2024 garden update ! Spring week 1 

''The real enemy of the garden is...our son'' hahahha it killed me

Garden influencer Zack is one of the sweetest things on earth. Like..hell yeah lemme grab my coffee and walk me thru every detail, garden dad!

It’s really cool to see you comfortable to talk to the camera, Zack. And so cute to see you include “our son” 🥹 Still love that you and Kristi have a baby, you’re obviously such loving people and parents.

The amount of mental and physical energy required to upkeep a home garden like this amazes me. I have a toddler and single tomato plant and I struggle. 😂

The compilation of “uhh” and “ummm” at the end killed me🤣🤣

Zack, sprinkle broken eggshells and coffee grounds directly around the plants you're trying to keep slugs away. Also, companions to deter slugs include lavender, chives/garlic/onions, rosemary, mint, and fennel. Be careful with mint and fennel though, mint is very aggressive and fennel doesn't play well with most other plants. 👩‍🌾🌿

“Shut up about the radish!” Omg, it me.

The outakes f**king sent me into another realm 😂 i have twin 3 year olds. Idk how you are managing this garden but just wanted to say your homestead is absolutely a dream.

You are such a wonderful man and it’s been so comforting for fans of Kristi to know you have been right by her side through the extremely challenging season she is coming out of. God bless you 🙏🏻

You guys!!! The shriek I just shrieked, so so excited for new garden content- and on a Sunday morning?! Thank you ☺️☺️

For slugs /snails, something that we always used to do is fill an empty can with beer until it was about half full, then put the can into the ground so it was level with the earth and the slugs /snails would go into them and.. You can guess the rest 😂 Don't necessarily know if that'd be a toddler /torrential rain friendly slug alternative but thought I'd share the tip! ❤

Hi, herbalist here! I love your garden so much!! My mouth dropped at your raspberries LOL Dry the leaves and drink them as tea! They're a nutritive tonic and particularly supportive for the female reproductive system🌿

I love Zack's outtakes lol

Both of you are hilarious! I love the bloopers at the end. 😂

Asparagus takes 3 years to start being edible. and they just get better and better there after. Only put it where you want it because you will never get it out. the roots go so deep. looks awesome! You guys are teaching me a lot. You should try corn too its so good fresh from the garden.

Hey hey fellow PNW person here. I use denatious earth around my beds to prevent slugs from eating my crops. Also Amazon has these great little green garden cloches to put around starts that need the heat- like peppers. First year using them, and I will use them every year moving forward!

You can feed the slugs to your chickens, they love them

You guys should get a cute little arched trellis for the raspberries!

Used to work at a nursery- do not worry about hurting the raspberry! You can cut back by 2/3 and she will be happy as a clam. They also love to climb so could do a trellis!

Yesssss. I’ve been waiting for your guys’ garden/homesteading content this spring. I always get so inspired! I’m going to plant my herb garden after brunch.

My grandmother has always had beautiful gardens, beer traps have been her secret to get rid of slugs for 50+ years. Only seems to attract and kills them. Could have a couple drunk squirrels but safer than actually pesticides.

Love your channel. You two are living the dream and are such an inspiration!

