OK here's the plan

[NMDemDist2]

my veggie garden plot is about 11x9.5 feet. I figure I can get 5 short rows in there

I also have a 5'round 3' deep "garden tub" we removed from the house that sits by the stairs of the deck so here's the plan

in spring and fall I'll plant lettuce, spinach, radishes, peas and broccoli

in summer i'll plant corn, tomatoes, summer squash, melons and peppers

in the old tub, i'll have herbs and maybe strawberries

whadda ya think?

suggestions?

TIA my DU gardener buddies, any suggestions or warnings for this newbie will be greatly appreciated.

I'm gonna turn the ground this week and rake out the few weeds that are in there and cover the whole patch with black plastic to kill any weed seeds. I plan on taking a soil sample to the County Extension office and see what they can tell me

what I do know about the ground around here is it needs iron usually but this plot is where the old owners did veggies and she said she amended it alot!

also she has an old asparagus patch next to the plot where there were fern fronds this summer, any suggestions on getting it going again, or should i just start over?

[NJCher]

1. asparagus and other garden plans

Did you know asparagus beds can last as long as 109 years!? Yes, I found that out when I put asparagus in last year and was reading up on it.

The secret to the asparagus is to heavily feed it with composted cow manure. You might have to buy some bags this year but eventually you can set up your own compost for it in the future. Doesn't have to be composted cow manure every year, but the first year that's what I'd go with.

Wow, lucky you. Putting in asparagus is a major PITA. You have yours already started. Also, it takes two years to get asparagus, so I won't even have any this coming spring. Spring 08, yes.

Strawberries in the tub sounds great! Can you believe I finished putting in my heirloom strawberry bed right around Christmas? That's because it's been so warm here. I'll take a photo one of these days and post it. The strawberries really thrive on the cool weather.

The rest of your plan sounds great. You are really lucky she amended the soil.



Cher

[NMDemDist2]

2. the asparagus bed is a mess

and there weren't a lot of ferns

do they reseed from the ferns?

and she used to have a horse out back, there's lots of horse manure that's aged back there. use that or just use that as the layers for the compost pile?

[NJCher]

3. they might

But if they do, it will take forever and a day to get asparagus from them. If you want to rejuvenate the asparagus beds, I suggest digging a new trench, re-filling with your composted horse manure (asparagus is a heavy feeder), and putting in new crowns.

When I put in my asparagus beds, one thing that was constantly re-emphasized was how important it is to constantly be composted with cow manure.

I ordered my crowns from Henry Fields--I think I only spent around 14 on them. I'll check and get back to you on this thread, though.



Cher