This is the planter to use for maximum strawberry planting in small space!
A dedicated strawberry patch, even a small one ranging between 40 to 50 square feet, is managable by most gardeners and will supply a season's worth of strawberries for a small family.
Garden Video: Strawberries Versus Weeds!
Please watch this short and entertaining garden video called, "Strawberries Vs. Weeds Richard Simmons' Estate: Gardens Of The Rich & Famous"- I'm the garden expert for the show!
In it, I outline how to prepare your garden soil for strawberries.
It supposedly takes place in exersize guru, Richard Simmon's home, but it is actually my client's home.
So, not only will you learn how to prepare your soil for strawberry plants, you'll also get to see one of my gardens!
Prepare Garden Soil For Strawberry Plants
Select a site that is as weed and pest free as possible that receives all-day sunlight. Southern exposure is ideal.
Three months (minimum) before planting, pull all visible weeds and apply corn gluten to the soil to act as an organic pre-emergent herbicide.
Water your soil a few times a week in order to encourage weeds to grow.
As the weeds grow, pull them and apply more corn gluten.
Repeat these steps for a few months in order to encourage latent weed growth and strategic weed killing!
In Southern California, November is an ideal month for planting strawberries.
There is plentiful sunshine and slightly cooler temperatures that strawberry plants appreciate.
Plant Your Strawberry Plants!
Now that your have garden soil is moderately weed free, it's time to plant!
Install a weed blocking fabric on top of your strawberry patch and secure with pins.
Cut small holes in the fabric where you will plant your strawberry plants.
Don't make the holes too large because weeds can grow through them and choke out your beloved strawberry plant!
The weed blocking fabric prevents the sun from penetrating the soil and encouraging weeds to grow, supressing their growth.
For greater protection, add a 3 to 4-inch layer of mulch on top of your weed fabric.
As your strawberry plants grow, feed them through their small planting hole and stay on top of any weeds that manage to "break through."
It should be relatively easy to pull them as they emerge.
Build an inexpensive compost bin for red worms and get started on basic vermicomposting!
What is Vermicomposting?
"Vermicomposting is the process where red worms and micro organisms break down rotting food such as breads, banana peels, coffee grounds, paper products, (anything but meat and oil) and transform it into rich, compost soil for your garden!"
Do you want to put your leftover food to work and save money on buying compost for your garden?
It's easy and doesn't require a demanding time commitment or a lot of money to get started.
How Do Red Worms Create Compost?
It's a comlicated process which I will simplify for you:
The red worms live in a compost bin where microorganisms are plentiful.
They dedicate themselves to eating rotting food, multiplying and excreting "vermicastings."
Vermicastings are the end product or prized compost soil that can be used in both containers and garden beds.
In exchange for their castings, the worms ask for a warm, cozy, dark bin to live in, consistent moisture, and some food scraps- which, you need to dispose of anyway!
Sounds like a win/win situation.
Watch Video: "How to Make a Vermicomposting Box: Gardens of the Rich and Famous"
Although the show is actually a comedy and not a traditional garden show, you will take away a valuable "garden 101" tip from me in each video!
Please subscribe to be notified each time a new video is posted!
Materials for Building a Compost Box for Worms
These are the materials I used in my video tutorial:
Two, 5-gallon paint buckets with plastic cover (one bucket will be placed inside the other)
A powered drill with 1/4" bit
Shredded newspaper
Rotting fruit, vegetables, bread, coffee and tea grounds
Red Wiggler worms (these are the best type of worms to use for vermicomposting)
Watering can
Steps for Building a Compost Box for Worms
Prepare the buckets!
1. Drill holes on the bottom of bucket that will be nested inside the other bucket using 1/4 inch drill bit to provide drainage for liquids and water.
When excess water drips out of this bucket, it will be caught in the bottom of second bucket and can be used as "liquid tea" for watering plants.
Holes should be 1/2 inch apart at bottom of bucket to release excess water.
The worms may crawl out but this is not likely.
Add a fine mesh cloth at bottom of bucket if it is a problem.
