Michelle Heath

I would question the age of the seed, followed by where you acquired it.  If the seed is older, where was it stored?  I seldom have germination issues with beans and am finding that my saved seed often germinates at 100%.  

I constantly had issues with bush Lima beans germinating poorly and blamed it on grower error.  Bought a second package of seeds from a different supplier and had excellent germination.  

I regularly grow one variety of purple pole beans and find them incredibly prolific but some of the green varieties produce equally well.  As for bush beans, Provider has produced well for me a long with Cherokee Yellow Wax.  One thing I often do with new varieties that I have limited seed of is to let the seed soak in warm water for a few hours before planting.  I've only had one variety to germinate poorly after soaking and I believe they soaked a bit too long as direct-seeding the same variety without soaking was successful.  I'm not suggesting soaking several pounds of seed, but maybe give a handful a try to see if it makes a difference.

I'm assuming the garden location is separate from the property you live on.  While I currently have a stash of cardboard I picked up over the winter and stored, when I was working on my garden expansion last year I covered the area with a heavy MIL black plastic to kill the weeds.  When I acquired cardboard, I just rolled the plastic back and immediately put it on the ground and covered with wood chips.  Of course I wasn't dealing with an area near the size you are either.  

I do have a stash of brown packing paper I use for other projects and it was all obtained as packing material for stuff we ordered for our business. Even had other people saving for me and I roll it up and keep it in a large tote until I need it.  

What about burlap?  I know there's different weaves and it may not completely exclude light, but would be porous and biodegradable.  The only concerning factor with that is the new burlap I've encountered comes with a "smell" that may be some sort of chemical?

Congratulations on making do with, and making the best of your current situation!  So many people are so held back by not having the ideal property that they don't make any attempts to adapt to what's available.  

Kuddos to hubby on the greenhouse construction.  My current greenhouse is a 4' high dog kennel with a PVC "roof".  It's perfectly functional though ducking through that 4' opening several times a day gets old.  Plus it didn't cost me anything.

I'm sure the perfect property will become available in the future.  In the meantime feel proud that you are honing your skills and gaining experience for your next chapter.  For that I think you are awesome!

John Wolfram wrote: A more interesting comparison would be growing your own food versus buying from the best grower at your local farmers market.

I do wish we had that option.  The closest farmers market is twenty miles away and only one day a week.  The few growers there rarely offer anything besides the normal tried and true varieties and many don't grow everything they sell.  Can any of them assure me their produce has been grown without chemicals?  Rarely.    Will I be able to find green beans besides Blue Lake and State half-runner?  Not likely.   Some of the larger towns have better farmers markets but that's a minimum 100 mile round trip.  I used to think that was odd as rural areas should want healthier produce but it also seems they don't want to veer from the tried and true varieties.

While responding to the thread asking if growing your own was worth it, I started thinking about the "aha" moments in my life that led me on my permaculture path.  

The very first moment was when I was probably eight or nine and my great-grandmother was spreading chemical fertilizer over whatever it was we'd just planted.  I was eager to help and she said I couldn't unless I had gloves on.  That prompted me to question why we would spread something that required gloves over what we intended to eat?  I believe the response was "that's just what we do."   As an adult I used fertilizer the first year of our garden as my first husband insisted because again that's just how things are done.  I was already an avid reader of Organic Gardening magazines and had spent many hours reading the back issues a great-aunt always passed on to my grandmother, so I knew there was alternatives to chemicals.  The garden quickly became my responsibility and I took a stand and never used chemicals again and while it may not have initially produced as well as it did that first year, it never completely failed to produce.

My father-in-law was also a firm believer in chemical fertilizers and ranted that we were wasting out time planting without it.  I planted beans in his garden and spread fertilizer to his specifications and then went home and planted beans out of the same pack in my garden.  His beans produced enough for two meals nmy beans produced enough for both families through the summer.

My grandmother's garden consistently got worse every year and I truly believe the soil was depleted.  We trucked in a couple loads of rotted cow manure but unfortunately we also trucked in a lot of weed seeds too.  Her health was declining and I was working too much and had little time to help her tend it, so the next year her garden consisted of a single tomato plant in a washtub of rich soil and compost and it flourished!  The following year she asked for more containers and she added a pepper plant which also flourished!  Unfortunately the following year she was diagnosed with cancer and passed away in June.  My daughter and I moved in temporarily and that container garden expanded even more.  It became a thing of joy for my grandmother as she tried to make a trip outside every day to see the progress.  Neighbors mostly shook their heads when they heard I wasn't using fertilizers and seemed disgusted when I showed them the smelly bucket of comfrey tea.  I had plans to start piling leaves, grass clippings and anything else I could get my hands on to her old garden area to try and rejuvenate it, but my parents decided on a new garden area and unfortunately my dad insists on chemical fertilizers too.

