NC garden update. We have been fighting really cold nights for the last couple of weeks. Below 30’s which has become quite unusual for our area this early (Piedmont). Last year only had a few weeks like this in January/February. So far the fall garden is surviving under floating row covers and 6 mil plastic but it has been a pain covering and uncovering. We have collards, turnips, spinach, kale, onions, snow peas, and carrots. Will try to post a pic taken about a month ago after we put up a few “cold frames” for the row covers. It has grown a lot since then.
What we don’t eat we give to the chickens. They are doing better since we insulated the cracks and vents in their coop. One of my girls is in the chicken hospital with a broken toe. She is being “discharged” on Sunday.
Our last project was a three chambered composting bin made out of pallets. Turned out pretty good and we have a full bin “cooking” and hopefully ready by spring. Our next project is a series of raised beds made out of 4X6 timbers. Found them for $10 a pc on Craigslist and picked up enough to keep us busy all winter. They were originally used to hold up guardrails and such along side the highways and are being replaced with metal. Cheap and no creosote either. Should last a good while.
Best wishes to all. Happy gardening...Happy Thanksgiving and Happy Christmas! (I will try to post a pic of the garden (img src=”http://rs892.pbsrc.com/albums/ac128/jordansjourney/Mobile%20Uploads/2013-11-06_16-16-30_209_zps6baa0f10.jpg~320x480”;>
Very nice !
I hate the cold weather. The new climate map has put us in zone 6. However, someone forgot to tell mother nature, because we keep getting zone 5 weather, just like we always have. I’d like to have a little global warming here please.
That’s a really good deal for the 4 x 6 timber. I really do hate the hassles of taking off plastic every day. Usually, I don’t use plastic at all. I use double row covers for all temps down to 24 degrees, and don’t really take them off unless we get a really really nice sunshiney day. Once every couple of weeks, works pretty well.
When it gets colder than 24 degrees, I toss straw or a styrofoam, egg crate mattress on top of the row cover. Then when I want to, I just roll up the row cover a bit on the south west side, so that the sun can shine into the bed, but I don’t have to take the whole thing off and reposition it.
I’d really like to have chickens, but not sure we could get by with it here. Some of the neighbors would probably object.