Add more holes below the bucket rim for aeration.
Add holes all the way around.
Your worms need oxygen too!
2. Nest the bucket that has holes into the second bucket that will act as a resevoir to hold excess liquid.
3. Add shredded newspaper to the bottom of your compost bucket
The newspaper will function as bedding for your red wigglers and should be fluffy and not compacted down, even after watering.
Many newspaper publishers use soy ink these days which is non toxic, but don't use the glossy paper or colored advertising circulers.
4. Water the newspaper to a "wet rag" consistency.
The newspaper should not be soaking wet as this causes the paper to compact and reduces air circulation for the worms.
5. Add rotting pieces of food to bin.
You have a wide assortment of foods that you can add to your worm compost bin but avoid meat, butter, and greasy food at all costs!
Oil and protein do not break down easily and you will attract rats and other vermin to your compost bin.
Yuck!
Be a mensch and cut your food into small pieces so that the worms can digest it easiser.
They have tiny mouths, as you can imagine, and a huge appetite.
Red wigglers in captivity will eat double their weight in food.
They channel their energy for eating and reproducing!
Get ready for worm population explosion in your compost bin- which is a good thing.
More worms, more poop!!
6. Add coffee or tea grounds!
Make friends with the local barista and ask for their used coffee grounds.
Coffee grounds contribute a source of nitrogen and acidity to the compost.
Don't worry if you don't remove the paper filter- the worms will eat that too.
7. Add a final layer of newspaper and water it
As a top layer, I like to hide my food under a final layer of moist newspaper.
This gives my red worms a landing pad when I throw them in and the opportunity to dive and explore their new home.
The newspaper also obscures light coming from the top of the bucket (white lid) and maintains a dark environment which is ideal for the worms.
8. Add the worms!
Some people prefer to wait a week or two after preparing the worm compost bucket to give the food an opportunity to rot and time for micro organisms to multiply.
I add them immediately!
No problem so far.
You will need approximately one pound of red wiggler worms for each pound of food in your composter.
Great deals can be had online or at your local garden center.
I spent $15 for one pound of worms and I expect them to double in population in 60 to 90 days!
9. Add your bucket cover and place your new vermicomposting bin in a sheltered area where it doesn't recieve direct sun.
We are not baking our worms!
Ideal temperatures range from 38 degrees to 85 degrees.
If you don't mind, you can place your compost bin indoors in a kitchen cupboard, utility room or garage.
10. Keep your worms fed!
The first few weeks of vermicomposting will be your discovery period.
Check your bin every few days to inspect the food consumption and assess how often you will need to feed your worms.
A good idea is to feed weekly and set the food in different places underneath your top layer of newspaper.
You don't want to concentrate the food in one area, let them explore!
If you need more paper, add moistened paper to your bin and fluff it so that worms can move around it.
Use Your Worm Castings in the Garden!
Within a few months, your worms will delight you with a supply of fresh compost soil that you can apply to container gardens and landscape plants!
Once you experience the joy of creating your own compost, you will be hooked!
Tips for Worm Composting
Use an opaque colored bucket or bin to keep the inside of your bin dark. Your worms require it!
Make sure the compost bin is always moist but never soaking wet.
Add a little prepared compost or grit to your food mix for extra roughage. Yes, worms need fiber too!
Harvest your worms from the finished compost by luring them to one area of the compost bin with new food. As they gather around the food, they will abandon the clean compost areas so that you can collect it and use in your garden!
Shirley with Ari and Emma of the Digs Channel show, "Gardens of the Rich and Famous"- a comedy web series with gardening undertones!
Good luck with your worm composting project!
Please leave me your questions and comments below so that I can answer them for you.
Bio: Hi! My name is Shirley and I'm an "EdenMaker!" I'm a happily married mom of 4 kids and I design gardens for a living in Los Angeles.
But there's more! You may know me from my garden makeovers on television or for my many web series!
If not , start watching my shows!
http://GardenCenterTV.ning.com & http://Blip.TV/Garden-World-Report
