Can you give me some advice on my garden?
Asked by
nikipedia (
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December 17th, 2011
I’ve been working on a new garden for a couple months now, and it’s not going so well. Many of the seeds I planted refuse to grow. Some of the sprouts that have popped up, and the few starter plants I’ve put in, are getting nibbled to death by some kind of animal. And on top of all this, I am having terrible problems with weeds, mostly grass and what I think is oxalis.
I’m really surprised that the seeds aren’t coming up; the same ones did well in my other garden about 15 miles away. Is there anything I can do to coax them up, or should I just keep trying different plants and different varieties?
To keep the bunnies and other little things from eating them, I guess the best option is to build a fence? We already have a wood fence (although the gate is broken) that is easily scalable by things with claws, but I think most of those guys are probably carnivores anyway? So if we put in a waist-high chain link fence, would that do the trick? Or maybe just fix the gate we have so it closes more securely?
And last, what do I do about these fucking weeds? Some of the oxalis bulbs are more than 2 feet down, deep into heavy clay that’s a bitch to dig through. I have probably 20–30 new ones every week. And then pulling out the grass blade by blade is terrible. There are some corners that I’ve just given up on.
Thanks for any suggestions.
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8 Answers
I don’t know what part of the country in which you live, but in general, December is not the best time to start a garden. As for the wildlife that appear to be eating what has managed to sprout, it is very hard to keep critters out of gardens. You might try a raised garden bed with a rabbit wire cover, but that is about the only way you are going to be able to keep critters out of your plantings. Any bulb plant is very hard to get rid of, about all you can do is to dig them up.
Sorry, I should have mentioned I’m in zone 10b. I’ve had good success with winter vegetables in my other garden.
Clay? have you amended the soil?
There are about 12–18 inches of good gardening soil, and clay underneath. Should I amend the soil we have in there now? What do you recommend?
You may need to mulch your garden, I do mine every two years….. I turn my borders over every Autumn ( Late autumn ) to help condition the soil…. I have heavy clay too beneath; roughly nine to ten inches of decent top soil… I have been more successful in growing my seedlings since I started to mulch my borders five years ago :-/
Also add manure too, preferably horse manure is best, not pig manure…...... The weeds I had, I dug them all out right down to the root balls….. It’s the only way to be sure of no return….. Good luck! ;-)
Fences are good, as are scent deterrents. Occasionally sprinkling red pepper powder helps, or mixing hot sauce in your water. Most animals will stop going to your garden after one bad experience with hot sauce. I find it works best if you throw in a bit of dish soap, too.
You can also plant things around the borders that repel animals, like squash.
How old are your seeds? And where are they from?
I’ll try the pepper and soap trick. I have two artichoke plants hanging on for dear life.
Most of the seeds are from the local garden supply, some from my other garden. Not too old. Couple months tops, some went in the day I bought them.
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