Merging My Blogs

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A few months ago I thought it would be a good idea to split my blogs in two. I had the "Daddykirbs Thoughts" as my main blog and "Daddykirbs Garden" as my garden blog.

This was fine for a short time. But now there is some confusion about the two blogs... all my own I assure you.

Now I have renamed the main blog to "Daddykirbs Farm" and imported all Garden blog posts over. Now all Garden posts will simply be labeled with "garden". The top navigation will point to those labeled posts.

The "Daddykirbs Garden" blog will remain live but I will no longer post to it.

Please refer to http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com for all future posts.

My Garden 2013: Adding On Using Firewood Raised Beds

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Update 4/4/2013: This blog post was merged to "Daddykirbs Farm Blog". Please reset your bookmarks so you don't miss any super exciting updates to my garden and orchard!

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/03/my-garden-2013-adding-on-using-firewood.html

I thought I had my garden all figured out this year. Boy, was I wrong. The six raised beds that I put in was just not enough. There is room for the Peppers, Tomatoes, Cantaloupe, Watermelons, Sunflowers, Cucumbers, Beets and Squash... oh wait, Where do I put the Squash?!  Oops, I didn't plan on a spot for the Squash!

Time for more gardens! LOL

Daddykirbs Garden Blog: Firewood Raised Beds

Daddykirbs Garden Blog: Firewood Raised Beds

This led me to look around at my available space and resources. The area to the right of the small chicken coops looks just right. In fact I put in a raised bed there already for my Onions and Leeks. I just need to move the compost pile around and build the beds.

I have already spent too much money on the garden this year so I wanted this to be very cheap... like free. There are materials here to choose from, like: Pallets, Bricks and Firewood.  Firewood wins! I have a big stack of this resource but I almost never use any of it. I don't burn wood in the house and since moving to the country haven't gone camping much. These logs will make very nice raised beds.

Daddykirbs Garden Blog: Chicken in the Garden

The chickens would have a ball in this if I didn't surround it with a fence. I'm very fortunate to have a supply of fencing and fence posts on hand as well. This entire garden was done in an hour or so with no money. All the materials were here just waiting to be rearranged and made useful. Check out the video at the top of this page to see the project from start to finish.

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/03/my-garden-2013-adding-on-using-firewood.html

My Garden 2013: The Ugly Potato Patch

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Update 4/4/2013: This blog post was merged to "Daddykirbs Farm Blog". Please reset your bookmarks so you don't miss any super exciting updates to my garden and orchard! 

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/03/my-garden-2013-ugly-potato-patch.html

Lately I've seen so many ways to grow potatoes. My head spins when I research the different methods. It spinned so much this year that I almost couldn't decide how to grow mine. When it comes right down to it you just gotta do it!

I've spent too much money on the garden this year so when it comes time to put the potatoes down I wanted it to be cheap.  ...and when I say cheap I mean FREE!

It came down to using what I had on hand. This scrap piece of erosion barrier that I got out of the dumpster should do the trick. Check out the video above to see how I put it together.

Daddykirbs Garden: The Ugly Potato Patch

Daddykirbs Garden: The Ugly Potato Patch

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/03/my-garden-2013-ugly-potato-patch.html

Gardening With Kids

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Update 4/4/2013: This blog post was merged to "Daddykirbs Farm Blog". Please reset your bookmarks so you don't miss any super exciting updates to my garden and orchard!

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/03/gardening-with-kids.html

There are times when it's challenging to work with kids. I have said in the past that getting your kids to help is the easiest way to double the time it takes to do a project.  I don't always do a perfect job at whatever I do, but I really want too. It's the desire to have things "done right" that makes inviting the kids to help difficult.  Yes, I admit it... I don't always welcome the kids to my projects, but I'm getting better at it.

This year I have let down my guard. I am intentionally inviting the kids to come in and do some garden work. This has been done in the past but on a much more controlled and limited scale. Two 4'x4' raised beds have been built specifically for two of my kids. In these beds they have planted what they want. They won't be perfect... by any means, but they are fun.

