tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post3081888998257538264..comments2024-03-28T14:37:45.575-04:00Comments on 5 Acres & A Dream: 2011 Goals: Choosing My Battles, Part 2Leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02435811789823712254noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-39558234903697662712011-03-13T20:38:18.251-04:002011-03-13T20:38:18.251-04:00Jennifer, thank you! I'm glad the links are of...Jennifer, thank you! I'm glad the links are of interest. :)<br /><br />Tom, that's a good idea about the chicken wire. I'll be interested in how well it works for you. I love it that you can make your own growing medium. Makes me think I need to start some worms too!Leighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02435811789823712254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-84742185748011233162011-03-13T16:15:28.626-04:002011-03-13T16:15:28.626-04:00Leigh,
I too have desided to Chose my Battles this...Leigh,<br />I too have desided to Chose my Battles this year. Against the weeds, Deer and Rabbits!<br />We will be building raised beds this year and filling them with our own growning medium ( 1/3 peat moss, 1/3 worm casts and 1/3 compost). This way there will not be any weed seeds to start with and the growing medium is so light that pulling any weeds that show up will be a breeze><br />As for the Deer and Rabbits, Each raised bed will have a hoop house built over it and that will be covered with chicken wire. I will also be getting a 22 rifel to impress to the Rabbits that they need to find greener pastures elsa where!Tom Stewarthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08617525385016644041noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-80096013424361288772011-03-13T15:25:15.324-04:002011-03-13T15:25:15.324-04:00What a great blog. You have a lot of great links t...What a great blog. You have a lot of great links too. I enjoyed reading your articles.Jennifer Dobinsonhttp://ontariofarmgirl.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-58092999385161823872011-03-13T07:54:02.878-04:002011-03-13T07:54:02.878-04:00Alicia, I'm finding they are a challenge to gr...Alicia, I'm finding they are a challenge to grow too! Hopefully I'll soon be able to say they're worth the effort!<br /><br />Luckybunny, ooo, wild strawberries! I can only imagine how delicious those are. Every time I visit your blog I see plenty more snow. Does it ever melt up there??? :)Leighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02435811789823712254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-57770903313752238502011-03-12T19:45:42.962-05:002011-03-12T19:45:42.962-05:00I'm not even near gardening weather yet, so I ...I'm not even near gardening weather yet, so I appreciate seeing such pictures and your posts about such things! :) I've learned a lot in the past two posts. We won't be growing strawberries, I'll have to hunt the wild ones in the forest, but this will be our first year with blueberries and our second attemp at raspberries. You've caught my interest though in strawberries!luckybunnyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17663313808544386765noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-68478291575716280282011-03-12T14:02:22.846-05:002011-03-12T14:02:22.846-05:00I really like this post! I love to grow strawberri...I really like this post! I love to grow strawberries but find that they sometimes can be quite a challenge. Thanks for the tips.Alicia@ eco friendly homemakinghttp://ecofriendlyhomemaking.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-16100609683652857692011-03-12T12:52:32.986-05:002011-03-12T12:52:32.986-05:00Debbie, yes, she did bring up a good point which i...Debbie, yes, she did bring up a good point which is one of the reasons why I had to move them. We haven't tried fresh strawberry ice cream yet, sounds yummy!<br /><br />Jane, I've found smothering with a heavy mulch of at least 6 inches works well for <i>most</i> things! This grass obviously isn't one of them. :(<br /><br />Jane, that's a very good point. Makes the whole project seem less discouraging, LOL. <br /><br />Lynda, I'm glad you mentioned the lasagna method because I need to try that too. Dan wants to go bio-intensively in the vegetable garden, where we'll be rotating things, but I think the lasagna method might help me conquer the front yard sooner!Leighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02435811789823712254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-11178486806267374302011-03-12T12:22:22.250-05:002011-03-12T12:22:22.250-05:00I'm exhausted just reading your posts! We'...I'm exhausted just reading your posts! We've had a couple days of sunshine and the weeds are everywhere...I just got back from the local grocery store with a BALE of flattened cardboad boxes (I'm going to do the lasagna method of gardening)...I'm going to be busy this weekend! Great post, Leigh...you got my butt in gear!Lyndahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14189157322930654023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-55349830436723078652011-03-12T11:36:13.984-05:002011-03-12T11:36:13.984-05:00This really worked out best in the long run as you...This really worked out best in the long run as you need to move the strawberry plants to a new location every couple of years anyway. So this was one of these things that look bad in the beginning but had a silver lining.Jane @ Hard Work Homesteadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02905658082120445313noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-56781793843978306302011-03-12T10:29:58.523-05:002011-03-12T10:29:58.523-05:00I learned something new from reading your post,abo...I learned something new from reading your post,about smothering weeds. Thanks for sharing this. Blessings janeJanehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08535490386634385929noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-30854851854655981502011-03-12T09:46:25.638-05:002011-03-12T09:46:25.638-05:00Ah, a good solution! Mama Pea brings up a good poi...Ah, a good solution! Mama Pea brings up a good point - if the weeds were sucking all the nutrients away from your berry plants, then they're better off moved away from them.<br /><br />My DH loves to make strawberry ice cream from fresh strawberries - a container sounds like a perfect idea!DebbieBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00508692845369401119noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-64328676344273415282011-03-12T09:28:44.032-05:002011-03-12T09:28:44.032-05:00Tami, I'm really glad you mentioned this becau...Tami, I'm really glad you mentioned this because I am planning to plant some saw palmetto. I use the berries in Dan's herbal prostate tincture, and so we need our own source. I didn't realize it was that tenacious though, so I will be very careful as to how I plant it. Thanks!