So while my initial "aha" moment came at an early age, the latter two were simply a reminder that if you don't take care of the soil, the soil won't be able to take care of you.  And I do have my mom converted to no-till, mulch and organic fertilizers on her small vegetable plot at home.  

I see so many YouTube "gardeners" promoting the galvanized raised beds and I always wonder how many new gardeners think they're a necessity?  Not that these beds are necessarily bad, but they are expensive and must be filled with soil.  Of course a permie would use what's available to fill those beds but it would take several dollars of bagged soil.  Also buying transplants and seeds contributes to the expense though the produce will be of a much better quality.    

Last year I spent many, many hours in my gardens and expanding one to include berries and perennial edibles.  If I figured in my time and labor, it probably wouldn't be worth it on paper, but we're still eating stuff I harvested and preserved last year.  My produce purchases are usually cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower and carrots and that's simply because I either haven't made a storage area or in the case of carrots, I just haven't tried growing them.  The process of growing and experimenting makes it worthwhile.  Plus there's the knowledge that I grabbed at least one fresh strawberry just about every morning from May until late October and the store bought ones just don't compare.  Plus gardening and improving my property is therapeutic, so if I factor in the cost of a weekly session with a therapist, it definitely is worth it.

Would it be easier to go back to work and earn the money to buy produce?  Hell no!  I left that life behind during the pandemic and my mental and physical health greatly improved.  Plus I get to spend time with my daughter and hopefully influence her outlook on growing.  

I've been growing food for as long as I can remember and there's always failures and room for improvement.  Last year I had what I thought was a mild sprain and I'm still dealing with the effects, but it changed the way I do things.  So in a way I'm also working smarter and not harder.

I love the GAMCOD concept as I think society has programmed us into thinking we need expensive machinery and chemical fertilizers in order to have a successful harvest, when in fact out ancestors survived many centuries without it.

Not so much failures as set-backs.  Too many things happening at once combined with a bit of burn-out at the same time and some of my seeds got delayed. I also have a major vole problem and am hesitant to plant peas now.  My mindset is back to garden mode but oh so much work to do this season!

Julinka, please do not give up or abandon future plans due to sheep sorrel.  I eradicated what I could from one bed in the fall and covered that bed with at least 6" of chopped leaves.  I don't expect that will completely kill it but hopefully slow it down enough that I can get a handle on it.  I have noticed as the soil in my beds and paths improves, the weeds come up easier.  By all means try chop and drop if that is easier, but just remember to do it before it goes to seed.

Due to an ankle injury last year I didn't get my garden expansion completed though I left it covered with black plastic through the winter.  Now I know black plastic is definitely not a permie solution, but it was here and is still in good shape.  When I pulled it back I have a nice layer of brown sod on top and after the plastic comes off I'll will be covering it with cardboard and partially broken down wood chips.  I expect some quack grass, dandelions and possibly even sheep sorrel to survive, but hopefully it's a very minimal amount.

I built my latest garden on the poorest part of our yard because it was a) flat and b) in full sun.  I made the mistake of keeping one sheep sorrel plant in the corner because it was scraggly like all the rest of the plants in that part of the yard, and because I like adding a few leaves to a salad.  Imagine my surprise when it not only flourished, but started appearing several feet from where that original plant was. It's taken many hours of pulling it up by hand and pulling out all sections of the roots I can find to get it under control.  I have no doubt it will start popping up again but thankfully the wood chips in the paths around the beds make it pretty easy to pull up.  

Congratulations on your new baby!  I'm finally getting my 10 year-old interested in gardening but it's still a challenge to keep her entertained enough to work outside for hours.

My parents have pretty much remodeled their whole house and have added tongue and groove hardwood to the walls.  My Dad purchased rough lumber and planed them all, which resulted in lots of fine shavings and sawdust.  I had been hauling buckets of fresh wood chips to them to use in their small garden but Mom decided dump the shavings in the paths instead.  Not only does it provide an excellent surface to walk on, but after the shavings thoroughly break down they can be scooped up and added to the raised beds.  

Here we have been working on removing the remaining parts of a large tree that we paid to have cut down and removed a few years ago.  So far I've collected a few feed sacks full of sawdust that I intend to use for a basic compost ing toilet.