I know my kids need to learn how to do some of this stuff. Gardening is something that everyone should know a little bit about. Growing food is so fundamental. There is a connection to who we are in this world that we GET when we grow our own food. Maybe that's a weird way to say it, but it's how I feel. 

Not all of my kids care to be in the garden... that's ok. The two who really love it are a real joy. I love coming home and finding my little girl in the greenhouse singing as she is watering the little sprouts. She loves to tell me how many came up while I was at work.

My 15 year old son is autistic and he loves to plant things. He comes in with his service dog, Herry, to work with me as we plant new needs and potted plants. There are a few things he really enjoys in life: Frech Fries (crispy well done), Driving (he really wants a golf cart), Chin Hair and working with Dad!

Whatever my kids are learning in this process is good. Just plain good. There are times I think that "they need this"... and I'm sure they do, but really... I need them. I need this. They joy they give to me is far greater a reward than any harvest my garden will ever physically provide. I'm sure my improperly spaced pepper plants will be fine. My Tomatoes that aren't planted quite deep enough will grow. I'll survive my Lemon tree not producing as many Lemons because my little girl couldn't resist picking those pretty flowers in the Spring. ... All those things are nothing next to the blessings of sharing in the joy of gardening with my kids. :)

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/03/gardening-with-kids.html

My Garden & Orchard 2013: Fruit in Bloom

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Update 4/4/2013: This blog post was merged to "Daddykirbs Farm Blog". Please reset your bookmarks so you don't miss any super exciting updates to my garden and orchard!

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/03/my-garden-orchard-2013-fruit-in-bloom.html

The fruit trees produce some of the most beautiful flowers! This post is to share some that I've captured in the last few weeks. My photos are all captured by my Galaxy S3... so, they aren't "professional" :)

Thanks for hanging out with here on daddykirbs blog!

Please feel free to leave a comment, give me a +1, pin or tweet my post!

I love sharing :)

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/03/my-garden-orchard-2013-fruit-in-bloom.html

My Garden 2013: Starting In My New Greenhouse

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Update 4/4/2013: This blog post was merged to "Daddykirbs Farm Blog". Please reset your bookmarks so you don't miss any super exciting updates to my garden and orchard!

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/03/my-garden-2013-starting-in-my-new.html

I am very excited for this years garden! I have a greenhouse! This is the first greenhouse I've ever owned. It's not very big, but it should give me a nice place start my seeds and over winter some of the plants. My small Lemon tree will appreciate that.

These Harbor Freight deals can be pretty good. This greenhouse was on sale for $299 and they allowed me to use another 20% coupon on top of that. I was going to build my own greenhouse from scratch, but the cost savings here changed my mind.

This was from my garden last year. I have dreams
of greater success this year. My greenhouse is
bolstering my confidence! :)

Best of all, now that I have it I can SAVE MONEY! I used to buy all my plants for the garden, but now I can start from seeds. Plants can cost $4 each. A seed packet is usually around $1. Each seed packet can start 50 plants or more.

Daddykirbs Garden Greenhouse: Framing the Short Wall

Daddykirbs Garden Greenhouse

Daddykirbs Garden Greenhouse

In this video you will probably notice that I can hardly contain myself :) I feel like a little kid with a new club ouse or something. Only here... I am inviting you into my club, not keeping you out! LOL.

After my introduction I have a series of video clips that show how the greenhouse went together. I don't think you should use this as a stand alone "how-to", but it might assist you in the process of building.

I wanted to share with you how I started my tomato seeds in the greenhouse too. I really don't know what I'm doing so forgive my mess! This video shows that process.

Most of my tomato seeds this year were purchased from +Gary Pilarchik at The Rusted Garden.
You won't find a nicer guy to buy seeds from ;) He specializes in heirloom tomatoes.  I chose to use the heirloom tomatoes this year because I'd like to learn how to save seeds for myself. By the way, Gary has videos on his blog about how to do that.

