Raised Vegetable Bed Protection Update

The wire cages I manufactured to protect my vegetable garden have worked out great!  They are very light and easy to lift off my raised beds.  I can now report with confidence that they are also effective in preventing chipmunks and gophers from ravaging your harvest.  The pvc handles on top are a must for easy removal and replacement.  See my September 2009 posts for more information on these cages and their purpose.

I added a third irrigation tube in the center of the bed to better distribute the water.  Prior to that I was hand watering my new vegetable seedlings to get complete coverage.  All of my raised beds and fiberglass barrels are now on timed irrigation and it has been working beautifully.  We have been enjoying radishes, romaine lettuce and spinach for the past two weeks. I have been picking off the larger leafs for our evening salads which seems to promote speedy growth of the remaining smaller leaves.  I did this last fall and was able to keep ourselves in salad fixings for months.    

Tomatoes are just now starting to ripen. I had 5 plants before the chipmunk invasion but am now down to one.  Still, there are plenty growing and they will liven up our salads for several more weeks.

This is my third attempt to grow snap peas in the desert.  So far, so good, but I am bracing myself for the worst.  I am hoping that consistent watering provided by my make-shift irrigation system (see prior blog posts for construction and layout) will make a difference this time.  My wife loves snap peas so I have to get this right!

Critter Protection

In my prior post I discussed the challenges of protecting a vegetable garden in the Tucson region.  I have chain link around the garden area, but small critters such as chipmunks, ground squirrels, rabbits, mice, birds etc. can easily come in and set up shop.  Mel Bartholomew, author of Square Foot Gardening (see link on side bar) recommends constructing a cage out of chicken wire that is easy to lift and place over a raised bed garden.  Materials used are chicken wire and 1"X2" select pine boards.  Mel uses less expensive chicken wire with larger 1" or 2" openings, but it won't keep smaller pests such as chipmunks from squeezing in and gobbling up your tender plantings .  I purchased a heavier wire with smaller 1/2" openings which takes more time bending to shape but is still light enough to easily lift off your bed when tending/watering the garden.

I built two 4'X4' cages to fit on top of one of my 4' X 8' beds.  I found I could cut a piece of  4' wide wire 7' long and bend, with the help of a straight edge (see photo to the right), 2 even creases 18" from each end to form 2 of the 4 sides.  That left only two 18" by 48" pieces to cut for the remaining two sides.  The base of the wire was then stapled to the 4'X4' frames and the two single sides attached with those nifty plastic awning lock ties you can get at Home Depot.  To easily lift off and replace the cages on top of the beds I created a 12" long plastic handles out of left over pvc pipe and wire and attached one to the top of each cage in the very center.  For step-by-step directions for building these cages see Mel Bartholomew's New Square Foot Gardening book.  Having completed the cages, I planted seed of lettece, bunching onions, radish, spinach and snap peas with hopes that the resulting harvest will now be protected.

For my remaining raised bed and fiberglass barrels I have removed the bird netting (effective, but awful stuff to work around and a lizard strangler).  Since these plantings are mature (tomatoes, strawberries and herbs) I am taking my chances they will survive most attacks.  If not, I plan to set out a small Havahart critter trap that will be used to humanely capture the rodents and remove them far from my property.  I've heard peanut butter works well.  Before replanting the remaining bed, I will build two more 4'X4' cages to protect it as well.  I will share the results of these endeavors to protect my garden in future posts.  

Just a side note for Amber Rose, our 9 year old grand daughter.  Your strawberries planted in the gray sink had babies!  Tendrils from your plant crawled over to the sink next to it and rooted. I'ved transplanted several of your baby plants to another barrel so there will be more strawberries to pick when you visit.

Summer Garden "Issues"

The photo above was taken on our Pacific coastal vacation towards summers end after our grand daughters returned to Missouri. But more of that later. This post is to explain my absence this summer and what has been happening in the vegetable garden. My spring vegetable garden efforts were thwarted at every turn this year. No sooner had a seed sprouted or transplant put in they were gone within a few days. As you can see in my earlier photos I use raised beds and large containers to grow vegetables. My early conclusion was a wily rabbit who had figured out a way to get by my chain link fence. This proved to be true to a certain extent. One morning I witnessed a small one that was able to wiggle underneath the fence. But it would take one great hopper to jump into my fiberglass barrels. Thinking I had solved the mystery I covered everything with chicken wire and re-planted. And waited.