You can feed the tomatoes with fish emulsion now to keep fertilizer available maybe once every two weeks and then switch to bloom booster fert when they are starting to flower. When they flower, shake all the flowering stems super gently to help them fertilize themselves and you will get a ton of tomatoes. It’s been a very wet and cool spring so watch out for tomato blight also. Made me laugh with the lost tags bc I’ve done that annually. Also don’t weave the tomatoes into the fence, just clip them on so if you want to pull them up taller you can still do it. The round clips work well and can be reused also. The garden looks amazing and you guys have learned so much in the past couple of years. You might want to toss in some dill seed also. And beans are hard to get established bc of the slugs. I went as far as covering them with row cover and garden staples just to let them be safe from slugs a few times. Birds will pull out the seedlings of beans too. Another one to toss in as seeds like dill is cilantro. I saw something saying that cilantro is better grown the second half of the season but not in the super hot days or maybe in partial sun partial shade. It said it responds better when the days are shortening. I don’t know if that’s true but whenever I grew cilantro in spring it always bolted quickly. I’m in Issaquah so same climate. Your garden represents a ton of work and is amazing! You guys are doing amazingly well. Another plant to bring bees is borage. It grows like weeds and maybe knee high and a foot wide or so per plant but good near the squash to bring in the bees. I used to take my friend’s kids out to the garden and had to give them rules and projects like they have to ask to pick and they had a spot they could specifically dig. You were smart to give your son the radish packet lol. Beware of aphids on your corn later in the season, flea beetles in hot dry season and slugs I resorted to Corey’s which is sluggo but cheaper. I tried diatomaceous earth but its roo wet here and turns into clay and just cakes up your shoes and dries into hard clay in your shoes. I tried coffee grounds and that didn’t work. You could maybe try some actual sand but who wants to lug bags of sand out there. Not I. Lol. Sometimes with bean starts I would just shove another seed in the ground if part of a row gets eaten and call it a day. I had bunnies trash my peas and beans so beware the bunnies also. They will chew right thru pea stems and once the beans come in they will nibble the beans from the bottom up to whatever height they can reach. I’ve had something even nibble tomatoes but not as often. For root veggies I’ve battled voles and became really good at stomping tunnels before they got too far. You can detect them by just pushing on the dirt near the root veggies like beets and carrots. Beets especially. The dirt will cave in easily and be loose bc there are tunnels under the surface. If you have time just check around the beets and push down the soil gently but not so hard they can’t grow. For herbs I just harvest bunches, rinse the ones like oregano, sage or rosemary, lay them out on paper towels to dry and then hang a string on a wall someplace, bundle bunches of herbs with a rubber band and I just open up paper clips to make an S shape, hook one end in the center of the rubber band and one end can then hang on the drying string line you make. At one point I had my whole entry to my house which was a wall with lines of string just tied to pushpins stuck in the wall and then hung up rows of various herbs. Made my house smell good coming in also as they dried. Do you have a lot of mosquitoes in summer there? We had tons in my old garden. I don’t do it now bc of disability but learned a ton. Also when you plant tomatoes in the future, mix in your tomatone with some compost to the hole so it’s got tons of nutrients to pull from. The do the fish fert followed by bloom booster. Same company as fish fert. I bet Kristi was pissssed when you planted potatoes where she planted beans! Lol. Oooops. So funny. With kids around, shiz happens and all you can do is laugh it off. The garden is a lesson in effort, dealing with some pests and life things like wind and rain and kids lol and then one day you will be harvesting a ton of stuff. Ohhhh one other thing I learned was hold your squash up in a cage to keep it off the ground and you can slow down the inevitable powdery mildew that happens in august. That stuff kills the leaves on the zucchini and summer squash and keeping the leaves dry and watering only under the plant helps (but then it rains so it’s just a ticking time bomb of powdery mildew. By that time you will be picking cherry tomatoes and squash so probably won’t care. And fortex poke beans are a really good one to grow. Stringless but good sized beans. I used to grow whole walls of them. Don’t forget to tell your son when he’s picking to not yank anything away from the plant but twist or hold the plant branch and pull the veggies away or he will pull whole plants out of the ground or break whole tomato trusses off the vine. Ask me how I know. Lol Good job guys! You are kicking butt at the garden! And it’s not messy, it’s the stuff you use while planting. It made perfect sense to me in a spring garden in progress. Soon you will be done planting and can tidy it and enjoy the growing in June and July. Happy gardening! 🪴👨‍🌾🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱 Ps don’t forget to pkant some sunflowers 🌻

Your herb that smells like “pizza” is oregano. 🥰 I am super jealous of that big beautiful plant! Loved to see your garden. ❤❤❤ Also have you tried beer traps for the slugs? Keep up the good work

I'm so stoked you guys started this channel, I just love it so much!! I have loved Kristi and her content 5ever, and now getting to know Zack more and seeing all your lovely garden content is the best! 🥰🥰

A shallow bowl with beer has always worked for me! As long as the beer is deep enough that they can drown it works wonders (and is super cheap)

Fellow Washingtonian and slug fighter here! 🐌💥I haven’t seen convincing evidence that Sluggo has a notable negative impact on earthworms but I highly recommend reaching out to your local agricultural extension with questions. I live in Pierce County and we have a master gardener program that can answer basic questions about pesticides and control methods. You can also use beer traps, they can work extremely well if used correctly! With our rain you want to shelter whatever container has the beer so it doesn’t get diluted. Also consider the time of year for any integrated pest management…it’s best to control them before they get out of hand, in the early spring and fall when they are reproducing. I got ducks for slug control. I let them run rampant in the garden once things are well established, so that seedlings don’t get trampled. They tend to go for leafy greens but will peck at whatever piques their curiosity. They also like to lounge around in the beds, smooshing down whatever spot they choose. As such, ducks are best applied to the garden in the off season, like late fall through early spring :) shiii you can have mine if you want! I love my little shitters but duck eggs make me violently ill.

This was so wholesome and wonderful to watch 😊

Your garden looks so much better this year! It looks amazing! Great job guys! ❤

I think you two/three are doing good compared to the first time you ever tried to grow stuff at the other house. Practicing and learning from mistakes is how you learn what is and isn't working. Blessings!

I'd highly recommend planting beneficial flowers within your garden beds to help with pest control. It makes a huge difference.

