Author: MicroFarmProject602
How to Grow Tomatoes Anywhere, Even in Phoenix
Tomatoes Are Easy, Once You Know a Few Tomato Growing Hacks I have heard it over and over again; newcomers to the Phoenix valley lamenting the tasteless tomatoes in our local grocery stores, and the loss of red, juicy wonders they knew back home. Here in Phoenix, the only way […]
Rainwater Harvesting for Livestock
Watering livestock can be challenging in terms of cost as well as labor. The photo above is our daughter filling livestock water buckets with a hose, a highly inefficient system. Fortunately, nature offers an alternative in the form of rainwater and storm water, which can be harvested and moved via gravity […]
Directing Storm Water
Although swales are primarily a passive water harvesting tool that is implemented in dry climates, they can also be used to reduce flooding and erosion in wet climates. Swales direct the flow of storm water, reducing how quickly it spreads and sinking it back into the soil. They can also […]
Basins, Swales and Sunken Gardens
Swales and basins are man-made depressions in the earth that slow the flow of storm water runoff so that it infiltrates the soil.. Swales are sometimes combined with curb cuts that allow water to run off of a roadway into depressions that are dug and planted along a sidewalk or […]
Slopes and Hillside Gardens
Many properties have fluctuations in terrain. Though we don’t often think of slopes as ideal areas to grow a vegetable garden, they can be very productive with proper plant placement. Water runs naturally from high to low areas via gravity, collecting at the lowest point. Therefore, when gardening on a […]
Water Gardens
A rain garden can be a beautiful and useful addition to your landscape to soak up excess water. Similar to a swale, rain gardens are shallow depressions in which water can collect during a storm and slowly percolate into the soil. Placed near a runoff source, rain gardens are an […]
Sheet Mulching (aka Lasagna Gardening)
Sheet mulching is a great way to build soil and compost in place, eliminating the need to move finished compost from the pile to the garden. Also known as Lasagna Gardening, building a sheet mulch garden is a process of layering brown and green organic materials directly in a garden […]
Safe Wood Sealers for Raised Bed Gardens
Grow Safe, Naturally and Economically From cities and suburbs to rural environs, people are discovering the joys of vegetable gardening, and the health benefits of controlling the chemicals that come in contact with their food. Many of these gardeners are opting to grow plants in raised beds or containers in […]
Growing Native Plant Varieties
When selecting plants for your garden, explore varieties that are native or adapted to your area. These plants have many benefits, one of which is the ability to survive only on natural rainfall, requiring little or no irrigation. The Micro Farm Project is located in central Arizona, one of the […]
Mulch
Mulch is a layer of organic matter that is spread on top of garden soil like a blanket. Compost, wood chips, bark, pine needles, dry leaves, newspaper, hay and straw are common mulch materials. The wood chip mulch pictured here was acquired for free from a local tree service. Arborists […]
