Urban Farming Externship - Week 4

Well, it's week 4 and our project is starting to resemble more than two holes in the ground! We got the PVC watering system put together. It began with a trip to Ace Hardware where we bought the following:

• 25 feet of 4mm Heavy Duty Plastic Sheeting 
• 1 1/2 inch-1 1/2 inch-1/2 inch Tee (2)
• 1 1/2 inch Cap (2)
• 1 1/2 inch Elbow (2)
• 3 1/2 feet of 1 1/2 inch PVC (2)
• 1 1/2 feet of 1 1/2 inch PVC (2)
• 1 foot of 1 1/2 inch PVC (2)
• 1/2 foot of 1/2 inch PVC (2)

First, we lined the holes with the plastic sheeting, which we rolled out and cut into thirds:

Next, we assembled the PVC pieces, cut a small hole in the plastic for the overflow, and put them in. I will note that we ended up trimming each of the 1 foot PVC pieces quite a bit, but I would still recommend buying a foot, as the length will be largely determined by how perfect you dug your hole. After putting in the PVC system, we stapled the plastic sheeting to the wood to somewhat hold it together. It looks messy right now, but I'll trim it up once we put in the gravel. I wanted to leave plenty of slack just in case. 

YAY for wicking beds! 

...and here is the progress so far:

Our plan next week is to get the gravel in. I don't know that it's going to be a one-weekend project. We've had excessive heat warnings this past week and shoveling gravel will be hard work! We're going to start with some round-shaped gravel we have on the side of the house. There's quite a bit in a fairly large area, and I'd like to get it cleaned out anyway because it's the perfect place to grow rows of veggies that don't mind some shade! 

Week 6 may be a bit slow; I'm getting my wisdom teeth out that week and I have no idea how long it will take me to recover. I plan to sip on lots of fruit and veggie packed smoothies and juices to speed up recovery - wish me luck! :)

Lastly, and unrelated to my externship - I was finally able to get my hands dirty. Most of my spring flowers are toast since the heat hit, so I planted some pretty lantana that the bees are sure to love:

We also decided to turn over a corner of our yard to nature. I noticed some "weeds" and native trees pop up there, so we're going to just let them be. Birding is another of my hobbies, and I think they would appreciate some native trees and shrubs in our yard. :)