Need help with my three sisters garden.....general planting question

[freemotion]

I am hopelessly behind! I have houseguests coming, chicks about to hatch, 3 bucklings to think about banding, a new infant buckling who is high-maintenance right now.....

I still don't have my garden all in!!! I have to dig the sod from one more row for the corn/beans rows of my 3 sisters. Haven't started on the 24 squash mounds! I have to haul in a wheelbarrow of finished compost for every three mounds, too, to make them mounds and not holes. Imagine trying to maneuver a loaded wheelbarrow....heavy, we've had a lot of rain....through the gauntlet of lactating does with an eye on your tomato plants, having discovered the delights of them last year.

So I am wondering if I can just lay some paper feed sacks or cardboard or several layers of newspaper in each of the 24 spots, on top of the grass, and pile 4-5 inches of finished compost on it, then plant my winter squashes right in that.

Can I do that for my remaining corn mounds? I'm thinking the paper won't decay enough to let these plants get deep enough roots. Whatcha think?

We've had blazing hot sun interspersed with scary lightening storms lately so I have no hope of catching up in a reasonable time frame.....actually, that horse has already left the barn. It is June 18, for cryin' out loud!

Help!

 

[Wifezilla]

Freem, most of my planting areas were lawn. I put cardboard on top of the grass, then duck compost, then some top soil. It worked fine.

My 3 sisters garden is where I grew tomatoes last year. When I planted the tomatoes it was just lawn. I dug deep holes, added crushed oyster shell, planted the tomatoes deep, then did the cardboard, compost all around the plants.

If it makes you feel better, I have the corn and squash going , but I think I forgot to plant the beans!

 

[freemotion]

I was thinking of putting the cardboard down, then the compost, then the seeds right in that. All at once. So the seeds would sprout on top of "fresh" cardboard.....would this prevent proper root systems in my plants? Or keep them at 4" in depth, limited when they hit the cardboard?

 

[Wifezilla]

Corn s shallow rooted. I don't even think it will notice the cardboard!

 

[freemotion]

OK, the last row of 7 corn/bean hills will be on cardboard or paper feed sacks....then if you are wrong, WZ, I won't have to kill you.

What about winter squash? Maybe I could cut some slits in the paper with a sharp knife just in case?

 

[Wifezilla]

That might work...or a small dirt hill for the squash. Just give it a mound of dirt to work with

 

[valmom]

Squash will grow in just about anything, I think, based on my past years of squash and how haphazardly I put them in. Corn I don't know about- this is an experiment sort of this year. But we just put our beans in the 3 sisters garden yesterday- your season can't be all that far ahead of us! We have 2 inch corn growing I'd say do it however it will go in to work for you and let it take its chances. It will be better than not getting it in at all.

 

[dragonlaurel]

Could you just toss the compost in the feed sacks and plant right in there? Cardboard under the new "pot" would still be good to cut weed intrusion.

 

[framing fowl]

We tried to use cardboard last year as a weed barrier. It didn't work because it rotted down so fast. I think you'd be just fine on top of cardboard, especially if you're going to put 4-5 inches on top of it.

 

[freemotion]

Hmmmm.....in the feed sacks.....interesting idea. I don't have enough paper ones as I use them for EVERYTHING but it is a great idea. Maybe I'll see if I have enough to do a few as an experiment.

That the cardboard rotted so quickly is great news! I am basically punching large holes in a grassy area and mounding it up with compost, so weed intrusion will be a given. But it is a nice grass, not weedy, so I think it will act more like a blocker than a problem. We will see how naive I turn out to be with this one....

Thank for all the encouragement. I don't feel quite so behind (although my corn is still not all planted yet!) now that I've heard about all your successes and ideas and experiences. Thanks!