So, I've heard that dimetaceous earth (sp) helps keep slugs at bay, so maybe sprinkle that on the perimeter of your corn, beans etc and also marigolds are supposed to deter bugs/critters from eating your plants. There is also sister planting I believe it's called, where if you plant certain things together they grow well and kind of protect each other. The garden is looking good and I'm jealous of your raspberries, strawberries and blueberries!! Looking forward to the updates! Happy gardening!!❤

The garden looks amazing! For your raspberries, you really need to trellis them. That's what my grandmother and mom did with theirs. You can trellis any berry that vines and make it produce more. My youngest son (28) and I planted a single potato in a planter this year. Unfortunately, the potatoes rotted before we had the chance to harvest them. Now my son planted watermelon in that same planter just to see what will happen. Neither of us have figured out what to do when an actual melon starts. I mean, it's a large planter, but🤷‍♀️

Such a good lazy Sunday vibe! Always appreciate Zack and Kristi content! (Just wondering what look RBK is rocking in the garden today… I was inspired to do a smoky eye for date night last night thanks to her!)

For slugs and snails, I have had such a hard time with, crush up clean egg shells and sprinkle heavy in your garden beds! I've not lost a seedling yet this year! Plus, it adds calcium to the soil for next years plants.

A chickens gotta do what a chickens gotta do.

What a sweet video and good job Zack, I can see that you are getting better and better talking to the camera. The ‘umm ummm’ clips in the end were so funny

I can’t wait to have a garden again after our home remodel! Omgggg and we’re in the city so it’ll be in our front yard and I’m excited to brighten the neighborhood

Zack you are adorable 😍 thank you for sharing! So happy for you 3 🤗

I have raised beds. The slugs were eating all my radishes. When I moved it to more of a sunny area they were not a problem.

My mom taught me to use beer traps for slugs, pre-water mix soil for beds and move around veggie placement every year. She's in the Master Gardner program and saved me a few times with common issues lol.

calendula flowers are so good for the skin, if you have cuts or damaged skin it helps a lot also about slugs, idk if putting egg shells does anything but my mom does that with her plants lol

You should be able to just pull out new raspberry sprouts pretty easily...they're easy to transplant as well if you want to have them in multiple spots.

Hi Zack 🤗, home gardens are brilliant…your beets look huge already. Sorry can’t help with the slugs 😳. I remember when you arrived at your new home the difference is amazing and I will never stop loving your chickens home. Look forward to seeing more updates. Take care xx x

Thanks, Zack! This was a very satisfying (and educational) Sunday morning walk through Zack and Kristi's garden. 💚 I have no advice or suggestions for gardening. When you take us into the garden I think about my paternal grandparents who were big gardeners.Raising 8 children they had to grow a lot of their own fruits and vegetables. I remember most, the raspberry bushes and rhubarb! Grandma canned everything and made her own jellies. They would each be around 150 years old now! Lovvvve the "uh" outtakes! 😅

Love to watch this kind of videos while I play Stardew

I’ve heard that doing small bowls of beer with soil right up to the edge can help with slugs! It was suggested to me to help with my hostas!

We moved our garden to the other side of our property this year, and are seeing amazing results (they get more sun.) We picked our first bell pepper today, and it's a beauty! Our goal is to grow enough tomatoes to make and freeze enough marinara sauce for the year. I always learn something new from your videos, so thank you for sharing your garden with us!

I do not have a slug problem, but I bought wool pellets from a company (Kestrel Ridge Pellet Company) to add into my flowerpots. I follow the company on social media and they posted about how putting wool pellets around the base of your plants can repel slugs. Apparently wool has little barbs on it and slugs & snails do not like crawling over it 🤷🏻‍♀️

the out takes are the best 😂 love your editing style! you guys are the best 🖤

How come I didn’t get notified for this bad boy 🔫 yewchube count your days. So excited for this one ❤️❤️

You can eat the scapes on the garlic. I stir fry it, delicious!❤

I've heard many people say ducks are very helpful with getting rid of slugs

Love the tour. It'd be so cool to see the process of turning herbs into spices!

U can use coffee grounds or eggshells to naturally get rid of slugs. I was thinking u have a lot of chickens so it makes sense. Your garden looks awesome. I love the idea of growing your own food

Did you know if you plant bell peppers along with cayenne or any other spicy pepper variety...the bell peepers can become a bit spicy too? It depends of the distance and the quantity of spicy pepper plants around a one only bell pepper plant....happened to me 😂😂😂😂

Thank you for sharing! I love seeing these updates, it makes me want to start a garden myself!

I’m so happy to see y’all posting again 🥹💗 I’ve recently learned that oatmeal helps keep the slugs away! Just sprinkle it over the garden !

I have garden envy

Im doing my 2nd garden as an adult, and i need all the help i can get 😂 thank you for this

Zack’s the greatest. I love these garden videos!

