Edible Landscaping – Pine Cove Water District

Archive for Edible Landscaping

Prepare your Garden for Summer Heat Waves

Posted by admin on July 9, 2024

Think About Resilience From the Outset

If you have not yet established your vegetable plot, I recommend thinking about resilience from the outset. Think about weather conditions which may be experienced in our area. Plant for as much biodiversity as possible and make a climate-resilient garden through the plants you choose, and the ways in which you think about soil, water, and other factors.

Remember, growing in rows in a traditional vegetable garden is not the only option. Perennial planting schemes like forest gardens can make your garden far more resilient, whatever extreme weather conditions climate change will bring.

Provide Plants With Shade During the Hottest Part of the Day

If you already have a vegetable plot and have been caught out by a heat wave, I suggest thinking about shade. Shade can reduce temperatures considerably. It can stop certain plants from bolting prematurely.

And, of course, shade can reduce water use. Typically, vegetable plots in temperate climate zones are positioned in full sun, or close to full sun. But when there is extreme heat, these spots can become scorching. So adding shade during the hottest periods could help.

Shade cloth is one simple option. But remember, you can use reclaimed, natural fabrics for a more eco-friendly solution.

Shading with other plants can also be beneficial. Think about using trees, shrubs, or even taller annual plants to provide shade for those other plants which need it. You might also place a trellis or other support structure with climbing plants that provide some shade. A good layout in a vegetable garden can make a big difference. In the northern hemisphere, remember that shade plants should be positioned to the south or west of other plants to provide shade during the hottest part of the day.

Avoid Bare Soil

I advise making sure the soil is covered, either with mulch or living plants, to reduce water loss from the soil and reduce local soil temperatures. Remember, protecting your garden during a heat wave includes taking care of the soil and its complex web of life, not just your plants. And an area of bare soil will emit far more heat than a vegetated area.

Improve Irrigation or Watering Systems

The best time to think about irrigation and watering is obviously before extreme weather arrives. But you can still beat the heat in your garden if you think about these things once the hot weather arrives.

Obviously, during hot weather, watering needs will increase. So manual watering can be more of a challenge. If you do not already have sustainable watering systems such as drip irrigation, or clay pot, or water globe irrigation for a smaller space, now could be a good time to get them in place.

Consider adding automation to make it easier to make sure you meet the water needs of your plants. Though of course, you should also make sure you have a sustainable supply. And set up rainwater harvesting systems.

Add Thermal Mass

Choosing the right bed edging could also help you beat the heat. Materials with high thermal mass catch and store the sun’s heat energy during the day and release it slowly when temperatures fall. So they can help keep temperatures more stable in an area.

While particularly beneficial in a greenhouse or other undercover growing area, adding thermal mass may also be beneficial in other areas of your garden. Choose materials like stone, clay, earth, etc., and consider carefully how these can be used within your garden design. They can help beat the heat in summer and help with the cold temperatures in winter too.

Beat the Heat in Outdoor Living Areas

While growing food and other resources in your garden is important, you might also like to consider how you can continue to enjoy outdoor living areas during a heat wave.

To make your garden a more pleasant place to spend time in summer, you might like to consider making sure that you have shaded seating areas—below trees, arbors, pergolas, or other structures clad with climbing plants, for example.

In high temperatures, making sure your garden has water available for wildlife is even more crucial than usual. And when you attract plenty of wildlife, your garden can be an even more pleasing place to spend some time.

In some gardens, taking a dip could be the perfect way to cool off on a hot day. A natural swimming pond or natural swimming pool could be the ideal eco-friendly solution.

And finally, when enjoying your garden, think about ways to make the most of your home-grown produce. For example, create some cooling cordials, smoothies, ice-creams, or ice lollies using the fruits and berries (and even vegetables and/or herbs) that you grow.

Posted in: Around the District, Community, Compost, Conservation, Customer Infomation, Drought, Edible Landscaping, Freebies, From the Office, Garden, gardening, Homesteading, Mulch, Pine Cove Water District, The Garden, Uncategorized, Weather

Leave a Comment (0) →

What’s in your garden?