A week went by with incident and then it happened again. Everything stripped to the ground. At this point I was considering cutter bees, but nothing of the plant was left over. Surly if it had been bees there would have been large pieces left. I increased my observation efforts throughout the day. Then, finally, I observed two very small ground squirrels frolicking among my beds and pots. We had noticed in increase in ground squirrels in the neighborhood, but had thought nothing of it. Ground squirrels have no problem fitting through the openings of a chain link fence.

So, I begin covering everything in bird netting and re-planted. A real pain. But it did the trick for about 48 hours. But then it happened again - everything except a few mature plants were gone. At this point it was funny and I pretty much gave up. This was hard as my two grand daughters would be staying with us for a couple of months this summer and they expected to help me in the garden. Only a few days before they arrived I witnessed the same 2 ground squirrels I had seen earlier inside the bird netting. When they saw me they quickly escaped through what I later discovered to be tiny folds of loose netting that hadn't been secured down. At this point I was left with 3 tomato plants, some squash and a couple of barrels on strawberries. I turned my attention towards other goings on at this point.

As it turned out, our grand daughters kept us running this summer and there was little time to garden. After they returned to Missouri Chu and I headed for the coast and slowly moved north to keep cool. Incredible scenery and, compared to desert fauna, all plants are on steroids. Our favorite spots were the small towns of Elk (20 minutes south of Mendocino, CA) and Yachats, OR. You can see photos and videos of the trip on my Facebook. Both were fabulous coastal areas surrounded by beautiful national forests.

So, now I turn my attention to the fall garden. And better ways of protecting my vegetables from desert creatures.

Strawberries in the Desert

When Amber Rose, my granddaughter, asked me if we could grow strawberries last Fall I reluctantly purchased some small sad looking plants from a local nursery. Growing strawberries in the desert just didn't sound like a good idea to me. I planted them in a large fiberglass whisky barrel (Home Depot), which I've learned lasts much longer than one made of wood in Tucson's hot and dry climate.

So here we are in March enjoying delicious strawberries. What a kick! To protect the fruit from birds it is necessary to lay a piece of rabbit wire over the top of the barrel. I now have 5 barrels and two thick porcelin sinks in addition to my two 4' X 8' raised beds and find them excellent containers for growing beans, cucumbers, peas and tomatoes.
It has been a very mild winter and spring is already poised to turn to summer. This season I have put in snap peas, yellow squash, zucchini, cucumbers, egg plant and two varieties of cherry tomatoes (large beefsteak tomatoes are tough to grow in Tucson). When my niece from Sweden, Sarah, visited in January she introduced us to a wonderful concoction called ratatouille, which uses copious amounts of zucchini, eggplant and tomato. It can be eaten cold, hot, in spaghetti sauce, on toast - the list is endless. It also lasts well in the fridge and can be frozen. My hope is we can successfully grow enough of these vegetables to keep an ongoing supply of ratatouille in our fridge throughout the summer.

December Bounty in the Desert

December brought mild weather in the Tucson region in 2008. A nice surprise for gardeners who normally turn their thoughts to other pursuits during the colder weather. We continued to enjoy tomatoes, pole beans, lettuce, spinach, carrots, peppers and the beginnings of the strawberry crop into the new year. My peas, however, never took off. I will try a different variety this Spring.

I pretty much stopped gardening activities in January, enjoying my smaller water bills and having extra time on my hands. And that is when it happened. One morning I took a peek to see how my strawberry plants were doing. They were fine, but one of my raised beds had been totally stripped of all vegetation - except the green onions. Since I have critter proofed the garden area I am suspecting it is a ground squirrel (or pack rat) that has made its home in this area for years. It took it this long to figure out how to climb into the bed. I will be constructing "cages" made from chicken wire and wood before Spring comes.
On a completely different note my grand daughters moved to Missouri a couple of weeks ago. They are living in a rural area not far from Springfield. So, this blog will also be geared towards them so they don't miss anything. It's likely, however, that they will want a garden in Missouri and be able to share their experiences of planting in fertile soil. Wouldn't that be cool.

Man VS Bird VS Tomato

Unbelievable. This morning I watched as an unidentifiable bird hopped down UNDER by bird netting and then hopped up INTO my tomatoes. His two friends watched with great interest as he committed this despicable act while waiting for their turn. I spent the next 15 minutes shoring up my netting to provide maximum protection without endangering the lizards that patrol my garden for insects.

We having been picking tomatoes for a week now. Last weekend the girls helped with the harvest, which quickly turned into an Easter egg hunt-like activity. Fortunately they don't taste like chocolate eggs and plenty were left over to eat and give to family. Amber finished painting her garden bench (a "custom" green purchased at ACE) and created a trap for critters using chicken wire, tomato hoops, rope, sand, and tomato bait. Quite a contraption but no success to date. Allie spent most of the morning "water" painting a step stool. All went well until Allie unintentionally sprayed water on Amber's freshly painted bench (and me) which resulted in emotional dialogue between the two and a heartfelt "I'll never do it again" apology from Allie.

