Today we finished a four-day project. Built a raised bed for our new blueberry bushes. The old ones drowned in our heavy clay. Used untreated landscape timbers and built a bed three feet wide by eight feet long. Drilled half inch holes in the timbers, three each for the long run, one each for the end caps. Stacked the timbers and drove an eighteen inch long half inch diameter rebar stack in each hole and used six inch, super strong, metal screws to hold the end caps in place. Worked well but took we old people a few days to gather, contemplate, consider, and do the work. Today we mixed up a big mess of dirt, vermiculite, peat moss, and composted cow manure.
Dug the three new plants in, watered well, and took a nap. In 2013 and early 2014 we got a goodly amount of berries from the originals. Then the heavy rains came and drowned everything planted in a hole in the five feet of clay under our property except the pear tree. Had a crew come in and dig a humongous hole for that one with lots of soil amendments added.
The plants had bloom buds appearing already so we will see what happens now. Three different rabbit eye bushes should cross pollinate well and we happen to have a goodly amount of pollinators here. Mostly bumble, mason, and carpenter bees with a few European honey bees and a lot of bee flies.
One more raised bed to amend starting tomorrow when I take the last three cabbage heads out and pull up the green pea vines that haven't done well all winter. The other bed will get emptied by the middle of this month. Pulled the last of the beets and radishes from that one but still have broccoli, spinach, and lettuce doing well there. Will empty it anyway as it badly needs amending for spring.
George