We started out the "cruelest" month by braving the soggy weather to plant potatoes, peas, radishes (from seed we saved, threshed, and winnowed), lettuce, and raspberry canes. Digging in wet weather really isn't recommended, as the air pockets in the soil can be squished out, leaving the ground hard and compacted. But sometimes you've gotta do what needs to be done when you have the opportunity!
April certainly had its showers, but we were able to get a lot accomplished. The main project this spring was expanding our garden space again by reallocating the walls of our raised beds. One reason for doing this was to connect the beds so that we could run one or two continuous soaker hoses, which would save time when watering because we wouldn't have to switch the hose for each plot.
These beds may look easy to assemble and take apart, but those joints really can stick together, especially when glued with a season or two of mud! But the Chillis pooled their ingenuity, cheerful attitudes, and brute strength, and we managed to do a pretty nifty job of it. After laying out and connecting the borders, we sheet mulched with old newspaper and added a layer of old leaves from the autumn rakings of a library staff member's yard.
These beds may look easy to assemble and take apart, but those joints really can stick together, especially when glued with a season or two of mud! But the Chillis pooled their ingenuity, cheerful attitudes, and brute strength, and we managed to do a pretty nifty job of it. After laying out and connecting the borders, we sheet mulched with old newspaper and added a layer of old leaves from the autumn rakings of a library staff member's yard.