There's no such thing as a garden failure

Even people with the greenest thumbs have failures in the garden. They just don't look at them that way. They look at them as lessons or opportunities for improvement. Maybe they could have been more attentive. Maybe they missed some obvious issues. Maybe they neglected their duties in lieu of summer fun. So, instead of sitting around feeling inadequate, they take those “mistakes” and turn them into next year's success stories.

How my own personal “failure” led to triumph:

A few years back, toward the end of gardening season, I suffered a severe attack of what I thought was rheumatoid arthritis. It was actually Rheumatoid combined with Lupus, a double whammy. I was simply incapable of doing anything in the garden or around the house. As I watched my formerly well tended garden go to pieces, I made a vow to myself.

These health issues will not stop me from my favorite hobby again. I vowed to use that fall and winter to get myself healthy and get some treatment options in place. So, that year's garden “failure” not only brought my garden a better future, it brought me a healthier one. From that point on, I stopped looking at garden glitches as failures.

Turning the tables on gardening errors

Maybe you kept forgetting to water. A positive approach would be to set up a drip watering system. No matter what your gardening woes entail, you can find a solution to remedy most of them. Why not concentrate on the solution, rather than the problem? It works in other facets of your life. It can work in the garden as well. Failure is simply a call to action. Use it!

What if you simply can't find a solution?

We're not perfect beings, are we? There's bound to be some things that thrive under your care, just as there are others you simply can't get the hang of. Rather than concentrating on your limitations, why not concentrate on your strengths? Not everything in your garden will be a proven winner. That doesn't mean you're a failure. Focus on your successes instead of bemoaning your failures.

Make a list of your regrets.

When planning next year's garden, go over that list. Is it really all that important that your garden include those things that refuse to grow for you? If not, scratch them off the list. On the other hand, if you still want to include them, do some research. Maybe you missed an important factor. Failure is just a learning opportunity in disguise.

Taking action is always better than sulking.

Why are you wasting all that good energy crying over your “failed” garden? There's always next year. Fall and winter give you an excellent opportunity to educate yourself, make changes and plan for better gardening days to come. In fact, that's what the change of seasons is all about. So stop worrying about those supposed “failures.” Learn from them instead. Take positive action. Educate yourself to improve your skills. You'll be better off and so will your garden.

Are there drawbacks to bucket gardens?

I love my little bucket garden!

Still, I have to admit that sometimes when I visit other people's conventional gardens, they seem prettier to me. I suppose that's because the plants are growing in the ground, as nature intended. Sometimes when I come home and view my little gradual bucket and raised bed garden, it also seems small in comparison. That makes me think, “Are there drawbacks to bucket gardens?”

I do have to fertilize slightly more often. Since the roots are contained in buckets, they don't have the opportunity to seek out ground sources of nutrients. That's OK, though. Because it's just one more dose of fertilizer per gardening season. Not a big deal for the trade off of easier gardening.

And here's a little secret. If the buckets are placed on the ground, some of the roots will creep out of the drainage holes anyway, which means, that they're not entirely restricted. That's true even when there's landscape fabric beneath them.

I do have to water more often. However, when I do water, I use less. That's because the water goes directly to the plants, rather than leeching into the ground where it quickly evaporates or is used by thirsty weeds. So what seems like a bad thing is actually beneficial to the plants.

Sometimes the fruits of the bucket vegetable plants will grow somewhat smaller than in ground veggies. But even that isn't all that bad. Because who on earth likes the flavor of those huge overgrown veggies anyway? The smaller ones are so much better tasting! And I have enough trouble figuring out what to do with tons of normal sized zucchini. I don't need any whoppers to process. LOL

And I will also tell you this. Many times I have observed that conventional gardeners struggle more with weather patterns than I do. I guess that's because they are used to relying on the rain that isn't happening right now.

So, all in all, yes, there are a few issues with bucket gardens. Still, it's nothing I can't find a work-around for. And in the end, having such a low maintenance garden is well worth the almost nonexistent issues.

Dual use garden bed borders

We all know about using gutters as planters for short rooted plants. How about using them to border garden beds? That way, they could double as planters. Simply fill them with soil and use them to border garden areas. Plant inside the border itself and in the garden bed.

What other items could be used as dual use raised beds?

Cement blocks come immediately to mind.

A lot of people use them to build raised bed gardens. Why not expose the holes on the top layer? One idea is to plant herbs around your vegetables. Use whatever compatible combination you like.

Clay pots form a colorful garden bed border when filled with flowers.

Might I suggest marigolds? The marigold is well known for it's pest control qualities. It's especially useful as a pest control companion for tomatoes.

How about a double border?

If you have a garden bed built from stacked railroad ties, make a step border. Just place a shorter bed border around it using a single layer of ties. Use the short border bed for small plants such as leaf lettuce so you can still reach the tall bed. For better access, border only the short sides of the bed.

Use hanging window boxes to border your raised garden beds.

If you don't have any, try making some from those used gutters. Coat hanger wire can support the gutters and form a hook for hanging. Simple, but effective.

Make recycled garden pot borders with plastic bottles or jugs.

Just cut off the tops. Poke holes in the bottoms for drainage. Now nail them to the sides of your raised beds. This is a great way to start plants too.

PVC pipe sections of various lengths make artistic garden borders.

Simply line them up, pound them into the ground, fill them with potting soil and you're ready to plant. They're open ended, so no drainage worries.

