There's an area next to John's workshop at Struan Farm that has been a landscaping project yet-to-happen for several years now. We couldn't decide whether to make this area garden or lawn, plus we had too many other projects related to the new house. The area became part of "Veggie World" officially last summer, with corn and tomatoes planted in abundance. It worked so well that we transplanted the weeping copper beech tree planted in the middle of the bed to another garden. This spot was clearly meant to be a vegetable bed, it had spoken.
Discussions ensued, designs were considered. I didn't want a messy jungle right outside the front door. We decided upon a raised bed similar to the retaining wall running down the driveway. Since the walls of the bed are made of treated wood, it's been lined with plastic sheeting on the inside. (A concession to Karen who doesn't want arsenic leaching into her tomatoes.) Steps were constructed at one end to allow the gardener easier access, she isn't getting any younger. The walls are high enough to deter the dog from galloping through, also to keep rabbits out.
So we're getting there. The bed has now been filled partially with compost and soil dug from our burn piles, which has ash and organic matter. I will plant the tomatoes this season as it is. After veggie season we'll add more soil, mulch and compost to top things up.
"Project completion" then involves a recycled brick path down the middle, a trellis, and perhaps a grapevine. That's the vision at this stage!
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