The first "crop" is in!

I planted lettuce, spinach, swiss chard and collards today. With a little luck, they'll provide us with fresh salads and greens through most of the winter. The chard and collards are an experiment for me...I've never planted them before. They might make for good late season veggies, they might not.

Eventually, I'm going to fence the entire garden to keep the critters out. In the meantime, to protect the plants from both frost and deer, I built a hoop house over the bed. I used PVC pipe because it's easy to work with and is perfectly suited for this project.

I cut 1/2" PVC into 6" lengths to use as supports for the hoops.

The supports were attached to the wooden side of the garden bed using pipe straps...

 

...and these screws that I had on hand.

 

 

 

 I used 10' lengths of Schedule 40 PVC for the hoops.

 

 

The ends of the PVC hoop fit into the supports.

 



 

I put five hoops along the length of this 10 foot bed, then added a ridge pole for stability.

 

 

Those are zip ties holding the ridge pole to the hoops.

 

 

One of my neighbors is using this black plastic deer barrier so I'm trying it too. It seems a little thin and flimsy, though.

 

 

The deer netting is seven feet wide, so it took two lengths to completely cover the hoops. I used a couple of zip ties to attach it to the ridge pole.

 

 

I don't know how effective this stuff will be against hungry deer.



I used binder clips to clip the netting to the bottom hoops. Then I laid a couple of boards along the ground on the outside of the bed to anchor the edges down. All I need to do to get into the bed is flip the boards back, unclip the net, then fold it over the top.

 

 

Here is what I planted today:

 













 

 

My tongue depressor plant markers.

 

 

If I am left alone for too long in a doctor's exam room, I will get curious about what's in all those drawers and cabinets!

 

I only planted a little bit of each, in case things go horribly wrong and the deer get my seedlings.  I can do another crop in about two weeks if these sprout and the deer don't notice.

 

 

Those hoops are a little floppy. I have my doubts about their ability to withstand Colorado wind and snow. Once the weather gets cold, I'll put clear plastic over top of the deer net to make a mini greenhouse/cold frame under the hoops. I'm concerned the hoops won't be strong enough to hold all of that. 

 

Maybe if I add a support on each end? Or cut the hoops down a foot or two so they aren't so tall? I like them tall, since it's easy to get under them to plant, water and harvest. And tall ones like that will protect even big tomato plants.  I guess I'll have to experiment to find out what works best.

 

 

So there you have it....Hoop House Version 1.0. I'll let you know how it goes and when the seeds sprout!



 



The 7 Day Challenge: Day 6

Today, Jodi and Julie of Food Storage Made Easy have given us what I feel is the most important challenge of all. If you had to evacuate your home right now, would you be ready? If there was a wildfire or a gas leak in your neighborhood and you had to grab everything you could from your home and be out in ten minutes, how would you manage that?

If you do nothing else by way of food storage or preparing for hard times, please do this. Make a 72-hour kit.


A horrible hurricane (or earthquake, or other disaster) is about to hit your area. You have to evacuate within minutes and eat out of your 72 hour kits today. While you were gone your house was destroyed. Lots to think about today.
Goal: Test your family’s evacuation plan and 72 hour kit foods

Today’s Tasks:

• Evacuate your house within 15 minutes of getting today’s email. You do not know if your house will be destroyed while you are gone so plan accordingly. Stay away until after lunchtime
• Eat/drink ONLY out of your 72 hour kits until you return home
• While you are out, make a list of potential reasons you may be forced to evacuate. For each scenario, write down where you would go, what type of stuff you would need in your kits, how long you’d be gone, etc. Use this list to re-evaluate what you may or may not include in your kits.
• Make a list of all of your valuables to submit to your insurance company since your house was destroyed while you were gone (this is more valuable to have BEFORE you actually lose everything)
• Using the daily report card, make a list of things you could do/buy to minimize your losses in a complete house loss (i.e. Fireproof/waterproof safe, computer backup options, safety deposit box for valuables, etc.)

The 7 Day Challenge: Day 5

Here's the fifth day of Jodi and Julie's 7 Day Challenge from Food Storage Made Easy. Today, we're to pretend there's been a power outage that lasts all day.


A drunk driver struck a power line near your house today. Power is out in your entire neighborhood all day long. You must cook meals for your family using no electricity, and make a NICE Sunday dinner! You must also entertain yourself (and your family members) without electronics (the HORROR).
Goal: Practice living without electricity

Today’s Tasks:

• Cook all three meals without electricity
• Make a NICE Sunday dinner from scratch (no opening up a can of ravioli)
• Do something FUN that doesn’t involve power
• Do an inventory of your fuel storage, how many meals can you cook with the fuel you have stored?
• Review one of our powerless cooking classes (online class or recorded live class)
• SHARING TIME: What tools/fuel did you use to cook without power today? Share a picture or description on our Facebook page or on the blog comments!

The 7 Day Challenge: Day 4

Here is today's challenge from Jodi and Julie over at Food Storage Made Easy.  I'm turning this challenge around so that it's G.W. who is leaving and I have to learn how to manage without him.  I don't know much about basic car maintenance or home repairs. If the lawn tractor quit running, I'd be clueless.  My normal response when something quits working is to ask G.W. to look at it.

It'll take more than just this one day to learn all the skills I need, but at least I'm aware now that there's a giant gap in my skill-set!




One of your elderly parents (or grandparents, or dear friend, or child) is having severe health problems and can no longer afford home health care. You were asked to come and live with them for 2 months to help out with their day to day living and have to leave TOMORROW. Today you must help your family prepare for you to have an extended “leave of absence”. If you are single focus on getting your own affairs settled.
Goal: Teach your family knowledge and skills that depend on you

Today’s Tasks:

• Teach the other members of your household how to do any tasks that normally fall to you (i.e. laundry, cooking basics, mowing the lawn, car maintenance, etc.)
• Make sure to pass any financial information on to your spouse, significant other, or another family member. (Use this questionnaire we made last year as a starting point of the type of info you should pass on)
• If you’re the one in charge of managing the family schedule and routines, write it all out and make assignments or arrangements for how the family could make it without you
• If you live alone, make a plan for who would look after your house/affairs if you had to leave suddently
• Make a list of all your logins for important websites that family members may need to access. Either print it and put it somewhere secure or save it in a secure manner on your computer
• SHARING TIME: What is the ONE task that would be hardest for someone else to take over if you were gone for two months? Share in the blog comments or over on our Facebook page.