Fall/Winter garden planted! Update with pictures
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It has been so long since I have had to time to sit and write a post and upload pictures. I have surely missed it. I spent some time Saturday in my garden and loved every minute of it as I have missed digging in the dirt. About a week ago I decided to move my boxes around and redesign the layout of my garden. The old picnic table was moved out to the yard and it will become my flower box. I plan to plant sweet pea flower seeds this week. Someone told me they smell amazing!
I thought I would have to change out my soil when I planted, but as I turned it over, it was so dark and moist and wonderful that I just kept it. I broke up all the old roots in my beds and feel so good about my soil. This is my third winter garden with the soil I started with and I love it. A few weed seeds had blown in but I just pulled them and the soil was good to go. I love my garden for this reason, when itis time to replant, I just turn over the soil, break up the roots and plant. It is one of the big benefits to gardening this way.
Kent helped me move all the boxes and we made two long rows instead of three shorter ones. I now have a bench in my garden to sit and enjoy it all. We moved both arches together and plan to get two more to make a long tunnel of trellis. It will be beautiful this summer filled with cucumbers and beans.
My orange trees are seeing a lot of new growth! The oranges are big too. I am happy my pomegranate tree has had a growth spurt too. It will probably be years before I get fruit, not sure? For my fall/winter garden I planted: cabbage, celery, cauliflower (three kinds! purple, green and white) broccoli, onions, cilantro, spinach seeds with fingerling potatoes to be planted very soon.
I took lots of pictures to show what is new. Leave me a comment and tell me what you have planted. I would love to hear!
Happy Fall to you!
Melanie
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19 Responses and Counting...
Melanie,
Your garden looks beautiful. I’m hoping that with the beds I’m building with your plans that mine will look good too. I love your design, I am doing something on the same order so I can have wheelchair access between the beds and on both sides too. Your plans are great.
Hank,
Thanks for the kind words! I sure love gardening in the fall/winter. It just seems more peaceful and calm. Not so many bees buzzing, but it all still grows. Lots of rain here in Texas lately, hoping on a bright sunny day soon.
best wishes to you and your new garden!
stay in touch,
Melanie
Your garden is inspiring. It inspired me to have a go at growing vegetables in containers. My results have been a bit mixed, mostly due to the labrador eating all my brussel sprouts, cauliflowers and most of the cabbages. The tomatoes, spring onions, spinach and sugar snap peas are flourishing though.
Lynne,
So happy you are finding success at gardening! I love it myself! stay in touch and let me know what you grow!
Melanie
Happy Fall and Winter Garden Season! Love seeing all your pictures and can’t wait to see the progress!
We’ll b e growing broccoli and cauliflower, the broccoli heads already have shown up. Then we have our peas, cabbage, Brussels Sprouts and pak choi. In just 3 months we’ll already begin planning for Spring!
Pamela,
Wow! I love following your blog and all that you grow! Since becoming a full time science teacher I find little time to blog but I am still enjoying my garden!
thanks for sharing!
Melanie
I love your plans I finally got around to building two boxes. I’m a little nervous starting out with a winter garden. I’m purchasing starter plants from Home Depot. What can I do to protect my garden from the snow or ice? I’m in Wichita Falls, TX and I’m pretty sure it will snow again this year.
Damica,
Hi! So exciting for you! I am not sure about the snow and ice as I don’t get that here – I live in the Houston area. I do cover with a planket, see my website for pictures when it freezes.
I hope that helps!
thanks!
Melanie
Hello again! I just wanted to share with you that my co-gardener friend and I, enjoying our success in my RUG beds, are considering offering to build and plant these for a couple of local shelters. We think we can probably get some local nurseries to donate plants and soil, and we might even be able to get materials donations too, so that OUR gift is the labor! There is just something so “connecting” in gardening… So grounding. For me at least it really borders on a spiritual practice. Will let you know if we undertake this project!
P.S. Damica – I’ve thought of the possible snow/ freeze situaltion, and thought maybe I’d try putting on longer (like 6′) boards on the outsides of the legs, and draping a clear 6 mil plastic painters tarp over the whole thing as a kind of greenhouse. Thoughts?
Diane,
How amazing! My sons just built 11 for a school for his eagle scout project. I love your idea too! thanks for sharing and inspiring me and others!
Please let me know if it happens and how it is going. If you take pictures, I will post them on my blog.
thanks so much!!
Melanie
Great to stumble upon your blog. You have a lovely garden! Mka eme wanna start my own 🙂
Love the raised beds on the legs. Wanting one to put strawberries in. Having them raised would keep our little furbaby from eating my strawberries! Where did you get the black containers and how deep are they? Do they come with holes or how many holes did you have to punch in them. Thanks!! Nancy
I’d like to do something like this but don’t know where to start. Was thinking of doing something similar using pvc poles so I won’t have to cut anything. I’d like to compare prices. What do you charge for the plans? How expensive are the materials.
Say, I’d start with one bed that is about 30″ deep x 4′ long and go from there. What would it cost to do it myself??
My boxes costs about $55 each to build. The soil is an additional $20. I hope that helps!
thanks,
Melanie
Did you purchase the dirt from a garden center?
Ray,
Hi! I use soil from Home Depot, Lowes or Walmart. I start with a mix of garden soil and humus, manure and/or compost. I am leary of any soil in my yard because I don’t want to start with any soil that has weed seeds in it. I hope that helps!
thanks,
Melanie
Hello, enjoyed your article and pictures. I live in the Northeast and just put my garden “to bed” this weekend. I am now inspired to do fall gardening!! This year was the first year I did a container garden using plastic bins and I have to admit it was the most successful garden I have ever planted!! I bought soil from Walmart and mixed in peat moss. I drilled holes in the bottom of the containers, put a layer of straw for drainage, the soil mixture, and more straw around the plants. I have had little success growing bell peppers. . . .this year I was giving them away!! How wonderful!! There was no weeding to be done!! I put a nice layer of straw on the ground for runners. Last year I did a small straw bale garden, it was interesting and fun!!
Hi! I just planted my own vegetables in containers today! I’m worried my containers are not deep enough. How deep should they be and how many can I plant next to each other?
I plant my seeds accoring to the package directions and my plants just bury them to the base. The soil depth in my beds is 8 inches and it works for me!
best wishes!
Melanie