Posted on 05/27/2016 3:05:01 PM PDT by greeneyes
NW Iowa.
The fields in the background just look like that because of the lighting. This is all the best black soil in the world here.
And we get plenty of rain, generally. No irrigation is necessary.
This plot is a double vacant lot that has been in sod for years. Just plowed, disced and harrowed it this spring. No soil amendments required.
By the way, I’m sure that field back there is planted to soybeans. They leave the stubble. It’s low, or no, till.
There’s black loam on the coast here in North Carolina, even peat bogs, and there’s black loam in the mountain valleys. But here in the Piedmont, it’s hard red clay west running to sort of sandy east before the coastal plain. You can grow a nice garden in it, plenty of rain most years, but it takes work.
The thing about this lot is that it wasn’t just in grass. It had a whole lot of ground ivy, or what we call “creeping charlie.” The stuff is really hard to kill. We’ve already had to run through it once with the tiller, and I’m in the middle of the last hilling.
As fast as it’s growing though, it’s going to canopy very shortly. That will keep the last of the weeds at bay.
It always takes a lot of work, no matter where you are. :-)
Is that river bottom dirt?
No KIDDING!!
Nope. Calhoun County Iowa. Hundreds and hundreds of miles all around that look pretty similar to that. :-)
We may lack lots of the amenities hereabouts, but we don’t lack good dirt. :-)
Around here, we call that dark rich soil: "Muck", or mucklands, and is desiccated , enriched swampland, ideal for growing root crops, especially orions and other rootcrops.
Also it is rich in organic fiber , generally peat, but has good soil drainage.
Dam , but that is beautiful soil !
Here’s the thing: Around here, this rich, black topsoil was good and deep when they broke the prairie sod. It varies, but most ground here is decent. Some is the best in the world.
But this land has been farmed continuously for nearly a century and a half.
Except, in these small Iowa towns, there’ve been homes sitting on top of that ground the whole time. So, when they bulldoze an old house, the vacant lot, in terms of the quality of the soil, is actually nearly the equivalent of farming here in 1881.
A gardener’s delight.
And believe me, there is no shortage of vacant lots in our little town. I’m afraid it is dwindling away.
I always enjoy reading about ALL the gardens and progress in this thread. Amazing to me since I’ve never planted anything but flowers.
My Weigela is almost a foot high now. Thanks to the one in WI I believe who mentioned planting them. My Azalea is in full bloom and as usual a month behind all the others here in Southern IN. I worry every year it won’t bloom but its beautiful thankfully.
Oak Leaf Hydrangea is ready to be in full bloom. And I planted three Japanese Hydrangeas in a spot I’ve had trouble getting anything to grow there. They seem to like the spot so far.
Nothing as exciting as the great gardens you-all have wrote of but I want to thank you for giving me the push to work on my yard.
Have a great weekend ALL!
Yes, check out jet and let me know what you think. I do find it frustrating that sometimes I find the prices lower after I’ve already bought something. I really don’t understand how it all works but it is cheaper than Amazon from time to time.
I’ve decided from that that I’m not going to ever offer any sales. I’m going to start a small online spice business. And since I find it frustrating that prices change and I could’ve bought something cheaper by just waiting a week, I’m just not going to do any sales. Plus I’m such a small business all be operating on a thin line anyway. I’ll have bulk discounts, and shipping breaks for higher volume. But that’s about it.
I’m going to try the newspaper thing next week! I have sent some tomatoes and peppers in pots that I am hardening off outside and if they make it the next three days they get to go on the ground. And I will surround them with newspapers and see how it goes. If it goes well I’ll probably put newspapers over the whole garden. I’ve already asked a friend at church if I could have her papers and the neighbor also. Thanks for the tip on needing six or more layers. I was wondering.
It made sense to me after I noticed last year that the places that I had piled up leaves and grass clippings on didn’t grow a thing underneath when spring came. In the garden bed that I had mulched heavily in the fall because I had plants that were supposed to come back again, although they didn’t, had very few weeds. So I’m sure it will work!
How are you feeling today?
http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=using+newspapers+for+mulch&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8
These are search results and several videos and good info. Maybe you will get enough to know which technique will work best for you and go ahead and mulch the whole thing and be done with it for most of the summer.
I am going to try to make some coffee and get in a better mood ;-). I should go to the store but won't.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/3433072/posts
Meant to post this at the beginning of the thread. FYI to all.
Did the coffee help?
I’m trying to decide if I should have dessert or just go to bed....I think i’ll go to bed since the 2 Persians kept ganging up on the black and white cat last night, interrupting my sleep. They have a very herd-like mentality, tag-team chasing and trying to get rid of the one that they didn’t grow up with. Poor Max though, it’s not his fault and he won’t fight back.
For sure. Haven’t had time to see the news today.
Sorry to hear about your limitations. Hubby has been planting more perennials, nut trees, fruit trees, and berries each year as a preparation for when he might not be able to do so much planting.
This year is our first time to have quite a few almonds and I think he said some cherries too.
I usually make a list for the store and send Hubby. He sticks to list better than I do. Sometimes, I order stuff from Walmart on line because the exact product name is too confusing, and he will buy several different ones. Also check it out from time to time for specific items I might want to get, but I mostly stay out of stores.
My feet hurt, and sometimes burn and my leg gets kinda numb and painful if I stand or walk for more than 20 or 30 minutes. When I sit too long my ankles swell. So every 20 minutes or so, I shift from standing/walking to sitting, to laying down to recliner etc.
Thanks. Nap was pathetic. Too tired to keep eyes open. Doze off and within 15 minutes wake up. Finally went to sleep at about 5 am and slept till noon. Then drank a cup of coffee, and finally started to feel human about 5pm.
So not much got done today. Hope I go to sleep earlier tonight.
We had some hail here too a while back -can’t remember when.
Thanks so much for all your service and honor for the others. One of the bitterest pills for me, being a baby boomer, is the treatment of our people who served in Vietnam.
It made me boiling mad then, and boiling mad today. Well I’m going to stop right there, because the garden thread is not the place for a rant about the mistreatment of Veterans of any era, even though I’m of the opinion that none of the Veterans get the appreciation and benefits they should. These people are all awesome for volunteering and/or serving our country.
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