Posted by admin on July 23, 2021

Over the winter I watched squirrels burry peanuts in our butterfly garden, never thinking they would sprout. Surprisingly enough, as I was pulling weeds, I pulled one that had PEANUTS as it’s roots! I was so excited to see so many more still planted. I looked it up and can’t wait to see the final results. Thanks squirrels!

If you’re interested in the video I watched, click here.

Has Mother Nature gifted you with any unexpected foliage? We’d love to see it.

Posted in: Animals, Around the District, Edible Landscaping, Garden, gardening, The Garden

Leave a Comment (0) →

Apples, aphids, and ladybugs

Posted by admin on May 28, 2021

The sun is shining, the birds are building, and the foliage is blooming.
We have the first buds starting on the apple trees and aphids have already found the milkweed. Ladybugs are in short supply and we are looking for any leads on LARGE quantity of live lady bugs.

We are happy to report that a few ladybugs have found their way to our milkweed but with the amount of aphids we’re seeing, we need a whole army. Local suppliers seem to be out and we are wary of having ladybugs shipped and end up arriving dead. Do you have a lead on ladybugs? Let us know so we can help keep our Monarch Butterfly Sanctuary free of aphids without using anything that will harm the butterflies or their larvae.

^{We hope the few ladybugs we have find the aphids}

^{See those yellow dots – those are aphids 🙁}

Posted in: Community, Edible Landscaping, From the Office, Garden, Monarch Butterflies, The Garden

Leave a Comment (0) →

Self Watering Raised Bed Gardens

Posted by admin on June 5, 2014

In an effort to reduce water usage out of doors, but still be able to garden, one option is a self watering container. They are an excellent choice because the water is contained under the plant and therefore does not evaporate and is available to the plant 24/7, which makes over or under watering impossible. As long as the water reserve has water in it, the plant takes what it needs when it needs us and pretty much cuts the human out of the equation all together. Which brings me to my next point. Self watering containers free up your time. Instead of being a slave to watering the garden, you just make sure the containers are kept full and that is all you have to do. While you can use a drip or soaker system on a timer, these methods take more effort to install and the squirrels love to reek havoc on drip system parts. Luckily, they cannot do much damage to a self watering container.

So if these self watering containers are so fabulous, why isn’t everyone using them? Well, price is a big obstacle. They are fairly expense when compared to other types of containers of a similar size. Plus, what if you want to make a raised bed veggie garden for instance? The amount of containers you would have to buy would be extensive. So what is the solution?

A self watering raised be garden of course. I found this video over at mylittlehomestead.com, where they show how they made a self watering raised bed garden using a 55 gallon drum cut in half. Genius! Why didn’t I think of that? Here is the video.

I think this is a fabulous way to have your cake and eat it too. All the benefits of a raised bed garden combined with the benefits of a self watering container. What could be better? If you try this in your garden, let us know! Send us pictures or video and we will post it here on the blog. Also if you discover how to make any improvements to this design, let us know. I will be trying this in my own garden. I think it would be great.

Tags: drip systems, gardening, raised beds, soaker hoses, water conservation

Posted in: Edible Landscaping, From the Office, Garden, gardening, Raised Bed Gardens, Re-purposing, Recycling, The Garden, Water Conservation

Leave a Comment (0) →

More Space Saving Ideas

Posted by admin on March 5, 2014

Here on the hill, gardening is challenging for many reasons. A short growing season, water restrictions and poor soil, micro climates and shade are just some of the issues we contend with. As gardeners, we are forced to come up with clever ways to overcome these challenges. Each gardener is different and has different wants and needs for his or her garden, so each person must customize solutions to fit their particular gardening needs.

One challenge many gardeners everywhere face, is space. Or lack thereof. This is why container gardening and raised bed gardens are so wonderful. They allow us to garden without acres of land to till or to fit a garden into a spot that would be unsuitable for a traditional garden. Everything from flowers to fruits and veggies to herbs, can be grown in containers or raised beds.

