I stayed up late last night searching for compost. I had searched for it in the past with little to no luck but that was because I was searching in the wrong place. I should have gone to craigslist all along. Several farms and compost businesses were advertising there product in the GARDEN/FARMING section. So I emailed one farmer that advertised 65lb for $10.00. He didn't reply by morning so I moved on. I am happy that I did because I only had to travel to American University (about 20 mins drive) to buy 20lbs for $5.00 and I supported a Veteran business.
Before Veteran Compost I called a man "known for his compost" and he said that the minimum I could buy was 4 cubic yards. I had already filled my garden beds with soil. I would have loved to fill them with compost but like I said I couldn't find it back in March so that wasn't going to work. I did keep him in mind for my boyfriends Dad because he delivered in bulk and the price was right. For the topsoil MG crap Mr. S would have ended up paying somewhere close to $400.00 for 2 cubic yards. Opposed to $125.00 for 4 cubic yards. After getting the no from Bulk-man I emailed Veteran Compost and a guy named Jeff called me back 20 minutes later saying that I could pick my bag/s up around 3pm at the AU campus. The ride down was a bit more complicated than I thought... I guess I don't know the area as well as I thought I did. I ended up having to turn around on Nebraska 3 times before I found the right AU gate entrance. It was worth it though. I meant Jeff picked up a bag and went home to plant my strawberries.
Topsy Turvy...
The second I got home with the compost I pulled out the organic potting mix and perlite. I would have planted in all compost but the Topsy Turvy was already going to be very heavy and compost is heavier than potting mix. I didn't want to risk waking up to a crumbled over planter. I pulled out the freshly painted recycling bin and pour in 1 part potting mix to 1 part compost to .75 parts perlite. The mix was compost heavy but not weight heavy. I began filling the planter and un-cupped 1 strawberry. What happened next was something I was afraid of from the moment I received the bare root berries, the soil fell of and the holes in the planter weren't holding them. Now, the roots did grow in the cups but because I wasn't able to fan them out they didn't grab much soil so in the end I did have a better root system but I still had to plant barefoot. I added soil, a row of berries, then more soil, more berries and so on until I hit the top. I filled in the planter with 2 inches to spare and brought my Shepard hook to where the sun is currently best. I tried lifting the planter. I failed. I tried again with a grunt and heave and finally got it on the hook just to have to take it back down because I'd forgotten the lid. Another grunt heave and back up on the hook to water. I started watering, slowly as suggested, and realized that the water was just going down the middle. Burpee suggested that I got the roots to 3 inches so I didn't think the middle would do it for the first time around. I heaved it back off the hook and finally thought to myself, Topsy Turvy bad idea. It's almost as tall as I am and weighs about as much AND it's burying my CROWNS! UGH!! I don't really recommend it so far, especially if your a petite female. Maybe it'll grow amazing berries and I'll take this all back but the work has not yet been worth it. I watered and added some more compost mix because hanging compacted the soil and the top plants roots were showing then I heaved and ho'ed because it was heavier and finally got it back on the hook for good. Before I left the planter I went around to check that all the crowns were positioned properly. Hanging had caused most of them to dip down, so 1 by 1 I pulled them all back out. The planter has been a hassle and a half. I hope it produces and well or I might have to send Mr Topsy Turvy some "compost."
I have 12 strawberry plants left that I plan on planting in different containers around Patch. I think it'll be a good way to compare the results of the Topsy Turvy and ensure that I get some strawberries even if the planter ends up being complete crap. I didn't do much else but water today because picking up the compost and planting the strawberries took me a few hours. I did tell Mikes Dad about the compost and place the order. I think it's great that my misses ended up being helpful to his garden. We'll be getting 3 cubic yards of compost delivered to the house tomorrow. I'm very excited about, what I call, Potagar (French for Kitchen Garden) Schoultz. We'll all be green yet!
Plan for Potagar Schoultz
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