garden news-bed prep for planting vegetables

GARDEN NEWS-BED PREP FOR PLANTING VEGETABLES

this is ms b and hudson in their garden
each week we try to get them into our community garden
this week ms b did her zoom art class while sitting under the big ole oak tree in our garden using a hot spot for wifi
the class was on how to draw a chicken
ms b and mr hudson had just finished feeding food scraps and bread to the chickens
so
it worked out well that day
she also gave the kindergarten class a zoom tour of our community garden 


ms b drew this chicken knowing that one of our chickens named itchy was ill
she drew this as a get well card for ms itchy
she got some tape and taped it on the door to the coop turning the picture towards the inside so ms itchy could read it and maybe feel better
alas ms itchy passed a couple of days later
im sure ms itchy got some solace in her last days after reading ms bs card


i volunteer 3 times a week for 3-4 hours doing whatever needs to be done in the community garden
this week i cleaned off a bed where the cauliflower was planted to get it ready for the next spring vegetables 
all our vegetables are donated to those in need

over the last two years we have tried to be aggressive in prepping our beds using lots of compost and an organic source of nitrogen 


here is what is left of a huge dump truckload of good organic compost
we have been using this for several months on our new beds
i can really see a difference in the quality of our garden soil over the last two years


for this fertilizer for the new bed we used this composted chicken manure that has been aged for months
its a rich organic source of fertilizer for the beds


i placed piles of compost and the chicken compost on the newly harvested bed
i then raked in the piles so it was evenly distribute over the bed


then i took this broadfork which is about 3 ft wide with 7 tongs that are 12 inches long and are triangle shaped
3 ft is the width we want our beds to be
you stand on top of the broadfork which forces the tongs 1 ft into the ground
you then rock it forward so its almost parallel to the ground
then you rock it backwards so its almost parallel to the ground
you do this about every 4-6 inches up and down the bed
when you finish the bed is well loosened up 1ft down
plus
youve got a dang good workout 
the bed is about 30 ft long

using the broadfork instead of a tiller or shovel keeps from disrupting the soil so much
and
killing so many of the worms


when completed this bed is 3 ft wide and well worked down to a foot with the compost and fertilizer deeper into the soil
i usually go back and do a raking on each side which makes the sides of the beds thicker

drip tape is placed in three rows for watering the vegetables
then we plant the veggies
i usually water the veggies in well with a fish emulsion molasses seaweed solution to give the veggies a boost


on this particular bed we will put a line of this cattle panel
we first place our tposts down the middle of the row
then
wire the panels in place

these panels allow the vining plants a structure to grow on 

we will then plant in this bed rows of green bean vines
or
tomatoes
or 
cucumbers
or
winter squash
or
beans like kentucky wonders or christmas limas etc

so
i probably will get close to ten thousand steps in doing this bed
and
it will be like going to the gym to workout several times

i do prefer the garden for my exercising
fresh air
nature all around
quiet except for the birds or chickens
cost
priceless

the organicgreen doctor