Hummingbird Hill Farm at Brigade Bay, Gambier Island

Creating New Garden Spaces

My husband Craig and I have owned our land since 2005.  Once established with a couple of decks for some organized camping and cooking, I soon got to work to create my garden spaces.

Previously limited to simple container gardening at our condo in the city, I felt that the world of gardening had truly opened up to me and I couldn't wait to start digging!!

Starting From Scratch

Affectionately called the 'Zen Path', this area was previously overgrown with the tall grasses and ferns that line this pathway. 

The sunniest area on our lot holds a lot of potential for planting fruit trees and creating both Perrenial and Vegetable gardens.  My biggest challenge is that most of these areas are densely covered with ferns and a variety of grasses that have stubborn roots.

Preparing the Planting Site 

As I am not a master gardener by any stretch of the imagination, the following steps that I took below to prepare my planting sites are heavily based on lots and lots of reading and trial and error.  If you follow the same steps I did, hopefully you will experience the same degree of success that I have!  Good luck to you!

Step 1:  Using a pick axe is best for this job:  I dug out all grass, roots, ferns and any of the long tap roots that grow deep in the ground.  I saved this 'debris' for Composting later - see "How to Build a Compost Vegetable Bed" below.

Wherever the ferns grow, there is some good dirt underneath.  There are also a lot of rocks,  which, once extracted actually come in very handy to create mini stone walls. Pictured above is the Potato Patch.  The vines and leaves are poisonous, so you can leave this unprotected from the deer, as they don't go neer the plants.

Step 2:  I loosened the soil with a pick axe, digging down to at least 1 foot or more, where possible.  Next, I removed all large rocks and set them aside to create mini walls later to help define each Planting Site.  I didn't worry too much about the small rocks until I was ready to plant any seeds.

Step 3:  I amended ALL of the soil.  Much of the soil at Hummingbird Hill is a mixture of gorgeous, black loam (full of beneficial microorganisms and well rotted bits of wood), unfortunately, mixed with clumps of clay-like soil. 

To increase the moisture retention in the soil, I added shredded leaves and compost to each bed.  I then top dressed with composted steer manure.  I then left each bed unplanted for 2-4 weeks, so that the salts from the manure could have time to leach out of the soil from the rain, as the salts can burn tender plant roots.

Step 4: I planted seeds in each area, according to the amount of daily sunshine, growing space and depth were required. 

As I am now into the 3rd season of this, I now have to practice Crop Rotation, so as to avoid the soild becoming too depleted from certain nutrients and to avoid a build up of pesky insects that may attack a particular type of crop.

Step 5:  I covered each freshly planted area with "Floating Row Covers" so that the birds and other critters wouldn't dig in the dirt and eat up all the seeds (as I discovered they would do!).

Floating Row Covers are made of white woven fabric that are light weight (so as not to crush tender young plants), allow water to penetrate and the sun to filter through.  Any garden center will carry this, and it is relatively cheap.  The other bonus, is that it will protect plants from unexpected frosts. 

Year 1: Initially, small raised beds were created to simplify things.  With no prior vegetable growing experience, I limited myself to easy-to-grow crops such as lettuce, swiss chard, spinach and peas. 

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Build a Compost Vegetable Bed!  

If you are like myself - having to hack and clear spaces for planting, then you can try this fun technique to create a mini vegetable patch!  By using the turf and grasses that you pull up during the clearing process for other garden areas.

 Pictured here, just behind the black composting bin, is the Enclosed Compost Vegetable Bed overflowing with Patty Pan Squash (side holes), Pumpkins (top holes), Zucchini (top holes) and Tumbler Tomatoes (side holes).

Step 1: Prepare the planting space by removing all grass, roots, ferns, etc.  I like to use a pick axe for this.  The best time to do this is in the rainiest seasons when the ground is soft and workable - so avoid the Summer months!

Step2: Decide on where you want to place your Compost Vegetable Bed.  Ideally, choose a sunny spot that gets about 8 hours of sunshine a day.

Step 3:  Using some chicken wire, create a large 'bin' enclosure and line it with black plastic.  I used heavy duty garbage bags for this.

Step 4: Place all of your compostable grasses with soil, roots and all (grass side down, roots up) into your compost heap enclosure.  Sprinkle some water on the plant material as you go, so that it is somewhat moist, but not soggy. 

Step 5:  Once completely filled up, finish with a top layer of plain soil, or potting soil, so that when you place your young plants or seeds in the pile, the roots have some nutrients to feed on.  Give this layer a little water as well.  Now,, you are ready to enclose the entire heap with more black plastic.    

Step 6:  You are now ready to plant your seeds:  Cut X's into the top (and even the sides!) of your heap to create spaces to tuck your young seedlings into - or - plant seeds directly into the holes, following the grower's directions on the seed packets for depth, etc.

Step 7: Be sure to keep the growing holes watered!  I like to use 'Compost Tea' instead of Chemical Fertilizers (see recipe below).  You will find that the plastic reduces water evaporation - I only watered my vegetable compost heap 1x/week and everything was fine!

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Pictured below
As a silly experiment, I even planted Corn in my Compost Vegetable Bin...just to see what would grow....well, - it did grow!

Featured on this Page:

-Creating New Garden Spaces

-Preparing the Planting Site:

    *Amending Soil
    *Floating Row Covers

-How to build a Compost Heap Vegetable Patch

Compost 'Tea' Recipe

In an effort to practice Organic Gardening methods, I avoid using chemical fertilizers.  Every couple of weeks, I treat all of my Vegetables, Annuals and Perrenials with this nutrient-rich brew!

Your veggies will thank you! 

The following quantities are just an estimate - I adjust the amount of compost to water according to how many areas I need to 'feed'.

Ingredients:

2 c. Compost (I take whatever is available from the bottom of the heap - even if it is still really chunky)

6 Gallons water

Directions:

Place compost in a double layer of Cheesecloth and securely tie.  Place compost bundle into bucket of water and allow to 'steep' for several days, stirring each day.  When the water looks dark and rich, just like tea, then it is ready to be sprinkled onto the soil around the plants!

I only water my vegetable gardens 1x week.  I practice deep watering methods, so as to encourage a deeper root system that can withstand dry spells in the summer months. When watering, I give plants a deep 'drink' of water, followed by the Compost Tea as a 'top dressing'.

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