Metamorphosis--from Mud to Meals

Along the front sidewalk is a colorful border of various plants and stones in this photo taken on April 22, camouflaging what may be happening behind it. I first noticed that this garden was undergoing a change last fall when the grass disappeared, and two apple trees were planted. The 6th photo on the blog of November 17, 2009 shows one of the apple trees with a yellow tag and a muddy-looking front yard.
Then intricate pathways of a contrasting mulch, and markings for plants were created, for what may very well be vegetables because of the short rows. The tiny areas will be easy to weed and harvest. Some plantings took place by mid-April. On the second photo, you can see the "whip" of one of the apple trees.


Maybe getting weary of all those dandelions, this gardener has decided to take on the additional project of removing the grass on the boulevard! The second photo shows the progress as of April 28. That may be another fruit tree, too. More on this (hopefully) edible garden later!

A New Boulevard Garden with Vegetables

These avid gardeners have had plantings on the boulevard for many years, but in March 2010 they began a bold expansion to establish a garden on the entire boulevard across 1.5 lots in cooperation with their experienced neighbors. Two huge piles of soil are ready to be dispersed:


After much labor, the boulevard was leveled but not quite a blank slate due to the pre-existing plants (including a native salmon berry bush). However, an appreciably increased space for growing sun-loving plants has been created.

A few days later, cheerful flowers appeared, edging the beds.

With these hilled-up rows, it appears that vegetables will be planted.
Work over the weekend resulted in the transplanting of zucchini and carefully labeled rows of onions and other vegetables.

This new boulevard garden is definitely both a neat and attractive addition to the landscaping of this block.

Converting Lawn to a Vegetable Garden--A Problem

All is not roses in the new boulevard garden. The little lettuce transplants in the edible section have come onto hard times. (Of course, the kale volunteers are all thriving.) Note the crumpled appearance of the lettuce plant at the bottom centre:

A second plant succumbed in a similar manner a day later, with its main root cut. Digging down I discovered the perpetrators, wireworms! The only good thing about these creatures is that they are such a bright orange color that they're easy to spot. With their hard bodies, they are difficult to smash, so to avoid a time-consuming mass murder, I took a bunch of them over to a new home in the forest. Although quite small they can do a lot of damage, and unfortunately, they live for several years.


I found out later that two of the favorite foods of wireworms are lettuce and grass roots. Perhaps instead of turning over the sod and retaining it for extra humus, I should have removed it entirely. However, the wireworms may have been lurking lower in the soil in the colder months when I was digging up the grass. It's something to consider if you are turning your lawn into an edible space. There is helpful information from British Columbia's Robin Wheeler here: Wiley Wireworms.

A New Boulevard Garden on 31st Ave., Continued

The March 10th blog about my new boulevard garden ended with a blank slate, and the future looked easy. But before planting, there were several tasks. To facilitate reaching into the garden without stepping on it, I divided my plot into two parts--one for flowering plants and the other for edibles (and a few flowering plants), separating the two plots with a path of stepping stones. Stepping stones along the curb are also a convenience for drivers parking on the street. As well, I wanted a bit of a stone barrier along the sidewalk for the part of the plot growing vegetables. I used a level to place the stepping stones (getting a curious comment from a male passing by wondering about a woman using a level). My neighbor installed paths of stepping stones also.

Making that initial decision about where to place plants is daunting. Two blueberry plants were the first to go in.
Along with the blueberry bushes, there is a pink dawn viburnum in the centre of the inedible plot. To the left are Rudbeckia plants, given to me by someone who says that they will get 8 feet tall. I don't believe him.
In this photo of April 14, even though a Brussels sprout plant, a couple lettuce transplants, and other plants were added, the plot still seems relatively empty. The little framed squares contain Nigella seeds.
Ten days later on April 24 the plantings look more established. My neighbor has planted groupings of lavender and heuchera, among other things.
As you round the corner from Camousun Street onto 31st Avenue, the new garden provides a welcome surprise from the usual boring grassy/mossy boulevard.
PS about kale. Despite the compost from the city being inert, two (or do you see more?) tiny rogue kale have established themselves in the inedible plot. Should I leave them there?

Dunbar Irrigated Garden

An attractive rock retaining wall faces Dunbar Street with a carefully trimmed hedge high up on the slope. It's quite difficult to see the house. The only clue that there might be an interest in vegetables is the garlic interspersed between the bushes.
But there is a front-yard vegetable garden, tucked way up by the house--note how Dunbar Street appears far below. In February, there are still green veggies to eat that have wintered over. The blueberry bushes lining the walkway are mulched with sawdust.
The next two photos were taken on April 1. Because the garden has relatively few veggies left to eat, one can see the "bones" of the garden, an elaborate irrigation system, which was manufactured in Israel. There are raspberry bushes leafing out next to the house. The owners did a tremendous amount of work recently to create this garden, and their reward is excellent production from this sunny and automatically watered site. It is quite attractive even in winter because they keep it utterly tidy.
But that is not all! On the south-facing lane to the side of the house, the owners grew a few tomatoes in 2009. However, this year they've embarked on another major project, sifting out the rocks and getting a load of dirt. I wish I had a "before" photo from last summer. This photo was taken in February during the 2010 Winter Olympics, hence the flag!
By April, the terraced beds are beginning to take shape.
Work continues in mid April...additional soil had to be acquired. As with gardening in general, there's always more to do.