starting a veggie garden

I would like to try my hand at growing my own vegetables. Are raised beds the best way to grow vegetables? Also, how do you keep animals out, like rabbits and woodchucks and such?

maybe I should rephrase my question....do I HAVE to use a raised bed to grow vegetables? I have a shoulder injury and am unable to build anything right now.
Has anybody had success growing vegetables in a regular garden plot, that is not raised or fenced?

javabeans2 - it depends on what type of soil you have as to whether you need raised beds. Until I moved here to NC I had NEVER used raised beds. But then I encountered hard red clay!

Which means, for 50-plus years I used good old garden dirt, and for the past 5; expensive store bought dirt!

As to keeping out rabbits, you'll need a fence. We don't have woodchucks here, so can't help with that one.

HoneybeeNC thank you, it was very kind of you to answer my question. It isn't possible for me to build a fence this year, perhaps I'll just try some vegetables in containers, not that I know which vegetables would do well in a container. I'm on old farm land, I have heard the soil described as black gold (?), I assume that's good.

Javabeans2,
Go to the Self-contained veggie gardens forum and look for the eBuckets! They could be your answer!

You can grow this in a container, too!

javabeans2 - I know what you mean about building a fence. Ours it starting to fall apart, and it's not in the budget to replace it!

You can purchase poultry fencing (we used to call it chicken fencing) at a reasonable cost from Lowe's. When we first purchased our little dog, we used this fencing around our beds to teach her not to enter them. It was two feet high and cost about $25 for a 50 foot roll. That was a few years back, so it's probably more expensive now. This wire should keep out rabbits, unless they burrow under the wire.

I just looked up "Woodchuck" and see they are quite large animals, so am not sure if poultry wire would keep them out.

Hey Javabeans2!

I've lived in a rental now for many years so I could not put in a regular garden, but I have a very large patio garden - even a trellis - all in containers and pots.
I have grown tomatos, cucumbers, bell and hot peppers, squash, zuccini, strawberries, herbs, and lettuces all in upright containers/pots without issue. The best part being that I could move them as needed (if needed) becuase of hail, extreme winds, or other inclement weather. Because of how large my garden was getting, I even used Kitty Litter containers (the big plastic ones) and even some wicker baskets (for the herbs). Just make sure whatever you use has holes for drainage (I drilled small holes in my buckets).
I also used buckets for a hanging garden with tomatoes and cucumbers coming out the bottom, and other vegis or herbs growing out the top. This method still needs some tweaking, but I had a good crop. I used my neighbors (metal) swing frame so I could move it around the yard a bit to find the best spot. It was fun being able to grow two items in one container. :-) Be aware that what you plant around your tomatos and cucumbers can affect their taste. (I like planting herbs, like basil, with the tomatoes).
My neighbor grows beans and cucmbers? up her trellis. She plants them in large pots and puts the pots by the trellis. I looks beautiful and is very functional.
Oh, there are also some flowers that you can grow in the pots or garden alongside your vegis that help deter insects from the vegi plants. The Romans used this method very effectively. (I have Mommy-brain right now, so I can't think of what I planted... marigolds for one... look up roman gardening...)
Maybe this will give you food for thought :-) Hope you arm gets better.

Michelle in AL

Oh, I meant to say I that I know this is a bit out from what you were originally asking about, but I was thinking that it might be a low maintenance option for you while your arm heals and it gives you time to decide and plan what you want to do with your garden. It's an easy way to "try out" new plants/vegis without them taking up space in your garden. It also keeps the vegis elevated due the height of the pots. The rabbits left my grandmothers potted plants alone but eat the ones planted on the ground. You can also set them even higher by placing them on plant stands or benches (or upside down larger pots) which might help with woodchucks.

If you don't care about looks, you can really use just about anything as a container so long as it has drainage and you cleaned it out first before planting. So you don't have to spend a lot of money of pots that you might not use again next year.

HoneyBee--

Is it worth it to do the electric fence line along the bottom of the 2 ft chicken wire to teach the bunnies not to burrow and the dog and stray cats to stay away?

JavaBeans2--

I'm using EarthBoxes and Topsy Turveys. Green peppers, egg plant, and paste, regular, and cherry tomatos in the Topsy Turveys. Carrots, onions, green onions, beans, peas, garlic, gherkins, celery, and pumpkin in the EarthBoxes. Potatoes in a different kind of container (kitty litter buckets or 5 gallon buckets). Strawberries in strawberry jar planters, and blueberries, raspberries, and cranberries in the ground. Haven't decided on how to plant the horseradish since it spreads like crazy.

The Earth Boxes are self-watering (you keep the reservoir filled) and self-fertilizing and the tops keep the weeds out. They're expensive, but I'm trying to reduce the work involved with veggie gardening and everyone I've talked to that has used them has been very happy with them. I didn't get the staking system since I can get trellis nets, little trellises, wire cages, and stakes/sticks a lot cheaper.

The Topsy Turveys put the veggies downward so they'll be easier to pick later. They're watered from the top so it's like watering a right-side-up plant from the bottom.

If you hang your veggies, go to Wally World and get a watering wand that has a movable head to put on the end of your hose so you can water the hanging plants without straining. The movable head is important so you can adjust the angle of the water. Some of the watering wands have a fixed angle and it's "never" the right angle for me.

Good luck!


This message was edited Apr 13, 2011 4:09 PM

GrayThumb - I've never used an electric fence so don't know what to tell you.

You could try purchasing a taller fence and bending the lower part towards you so bunnies and dogs wont be able to dig under the fence. I found it quite easy to teach the dogs to respect our raised beds by placing their front paws on the ege of the board, waving my hand back and forth while repeating: NO - NO - NO.

Im new to gardening as well and live in a small rental here in NOLA. I made 3...3'x7'x10" beds in my back yard. I only planted in one box this spring with hopes to move into the other two this fall.

it can certainly be done with limited space and since it is only my girlfriend and my self, our veggie garden does not have to be huge, but there is some work to be done even if you have a small or limits on your space.

NOLA77,
This is a double post from the other thread. How about some pictures, please?

What part of town are you growing in? My family home is in the Broadmore area, on Ursulines Avenue a block off North Broad. ^^_^^

Pleased to make your acquaintance!

Linda

A different fencing option is lightweight plastic. My fence this year is 24" tall with 2" squares. It is supported with 36" lightweight U posts that are attached with zip ties.

wow what a great bunch of feedback I got! thank you so much, there are so many ideas in here I have to think this out and decide what is easiest yet will be successful...those earthboxes look interesting, I couldn't tell if they are covered with a screen or cloth....I wonder if putting one of those on top of the picnic table will make it high enough to keep the woodchucks out. I'm in CT it's pretty cold here still, I have a little time to figure things out.

BTW,
You could make at least 3-4 homemade earthboxes for the price of one shipped, patented EB. One 18+ gallon Rubbermade tub + one inverted laundry basket.

The fencing option I decided on for the blueberries, raspberries, and cranberries is the Lowe's 24 inch green chicken wire spported by green metal chain link posts with extra attachment with little zip ties. Trying to prevent the wrath of Code Enforcement by using the green that should blend in with the foliage (maybe). When the berries start to ripen, I'll add bird netting that is also supposed to keep squirrels out.