Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Backyard Botanical Garden Series: Part 2

Hey everyone.  It has been almost 2 weeks since we constructed and planted our garden.  I am extremely happy to report that the majority of the plants are doing well.  We have a few dead/dried out celery plants, but I think I have found and fixed the problem that led to their early demise.

I had to go out of town this weekend and was really worried about maintaining the watering schedule of my garden.  Up until this point, I have been manually turning on the soaker hose system for 15 minutes each day, as well as watering with the hose.  

We still haven't figured out what the issue is with the original timer that came with our system, so this afternoon we made a few changes to the garden.  My husband installed a better timer and we ran additional soaker hose to the rain gutters and the back of the garden.  It doesn't look as "pretty", but for now it will get the job done if I am unable to water daily for any reason.

Here are some pictures I took earlier this evening...

The sage has done really well.  I can't believe how lush it has become.  I may have to take one of the plants out and replant it in another container.
Day 19:  Sage Plant

I can't express how much I adore our little garden.  My son loves to check on the plants each day after school.  So far, so good.  :)

Day 19:  An overall picture of our Backyard Botanical Complete Gardening System

We are up to about 5 hours of direct sunlight each day.  My husband assures me that time will increase over the next month or so.
Day 19:  Side View

Even though I have watered the plants daily, the back of our garden seems to be growing at a slower rate.  I am hoping with the addition of the soaker hose we ran tonight, the plants will become a bit more productive.
Day 19: View of Back.  Growing asparagus, cucumbers, pole beans, squash & zucchini.

Out of all of the plants back here, the beans seem to have grown the most.
Day 19:  The bean plant has flowers.
Day 19:  Another shot of the back.

I have come to the conclusion that when I was watering the rain gutter strawberries, the water was running over onto the top of the celery plants, effectively burning the leaves in the sun.  I (hope to) have fixed the problem by watering in the evening and also pointing the hose toward the outside of the garden instead of facing inward.
Day 19: Celery Plants.  One plant has died completely, two more are right behind it.
I love my solar powered butterflies.  They spin around as long as they are facing the sun.  I think they help keep the critters away.  Super cute!
Day 19:  Bell Peppers, Celery & Strawberries
Day 19:  Bell Pepper Plants
Top of bell pepper plant - flowers should appear soon.
Day 19:  Onion Bulbs.  These seem to have taken off overnight!
Day 19:  Flowering Cucumber Plant
Day 19:  Basil Plant.  The basil has nearly doubled in size.
The new timer my husband installed this evening.
Day 19:  Flowering Chili Pepper Plant
Day 19: Tomato Pant
Day 19:  Rosemary & Cilantro Plants.  The rosemary has grown a bit taller and the cilantro has perked up.

So far, we have picked and eaten a handful of strawberries and they are super sweet.
Day 19:  Flowering Strawberries

I apologize the next two pictures are a bit dark.  I took them after we were done installing the additional soaker hose in the gutters and it was already dark outside.

I am worried the gutters will receive too much water now, so I am going to monitor them closely over the next couple of days.  Another thing I am worried about is the weight of the gutters.  My husband is going to install some 2x4's under the gutters to add some extra support.  This should provide adequate support once the plants become heavier.
New soaker hose in the rain gutter strawberry garden.
Soaker hose installed in the rain gutter chives.

Well, this is my update for now.  I hope to add a post every few weeks or so in order to track the progress and allow others to get an idea of how long it will take for the veggies and berries to grow and be able to be eaten.

Thanks for stopping by.  If you have a garden blog of your own, please link to it in the comments section.  I would love to see what you are growing this seasonQuestions?  Feel free to leave a comment, I always try to reply to each one I receive.

2 comments:

  1. Thank you so much for posting about your garden as it helped in my decision to order one. I had wanted one of these since I first saw it years ago and decided to order one yesterday! I look forward to seeing the progress your garden makes.

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    1. I am so happy for you!! I hope you will love it as much as I love mine. I would love to order a couple more in order to rotate my crops each season....I just have to talk the hubs into it!! :)

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