"Survival Garden" or as I call it a truck bed garden.

[teddy12b]

So I had this "great idea" that I wanted to try out one of those little 10# cans emergency seed bank survival gardens. I bought this seed can back in '09 I think. So in addition to wanting to test this out, I also wanted to see what it would take to get a new garden setup some place that nobody would notice. Some type of a garden where I could put it all in, walk away and come back later to see what I've got, if anything. The bed of my truck has a hard top cover, so the yard and a half or so of dirt had to fit under the cover so I could feel sneaky.

I filled the truck with dirt and took it out to a field (my backyard), and spread it out quickly. I was in a hurry and wasn't trying to make this pretty. After I did that I ripped open packages and sprinkled/dumped garden seeds where ever I felt like it. Complete mixing bowl of garden seeds. I did have a few watermelon starts and onions left over from the raised beds so I put them out there as well. Then I tossed mulch on top hoping it hold a little water and I walked away.

Here's the pictures from June 3:






June 13th:






June 16th:






I'll update this thread periodically with pictures in case anyone is interested. It'll be pretty random, but you get the idea.

 

[warthog]

Wish I had an old pickup truck bed. That's a darn good idea! Looking forward to the update.

 

[SMiller]

I do believe wild animals will everything out there before you ever have a chance.

 

[teddy12b]

I do believe wild animals will everything out there before you ever have a chance.

There's a good chance of that. There's always a chance of that with any garden. Where I'm lucky in this experiment is that this garden is about 200 yards away from my patio that I can see in plain sight. I haven't seen any wildlife get after it yet, but that doesn't mean it won't. It'll be interesting to see how this works out.

 

[bwframe]

Animals are unpredictable. About the time you believe you have then figured out, think again.

 

[wagyu52]

Use straw instead of wood mulch, it's much better for the soil. It's a pretty interesting idea, be curious to see what you end up with Keep posting on it

 

[Sailor]

Maybe the goal is to attract animals?

 

[teddy12b]

Maybe the goal is to attract animals?

Exactly. Whether I use that garden for vegetables, or I use it for meat. So long as it translates into food, I'm a happy camper.

 

[Zoub]

At the end of the season I would collect seeds from the plants that survive your test. Then next year do more with those seeds and test other varieties. Seeds from plants that thrive in your location under neglect and stress are good to have.

 

[teddy12b]

At the end of the season I would collect seeds from the plants that survive your test. Then next year do more with those seeds and test other varieties. Seeds from plants that thrive in your location under neglect and stress are good to have.

That's been my policy with the orchards I've started on the land. I plant the tree, throw a pile of mulch on it with some water and walk away. If the tree or any plant can't make it on it's own, it's of no use to me. I get some casualties with that method, but it's a very Spartan approach to weeding out the weak from the strong.

 

[Zoub]

I am a big believer in the Spartan approach to genetics!

 

[teddy12b]

Pictures from 6-29. With all the water we've had I'm realizing the importance of where to place a garden like this. If it was in a low area, it'd have flooded out by now. Just another thought to take away from this.

 

[Tyler-The-Piker]

tagged

 

[teddy12b]

Pictures from yesterday 7-26-2015

 

[GIJEW]

Exactly. Whether I use that garden for vegetables, or I use it for meat. So long as it translates into food, I'm a happy camper.

To get any meat out of that garden I think you'll need a large thermos of coffee and a starlight scope

 

[teddy12b]

To get any meat out of that garden I think you'll need a large thermos of coffee and a starlight scope

I've got a gen 1 monocular, and plenty of coffee. If I "needed" to I could make that happen, otherwise I want to stay on the good side of the law.

Oddly enough anytime I've checked on this there hasn't been any large tracks. A couple nights ago there were three bucks about 50 yards from this and they completely left it alone. Everything else was mowed except this so it's not like it didn't stand out.

 

[tradertator]

Plant some beets in there, and you'll have deer eating the tops off of them overnight

 

[teddy12b]

I'm not sure if I didn't already plant beets. I should have written down the seeds I planted.

 

[Zoub]

Yeah beets and clover and you have a food plot. I plant some just for grouse and deer. Only the deer eat the beets.

Hint: save all labels of stuff you use and just toss in same place, like an empty plastic plot. You can review later when memory fails.

 

[teddy12b]

I apologize, I've been getting behind on posting updated pictures. These pictures are from 8-21: