The new owner of this wooded property called me in to design a terraced vegetable garden as part of a larger plan to transform the land into an edible landscape. There were a lot of challenges to the plan, the number one being the property was wooded, with a creek, so therefore was a wildlife magnet, including the dreaded groundhog (an entrenched extended family of them). The second major challenge was the lay of the land, which sloped steeply from the house and under the sod could be found red shale 4 inches down. Not ideal for growing much of anything. So, terraced raised beds were necessary and so were a truckload of composted manure, a staircase for access and a low profile electrified fence. To date it was my most involved project, but after a year is holding up pretty well. We had one groundhog break in, so the fence needed to be fortified with chicken wire, and the soil in the beds has sunk quite a bit, but no major issues have arisen so far. For its small size, this garden produced enough veggies for the couple plus their visiting friends and family.
Callicoon (Hospital Rd) Vegetable Garden
July 3, 2012 | 0 comments