The potatoes I'd left to overwinter in the garden decided it was time to start growing. Given the mole infestation we had last year, It was time for the potatoes to move to new territory.
Instead of having the potatoes in the ground, I decided to try potato towers, made of bamboo screening (sliced bamboo wired together), secured around a frame of wire fencing and metal stakes. Placed on top of wire mesh hardware cloth, these should keep the moles out, and allow the potatoes to grow upwards.
In you go! Happy growing!
Looking down into the 4 foot high tower, with sprouting potatoes ready to be covered. I had heard about potato towers years ago, but this article on the Sunset Magazine blog inspired me to go for it this year. They made it look so easy, and really, it was! Now we'll see if I get good results at 47 degrees latitude, with cool and damp weather, and a shorter growing season.
I'm also going to try Gardman Potato Tubs. The green plastic "bags" have drain holes, strong seams, and velcro-closing flaps where you can reach in to harvest throughout the season without uprooting the plants.
We'll see which method works best for potatoes in our Northern climate.
I finally got around to installing pvc pipe hoops on the raised beds, which the girls now call the "covered wagons." The frost blanket or remay cover shields the seedlings from hail, hard rains, and cold winds. They also protect transplanted seedlings from the direct sun (when it's out, which hasn't happened more than 3 times in the last 2 weeks).
The Earthboxes are planted up with peas and kale. Later in the season they'll hold eggplant and tomatoes. I cover them with frost blanket as well, which also helps keep the birds and bunnies at bay.
From top to bottom in the above photo: we cut back the grape vines on the arbor by about half, since last year they started to climb up the side of the house toward the roof, half blocking the girls' bedroom windows. Plus it was a little TOO shady on the deck. In the black pots are raspberries and currants, and to the right is the honeysuckle, which is really healthy this year. In the lower garden we're turning in compost and letting it rest before planting Zucchini, probably a month from now. Currently the soil temp is only 48 degrees, so we need more sunny days to warm things up. The Rhubarb is happy and is calling out to be harvested and made into a Rhubarb Crisp. I hear you! I'm warming up the oven!
Our 5-way cherry tree is loaded with blossoms this year. If the bees are able to do their work, and the deer and birds aren't too pesky, hopefully we'll actually have cherries this year.
I've mowed the lawn twice so far this spring. I picked up this push mower from a thrift store last year and I love it. The quiet whirring sound of the blades, the lack of gas fumes, the exercise I get pushing it...it's all good. Here it's tipped on its side because I hose off the grass clippings after I use it and let it dry, so won't rust.
Speaking of low tech, a pressure washer would have been nice to have to help get rid of the bumper crop of moss that covered our walkways and decks, but the girls were eager for a "job" to earn some money, so I sent them outside with brushes and buckets. Little K wants to buy a new fish tank with her earnings.
A donated the $10.00 she earned to the Make a Wish foundation.
I'm creating a new children's garden using pots elevated on blocks to evade the slugs. Our super-wet and unusually cold spring has caused an explosion in the slug population. Here the girls are planting peas and Nasturtiums, which hopefully will grow up the tipi trellis.
My husband got me the most wonderful book for Mother's Day, the Vegetable Gardener's Container Bible, which I have devoured cover-to-cover, and highly recommend. The photography and illustrations are amazing. If you'd like your own copy, you can follow this link, or check out this contest that runs through May 19, 2011.
I see my garden future with lots of raised beds and containers, less lawn, and a larger diversity of plants. This change will mean fewer weeds, less slug damage, no moles, and it will be easier on my knees and back (not so much kneeling and stooping).
Bookmark my Suburban Garden thread and follow along as the season progresses!