OT - Planter boxes

[gellfex]

About that wire cage.....

Last year I found that we have some very small "eurasian tree sparrows" (apparently actual sparrows, not the usual finch that is called a sparrow) who can pass right through the chicken wire. They were in there inspecting and in some cases sampling, the various offerings. I saw them go right through the wire...land on it, duck through, and fly away.

Reminds me of the species of mosquito that evolved to lay egg inside bamboo via tiny holes, they land on screen and squeeze their way through...

[Ian B]

As far as the volume that you need goes; a standard square foot garden is 4' x 4' x 6". 8 cubic feet. That's about one sack of vermiculite, one sack of compost and half a sack of peat (it comes compressed and fluffs up like crazy). After a year of growing vegetables, you'll lose a small amount - just top it up ready for next year and you're good to go.

Ian

[J Tiers]

About that wire cage.....

Last year I found that we have some very small "eurasian tree sparrows" (apparently actual sparrows, not the usual finch that is called a sparrow) who can pass right through the chicken wire. They were in there inspecting and in some cases sampling, the various offerings. I saw them go right through the wire...land on it, duck through, and fly away.

[RB211]

Ok, I just printed this entire thread to this point so my wife can read it. She is the one that loves this stuff.

[mattthemuppet]

beautiful JT, I love the mesh cage.

Today I turned in the wheelbarrow load of compost into my 2 beds. Not 100% composted, but super rich dark black loam in between the avocado skins and egg shells It got thoroughly mixed in with the prior years dirt, potting mix and mulch. I can still see some clay-like soil structure from deeper down but it mixed into give a good structure. I reckon next year it'll be perfect.

The composting has also cut down our non-recycling trash going to the curb by about 1/3 too, which is an added bonus.

[J Tiers]

The sheep tanks, with small pepper, tomato and tomatillo plants in them. Farther into the season, the cage will be quite full of green leaves and Giant Marconi peppers etc.

[nickel-city-fab]

If you can get yards of that stuff delivered it's great, but if you have to buy bags at the home center it really starts to add up.

Yep, had the top soil delivered and bought the rest at Home Depot... nobody was looking at the price since Dad was buying and the garden was really for my step-mom.

[gellfex]

Thanks for the tip! we did something similar with my parents raised beds. My step-sister is a bit of a gardener, and she insisted on equal parts peat and manure with screened topsoil... it was amazing. You could reach in up to your elbow and stuff just grew like crazy.... but you have to fork over another load of peat and manure almost every year to keep the soil loose enough. I'm going to try the square foot mix!

If you can get yards of that stuff delivered it's great, but if you have to buy bags at the home center it really starts to add up.

[nickel-city-fab]

Nickel,

When you fill the box, don't use "dirt". The mix I use (and it's straight from the square foot garden world) is 1/3 compost, 1/3 peat, 1/3 vermiculite. None of those contain weed seeds, and you get a "soil" that holds moisture, never floods, never bogs down. It contains all the nutrients that plants need. Soak it once a day with a hose, let the excess run out the bottom. If a weed does grow (you might get a few seeds blown in by the wind), just pull it out - there's almost no resistance.

Super easy gardening...

Ian

Thanks for the tip! we did something similar with my parents raised beds. My step-sister is a bit of a gardener, and she insisted on equal parts peat and manure with screened topsoil... it was amazing. You could reach in up to your elbow and stuff just grew like crazy.... but you have to fork over another load of peat and manure almost every year to keep the soil loose enough. I'm going to try the square foot mix!

[gellfex]

Nickel,

When you fill the box, don't use "dirt". The mix I use (and it's straight from the square foot garden world) is 1/3 compost, 1/3 peat, 1/3 vermiculite. None of those contain weed seeds, and you get a "soil" that holds moisture, never floods, never bogs down. It contains all the nutrients that plants need. Soak it once a day with a hose, let the excess run out the bottom. If a weed does grow (you might get a few seeds blown in by the wind), just pull it out - there's almost no resistance.

Super easy gardening...

Ian

I've been using Pro Mix growing medium for decades to fill my containers. Comes in a 4 cu ft compressed bale. I'm also a fan of Sq Ft Gardening. I learned there that you can plant like 30 bean vines in a half barrel.

[Ian B]

Nickel,

When you fill the box, don't use "dirt". The mix I use (and it's straight from the square foot garden world) is 1/3 compost, 1/3 peat, 1/3 vermiculite. None of those contain weed seeds, and you get a "soil" that holds moisture, never floods, never bogs down. It contains all the nutrients that plants need. Soak it once a day with a hose, let the excess run out the bottom. If a weed does grow (you might get a few seeds blown in by the wind), just pull it out - there's almost no resistance.

Super easy gardening...

Ian

[alanganes]

There are a jumble of different Oak species, at least in North America, but the two main ones are Red and White Oak. White Oak has been used in boat building and cooperage for centuries, due to it's superior strength and tight, dense grain structure that makes it water tight. Red Oak has a coarse grain with large pourous annual growth rings. Those rings soak up and hold water amazingliy well, which yields them to rot fairly quickly.

It's pretty neat how fast the capillary action is-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6t2AZubF8U

Well I learned several new things today. Thanks for making me just a tad smarter.

[J Tiers]

No kidding.... dirt isn't food-grade, but you had for dinner some stuff that was grown in it.

EPDM rubber does not have CCA or bisphenols, etc in it.

[gellfex]

Do you mean EPDM rubber roofing? Even with that stuff, there two types: approved for food use and not FDA approved. The same sort of restrictions apply to pond liners used in Aquaculture.

Do you think the non-food grade is really toxic enough to matter? People use rainwater from their roofs on their food gardens all over the country. I've been seriously thinking of getting one of those 330 gal PE containers to capture my roof water for garden use (and maybe apocalypse prep).

[reggie_obe]

Barrels are definitely white oak, and I think it can be assumed the pallets are red. I'd also not be surprised if having bourbon soak through it for 4-10 years yields some preservative property, or perhaps the charring process.

What about lining the PT wood with something like the flame applied rubber roofing? Easy to do and would basically eliminate the contamination and still have a nice looking container.

Do you mean EPDM rubber roofing? Even with that stuff, there two types: approved for food use and not FDA approved. The same sort of restrictions apply to pond liners used in Aquaculture.