Category: mulching

Final touches

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It seemed to take me forever to acknowledge that winter is coming, is indeed here.

I declare that putting the garden to bed is finally finished.

Some things didn’t get done or are done haphazardly.

Potatoes, parsnips and carrots are still in the ground. Marked as well as possible, except for the carrots.

Some leeks are still in the garden. I had so many from the community garden that I couldn’t deal with that patch at home. Today I just threw some hay on their frozen stalks and decided to leave until spring.

Sam built a cold frame of sorts over the mature kale. We’ll see how that does.

I took away all the row cover. Note to self: row cover in the late garden is a bad idea. It freezes onto everything, blows around in storms, sags under any little snowfall, and generally gets beat up and ripped to shreds. Useless. I just laid hay, the magic blanket, on top of all the remaining greens.

Mulched asparagus beds, fronds trimmed and composted
Baby kale, self-seeded
Cold frame, south side although the garden is mostly shaded in the winter because the sun is so low
Cold frame, north side
Cold frame, kale inside

Hay mulch

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We went on a mission to get a bale of hay for mulch. Found one at Dean Young’s. They had a group of old rotting bales looking quite the worse for wear, but free for the taking.

A scenic drive up the Eastbrook Road in the pickup. The mechanic got the bale loaded easily with his tractor. At home Sam managed to unload it and position it with some difficulty, since it was close to falling apart. But now it sits in the soil amendments area, reminding me of Jabba the Hutt.

Remulching the garlic

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I really enjoy the garlic crop. It’s so reliable. I take the mulch off to give the sprouts a chance to develop and declare themselves. Then I tuck the mulch back around them. Like tucking them back into bed. Maybe someday I’ll interplant something around them, but for now this is working.

Here’s a view of the unmulched bed on the left and the mulched bed on the right. Just reused the same hay mulch, which has already broken down quite a bit over the winter. So it is easy to grab handfuls and tuck. I handle the green leaves minimally when I have to pull them out of the hay. They feel so fresh and new.

Regarding hay carrying weed seeds and therefore not preferred for mulch – I have heard this from many many sources, but I’ve never found it to be the case. We’ve put a lot of hay on the garden over the years. Maybe it’s because we pile it on pretty thick. But isn’t that the point of mulch?

Still working on the big section in the middle. Excess mulch is on the ground outside the bed. Maybe I’ll add more.

Seaweed

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Seaweed over snow

Today we collected a pickup truck load of seaweed from Jellison’s Cove beach. Storms had created knee-high seaweed piles. Freezing temps had solidified the piles somewhat, but stomping on them helped break things apart enough to be able to shovel it. After dumping the pile at home, I immediately spread it on the garden beds and rows by wheelbarrow. I didn’t want it to freeze solid in a pile on the lawn, unusable until springtime.

Mulching for winter

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We mulched most of the beds for winter. The two near the back got a layer of chicken coop waste covered by a layer of straw. The other beds got waterlogged straw, picked up from J&P Farmers Market. And some leftover hay.

The strawberry bed got a light layer of mulch. It really needs the blighted leaves pulled off and more mulch. Maybe later.

What’s left in the garden? A nice patch of leeks, quite a lot of kale, some juvenile broccoli that I don’t have much hope for, and mostly bygone escarole. A row of half-hearted spinach.

It’s definitely getting to be wintry out there.

Mulching

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I’ve been mulching new plants. Tucking them into their beds of hay or straw for the season. Garlic first, then today onions and then broccoli. It is satisfying and makes the row look great. Strenuous, but just think of the weeding and watering it will save and the nice healthy plants that will grow.

I took some photos of the broccoli. There are a few struggling red cabbage or maybe cauliflower mixed in there, but mostly broccoli mix. The plants are under cover to prevent flea beetle attacks, and later cabbage butterfly. I left the covers off for the afternoon to admire the row and allow it to soak up this sunshine.

Before hay mulch. They’ve had some chopped leaf mulch on them from the beginning. There’s a rogue spinach in there from last fall, bolting now.
Broccoli portrait
After hay mulch. To the right, potatoes. To the left , barely visible, fava beans.

Chipping

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A good activity for a winter day with snow in the forecast. We use a lot of wood chips for paths, mulching, and burying chicken wire for rabbit protection. Wood chips are good at the base of orchard trees and as a top dressing for raspberry beds. Can never have too much!