Peas From Suzanne's Garden

This won't be a very long post, but I am here to update you all on my garden. My kale has come and almost gone, but it served us very well while it was here. The peas died on the first round, but so far, they are doing well. Tomatoes have bloomed and given us many golden pleasures so far. The cucs are getting large and are slowly taking over the grass around the raised beds. Tomatillos, they are coming in numbers also. Not many ripe ones yet, but a number of small ones on the plant, waiting to be picked. The flowers are holding up as well as they can against the rain and bugs. Our poor broccoli went to seed before we could enjoy the delicious heads. Peppers, are very small and very, very few. I fear that they will not make it.

Planting! Too early?

On Sunday May 31, Suzanne and I finished planting all of the plants.

We had a great time!

My mom was sort of mad at me because i was wearing new clothes!

Suzanne and I traded some plants. She gave me some cucs, and I gave her some marigolds.

So far the garden looks great!

The next night, June 1 (my birthday!) we found out that there was a frost warning.
What to do next?
At 10:00 pm, my mom and I went outside and covered both beds with sheets.
Our two main concerns where the tomatoes and the peppers. But really, frost on June 1! That's not right! Last night the low was 49 degrees, so we decided that that wouldn't be a problem. I learned that you have to be careful about when you plant your plants! Even in June, you have to watch out for frost.

Done! (Almost)

The garden is finished! Well, not quite, but I like to think of it as done. I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the garden, and what goes into one. My mentors were an amazing part of the whole thing. Along with my mom, and all of my other supporters. Thanks!

My final presentation is coming up shortly, considering I only have 7 more school days left. (!!!!) The blog, along with a photo book, will be the two main points to my presentation.

Thanks for reading and following my process! I had a lot of fun blogging. Keep watching, at points during the summer, I will post about my garden and how it's coming along! Happy gardening!

Click here to visit my mentor's blog.

They're In!

The first plants are in! On Thursday, I planted the Sugar Snap Peas in the garden. Today, after coming home from the botanical gardens in Boothbay, I went out and planted carrot seeds and kale. Also, there in the garden was the first of the pea sprouts!!! I'm so excited to finally have something in the ground! (Well technically they're not in the GROUND, but who's technical?) My lovely mentor went to pick up some seedlings for me on Friday. I wish I could have gone, but I had to go to this thing called school.

I'm not quite sure when, but the fence has also been put up! It was pretty easy. We went to Home Depot and bought 50 feet of chicken wire. We had measured before-hand the lengths of the garden, so we didn't have to guess in the store. It wasn't necessary, but we got a fancy gate to put in front. It only makes it look nice. So now, the garden is protected against groundhogs, and other animals that might think about eating my plants.

Currently, I am working more and more on the photo book that will be part of my final presentation on May 29th. That date is so soon! The book will sum up my whole project in pages and pages of picture. I have so much to do!

A note to Blossom and Fern:

Hey guys! I just wanted you to know that towards the end of the month, I could use some help planting the rest of my plants? Are you guys up to it? I sure hope so!

SOIL!!!!

WE HAVE SOIL!!! (Finally!) Today, Suzanne, Suzanne's partner, Crystal, my mom, and I filled the beds! We went to Skillins and bought one cubic yard of soil. Half compost and half loam. A family friend lent us their truck so we could buy it in bulk. It's cheaper. Skillins was really helpful and the people were nice.

This morning I woke to a loud rumble coming from somewhere outside. I then realized that it was the first load of soil. My mom, Suzanne, and Crystal when to pick up the first load so I could sleep in. But then I had to go out and unload it! So unfair! When we finished with the first half, Suzanne and I got back in the truck and headed back to Skillins.

We got the second half, the compost, all unloaded on a tarp. I still had to finish my bed, so I did that while Suzanne and Crystal when to buy some soil of their own. While i had a power tool in my hand, my mom was hammering plastic to the sides of the beds. We have to put plastic on the bottom so nothing that could carry lead into the beds. My job was better!

The truck, along with the two women in to returned. Time to fill the beds! I don't think I've mentioned this, but the other bed is going to be for Suzanne and Crystal to plant in. Well, we filled both of the beds to the top with about a 50-50 mix of compost and loam. When they left, and after I had gone inside and read a bit of my book, my mom and I went back out side to water the beds. She read somewhere that you should water the soil and then let it settle over night. Then add more.

