. . . . . Container gardening
light or the view. Irrigation is also an issue. Capturing rainwater or even condensate from air conditioners is great if you’ve got the space for a barrel or bucket. A drip system can be strung to various pots. The leavings from the air conditioner are captured from outside air, so it won’t contain chlorine or some of the additives that may be in tap water. Raised Backyard Beds Erica and James Fraser dedicated a large area of their Willowgrove backyard to growing their own vegetables, a new experience for city girl Erica. But James was a farm kid and the couple wanted their own children to pitch in with a garden. “The produce is great,” Erica says. “I can do some canning, and pickles. Our three-year-old enjoys picking and weeding, so
58
Saskatoon HOME
.....
Spring 2014
hopefully that will continue.” Her husband has fond memories of childhood summers tending vegetables and a fruit orchard. “Even though we live in the city, we really want our boys to have even a little taste of that.” The couple built raised planting boxes with Versa-Lok retaining wall blocks, a material they carried throughout their back yard. “I had never constructed anything with them before, but I was impressed with how simple they were to use.” The couple built two planters, four feet by 20 feet and two feet high. They had to be terraced because of the slope of the back yard. Irrigation lines were laid in before the boxes were filled with earth, then James connected lines to four sprinkler heads in each box. The couple plans to run drip lines this season to better reach root systems.