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This seemed like the best thread to post this question, if anyone knows of a better one just let me know! We're buying a house that closes in about a month and it's on 1/3 of an acre of land in an urban environment. The yard right now is mostly your traditional yard but I would love to turn it all into a garden, or at least prairie or just something more useful than your typical 17th century lawn. Bonus for a place I can keep bees (I've been a bee keeper for 10 years now). My problem is I have no idea where to go for resources on such a project. Does anyone have any online resources or guesses as to where I could go in Philadelphia to get help with transforming this land from green carpet to something better?
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Mar 10, 2020 14:51
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I dont really have a good place to point you but I would say one thing you should do is get a soil test done. I did with my garden right away and found out that I was really low on nitrogen and the place I used gave me a recommendation on fertilizers to amend my soil. One other quick thing you can do is plant micro or white clover in your existing grass. It should grow pretty quick and its beneficial to bees. I'm going to try tilling up an area of my yard this spring once the ground thaws to plant some native prairie grass and wildflowers. Will be interesting to see if it can take root quickly.
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Mar 10, 2020 15:05
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Soil test, and talk to your local ag extension. A Master Gardener should be able to point you in the right direction. If your goal is a micro-prarie, maybe a Master Naturalist as well. Looks like Penn State will be your best bet. Suspect Bucket fucked around with this message at 15:16 on Mar 10, 2020 |
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Mar 10, 2020 15:11
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nesbit37 posted:This seemed like the best thread to post this question, if anyone knows of a better one just let me know! Your local surface water management department should have some information, as well as any of the extension offices from your nearest large, state run agricultural college.
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Mar 10, 2020 15:11
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Hmm. I just had an interesting opportunity drop in my lap. I live in a garden apartment, and I have a patio I'll be using for container plants. I have a small communal lawn that we share with the upstairs neighbor that nobody ever uses, but it's not level at all and the soil is utter poo poo. BUT I just had a free supply of bamboo drop in my lap. So I think with a bit of cleverness, I can build some raised beds using bamboo canes (wattle woven). I think probably 2ft diameter, 2 foot tall, big enough that the mowers won't run it over, wide and low enough that there's not too much strain on the structure from the soil. I'll of course get permission from the upstairs neighbor.
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Mar 11, 2020 19:44
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I've built trellises of various shapes out of bamboo but never a raised bed. Should be doable! I have built raised beds out of logs, and that worked out fine.
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Mar 11, 2020 19:53
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Platystemon posted:
Good to know, I won't waste my time looking for it then. I would really like an evergreen variety (now that I know they exist) but I haven't seen anything like Sharpblue or similar for sale in the local nurseries. I'm going down to a fruit association plant sale next weekend, probably someone at the show will know what's available in this part of the world. For some reason one of my Bluecrops held its leaves all winter while the other one dropped as normal. Not sure what's going on, but maybe I'll get an early crop out of it?
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Mar 12, 2020 00:53
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Hexigrammus posted:Good to know, I won't waste my time looking for it then. I would really like an evergreen variety (now that I know they exist) but I haven't seen anything like Sharpblue or similar for sale in the local nurseries. I'm going down to a fruit association plant sale next weekend, probably someone at the show will know what's available in this part of the world. My blueberries are blooming right now and every year I forget how pretty they are in bloom. The bees really seem to love them. Even if they didn't make berries, they're be a great ornamental with the flowers in spring and good fall color.
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Mar 12, 2020 01:37
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Blueberries are also very popular with birds 
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Mar 12, 2020 01:59
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It's been eerily bird free here for the last year or so. I saw a few cardinals coming up the driveway earlier but all I ever hear in the woods is mockingbirds and the random outraged finch. We still see a lot of robins when it rains, just because our dirt is poo poo and drowns worms every time it showers. We used to have an extremely busy bird feeder with all kinds of birds. I miss seeing my goldfinch buddies. It's looking more likely this will be the last year with a traditional garden. Looking forward to tearing down some poo poo trees and building a greenhouse. 
