The Dodson Urban Homestead Update

Hello blog Family,

Much has happened over the past month or so. We have been deep in our backyard project. Trying to meet our May 26th deadline (son’s graduation party in the backyard). I wanted to take a minute to talk to you about what we have been doing. Why we have been doing it will come in a later post!

Over the past few weeks, we have planted out our rasied bed gardens and our herb garden. This has happened in phases because of our time and because of night temps. (NOTE: Most plants should not be put in the ground until night temps are 50 degrees or above for 10 nights straight. This happens about mid to late May in Colorado)

PLANTED SO FAR AT THE DODSON URBAN HOMESTEAD:
3 – 4 foot rows of Swiss Chard
1 – 10 foot row of Sugar Snap Pea’s (trellised)
1 – 10 foot row of Arugula
2 – 10 foot rows of “Little Finger” Carrots
16 yellow onions
16 white onions
16 purple onions
10 Walla Walla Onions
10 Cucumber Plants (trellised)
6 Pole Bean Plants
10 assorted pepper plants
15 Squash/Zuchinni Plants
1 Blackberry Bush
2 Raspberry Bushes
1 Blueberry Bush
8 Tomato Plants (in greenhouse/container-ed)
15 Strawberry Plants
16 White Potatos in 2 mounds (not vertical as we had intially planned)
2 Rhubarb Plants
2 20′ rows of Quinoa

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We have learned a few thing this time around:

1.) Beans, squash and zucchini grow best from seed, not plants transplanted. We bought plants thinking it would speed the process, but some of the plants (especially the pole beans) are struggling. We are continuing to keep them fed and praying they will rebound. Next year, straight sown seed!

2.) Potato towers don’t really produce bigger crops. I caught this before we planted. I found a guy who planted mounds and towers side by side to test their production. Mounds produced better… so that’s what we did! THANK YOU INTERNETS!!!

3.) We don’t know what we are doing with Walla Walla Onions! Really, we planted and replanted and I still don’t think they are growing. We shall see.

4.) We can’t have a rain barrel! NNNNOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! This is sad. I happened to catch it before we bought it. Wen’t to our fav. nursery site and saw an article telling us that you can’t legally have a rain barrel in Colorado Springs. (the city owns all water coming from the sky……WHAT! No Really!) Read it for yourself here: http://www.spencersgardens.com/Spencers/Tips_files/RainWaterBills_1.pdf We were really hoping to cut our water bill and give our plants a bit of a boost by doing this. Colorado Springs water has some stuff that just ain’t plant friendly. Read here: http://www.csu.org/residential/water/Documents/item14338.pdf But, this is our only option till the law changes…I think it will!

So, now we water, weed and wait! Hoping to bust the bank with veggies this year!

UPCOMING POSTS: 
1.) Worm composter is busting at the seems. See the results.
2.) Why are we doing all this crazy stuff. See and hear our vision for this Inner City Urban Homestead.
3.) Tomatoes in the greenhouse. How are they doing!
4.) Kombucha Tea Brewing update! My failures and successes so far.

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