It’s always a fun time for me when I’m planning the new garden. By this time of year I’ve had a bit of time to rest up from last year’s efforts, and a fresh new garden year is waiting before me. It’s still hard for me to believe I have been gardening for over 40 years now. It seems like only yesterday I was renting a tiller and tilling up the whole back yard of my first home. As I recall, it was a front tine tiller too and gave me quite a workout while I tilled the hard clay soil.
first garden spot
The last few years I have been scaling back the size of the garden, and experimenting with growing methods that make things easier for me. I’ve had great success using the no-dig, no-till method the last couple of years, and I have transitioned to using this way of growing for all my crops except the sweet potatoes. There are many advocates of this method that was championed by Ruth Stout in the U.S. and by British gardening guru Charles Dowding.
no-dig bed with radishes and turnips planted
I’ve also been using woven weed barrier fabric the last three years with great results. The material I’m using is four feet wide, and listed as “professional grade 3.2 oz” material. While it costs a bit more upfront – about $15 per bed, I save money by not having to buy straw every year. Around here, a bale has been costing $7, and it takes about two bales per bed to mulch. Since I can re-use the weed barrier fabric for several years, it pays for itself pretty quickly. The woven material is porous and allows water to penetrate quite easily, and does a great job of keeping weeds down and preserving soil moisture. I rotate my crops every year, and I take up the weed barrier before amending the soil for the next crop to be planted.
weed barrier fabric in garden
I mentioned earlier I have been scaling back the garden in recent years. One of my seven beds is already idled, and this year I plan to idle a second bed, which should reduce the growing space by about 15%. This change isn’t permanent, and if I find I need more room I can always plant more. That said, I will be turning 71 years old this year and cutting back the size of the garden makes sense.
vegetable garden
I also want to mention a few of the new things I plan to grow in 2024. I’m always on the lookout for new varieties of tomatoes to trial, and this year Johnny’s Selected Seeds has a trio that look promising. Harvest Moon is a golden colored slicer with red blushes inside. Strawberry Fields is a pink slicer, while Marmalade Skies is a medium sized orange slicer. And who could resist a Beatles reference like that!
Harvest Moon tomato
Strawberry Fields tomato
Marmalade Skies tomato
I also like trying new pepper varieties, and this year I plan to add Black Magic Jalapeno (from High Mowing Seeds) to my grow list, and bring back 2017 AAS Winner Mad Hatter which has done well for me in the past.
Mad Hatter peppers
I’m also looking forward to growing Teagan lettuce, which is a new introduction from Row 7 Seeds. It is described as a cross between an Italian heirloom head lettuce with a red leaf lettuce, and should make an interesting addition to my lettuce lineup. Bauer is a green oakleaf lettuce and a 2022 AAS Winner that did quite well for me last year. I plan on growing more of it this year.
Bauer leaf lettuce
I’m sure there will be a few other new varieties to try as I finish ordering seeds and as seed companies make them available. I hope you have enjoyed hearing some of my gardening plans for 2024, and here’s hoping 2024 is a healthy and happy year for us all!
Photos of Harvest Moon, Strawberry Fields and Marmalade Skies tomatoes are courtesy of Johnny’s Selected Seeds.