#uhh with the wood i did glance at a thing that said 'untreated is better for edibles' so i assume that my train of thought on that is accur

[moonlight-at-dawn]

Anyone here got any experience or beloved resources on growing vegetables and maybe berries? I think I’ve got the basics but there could always be little tips or things that get forgotten in the bigger picture that I missed, so I always like to ask people directly if they’ve got experience, if there’s anything that I should be on the lookout for :D

Details:

-When it comes to construction of it, I’m definitely enlisting my husband, but I’d *like* to be able to manage it primarily on my own after that. Noting that I’m disabled with chronic pain but exactly what can and can’t move can vary greatly because of the nature of my pain. I already know that gardening is kind of a physical pursuit, so if there are tips on gear to reduce impact, I think that may be what I can best ask for :D

-When I say “construction” I mean that I definitely intend to make raised beds. The ground is too heavily packed and there’s lots of rocks cause we’re kinda in the side of a mountain. My understanding is they should be 12 inches deep for best use.

-I think zucchini would be a great start since those things are supposed to grow like crazy and they’re fucking delicious and versatile as fuck so hell yeah zucchini

-We have rabbits, blackbirds, sterlings jays, robins, hummingbirds, mourning doves, neighborhood outdoor cats, and there’s one raven i’ve started seeing just the past 2 months or so. Who do I watch out for!? Is the rabbit a non-issue with raised beds? Are there flowers I could/should plant among the vegetables to prevent these guys from mucking about with them? I have no idea what kind of insect pests I have to worry about with vegetables. I know we have a fuckload of boxelder bugs

-Sub-alpine, US pacific northwest. My backyard only gets truly direct sunlight from about 7am to 11am. After that the sun is in front of the house, and comes in at more of an angle. It’s fully shaded after about 4pm. (Going by about this time of year’s standards). The sun might be one of my greatest concerns, but I think the light will be good enough, if I build further back in the yard instead of closer to the house. That will allow the light to last on it longer before the house fully blocks the sun from the yard.

-Ordering seeds? !! I assume the answer will be a pretty emphatic “yes” but I think it’s still worth it to ask- Should I order seeds even as a beginner? Perhaps especially as one?

-I know we’re already getting late into the year am I too late for something like zucchini though??? Okay, this one I actually just have to look up, I just realized I forgot to research planting and growth times, I was busy looking at garden construction foremost. But I’m gonna leave this here ‘cause this... this is where I’m at with it I guess XDDD

-How big of a garden should I start with!? I was kinda thinking maybe a 4′x2′? Is that gonna turn out to be *huge* or would that be good? Hmmm....

-Garden beds!! Favored construction materials? Concrete blocks? Wood? Untreated wood, right? Might be more maintenance but is way better for soil health, right? If I’m gonna eat this food, I’d like not to put weird wood preserving chemicals into it, rightright??

#misha rambles #gardening #i would definitely love to expand the garden to have things like kitchen herbs and some other stuff too #when i say 'berries' i assume blue- and straw- because those're what i know grows in this climate #uhh with the wood i did glance at a thing that said 'untreated is better for edibles' so i assume that my train of thought on that is accur #ate but i'm just making a loose guess not a particularly well educated one #i think my lot is a quarter acre which would make my yard about half that? #i'm guessing idk i'm not looking at things and i could be off #i would say for space that i can easily and happily turn into garden space is abooouuuutttt #15' x 5'? #actually if i reappropriate the slanted back #since i'm already planning on building *raised planters* i can make use of the slant #then i could get even more space #OH YEAH #i've seen someone in my neighborhood grows pumpkin and corn!!! #........maybe i should get over myself and my anxiety and walk down there and be like #'HI I LIVE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD I LIKE YOUR VEGETABLES CAN YOU TEACH ME' #lmao #...oh and i definitely missed several of the types of birds that hang out in our yard #cause there's more lol #i think one of them is called 'red tipped' or 'red winged' something #it's black with red spots on its wings #and at least one red tailed hawk calls the neighborhood part of its hunting territory #and there's little songbirds that i don't know the names of but like 3 different varieties of those i think #hopefully i'm not just mixing up the boys and girls and juvies tho lol