But now you want to branch out, literally, and grow some fruit trees. A typical 1/4 acre lot can only hold so many trees and if your property is like mine, putting in a bunch of fruit trees would eliminate most of the usable space in my yard. However, if the thought of walking outside and picking the perfect apples for a pie or a big, juicy peach is something you covet, then why not think about espalier?

Beautiful! So neat and tidy.

Espalier is the art of pruning and training trees and their branches to be on one plane. It is usually done against a fence or a wall, however, by installing posts and wires, you can espalier a fruit tree just about anywhere in your yard or garden. It is an excellent way to add fruit trees to your garden or homestead without taking up valuable real estate.

Posts and wires for espalier trees.

Plus the fruit is extremely easy to pick as compared to normal fruit trees. If you have ever attempted to pick the apples from the top of a tall apple tree, you will know what I mean and will appreciate being able to pick fruit easily and without a ladder, from an espaliered tree.

Much easier to pick apples from trees that are espaliered. Give it a try. I will be doing this in my garden!

Tags: espalier, fruit trees, gardening, raised bed gardens, small space gardening

Posted in: Around the District, Community, Customer Infomation, Edible Landscaping, From the Office, gardening, Homesteading, The Garden

Leave a Comment (0) →

More Benefits of Raised Bed Gardens

Posted by admin on March 5, 2014

We have already discussed some of the benefits of raised bed gardening, but today I would like to add a few more that you may not have thought about. We know that a raised bed garden provides improved soil, easy access and simplified weed and pest control, but some other benefits include improved drainage and increased yields as well as all of the above mentioned benefits.

An obvious benefit of a raised bed garden is improved drainage. Since you are mixing the soil to your own specifications, you can create a fine loam regardless of the type of soil in your yard. So you never have to worry about native soil that drains either too quickly or too slowly.

Another benefit of raised beds is an increased yield. Raised beds warm up more quickly than does the surrounding soil, so that allows for planting earlier than you would in a traditional garden. It is also easier to make a cover or cold frame for a raised bed garden, than it is for an in ground garden. This allows you to create a mini greenhouse and gives you several weeks of addition garden time.

In addition, the light, un-compacted soil in a raised bed, improves the movement of both water and air allowing roots to spread out more easily to obtain nutrients and water. This makes it possible to plant a raised bed more densely than one would in the same amount of space in a traditional garden. This in turn translates into higher yields. You are also able to plant more in a raised bed garden due to the fact that no space in the garden needs to be devoted to paths.

Overall, raised bed gardens are superior. Their customized heights, shapes, sizes and the variety of materials used to build them, allow everyone to enjoy gardening, regardless of their budget, space, or physical condition. They are easy to maintain and manage and have improved production. They save space, time and money. So why not give them a try in your yard?

Tags: advantages, gardening, increased yield, raised bed gardens

Posted in: Customer Infomation, Edible Landscaping, From the Office, Raised Bed Gardens, The Garden

Leave a Comment (0) →

Raised Bed & Container Gardens

Posted by admin on February 14, 2014

Gardening is a very popular and rewarding past time and is alive and well here on the hill. We have a local garden club and I personally know many people who just love to garden. So, as promised, here is a post about raised bed and container gardening.

Gardening here in Pine Cove can be very challenging. We face a variety of obstacles which included unpredictable weather, plant munching critters such as deer, squirrels and gophers, less than perfect soil and drought conditions. So what is an avid gardener to do?

Build a raised bed or container garden of course! I have found this to be the perfect solution to all of the above dilemmas. Containers come in a large variety of styles, materials, colors and sizes to fit any style of home or garden. Many plants, including vegetables and fruits, can be grown in containers. You can also get very creative and create a container garden out of some unusual objects such as metal animal water troughs, old buckets, dressers, wagons, wheelbarrows, wash tubs, old sinks, rain spouting, baskets and many other things. You can let your imagination run wild! Here are some pictures to get your creative juices flowing.

Check out my next post for more on raised bed gardening!