Monday, January 1, 2024
I saw an interesting headline last summer about gardening goals for the season. I thought that was a fun idea and appropriate for the new year. This is what my six goals are for this year's edible and decorative garden.
Goal 1: Have a plan. I started planning at the end of the season what I needed to plant for the next season so I wouldn't plant too much, a variety that didn't do well, or forgetting a variety that I wanted to try. I wrote it all down this past fall so I am good there. Reflections on the 2023 edible garden and plans for 2024 What I need to make sure I have a good plan for is the lay out of the new garden beds, the perennials and placement since that is what will provide the color and structure for years to come. I also want to be sure to have perennials like herbs that are fragrant surrounding the garden bed as deer deterrent. How to keep the deer away I'll draw out the shape of the bed along with the measurements, then check the wish list I have been adding to for the plants I want to include, then start putting them on the lay out to see how many and where they will all go.
Goal 2: Make it beautiful. My flower beds are dual purpose, production of edibles, fragrance and decorative. Many flowers are edible, too. Flowers that are edible As I finalize the perennial lay out, I will make sure I have all season color throughout the beds and add in annuals to keep blooms going.
Goal 3: Maximize the production of edibles. Continue succession planting. Want continuous harvests? Succession planting! Be more ruthless in pulling out what is past its prime to make room for the next round/season of edibles. Continue to learn how to use my new pop up, walk-in greenhouse to garden year round. Planting schedule for edibles in an unheated portable greenhouse Continue to try different types of fertilizer to see what works best in my garden. Continue to do soil testing and work to get pH at the optimum level for edibles, 6.5-7.5. The next step in garden production and your nutrition-soil minerals
Goal 4: Attract pollinators. As I chose the perennials, annuals and edibles, I will keep an eye to how helpful they are in providing food and habitat for pollinators. All my pots with edibles include flowers. Decorative container gardening for edibles I'll be sure to have a water bath and add a landing spot for both birds and insects. I'd love to add toad hoses and native bee houses, too.
Goal 5: Try new things. I am always seeing new varieties to try so that is not a hard thing to do. It's more about improving all aspects of the garden. I will continue to look for ways to improve productivity and deter pests naturally, like planting Dragon's Radish next to sprouting broccoli to deter caterpillars. Part of my garden plan will be making sure I have a strongly scented plant about every 6 feet to deter deer. This can be marigolds or herbs. I also need to try new things to keep the voles out of my garden beds. I started using coffee grounds around the beds to deter them which seems to help. I am going to move my pots of edible greens that I cover with a portable greenhouse to the concrete pad so they can't tunnel up underneath the pots.
Goal 6: Be proactive. I live in the country so no matter how well your garden plan is for deer defense, they are going to get really hungry come spring and again in the fall. I want to be more proactive this year in keeping my deer deterrents refreshed before they get hungry enough that herbs don't keep them out of the garden.
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