How difficult is it to create a garden the old fashioned way?

How does one till a patch of land next to the foundation of a home to plant flowers? When I was a little girl my daddy would grow a garden using only a shovel and a hoe (dark ages) and I have very few tools myself being new to home ownership. I have a wall facing south that gets a lot of sun and I'd like to plant flowers that would put you in mind of what a grandmother of the 40's or 50's would plant....iris', peony, hydrangea, crepe myrtly, etc. Any suggestions on how to do gardening before modern conveniences came along would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for the help!

How difficult is it to create a garden the old fashioned way?
You could do it with a shovel and hoe. Mark out where your going to plant. Then using the shovel dig deep and turn the soil over. Leave it like this for a while this will kill what ever is growing there right now. The when your ready to plant bust up the soil that you turned over with either tool. Then even it out with your hoe. You can use news paper as a cheap ground cover to help keep weeds down. Just cover it with mulch It will decompse and wont cause problems when you dig in the future.


As far as plants go with what you would like. You'll learn what grows best in the site you picked.
Reply:Get a Dung Fork or Spading Fork and start breaking up the soil. Strenuous, but not impossible work. Easier if the soil is somewhat mosit. Pull out grass/weeds (shake soil off roots). You might want to mix in some compost or manure. Plant away. I also recommen mulch to keep the weeds down.
Reply:Like another poster alluded to, foundations plantings have their issues but if that's where you want to put your plants, I would suggest using a layered-garden technique. Using cardboard and/or newspapers, put down about a 1" layer on the spot you want to plant. It doesn't matter what's already there (except for concrete) and you don't have to dig anything. Wet this thoroughly. Then cover it with soil--bagged, free, whatever (about 6" deep). If it's a relatively small area I would buy a good, bagged soil mix and add some compost. You'll end up with a "raised bed" that's good for drainage but it will settle eventually. Then you can put in your plants or seeds and when they are tall enough you can mulch around them to keep the weeds down and make it look neat and tidy. Be careful that the soil doesn't touch the bottom of the siding otherwise you can have rot problems and/or pests infiltration--both reasons not to plant next to your foundation. Another reason is watering next to your foundation--you want your plants to grow deep roots but you don't want water sitting next to your foundation--difficult paradigm.
Reply:PLEASE remember if you till next to your foundation to keep the ground sloping away from your home. All water should roll away from your foundation. When you plant you will be watering and it will rain. This is good for your garden and as long as the excess can roll away from your foundation it is great for your home as well.


If the water seeps to your foundation you will have trouble in a few years.


The best way to start a garden like this is to break the ground rake or shovel the loose dirt in a mound along the foundation while raking toss any grass or weeds or roots out of the dirt and in to a trash can. Once the dirt is mounded against the wall of the house start raking it back out at a slant still keeping the highest part by the foundation wall. Once the dirt is graded at a slight slant, put down seeds or plants that are good for your area. The ones you mentioned should come with the instructions on the proper time to plant in your area.


If you want a raised flower bed this can be done by purchasing a roll of this black garden mess. This will be blanketed over the area where you want the garden. Lay it over weeds grass and all. Then take old rail road lumber or other choice or lumber or bricks up to 6 or 12 inches. Fill this in with top soil, or garden soil of your choice and plant the flowers you seleced acording to proper planting times for your area.