New Community Garden

[clkeiper]

For deer you need two fences about 4' apart. they have trouble judging the depth between the two. so really it doesn't need to be substantial to keep them out. you would be surprised at how high one can jump. the outer fence can just be a wire with the cloth tied to it... (use electric too. you can get a solar fencer that runs on a built in solar panel. I have heard of people putting peanutbutter on the electrified fence to shock the living daylights outta the stinkers, that will keep them away from the garden all Summer.) the inside fence is the one to make taller. the other suggestions are awesome, by the way. good luck on whatever you do.

[Tormato]

Originally Posted by Bruinwar

Thanks SueCT. Stringing wire is a possibility. There are a lot of people that are using fishing line combined with cans that make a racket to scare the deer. I actually have that the 7' posts you linked in my cart on the HD website right now. They (or Lowes) don't have 8".

The community garden site I've been at for the past three years has a fence that is 7-8' high & occasionally a deer jumped it. We saw the tracks & some damage. We had the fence with a buried chicken wire barrier at the bottom that we repaired annually & still had critter damage. Groundhogs, rabbits, & possums can be quite determined.

Tormato: The community currently consists of my wife & I (2 plots), & 4 others (3 1/2 plots). We still have to rent out 4 1/2 plots. I may have to do some promoting/marketing work to get that done. However, we do donate to the local food pantries & are a non-profit, so your suggestions are perfectly valid & I plan to attempt them.

Have a plan, but realize it will never go as planned. Schools, churches, gardening clubs, scouts, etc.. are possibilities for places to promote what you're doing. Posting flyers in the best locations/businesses like the food pantry itself, may help. And, if you post a flyer at a local garden center (if you have one), do you think the owner could possibly get more business by those who would be in need of gardening supplies, if they join your community garden?

[Tormato]

I'd like to go back to the original site of your community garden. Can you tell me what is "good" about it, and what is potentially "bad"?

[Bruinwar]

Tormato: Sorry for the delay in responding.

"I'd like to go back to the original site of your community garden. Can you tell me what is "good" about it, and what is potentially "bad"?"


The original site? I am not sure if I understand so I will answer it two ways.

The original site meaning my old site? Nothing wrong there, excellent soil, a decent deer fence, & is still open. Last I heard there was one plot left.


The new site? What's good is that it's NEW. It's old farmland that's not been worked for decades. The soil is not bad, but will need a lot more organic matter according to the soil test. It also has a lot of room & could expand if needed.
The bad: it's a bit out of the city so we might not get enough gardeners.

[Bruinwar]

Final update! The deer fence is complete. It cost about $1200. The financing came from two volunteer grants ($250 each) & a matching grant that matched what the gardeners donated ($300 doubled) for $1100. The balance came from the non-profit's funds. The grants themselves came from the parent company of my employer. What I learned about fund raising.... start early, like 12 months or more. Big box stores will do a lot but they take a lot of time deciding. A shed is next & will be build by an Eagle Scout project.



We actually filled all the plots! As we all know, the weather has been quite the challenge this year but everyone is gardening & keeping the weeds in check. Lets hope for a good harvest in the end.



Thanks everyone for your suggestions. The fence is 8' high. If we see any sign of deer getting in, we have plans to put up another minor barrier. Fish line tied to CPVC posts with more white ribbons on them. But so far, no sign of deer. Below is a full size picture of the site/fence.



Regards,
Joe S.

[nancyruhl]

Glad you were able to pull it all together. Looks great.

Couldn’t agree with you more about the crummy season. We are about a month behind normal. I have only blossoms, whereas I am usually the tasting my first ripe one about now.

[Tormato]

That has to be the largest picture ever posted at T'ville.
I had to scroll way down and way sideways.

[Bruinwar]

Originally Posted by Tormato

That has to be the largest picture ever posted at T'ville.
I had to scroll way down and way sideways.

Sorry about that. No edit button or I would change it to a link. I'm unsure why there is no edit button. Too many days since the post?