Very cool!
The snow we're getting today doesn't seem to be sticking but our lows tonight and tomorrow are definitely NSF wee plants
This looks delicious and beautiful!
We have 2 apple, two plum, two pear, three American persimmon, roughly a dozen seedling pawpaw, hickory, and chestnut trees, plus others that are more 'ecosystem service' than production trees. The apples and plums are the only ones at production age at the moment. I prune the trees to maximize airflow and sunlight, and train branches to achieve near-horizontal angles. One of our apples is at around 45 degrees relative to the ground and I trim the branches that would grow into the soil.
For shrubs, we have four varieties of raspberry (R. idaeus) and one variety that's R. oderatus, but maybe 6-10 of each currently. I like to leave three canes upright but will pin last year's canes to the soil to propagate. The R. oderatus I'll prune with heading cuts to stimulate suckering. We also have blackberries, black raspberries, blueberries, haskaps, hazelnuts, nan king cherries, spicebush, carolina allspice, elderberry, serviceberry, bayberry, and several kinds of fruit-bearing Viburnum. We've also got some grapevines, hardy kiwi, and passionfruit (P. incarnata). We like to mix annual veg into these spaces alongside our perennial herbaceous plants like sorrels, sage, comfrey, bergamot, mints, and others.
We make compost from our poultry bedding, which is mostly made up of wood chips that we get from a number of arborists in our area. We also use the chips for our foot paths and will use last year's paths as additional mulch on the gardens they border.
We're in USDA zone 5, but I really prefer the Trewartha climate system, which places us in zone Dca. I also think the Köppen climate system, which Trewartha is based on, is pretty nifty.
While I don't know just how popular they are here, the replies so far are heartening and food/fruit forest and other permaculture/regenerative gardening posts will be welcomed for as long as I'm allowed to be one of the mods
I've already got a botanical illustration of my favorite plant on one arm, this one will go on the other as a celebration of my daughter, Juniper.
Have some more encouragement!
Taken in Dover, NH, this was at a 4-way intersection and all four corners looked like this
Out of an abundance of caution, please be sure of whether those decking boards are pressure treated. The newer formulations of copper fungicides are safer than the older methods of pressure treating but are still not exactly great for soil or human health when growing food. In that same vein, thoroughly wash the barrels before you start filling them and be sure to flush any and all plastic bits out after you're done setting up the outlets.
Your library sounds awesome! If they don't have one already, consider advocating for a seed library
As for soil/compost/growing medium - bagged stuff is not a worthwhile investment for your money from a cost-per-cubic-yard standpoint, and those products tend to have an inordinate amount of filler that won't help your plants. You're likely to spend less and have better results ordering a delivery from a landscaper supply business. They'll have you order by the cubic yard and dump it at an accessible location at your place. Spread a tarp out to give them something to aim for and to reduce what you lose during the filling of the beds.
[Image description: a small bird I caught in the garage earlier and released outside]
I had opened the door for them but they went to the other side and started trying to go through a closed window, luckily they let me help them back outside
Edit: my friend who goes birding says it is probably a Phoebe, a group of insect eating birds
I <3 volunteer squash, and absolutely love that you're making use of them!
Definitely skim through some of the posts here, folks have shared a number of garden beds they've built. Regardless of the type of build you're going for, punky wood is a great way to reduce the amount of soil and compost you're buying in and will also act as a reservoir of water for drier times.
Some of our rain barrels came from a nearby bakery, and we spent far less buying a snap lock for holding window screen in place on top to keep them from being mosquito breeding grounds. Alternatively, reach out to any gardening clubs in your area - the next town over from us got a grant to subsidize rain barrels for their citizens and there might be a program like that near you
Great job! They look very happy
That. Is. So. Cool! And I totally agree trading is super edifying, though I do appreciate being able to help support our family with my plant addiction.
I think I need to split my tomatoes today.
What's growing on with you all?
Phenomenal cosmic power, itty bitty living space edition
We've got thirty, maybe forty pots looking like this, with true leaves starting to appear on a bunch of the starts - only a few of the pots have any duplicate plantings. There's two pots of chamomile (pictured) and a few other herbs like sage and lavender.
We're also growing wheat for the first time, which is pretty exciting. I've done up a few dozen plugs for the bird yard, which will be fenced this first year to protect them til they go to seed, and have a row in the vegetable patch that I'm thinking of using for seed saving purposes. If anyone's grown grains before I'm interested to hear your wisdom.
What's growing on with you all?
[Image description: A picture of plants being hand watered with a caption that reads I make them planties wet. Mark this NSFWSP - Not safe for water sensitive plants
[Image description: a largish cardboard box containing around a hundred packets of vegetable seeds]
Our library is hosting a seed swap tomorrow and, well, we're friends with folks whose family runs a local business, where they have one of those vegetable seed stands on display. All it took was asking if they had any seeds they would like to donate for the event and seed library and they gave us scores of seeds. My wife and I organized them this evening and I'll be bringing them to the swap, then sticking whatever's left in the seed library.
I'm really excited about how many folks in our town this might provide some measure of relief and security - in addition to the seed swap attendees, the library also grows veggies in the plot out back for donation to the local food pantry and involves kids from the nearby schools for some of the garden projects.
If your library runs programs like this (or other local community support groups do), I'd really encourage you to volunteer even just calling some local spots for support or donations. Sometimes you get the chance to make an outsized difference.
[Image description: a photo of Lacinato kale seedlings germinating together in a pot]
I have more space to start plants this year, but it's still very worth it for us to conserve space where we can. To that end, we're starting several species in a "mob grow" style with many many seedlings in each pot rather than individual smaller cell trays. Once they're of a size for transplanting we'll be able to tease them all apart either for planting in the gardens or repotting for sales or donation.
h/t to Bobby over at Small Scale Permaculture (yt link) for convincing me to try this out with more species.
[Image description: an Australian shepherd sits in the pathway through the snow I dug for him. The snow is up to his shoulder on one side and far higher on the other.]
We got almost a foot of snow overnight, adding to the 5 or so inches that had already fallen this past week. Poor Sudo couldn't get anywhere without hopping like a gazelle so potties were next to impossible
I've hung out with the Reel Big Fish and Streetlight Manifesto, and met Bruce Springsteen. Everybody was super down to earth and chill.
Once I was at a punk festival and chatting with a stranger about which upcoming sets we were excited for, and when this person was unfamiliar with a classic punk band I exclaimed "how can you not know Joan Jett and the Blackhearts?" only to hear that sentence repeated by someone behind me. It was Joan Jett, and I got to hang out on stage with their VIP group during their set.