Hey ya’ll, I’m Jess from Roots & Refuge Farm
Welcome to a place that feels like home. A small farm with a big family. We hope you’ll pull up a chair, grab some coffee and visit awhile.
There was a time that all I wanted in the world was a little farm where I could raise my family and grow our food. Now, that is exactly what exists outside my door. In watching it unfold, a new dream was formed in my heart – to share this beautiful life with others and teach them the lessons we’ve learned along the way. Welcome to our journey, friend. I am so glad you’re here.
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WHERE TO FIND US (Some of the links here are affiliate links. If you purchase through our links we’ll receive a small commission but the price remains the same – OR BETTER – for you! Be sure to check for any mentioned discount codes.)
– Our Website: https://rootsandrefuge.com
– Sign up for our newsletter: https://rootsandrefuge.com/yt-signup
– Join our Patreon to get early access to podcasts and other information, plus monthly LIVES with me and Miah: https://patreon.com/rootsandrefuge
– Abundance+ (Grab a FREE 7-day trial): https://rootsandrefuge.com/yt-wilder-still
– Shop our Stickers & Shirts: https://rootsandrefuge.com/yt-shop
– Order my first book, “First Time Gardener”: https://rootsandrefuge.com/yt-ftgbook
– Order my second book, “First Time Homesteader”: https://rootsandrefuge.com/first-time-homesteader-yt
– Instagram: www.instagram.com/roots_and_refuge
– Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rootsandrefugefarm
– Email Us: rootsandrefuge@yahoo.com
– To drop us a line:
PO Box 4239
Leesville SC 29070
– To have a gift sent to our house from our Amazon wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/SFA0IZHZRCOZ?ref_=wl_share
– To support us through PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/jessicasowards
– Music by Daniel Smith
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PRODUCTS WE LOVE – You’ve probably heard me talk about these things a million times, so here’s where you can order them (and get a discount with my code!):
– Greenstalk Vertical Gardens (Use code “ROOTS10” for $10 off your order): https://rootsandrefuge.com/yt-greenstalk
– Squizito Tasting Room (Use code “ROOTS” for 10% off your order): https://rootsandrefuge.com/yt-squizito
– ButcherBox: https://rootsandrefuge.com/butcherbox
– Growers Solution: https://rootsandrefuge.com/growers-solution
– Neptune’s Harvest Fertilizer: https://rootsandrefuge.com/neptunes-harvest-fertilizer
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31 Comments
Oh definitely a fence I'd say like a split rail style fence between those gardens. You are known for Rosed and Sunflowers. So I'd plant roses and sunflowers along/on fence. Then the berry garden sounds great there. I like that grassy area just grass. Need grassy open spaces for view and play. Walking barefoot. 🙂
Maybe consider putting asparagus in the perennial garden.
I also am an obsessive eater. My parents joke about it because I’ve always been this way. They will ask me, “what’s on the food roster this month?” 😂
If raspberries are on your list of wants for your berry area, consider the Dorman red raspberries. They do great in the south and aren’t effected by the heat and humidity like many other varieties that struggle in the south 😊. I grew up growing raspberries with my dad and was adamant that I would find a variety that would grow in the south that would take me back to my childhood memories with my dad further north. I’m in Charleston sc area and the Dorman reds have not disappointed!
Gooseberries make great pies and jams. I know they will grow here in Colorado but, we have a much dryer climate in central Colorado than in South Carolina. Just a thought.
My bell peppers are doing awesome also I'm near you in Spartanburg,I've been doing a lot of cutting them in strips with onions just enough for to do I can do fajitas and still also with my pablano peppers,so convenient.i also dice peppers and onions separately and flash freeze those put in gallon baggies so I can get just what I need out .my first garden in probably 10 yrs lot of health problems.But it has produced like crazy pulled my tomatoes out today .planted some starts of collards,and mustard green.also row of mixed greens and turnips.hope the come up.?is it still okay to plant beets direct seed now or did I wait to late .love your videos have a great week.God Bless ❤
Do a food forest example since you’ve got enough room that a couple of taller things wouldn’t shade out the gardens on either side? Like maybe grapes with low perennials underneath like blackberries or strawberries and a row of asparagus behind where it can be more unsightly?
Brassicas will be back in spring in full force while the peppers will be just waking up! Let the pepper harvests roll in as long as you can.
What about pulling out one of each type of pepper plant and plant a brassicas there?
My suggestion for that new space would be to build an open top pergula with grape vines in each corner and train them to grow up it creating a roof of dangling fruit. Then just rows of a bunch of different berries. Blackberries, red raspberries, fall gold raspberries, blueberries,…just a variety of many sweet things that grow in your area.
Sweet Jess, you mentioned the deer have been eatting your sweet potato vines. Deer love Muscadine Grapes, and there leaves. And of course they love berries. My suggestion, plant deer resistant plants (flowers deer usually don't like, or like very little) around (making a natural fence) your grapes and berries, or place a solar panel deer fence. I have planted Zinnias every where, and the deer leave them alone. I also use Premiere 1's solar panel deer, and small animal electric fence around my garden. The critters leave the garden alone. I love your idea of plantimg grapes and berries going the opposite direction.
I'd suggest pine straw for mulch around the berries & grapes. I think doing the beds perpendicular is a great idea and will add some more whimsy to the space.
Jessica, PLEASE REMEMBER THAT IF YOU LEAVE THE GRASS IN THE WALKWAYS, YOU WILL HAVE TO MOW WITH A BAGGER ATTACHMENT. MY HUSBAND MOWED AROUND MY LOWER GARDEN BEDS AND DIDN'T USE THE BAGGER AND HE BLEW GRASS AND WEED SEEDS ALL INTO MY GARDEN BEDS….. IT'S HARD ENOUGH TO KEEP THE GRASS AND WEEDS PULLED OUT, BUT NOW ITS BASICALLY IMPOSSIBLE…😢 ITS A HORRIBLE IDEA NOT TO USE A BAGGER, AND CERTAINLY DON'T USE A WEED EATER…😳✌
Would the arborist be willing to tell you guys where they'll be so you can pick them up right where they're making the woodchips?
Or you guys could rent/borrow a box van/truck/whatever for the arborist to fill up for you and you guys pick it up at the end of the job?
Although i dont have the space you have i have been growing perrineals in containers. I agree with the blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries, muscadines. You could also add honeyberries, elderberries, figs, horseradish, ginger, tumeric, sunchokes. Anything you plant will grow!!😂
Make a list of the soft fruits you and the fam like first. Put those in first. Save some room for experiments later and finally consider low raised beds because berries especially require a fair amount of maintenance to keep them from taking over. They spread by underground runners so raised beds will help keep them in a little better. I like the layout you’re thinking about. It would be a good contrast to raised bed garden. Also by building low raised beds in the berry patch, it will be like visually “stepping down” to the in-ground garden.
Does it matter if your beds/rows go N-S or E-W?
Before you set up the perennials consider the direction of the wind. You want the muscadine running parallel to the wind, and even your berries. High winds can damage everything unless it can easily blow through without the plants becoming a wall, just something to consider before you arrange the area.
Can I suggest that you have a field trip to a winery? I know that you will find some inspiration for your vineyard area….
4 years ago we planted 24 raspberry bushes, today we have about 50! So, they are prolific growers, they send shoots up everywhere. I can’t even walk between the rows today because of the summer growth. Keep that in mind when buying them, they’ll reproduce a lot. Buy 1/2 of what you eventually want, and the second 1/2 will be free. I was getting about a quart of raspberries a day in July, now I’m just getting about 1/2 a pint, if that? They’re everbearing (like some strawberries).
If you want strawberries in there, I started this season out buying 90 or so plants, and I counted well over 170 the other day. Grew some in the greenstalk and took the runners that were on the ground and “planted” them in pots around the greenstalk itself. Those are taken to the inground garden as soon as they’re ready to be separated from the mother plant. I’m still picking red berries, here in northern Michigan. 😊
So jealous! I tried growing Purple bell peppers and they never got very big! Maybe next year ❤
Why don’t you prune then overwinter your pepper plants?
Here in western Washington blackberries grow wild everywhere and we try our best to keep them out of our gardens so they don't take over the whole place. Maybe it's just here. Raspberries are a must in my mind plus blueberries, huckleberries, elderberries, serviceberries. Not sure what grows best in your area. Huckleberry ice cream is the best. Can't wait to see your new plans realized.
Hi Jess, I think you should turn your high tunnel into a propagation area.
You have enough growing beds, now you need an area to raise seedlings that doesn't get as hot as your greenhouse.
Then use your greenhouse as a conservatory. ❤
That's just what I would use the space for😊
Love your channel ! ❤❤
A tip for your walkways…just let the grass go to seed instead of weed whacking. It is untidy and annoying for about 2 weeks at its tallest, but then it just lays down nicely and becomes a nice layer of mulch. New grass plants may sprout from the seed but they will be slow growing and less dense over time. I stopped mowing 3 years ago and my grass is never taller than ankle height and never unsightly anymore. Thank you for everything you do and share with us 💚
Only thing about a lot of the cardboard is it has glue in it.
I would put down 2 more high tunnels. But i'm guessing thats not what you want for that potato patch. So i'm not much help 😅
Hi Jess! There are two things I thought about for you to consider when laying out your perennial beds. One is, do you need to consider the way the sun hits them, like north to south or east to west, and the second is, do you need to make crossover paths so you do not have to go to the other end of a sixty foot row to get to the other side of it?
Thank you for sharing life with us! It is a blessing!
‘Analysis Paralysis”, finally I have a name for my affliction! LOL
Hi Jess, consider a row of peach trees. South Carolina peaches are the best!
Definitely grow all the perennial medicinal plants that you're able… ginger, turmeric american ginseng, etc….❤❤❤