posted 16 years ago
JIm you already have a start for a plan..a garden for food crops and some chickens..we know you have a creek and so a plan for the garden near the house..with a path to the chicken coop, a compost pile between the two..so you can throw the weeds in the chicken yard, and the chicken manure on the compost heap..so when you close on the house..you need to locate the best of the garden close to the kitchen door and then work your way to the best place for the chickens..not so far away that you won't want to go there..but far enough away to give you a good garden between .
Make a list of the fruits and vegetables that YOU LOVE TO EAT..no need to grow something you don't like..then find out if you have the proper place to plant it ..and if it is going to grow there..obviously i can't grow bananas in Michigan..well maybe in a heated greenhouse.
YOu might want to plant a few things to shade the chicken yard that will bring food for the chickens..the chicken people know more about that than i do..but any forage that will drop into their yard..will be less food you have to provide for them..so maybe some trees or shrubs along the fenceline that will drop food in or near their enclosure..or if they are free range..you can let them forage your area for food..
I would say the week you close on your home, if you have some cash..begin to shop for the trees and shrubs that produce edibles that you like..gotta get them in early.
so say if you plan to plant apples, cherries, plums, peaches, and other fruit trees, you might want to try dwarfs..they are easy to plant and care for and are great understory trees, you can plant them in the semi shade of a taller tree, but not in deep shade..they should get some sun..
also you might want to put in some nut trees for future protein sources if you like and eat nuts.
watch for your berry crops..if you have acid soil..(test it with a soil testing kit cheapo from store)...then you can grow blueberries cranberries, wintergreen etc..with regular soil of most kinds you can grow raspberries, blackberries and other bramble berries..as well as strawberries..
the brambles will be a bit invasive so put them where they won't take over the rest of the garden..maybe along a fencline?
know your wife loves tomato plants so have those bought and ready to haul out to the house with you..leave them in large pots before the move.
it is a bit late for summer crops of a lot of the cool weather crops for your area..but they can be planted for FALL crops..so don't despair..work up some soil with some humus and fertilizers and prepare for fall planting..you genearlly have to count back from fall frosts to know when the latest you can start fall crops..lots of things grow in the cooler fall weather better than in summer..like peas, lettuce, carrots, spinach, cole crops such as cabbage, kale, brussel sprouts, broccoli, etc..they can all still be planted for a fall crop. I think you are in zone 7..not sure how cold it gets there in zone 7..my map says that your lows are 0 to 10 degrees..which means you often drop below freezing..but not below zero..so there is a season right before and right after your frost and freeze times that you can grow cold weather crops.
allow yourself time to settle in before you get too excited about planting your annual garden crops..you still have time to put in things like melons, cucumbers, beans, corn, squash, zucchini, peppers, tomatos, and other HOT weather crops now..but don't try to overdo the first year..you are just moving..you will be busy.
assess your property ..your paths, your ground..is there an area all ready for a garden or are you going to have to work it up?
don't be discouraged..you can't do anything until you get there..except maybe be buying up some garden seeds at the garden center or local walmart..and checking out the nurseries to see what might be available for planting tree and shrub wise..so you can see what you might want to put in.
kinda late to be ordering trees from the mail order..so go with nursery stock that is grown in large pots..better for your situation right now.
go slow..don't feel so much pressure..know you are a get it done guy..but relax..take some time..get the paper work signed..get moved..etc.
is there a house on the property?? a chicken coop?? a garden??
Brenda
Bloom where you are planted.
http://restfultrailsfoodforestgarden.blogspot.com/