After the building and planting and the time it takes me to get a blog post up... here is an example of a little tomato seed that decided to love me back.

daddykirbs Garden Blog: Tomato Seed Sprouting

My little girl wanted to join in on the fun so she started one of the black sunflower seeds from the bag of chicken scratch. She grew some last year too :)

daddykirbs Garden Blog: Sunflower Seed Sprouting

We started a row of these in the raised beds too. We read that Sunflowers make Cucumbers taste better so we will start the Cucumbers near these.

I loved in elementary school when we got to start Sweet Potatoes in little cups! I decided to try it again here in the greenhouse.  These are holdovers from the very few that I grew last year. These will be planted in the Hugel Beds up by the Orchard.

Here are a handful more of the construction photos.

Daddykirbs Garden Greenhouse: My Helper :)

Daddykirbs Garden Greenhouse: Constructing the Short Wall

Daddykirbs Garden Greenhouse: Constructing the Short Wall

Daddykirbs Garden Greenhouse: Framing Done

Update:

Looks like I didn't fail completely :) Almost all of the seeds have sprouted.

Daddykirbs Garden Greenhouse: Beautiful Tomato Sprouts

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/03/my-garden-2013-starting-in-my-new.html

My Garden 2013: The Start of My Cantaloupe Bed

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Update 4/4/2013: This blog post was merged to "Daddykirbs Farm Blog". Please reset your bookmarks so you don't miss any super exciting updates to my garden and orchard!

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/02/my-garden-2013-start-of-my-cantaloupe.html

Last year we had some mild success at growing Cantaloupe Melons. We love this fruit! This year I decided to try again. I have a raised bed dedicated to Watermelon and Cantaloupe.

The wire cages I'm using this year are not ideal for Cantaloupe, but they worked ok last year. These are normal wire Tomato cages. These will not be used for Tomatoes. The Cantaloupe will vine along the ground, but can be trained to go along a trellis as well. I will train mine to wind around these wire Tomato cages.

Cantaloupe Planting - Daddykirbs Garden Blog

Notice that I tied the tops of the cages together. This is done for support. Each cage on it's own isn't very sturdy so they tend to lean over. With each of them supporting each other they should stand the weight of the plant and fruit on them.

Here is a short video that explains the process.

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/02/my-garden-2013-start-of-my-cantaloupe.html

Here are some advertised products that could help in your garden:

My Orchard Irrigation Mistake: and How I Fixed It.

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Update 4/4/2013: This blog post was merged to "Daddykirbs Farm Blog". Please reset your bookmarks so you don't miss any super exciting updates to my garden and orchard!

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/02/my-orchard-irrigation-mistake-and-how-i.html

I added an irrigation line to the orchard. Nice! ... but I made a mistake. What? a mistake? yes yes... sometimes I make mistakes... Ok, I am a mistake maker. Now that you know that I'm not perfect here's what happened.

I thought it would be cool to run six hose connections to the six rows of trees. I also thought it would be cool to reuse some items that I had laying around so I could save some money.

The original plan was to put a regular hose bib for the connections... so I did. There's part of the mistake. The other part of the mistake was that I used an eight inch sewer pipe cut into sections for the "holes". This is nice except the angle of the hose bib doesn't allow for the hose to connect without crimping inside that eight inch hole. Take a look at this video to see what I'm talking about.

Now... I couldn't leave it like that, right? Of course not.

I shut the water off and pulled all those hose bibs out. Here are the components that I used to fix it.

From left to right: Sprinkler Head Riser Pipe, PVC Ball Valve, Brass Hose Connector Fitting. 

Parts for Fixing Irrigation Mistake - Daddykirbs Garden Blog

All the parts assembled. 

