Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Getting started

For those waiting for me to get back to the garden, the guy who will be digging my garden deeper had an issue come up this week, so he will be out this next Monday, and no I am not worried about getting started late. as long as you get shade cloth over the plants when it is hot like it will be; the plants will be fine.  I break rules all the time.

Raised bed gardens

The only thing different I will tell you is if you want an inexpensive way of making a raised bed is to use 2" x 12" x what ever length you have room for.  Place the 3' rebar  in ground at least a foot. Place the other rebar wide enough that you can slide the 2" x 12" in between the rebar. Do this to all sides.



 What you should be doing right now is preparing  your soil.  If you are doing an in ground garden you should be tilling, or mixing your compost in  14" to 18".

 I like deeper because it helps to keep the roots cool.  You notice this more with tomatoes.  Tomatoes grown in pots will drop their flowers because they are too hot.  If you have grown tomatoes in pots, and you can grow the plant, but not fruit.  The reason, the flowers drop off because the plant is too hot.  However there is a product that is sold called blossom set, you spray on the tomato flower.  Watch for the flower bud.  I would spray the bud before the flower opens, and then once the flower opens I would spray again.  When tomatoes are grown in ground you don't have this problem because the roots are kept cool.  I have not done a raised bed garden, but I would imagine if the roots of the plant are out of the ground, and if the plant is close to the wall of the raised bed then I would imagine the roots will get too hot.

Choosing your veggies

That is easy.  What do you like to eat?  What is more expensive at the grocery store?  My first choices were what went up to $3.00 a pound.  Veggies you love, but rarely see them in the store.  Like patty pan squash.  It comes once in a blue moon, and when it does it is pricey.

Placement of veggies

Plants that don't take the strong Arizona summer sun should have morning sun, and shaded first.  Use plants like corn, which can tolerate the full sun on the west side of the garden, because the height of the corn can help shade the plants next to them.  For instance; run your plant rows to north and south.   Plan the placement of you plants on paper first.  The diagram below is from a free garden planner on line.  http://gardenplanner.motherearthnews.com/gardenplanner/gardenplanner.html#


The west is at the top of the page.  If you have no shade on the west side of you space.  Then create it.  Corn (the top rectangle) can be used as shade.  Even better get shade cloth.

You do not want your shade cloth to cut out too much sun. If it cuts out 30% or 50% of the sun that's fine.  Cutting out 75% of the sun is too much. I use the 30% shade cloth, which I get from B&B Cactus Farm, in Tucson.  The 50% you can get from Magic Garden.

If you have any questions feel free to ask.

Over watered tree issue from last week

Well a week has gone by since I sunk a 2 and a 1/2' hole beside my Desert Willow, peach, and mesquite tree.  The first picture is from last weeks blog.  As you can see there is not a single leaf on that poor willow.  A few twigs that are fighting to grow, but no leaves.  At this time in Tucson all the Desert Willows are leafed out and starting to bloom.

This next picture was taken today.  Woo!  Hoo! I have leaves growing again.  Now what I have to do is to fill the hole with sand.  For the willow I will put a few more holes in and fill with sand, since these trees grow along riverbeds, and are accustom to a more sandy soil.



Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Since I wasn't able to get the contractor over yesterday to dig my garden deeper.  I'll be giving ya'll a garden tip with trees.

For the past 2 months I have been watching my peach tree, and my desert willow drop leaves, and not grow any leaves back.

I water deep.  By doing this I only have to water once a month.  When the temps get into the upper 90's I will be watering every 2 weeks.  I want the trees roots to grow deep.  Deep roots prevent trees from being blown over, or having surface roots, and helps the roots reach for a deeper water source.

I know I get 22" deep because 20 minutes after watering, I take a 5' plant stake and push into the wet soil.  When the stake stops I have hit dry soil.  I grab the stake at soil level, and pull it out.  I measure how many inches it went into the soil.  If it didn't get the depth I wanted, I know I need to extend my water time.

Last year in June I planted this desert willow.  Three weeks later it dropped all of it's leaves.  A month later it had started growing new leaves.  I waited another week before I decided to water it again, and it dropped it's leaves again.

The desert soil is clay.  Which means it will hold onto the water.  The conclusion I have come to is; the next time I plant a desert willow I will add washed sand in the compost / ground soil mix for better drainage.

What I did last year was open a hole about a foot away from the trunk to allow the water in the soil to dry out faster.  How did I open this hole you ask?  Well let me show you.


This is my garden hose attached to an eight foot plant stake.


There is a sweeper nozzle, and a hose shut-off attached to the hose.  Later I realized that the garden stake needed to be down further, so that I could tie the tip of the nozzle to the stake, to help keep the nozzle straight.

I then put the nozzle to the soil, and opened the water flow.


I let the water do all the work, and sink the hole 2 1/2' to 3'.


These holes I will leave open for at least a week, then put all purpose sand in them, or fill with lava rock.  I did this to the peach tree also.



Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Well ever one.  I have been told by a few of my friends that I needed to start this gardening blogg to help people with their gardens, since I don't have a problem with growing vegetables in this clay soil.

Some of my fruits of my labor.
This is part of my garden from last summer before my puppies got a hold of  it.



What I want to start with is, it is a little late to get a garden started, but I have never let that stop me.  The latest I have ever started a garden was in July.  Since we are in a desert we have a longer growing season.  

The best time to plant is in March.  However I have been toying with the idea of starting in February.  We still stand the chance of getting a couple of freeze nights, but that is fixed by covering the plants with freeze cloth.

The biggest problem people think we have is that out soil is not good.  THAT'S NOT TRUE! ; )  We have the best soil to plant in.  The clay soil helps to hold moisture.  You just have to add composted material to the soil.  I like a  50/50 mixture. I even add washed sand to certain parts of the garden.  By that I mean tomatoes like a good draining soil. The area I will put my tomatoes is where I will till the sand in.

My garden is 22' x 16'.  This is my 3rd year in this house.  My second year conditioning the soil.  Last year I tilled in 3 truck loads of horse manure, 10 bags of Kellogg Garden Soil, and 1 cu. yard of sand.  This year 2 truck loads, and 1 bag of sand, the corn was a little over watered last year.  

The reason for the horse manure is that it is free.  I have never got weeds from the manure because I make sure that it is not "hot".  That it has been sitting for at least 6 months.  Hot means that it is fresh, still has the urine in it.  Has not composted yet.  I get mine from Taylor Ranch Horse stables,  another place is Raven Ranch.  These are on the east side of Tucson.

What every one should be doing now is considering where you want to put your garden, and  preparing your soil, ( February would have been better, oh well no sense in crying over spilled milk) and growing seeds if your going that route.  I prefer to purchase starters, and if what I want is not grown, then I start the seeds.

Where to put a garden.  If you don't have shade on the west side of the area you want to put your garden, then you will need to create shade when we get in the upper 90's. The picture above,,, my garden on puppies, but as you can see their is a palo verde  tree to the west of my soon to be again garden.  The poles in the soil are conduit from the electrical dept. at work.  It's cheaper than the large garden stakes, and can stand up the the wind, and the puppies, as you can see the green garden stake lying on the ground didn't holed up to the puppies.  The conduit I use for holding up my shade cloth.


This is the horse manure.  As you can see it is well broken down, (composted).  Well I think I have given enough information for the week.  If any one has questions feel free to ask.