Having been in our home for a few years now, I’ve had time to make a great deal of observations of our backyard in preparation for the permanent garden.
The Proposed Garden Space
Current plant stock includes a small strawberry patch (planted last year), a possible mulberry tree of unknown variety, a small wild-seeded sugar maple tree, some type of vining rose bush, and a patch of sensitive fern (Onoclea sensibilis L.) that pops up next to our AC unit every year.
Both the mulberry and maple are growing in a raised bed box that previous home owners installed and both trees have some sort of disease, deficiency, or pest that is causing brown spots to appear all over the leaves. Removing the diseased leaves, even aggressively, does nothing to stop new leaves from developing the same brown patches. Last year, I threw some green bean seeds in the box and let them grow wild, and found they also suffered the same problem with spots as the trees, which affected the bean pods as well as the leaves.
The mulberry seems to produce two completely different types of leaves, and has been mercilessly hacked for several years. So far, the mulberry has not produced any fruit of any kind, even when left to grow for a few years.
My “test garden” (back when we first moved in) showed a few problems; cucumbers which seemed to suffer the same fate as the tree leaves, and tomatoes that rotted on the bottom, which makes me think its nutrient deficiency of some type. The garden produced no edibles to speak of (except a bumper crop of yellow and green summer squash) and I tilled it all under at the end of the season.
The soil is clay. While not as hard as
Drainage is a tremendous problem, with water from the gutter flooding against the house everytime it rains. It is against HOA rules to redirect the water anywhere outside our lot into common areas. This must be addressed this year, and is slated as first on the list of “Get-er-done”.
Sun – during summer, the selected area for the garden patch gets 6-8 hours direct sun, from morning to 3ish in the afternoon. The six foot high fence line throws a good four foot shadow into the yard, but will not affect the proposed garden area. If the mulberry tree is allowed to branch out naturally, however, it will shade another four or five feet into the yard and onto the garden patch as well in a single year.
Weather – with exception of the storm of the century last year (2010), we generally see dry fall, mild wet winter, fairly wet spring, and generally dry summer.
The Opposition:
When we first moved here, a colony of chipmunks had taken up residence under the shed in the back. Extensive chewing damage inside the shed along the floor and on the handles of tools gave me concern for rats or mice. However, once the world’s two greatest dogs took over the yard, I noticed that anything in the ground rodent family seemed to disappear – except for wild bunnies. The rabbits were coming in through a small gap in the fence. After a few early morning races with the dogs in hot pursuit, the bunny decided to take up residence in the front under our porch steps, where he/she happily lives to this day enjoying evening salad scraps, wild greens yard greens, and whatever bunny friendly plants I grow in the front flower beds.
Squirrels – last year they managed to make off with every single tomato from my container plants, no matter what I did. They avoided the dogs by running along the top of the fence, hopping onto the shed roof, then jumping up onto the deck. They chewed through nylon, came right up to the screen door even with the cat “talking” to them, and boldly thieved directly in front of us even when we were sitting on the deck. Now, why a squirrel wants a tomato, I have no idea, but several of the pilfered tomatoes were found half eaten on neighboring decks, fence tops, and on the ground below the deck. It can’t be lack of water, a nearby creek supplies all that. There are nut trees galore out here (we back up to a fairly large wooded area.) Several folks throughout the neighborhood feed the birds (and thus the squirrels), so I can’t fathom why they would want MY tomatoes. o.O
Slugs – giant garden slugs (aka leopard slugs), some over seven inches long. Ok, so I’m a bit partial to the slugs, but alas, they do much damage to the garden, and can carry parasitic infections. The summer squashes and tomatoes in particular seem to take a beating from these guys. A great deal of our summer evenings were spent last year with me our son and I on our bellies, with heads propped up on hands watching with great interest the going’s on of our friendly, slimy neighbors. Did you know they ate other slugs? o.O
Stinkbugs – every year, we seem to get an infestation of stinkbugs in the spring, and they make their way into our house every fall before winter comes. They overwinter in the gaps of the windowsills. I don’t know that they do any damage in particular, they are more of an annoyance really.
Carpenter Bees – we have some long time resident bees that frequent our deck and front yard. Because they pollinate, and the males don’t have stingers, they are welcome additions to our yard. They are rather curious fellows, and seem especially fascinated with our sunglasses every year.
Yellow Jackets – a most UNWELCOME addition to our front porch, back porch, and cars EVERY year. I even broke down and sprayed them last year, but to no avail. (Although I must say, it is quite funny to see how fast door to door salesmen run a few seconds after knocking on our door…you know what they say “No great loss without some small gain”). This year, I vow to eradicate the stinging, foul-tempered horde...YAR!!!!