<br /><br />Mike, my comfrey got a pretty good start last year. I was supposed to keep the flowers picked to help it get established, but didn't do so well with that. I planted my comfrey in a grid pattern, with plants spaced at three feet. This was on the recommendation of the folks I bought it from and this year I can start harvesting the leaves for compost, mulch, and feed. I plan to try a few plants in a polycultural bed in the future.<br /><br />Icebear, I love Horizon Herbs! They have the absolute best variety. Do report on how your comfrey does. It's a great plant.<br /><br />Rain, that was it exactly! We love strawberries too much to not win this battle. Do try some strawberries. They make a great container plant.<br /><br />Bettina, I love your solution. Your comment confirms something I've been thinking about; that a work free garden isn't realistic, but rather a manageable workload, based on what works best in our individual situations. <br /><br />Mama Pea, LOL, they do don't they. They seem to thrive on abuse. This stuff pops up in other places, but so far I've been able to keep the rest of it under control. Hopefully I can get this area under control too.Leighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02435811789823712254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-2576109176510312302011-03-12T09:17:57.206-05:002011-03-12T09:17:57.206-05:00Gosh, you really do have a weed problem. I think ...Gosh, you really do have a weed problem. I think if you had left the strawberries where they were they never would have had the energy or nutrients to give you much in the way of a harvest because of how very invasive the weed problem was. As far as the time and effort to move the plants, think of it as a one time thing. Once it's done, you won't have to do it again! Good luck with killing off those weeds. They look like they've been on steroids.Mama Peahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03649357184167949247noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-21978180726455940542011-03-12T09:05:23.212-05:002011-03-12T09:05:23.212-05:00I moved most of my strawberries into plant boxes (...I moved most of my strawberries into plant boxes (long rectangles) and put those onto a sort of timber "ladder" (not as steep and with steps as wide as the boxes). this means that the couch grass and ground elder can't reach them anymore. they are not quite as productive and I have to water them during dry spells, but slugs can't reach them easily either and I can cover the whole thing with netting against the birds! not easy to do if you have huge amounts of plants though:)) I still have some strawberries in the bed, and it's impossible to get rid of all the ground elder and grass around, so it will creep into the veggie/strawbs bed again anyway:(( but I hope you have more luck with your new bed - if it means less weeding, it was worth it!Woolly Bitshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11961632742998726155noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-90394015824274165042011-03-12T09:01:33.863-05:002011-03-12T09:01:33.863-05:00Geez, that wire grass/weed is horribly invasive! ...Geez, that wire grass/weed is horribly invasive! I'm so glad you found a solution, because yes, forever-weeding is NOT an option. I can't wait to see how your strawberries grow! That's so great! I may try a strawberry bush this summer too! :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-34237577428740136062011-03-12T08:38:22.094-05:002011-03-12T08:38:22.094-05:00Oh i hope you do win that battle, its frustrating...Oh i hope you do win that battle, its frustrating to put so much work into these things when they don't turn out as you hoped. I got my first comfrey roots last summer, from Horizon Herbs. I didn't have anyplace to put them at the time so i poked holes in a large bag of potting soil and popped them in. I hope they made it through, we'll see soon enough!icebearhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04688755441418251036noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-55059855376858096442011-03-12T08:13:51.863-05:002011-03-12T08:13:51.863-05:00Sounds like an excellent solution and at least wit...Sounds like an excellent solution and at least with the plastic you know the weeds won't be able to penetrate it. <br /><br />I bought some comfrey and have the little roots patiently waiting in the basement to be planted if our ground ever thaws out. Did yours grow pretty quickly? I'm trying to decide whether or not to plant all 12 roots close together or seperate them as you did.Mr. H.https://www.blogger.com/profile/04576034751522467377noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-78953205434884502882011-03-12T07:58:05.662-05:002011-03-12T07:58:05.662-05:00Best solution possible...Move and smother.
When w...Best solution possible...Move and smother.<br /><br />When we first moved to NC, I fell in love with Palmetto Sawgrass and placed two of them in my yard not understanding that they become monsters as they grow. I had one back by our bedroom window which also was close to the natural gas meter.<br /><br />I eventually got a note letting us know that our bill would be estimated as they couldn't read the meter (please, bend over and brush it aside).<br /><br />Well, we cut it WAY back and then used the heavy black plastic (and bricks) to smother the area.<br /><br />After 1 year we uncovered it, but within a week had shoots sprouting. Covered it back up and year 2 finally saw enough rot so we could get rid of it completely.<br /><br />Effective, but it takes time.Tamihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06597093453934852571noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-12808390379314079332011-03-12T07:14:20.828-05:002011-03-12T07:14:20.828-05:00Colette, thank you so much! After swinging by your...Colette, thank you so much! After swinging by your blog, I can heartily return the compliment. I've thought about containers for my strawberries, but I must have a hundred or more plants. Maybe I should experiment with just a few!Leighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02435811789823712254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-19406033066839692142011-03-12T00:25:06.098-05:002011-03-12T00:25:06.098-05:00Oh dear...my second attempt and now I've lost ...Oh dear...my second attempt and now I've lost what I wrote...anyway, love your blog! Lots of great info. I grow strawberries here in Ireland, but in hanging baskets so as to prevent decimation by slugs!<br />I love the fact that you also spin! I'll be back!<br />ColetteAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com