Black Stuff/White Stuff and Coir

Worms!

Weed barrier and row cover

Getting recycled coir

Some people walking around the property have stopped to ask, “Why are those black tarps on the ground?” and “Why are those white sheets over the rows?”

Well, those black tarps are weed barriers.  They help shade out the weeds, as well as block the sun to keep the soil underneath moist.  We will plant tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, basil, squash and beans in the holes cut into the woven fabric and hopefully they won’t have to compete for space with weeds.

The white sheets are row covers.  They float over the crops to help diffuse sunlight, keep off pests, and also to help reduce water loss due to evaporation.  Although it may be nicer to look at growing crops rather than these long pieces of fabric, they really do help the garden stay healthier, reduce water use, and cut down on labor.

So what is coir?  Those white tubes weighting down the row cover on the sides are filled with coconut husk fiber.  Although there aren’t any palm trees growing coconuts anywhere around here, we salvage these coir bricks from a commerical tomato grower.  They use them as a hydroponic medium to grow their tomatoes and then throw them out every year in a big pile.  We have gone and reclaimed them not only to use as weights for our row cover, but also incorporating the coconut fiber into our beds.  It helps with water retention and eventually the coir will decompose, adding nutrients and organic matter to the soil.  Coir can hold more than 5 times it’s weight in water!  It is also being used as a replacement for peat moss, which is usually harvested from bogs and swamps at an unsustainable rate.  Coconut trees grow and decompose very quickly, making coir easy and economical to produce.

Well, that is all for this week.  We have the 2nd succession of planting in the ground and finally got some rain!  The radishes and snow peas are already sprouting and soon there will be growing plants under all that row cover.  Have a great week!