The Gentleman's Farm (aka: "Mt. Hermit")
I was glad to have the planter boxes, but really wasn't prepared for the work ahead.
The back yard was already separated into a garden, dog run, and a larger enclosure (to the right, not pictured).
Once I got the planter boxes under control, I was ready to amend the soil with compost, manure, and top soil. I tried to avoid chemical fertilizers, preferring natural manure and composts.
Each planter box got the same treatment.
In the planter box to the far right, I inherited an artichoke plant that didn't last the year due to gopher damage.
Having the boxes under control and amended provided a great feeling of accomplishment.
Because of the large temperature swings on Mt. Hermit, I opted to go with a black weed barrier to both warm up the soil and also to kill any remaining seeds I missed.
It was about at this point when the land owner suggested I knock down the section of fence just past the planter boxes.
Seeing how large this plot of land was, and hearing that previous tenants years ago had a successful garden here, I couldn't pass up the opportunity.