You don’t have to spend money on resources and convert an entire garden bed into a growing area. You can just build planting holes. It is a way to grow food if you have limited resources, time, or are a budget. This is a great way to grow tomato and pepper plants. It is also a great way to direct seed cucumbers, squash, zucchini, and other plants.
Join this channel to get access to Perk Memberships which focus on providing small live garden mentoring Q & A sessions, classes, and member influenced videos:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCptL6_qMImyW_yZwiMjQdpg/jo
Earn 15% and become a TRG Affiliate for our seed & garden shop. Some people are using it for their social media followings and some people are using it for a fund raiser for schools and sport teams.
You can use this link to our shop and click the MORE tab on the green bar and select TRG Affiliate Program https://www.therustedgarden.com/
Or use this to go directly to our TRG Affiliate Program sign up https://the-rusted-garden.goaffpro.com/create-account
Thanks so much for your support! Cheers & Thanks, Gary!
Visit The Rusted Garden Seed & Garden Shop:
https://www.therustedgarden.com/ – Seeds, Starting Supplies, Neem Oil, Peppermint & Other Oils, Calcium Nitrate & More.
My Books:
The Modern Homestead Garden: Growing Self-Sufficiency in Any Size Backyard
Available Now https://amzn.to/40rfkIb
Growing An Edible Landscape: How to Transform Your Outdoor Space Into a Food Garden
Available November 2023 https://amzn.to/41tfno2
I now have an Amazon Influencer’s Storefront. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Just use my… The Rusted Garden Amazon Influencer’s Storefront link at https://www.amazon.com/shop/garypilarchiktherustedgarden anytime you shop.
I put the products I use and discuss, in videos, there and have gardening products set up by categories. Such as Grow Lights, Fertilizers, Pest Control, and such.
My New Book:
The Modern Homestead Garden: Growing Self-Sufficiency in Any Size Backyard.
An Autographed Copy of my book is at my seed and garden shop: https://www.therustedgarden.com/search?type=product&q=book
My book is also available on Amazon… Thanks 4 the Support!
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Modern-Homestead-Garden-Self-sufficiency-Backyard/dp/0760368171/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=The+modern+homestead+garden&qid=1595425421&sr=8-3
Products I Use and Recommend. I have an affiliation with them:
GreenStalk Vertical Gardening Towers
Use the Discount Code THERUSTEDGARDEN on GreenStalk ‘Vertical Tier Systems’. Use this link and enter my code for the discount http://store.greenstalkgarden.com/?afmc=therustedgarden or this short link http://lddy.no/4eal
Bentley Seed Company https://bentleyseeds.com
AgroThrive Organic Bio-Fertilizers
Use my affiliate link and my code TRG10 to save 10% on your first order: https://agrothrive.com/?ref=M5o6fjdAruq_S
Metal Raised Beds
Check out all the metal bed design & colors (dozens) at Vegega. Here is my affiliate link: https://www.vegega.com/?ref=le64f3gm30 There is often free shipping and discounts. I have a discount code that is always 10% off, use the code TRG. However, it does NOT stack when current sales are active and equal to or above 10% on the site
HoseLink Retractable Hose Reels & other garden care products.
Promotions will vary and I don’t have a code. https://glnk.io/9wqr/therustedgarden
Follow me on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/therustedgarden/
My Vegetable Gardening Podcasts:
are under Gardening Coast2Coast Podcasts
https://gardeningcoast2coast.net/
Join me in my Private FB Group: The Rusted Garden Homestead: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Therustedgardenhomestead
Contact Me at therustedgardenmerch@gmail.com for questions or if you are interested in collaborations, affiliations or advertising.
21 Comments
Please visit The Rusted Garden Seed & Garden Shop (My Shop) for your fabric pots, fall & spring seeds, seed starting supplies, peppermint oil, neem oil, TRG merchandise, and more at http://www.therustedgarden.com
Plus support The Rusted Garden by subscribing and using my Amazon Store Front link
when shopping for anything on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/shop/garypilarchiktherustedgarden
As an Amazon Associate I earn from any qualified purchases, not just items I link.
