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HomeSafeHome:  "Newspaper Gardens"  |
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AliciaNak
True Blue Farmgirl
405 Posts
Alicia
Elko
Nevada
USA
405 Posts |
 Posted - Jun 26 2010 : 08:13:39 AM
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The pallets are a great idea Darlene! My hubby thinks if you made a little teepee with two of em and planted beans or peas, something that needed a trellis, you could train them up the side of the pallets. This year I'm putting an old char that has no seat in the garden, and I'll train my pumpkin vines or squash up the chair.
I did the newspapers in my lettuce and spinach, and so far it's working pretty good. But the weeds here are rampant, with strong winds to help blow them around, so I still have some weeding to do. But it's easier.
Alicia
Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.~Ralph Waldo Emmerson
www.blondenak.blogspot.com
www.artfire.com/users/BlondeNakCreations |
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HealingTouch
True Blue Farmgirl
3448 Posts
Darlene
Kunkletown
Pa
USA
3448 Posts |
Posted - Jun 26 2010 : 7:12:52 PM
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Alicia that trellis idea sounds like it would work great. I was in my garden all day today. Everything is growing like crazy and looks so healthy. My yellow squash and zuchinni are already producing small veggies. Next year I will plant everything in pallots. There are no weeds at all. I was out until 7pm. I was so dirty from adding more pallots,newspaper and straw to get ready for anything else I can get on monday from our feedstore. I'm in heaven in my garden or flowerbeds. I got into one of my outside clawfoot tubs to wash before I went in to take a shower. The water was so warm. Might I say I did this au natural. Can you tell I live in the country on a dirt lane! Me the birds,deer and nature. Whoopie! I'm quite reserved but this is sooo relaxing after the gardening! I have 2 tubs side by side and I bricked all around them like a patio. One faces one way and the other faces the other way so if 2 of us are in the tubs we can see each other and talk. With clothes on of course! After my pool needed repair and the kids were on their own this was my solution for cooling off. The GKS love it too! Can't wait till monday to get more stuff!
Blessings and Happy Gardening,
Darlene |
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smiley
True Blue Farmgirl
650 Posts
lea
pea ridge
arkansas
USA
650 Posts |
Posted - Jun 27 2010 : 05:54:45 AM
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| We also do the newspaper idea and it works great. You arent suppose to use the glossy magazine type pages however. |
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Oggie
True Blue Farmgirl
526 Posts
Ginny
Machias
Maine
USA
526 Posts |
Posted - Jun 27 2010 : 7:22:17 PM
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I've done this too. I put about 10 layers of newspaper, then water well so it doesn't blow away, then I put hay on top. I also put boards on top of the hay as my "paths" and am told this helps keep slugs out. They will live under the boards but if you lift the boards up in the morning and get all the slugs off, in a couple of days you shouldn't have very many.
Life is Beautiful with Bunnies
www.thedewhopinn.ning.com
http://www.etsy.com/shop/thedewhopinn
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Sarahpauline
True Blue Farmgirl
672 Posts
sarah
Ringgold
GA
USA
672 Posts |
Posted - Jun 27 2010 : 7:56:19 PM
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This is what we have always done too, I read an article about it when I was a teenager and have been using this technique since. HAs anyone tried gardening in strawbales?
Oh Mr Darcy!
www.SarahPauline.com
www.AbraxasBaroque.com |
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patchworkpeace
True Blue Farmgirl
478 Posts
Judy
Jackson
Michigan
USA
478 Posts |
Posted - Jun 28 2010 : 05:14:59 AM
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Sarah,
We put our seed potatoes on newspaper layers, then put about 10-12 inches of straw on top and let them be. Voila! when it's time to harvest, beautiful, clean potatoes, no work, no weeding during the summer. It seems hard to believe that potatoes don't need to be planted in soil, but we can attest to the fact that it works great.
Judy
Success is measured not by the position one reaches but by the obstacles one has to overcome to reach it. Booker T. Washington |
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Sarahpauline
True Blue Farmgirl
672 Posts
sarah
Ringgold
GA
USA
672 Posts |
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AliciaNak
True Blue Farmgirl
405 Posts
Alicia
Elko
Nevada
USA
405 Posts |
Posted - Jun 28 2010 : 10:51:38 AM
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Judy
My hubby "stole" my two old cast iron tubs (I was going to do herbs in them) for the potatoes. We put down some soil mixed with horse manure (we have PLENTY!), and then covered the whole thing in straw. They are coming up nicely. He read/heard that as they grow you continue to cover them with straw. Did you notice a need to do keep adding straw?
