Advantages of Gardening with Raised Beds

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Gardening with Raised Beds

raised beds, tomatoes, peppers, cedar wood, planting

Life is very busy on the farm during the spring and summer months, so this year we made an intentional decision — we hope a good one — to try gardening with a few raised beds instead of the traditional way.

We opted for constructing our raised beds with cedar posts that my husband cut to establish 4′ x 8′ beds. We used Kraft paper to line the beds before placing the compost on top.

I think the raised beds are looking pretty good don’t you?

Using Cedar to Construct the Beds

Apart from it’s natural beauty, cedar’s natural resistance to rot and insects was a key reason we chose it to construct our beds.

raised beds, cedar, gardening, planting, balmofgileadCedar is also very durable. Several years ago, we built two raised beds made of cedar for planting flowers and a small herb garden. They have held up well, although now I use them exclusively for flowers, purely by choice, based on their location.

An additional advantage of using cedar is that when soil is added, cedar maintains it’s integrity better than plastics or composites, when the weight of the soil naturally forces itself outwards.

We also don’t like the idea of using anything that would potentially “leach” harmful, man-made materials into the soil and plants, even if it’s in very small quantities.

Proper Aeration, Drainage and Loose Soil

The soil remains healthy as the raised beds provide proper aeration and good drainage.  The loose soil allows the roots to spread and the plants to grow uninhibited. Part of our reasoning for choosing raised beds is that our land is very rocky. The beds are a great alternative, and weed control is a proverbial “breeze.”

Weed Control and Saving our Backs

I love – love – love the fact raised beds can be constructed at any height and width.  This helps accommodate any of us who have back, stretching, or bending issues. Weeds don’t grow as well, or as frequently in our raised beds, so it makes pulling them “easy-peasy.” 

In the adjacent picture, you can see that I’m able to sit and reach across the raised bed easily. planting, tomatoes and peppers

Keep in mind that you still have the option of maintaining a regular garden, as you wish, but if you want to plant a few vegetables or have a small herb garden close to the house, raised beds are ideal! It’s especially helpful, too, if you harvest often.

Gardening is pleasant, enjoyable and more rewarding for me with the raised bed method.

We’re looking forward to adding more raised beds in the years to come.

 

Recreational Birdwatching — Relaxing, Fun and Educational!

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Recreational Birdwatching on the Farm

Birds, BirdwatchingIf your idea of a birdwatcher is “Miss Jane” from “The Beverly Hillbillies,” it’s time to refresh your understanding.

At least for me — an amateur, recreational birdwatcher, it can be a fun, relaxing, and educational activity!

Part of the joy of living on a farm is watching the beauty of nature unfold on a daily basis. Wild birds that frequent our woods, our porch, and our feeders are a joy to us.

We love our wild “feathered friends,” and have enjoyed spending many hours listening to their different sounds and songs, watching their funny and sometimes “bizarre” flying patterns, and their behavior (or I should say misbehavior) around other birds, particularly at feeding time.

Not long after we were married and moved to our farm, Rick gave me as a birthday present a compact guide to Tennessee birds.  It’s one of my most treasured gifts.  Although I will readily admit that I am by no means a bird “aficionado,” the pages are well-worn and the pretty cover photo of an American Goldfinch has faded.  I use the guide as my “go-to” reference when I see a species I can’t identify.

In a previous post, I talked briefly about hummingbirds, now long gone from Tennessee and migrating across the Gulf of Mexico. We attract them to our back porch in season with a homemade mixture of sugar water (I stopped using the premixed solutions with the red dyes as I didn’t want to risk harming the birds). I gauge the timing of their appearance each year within just a few weeks after our red azaleas bloom.

Besides the beautiful coloring of the hummingbirds, their flying ability, in both speed and direction, is astounding. They can fly both vertically and in reverse and briefly reach speeds up to 60 miles per hour!

Other species of birds we see frequently on the farm include the:

  • Chickadee
  • Eastern Bluebird
  • Northern Cardinal
  • House Finch
  • White-breasted Nuthatch
  • Tufted Titmouse
  • Wren…just to name a few!

birdwatchingOf special mention would be the Red-Bellied and Red-Headed Woodpeckers that frequent the woods near our home.  They are not only beautiful to watch, but fun to locate by their incessant pecking when looking for food or nesting sites.

Some of these woodpeckers can live as long as 20 years in the wild, but the number of red-headed woodpeckers has declined dramatically as they’ve been outcompeted by other birds for nesting sites.

Birdwatching is Fun, Relaxing and Educational

Several studies support the fact that being out in nature can be good for you: reduce stress, improve mental well-being, and allow you to get some healthy exercise.

Watching birds and encouraging birds to visit or live on our farm has been tremendously rewarding for us.

From our birdwatching activities, we’ve learned how the white-breasted nuthatch has what is called an “undulating” flight pattern, which means it flies up and down and up and down as it flies away from the feeder (akin to a rollercoaster); how the Northern Cardinal greatly prefers black sunflower seeds to other seeds; and how the tufted titmouse will hold a sunflower seed with its tiny feet, and repeatedly strike its bill against the seed to expose the inner contents to eat.

We thoroughly enjoy our birdwatching activities. The wild birds make us laugh and smile. 

Give amateur birdwatching a try, and let me know if you discover its’ benefits as well!birdwatching

19th Master Woodworker’s Show at the Emporium in Knoxville, TN

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In addition to his farm chores and off-the-farm consulting duties, my husband is a woodworking enthusiast and a member of the East Tennessee Woodworkers Guild (ETWG). 