Moles – There appears to be a few tunnels under the ground in my front flower plots and along the outside edges of the backyard. I can only assume its moles, but so far the problem doesn’t seem to be much of one. My mole expert, Buster Dog, sadly went to his happy hunting grounds a couple of winters ago and did not have enough time to train my current chipmunk expert, Kate Dog, on the subject.
Deer – we do have deer, and every year they come through and eat the hostas along the side of the house. I don’t mind, though. Our yard is fenced, and they can’t get in. I will probably mass plant additional hostas along that side of the house anyway.
Ticks – because of the type and [surprising] amount of wildlife around here, ticks seem to be a bit of a problem for Kate Dog. This year I will use frontline plus for her and the cats.
Tent Caterpillars – Every year, we get a few of these, usually dropped by the birds judging by the various injuries they sport. Sadly, one year the bag worms were a bit heavy, and the county came through and sprayed some chemical that also poisoned several of the songbirds in the area.
Wooly Bears – We love these guys. Every fall, we get a handful or so looking for a nice warm pile of leaves to overwinter in. Every spring they emerge and eat every blade of grass and weed they can before becoming a prettily veined Isabella moth. Did you know Wooly Bears will purposefully eat herbs and veggies containing pyrrolizidine alkaloids to rid themselves of parasites? Maybe I will plant a patch of comfrey or forget-me-nots outside the fence for them this year...
The Allies:
House Wrens – every year, it seems a pair of house wrens build a nest inside our canoe (stored outside on the fence). This year, I plan on hosting a few nesting boxes and hope to get them to stay and keep eating the bugs.
Robins - we had two pairs of nesting robins - under our porch and in the mulberry tree - last year. They completely ignored Kate Dog. Note to self: I will plant some sort of ground cover or bushes to hide the babies when they emerge from the nest this year, or buy a hardhat. o.O
The Hawk – A hawk seems to have found happy hunting grounds here last year, as there has been a drastic reduction in squirrels, chipmunks, stray cats, and rabbits. I consider him to be a bittersweet ally in that he performs a beneficial service, but occasionally a sad one also.
The Red Fox – A more recent addition to the area seems to be a red fox, although not yet officially sighted. There are tracks in the snow and mud since last fall, and it is clear he is hunting chipmunk and rabbit. I wonder if it is getting the stray cats too, as we had a population of them last summer.
Black Rat Snake – a couple of years ago, I rescued a huge black rat snake from entering our basement where Buster Dog would have like to had him for an afternoon snack. I noticed he decided to den that year along the side of the house, under the giant rhododendron. I have not seen him since that year, and assume he probably moved on to the neighbors, who have a large community of chipmunks living in their ivy. I consider this guy to be a mercenary, since he eats the squirrels, mole, and chipmunks but also rabbits, toads, and birds/bird eggs. I don’t want to attract him, but I also don’t mind if he visits once in a while when the moles, chipmunks and squirrels are overproducing. Did you know the black rat snack not only bites, but also emits a serious funk if you handle them? o.O
Just Friends:
Morning Doves – I have rescued many of these guys throughout my life, and it seems as if in repayment, they like to come and hang out, hoping for a handout of sunflower seeds. They are neither beneficial nor destructive, and are just sweet, peaceful couples. I hope to get a couple to consider nesting this year with us.
Hummingbirds – Occasionally, they zip by on their way to the front yard for that years offerings of flowers I plant just for them. They are feisty little fellows, and spar with the Carpenter Bees on occasion.
Big Aggie is our very own resident Delmarva Fox Squirrel. I am certain that "it" is, in fact, a fox squirrel for two reasons: 1. I lived in
Looking For Friends:
Toad – this year, I need a toad to help out with grubs, flies, and maggots. I plant to hunt one down once the garden is well established, and offer a toad hut (craft posting coming) for preferred housing. It is impossible to keep the flies out of the backyard because we have to keep the trash bins back there. Also, Kate Dog helps attract them with her …um, well. I’ll let you figure that out.
Earthworms – I plan on vermicomposting, if for no other reason than to build up a good supply of earthworms in the soil. I realize Toad and Robin will likely have a feast, but if I keep up the composting, then there should always be a good supply. Did you know earthworms make castings that are more nutritious to plants than the food they made it out of?
Bees – I don’t know how to attract bees to help pollinate, but I hope to figure it out at some point.
Well, that's all for now. Next post, I will report, in depth, my notes on all the growing, planting, and mulching methods I’ve researched, and which one(s) I plan to use and why.
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