Fixing Irrigation Mistake - Daddykirbs Garden Blog

And here it is MUCH BETTER! :)

Irrigation Mistake Fixed - Daddykirbs Garden Blog

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/02/my-orchard-irrigation-mistake-and-how-i.html

Here are some advertised products that could help fix some of your mistakes! :)

My First Hugelkulture Garden Bed

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Update 4/4/2013: This blog post was merged to "Daddykirbs Farm Blog". Please reset your bookmarks so you don't miss any super exciting updates to my garden and orchard!

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/02/my-first-hugelkulture-garden-bed.html

Permaculture? What is it? Well I'm still learning to answer that question for myself, but basically it's designing our environment more like nature. When we mimic nature our gardens will thrive and be more self sustaining. We help the soil along by providing more materials like compost, clippings, mulch and in the case of Hugelkulture we bury wood.

It is my goal to use my farm in a more sustainable way. Or as a gardening buddy of mine on Google+, +Dan Grubbs,  says "regenerative". The idea of restoring our land to a more fertile and fruitful existence.

This is all new to me too. I'm learning right along side you. Here is my first experiment with Hugelkulture. As the experiment goes along I'll add pictures and video to this post. So, bookmark it and come back! :)

Watch this video :)

Starting the Hugelkulture Bed - Daddykirbs Garden Blog

This next video shows some of the "next steps" I took to make this bed work better.

Since that first bed felt so good... I built a second. Here is a series of pics for that second bed.

Daddykirbs Garden: Hugel Bed #2 Logs covers with mulch - view from the South

Daddykirbs Garden: Hugel Bed #2 Logs covers with mulch - view from the North

Daddykirbs Garden: Hugel Bed #2 Covered with first layer of dirt

Daddykirbs Garden: Hugel Bed #2 Layered with horse manure compost

Daddykirbs Garden: Hugel Bed #2 Layered with horse manure compost - view from the South (Awesome shot of my beautiful little 'bota in the background)

Daddykirbs Garden: Hugel Bed #2 Layered with horse manure compost

Daddykirbs Garden: Hugel Bed #2 Final layer of mulch/dirt blend.

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/02/my-first-hugelkulture-garden-bed.html

Pin This :)

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/02/my-first-hugelkulture-garden-bed.html

Why Does Compost Produce Steam?

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Update 4/4/2013: This blog post was merged to "Daddykirbs Farm Blog". Please reset your bookmarks so you don't miss any super exciting updates to my garden and orchard!

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/02/why-does-compost-produce-steam.html

In the end compost is dirt. But how does it become dirt and why does it produce steam in the process?

Good questions.

I'm not a scientist but here's the break down (get it? "break down"... oh never mind).

A compost pile could start from a pile of leaves or wood mulch or lawn grass clippings... or, many other things. These materials all contain carbon (often called "brown material") and nitrogen (often called "green material"). Some materials are higher is carbon and others are higher in nitrogen. Both ingredients are needed for the pile to start the process of composting or decomposing.

Yes, decomposing... all living material can become dirt once it dies and is left to nature.

The compost pile has microbes. A microbe is a a microorganism. These microbes are alive and they are the reason a compost pile can decompose. These little critters start eating the material that are in the compost pile. In the process of eating and digesting they also give off heat as a byproduct.  The moisture in the pile is heated up and turns to gas. This is the steam that can be seen as you turn a hot pile of compost.

There ya have it. A condensed science lesson that should raise more questions than it answers! Hey, I said I'm not a scientist :)

Here's a video that shows a pile that is alive and steaming.  We are adding dried leaves (carbon) to the hot pile of horse manure (nitrogen).

Compost Pile Steaming - Daddykirbs Garden Blog

for a more complete scientific explanation of what goes on in the process check this out:

http://web.extension.illinois.edu/homecompost/science.html

Here are some advertised products for your composting pleasure :)

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/02/why-does-compost-produce-steam.html

Building & Filling Raised Beds

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Update 4/4/2013: This blog post was merged to "Daddykirbs Farm Blog". Please reset your bookmarks so you don't miss any super exciting updates to my garden and orchard!

