Garden Plans!

Portland Nursery has generously offered to provide discounted starts and tools, the Urban Gleaners garden get off the ground (or get into the ground) and we’re finally ready to start planting. Or rather, our window is closing and whether we’re ready or not, we’re planting soon.

However much the average Portlander feels waterlogged by our soupy springs, the average Portland farmer is thankful for the waterfall. It is this very deluge that keeps the Willamette valley rich in verdure. This recent dry spell feels almost desert-y but that’s soon to change.
This last week we went up to the garden to till the soil and get everything ready for adding soil amendments. In the process of turning the soil we came across some latent vegetables. We ended up harvesting a crop! Hiding in the soil were several hardy carrots and an immense crop of horseradish. Thankfully my farming partner for the day likes horseradish and was able to salvage some.

The last step before we get our starts in the ground is to hear back from the lab. We sent out a soil sample to a local agricultural lab that we found through the Master Gardener hotline. After analyzing the soil, the lab will send us back a list of recommendations to help us balance our soil and make it the most fertile and promising ground to plant our garden in.

And finally, here’s the garden sketch. Don’t hold us to it! The backyard farmer has to be flexible and resilient. You don’t demand from the soil what you wish to see, you simply ask and your answer might be something else entirely than what you were expecting.