kyrsyan
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Someone, I think CountryMouse, requested pictures. I don't know how much you can tell from this and the video is much too large, even if it is only 15 seconds long.
The top one, with the branches across it, is a 7' x 6' garden bed that I made. The "dip" is the walk path between it and the next bed. When all is said and done, there will also be 3' walk paths all the way around all of the beds as well as between them. But I still have 3 garden beds to add in that area. One, the same size, is already in process. There will be another one the same size. And then a third that is half size. That mulch started stacked about 9" to 12" deep. That's been the breakdown in the past two weeks or so. It's about 6" deep now. It will get a good layer of leaves, about 12" come fall.
That second picture, which just looks like one big long mulch pile, is actually 3 garden beds that are 3.5' by 7'. The walkways are 3' wide between and about 4' wide on the sides and front. The compost bin is in the center of the center garden bed. Since the back two beds are done for the year, I mulched them well when I mulched the walkways. I couldn't get an angle that showed the dips and differences very well. Not the greatest photog. This grouping of raised beds and the matching set right next to it will be getting an overhaul through winter/next spring. Actually, the whole front of the yard will be. They are now in heavily shaded area because of tree growth. Plans for next spring are to remove the existing fruit trees due to issues, and the then replant the front edge of the yard with new fruit trees. That would be where you can see the one garden bed that is not mulched. It will put the fruit trees just far enough in front of the maple to get the sunlight they need. And low growing raspberries and blackberries will be planted all along the base. The further back beds will become homes for shade loving/tolerating herbs like ginger/turmeric/goldenseal/etc. And I'll actually, if I have enough plants to fill it, add one more set of garden beds just behind that for more shade loving. And because it gets rid of more lawn.
The whole yard is slowly getting a deep overhaul. After 12+ years of living here, I'm finally, hopefully getting a feel for how to put in permanent things that can work with the existing maple trees. The veg beds are going between the driveway and the road. It's honestly the best spot for them both sun wise and rain water wise. And them being there might help slow down or stop the erosion that was occurring because of some storm drainage pathways being closed/shifted. The two beds that are being added at the front are a part of that challenge. I'll have to dig them in and provide support so that they can stand up to the stormwaters while the soil settles in around them and anchors.
When I gets a chance, I'll add pictures of the new planting that run down the side of the house. All the old garden beds were taken out. All that was left of the old plantings was some monkey grass, a nandina that Round Up is slowly killing, and two monster gold eumonysus that will be pruned back a bit more before spring. In the place of the stuff stripped out went a Primrose Lilac, two yaupon hollies, a beauty berry, a tea olive, and coneflowers. Passionfruit will be added come spring. And yarrow as well but I'm debating monster garden pots for those to keep the invasion to a somewhat minimum. And to provide a bit of a physical barrier to that particular location. Anyways, that all was actually mulched in even deeper than the above photos because those are permanent beds. And will probably get another deep mulching before the end of fall.
And all of these have a double layer of cardboard underneath as well, even the veg bed. But spring I can punch through the veg bed cardboard easily. But it still seems to have a really good effect in the walkways. From prior experience, the layers will last at least 2 years if untouched. And then it provides a pretty solid layer of "soil" that doesn't have seed mixed in. And mulch on top makes weeds easy to pull. In years when I was too ill to garden, those layers would keep weeds to a minimum and make it much easier to weed and re-mulch at whatever pace my body would allow.