26 thoughts on “VIDEO: Urban Farming Bed Preparation”
You've said in other videos that your soil is more clay than sand. In this video you didn't add a lot of organic matter (compost) in. What have you previously done to improve the soil structure in this soil in the hoophouse?
Curtis how come your still using a tiller over a harrow? I saw the interview you did with Jean-Martian and remember you saying you wish you had his book when you started farming and would implement some things. Just wondering why a power harrow wasn't one of the things to be implemented?
I have a real problem with chick weed in my high tunnel here in southern Ohio. It has the same growing pattern as winter salad greens and it loves the greenhouse environment. Do you have a weed strategy?
Just curios, in your opinion is the market for local produce still increasing, do you find yourself hitting a Plato where there is a saturation of local farmers in comparison to people and restaurants in your area? or have you had to turn away potential business because you just cant grow enough to supply the demand?
Hi Curtis, I am surprised (and I am sure you have very good reason which I am curious to find out) that you are not using raised beds and no tilling – your soil would keep getting richer and you would not have to rototill? Also if you must rototill like the first video – you could have rototilled the path and use that to raise your beds, cover everything with cardboard and newspaper and then add a bit of earth and compost and therefore started to build your soil. I want to be clear that this is not a criticism – I have only been doing this for a year so I need to understand why you would do it. Cheers
I would like to ask how do you know how much water you are using when you are watering beds at other locations do you get your own meter or come to some other agreement or if are using empty lots without a meter?
Do you use bone and blood meal as a medium for all your crops or targeted just plants? Me and a good friend are wanting to start something down here in Texas. We've been studying and researching and doing some trial and error with some growth. The both of us have been watching your videos almost religiously as you have massive amounts of information covering many basis. Thank you for the inspiration to follow a dream, and I wish you the absolute best with your ventures!
Do you honestly feel that gardening organically as a small business is pretty much required in order to "fit" into the market due the misinformation that floats around the gardening community regarding healthiness of monocrop cultivation?
1:28 here you are saying that the crops draw more nitrogen, they are pulling more from the soil, you said. But how can the plants do that when soil life isn't as active in the winter thus resulting in fewer available nutrients for the plants. How does that work in your eyes? Also you said something about that they aren't getting as many "light units" from the sun so they pull more from the soil. But how does a kale(for example) get nitrogen from the sun? How does any plant get nitrogen from the sun? I'm just curious about your soil and your nutrients and organic matter etc, as you talk a lot about efficiency but never about how to use nutrients efficiently, and how do you know you are building organic matter? You are exporting a lot of it thru your high crop rotations. Can you maybe give your take on this?
I live in an urban area and want to start an organic garden. I recently found that my soil is contaminated with coal and coal ash from a previous owner. I have seen recommendations of lining underneath the raised beds to create a barrier between the contaminated soil and the clean soil I will be bringing in. This would be a means of preventing the plants from growing down into the contaminated soil. However, I can't find any sources that mention a specific product for this…. What product would you recommend I use that would be suitable for organic growing?
You've said in other videos that your soil is more clay than sand. In this video you didn't add a lot of organic matter (compost) in. What have you previously done to improve the soil structure in this soil in the hoophouse?
is that a harrow or a rototiller?
Cool music, what the name of the song?
Curtis how come your still using a tiller over a harrow? I saw the interview you did with Jean-Martian and remember you saying you wish you had his book when you started farming and would implement some things. Just wondering why a power harrow wasn't one of the things to be implemented?
Did you double-dig those beds when you first started them and now just rototill them?
What are the dimensions of your high-tunnel? Great video.
I have a real problem with chick weed in my high tunnel here in southern Ohio. It has the same growing pattern as winter salad greens and it loves the greenhouse environment. Do you have a weed strategy?
What is the ratio of blood and bone
meal in your fert mix?
Greetings. When tilling your compost and fertilizers into your bed, how deep are you tilling? Thanks much..
Just curios, in your opinion is the market for local produce still increasing, do you find yourself hitting a Plato where there is a saturation of local farmers in comparison to people and restaurants in your area? or have you had to turn away potential business because you just cant grow enough to supply the demand?
I recall you saying you talked about burning weeds out with a torch… Is there a video of that? Can't seem to find it.
Hi Curtis, I am surprised (and I am sure you have very good reason which I am curious to find out) that you are not using raised beds and no tilling – your soil would keep getting richer and you would not have to rototill? Also if you must rototill like the first video – you could have rototilled the path and use that to raise your beds, cover everything with cardboard and newspaper and then add a bit of earth and compost and therefore started to build your soil. I want to be clear that this is not a criticism – I have only been doing this for a year so I need to understand why you would do it. Cheers
I would like to ask how do you know how much water you are using when you are watering beds at other locations do you get your own meter or come to some other agreement or if are using empty lots without a meter?
What tiller were you using? It seemed to have both the till and a handy leveler in the back.
Another great video..
Do you use bone and blood meal as a medium for all your crops or targeted just plants? Me and a good friend are wanting to start something down here in Texas. We've been studying and researching and doing some trial and error with some growth. The both of us have been watching your videos almost religiously as you have massive amounts of information covering many basis. Thank you for the inspiration to follow a dream, and I wish you the absolute best with your ventures!
-Tommy from Texas
any advice for farmers with more land. I have just Iherited 10 acres.
Do you honestly feel that gardening organically as a small business is pretty much required in order to "fit" into the market due the misinformation that floats around the gardening community regarding healthiness of monocrop cultivation?
What is the dimension of the bed?
Did you use a deep rototiller or the 1-2"deep tiller?
Smooth moves Curtis!
1:28 here you are saying that the crops draw more nitrogen, they are pulling more from the soil, you said. But how can the plants do that when soil life isn't as active in the winter thus resulting in fewer available nutrients for the plants. How does that work in your eyes?
Also you said something about that they aren't getting as many "light units" from the sun so they pull more from the soil. But how does a kale(for example) get nitrogen from the sun? How does any plant get nitrogen from the sun?
I'm just curious about your soil and your nutrients and organic matter etc, as you talk a lot about efficiency but never about how to use nutrients efficiently, and how do you know you are building organic matter? You are exporting a lot of it thru your high crop rotations. Can you maybe give your take on this?
I'd like to see a 2019 reevaluation of this method from Curtis
soil's like butte'
When you get tomato plants in how do you put the fertilizer around them when needed?
I live in an urban area and want to start an organic garden. I recently found that my soil is contaminated with coal and coal ash from a previous owner. I have seen recommendations of lining underneath the raised beds to create a barrier between the contaminated soil and the clean soil I will be bringing in. This would be a means of preventing the plants from growing down into the contaminated soil. However, I can't find any sources that mention a specific product for this…. What product would you recommend I use that would be suitable for organic growing?