Category Archives: garden

My Garden 2013: Adding On Using Firewood Raised Beds

March 27, 2013 daddykirbs 1 Comment

I thought I had my garden all figured out this year. Boy, was I wrong. The six raised beds that I put in was just not enough. There is room for the Peppers, Tomatoes, Cantaloupe, Watermelons, Sunflowers, Cucumbers, Beets and Squash… oh wait, Where do I put the Squash?! Oops, I didn’t plan on a spot for the Squash!

Time for more gardens! LOL

Daddykirbs Garden Blog: Firewood Raised Beds

This led me to look around at my available space and resources. The area to the right of the small chicken coops looks just right. In fact I put in a raised bed there already for my Onions and Leeks. I just need to move the compost pile around and build the beds.

I have already spent too much money on the garden this year so I wanted this to be very cheap… like free. There are materials here to choose from, like: Pallets, Bricks and Firewood. Firewood wins! I have a big stack of this resource but I almost never use any of it. I don’t burn wood in the house and since moving to the country haven’t gone camping much. These logs will make very nice raised beds.

Daddykirbs Garden Blog: Chicken in the Garden

The chickens would have a ball in this if I didn’t surround it with a fence. I’m very fortunate to have a supply of fencing and fence posts on hand as well. This entire garden was done in an hour or so with no money. All the materials were here just waiting to be rearranged and made useful. Check out the video at the top of this page to see the project from start to finish.

Video Update 1

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Bees, farm, garden, Homesteading, orchard, video

Introductory Beekeeping Class: My Experience

March 19, 2013 daddykirbs Leave a comment

Bee Keeping… Where do you start? How hard can it be? Where do you get supplies? Where do you get bees? How much honey do you get? How much money can you make? Can you even make money? Will I get stung? How aggressive are the bees?

All those questions and more have tumbled around in my head. This is why I decided to take a Bee Keeping Class. There is a Bee Keeper who offers a class in our area. The class takes two and a half hours but is jam packed with Continue reading Introductory Beekeeping Class: My Experience →

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farm, garden

My Garden 2013: The Ugly Potato Patch

March 18, 2013 daddykirbs Leave a comment

Lately I’ve seen so many ways to grow potatoes. My head spins when I research the different methods. It spinned so much this year that I almost couldn’t decide how to grow mine. When it comes right down to it you just gotta do it!

I’ve spent too much money on the garden this year so when it comes time to put the potatoes down I wanted it to be cheap. …and when I say cheap I mean FREE!

It came down to using what I had on hand. This scrap piece of erosion barrier that I got out of the dumpster should do the trick. Check out the video above to see how I put it together.

Daddykirbs Garden: The Ugly Potato Patch

Update: April 6, 2013

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farm, garden

Gardening With Kids

March 11, 2013 daddykirbs 3 Comments

There are times when it’s challenging to work with kids. I have said in the past that getting your kids to help is the easiest way to double the time it takes to do a project. I don’t always do a perfect job at whatever I do, but I really want too. It’s the desire to have things “done right” that makes inviting the kids to help difficult. Yes, I admit it… I don’t always welcome the kids to my projects, but I’m getting better at it.

This year I have let down my guard. I am intentionally inviting the kids to come in and do some garden work. This has been done in the past but on a much more controlled and limited scale. Two 4’x4′ raised beds have been built specifically for two of my kids. In these beds they have planted what they want. They won’t be perfect… by any means, but they are fun.

I know my kids need to learn how to do some of this stuff. Gardening is something that everyone should know a little bit about. Growing food is so fundamental. There is a connection to who we are in this world that we GET when we grow our own food. Maybe that’s a weird way to say it, but it’s how I feel.

Not all of my kids care to be in the garden… that’s ok. The two who really love it are a real joy. I love coming home and finding my little girl in the greenhouse singing as she is watering the little sprouts. She loves to tell me how many came up while I was at work.

My 15 year old son is autistic and he loves to plant things. He comes in with his service dog, Herry, to work with me as we plant new needs and potted plants. There are a few things he really enjoys in life: Frech Fries (crispy well done), Driving (he really wants a golf cart), Chin Hair and working with Dad!

Whatever my kids are learning in this process is good. Just plain good. There are times I think that “they need this”… and I’m sure they do, but really… I need them. I need this. They joy they give to me is far greater a reward than any harvest my garden will ever physically provide. I’m sure my improperly spaced pepper plants will be fine. My Tomatoes that aren’t planted quite deep enough will grow. I’ll survive my Lemon tree not producing as many Lemons because my little girl couldn’t resist picking those pretty flowers in the Spring. … All those things are nothing next to the blessings of sharing in the joy of gardening with my kids. 🙂

Here is a video of a garden conceived and created by the kids.

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garden, orchard

My Garden & Orchard 2013: Fruit in Bloom

March 8, 2013 daddykirbs Leave a comment

The fruit trees produce some of the most beautiful flowers! This post is to share some that I’ve captured in the last few weeks. My photos are all captured by my Galaxy S3… so, they aren’t “professional” 🙂