The Birdsong Rustic Vegetable Garden Chronicle {Part 2}

WARNING : This post is LOADED WITH PHOTOS. Either you run away from your computer now or get comfy with your mug of coffee/tea and read on...  

It's been weeks since I shared the beginning of our adventure in re-claiming the goats' and lambs' area and turn it into a veggie garden {you can read the previous post here}. Weekends are the only time we can devote at least 4 hours on this project and sad to say, the weather has been so unpredictable {rain, sun, hail, rain and repeat!} which definitely brought chaos in our work schedule. We do what we can, so here it goes .....

May 2

After all the raking and cleaning, we ended up with at least 30 filled-to-the-rim leaf bags!

Dear hubby also finished building the 4 raised beds so it is my turn to prep the soil .... 

After searching the net, I decided to try the "lasagna" gardening technique which basically refers to the method of building the garden by adding layers of organic materials. Just like making lasagna, layering is the key. I added layers of newspapers/brown corrugated cardboard, peat moss, dried leaves, compost and soil.

We are lucky because over the years, the previous owner of the house made a huge pile of cow, goat and poultry manure at the back end of the property which has matured and can now be used as compost.  All we need to do is haul the compost from the pile to the garden {it was hard work going back and forth, I tell you!}

Now we rest and let nature do its job on these beds for a week before planting ....

May 18

It took more than 2 weeks {longer than what we wanted} before the weather cooperated. Heavy rains prevented us to work in the garden so by the time we were back, the weeds were almost up to our knees!

Hubby hauled weed-filled-wheelbarrow 7x before the garden look decent. The good news was that there was no weed on the beds {the layers of news papers and hay prevented weed growth}, so I started getting my hands dirty and plated ..... herbs, cabbage, beans, tomatoes, spinach, peppers, lettuce, pickling cucumbers, raspberries and strawberries. "Tama ang kasabihan ..... magtanim ay di biro!" Oh, how my back ached after .....

Back aches, blisters, sunburn and all, I am still thankful for the opportunity to grow something in my own backyard. It is minuscule compared to the acres and acres of our neighbors' farm lands surrounding us, but growing these vegetables is like actively participating in God's everyday miracle. Now, all we need to do is to tenderly care for them and lift our prayers that God will do the rest!

June 2

Weather permitting, I visit my little plants every afternoon. Oh yes, I talked to them, sing to them {not sure though if my singing voice is helping at all}. So far, they look good and healthy ....

In two days, the gourmet lettuce and spinach are ready for salad. The beans are sprouting fast. The cabbage are getting sturdy day by day. The herbs are getting greener and taller.

Even the berries are showing good growths. Flowers are showing up on my strawberry plants. The raspberry which was only a piece of stick when we planted it is now green with leaves!

Meanwhile, Jayvee laid some old stones along the pathway. This is still a work in progress, another project for the coming weekends.

For now, we turn to our dear Mother Nature ... may the force be with us for a successful veggie garden on our first year!

Linking with : The Scoop
                        Inspire Me Tuesday

The Birdsong Garden Chronicle {Part 1}

It started with our dream of having a small land to plant fruit trees, vegetables, herbs and flowers. We are on our way to see the fruition of our dream. It is not going to be easy. There's a lot of hard work involved. But we are fulfilling our dream, one day at a time. Sharing with you our journey.... Let the hard work begin!

A little back story....

I took this photo at the beginning of Fall 2014 when we started planning the organic garden. The land behind the wooden fence that used to be the home of turkeys, goats and lambs will be converted to an organic garden.

On a closer look, this is what the space looks like. this piece of land is divided into 2 areas by wooden fence. The right side of the land {which is behind me on this photo} will be the vegetable garden and some shade loving plants. This part is near the chicken house. So hopefully,we can create an environment where the girls can forage for insects and worms.

Day 1 

The day started gloomy, cold and foggy. Definitely not a good start 

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By mid morning, the sun was out and the geese started flying back home from their journey south of the boarder. If they are working hard, why can't we?

So here we are on day one! Smiling and excited {I wonder how long the excitement last. LOL}

This is the bird's eye view of the vegetable garden. I am the first one to say that when we were surveying the area, we were overwhelmed! There is no way we will be able to fill this land with vegetables and herbs this year. It will take some time and money {which we don't have much!}. Dear hubby said, "lets fill what we can and add some more when we can. First things first. We need to remove the dead leaves". That's why I love him! We raked and raked and raked until I can no longer stand up straight. 10 bags of leaves and we are not done yet!

After clearing the earth with fallen leaves, dear hubby started re-staining the small barn that used to be the lambs' house. He wants to use this for this garden tools and a place for the chicken and ducks' feeds.

Since it is too early to plant anything {it's still cold in our neck of the woods}, we have to wait for a couple more weeks. While waiting, dear hubby built 4 raise beds for the veggies and herbs. We will start preparing the soil next week.

I on the other hand was busy with the girls. Their coop and garden needed a serious spring cleaning.

Meanwhile  our feisty Effie Trinket was seriously observing hubby while was working outside the girls's garden. I wonder what was she thinking?

Day 2

Now we move on to the left side of the land. This space used to be the goats' area. One day, hubby wants this place to be filled with apple and pear trees, flowers and other plants that will attract birds, butterflies and bees. As it is, you can see blue jays and cardinals here early mornings.

Dismantling of the goals playground started hubby's day. While he worked with a crowbar. I continued raking this part of the land. Another 10 bags of leaves! Maple trees are beautiful in the summer and fall but when the leaves start falling, start calling the saints for help!

When the play pen was finally dismantled, now you can see another small barn that used to hold the hay for the goats. This will be converted to my potting shed! I can't wait to embellish this with flowers and pots and make it my own space! The enclosed area beside my shed will be Muning's play pen. I will fill it with cat grass and catnip {which she loves to death} so she can also enjoy the backyard while we work in the garden.

I also got busy re-staining my potting shed with dazzling barn red!

Near the pond, Katniss and Peeta were debating if they will take the plunge because the water is still icy and filed with winter debris. But they missed the water so much so they did it. Here's Peeta after he took his first spring bath! 

When we can work no more, we feasted on this delicious spring veggie tart and refreshing strawberry and lime sangria from my kitchen. After day two, we were both tired to the bones but still excited. Tomorrow is another day! 

Until next time .... come visit us again for the continuation of our journey .....