OT - New To Gardening

frazzdaddy

alaskanassasin said:

frazzdaddy said:

Procured several power poles last fall. Neighbor has a sawmill. Going to build some nice raised beds.

 Your neighbor is going to run a arsenic and creosote injected power pole through his mill?   

Yes, does it all the time.

Kayak

One of the first things you need to build is a compost pile. It’s never too early to start! Never dispose of a compostable item again. With compost you can develop soil that will grow anything.

SciAggie

And when it gets below freezing for 10 days or so - stuff will die. 

The Kale may make it. What died goes to compost as @Kayak suggested. 

WeberWho

Kayak said:

One of the first things you need to build is a compost pile. It’s never too early to start! Never dispose of a compostable item again. With compost you can develop soil that will grow anything.

My sister-in-law put in some type of under ground compost bin that worms live in and will go back and forth from this compost bin to the soil of their garden. I think that's how she explained it anyway. 

Elijah

Another rabbit hole I've been down: Vermicomposting. At the time I was cooking most every day and was getting bad vegetables from the local grocery store for somewhere around .19 a pound. It's an excellent way to get rid of most food waste and paper. You can throw more types of food in than with normal composting. 

JethroBodeen

We are also Baker Creek Heirloom Seed customers (rareseeds.com). We have had good luck with the products that are suited for our climate. We buy mostly pepper and tomato varieties in seed form. Some things are just easier as stated above, to buy seedlings...

Kayak

frazzdaddy said:

Procured several power poles last fall. Neighbor has a sawmill. Going to build some nice raised beds.

I’m not sure you’re getting the great pt lumber you think you are. Once those poles are sliced, you’ll be getting into the area with the least uptake of treatment. The closer to the core, the less gets in. You’d be better off getting 2 by lumber treated for ground contact. Unless you leave them whole...

nolaegghead

Power/telephone poles are usually creosote treated.  Not sure on the mobility of creosotes into plants, but just put a liner in there with some drain holes where water would be running out, not in.

Old treated lumber was done with a chromated copper arsenate.  Arsenic can be a problem, but they discontinued that years ago and it wasn't used much for power poles, mostly resawed lumber.

ColtsFan

SWMBO just informed me that she wants 2 garden's this year. On within our barricade for us and one in the “open” for them. 

buzzvol

I have some issues with the fauna, but the real problem is the only place in the yard that gets enough sun is the front yard near the front curb.  The Mrs has said “oh hell no” (paraphrased).  She has even complained about my few pots.  Maybe I can garden at the next place.

I should tell her that at least I didn’t park a bass boat in the side yard.

buzd504

buzzvol said:

I have some issues with the fauna, but the real problem is the only place in the yard that gets enough sun is the front yard near the front curb.  The Mrs has said “oh hell no” (paraphrased).  She has even complained about my few pots.  Maybe I can garden at the next place.

I should tell her that at least I didn’t park a bass boat in the side yard.

Im trying to convince mine that we don’t need 1000 sq ft of lawn in the backyard. 

frazzdaddy

Kayak said:

frazzdaddy said:

Procured several power poles last fall. Neighbor has a sawmill. Going to build some nice raised beds.

I’m not sure you’re getting the great pt lumber you think you are. Once those poles are sliced, you’ll be getting into the area with the least uptake of treatment. The closer to the core, the less gets in. You’d be better off getting 2 by lumber treated for ground contact. Unless you leave them whole...

They work well actually. We have made a few things out of them. With the price of treated lumber esp 6x6 it's a free option I will take advantage of.

BigGreenKev

Fellow MN gardener.  If you start seeds inside, you will need to harden the plants before you can plant them.  It helps them get used to the cooler weather.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Spectracide-Bag-A-Bug-Beetle-Repellent/3120407 these are awesome for Japanese beetles.

YukonRon

HeavyG said:

One thing I would add is that if you have rabbits in your hood plan on buying some fencing materials. Little buggers kept eating my chives last summer. That won't happen this year.

We rabbit proofed our back yard, where all the rabbit food is grown, it seems. We built a stockade fence, dug 6” down beneath it, added heavy duty cross hatched, galvanized fencing, I added the same to our neighbors fencing and on all gates. We added a dog, and with all these upgrades, we have a secure space where My Beautiful Wife can garden all she wants, but we had to put up small fences to keep the dog out of her gardens.

It never ends. It just never ends.

RyanStl

Good luck, after years of disappointment and hard work. I got rid of the garden and decided to let the pros do their thing. Same for brewing beer and stilling spirits.

WeberWho

RyanStl said:

Good luck, after years of disappointment and hard work. I got rid of the garden and decided to let the pros do their thing. Same for brewing beer and stilling spirits.

When we bought our house the previous owner said she hoped we weren't gardeners because she never had any luck. We have really sandy soil. I took her advice for the last 10 years and thought it wasn't possible. That was until my neighbor mentioned he has a garden in the back of his house. He said the previous owners remarks were nonsense. I must have spent an hour going through all the different things he grows and how he does it. I had not a clue of the garden behind his house. 

The nice part is my neighbor and I share the same type of soil. He'll be able to give me pointers and advise along the way. 

alaskanassasin

WeberWho said:

RyanStl said:

Good luck, after years of disappointment and hard work. I got rid of the garden and decided to let the pros do their thing. Same for brewing beer and stilling spirits.

When we bought our house the previous owner said she hoped we weren't gardeners because she never had any luck. We have really sandy soil. I took her advice for the last 10 years and thought it wasn't possible. That was until my neighbor mentioned he has a garden in the back of his house. He said the previous owners remarks were nonsense. I must have spent an hour going through all the different things he grows and how he does it. I had not a clue of the garden behind his house. 

The nice part is my neighbor and I share the same type of soil. He'll be able to give me pointers and advise along the way. 

 Sand offers good drainage and that is a plus. Morning sun late afternoon shade if you can find a spot.

ArvadaMan

The first piece of information you need to know is your last frost date were you live.  Once you know that,  you can determine when to plant different things in your garden.

Always work on improving your soil.  Everything begins with the soil.

One of our favorite places to get seeds is Seed Savers Exchange in Decorah, IA.  Lots of wonderful heirloom varieties of seeds.  A wonderful place to visit after the pandemic.  Always a highlight of our annual pilgrimage to visit family in Minnesota.

Baker Creek Seeds is also wonderful as mentioned before.

Seeds can be hard to find right now since everyone took up gardening during the pandemic.  Kind of like toilet paper was.

For the first year,  stick to direct seeding and start simple.  You will kill some things.  Don’t give up and learn from it.