Alicia
Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.~Ralph Waldo Emmerson
www.blondenak.blogspot.com
www.artfire.com/users/BlondeNakCreations |
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HealingTouch
True Blue Farmgirl
3448 Posts
Darlene
Kunkletown
Pa
USA
3448 Posts |
Posted - Jun 28 2010 : 8:13:12 PM
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| I belong to another garden group and a lady posted a picture of her plants in the strawbales. They were planted directly into the whole bales and the plants were very healthy looking. Seems like a good solution for people who have little garden area. |
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Sarahpauline
True Blue Farmgirl
672 Posts
sarah
Ringgold
GA
USA
672 Posts |
Posted - Jun 28 2010 : 8:22:21 PM
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Darlene, that is exactly what I am referring to. THe article I read discussed a family that had just moved into a new property, hadnt had time to prepare soil for a garden and used the bales, the plus side was no weeds!
Oh Mr Darcy!
www.SarahPauline.com
www.AbraxasBaroque.com
www.whimsyscents.com |
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kathyjane
True Blue Farmgirl
66 Posts
Kathy
Doniphan
MO
USA
66 Posts |
Posted - Feb 07 2011 : 8:25:49 PM
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I tried the straw bale gardening a couple of years ago and it was a big flop!!!! They dried out so fast that my plants just burned up. I watered everyday first thing but this Missouri sun just wreaked havoc.
Kathy Jane
Farmgirl #2565 |
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AliciaNak
True Blue Farmgirl
405 Posts
Alicia
Elko
Nevada
USA
405 Posts |
Posted - Feb 08 2011 : 06:58:18 AM
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We tried potatoes in old bathtubs, with a tiny bit of soil in the bottom and then straw filling the rest. They grew ok on the top, but when we pulled em up there were NO spuds!! I wanted those old tubs for a kitchen herb garden anyhow. :)
I put newspaper strips in between my lettuce rows last spring and had to keep rocks on top of em to keep em from blowing away. The wind here can get horrible and gusty. It DID keep the weeds down, some of the little devils grew sideways until they were out from under the newspaper. They were easy to pick.
Alicia
Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.~Ralph Waldo Emmerson
www.blondenak.blogspot.com
www.artfire.com/users/BlondeNakCreations |
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cottagefarmgirl
Farmgirl in Training
24 Posts
Cathy
Marion
NC
USA
24 Posts |
Posted - Feb 08 2011 : 09:22:06 AM
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I did this in a back bed that was lacking. I put a layer of newspaper covered with about 8-9 inches of mulch. It wintered over, and I planted things in the Spring. Best bed in my yard that year. Elephant ears that dwarfed my hubby (who is 6'4"). It is a wonderful, simple garden tool to have in your bag of tricks. Grannies are usually very wise, and this proves that. |
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KathyC
True Blue Farmgirl
583 Posts
Kathy
Gastonia
NC
USA
583 Posts |
Posted - Feb 08 2011 : 11:13:48 AM
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Hey Cathy,
Nice to see another North Carolina girl here. One day we might be neighbors as we have property in Burke County and hope to retire there!
Kathy
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cottagefarmgirl
Farmgirl in Training
24 Posts
Cathy
Marion
NC
USA
24 Posts |
Posted - Feb 09 2011 : 1:21:06 PM
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Hey KathyC,
Burke is right next door to me, county-wise anyway. Email me sometime and we can get acquainted. Glad to be a part of this all.
Cathy |
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henlady35904
True Blue Farmgirl
295 Posts
Kim
Gadsden
Alabama
USA
295 Posts |
Posted - Feb 09 2011 : 5:07:07 PM
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| I have been doing this for about 3 years except I put the newspaper down over the entire garden, flowers too, and plant cutting holes for the plants. My perrenial bed was nothing but hard clay soil 3 years ago and is now almost black. I mulch with a 3 inch layer of pine straw every year too. Another tip for reusing-- when I bought my mini farm fixer upper there were all sorts of "stuff" lying around. A large pile of leftover roofing shingles, what to do to recycle? I used them around the base of my house where I didn't want weeds or to have to weed-eat and wha-la instant weed bearer. Happy Gardening! |
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Oggie
True Blue Farmgirl
526 Posts
Ginny
Machias
Maine
USA
526 Posts |
Posted - Feb 10 2011 : 8:32:49 PM
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I did the newspaper garden this year and loved it! I didn't have to weed anything until the very end of the season and even that was nominal. I dug my rows, planted the seeds and put string from a stick on each end of the row so I would know where it was. Then I laid down the newspaper, got it all wet so it would stay in place and then put hay over it. At the end of the season my hubby just tilled it into the ground. I plan on doing this again this summer and we now have a garden that is actually the size of a field so it should be interesting!
