I went to a garden party, and played in a lot of dirt. Messed around with some manure and compost too. Found the fines and jacked the curbside 2x4's. Hit up the Habitat and put it all together for around a pure sweet C. It helps that we have our own endless supply of compost, worm casings and worms!

And, thanks to Anna posting of her woes and wails; I learned from her and put layers of cardboard under the middle bed. This middle bed will be planted with sugar snap peas in the middle and after they get up a few inches I'll seed rye in the entire bed. Originally, I was just going to rye; but heck, even a few sugar snap peas from here is more than I planned. Oh, and on the right you can see the beautyberry bush that made the yummy jelly.

The bed on the left is actually a 2 parter, the fence side is deep and not bottomed; the front side I trenched out; bottom layered with paper and weed cloth; built the sides up with found 2x4's and filled the bed with a slight modification of the 5-1-1 mix (I added an additional 1 of black kow)

In the foreground is my yard brush compost pile; has been for years; and for the next long while I'll leave it here. The rows; or aisles are actually wider than I see in most pictures; I needed extra space right now for me and my upright mobility aids. By adding an additional 12" for 40" wide aisle I have enough room to get the lawnmower back here to mulch the brush pile periodically, and to get to the garden via wheelchair if/when needed.

With all the drought we've been having; and the outlook for a dry warm winter; I'm thinking of putting in a rain barrel system.

This is the view from the opposite end of the middle bed. I'm thinking of putting gutters on each side of the shed; and along the back wall putting in a serial rain barrel system. Maybe with overflow to a french drain running diagonally through the compost pile?

It is an odd little area I'm working with; but it has it's better points. For here under the oak trees; it gets a decent amount of sun; easy access to the driveway, water, garden shed. Never been cultivated. I did have to allow for infrequent access to the back via the double gates for bobcat like equipment. But that has given me the chance to tuck in some small specialty gardens and to brainstorm some movable containerized tomato planter design.

I've been lurking around on here for about a year now; and thought now is probably a good time to ask for some direct feed-back and advice before I start undertaking some project like a rain barrel system or tomato planter trailers. Let alone making my aisles manual wheelchair navigable.

I know there are a lot of you very knowledgeable people around Florida growing food; I'm keen for any advice, ideas; suggestions and so forth.

Thanks!

~Dianne

Seminole County - Zone 9B - Gardening under the Oaks