Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Moving manure

I'm trying to do something in the garden every day. Depending on the weather, this might include planting seedlings in the house; but let's face it, there's a lot of hard work to be done before the weather is warm enough to plant anything, and I won't get it done by being lazy.

So I'm trying to do something in the garden every day.

Since I've been using my garden cart a lot, one of the first things that needed to be done was to replace the flimsy plastic liner it came with. Needless to say, it was already full of holes.


So Don dropped the sides and measured the floor.


Then he cut me a sturdy piece of OSB to fit in the bottom of the cart. I loved the way this picture turned out; it so beautifully illustrates my wonderful husband.


He fit the cut board into the cart...


...and made it better than new.


Now I have no excuse to avoid trundling manure. Make that composted manure, from the compost pile. It's hard dirty work moving it, but the tire garden needs it.


Naturally the chickens assume I'm digging up all those lovely worms exclusively for their benefit.



The reason I'm moving so much manure is because the soil in last year's tires has settled, leaving the tires about half-full.


So I'm topping them with fresh compost.


This is after I weed everything, of course.


There are a lot of tires to top off, and I don't even have a fraction of the tires laid out that I want to fill.




How does the song go? Inch by inch, row by row, gonna make this garden grow...

13 comments:



  1. Great song!

    Inch by inch, row by row, gonna make this garden grow.
    All it takes is a rake and a hoe and a piece of fertile ground.
    Inch by inch, row by row, Someone bless the seeds I sow.
    Someone warm them from below, 'til the rain comes tumbling down.

    Pulling weeds and picking stones, man is made of dreams and bones.
    Feel the need to grow my own 'cause the time is close at hand.
    Grain for grain, sun and rain, find my way in nature's chain,
    to my body and my brain to the music from the land.

    Plant your rows straight and long, thicker than with prayer and song.
    Mother Earth will make you strong if you give her love and care.
    Old crow watching hungrily, from his perch in yonder tree.
    In my garden I'm as free as that feathered thief up there.

    Inch by inch, row by row, gonna make this garden grow.
    All it takes is a rake and a hoe and a piece of fertile ground.
    Inch by inch, row by row, Someone bless the seeds I sow.
    Someone warm them from below, 'til the rain comes tumbling down.

    ReplyDelete
  2. So... how do you till the dirt in the tires for next year's garden?

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    Replies
    1. I don't. Since the dirt isn't compacted (just "settled"), it's still quite friable. Another advantage of tires (wink).

      - Patrice

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  3. We used to use tires for planting some things, but then I became concerned about the tires possibly leaching toxins into the garden. I'm thinking that was just an idle worry. Have you heard anything about the safety or lack of it in using tires?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I've done a fair bit of research on this issue. There are some people who tend to get a bit hysterical about potential leaching; but I've learned that leaching issues only arise when the tires are shredded or pulverized. In fact, tires are remarkably un-degradable -- which is bad for the environment but great for gardening. There are chemicals in the tires, of course, but they're bonded into the structure of the tire and won't release until the tire is shredded.

      Please see this link: http://www.tirecrafting.com/FAQ.html

      - Patrice

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  4. "I loved the way this picture turned out; it so beautifully illustrates my wonderful husband."

    Minor edit if I may?

    Your wonderful, handsome husband.

    Girl, when this garden starts putting out you're gonna be canning on an unprecedented scale, I think.

    A.McSp

    ReplyDelete
  5. What a good idea to use that multitude of tires to plant in! I already use some old ones stacked for making compost but what a good idea. It seems as though the works never ends in the garden! Up here in Maine the soil has just gotten workable enough so I planted my peas. Good luck with the garden and I look forward to reading your updates. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The tires, being black as well as raised, warm up sooner than the soil as well. Good for those of us in northern climates.

      I've heard of those in southern climates painting their tires white to shed some of the heat.

      - Patrice

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  6. I use a wheelbarrow to put manure on our garden and then plow it under. I like the use of tires, we have tons of them left over from where they used to cover the plastic on the in-ground silo. Now there is a use for them!

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  7. Mary, Mary, quite contrary,
    How does your garden grow?
    With silver bells, and cockle shells,
    And steel belted radials all in a row.

    That tire garden is gonna be huge Patrice!

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  8. In Central Texas we planted onions and potatoes the last week of January, transplanted tomatoes and peppers in mid-March, and planted squash, cucumbers, beans the end of March. Supposedly the last frost date is late March. We have already covered the sensitive plants once in April and need to do it again (just in case) Thursday and Friday nights. Hopefully the potatoes will survive (they are 18 inches tall) from the retained heat after 3 days of 80 degree + weather. The tomatoes and peppers will get covered (we keep lots of large pots-the kind that people get when they plant trees- for this purpose, but the plants are still at risk. This weather is really weird. If we had waited any later for anything, we would have had everything burn up in the early summer heat. At least we have Swiss chard and cole crops that can handle the cooler weather and can replant beans, etc. The tomatoes (already blooming) and the peppers couldn't wait any longer, and new plants wouldn't produce more than a few weeks. We really get frustrated, but we keep at it since we love the flavor of things we grow ourselves. Also this is the only way we can afford organic produce.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I think us dear readers should get a small pool together and send hardworking Don a six pack of some of his favorite-sized best quality new work shirts.

    ReplyDelete