Dry Farming update

A month since I posted last about my dry-farming test.

As a refresher, I planted three kinds of seeds and then left them alone. They were planted under a thick layer of mulch in poor soil. I put them in an area with afternoon shade so they're protected from the worst of the heat.

The insects loved the buffet I put out for them. Of the seventeen plants that came up, only one survived. Once I realized the problem I tried to protect those that remained, but only one was able to recover. Lesson learned: put out bait or otherwise protect the seedlings until they're big enough to survive insect onslaught. In a dry environment insects will go after anything "wet," and in this case that's the seedlings.

A week or so ago I replanted, digging small pits to hold the seeds and setting topped milk bottles in the holes surrounded by soil to keep the insects out. So far six have sprouted, including one that came up from the original seeds. With the one remaining from the original planting we have a total of seven. I am expecting that more will come up in the next few weeks. Several are already getting their secondary leaves. I intend to leave them covered until they fill up the covers.

The next watering is planned for 7/1, since I watered the new plantings when I put the seeds in. I will only water if the soil appears to need it or the plants are seriously struggling. If the soil still appears wet at that time I will plan to water on 7/15, and so on.

The goal is to water twice a month at the most, hoping that I won't have to water at all (unlikely as that might be).

The first update

The second update

Original post on Dry Farming