Backyard Farming the Natural Way

Archive for the ‘DIY Gardening Plans’ Category

This is something that I have wondered about and until now have strictly avoided using pressure treated lumber in any gardening or related DIY projects. However, it seems that in certain applications (like raised planter beds), that if precautions are taken, there may not be much impact of the more dangerous chemical ‘arsenic.’ There appear to be certain preparations one could take to avoid the problem of leaching into the soil. Anyhow, I encourage you to read the following article and decide for yourself.

Does pressure treated wood belong in the garden?

Here is a further demonstration and discussion of the new easy roll worm bin composting system. I started developing and testing this over three years ago and have been very happy with the performance. You can find the plans and pre-built worm bins at Easy Roll Worm Bin Composter Plans

I though I would post another DIY version of an earth grow box that I came across. It is very similar to mine, and because I could not get around to completing it due to moving, I thought I would post an alternate version.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lE8OrdUZQKk

If you haven’t read the first part of this project, please do so before proceeding with this part. Referring to the picture on the left, the next step is to drill 3 water overflow holes around the container.  Read the rest of this entry »

For those not familiar with the earthbox concept of a “grow box,” the original can be found at this link. You might want to familiarize yourself with the concepts and operation before proceeding. In a nutshell, the advantages to the earthbox (in order of priority) are: Read the rest of this entry »

This simple method of capturing seeds will work well with many flowering plants (especially those which produce a flowering “stalk”). In this picture, I am holding the mature stalks from just one broccoli plant. After the plant flowers, I just wait until the seed pods are nice and full, and a few of them have started to fall off – and then I know that they are ready to harvest.  Read the rest of this entry »