Backyard Farm: Start Small, then Expand

To give a better perspective of what can be accomplished in a small space I have collected a series of images showing the evolution of our backyard into a "farm".  It is my desire that these photos will help you with your decision whether or not to convert your limited space and maybe provide a few ideas of what can be accomplished in a small area.

In the beginning.....

In the beginning our backyard was a weekly chore of mowing grass and/or raking leaves and walnuts (there were 5 walnut trees, three maple and a massive pine).  There was a small 12' x 12' patio area and nothing else.

My first garden.  Six bags of potting mix.

year 1- 2011 and 2012

 In "Year 1" of our garden we started small, very small.  The garden consisted of 5 or 6 large bags of potting soil.  Into each bag I planted two tomato plants, two summer squash plants,
 
 cucumbers, and cantaloups.  It wasn't a big garden, but there was plenty of tomatoes, cukes, summer squash and zucchini to share.



Year 2 - 2013:  The gardening bug bit me and I knew I needed more space to grow so we dug up a bit of dirt.

and also added a three of raised beds.  We also decided we needed chickens, both for their eggs and for their "fertilizer".

 

We were able to get some free pallets, and built a hen house.  It's lucky the pallets were free, because the siding, nails and roofing were not.  Neither was the pressure treated 4"x4"x10" timbers upon which we set the house.

We also needed to buy fencing and posts to build a run with ample space for a dozen chickens (we had intended to buy only six chicks, but the farm store could only sell them in groups of 12).

After adding an old window we had and a coat of paint, and a few laying boxes, the hen house was ready.

Several 10' x 3/4" pvc pipes form the frames for supporting the plastic sheets which help to extend the growing season.

The garden had expanded to three raised beds and a dug out area about 16' x 16'. 

Year 3 - 2014:  Lots going on in our third year!

year 3

Matt is 6' tall/ the beans at this time were only half grown to their full height.

The garden continued to expand with the addition of two more raised beds, a 12' x 12' corn patch,  an 8' x 16' bean patch (for my Kentucky Wonder snap beans), and a dug out garden which has expanded to 20' x 30' (more or less).

20' x 30' garden, with raised beds behind, and corn patch behind the raised beds (behind the hoops)

In our third year we planted 32 tomaoto plants which produced 150 lbs of fruit.  The bean patch produced 36 jars of snap beans and 5+ pounds of dried beans for use as seed.  400 corn stalks produced an average of 2 ears per stalk; approximately 10 lbs each of yellow summer squash and zucchini; a half bushel of green bell peppers (for some reason the 5 plants didn't begin to produce until late August); also pumpkin, butternut and acorn squash.

In addition I tried planting onions and potatoes for the first time.  The onions didn't do very well, growing from onion sets only to ping pong ball size (I dried and saved them and replanted this year); the potatoes were just a couple of kitchen spuds which were beginning to sprout so instead of throwing them into the compost bin, I planted them.  They produced enough mid-ling sized spuds to add to a stew.

This was also the year we decided to try raising meat birds, chickens and turkeys.  We were able to raise and process 24 chickens and 2 turkeys (named Thanksgiving and Christmas).

Year 4 - 2015

This year we have made some big changes.   Goats, ducks and roosters.

 

This is in April, a view of the garden (r. front) chicken run (left)  new goat pen (new fence at center r to l)

view of the goat pen and garden from the hen house.

view of garden from hen house looking toward the house.

This is the view of the garden from the hen house looking toward the back of the house.
The garden is being fenced in order to keep critters out.

There is a chicken tractor (center right- hoops)
where we keep the Pekin ducklings. (meat)

The area in the lower right corner is the corn patch from last year.  This year:  winter squash.

We added two little goats to our farm.  These little sisters were born in January and will be ready to breed in November, increasing our livestock which we will sell, and they will produce milk for drinking, cheese, soap....

tomato rows, bell peppers, cucumbers

Last year I staked the tomato plants to 2" x 2" x 8' poles.  It worked fine, but meant I had to keep tying the growing plants to the stakes all season.

This year, since I have some cattle panels left over from the goat pen, I decided to try training the tomato plants to weave themselves in and out of the fencing, after all, tomato plants are vines to some degree.

I have also added crushed egg shells to each tomato plant hole.  The calcium is supposed produce sweeter fruit.

garden, chicken house and run

 On the right side of the photo is a green frame, made of pipe (salvaged) which has had wire woven up, down and across.  This is support for the cucumbers.
 Overview of the garden, chicken house and run, and goat pen.  (view if from a second floor window through window screen)

The bean patch is located out of view to the far lower left of the garden.

goat pen

Look carefully at the way the yard is set-up.
Every area fits neatly next to the next, and every inch is being used in the most efficient manner possible.

The total area is less than 1/4 acre.  Next year the plan is to expand into the front yard by adding an espaliered orchard with dwarf apple, peach and pear trees.

Our hope for the garden this year is to harvest another 150 pounds of tomatoes; at least a bushel of bell peppers; lettuce and herbs for the table; a bushel each of yellow summer squash and zucchini;
as many brussels sprouts as six plants can produce (first time growing these); at least 30 pounds of winter squash; green peas; rhubarb, strawberries, blueberries, 6 cabbages, onions and more......

There will also be an average one dozen eggs per day which we sell at $3 dz., 24 meat chickens, 2 turkeys for meat and two to sell; 10 pekin ducks for meat.

