Client Garden Installation 5-1-17

Hey Friends!!

I am beyond excited about what I got to do this weekend. I got to go and play in someone else's dirt!
On Saturday I worked with a client (OK, my grandmother) to get her garden going this year. She hadn't done anything the past two years and so the whole area had gotten quite over run.

The yard itself isn't fenced in and is frequently visited by deer and groundhogs so the garden area is enclosed in an outdoor dog kennel with a gate that is roughly 7 feet tall.
WHAT AN EXCELLENT IDEA!!
I wish I could claim it as my own but it was like that when I got there.

Install day was Saturday so we met up Thursday and talked abut our goals. We established two main goals:
She wanted tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and beans.
She needed to be able to maintain it mostly by herself but has family close that can help if needed.
Easy peasy!
Then we talked and talked about food she ate growing up in the country and foraging and herbs. I could have stayed much longer but had to go pick up a kid. Story of my life.

 So once Saturday rolled around I recruited some hands and we got to work!
It was a beautiful day to garden but HOT! It was our first over 90 degree day and we made it through with lots of water and with my helpers working in shifts.

Our first task was to clear out the debris and materials that were in the space. The beautiful apple tree in the middle had dropped loads of leaves that totally covered the ground. I'd initially planned to leave them in place and work them in to the soil as compost but there was just way too much in there for that to be feasible. Instead we raked most of it out and added it to the compost. With the leaves out of the way we were able to pull the plants that were coming up underneath. There was a lovely nettle plant in the corner that was to make her way home with me but alas, she was discarded accidentally. I was so excited to find nettle growing but now I know what she looks like and can find her easily again!

Once we were able to get down to bare earth, the real fun began. I wanted to keep the plants to the perimeter of the space so that the walls would be support and she would have clear space to walk without having to step on rows. The ground was prepared initially by turning over by the shovelfull to loosen and then compost was added and incorporated by hand with rotary cultivators.

After that, it was just planting!  We put in two jalapeno plants, 5 tomato plants and direct seeded some pole beans and cucumbers. To finish the job, we created a border out of some materials left from another project for around the apple tree and filled it with mulch, leaving an inch of space around the trunk. Tomato cages were placed around the jalapenos for support and individual poles are installed next to each tomato plant to tie them to. 

While small, this little garden will provide tons of food and fun for my grandmother. I know she'll love it and I look forward to talk to her about what she's growing!