Local Harvest Gardening

Hi Nate, I'm glad you enjoyed the book. Most seed companies sell cover crop seed but I can't give a recommendation on the best. Explore WCS, Osborne, Johnny's Seeds, William Dam, Stokes. Most seed probably originates from the US so whether you buy from a Canadian company or an American the source is...

Commercially, they mulch with sawdust or fine woodchips from coniferous trees: typically, pine or fir. I suggest you do the same. When the plants are more established you could add a living mulch: maybe a herb such as sage, thyme, oregano or rosemary. But again, mulch around the plants first and wai...

I'm very impressed with the progress you've made. When I analyzed your garden during that zoom I tried to be brutally honest but that came at the risk of discouraging the gardener. You took it as a challenge and magically transformed your space. I appreciate that!

What are the next steps?

It's difficult to give advice without actually being there. I suggest you cover the rocky area with 3-6 inches of compost without digging out the rocky material. Rocky ground under your finer growing medium poses no threat for no tillers unless you're growing carrots or parsnips. We've covered up ex...

Pill bugs can be challenging for no-tillers using lots of woodchips but in our experience they're only a threat in early spring. We experience them on the farm here as well but their population seems to be balanced quite well. They do some munching on radishes but nothing serious. Are they eating ot...

Now would be the best time to prune since the trees haven't leafed out yet. Prune now and again in the summer.

I think it is possible but mulching with very raw, un-composted materials can introduce some problems. It could introduce mold and slime and invite creatures like slugs that are attracted to these environment. You could try layering with less materials. Still, it's worth a try and I encourage you to...

Keeping fence lines clean is quite important. First, it can ground out shock wire used to pasture animals. Second, aggressive weeds like morning glory and blackberries (my region) seem to take over in these areas when they're left alone. Can you detach the wire and raise the fence? It's worth it so ...

The additional venting will make a big difference. To resolve issues around blossom end rot we've improved airflow and continued to add rich compost over the years. Our composts contain mostly decomposed woodchips, mushroom compost, chicken manure. We don't supplement with eggshells or other calcium...

The procedure you're using is good. Make sure the cardboard is thick enough.

I can't make a judgement here for the quality of the bagged soil. There are too many variables. You could bring in a sample for Andrew to look at.