s, but Germantown Hardware had a nice supply. You might also check feed stores, which sell common varieties in bulk.

If you want unusual veggies, you will need to order seeds from catalogs in early spring or winter.

Most vegetables require 50 to 70 days from the time of germination to to harvest. If you plant this weekend, you could be picking by mid-August. Our growing season lasts through September and later for crops such as turnip greens.