Ginny
Farmgirl #2343
Life is Beautiful with Bunnies
www.thedewhopinn.com |
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Judyr808
Farmgirl in Training
23 Posts
Judy
Hood River
Oregon
USA
23 Posts |
Posted - Feb 11 2011 : 4:07:33 PM
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Hay, I've done the news paper for years, it works well around flowers as well as between rows in the veg. garden. I put mulch on top and it works wonderfully. I grow worms too and they love newspaper laced with a little kitchen scraps.
Judy
Love & Light |
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Judyr808
Farmgirl in Training
23 Posts
Judy
Hood River
Oregon
USA
23 Posts |
Posted - Feb 11 2011 : 4:22:09 PM
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Oh yes, you can use cardboard boxes too. In the fall after everything has been harvested, I open, as many large boxes as I can find, up flat and cover as much of my garden, or cover a new place where I want to plant something new next year. Put a few rocks or shovels of durt on top to hold it down (if it is printed with colored paper on one side place that side up) In the spring, lift them up and see how clear it is under it. Just till into soil or remove and use again until nature breaks it down and it goes back to the earth.
Judy
Love & Light |
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HollyMaker
True Blue Farmgirl
84 Posts
Holly
CA
USA
84 Posts |
Posted - Feb 11 2011 : 5:40:41 PM
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If you saw my garden now you would think that my choosen crop is weeds and thistles! I have never been able to get ahead of them but I must try this technique this year. There is a local paper that is printed on recycled paper with soy-based inks that would be perfect. I have also heard about growing potatoes in straw. I'll have to find someone around here that has some seasoned straw (from a goat pen) and I guess I'll try my hand at growing potatoes with this method. Thanks for all the ideas ladies!
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http://www.chartreuseproducts.com/hlennon.html |
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HollyMaker
True Blue Farmgirl
84 Posts
Holly
CA
USA
84 Posts |
Posted - Feb 11 2011 : 6:15:30 PM
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If you saw my garden now you would think that my choosen crop is weeds and thistles! I have never been able to get ahead of them but I must try this technique this year. There is a local paper that is printed on recycled paper with soy-based inks that would be perfect. I have also heard about growing potatoes in straw. I'll have to find someone around here that has some seasoned straw (from a goat pen) and I guess I'll try my hand at growing potatoes with this method. Thanks for all the ideas ladies!
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http://www.chartreuseproducts.com/hlennon.html |
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grammytammy
True Blue Farmgirl
585 Posts
Tamara
Binghamton
ny
USA
585 Posts |
Posted - Feb 12 2011 : 05:25:43 AM
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Holly, mine is the same. I have abandoned it for several years and it is not pretty. I have a neighbor who uses newspaper in his flower gardens and they are always beautiful.
God loved us so much He gave His only son to die in our stead. |
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Judyr808
Farmgirl in Training
23 Posts
Judy
Hood River
Oregon
USA
23 Posts |
Posted - Feb 14 2011 : 12:13:15 AM
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Holly, when you start your potatoes put only about 3 in. of straw on top of them. When they sprout and there are leaves above the straw put another few in. on top, covering all of the leaves, they will grow through that new straw, keep doing that for as much straw as you have. The potatoes will be all through the straw, they produce so much more this way. Good luck!
Love & Light |
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Daizy
True Blue Farmgirl
992 Posts
Daizy
Talladega
Alabama
USA
992 Posts |
Posted - Feb 14 2011 : 05:29:09 AM
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Hay Ya'll
I have also heard of the straw/add-on in small amounts method and my friends have always had tators. My question is: will this also work with shavings that come from my dogs kennels or horse stalls (that have been in dump pile for months).
I love the newspaper gardens. I use it and it works great but the wind does tend to lift it up and "move" it around....put rocks or mulch on top. If you still have left over paper then the thrift store usually takes it to wrap up glass/brakable items. We have decreased the garbage pick up around here by 2/3 the usual amount....we just have to find the "other" uses out there.
Love and Prayers,
Your SISTER
Daizy
PHR Farmgirl #1093
A good day is when you find ALL your ear tags! I wonder how my cows would like my Farmgirl apron?? |
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henlady35904
True Blue Farmgirl
295 Posts
Kim
Gadsden
Alabama
USA
295 Posts |
Posted - Feb 16 2011 : 5:54:14 PM
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Judy,
I have been watching your posts on the potatoes planted in the straw. I'm very interested in this. Do you just put new or used straw on the ground and start adding seed potatoes? Any info is appreciated! Thanks:) |
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HomeSafeHome: "Newspaper Gardens" |
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"Newspaper Gardens"
