Larsen Poultry Ranch - homesteading journey

[Larsen Poultry Ranch]

I have to ask a question... and you may have already explained it... but why all pots and not planting in the ground???? Is it not your place???? Rented, planning to move or something????

I'm not sure where I want them yet. I started a bunch of the avocado and citrus back when I was renting, and I knew I wasn't going to be in my first house too long (was there 3 years), so I continued with the pots. Now that we have our acreage, I'm starting to put stuff in the ground but we still haven't figured out where we want some things or want hardscaping yet, so I want the plants easier to move. We did start an in ground orchard the first year we were here and have tried to add to it each year since. It has stone fruit, apples, and pears.

I know where I'd like the fig orchard to go, but hubby refuses to cut more oak trees right now. So they will have to wait until next year I think.

I know approximately where I want the citrus trees, but I want to do a kind of modified grocery row garden (check out David the Good on YouTube, and he has a book about it too) with the citrus trees, but I want them in raised beds. The raised beds I'm currently envisioning are built with concrete panels, so we have to get those built before I can plant the citrus. A bunch of the smaller plants would also fit into the grocery row garden.

 

[farmerjan]

By the way, those beans look like mine... more "pole beans" climbers, than bush beans.... I had one that was nearly to the top of the sunflower at the end of the row... One the D@#Ned ground hog didn't eat...

 

[SageHill]

I'm not sure where I want them yet. I started a bunch of the avocado and citrus back when I was renting, and I knew I wasn't going to be in my first house too long (was there 3 years), so I continued with the pots. Now that we have our acreage, I'm starting to put stuff in the ground but we still haven't figured out where we want some things or want hardscaping yet, so I want the plants easier to move. We did start an in ground orchard the first year we were here and have tried to add to it each year since. It has stone fruit, apples, and pears.

I know where I'd like the fig orchard to go, but hubby refuses to cut more oak trees right now. So they will have to wait until next year I think.

I know approximately where I want the citrus trees, but I want to do a kind of modified grocery row garden (check out David the Good on YouTube, and he has a book about it too) with the citrus trees, but I want them in raised beds. The raised beds I'm currently envisioning are built with concrete panels, so we have to get those built before I can plant the citrus. A bunch of the smaller plants would also fit into the grocery row garden.

Grocery row - interesting, I’ll have to check that out. Don’t keep them in pots too long (or repot as needed). Since your in Cali check out the Farmer Fred podcast. He’s in central Cal so all the info is mostly geared to California.

 

[Larsen Poultry Ranch]

This is his book, but he has lots of YouTube videos as well.

 

[Bruce]

Sadly, that is in part why I grew so many potatoes this year. The da#@ed deer. They don't eat them much... and I hope to make back enough to pay me a little . Of course, the ground hogs don't help either...

Curious. I have both deer and the damned woodchuck but the potatoes plants are still growing well. Of course I have no idea if there are any potatoes under all that green.

On the other hand, something AGAIN ate the leaves off my little tea rose even though I put chicken wire around it after the first time. I didn't expect it would even come back after the first munching. No idea what is eating the leaves.

 

[Larsen Poultry Ranch]

Feeling very discouraged and upset. The deer attacked again. Most of the leaves are gone for all the squash, peppers, and tomatoes. Starting to wonder why I even bothered with a garden this year. I can't tell where they are getting in. The fence is 6'. The gates have stuff over them to bring them to 6'. Hubby is not helping, except to say "you need to figure out where they are getting in". No **** Sherlock. Thanks for the help. I guess I'll just work on the fences again on a ladder in the rattlesnake infested darkness trying to make the fence taller.

 

[canesisters]

Do you have a game camera? They aren't very expensive ($30-$40and up). I have 2 that are battery powered and will record HOURS of short videos. I have to pull the card and put it into an adapter on my phone to view it.
I would suggest putting one on a corner post and seeing exactly what you're dealing with. It's NO FUN trying to out-guess those sneaky little criminals.
You might be surprised to find that they aren't going over the fence at all

 

[SageHill]

Feeling very discouraged and upset. The deer attacked again. Most of the leaves are gone for all the squash, peppers, and tomatoes. Starting to wonder why I even bothered with a garden this year. I can't tell where they are getting in. The fence is 6'. The gates have stuff over them to bring them to 6'. Hubby is not helping, except to say "you need to figure out where they are getting in". No **** Sherlock. Thanks for the help. I guess I'll just work on the fences again on a ladder in the rattlesnake infested darkness trying to make the fence taller.

GRRRR damn deer. I've been there but with gophers at the old house in the old veggie garden. It's SOO MADDENING and FRUSTRATING.
Going out there on a far limb - have you thought of a screenhouse?? Like those hoop greenhouses but using shade cloth instead of the poly-sheeting? Add in that they are portable if / when you move.

 

[Larsen Poultry Ranch]

I need to add an end fence or something to the shade structure in the garden, then at least those would be protected. The deer have waltzed through there a few times. I was trying not to do additional structures because the whole point of the garden was to have the veggie plants in the ground and I thought with a 6' fence they'd be safe.

I'm going to go by home Depot or TSC on my way home tonight, see if I can get more deer spray. I was avoiding spraying it directly on the veggies so far since I didn't look to see if there was a withdrawal period or something, plus that stuff smells nasty and it's not something I want my food smelling like, but at this point I might as well just spray all the plants. I bought it at ACE last time but they have early hours so will probably be closed by the time I'm off work.

 

[SageHill]

I wonder if they would avoid stepping on something like chickenwire? but that would cost a ton to spread out totally around the entire garden. That spray stuff is nasty smelling - it might work, or it might not.
There are the motion detector water jet sprayers, again no idea if it works. At this point it's a lot of gue$$ing.