Easy green garden pest control – Just vacuum

Back in the 70's, I had a friend who lived in a cockroach infested apartment. It wasn't that way when she first moved in. The bugs came from a new tenant. What did my friend do? The bugs only came out at night. So, she got out her vacuum cleaner and sucked them up in the dark! Then she liberally applied boric acid in all the cracks and crevices.

She did this weekly until all the bugs were gone. Of course, in her case, applying boric acid was the real bug killer. She was just reducing the numbers to a manageable level. Nevertheless, her experience led to the best garden pest control method I've ever used. The vacuum.

Taking it outside:

Inspiration for ecofriendly solutions can come from past memories. My friend was an absolute genius even though she didn't know it. Her method works perfectly as permanent pest control in my garden to this day.

Here in Denver, we get a hefty swarm or two of pesky pests every year. Sometimes it's stink bugs. Sometimes it's grasshoppers. Whatever the case may be, there's a simple, green cure for the garden gobblers. Thanks to my friend, we plug our vacuum in outside and simply suck those critters up.

True, they don't usually survive the trip up the hose. So, it's not exactly a humane solution. You also have to give the vacuum a good blow out, without the bag, so as not to carry any bugs back into the house. Still, there are no pesticides involved. My garden remains green and pest free. It's a pretty simple solution.

Afterthought:

It would be even better to use a rechargeable portable vacuum. That way there would be no cord to hassle with. Plus, you could keep that one for outdoor use only.

What's your story?

Anyone else got any crazy green bug control solutions that work? Please feel free to leave your tips and tricks in the comment section.

Replanting for a second harvest

Denver has a pretty long growing season compared to some regions. So, every year, around this time, I start planting for a second harvest. Pretty cool, right? You see, soon it'll be time to pull the old plants that have stopped producing. But if I plant anew, beside them, it'll be as if they never died.

Now, there are some fast growing veggies, such as lettuce and radishes that I continually stagger throughout the season. With these, I plant leaving extra space between rows. About two weeks after the first planting, I use the space to plant another row. I continue this process through the growing season, planting as I pick. This is an awesome technique for quick growing vegetables such as lettuce and radishes.

With the larger plants, that doesn't work as well. Instead, I wait until they're about two or three weeks from being pulled to start new seeds next to them.

Want to try it? Here's more replanting tips:

Mix it up:

Use different varieties of vegetables for each planting. For instance, you might start with spinach for your salad, then switch to lettuce, kale or other greens each time you plant a new row.

Plant onion seeds between bulbs.

Here's a tricky way to keep the onions going with less replanting. Simply alternate rows of onion seeds with rows of onion bulbs. The bulbs will grow faster for your first harvest, while the seeds will provide your second harvest.

Plant where you pick.

Here's another technique you can use. Each time you remove a fast grower from your garden, replace it with a new seed or bulb. This keeps your Denver garden producing all season.

Even slow growing plants can be staggered for multiple harvests.

You can get at least two harvests out of tomatoes, peppers and other slow growers. Simply buy different size plants or start your seeds two weeks apart. When other gardeners are through with the harvest, you'll be picking and canning your second harvest from the younger plants.

Choose carefully.

Be sure your second harvest plants are cold tolerant or will mature prior to cold weather. Otherwise, you're just wasting your time.

If you like the break, skip the second harvest.

Sometimes it feels good when the garden starts dying off for the winter. I totally get it. Maybe you're glad for the break when gardening season ends. It gives you time to plan for next year and take care of other responsibilities, right? In that case, you might want to stick with replanting just the fast growers.

Gradual gardens can be overwhelming too.

When you plant a ton of tomatoes to forego loss and they all conspire to thrive!

Most of my garden produce is grown in buckets. That makes things easy to maintain. But, make no mistake, gradual gardens and low maintenance gardens are not maintenance free. Gardening is a lot of work, no matter how it's done. It's never idyllic, but it's definitely worth the work.

Right now, my buckets and raised beds are at the stage where they require a lot of watching. Watching for bugs, watching for weeds, watching for fertilization needs, etc, etc. Plus, everything that happens in a traditional garden that's already as big as it's going to get, can also happen in a gradually expanding garden. I'm pretty overwhelmed, you guys, but I'll survive.

Plus, this year, I grew too many tomato plants. I was trying to play it safe from accidental plant death by doubling the numbers. I also planted a second batch, a week after the first. Guess what? The joke's on me. They all lived. That means they all have to be taken care of. 

I wanted to show you guys a pic of all my many, many tomato plants here. you would not believe how many I have! Unfortunately, my computer and phone are not getting along.  

But anyway....

Yup, you can make the same mistakes in a smaller garden than you do in a bigger one. And if the mistake is over-planting, it's a lot harder to find a home for those extra plants. In fact, just last week I had to drill some more holes in more buckets, fill them with soil and plant the "extra" tomatoes.

Finding the space for them all was a challenge for sure.  But hey, I do not let plants go to waste.

And guess what? I did the same thing with the hot peppers. We'll have salsa galore, as long as I can find a viable home for everything. That's OK. We all love it. And there's always canning, freezing and donating.

Anyway, there you go. If you're planning a low maintenance garden, don't forget that low maintenance isn't the same as no maintenance. In fact, I'm pretty sure there's no such thing as a no maintenance garden. Bummer, right?