This past week I've planted more radishes, lettuce and spinach and have added broccoli and chives. Heidi's cuttings of lemon sage (great tea leaves) and chives are doing well and her cuttings of hearts and flowers (a succulent ground cover) have taken root. Chu planted hearts and flowers in our unprotected desert garden off the patio, but a troop of javelina came through a couple of nights ago and devoured ALL of them.

The weather is getting cooler and the shade covers have come off the strawberrys and peas. It is supposed to get up into the nineties again by the end of this week, but I suspect that won't last long. Absolutely gorgeous weather for gardening and hiking!

Yellow Tomato Leaves, Another Rattler and Peter's 65th

Since posting a week ago my cherry tomato crop is looking to be 300 plus if I can manage to control the various pests and diseases that challenge these plants. Butterflies are laying eggs, leaves are turning yellow and birds are getting interested. Knowing these are common problems with solutions keep me from throwing in the towel. I marvel when I think about our colonial ancestors who had to solve these problems to survive. Albertsons was not an option.

Since both Chu and I love snow peas, I have planted two whisky barrels in addition to 4 squares in one of my raised beds to reduce the risk of losing some. In my excitement I planted the first crop too early (mid-August) and they have struggled. They may still make it, but look ragged from fighting the consistent 100 degree heat we have been having. The ones planted in the barrels (and shaded) look much happier. My greater concern are the yellow leaves on four of my six tomato plants planted in the raised bed. The fruit looks healthy, but the yellow is excessive. The depth of my two raised beds average 8-10 inches. These 4 plants were planted in an area with only 6 inches of Mel's' mix and 12 inches apart. According to Mel, the depth and spacing should be OK but I'm suspecting due to our desert heat they would do better in at least 10 inches. The two tomato plants planted in the deeper whisky barrel hardly have any yellow leaves at all. Next year I will rotate my peas to the 6 inch area since they are more shallow rooted. Click on these photos to see the tomatoes AND the yellow leaves.

My pole beans are amazing climbers. Without any help from me their tendrils easily grasped the nylon trellis with a death-like grip. Does Jack and the Bean Stalk come to mind?
We are now starting to harvest spinach, radishes and banana peppers. The bell peppers are beginning to take shape and hopefully we can have a crop of these before it gets too cool.

For family members, I've included a photo taken at Peter's (my brother-in-law) 65th birthday brunch. Peter is VERY happy since he now qualifies for Medicare. Peter's wife, Kay, put on a great spread for this occasion and invited all related persons living in Tucson. Even at 65, only the naive will take him on in ping pong (Amber Rose). Chu and I also hiked a trail near Gates Pass this past week. The hike was great and made even more exciting by running into ANOTHER large diamond back rattle snake. I thank God he put rattles on these guys as I would have surly stepped on it had I not been warned!

Hobbits in the Garden

Last weekend was a sleep over for our grand daughters. Amber Rose, age 8, and Alison, age 3, love to "garden" and knowing this I had prepared for their industry. We tend to sometimes overwhelm anyone who will listen to us warble on about our grand daughters, so abandon this post now if you grow faint on this subject.

Amber has gardened with me since she could walk and has become quite handy to have around. Alison, on the other hand, can be like a Sherman tank mowing down a crowded village.

Chu suggested I provide a diversion, like a sand box, for Alison to play with out in our new vegetable garden area. So, after purchasing marigolds and a strawberry plant for Amber's raised garden corner, I also picked up a small inexpensive plastic swimming pool and filled it with sand. It was a hit and kept Alison busy for hours and hours.

After planting carrots, strawberries, marigolds, spinach, lettuce, bush beans and rosemary Amber decided my make shift garden work bench was too high and wanted to make her own. Like her mother, Margaret, she LOVES tools. She has also made it quite clear she would like me to look into getting her a small wheelbarrow if she is to be effective in helping me. I told her I didn't think they came in kid sizes but she was quick to point I could find one at Target in the toy section.

The girls found a small Gecko lizard in the garage to play with. While showing them how safe it was to handle it Chu spotted a large diamond back rattle snake slithering along just outside our chain link fence. An education for all and a wake up call for me to make sure it doesn't decide to take up residence in our nice cool garden spot. Click on the above photo to enlarge for a closer view.

"Holy" Peas, Grasshopper Invasion and the Santa Cruz Farmer's Market

The above photo shows what can happen in short order when pests invade your garden. I captured some insects that have been hanging around my snow peas and took them down to the Pima County Extension Gardens yesterday to get the low down.