The loam cost $47 for one cubic yard. It's the same with the compost. Since we got one cubic yard total, half and half, all of the soil cost $47. If I was only doing one raised bed it would have cost half as much. So all together so far, building and filling one 4'x5' raised bed has cost about $55. This does not include the cost of seeds. So much cheaper and MUCH more fun than buying a raised bed making kit!

Raised Beds

Finally!! The raised beds have been started! For each bed (we built two beds yesterday) we used eight pieces of wood. Two four feet 2x4's, two five feet 2x4's, two four feet 2x6's, and two five feet 2x6's. We got all of this times two plus the clear plastic we will put underneath for only $44. So much less money than if we had bought the beds already made.

First, we nailed together the four feet 2x6's so they made a 5 foot by 4 foot rectangle. We finished that and then braced the corners with metal things. (I'm not really sure what they're called.) Once that was done we built the top part. The top was made of four feet 2x4's. The top and bottom were connected with more metal. I'm pretty sure they were called hangers. Those were just screwed into place. We were done!

We did all of this in the rain yesterday. Only one raised bed was fully finished, but the second one we left to finish when I return from Boston. All of this cost about $64. Keep in mind that that is the price for building two raised beds. If we had bought raised beds, EACH of the beds cost about $100. We saved a lot of money!

When we return from Boston, we are going to get the soil. Then PLANT!!!

Planting!!

Finally I have planted some of my seeds! On Saturday, I went to my mentor's house and we planted seeds. I planted both lettuces, kale, tomatoes, and basil. On Monday morning, I woke up and looked at my plants. I had two sprouts! Even though they were very tiny, they were still there! I was so excited! Right now as I write this I have about six tiny sprouts. Most of them are lettuce. So far, none of the basil or the tomatoes have sprouted. I think they will soon!

Three other little girls planted seeds on Saturday. My mentor's two daughters and one of their friends. I wonder if any of their plants have popped through their blanket of soil. It's good to see younger children interested in organic gardening!

Dirt or Soil?

Today I met with our friend Suzanne who is helping me build my raised beds. We were discussing what we were going to do about the soil, but every time I would say "soil", she said "dirt". Every time she said "dirt", I corrected her and told her to call it SOIL. It took her awhile, but she finally got it. I explained to her the difference that I learned about "dirt" and "soil".

Soil~ the material you use to plant plants in. Best when there is a lot of organic material in it.

Dirt~ material that doesn't belong there. ex. Belly button lint and dust are both dirt. You do not plant plants in belly button lint or dust.

This distinction I learned from my 6th and 7th grade science teacher. Suzanne and I finally ended our disagreement about what the definition of dirt is by looking it up in my Webster's Dictionary. If you don't believe me, look it up!

On another note, we picked dates to have all the "supplies", wood, brackets, screws, and anything else you need to actually build raised beds. Also, the dates we plan on planting. Now we just have to meet those deadlines! I'm sooo ready for Spring!

Start the Seeds?

I've been reading my mentor's blog, and so far she hasn't started her seeds. I've been e-mailing back and forth with my mentor, sharing recipes, telling her about what her kids and me do on Mondays for math, figuring out how much soil I need for my raised beds, and everything else in between. I'm not sure when I will start my seeds but I sure hope it's soon! I can't wait! Last year our seedlings got destroyed by aphids. It was horrible. A few cucumbers and a few tomatoes survived, but non of the carrots. I learned that I should ALWAYS check plants that come into the house. What I did to get rid of them was to simply spray them with a hard fast blast of water. It works if you have the right amount of strength, but also have it gentle enough so the stream doesn't kill the fragile seedling. I learned the hard way that aphids have no mercy. I hope for better luck this year! I can't wait for the ground to finally thaw, and for us to be able to put the raised beds in. I have a feeling that all the soil will be a bit pricey, but we'll figure it out. I haven't decided what "recipe" I'm going to use yet for my soil, but I'll figure it out soon! Time to start some seeds!

Seeds!

On Sunday I finally got my seeds! I can't wait to start them! I went to the garden show and learned that instead of using vermiculite, peat moss, and compost, I should use sand instead of the vermiculite. If I use the original "recipe" it would retain too much water. The sand will balance out the peat moss and compost because sand doesn't hold water. Sand will make the soil less watery. Hmm.....I guess I'll have do some more research! I still need to make the beds and start my seeds. Hurry up warm weather!!!!!

