Getting ready

Got bird netting all over the frame so I can cage myself in and the birds
out!

Drilled many holes on the underside of my containers. I made them fairly big.

I laid weed cloth on the bottom so the sand does not go through the hole.
The containers on sitting on top of pallets so they are off the ground

I started to fill the container up to the indents on the side with washed
sand for good drainage

I ran a drip line along side the containers so I can easily hook up the sprinklers

I put 2 bales of 2.2 cu ft of peat moss in each container for even moisture
retention and fluffiness

I added close to 25% pearlite for airiation and another 2.0 cu ft of potting
soil enriched with fertilizer.

2

1

With all that work I just had to plant something. Even though it’s a vegitalble
garden I thought som Wysteria climbing the sides would be pretty. I hope i
grows. It’s blue Chinese Wyseria purchased from Lowes.

Also got to use this fun device today as I installed a screen door on the
carport. It’s a mineaure auger that attatches to the cordless screw driver.
I used it to drive a post that I set in cement for the door and to cultivate
the soil in the containers so they were nice an fluffy. It was my mothers and
not quite sure where she bought it but when I find out I will post.

The almond trees are starting to bloom! At least I see the buds!

Update: September 7, 2009

It seems the sand was not a good idea. The soil above it seems to have been a good choice but given the type of water we have  with the high mineral content it seems to bond with the sand and clogs up. Some of my bins stopped draining and were under water for days even after I turned the sprinklers off. I uprooted the plants and dug deep in the bins. When I got down to the layer of sand that nice white sand had turned to a smelly purple black color. When I redo these bins my plan now is to put a layer of weed cloth on the bottom as I did before to block insects from entering below and to stop contents from the inside falling out. The difference now will be a very thick layer of gravel and then another layer of weed cloth over the top of that and then the soil. My hope is this will produce a lot more air at the bottom allowing the soil to drain better and the second layer of weed cloth will prevent the soil from filling up the spaces between the gravel.

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