A big THANK YOU to everyone who has sent in their photographs and stories. It is so much fun to see all the different garden set-ups and chicken coops people are using. Just seeing your pictures gives me plenty of ideas I would like to incorporate into my garden this year.
Keep them coming!
Here is what Becky from New York had to say about her backyard garden photos that were taken last summer:
I have been gardening for about 35 years, yes I know hard to believe since I am so young, lol.
I have gotten into the easy no work raise beds and even got my hubby on board. I did put a farm cattle gate up for my pole beans and it worked good, heaver than fencing. I just drilled holes in it and put in screws and bowed it over and did the same on the other side. I plan on putting one on the other side this year.
My friend and I are gardening together this year, she will grow vine plants and I will grow the rest and when they are ready we plan on getting together and dry or can or freeze them.
She doesn’t have as much space as I have. I am also a “newbie” chicken farmer as I have 8 this year and they are all laying, I put rope Christmas lights up and a space heater for the really cold upstate New York nights like the -15 we just had.
I am the go to person around here for gardening, If I don’t know I will read and learn about it.
Awesome pictures Becky! I am totally going to make a bean trellis now after seeing your photos.
Keep on digging,
~Mavis
If you would like to have your garden, chicken coop or something you’ve made featured on One Hundred Dollars a Month, here’s what I’m looking for:
- Your Garden Pictures and Tips – I’d especially like to see your garden set ups, growing areas, and know if you are starting seeds indoors this year. If so, show me some picture of how you are going about it.
- Your Chicken and Chicken Related Stories – Coops, Chicks, Hen’s, Roosters, Eggs, you name it. If it clucks, send us some pictures to share with the world.
- Cool Arts & Craft made from your very own hands with detailed {and well photographed} pictures and instructions.
If I feature your pictures and the stories behind them on One Hundred Dollars a Month, I will send you a $20.00 gift card to the greatest store in the world: Amazon.com.
Go HERE for the official rules.
Susan says
Beautiful garden, Becky! LOVE the cattle gate idea! 🙂
Debbie says
I have a livestock panelbean trellis and I love it! It’s very sturdy and I was able to grow lots of beans in very little space.
I did however have to fence it off from Mr. Groundhog who was actually able to climb up the trellis and eat my beans!
Brenda says
I’m sure it wasn’t funny to you, but imagining Mr. Groundhog climbing your trellis made me giggle!
Heather says
I have been interested in getting started with raised beds this year. I am curious what kind of soil do you put in them, is it just bagged potting soil? What is the upkeep year after year?
Becky says
Hi Heather. I am lucky to have a lot of area to dig up soil but I did add vermulite and peat moss about 1/3 of each and home grown compost. I just need to replace the side boards every couple of years and we used local cut boards. We put cardboard in the bottom better than lawn cloth. The only thing I am going to change is to make it higher and maybe put a lip on it so I can sit on it, getting old, lol. We grow corn,carrots even potatoes works great.
Heather says
Thank you, wow, I did not know you could grow all of that in raised beds! I was mainly going to use it for lettuce and cabbage.
Karen Rochette says
I have garden envy. What a great garden. How do you guys keep the weeds out of the paths? When I started my garden, I completely removed the sod and laid down weed cloth covered with mulch – after weeding the paths every week – by the end of the summer I had so many weeds in the paths I gave up.
Becky says
Dear Karen, Thank- You, That is what we did. We put down about an inch of mulch every year as it does break down and things grown in it like johney jump ups I had to put them out, really I have a lot of thing that come back up (potatoes flowers, herb) I kind of let them grow, makes it more interesting. My husband put 10- 4X6 beds on the other side of the house that he plays with, plus raspberries. I think if I need new beds that si what I will do. Ireally only spend about 10 minutes weeding each bed that needs it and the walkways if you keep up with it, no problem.
Jamie says
I’m wondering how to do the hogwire trellis in a raised bed that is lined with landscaping cloth. I’m not sure how to make it stable without going through the cloth.
Becky says
Hi Jamie, Our beds started lined with landscaping cloth later my husband used cardboard cheaper . We bolt the trellis on the outside of the beds, We just drilled thru and used large screws. you can cut the trellis and push it into the ground the ground inside the box then screw it to the sides did that too.
The first time I didn’t it was so heavy with beans we had a storm and it took it out!
Tali says
I would love a better description on how to make the bean trellis…Mavis, how about a link to a home depot product….it is my favorite place on earth too.
Angie says
Wonderful pics! Well done you Becky!
I have limited space in my windy backyard but managed to dig in some mushroom compost yesterday during the brief respite from all the rain we have been having.
My big question now is how do I protect my baby veggie plants from my two chickens? I am thinking some sort of chicken wire arc but it needs to be secure enough to hold down in the high winds yet light enough for me to get in there to weed and hopefully harvest.
You folks always have such great ideas! Over to you
Warm regards
Angie
Isle of man
Becky says
Thanks Angie. I am a new chicken person and did let our hen free range till a fox got one, I new thought they would eat my veggies as how they never had any….LOL they love red tomatoes, I put up chicken wire and they just squeezed their little neck thru the spaces, had to suround the whole bed and on top as they would fly in,…. if they weren’t soo stinkin cute….
Angie says
Fortunately we have no foxes on the isle of man! I suspect my garlic (the only thing I have planted so far this year ) may have been scoffed by Something Else (we don’t say R.A.T. On the island) and I am pretty sure that my girls will make a beeline for the lettuce seeing as how I have been feeding it to them all winter!
But – you are right – they are pretty cute!
Denise says
So those beans are on a cattle gate? Or is it two cattle gates? That looks awesome. Angie, there’s a great book about gardening with chickens on Amazon!
Angie says
Thanks Denise. If it’s the one I am thinking about , I have been glued to it for the last week! Really is a fab book.
Ta !
Becky says
Hi Denise. It is one cattle gate I had to get it at the tractor farm supply store, we just bent it over to form the size arch we needed.
Denise says
Very cool, I might steal your idea!