The Beds

Last night I met with our friend and we figured out the beds. First, we looked up in Square Foot Gardening how many plants you can put in a square foot. It depends on the plant, but the average is bout 4 plants. After we had that all done, we outlined on a piece of paper, a grid, which would become the raised bed. We started out having it be about 8x5. With a books help, we roughly figured out how much we would get off of one plant, and then how many plants we would need. We then Took out grid and started filling it in. We decided that the lettuce could be planted in containers, and use the space for other plants. Once we got that all figured out, we realized we had put too many squares in. We ended up only using about half of that. My raised bed will be 4'x5'. Our friend is also going to build one roughly the same size. We will buy two 2"x8"x8' pieces and two 2"x8"x10'. That way we can just cut the in half and have what we need. I'm pretty sure that I'm going to do lasagna style soil way under and have an equal part mix of compost, vermiculite, and peat moss. Now I have to go get all of that, and then it's time to mix some soil!

Next Step?

Today the other 8th graders and I met with our teacher to talk about our projects. I told him about the blog and what I did with my mentor. He said that we might not continue with these projects if not all of us (there are three of us) want to continue. I kind of want to, but also don't. It;s not that I don't want to continue with my garden, it's the whole school part. I think it will be cool to see what my friends did in the end. We have to write a detailed outline of what we want to have done by mid April, and then what we want to have to display in May. I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do yet! I have to get thinking! I also have 2 first drafts due tomorrow, and a Spanish project due on the 25! I am going to be very busy!!!

The Beginning

Hi! Since I just started this blog, I'll begin from the beginning and work my way until today. *traveling back in time to 1/22/09*

1/22/09
Today I wrote my proposal for my 8th grade project. I have decided to plant and maintain an organic garden in my yard. It will be raised beds. There will probably be 2 beds for me, and we might let some of our friends build and use a bed for themselves. I will have to learn the different parts of soil, what plants need (ie. how much water they need), how to build a raised bed, and many more things. For this project I have to have an adult mentor. The mentor is someone who has experience in your project area. The mentor is there to help along the way. My mentor is a close friend.

1/24/09 (jumping ahead a bit)
Today I met with my mentor for the first time on this project. We discussed my proposal and made deadlines for different things. That is a very important part if you want to get a garden in on time. She showed me a few catalogs and we talked a little about raised beds. I will paint the wood black because the black absorbs the warmth from the sun, and in turn, heats up the soil. We also talked about different ways of documenting. I will probably end up with a Shutterfly book, a blog, maybe a journal, and a poster.

2/7/09 (jumping way a head)
Today I got a bunch of gardening books from the local library. Books are always a good way to go if you can. I find that I enjoy reading from books more than reading off the computer. Also, books and catalogs with color pictures are helpful because if you're not sure what something looks like from the description, there may be a picture. I am mostly using two books. The Garden Primer and Square Foot Gardening. They are both really good places to earn a lot. Square Foot Gardening teaches you how to get more out of less space. the Garden Primer is a basic gardeners guide to whatever you might need to know. Other books are good, but at least The Garden Primer should be in your mix.

2/23/09
Today my Mom and I picked out what vegetables we want to grow. I ordered a catalog and it finally came. We have a list of veggies but now I have to meet with my mentor and figure out which veggies we should start by seed, and which we should start as seedlings in the spring. My mentor advised me by saying "pick your vegetables by what YOU like to eat".

3/8/09 (yesterday)
Today I met with my mentor and we figured out the veggies. Here is my list; START BY SEED: cucumbers, carrots, scallions, two kinds of lettuce, sugar snap peas, basil, and nasturtiums BUY SEEDLINGS: tomatoes, tomatillos, onions, bell peppers, marigolds, and broccoli. I ordered the seeds on a quick order form from Fedco seeds. I need to remember to get pictures of the different stages so I can put a book together. I learned from my mentor that for the soil I will need vermiculite, peat moss, and compost. I will get all of that from a local farm supply store. Once we design the raised beds we will need to figure out how much to order. I still have so much to read!

Today, 3/9/09
Today, I made this blog. The next step is to meet with our friend who is going to help me design and build the raised beds, the order the soil. This should all be done in about 3 weeks. Then I'll be busy!

That's about all so far! I'll post the next time I do something on my project!