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/02/building-filling-raised-beds.html

This garden area that I have is fantastic! There is a 32 foot square fenced in with a cute gate.... but it's empty. Last year I tried a couple of different methods. I used an old raised bed that was there and that worked fine, but it wasn't enough and wasn't laid out how I wanted it.

Chicken feed bags was the another method that I tried out. This seemed appropriate to me since I have lots of bags and it was more of a mobile solution. I figured I could move the bags around as needed since there was not a clear plan for the garden.

There were a few challenges with the bags. One, they didn't hold water like they needed too. It's hot in Texas and the bags dried out too fast. Another challenge in Texas is the bright damaging sun. Those bags broke down pretty fast. By the end of the season they were brittle and flaking all over the place.

Those methods worked ok... I got some produce out of them. But, it was not that good.

This year I'm investing in making the garden more usable and productive. There are raised beds for the family and the kids that want them... they have their own. There is also a greenhouse going in. It's small, but should be fine for seed propagation and over wintering the lemon tree.

Here is a snapshot of the raised beds:

New Raised Beds - Daddykirbs Garden Blog

Here is a video of the garden as it transitions from empty to useful.

It's worth noting that I did plan on lining the bottom of the entire garden with carpet. My thoughts on that were that the carpet would be a weed block barrier. In my original thought process it made sense. I figured that the beds would be full of good dirt so it didn't matter that they would be on carpet.  Well, after some exchange on the Google+ community, Hobby Farms: Growing Food & Families, that I moderate, I changed my mind. It was mentioned how dangerous it could be to have the chemicals breaking down and getting into my vegetables. This is called "leaching"... I'm not sure how much of it really happens and how BAD it really is, but I figured it's better to err on the side of caution. I really do appreciate the warnings and comments that were made.

Here is a YouTube playlist that show my videos of my garden before this makeover:

Daddykirbs' Gardening Playlist

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/02/building-filling-raised-beds.html

Raised Beds - Trash to Treasure

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Update 4/4/2013: This blog post was merged to "Daddykirbs Farm Blog". Please reset your bookmarks so you don't miss any super exciting updates to my garden and orchard!

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/02/raised-beds-trash-to-treasure.html

I love my garden. I don't like spending money to have nice things.  Oh trust me we spend our share, but every once in a while it's nice to get a break. One way that is cool to save money and materials from the landfill is to recycle.

I know I'm not the first to discuss the topic or share a nice story, but this story is mine :)

Behind my workplace is normally many pallets. These pallets are brittle and full of nails and staples. It's difficult to find one that is usable. All the good ones get snatched up fast by the guys that drive around and collect pallets. They like the standard sized shipping pallets that make such nice things like compost bins and tables. Then one day.... I found this.

This is no where near standard size. This is big and heavy.  There are very few nails in it and not staples. This just has to be mine! Yep, I drove the truck the next day to work and loaded it up.

I wasn't sure at first what I would use it for. Those nice 2x6 planks had so much potential.  They could be used for just about anything. Well, as I was building raised beds for my garden I decided to take this pallet apart to make a couple of smaller beds for the kids. It came apart nicely and went together even better.

Trash to Treasure Raised Bed - Daddykirbs Garden Blog

The kids are thrilled!  They can't wait to start growing their own peas and spinach! Yay!

Kids Showing Off Raised Garden Beds - Daddykirbs Garden Blog

Kids Showing Off Raised Garden Beds - Daddykirbs Garden Blog

UPDATE! Here are the beds full of nice dirt and some plantings. So far there is lettuce, cabbage, tomato, arugula and chives.  They still want to plant seeds :)

Kid's Planted Raised Garden Bed One - Daddykirbs Garden Blog

Kid's Planted Raised Garden Bed Two - Daddykirbs Garden Blog

Go to this link to view and comment on the current blog: http://daddykirbs.blogspot.com/2013/02/raised-beds-trash-to-treasure.html

Here are some advertised raised beds you can buy if you can't find palettes.