This weekend, the ETWG and the Arts & Cultural Alliance of Knoxville, are hosting the 19th Master Woodworker’s Show at the Emporium, 100 S. Gay Street (Corner of Gay St/Jackson Ave) in downtown Knoxville, Tennessee.

Schedule for the 19th Master Woodworkers Show:

Friday, November 3, 4 p.m. — 9 p.m.,

Saturday, November 4, 10 a.m.  — 5 p.m., and

Sunday, November 5, 11 a.m. — 5 p.m. (Take the whole family after church!).  

The goal of this biennial show is to highlight the work of craftspeople and artists in East Tennessee and the surrounding region.

Master Woodworking show, woodworking, tableOne of the displays is this beautiful table made by master craftsman Michael McDunn.

This show is FREE to the public. 

“The 2017 show calls for all types of woodwork, from traditional to whimsical, in fine furniture, cabinetry, turning, sculpture, and lutherie. Selected works will be displayed in a gallery setting.”

In addition to 33 craftspeople and artisans, the show highlights three Jurors for the event: Paul Sasso @ paulsassoart.com; Alf Sharp at alfredsharp.com or snazzywoodties.com; and Jerry Spady.

For complete show information, visit the event website at www.masterwoodworkers.org.

Sponsors for this event include: Woodcraft of Knoxville, Peach State Lumber Products, Lee Valley Tools, Ltd. A&M Supply, Homestead Timber Frames, Kevin Adams Cabinetry LLC, Jeffries Wood Works Inc., Everhart Lumber Co., Dan Duncan Cabinetmaker and DeVol Millwork.

This is definitely an event you don’t want to miss!

A Farm Girl’s “Ode to Autumn”

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Ode to Autumn, Fall, leavesWhen the trees on our farm begin to coax themselves to sleep, the rural landscape comes alive with the beautiful colors of the fallen leaves, and this Farm Girl finds herself in a state of peaceful bliss.

The abundance of the leaves doesn’t conjure, yet, that necessary time when the vibrant hues of red, orange, yellow, and purple of birch, elm, maple, and oak near the house must be corralled.

If only for “tidiness,” that day will come.

But not today.

Today is a “basking” day.

 “Autumn is a second spring. When every leaf is a flower.”

                                                                                  — Albert Camus

Basking in the Sunshine

Today, the puppies and I bask in the glory of a perfect Autumn day in East Tennessee.

Zeus, my Great Pyr and always on guard, sits quietly and majestically next to me on a mound of grass that overlooks his domain.  Always at work, his eyes survey the property and what lies beyond.

But even he is not immune to the quiet stillness of the gentle breeze and the warm sunshine beaming down.

With a gentle slap of his paw on my forearm, he invites me to pet him, to show him love. As I massage his ears and head, his eyes squint a little, but he remains focused on his task.

When I stop, he gently slaps me again, not wanting the pleasure to end. I understand how he feels.

I feel especially loved by God today.

I imagine a day like today is something akin to what Heaven will be like: the warmness of the Son, perhaps a gentle breeze, and a peaceful stillness — everything perfect.

Autumn Season

In the distance, I watch as another bundle of white fur tumbles over and over in the grass, legs kicking high.

Xena, my other Great Pyr, is “basking” too.

Her fur is covered with tiny fragments of the various hues of the fallen leaves; her white coat becomes a canvas for a collage of multi-colored leaf fragments, a happenstance “painting” of nature’s beauty. 

In the distance beyond the fence into the woods, we can hear the crunching of leaves underfoot from squirrels eagerly working to store acorns for the winter.

As the dogs’ interests are piqued, my mind wanders to a time when I, as a single woman, lived in a subdivision.

I recall the pressure I felt to maintain a pristine lawn because I didn’t want the neighbors to complain or the “association” to leave me a warning about my “unmanicured” lawn.

Back then, Autumn leaves were an “annoyance,” a bother — something to be done away with — quickly and efficiently.

Thinking back, I realized I spent 16 Autumns there, a place I dearly loved, but where I don’t remember the color of the leaves or even much about the trees from which they fell. Autumn, Fall, leaves

It’s funny how we allow ourselves to be colored by external expectations of perfection.

But today…today is different.

Xena stands up, looks in my direction, and shakes off what remains of nature’s painting.

She runs toward me, stops, lays her head in my lap, and rolls over, hoping for a belly rub.

I think about how blessed I am to be here on this beautiful farm with my hubby and dogs.

And for just a little while longer, we sit.

Basking in God’s love for us and for each other, and for the incredible beauty of the Autumn season He created.

leaves, autumn, Fall

Hummingbirds – Keeping the Ants at Bay!

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Want an attractive and effective deterrent to ants collecting in and on your Hummingbird feeder?

mybalmofgilead.com

We found a solution that works fabulously for us at a reasonable cost.

One of our most enjoyable past-times on the farm is being able to watch the hummingbirds feed on our back porch.

Unfortunately, this year ants became a major problem. We could see them crawling in and around the feeders.
As a result, we found wasps were becoming a nuisance as well!

After some deliberation, my husband came up with a solution that was under $20, looks attractive, and has completely eliminated the ant problem for us.

He purchased a 3-inch copper end cap from the plumbing department at a local big box store.

He then drilled a hole in the endcap, threaded 6-gauge copper wire through the hole, and then soldered it to create a water-tight seal for a water moat.

Using a wooden dowel, he made loops on both ends of the 6-gauge copper wire.  One end holds the feeder, and the other end attaches to the feeder holder.

Voilà! No more ants!

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