This month we did some major plantings, tended some seedlings, and started construction of our much anticipated chicken coop. Garden work is not cheap, but it is very rewarding!
I am attempting to cultivate my "green thumb" which for the most part has been pretty black in the past. I think I have had issues with a few of the realities of gardening...
1. you have to garden outside, it is dirty, there are bugs, and you can't knit while gardening.
2. you have to actually water your plants... this is a big one for me.
So, rather than tilling up a patch of soil, I am keeping it small and close to the backdoor where my little seedlings are easily watched and watered. This is a collection of purple pole beans, kale, and cabbage.
We also planted Swiss chard in the flower bed! It is doing well :)
On a larger scale, we are adding to our "orchard" with three blackberry bushes and two fig trees.
This fig tree over looks the chicken coop, and the second fig tree is planted in the chicken yard. I hear chickens go crazy for figs :)
Here is a look at the progress on our coop. With the help of our next door neighboor we were able to get all this done in just a couple of hours!
The coop is a "hoop-coop" style inspired by a lot of internet searches! Primarily this Egg Shaped Hoop Coop and this very serious Permanent Hoop Coop. We chose this style because in the Texas Heat we knew our chickens would need a lot of ventilation, it is also a fairly reasonably priced coop for the number of chickens it can house comfortably. We plan to start our flock with twelve birds.
