[Shannon]

Spring has finally showed up in my backyard! It's been raining for 3 days and it gets colder each day but I couldn't wait any longer to get started so I sowed some carrots, radishes, mustard greens and kale in the mud yesterday.

I am happy to say that my potted fruit trees are budding (happy dance). I have some itty bitty paw paws and a plum tree but they always look dead until later in the season.

While I was doing my garden stuff I couldn't help but notice the smell of garlic in the air. So I tracked it down (I planted garlic last fall in several places to see how well it would do and also as part my haphazard crop rotation routine and then covered it all with hay and row covers).

I also have more crab grass than ever. I need to figure out how to control that stuff without chemicals. I wonder if it's edible. LOL

 

[stephanie]

I get bunch grass all the time spreads easy I just pull it up as best as I can and try to crowed it out with veggies. I do cover the empty beds with news paper for over winter time and it helps keep the grass to a minimum.

 

[TennesseeChicken]

Yay on the garlic! I usually plant mine in October--should be getting those wonderful scapes soon! This is only one area where I've planted garlic. And I've planted some different varieties of lettuce around some of the garlic. They are supposed to be companions. That's our greenhouse to the right. The greenhouse covers our 'cistern'--a below ground pool that catches water off of the house. We use that water for all the animals (chickens, hogs and cattle) via pumps/water lines up and down the hills. Right now our chickens are in the backyard, giving the pastures a rest.

So that is crab grass??? It has quite the underground rhizome system going on? It's taking over my gardens!!! Even my raised beds!!! I try to dig an pull it out, then I see lots of worms, then I figure if worms are there it's a good thing. So I try to 're-bury' the worms and pull out those rhizomes. UGH!

 

[stephanie]

crab grass is a very invasive grass that spreads rapidly. when you pull it don't compost it burn it or put it is the garbage to be removed. the best way to kill crab grass is to cover the beds with black plastic during your non growing season, or in the case of raised bed cover with news paper about 3 layers thick then compost and so on to cover up the crab grass.

 

[TennesseeChicken]

I've even tried salt, yes salt, around the outside of the garden at the fence line to get rid of the weeds. Didn't work...still weeds even after about an inch of rain. I didn't want it to seep into my garden where I have sunflowers on the border. I have to keep fencing around the gardens to keep out the chickens and dogs. I don't have the time I used to to weed and garden in general ...and they are getting out of control!! I will try the newspaper in my 'aisle' areas. Thanks, Stephanie, you are such a wealth of info!!!!

 

[stephanie]

I have weeds my self. ohh try vinagar straight on a very dry day on the fence line around the garden too. but it has to be dry for several days. this will kill any weed unless it rains or they get watered with in a couple (2-3) days. I have some really hard to kill weeds in my yard some are very toxic to animals such as tansy(not hard but takes a couple years),scotch broom(this one well near impossible the seeds it produces are viable for 50 years it also spreads by cuttings left on the ground and by it's roots),(rhododendron not a weed but toxic to live stock this one is easy to remove)black berry not toxic but will tear down a fences, cover barns,cars or what ever if left alone. yes the berries are tasty but the vine is hell.you need leather clothing to pick the berries which are ripe in june/july. the stickers scratch,poke and can cause an infection like you get from a cat when it scratches you. I may not have poisonous snakes but I have bushes from hell! the only reason I know how to deal with bad weeds LOL