How should I water my veggie garden?
Bend Urban Gardens Blog
by Ashley Joyce
8M ago
Water is a precious resource and is definitely needed for growing food. We hope our guidance here helps local gardeners use water responsibly and answers some common questions about how much and when to water veggie gardens within the City of Bend. Types of irrigation: At this point in time, in-line drip irrigation is the best tool you can use to get water directly to the roots of veggie plants in your garden. Each emitter lets out the same amount of water no matter where it is located on the line. When using drip irrigation, you know how much water is being applied to your garden, which is h ..read more
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Should I prioritize planting spinach in my garden?
Bend Urban Gardens Blog
by Ashley Joyce
1y ago
Spinach is a short season crop that thrives in Central Oregon Gardens as it reaches maturity in less than 60 days and loves cool weather. We appreciate that spinach can be used in such a wide range of dishes, from salads and smoothies to egg scrambles and lasagna. It’s an excellent source of vitamins A, C, and K, as well as iron, calcium, and potassium. It also contains a range of other beneficial compounds, such as antioxidants and fiber. Like any garden grown veggie, you can enjoy it at its peak freshness and flavor when you eat it soon after harvesting it. Most of our BUG gardeners agree ..read more
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What should I do to get ready for spring veggie gardening?
Bend Urban Gardens Blog
by Ashley Joyce
1y ago
Are you just beginning to think about reducing or eliminating your lawn? Repurposing a dusty or rocky side yard? Or have you already invested in a deer fence and are still contemplating the layout of your raised garden beds in your space? Are you going into your second or third season with established garden infrastructure and looking to get better production and for a longer period of time? Have you mulched your beds over winter or left soil in your container garden and are now wondering how to launch into the season? No matter where you’re at in your Central Oregon veggie gardening adv ..read more
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How do I protect my garden from deer?
Bend Urban Gardens Blog
by Ashley Joyce
1y ago
Deer move with the seasons, so you might not see deer in your yard year round. If you haven’t yet lived in your home for a full year, don’t develop a false sense of reality thinking that deer won’t show up! Someone who lives on the other side of town from you may never have had a deer even sample their zucchini or carrots in their front yard, but the deer population in your neighborhood may devour them! It just takes one feast for deer to discourage you from growing food in your yard ever again. When it comes to perennials, though, know that, in the spring, established plants typically recove ..read more
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Should I compost? How?
Bend Urban Gardens Blog
by Ashley Joyce
1y ago
Did you know that wasted food, yard debris, and other organic materials make up 42% of Knott Landfill by tonnage? This organic material could be composted instead, adding beneficial nutrients to our soil and reducing methane gas. What kind of organic material do you have on your property that could be turned into a beneficial soil amendment for your garden? Do you have mostly kitchen scraps? Grass clippings? Lots of yard debris? How much space, interest and time do you have to attend to your composting endeavors? Do you have chickens that could help? Check out some of the many composting solu ..read more
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Great Gardening Gift Ideas?
Bend Urban Gardens Blog
by Ashley Joyce
1y ago
Please note that this post contains discount codes along with some affiliate links. If you use these links to buy something, we may earn a commission. Of course, our raised garden beds, season extension tools, personalized crop plans and garden lessons make great year-round gifts! We also have gift certificates, BUG swag and will soon be adding our favorite garden tools to our online shop. If you’re looking for additional high quality gift ideas, though, scroll down to see a few of our favorite gardening things. All of these products have definitely improved the quality of our own garden e ..read more
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How do I winterize my veggie garden?
Bend Urban Gardens Blog
by Ashley Joyce
1y ago
Now that freezing temperatures are in the forecast, it seems like garden clean up is in the air (at least when the air quality drops to moderate or good) this week. What essential garden get-to-do tasks should you get done? Irrigation: Disconnect your hoses and timers from your hose bibs and reach out to a local professional to blow out irrigation lines (if you haven’t already). Clean up: You don’t need to pull every plant out of your garden. Cut annuals at the base of their stems (especially legumes) and leave their roots in the soil in locations where you won’t replant until the spri ..read more
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What should I fill my raised beds with?
Bend Urban Gardens Blog
by Ashley Joyce
1y ago
Filling raised garden beds with high quality soil is one of the most important things you can do to set your veggie garden up for success. For bulk soil in Central Oregon (typically less expensive than bagged products), we recommend ‘ultrasoil’ from High Desert Mulching. They routinely test their inputs for contamination. This gives us some peace of mind, since nobody wants to deal with remediation of harmful chemicals. High Desert Mulching has a 3 yard order minimum for delivery, so if you don’t need that much, consider sharing some with your neighbors or picking up a smaller quantity o ..read more
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Should I install hardware cloth on the bottom of my raised beds?
Bend Urban Gardens Blog
by Ashley Joyce
1y ago
We install hardware cloth on the bottom of almost all of the raised beds we build. While it’s not the most enjoyable material to work with (wear gloves and equip yourself with some effective wire cutters), it’s a great way to prevent burrowing creatures from feasting on your veggies. If you are in a new subdivision or already know that there are all sorts of ground dwellers on your property, definitely don’t skip this step! 1/2” hardware cloth is probably fine, but we go with 1/4” to keep even the tiny mice out. If you will be installing a raised bed on top of concrete or extremely compacted g ..read more
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When do I install pathway material in my raised bed garden?
Bend Urban Gardens Blog
by Ashley Joyce
1y ago
There are many “right” ways to build and install a raised garden bed. In our experience, the order of operations comes down to gardener preference and availability of materials. The essential component of raised bed installation that needs to happen before any pathway material is installed is the trenching for and installation of irrigation. Whichever way you go, we recommend first marking the locations of your future raised garden beds using stakes and string, spray chalk (although it doesn’t always stick well to the high desert’s dry “moondust”), or sprinkle flour. In our demonstration garde ..read more
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