Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Rosie's Vegie Garden

Rosie has been pestering us for months, she desperately wanted a vegie garden. On Friday afternoon she bought some mung beans home from school that she had carefully propagated from seeds. Of course these mung beans needed a home so she upped the anti on the vegie garden.

Sunday arvo I was finally worn down, off to Bunnings for some sleepers, seeds and seedlings then some dirt and the afternoon was filled by building a garden.

Fully Loaded Trailer
The trailer was once again loaded above and beyond the call and we gingerly made our way home lest we blew an over burdened tyre! A sigh of relief was heard as I backed the trailer down the drive and the real work began.

The design was basic, nothing ground breaking, just simple sturdy and easy to whack together. I still haven't managed to get myself a decent circular saw and I didn't fancy making eight cuts through 200 x 50 treated pine sleepers with a hand saw so Stihl provided a less physically intensive cutting method. Not millimetre accurate by any stretch of the imagination but close enough for this job.

The kids made themselves scarce while I cut up the timber then reappeared to help with construction. Large noisy power tools like grinders, chainsaws, mowers and whipper snippers make the girls disappear quicker than a rat up a drain pipe.

Assembly was quick and painless.
Rosie "holding" everything in place.
Ready for soil to be added.
When the unpleasant task of filling the contraption with soil began, the girls disappeared again, no surprises there! Especially given both of them are seemingly allergic to physical work. I wanted to get a cubic metre of soil to fill the bed in one trip, alas the trailer would not have liked carrying more than 1.5 tonne so I had to settle for 3/4 of a cube on the first load and 1/2 a cube in the second load which was completed this afternoon after work. Initial measurement indicated that 3/4 of a cubic metre would have been sufficient, but whilst at Bunnings, Karren insisted that I build the base two sleepers high rather than one which was my first intention. This of course increased the amount of soil required. It does of course look much nicer two high and makes it less back breaking to tend the garden.

We had to plant something once the bed was full so the seedlings for the herb garden went in, Basil, Thyme, Oregano, Parsley, Chives, Coriander some Chilli and of course the Mung beans were all planted.
Seedlings planted.
 The biggest challenge we face now is to keep the Deer, Kangaroos, Bandicoots and other critters out of the vegies. Hopefully the dog will finally make himself useful.
It's raining so we don't have to water today!
Plenty of room left for vegies.
On the weekend we will plant the seed for Carrots, Pumpkin, Snow Peas, Lettuce, Spring Onion and Beetroot. You know what they say about Beetroot don't you? Well you can beat an egg but you can't beat a...

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