According to the Master Gardeners on duty they are all grasshoppers and there is nothing you can do about them. I did learn that the damage done to the snow pea leaves is more likely Caterpillar munchings. I've been pulling these wee pests off of my pepper plants (see the peppers grow!) by hand for the past 2 weeks, and apparently they have migrated to the peas. Their recommendation, BT spray, which is an organic way of killing the buggers while keeping me green. While I was there I visited their demonstration desert vegetable garden and was relieved to see their pepper and tomato plants have holes in them too. Just something you have to live with I guess.

Chu and I visited the Santa Cruz Farmer's Market in the afternoon. This small market is now located near the School for the Deaf and Blind on Speedway near Grande. VERY busy and parking was hard to find. The new location has only been open for a couple of months and is growing rapidly. The Community Food Bank takes in consignments which they sell through their booth and allow single vendors to hawk their wares as well. We picked up some tomatoes and miniature
egg plant and ate them for dinner. Mmmmm good!

eee-gads! Tomatoes!

They are small.....very small. But they are there. The bird netting went up this morning just in case one of the 50 birds that hang out on the electric line above my house want a taste. Danny, a good friend and all-around-fix-it and remodel genius for Chu and I (and several other family members) gave me one of his tomato plants several years ago. I learned then that birds find them quickly. That was the first time I had ever tried to grow a vegetable. It was a dismal failure only providing me with one intact cherry tomato.

The pole bean seeds erupted with a vengeance after an all night soak. Thugs they are after only 5 days. I am totally amazed at how quickly the life process works - a miracle indeed. More seeds are on the way and will be sown in the coming weeks.

My snow peas have grown long enough to crowd out adjacent carrot and spinach seedlings. The string trellis I erected was too high to attach them to so I placed a narrow piece of chicken wire to give them something to grab on to for now. Unbelievable, but you can actually see their slender tendrils try to grip the wire when placed on it. Like the babinski reflex in babies, they only need to touch something and immediately curl.

How Time Flies

(Click on photos to enlarge)

Since my last post two years ago I retired from the credit union after 34 years of service. I was blessed with a rich and wonderful career and find I am still passionate about the credit union movement. BUT, retirement is awsome and I am excited with every morning the Lord gives me.

My desert garden keeps me busy, but since adding battery operated automatic timers to my irrigation system, including all outside potted plants, I have found time to start a vegetable garden. I have always wanted to grow my own vegetables, but it took the urging of my 8 year old grand daughter Amber Rose to get me going.

In the Tucson mountains, much of our soil is quite horrible. Most of it is interlaced with caliche - a hard white crumbly substance that prevents easy planting. It is also rocky and alkaline and needs amendments galore to support growing vegetables and anything else not native. To get around this, many desert gardeners construct raised beds to allow for easy soil management and planting. Using Mel Bartholomew's book "Square Foot Gardening" http://squarefootgardening.com/. I began constructing my raised beds towards the end of July. Square foot gardening allows you to grow more in less space. Gone are the 3 foot spaces between rows and the majority of labor normally associated with tending your garden.

My first challenge was finding a location for my beds. Javalina and rabbits would love the tender vegetables, as would the many birds that now visit our desert sanctuary daily. My grand daughter suggested using our old dog run area which is protected by a chain link fence on the Northwest side of the house. NOT the perfect location exposure wise, but being already protected and close to a water source I decided it would do.

Wood is the most popular frame for a raised bed and is the easiest to build, but concrete block in this neck of the woods lasts longer. With end caps resting on top of the block I also have a nice wide sitting area to work from. The thought of gardening on my knees is NOT how I see myself spending my golden years! So, after calculating what I needed for two 4' X 8' beds, I went about purchasing the following:

Split faced block (8" X 8" X 16") and end caps (8" X 2" X 16")

Heavy duty pond liner (Home Depot)

Wire mesh (heavy duty, 1/4" openings)

Weed Block

I laid the block without mortar and directly on the ground. If you want an attractive looking structure keep a level and string handy to make sure the block is level and straight. The split faced block is very handsome looking and costs just a little more than regular block. I considered the newer inter-connected block you can find at the big box improvement centers, but be prepared to pay about double the cost of split faced block.

I used pond liner to cover the inside sides of the bed. It is not necessary, but I was concerned about excess evaporation. DO NOT use the liner to cover the bottom of the bed (unless you change your mind and want a wading pool instead of a garden bed). Weed block fabric is placed in the bottom of the bed and covered with the wire mesh to keep both weeds and gophers out. Don't skip this part. We have gophers all around us who would love to take up residence in a nice cool, dark place.

