KeithInSpace
Veteran Member
Know this probably should end up in a general projects directory, but it is a response to a direct request from my lawn project update images and is really a continuance of that previously posted thread...
This is the garden I put together for my wife.
The in-ground stuff: Pre-backhoe, I had dug a 2' deep swimming pool in the bottom as best I could and set 6" x 6" timbers to bound the hole. Though you can only see one timber, they are stacked two tall with 1/2" re-bar pinning the two layers together. The timbers were all 16', so they are laid as 8' x 16' on the ground. Originally, I had placed ~3CY of engineered fill (part topsoil, part sand, and part cooked compost). Turned out that it turned to STONE after it set up for a while (despite the sand and compost) and we could not grow ANYTHING in it the first year. Quite sad to have this BEE-AYY-UTIFUL garden area and thousands of dollars of equipment with sad, dead sprigs of tomato plants in there.
The frame: All 2" x 2" treated pine held together by nothing other than DeWalt finish nailer-fired 2" 18 Gauge brads nails. No screws, no big nails, no pins, nothing. The only screws in the structure are those associated with the door hinges and hardware. All cuts are 45 degree. In the areas where I didn't need to worry about headroom, I maximized structural stability by making the corner braces long. In the center area where I wanted headroom (and by the door), I made them shorter. It is a VERY stout structure. I recently whacked it several times with my BH bucket, once bending the front center support a solid 6" or more inward. The whole structure moves as a unit, doesn't collect any wind, and seems like it will be happy to stand for another 10+ years with no further attention. I will probably pressure wash it and water seal it soon. I put some lathe at the top to form a "roof" of sorts, but it is unnecessary. Going back, I would not have done that.
The screen: I bought it in rolls at Home Depot. It is literally sold as "deer screen". It is flexible plastic and you can't really see it unless you're right up on it...otherwise just it looks like an odd open wood structure at the end of my driveway. The holes are about 1/2" x 1/2". The screen door had regular "screen door screen" on it for the first year. It caught a bunch of wind and eventually ripped out. A couple of weeks ago, I replaced it with deer screen and it works great. I'd suggest doing that out of the box. The screen is held in place by staple gun staples, nothing more.
The entire project took a single day to complete after the hole was dug. We have had 80 MPH winds since I built it and it is fine (though the trees block most major wind, but it ain't going nowhere).
Recent work: I backhoe'd out all of the granite-like soil to a depth of about 2 feet. I even got the corners that I couldn't get with the FEL the first time. I replaced it in layers of peat moss, topsoil, and my own leaf/grass compost. We recently planted this year's veggies and I think it will do much better.
Future: The whole thing will grow by another 8' to the rear by next growing season. And may get a shed planted beside it...the tractor will probably move into the shed. And I will bury a PVC water line to the structure so I don't have a hose across my grass all summer.
This is the garden I put together for my wife.
The in-ground stuff: Pre-backhoe, I had dug a 2' deep swimming pool in the bottom as best I could and set 6" x 6" timbers to bound the hole. Though you can only see one timber, they are stacked two tall with 1/2" re-bar pinning the two layers together. The timbers were all 16', so they are laid as 8' x 16' on the ground. Originally, I had placed ~3CY of engineered fill (part topsoil, part sand, and part cooked compost). Turned out that it turned to STONE after it set up for a while (despite the sand and compost) and we could not grow ANYTHING in it the first year. Quite sad to have this BEE-AYY-UTIFUL garden area and thousands of dollars of equipment with sad, dead sprigs of tomato plants in there.
The frame: All 2" x 2" treated pine held together by nothing other than DeWalt finish nailer-fired 2" 18 Gauge brads nails. No screws, no big nails, no pins, nothing. The only screws in the structure are those associated with the door hinges and hardware. All cuts are 45 degree. In the areas where I didn't need to worry about headroom, I maximized structural stability by making the corner braces long. In the center area where I wanted headroom (and by the door), I made them shorter. It is a VERY stout structure. I recently whacked it several times with my BH bucket, once bending the front center support a solid 6" or more inward. The whole structure moves as a unit, doesn't collect any wind, and seems like it will be happy to stand for another 10+ years with no further attention. I will probably pressure wash it and water seal it soon. I put some lathe at the top to form a "roof" of sorts, but it is unnecessary. Going back, I would not have done that.
The screen: I bought it in rolls at Home Depot. It is literally sold as "deer screen". It is flexible plastic and you can't really see it unless you're right up on it...otherwise just it looks like an odd open wood structure at the end of my driveway. The holes are about 1/2" x 1/2". The screen door had regular "screen door screen" on it for the first year. It caught a bunch of wind and eventually ripped out. A couple of weeks ago, I replaced it with deer screen and it works great. I'd suggest doing that out of the box. The screen is held in place by staple gun staples, nothing more.
The entire project took a single day to complete after the hole was dug. We have had 80 MPH winds since I built it and it is fine (though the trees block most major wind, but it ain't going nowhere).
Recent work: I backhoe'd out all of the granite-like soil to a depth of about 2 feet. I even got the corners that I couldn't get with the FEL the first time. I replaced it in layers of peat moss, topsoil, and my own leaf/grass compost. We recently planted this year's veggies and I think it will do much better.
Future: The whole thing will grow by another 8' to the rear by next growing season. And may get a shed planted beside it...the tractor will probably move into the shed. And I will bury a PVC water line to the structure so I don't have a hose across my grass all summer.