I do not use insect repellent in my garden.  As much as possible I manually remove bad bugs as I find them and feed them to the chickens who love them.

Also, only natural fertilizer is used such as compost I from my compost bins, or when necessary, I will buy organic compost when I don't have enough of my own.  I also feed the garden a regular feeding of chicken poo tea.  This is by far, the best fertilizer I have every used.

Backyard Farm: Compost, egg shells, and epsom salt

In order to have strong and health plants that produce lots of great tasting vegetables the plants should have a healthy diet.  Plants that have a well-balanced diet will pass on this on to you when you eat their vegetables.  On the other hand, plants grown in poor, under-fertilized soil will struggle to produce even a meager crop.   (We do not use commercially produced fertilizer in our garden.)

Compost is a primary source for a healthy garden fertilizer.  It is easy to create, but it does take time for the organic material to break down.  Start training your family to save kitchen scraps for the compost bin.  When you mow the lawn, provided it has not been chemically treated, add the clippings to the compost pile, along with twigs and small branches that have been chopped into small bits.

Following each addition of organic material, add a layer of garden soil, and give it a drink of water.
You will notice the pile begin to shrink down after a while as the organic matter breaks down.


My favorite fertilizer is chicken poo tea.  I feed this drink to my garden two or three times per week once the plants are established.  It's amazing, you can almost see the plants grow and produce lots of vegetables.

To make the Chicken Poo Tea:  When we clean out the hen house we begin by separating the poo from the wood chips.  Fill a barrel, or good sized tote, or other suitable container, about half-way with the chicken poo.  Next, fill the container with water and let it brew for a few days.

Depending on the strength of the tea it may need to be diluted before pouring it onto the garden soil.
If the container has a strong odor like that of a sewer or cesspool, it needs to be diluted.  You can add the brew to the garden with a watering can, a bucket or other system you may think of.

To make your tomatoes sweet they require calcium.  A good way to ensure they have get enough break up into a powder, the shells of several eggs and sprinkle it into the hole before adding the tomato plant.

Epsom salt is good for helping you to relax by adding it to the bath, but it is also useful in the garden to keep the plants healthy and help them resist disease.  Simply sprinkle a small amount throughout the garden. 

Chicken and Garden Update

 KentuckyWonder Green Beans 7 rows stands over 8' high 8' wide

I can't believe it's been more than a month since my last post.  It has been so busy here the time has
just flown by!

One of our Black Sex Link hens had been abusing the other hens over the past several months, but until Nick caught her in the act of plucking the feathers off one of the Easter Eggers he decided that for the good of the other hens, her time was up.

He is very attached to our hens and having to "take her out" was painful for him.  It took several false starts over the course of a week, but he finally manned up and  made use of the axe he had purchased for the occasion.  She had the last laugh on us however.  Her meat was so tough we could barely cut into it, let alone dine on it.

Since she has left the flock, the girls feathers are finally beginning to regrow.  Not all, but most of the feathers are coming back. 

Nearly fully recovered from her stroke.

Two weeks later, one of the other Black Sex Link hens suffered a stroke.  The poor thing was so pitiful that first day.  She could barely walk and the other hens all attacked her.  Fortunately Nick happened to be nearby and saw the commotion in time to rescue her.  He removed her from the hen house and the run and set her in a safe place in the grass to spend what he thought would be her final hours.  Well, by the end of the day she was still with us and had managed to work her way to the door of the hen house.  So I put inside one of the laying boxes for the night.  The other girls didn't bother her until the next day.  So once again, out she came into the grass.  She spent a few days like this, laying in the grass, being hand fed, and slowly recovering.  During this time we discovered she was blind in one eye which made it hard for her to zero in one her food and drink.


Now, nearly three weeks later, she has figured out how to see with just one eye, how to find and eat her food and drink, she no longer limps, and although we cannot put her back in the run with the other hens (they won't let her return) they manage to have face-offs with her through the fence and she stands up to the bully. 

Little turkeys adopted a hen mama.

Since the other hens won't let her come back, we moved her into the run where we have two little
turkeys.  The little turkeys, Thanksgiving and Christmas, have adopted her as their mother and it is so cute to see them cuddling up with her.  At night-time she puts herself between them and open space.
They do not have a coop, but a 3 sided lean-to with roosts to keep them off the ground.

We have also gotten some meat birds.  Nine little Cornish chicks which are growing rapidly.  We expect them to meet their destiny by the end of August.  They have about half their feathers, so in another week we will be putting them out in their chicken tractor so they can forage for their food.

3 yrs ago the garden consisted of 6 bags of potting soil

Now that the garden is well established, we let the older hens out to roam and forage where-ever they like.  Since I began twice-weekly feeding of chicken poo tea, the garden has been thriving!  Even the corn which wasn't doing anything has shot up after each feeding.

Tomatoes thriving on the poo tea

The tomatoes are doing much better than I had anticipated when I first planted them.  I planted 40 plants of 4 varieties.  Half of them didn't survive and I had to start over with several purchased plants.
Now I have 30 strong plants and 5 or 6 varieties.  The chicken poo tea I have been feeding them has done wonders.  All the plants are full of tomatoes with more appearing each day.  This is one of the smaller plants and it has 20 tomatoes so far.

Oh, and the White Rock chicks we got back in April which were from a run, turned out to be all females.  We had hoped for at least one rooster in the bunch.

That's all the news from the hen house for now.  Hope your girls are all doing well and your gardens are thriving!