IRRIGATION: I love drip irrigation. It is cheap, easy to work with and conserves water. Mel Bartholomew recommends watering your plants by hand using a pail of sun warmed water. This would be fine with a smaller 4' X 4' bed back East, but in Tucson where 100 plus degree days are common, I would be spending all of my time watering and worrying. All you need is enough 1/2" irrigation hose to go from an outside faucet to each bed, and then enough to run two hoses adjacent to each other the length of the beds. (Click on photos to enlarge)

The sprinkler heads I chose are made by "Dig" and allow you to adjust the volume of water that is emitted by turning the heads clockwise and counter clockwise (truly a tremendous leap forward for drip systems!). I have placed one every 12" in between two squares. I may change this to one every 6 inches, but want to experiment with this placement for the time being. Having two beds and seven large pots I ran three 1/2" lines, one to each bed and one to my collection of fiberglass whisky half barrels and two old enameled sinks. You can purchase a multi-hose connector (up to four) which allows control of your three zones plus faucet connection for your garden hose. The timers are battery operated, and will allow you to water each section separately. All of these items can be purchased at Home Depot.

SOIL PREPARATION: OK, here is the IMPORTANT part. Mel Bartholomew has been working on his soil mix since the 80's. According to Mel, his soil mix allows superb moisture retention (a must in the desert) excellent drainage, all the proper nutrients WITHOUT adding fertilizers and you will never have to turn your soil. Too good to believe? I'll let you know, but so far the stuff is fantastic. His recipe follows:

1/3 compost - compost must be made from at least 5 different types of bagged compost. Weird, yes, but he has his reasons.

1/3 COARSE Vermiculite - You can also find this at some Home Depots. Very expensive, but a must have. I had to settle for medium grade. Mel stresses coarse if you can get it. Don't substitute Perlite.

1/3 Peat Moss

Mel's tip to use a tarp to mix the ingredients together makes this part go much faster. I started by dumping 2 shovel fulls each from the 5 different compost bags on the tarp and mixed together by pulling the corners of the tarp around. After the compost is well mixed add 10 shovels full of the vermiculite and 10 shovels full of the peat moss. Again, pulling the corners of the tarp around mix the whole batch together. Mel's mix is light enough that I was able to heave it easily over the walls of the raised bed. Mel swears you only need a 6 inch depth of mix to grow most vegetables. I went a bit farther and ended up with 10 inches on average. The ingredients for this mix is expensive stuff, but if his claims are true, I shouldn't have to replenish ever again.

COMPOST

The secret to keeping Mel's mix nourishing and maintaining your plants for years to come is home made compost. About 10 years ago my wife went to a beginner's composting class and came home with a roll of vinyl with large holes in it. Until now, it has taken up space in my storage room. Knowing home made compost is an essential step for success, I've taken the plunge. I'll let you know in future posts how all this works out.

Protecting Your Investment

The "hoops" constructed over the beds provide a means to easily protect your garden from sun, birds and varmints. Using 1/2" PVC conduit the hoops are easily constructed and connected by small screws at the top. I used rebar for the ends of the conduit to slip over to provide additional stability. Now I can place bird netting, sun screening, tarps etc. over the beds to control just about any situation that would be harmful to the garden.

Vertical Structures

The whole idea behind square foot gardening is growing more in less space. I urge you to read Mel's' revised book called "All New Square Foot Gardening" and visit his website listed at the beginning of this post. Eventually, anything that can climb (tomatoes, cucumbers, peas, beans, etc. ) should be trained to climb away from the garden to allow more space to grow other vegetables. Based on Mel's' recommendation, I used 1/2" electrical metal conduit and polyester netting to construct four 6' structures for this purpose. Cutting the conduit is easy with a hack saw and slipping the ends of the metal conduit over 24" rebar provides the necessary stability needed. 90 degree corners and the necessary connectors hold all of this together. Again, Home Depot is the place to pick these things up.

The Grids

I must admit I was a bit reluctant to install square foot grids as Mel recommended at first. They looked gimicky to me. BUT, if you want to save time sowing seeds and organizing your garden it is a must. I used slats
from four foot vinyl blinds and stapled them together with a regular hand stapler - cheap, quick and easy. When it comes time to calculate the spacing between seeds or transplants you'll be grateful you did. I also diagrammed my two beds and collection of whisky barrels to help me remember what I planted where, the date planted, and seed/plant type. This way, if something works (or doesn't work) I won't have to rely on my memory.

So that's it for now. I'll keep posting to this site to keep you updated as to my progress.