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Mar 12, 2020 02:52
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Hey cats I'm back reading the thread after a winter at 50 degrees north! My starters are going  Right now I have 6 Carolina Reapers, 4 Trinidad Scorpions, 7 Amish Paste tomatoes, 4 Habaneros and 6 seedlings of what I thought were a local slicing tomato but which look suspiciously like Habaneros at this point.I think that today I'm going to go pick up some marigold seeds and replant them into the failed pots. By the way a while back someone in this thread gave me some advice on over-winter garlic planting and it turned out very very well, so thank you. This year I've increased the number of cloves I put into the dirt by 50%. NOW does anyone have any good suggestions on ways to collect rainwater without spending a shitload of cash on commerical water barrels? All of the web results I have on this are like "step 1 take a barrel and" It's looking as if it's going to be a dry season here in the Canadian prairies so I plan to quintuple my rainwater collection setup and introduce things like trickle hoses and direct-to-root watering for plants that suit it (esp. my tomatoes).
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Mar 14, 2020 17:22
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The biggest expense is going to find something large enough to hold all the water. Maybe you could find some IBC totes from a food service/brewery/cider maker? They hold about 4x what a rain barrel would hold for water, but you'd want to probably paint the outside a dark color to discourage algae growth. You could definitely hook them up in series, or not, but you'll still be spending money on the plumbing. You'd also need a truck to move them from the business to your place.
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Mar 14, 2020 17:45
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CommonShore posted:NOW does anyone have any good suggestions on ways to collect rainwater without spending a shitload of cash on commerical water barrels? All of the web results I have on this are like "step 1 take a barrel and" It's looking as if it's going to be a dry season here in the Canadian prairies so I plan to quintuple my rainwater collection setup and introduce things like trickle hoses and direct-to-root watering for plants that suit it (esp. my tomatoes). That's a hard one. If you're in a manufacturing/processing hub like southern Ontario searching Craigslist or Kiijijii for "food grade plastic barrel" can kick up free barrels from places trying to get rid of their garbage. Same with the 1000 litre IBC cubes (big white plastic tanks in an aluminum frame). In BC the 200 litre blue plastic barrels are floating around (har har) from the aquaculture industry and wine making. The trick in any case is to make sure whatever they had in them was food grade. Agricultural tanks would be suspect because of the pesticide concentrate risk. No point in flushing industrial toxic waste into your garden. Failing that, old bathtubs? Depends on your mosquito problem and how much you want your yard to look like mine. Edit: Around here, the best capacity/cost option is repurposing a (new) fiberglass septic tank. That's $$ though, and your neighbours might object. Not sure why I specified new. Are second hand septic tanks a thing? Hexigrammus fucked around with this message at 18:04 on Mar 14, 2020 |
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Mar 14, 2020 18:00
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Gotcha. That's about where I was. Right now my plan is to buy some cheap garbage cans from Canadian Tire for like $20 each. I have a lead on some of those big cubes in the wire frames but I'm not optimistic. I've been keeping an eye on various swap 'n shops and facebook market places for stuff too. I was wondering if anyone had heard of some kind of DIY solution like "pallets with a poly liner!"
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Mar 14, 2020 18:40
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Try pallets with a poly liner
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Mar 14, 2020 18:49
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A nearby surplus store of all things had a number of rain barrels for $30-60CAD each. They were ugly and blue and probably used, but a bargain is a bargain. This was a few months ago but I hope they're still there to help me start my gardening adventure.
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Mar 14, 2020 22:15
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Also do the math on gallons per dollar as some of the bigger poly tanks are a better deal then buying a bunch of barrels or ibc totes if you plan to store a lot of water.
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Mar 15, 2020 00:17
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Dig a hole in the ground and line it?
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Mar 15, 2020 00:26
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I just watched Craigslist for awhile and ended up with a brand new water barrel for like $40 because the lady’s husband didn’t want to take care of it. I still see them pop up every now and then
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Mar 16, 2020 14:54
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Google about - there is a place near me that sells empty food grade barrels for around $35. Cleaned and ready to go.
