How much attention for an off sight garden

[WanderingJuniper]

So, I'm really disappointed. My sfg efforts are not yielding what I'd like and as a result my dad put an offer on the table tonight for me to consider.

He offered me the lower field at his house for an extensive veggie garden and a chicken coop (they'll likely be free range but roost at night in the coop).
I'm really excited about the offer but they live 20 miles from me so I was wondering if one or two days a week attention would be enough to have a successful larger garden.? The space he's offering me is about 3/4 of an acre.

What do you think?

If I do this I'd turn my sfg space into a sfg herb garden.

[Hermana Linda]

:think I can't imagine only visiting my garden 2 times per week, but I know that many people do use community gardens and I assume that they dont' go every day. :think

[Macky]

3/4 of an acre is HUGE! Our total available garden area is about 1/2 an acre and I only plant 1/4 of that and I'm out there every day. The only way I could see someone tending that big a garden only two days a week was if the rows are planted very wide apart and you spent one of those two trips rototilling. That's what my MIL does, but even her garden isn't that big (probably 1/4 acre, but her row are faaaaar apart compared to mine). Not to be a wet blanket, but that really is a bigger chunk of land than one might think... 3/4 acrea = about 180 feet square. :jawdrop What is your target amount of produce?

[Hermana Linda]

Yeah, I can't imagine managing to take care of a garden that size by myself even if I were there everyday. :think Even my tiny plot is a lot of work. :phew

[tempus vernum]

I have 60x60 garden that is off sight. I only planted a little more than 3/4 right now - some is for late crops :)

I don't know if you can say "I will go ____ days a week". This is my first year and this is what it's looked like so far.

--Planted end of may as soon as the plot was ready - planted all in one day :phew It took me over 8 hours of HARD work - left the kids AT HOME w/dh -- I wasn't planning it this way but ds got pneumonia and it was the only way I could get my seedlings in the ground after buying them - in hindsight, I am glad I planted this way. The soil was ready so that is staking my rows, planting, watering.
-- went almost every day for the first week to water -- I do that every year at home - water seeds/seedlings for at least a week daily
--then the rains hit the midwest and I went once a week for 2 weeks watching to see what was happening. I didn't even enter the garden the 2nd time because the first, I sunk so deep in the mud and water I didn't know if I could get out :giggle
-- now I go once or more a week (usually 2times) to water, weed, tie up my tomatoes and look to see what needs doing
-- this week I haven't gone yet because it's rained alot and I really don't have anything ready for harvesting. Too much rain to make weeding worthwhile. If its still raining (it is today), I will go sunday for a weekly "check". I may have some peppers ready and maybe some more chard or possibly some radishes but nothing is really ready yet so. . . .

I will go more when it becomes time to harvest. I think at least 2 possibly 3 or 4 times a week. As much as is needed even if we take off school from AUgust until November ;) My garden is only 6 miles away and is conveniently located (a mile from HS classes and a mile and a half from my mom's house where the kids get piano lessons) so I can swing by regularly to check for harvest. ANd I KNOW the kids will LOVE picking tomatoes, onions, etc :)

I also have another planting scheduled in my mind for the first week in august (peas, lettuces, spinach). And I plan on planting garlic in november or late october so I have to get at least 2 beds, possibly 3 ready in my partially empty area. SO then when I plant I will go daily to water again for at least a week after planting. I will attempt to plant everything on one day for my fall planting :)

THe hard thing for me is that I have to haul in my water from a fire hydrant on the street and there is no bathroom so I carry a baby potty for my 2.5 year old and a cylinder pee container for my son. My daughter will just suffer (8 yo). If there is a water supply, you won't have that issue :tu

SO far, I like it except that my kids DON'T like it :sigh I am hoping that the harvest will get them excited again. They each have their own small area that they planted so I was hoping they'd love it and be involved. But I realize it is what it is. I can't force them to like it and it is our family garden so they just need to go along when I need to go there :shrug

Edited to add a few things :giggle
1. One hard thing is that I can't wander around and putter in my garden cuz I love it
2. Next year I am having more plantings not just one. I will do all my earliest plantings at once, my spring plantings at once, my after frost at once and my fall at one time. Then a small planting of over winter stuff. I will still do those I mention all on one day but this year, I rented the garden mid may so by the time I planted it was time for "after frost" plantings :) I know lots of people at the community plot that I rent do a little every day over 2 weeks. That is NOT for me I don't think :no I like to do it all at once :) Plus it's the added benefit of not having to drive out a million times to plant :doh
3. you may need a rototiller. I am looking into renting one next year I think :think

[WanderingJuniper]

Thanks!

Sonshinemama that was really helpful and wow :rockon for you and the work you've put in.

I know I won't have to go everyday to water or collect eggs. My parents and sis have said they'd take care of that part but that all the expense was on me along with all the labor intensive things like the planting and weeding, taming the tomatoes etc. Oh and I would need to install a perimeter fence to keep their goats our of my garden. My dad had to net off his berry patch this year so the goats didn't eat them all. :giggle

My father has an attachment for his tractor that would till the field for us so that would save a great deal of manual labor and I know how to drive the tractor with it on so I could prep the lot when I am ready.

I'm considering using part of it as an orchard so that would be a bit different.

Ultimately I'd like to be able to provide all our fruit & veggie needs through our garden. I know that would involve a great deal of canning and freezing but it would be worth it to be closely connected to our primary food source.

I don't know. I'm trying to separate the reality from my romanticized ideals here before I give my father an answer.

[Macky]

We rely on our garden for nearly all our winter veggies except things you can't preserve (lettuce, etc.). There's just the three of us right now and the garden is roughly 55 x 65 feet. I weed by hand because I have my rows so close together, but anything bigger than what we have would mean I'd have to get a rototiller. Even if you or your dad can do all the prep work with the tractor and you do your best to keep up with hoeing, there inevitable comes a time when the weeds get ahead of you (namely long periods of rain where you can't get in there to weed). With a large lot, you'll need a small tiller because you can't get between the rows with a tractor.

Using part for an orchard is a great idea! I'd suggest room for rhubarb and berry bushes as well because they're sooo easy to preserve - just wash and freeze (with or without sugar), no labour-intensive blanching or canning. :) Pumpkins should also have their own area. They're superb for winter storage. Get yourself a good cold storage room for onions and potatoes. Ours is too humid. :(

[tempus vernum]

Just wanted to post a bit of an update :) .

After struggling the majority of the summer with whiny crabby kids, we have decided not to do fall planting or an offsite garden next year. Instead, dh is going to rent a rototiller and put in lots of new beds at home. We are redoing the area where my garden WAS because the beds are all rotten. We had rats and the neighborhood services had to get involved and that's why we did offsite this year.

It's been very nice to start getting food but keeping up on the work has been overwhelming/impossible for me. My kids don't last much more than an hour or two and with a garden the size I have, it takes longer than that. Going to the garden has become a chore and that's too bad because gardening is something I REALLY enjoy.

[Hermana Linda]

Sounds like a good plan. :)