You can also find items I use or discuss in videos, by checking out my Amazon Storefront for cameras, fertilizer, pest management, shade cloth, seed starting supplies, books and more!
Earn 15% by becoming a Rusted Garden Seed & Garden Shop Affiliate. Some people are using it for their social media followings and some people are using it for a fund raiser for schools and sport teams. To sign up… use this link to our shop and click the MORE tab on the green bar and select TRG Affiliate Program https://www.therustedgarden.com/
Or use this link to go directly to our TRG Affiliate Program sign up https://the-rusted-garden.goaffpro.com/create-account
The Rusted Garden 'Scan & Grow' Seed Collection (My Seed and Garden Shop) Just scan the QR code and watch a planting video:
https://www.therustedgarden.com/search?type=product&q=qr
My soil looks like what yours looks like after you set up the first hole. I had 6” of compost in the raised beds last year. Mixed it all in this year to the clay and looks like that now. Planted peppers today but everything was just way too wet so I had to stop. It was like mud. I will try again tomorrow.
Love ❤️ you. Your great. So much information so much patience. I love the way you doing the tomatoes now. Hopefully I can try that. Thanks so much Gary God bless.
When i plant a tomato plant that deep in clay soil, I add an egg, a banana and a hand full of Epsom salt. By the time the roots of the plant has grown into those ingredients
They will provide it with lots of nutrients
2 scoops (not of raisins) 🤣😂
Also, i save egg shells, blend them in a coffee grinder i have especially for that. Add about 1/2 cup. Good for calcium. Will help prevent Blossom end rot. Used coffee grinds is good, also. Thisis how i plant my tomatoes and they grow hugh roots, very strong to support the huge tomatoes!!
Great suggestions for people frustrated with their clay soil!
I’ve been having to do this with all my leftover tomato plants after all my garden plots are used (the ones I didn’t give away).
Exactly what I needed to see today, thank you! Does this work for melons too?
I use a garden auger on my drill. The 12 inch model. Way easier.
I did this last year and it worked great for me. 15 holes. Two were Zucchini. The rest for cucumbers. I used that MiracleGro garden compost. I gave away so many cucumbers and Zucchini. Gonna go it again this year and expand a bunch for just the same way.
Your garden looks amazing Gary. You're an inspiration ~
What Gary's telling you works. You don't have to do an expensive fix-all to enjoy a few vegetables. I'll be doing the exact same thing with 4 tomato plants in a bed that I started along the fence line. The bed I just planted with a cover crop of nitrogen fixers that I'll turn under after it flowers and before it goes to seed. The goal this year is to build soil, but in the meantime we'll see if the clay substrate can yield a few tomatoes along the way. In the fall, lots of leaf mulch over the winter, all turning into soil, all free. Eventually I'll have a garden bed where I can part the soil with my fingers and plant anything. Cheap and easy…
Someone told me to mix in fine sand with clay soil, along with the items your using. Would sand help?
What mineral is making your clay soil so orange? Is that the same stuff they make red bricks from? I would make some and sell it off to buy compost.
I really want to dig up our lawn and get the clay for pottery. I love no dig but the deep cracks in dry weather makes me think of those sink holes.
We increased the lawn space during the renovation but it really needs levelling and flattening. The only bed that we really haven't touched is the back bed. Sprouts seem to love the clay soil as it prevents wind rock. I still want to lay down more homemade compost and get some more from B&Q. I really want to order those 500l square construction bags of compost but they have really bad reviews.
The big bags we order contain stones and thick wood pieces. Wood, we can compost again but i don't like the stone. One bag had a bit of glass and what looks like a plastic hose drip nossle. It looked like a toy at first.
Thank you, good directions!
This came right on time for some of my okra plants. I only plant on raised beds but has been contemplating using some of my sunny clay spaces to grow more food.
I love how you are always looking out for new gardeners, and giving more seasoned gardeners new tips along the way too. Great job!
awesome advice!… thanks!
Gary I've had cabbage going but freezes even covered killed the head but it grew tons of side shoots so I have tons of darker cabbage leaves! Can I use them for something like maybe sauerkraut??