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Mar 16, 2020 16:47
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Those barrels are all over Craigslist in NC, cheap too.
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Mar 16, 2020 17:38
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Anyone have any favorite pole bean varieties, esp. for the SE? Also thinking of growing artichokes this fall/winter, but maybe I’m crazy
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Mar 16, 2020 18:22
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Would two sweet pepper plants (and companion dwarf marigolds) be too crowded in a 7gal grow bag?
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Mar 16, 2020 22:29
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Suspect Bucket posted:Would two sweet pepper plants (and companion dwarf marigolds) be too crowded in a 7gal grow bag? I’d think that depends almost more on the surface area of the soil. Is it fairly wide where you can put them about 8-12” apart and they’ll still have room for roots on the wall side? I have some 5 gallon grow bags that really only have room for 1 larger plant like peppers. I found they were best suited to herbs and cherry tomatoes.
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Mar 16, 2020 22:40
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I grew peppers in 7-gallon bags last year. Two per bag seems like a tight fit. Seems like there would be a lot of water demand between two big plants plus porous sides.
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Mar 16, 2020 22:53
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Good news! I just got an email from a local fundraiser group who sold me my last one - I got three nice barrels with lids and screens and spouts for $60 each!
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Mar 16, 2020 23:34
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Kaiser Schnitzel posted:Anyone have any favorite pole bean varieties, esp. for the SE? I like the lazy wife greasy beans, personally. Empress is also a good option, and you can't go wrong with kentucky wonder pole. Most of the kentucky "x" beans you have to keep up with pretty consistently to keep them from getting stringy though. Good favor but they can be a lot of work. Artichokes are firmly in the "worth it to buy them" category for me but if you try it post pictures! I've never tried them or asparagus.
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Mar 17, 2020 00:47
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nesbit37 posted:This seemed like the best thread to post this question, if anyone knows of a better one just let me know! I'm a week late to the party here but I work for a conservation district and partner closely with Penn Sate Extension. We have loads of info on establishing meadow in urban environments. I can point you in the right direction with species and such too. Shoot me a PM, or post some more details here.
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Mar 17, 2020 02:30
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LogisticEarth posted:I'm a week late to the party here but I work for a conservation district and partner closely with Penn Sate Extension. We have loads of info on establishing meadow in urban environments. I can point you in the right direction with species and such too. Shoot me a PM, or post some more details here. KEEP THE PARTY GOING I have some bare spots in my poo poo communal lawn that I want to fill in. Maitnence does not give a poo poo. I got some rye grass seeds and a packet of prarie wildflower seeds for color and polinaters. What else do I need to do besides hand sow, rake over, and water daily? The soil is crap clay.
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Mar 17, 2020 02:52
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LogisticEarth posted:I'm a week late to the party here but I work for a conservation district and partner closely with Penn Sate Extension. We have loads of info on establishing meadow in urban environments. I can point you in the right direction with species and such too. Shoot me a PM, or post some more details here. Great! Just sent you a PM.
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Mar 17, 2020 13:37
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mischief posted:I like the lazy wife greasy beans, personally. Empress is also a good option, and you can't go wrong with kentucky wonder pole. Most of the kentucky "x" beans you have to keep up with pretty consistently to keep them from getting stringy though. Good favor but they can be a lot of work. Thanks for the bean info! Artichokes are theoretically perennial here if they can make it though the hot, wet summers, so that's part of the appeal. Their close cousins cardoons are apparently a little heat-hardier here too and its fun to say. I need to find somewhere for an asparagus patch too. That's long been on my list.
