Day 2 of the vegetable garden – now known as the production garden – construction. John got four beds done yesterday! I helped hold the lumber. Three of the raised beds look different because they are made from non-pressure treated lumber. We opted to go with only a few non-pressure treated. The rest will use the new pressure-treated lumber that supposedly won’t kill us with arsenic and nasty chemicals. All of my research points to the fact that if any chemicals leach from the lumber, they’ll go straight down. And while I hate the thought of putting chemicals anywhere near my vegetables, many experiments point to the fact that the vegetables do not take up much, if any, of the chemicals. So we will put the root crops like carrots, beets, parsnips and radishes in the untreated beds as well as the medicinal herb and herbal tea garden. The treated beds will be planted with swiss chard, spinach, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, corn and various fruits. The string around the beds indicates where the deer-proof fencing will go, and the shed is going between the fence and the woods. I have a great view from my usual seat at the kitchen table of my garden, as well as a bird’s eye view from the upstairs bedrooms.
Shadow ‘helped’ so I’ve included a picture of the two of us here. Notice her spiffy pink bandana. It’s not just a fashion statement. Hunting season starts soon and our land borders 800 acres of forest owned by the local hunt club. Every night during dinner, we’re serenaded by riffle shots as the hunters target practice. Shadow likes to chase deer, so we’ve chosen the bright, hot pink bandana, hoping that if she gets anywhere near a hunter they’ll pull up and not shoot at her. We always wear our bright orange at this time of year when working outside. You never know what folks think they see when they look through the woods and when their blood is up from hunting.
