Ripper progress on the greenhouse Andrew, I'm sure you will be reaping the benefits from that for years to come
Backyard to food forest
- Thread starter AndrewB
- Start date
Greenhouse is pretty much done, just have a gutter to put on, but it was a bit wet to be doing that this weekend.
Planted some chinese cabbage inside & beans, kale & calendular in a new outside garden bed.
This weeks project will be making some more shelf space for seedlings & maybe starting on a chicken coop.
Planted some chinese cabbage inside & beans, kale & calendular in a new outside garden bed.
This weeks project will be making some more shelf space for seedlings & maybe starting on a chicken coop.
if you have any guttering left over, put some ends on them at a good length and use it to sit your pots in for watering. I find the hardest thing to get is those water bottoms for pots and I did this.... wow what a time and water saver. Mine are 2 metres long and not easily moved so I would make them smaller next time.
Hi nzmitzi, the gutter I got was the perfect length, so no left overs. Another way to do that is to make a wooden frame & cover the inside of it with pond liner. I had a hydroponics system in a previous garden that I did this with & it worked great.
I had today off work, so took advantage of the sun & made a few more garden beds. I'm getting pretty good at making these things now
These are the largest I've made at 3 mtrs x 1.8 mtrs & 2.4 mtrs x 1.8 mtrs.
The larger one I have seeded with all sorts of bee attracting annual & perennials. The smaller I will leave to settle for now & will plant sunflowers, okra & jerusalem artichoke once it warms up a bit.
Grass was almost totally gone after a few months of heavy mulch on top of it. There were a few thick runners left, but they pulled out easily.
This one has 2 peaches & a nectarine, they are mini dwarf varieties, so will be fine with the close spacing.
Some signs of life already on some of the trees & others have buds ready to burst. I just hope they hold off flowering until the frosts have cleared.
Peach.
Mulberry.
And finally an overview of the lot. I think I'm done with the garden beds now, not much space left for more, still plenty of room for pots though
Bring on Spring!
I had today off work, so took advantage of the sun & made a few more garden beds. I'm getting pretty good at making these things now
These are the largest I've made at 3 mtrs x 1.8 mtrs & 2.4 mtrs x 1.8 mtrs.
The larger one I have seeded with all sorts of bee attracting annual & perennials. The smaller I will leave to settle for now & will plant sunflowers, okra & jerusalem artichoke once it warms up a bit.
Grass was almost totally gone after a few months of heavy mulch on top of it. There were a few thick runners left, but they pulled out easily.
This one has 2 peaches & a nectarine, they are mini dwarf varieties, so will be fine with the close spacing.
Some signs of life already on some of the trees & others have buds ready to burst. I just hope they hold off flowering until the frosts have cleared.
Peach.
Mulberry.
And finally an overview of the lot. I think I'm done with the garden beds now, not much space left for more, still plenty of room for pots though
Bring on Spring!
I hope you left room for your chicken coop and the bee hive, over spring and summer its going to look awsome and the produce you are going to harvest is going to be a credit to your hard work happy days.
I'm rapidly running out of room, but I have a few plans for the chicken coop that will be pretty unique. There is also a nice shady spot behind the greenhouse that I will turn into a run I think. It's not good for much else except mushrooms really. Plenty of spots for the bee hive.
Gosh Andrew, I think my back started aching just looking at what you achieved! I am keen to read more and to follow your progress!
Andrew, I am reading through this thread from woe to go. It is amazing to read and watch the development. Thank you so much for sharing!!!
I added some more shelving space in the greenhouse today, 2 small 3 tier greenhouses from Bunnings & a shelf from Aldi. There are lots of seeds germinating at the moment & I was completely out of room.
I've also order a flowhive & a chicken coop, which should arrive next week
I've also order a flowhive & a chicken coop, which should arrive next week
The Flow hive arrived this afternoon.
I have some Tung oil on its way for the outside, should look pretty nice. It was pretty simple to assemble, a few of the pilot holes could be bigger & some counter sinking on the external panels would improve it, but it's pretty solid.
Now I have to try & track down some bees. Victoria being closed makes things a bit tougher!
I also prepped the chicken area today & ordered 3 black australorp hens, they should be ready in about 3 weeks. Still have some fencing to do & a coop to builld when it arrives, but the timing should work out well.
I have some Tung oil on its way for the outside, should look pretty nice. It was pretty simple to assemble, a few of the pilot holes could be bigger & some counter sinking on the external panels would improve it, but it's pretty solid.
Now I have to try & track down some bees. Victoria being closed makes things a bit tougher!
I also prepped the chicken area today & ordered 3 black australorp hens, they should be ready in about 3 weeks. Still have some fencing to do & a coop to builld when it arrives, but the timing should work out well.
Hi Andrew,
Great progress ! The rain and heat is slacking off here, so have not been logging in lately, too busy in my own garden getting my fall plants going. Am quite impressed by all you are doing.
Happy Gardening !!!
P J, the Dirt Diva
Great progress ! The rain and heat is slacking off here, so have not been logging in lately, too busy in my own garden getting my fall plants going. Am quite impressed by all you are doing.
Happy Gardening !!!
P J, the Dirt Diva
That hive looks to be the bee's knees .
Where did you get your hens from and have the prices returned to reasonable yet? FB has banned the local poultry sites I was on to monitor the prices.
I'm getting them through Doug Dyde's produce store on David st. I think they are $29 each from memory.
I'm ok with the price, because the service was great. A real old school shop, he was happy to share knowledge & offer suggestions, not just point at an isle like most places these days
I'm ok with the price, because the service was great. A real old school shop, he was happy to share knowledge & offer suggestions, not just point at an isle like most places these days
Chicken coop is assembled & in place. I have some fencing to do next weekend. I'm going to give them a run all the way around the fence line so I don't have to weed it & let them into the rest of the garden under supervision so they don't eat things to the point it won't grow back!
The hive came up good with some oil & paint. Would be nicer if the finish was more consistent, but the various wood components are from different batches I assume, so stains differently. I need to figure out where to put it now. I have a lot of ants around that i'm worried about, so I'm thinking I may surround it with a pond/stream so it's isolated on it's own little island.
Fruit trees are flowering. It's been raining, so no frost for the last week, but it's something i'll need to keep an eye on for the next month or so.
I have a heap of planting to do to increase plant diversity, but already the beneficial insects are moving in. I have dozens of hoverfriends flying about
The hive came up good with some oil & paint. Would be nicer if the finish was more consistent, but the various wood components are from different batches I assume, so stains differently. I need to figure out where to put it now. I have a lot of ants around that i'm worried about, so I'm thinking I may surround it with a pond/stream so it's isolated on it's own little island.
Fruit trees are flowering. It's been raining, so no frost for the last week, but it's something i'll need to keep an eye on for the next month or so.
I have a heap of planting to do to increase plant diversity, but already the beneficial insects are moving in. I have dozens of hoverfriends flying about