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Mar 17, 2020 18:08
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nesbit37 posted:Great! Just sent you a PM. Responded! Suspect Bucket posted:KEEP THE PARTY GOING That's tough to say, but you'd do best to make sure you kill off the turf grass so it doesn't compete much with the native stuff. Crappy, dry soil is often good for warm season grasses and such, so you might want to look into some conservation seed mixes. Wildflowers are great but they can get out of hand if you ONLY plant them, and a lot of them are annuals so you have to rely on them self-reseeding. This is why the addition of warm season grasses and such will help with a more uniform and constant look. A lot of the grasses also turn a nice ocher color in the fall and provide some structure and habitat over he winter. You need good seed-soil contact so if it's compacted make sure you rake it up good, and then roll after seeding. A mulch layer (leaf compost works great) is also advised. If you're doing a larger area you should look into basic aeration or overseeding. I shared this with the other guy but here's a great book that a colleague of mine developed, relevant to the east coast/PA: http://lgnc.org/pdfdocs/brandes_book.pdf
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Mar 17, 2020 18:23
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 I am attempting to rehab my raised bed, after learning the hard way why you put landscaping cloth beffore filling. It ended up choked with what I am confident is either plum or douglas fir roots. Does anyone know if I need to remove all the roots, or can I just chop them up, and leave them in the soil? I'm shovelling it all out onto a tarp, and have some landscaping cloth to line the bed. Do I really need to sift it all too?
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Mar 20, 2020 21:53
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I made the same mistake and like... you can survive just massively pruning and pulling up weeds. It sucks but it hasn't seemed to negatively affect my garden until like late August when I've just lost all control.
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Mar 21, 2020 00:04
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Just started planting some herbs in pots for use in the kitchen, got some basil, thyme and mustard plants. Just a quick question about the mustard, it says to keep it in the dark until it sprouts, is that right? I have zero experience in gardening.
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Mar 21, 2020 10:13
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Anyone here know about hops? I have an opportunity to pick up several started plants but the timing is off for me. I need to do the landscaping I mentioned earlier first, but I also know hops take a good 1 to 2 years to get established. Wondering if it is worth getting these plants and keeping them in buckets for a few months or if I should just wait til next year.
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Mar 21, 2020 14:44
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nesbit37 posted:Anyone here know about hops? I have an opportunity to pick up several started plants but the timing is off for me. I need to do the landscaping I mentioned earlier first, but I also know hops take a good 1 to 2 years to get established. Wondering if it is worth getting these plants and keeping them in buckets for a few months or if I should just wait til next year. Look up the growing conditions of that exact variety. I vaguely looked in to it a while back and they can be particular about what they want.
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Mar 21, 2020 14:52
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nesbit37 posted:Anyone here know about hops? I have an opportunity to pick up several started plants but the timing is off for me. I need to do the landscaping I mentioned earlier first, but I also know hops take a good 1 to 2 years to get established. Wondering if it is worth getting these plants and keeping them in buckets for a few months or if I should just wait til next year. Yes, what are they and how old are they? Are they 1st year starts or rhizomes? What variety? Are you prepared for 15-20’ of bines and making sure they get enough water in July? Are you wanting to use the cones? Do you have enough space where you can cut them back or keep them in their spot? And how far north are you? They like long days. Depending on size you can keep them in a large bucket for the year and then transplant in the fall. A lot of growers will trim the crowns in the fall so they stay manageable. You can also trim them in the spring when you’re taking rhizomes. They won’t be happy moving in the middle of summer. They take a year to grow a good crown, a year to get big, and a third year to produce good cones (typically). They used a lot of water in July/August. This will be much worse in a bucket.
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Mar 21, 2020 16:21
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Alternatively do what my brother in law did which was throw a hop seedling on the ground and ignore it for 3 years. Seems to like being treated rough (and a sunny hill in Lancashire). Your results may vary
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Mar 21, 2020 20:51
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They're 1st year starts and I have choice of about 30 varieties. I do want to use the cones and I have the space for them, I just dont want to plant them until this landscaping is done and I dont know when that will be exactly. If I cant keep them alive in buckets I'll pass. Sounds like the watering is the biggest challenge.
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Mar 21, 2020 20:54
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