I’ve heard and will be trying myself in the next few days that sheep’s wool makes great slug protection and it also great for the plants

Have you tried sprinkling a barrier of crushed/blended egg shells around seedlings? It can be a deterrent for slugs (but I guess snails like it). Might be worth a shot since you guys already have chickens.

Best channel ‼️

For your slug problem, try coffee grounds. just learned this from my uncle and it seems to work. plus: natural fertilizer!

Love love loved the video!! Thank you, Zack,for sharing

Thanks for the video! Have you tried to make pickled garlic scapes? Great snack or addition to meat and stuff. 🙂

Watch for snakes in the strawberries. When I was a kid we always had snakes hiding under the leaves…💋🧚🏻‍♀️❤️🇺🇸

Awesome video. Your hard work is paying off. Snap peas & and pickled beets are my fav! I'm looking forward to the updates! The radish at the end 😅

We trained our raspberries up a chickenwire fence to keep them tidy 😊

hell yeah it’s gardening season

I too live for pickled beets. Well, anything pickled.

LOVED this video!

Love love love this! You guys are living the absolute dream! ❤

Great progress, you both have done amazing 😊❤

Slugs are the bane of our existence!! I have a waist high bed and they still find their way. My salads (except arugula/rocket) are destroyed. I tried the copper tape and it worked for a while. Beer is great but it just brings more in! Hedgehogs love them though. So maybe them?

I use beer can traps and crushed eggshells to help with the slugs!

Did you say in the 50s!?!? Oh man that sounds lovely! My region is southern coastal and unfortunately my growing season is pretty much over until fall. Memorial day temps are supposed to hit 100° and it's not even officially summer but I am already over this heat! I know the PNW has it's own growing challenges but y'all's garden is looking fantastic!

It looks awesome!! Keep updating please

i'm just a renter atm with no land to start gardening, but i am LIVING for this content !!!! it'll be so awesome to watch along and someday start growing my own veggies with you!

Awesome video as always! I love this content. The work you guys have put in is amazing and it’s worth the effort to know you and your loved ones are eating something that you know exactly where it came from… this is goals! Did you cut all your beautiful hair? My husband has long hair and I would miss it but he would honestly rock anything… you looking awesome too 👍🏻 …. Keep up the Good work guys 💕

Great tour Zack!

You guys are doing Awesome! Love seeing these videos!

Well here’s the problem about slugs--their predators are moles!! And you don’t want moles either 😂 aghhh. It’s like, if you let the slugs get out of control you will entice moles to the area and they’ll rip up things or destroy roots with their tunneling. You could try Garden Safe Slug and Snail bait or go to Captain Jack’s Slug Magic to see what works well for your situation (they dilute and become ineffective after a few weeks anyway if you don’t want to continue use). You don’t have to use bait or granules everywhere, but it does help to target it where you observe slugs being a problem. People who do organic gardening probably have much better ideas, but aside from having only raised beds, I’m not sure you truly control them any other way.

I hope the hail didn't destroy your garden! It's a huge issue in the spring/summer here in Colorado.

Nice work on the video Zack!

Woo! Welcome back 🙌🏻

this is so impressive, your Hobbit larder will be so well-stocked. 🥹

i don’t have a garden yet, only house plants but i learned so much!

I noticed you cut your hair. Looks good 😊

Beautiful garden guys!! My hubby and I are also growing peppers. We're growing leeks for the first time, that's been exciting! How to get rid of the slugs? Man.....wish I knew lol

So inspiring, good job guys xx

Can we just get one full video of Zack saying “um” the ending want enough for me 😂

Slugs have been bad for us this year in KY too. Ours usually let up in the summer just in time for the caterpillars to take over. Garlic is so satisfying to grow. Minimal effort and nothing ever bothers it.

Beer for the slugs!

Snail bait: Sooo, I have a garden bed on the balcony and I heard on TikTok that setting out a bowl of beer will attract slugs because of the yeast and kill them because of the ethanol. I wouldn't suggest it maybe for large properties because you could just be attracting more slugs, but it worked for me because I live on the top floor and the slugs are already IN my garden. On rainy days, I could find 10-15 slugs climbing up the bowl. It was gross though. Also: I think Laura from Garden Answer uses BT for slugs, I'm not sure though. I do know she mentioned it recently. Living in Europe myself, I bought granulated iron phosphate III, it says "Iron III phosphate ensures a reliable feeding stop, which leads to the protection of the cultivated plants. The snails retreat to their hiding places after bait eating and dieGentle - due to the particularly gentle formula of our organic snail grain, no waiting time for harvest is necessary. Similarly, pets, hedgehogs, birds, earthworms, bees and other beneficial insects are not affected by the snail stop."

The inspo we all need!!!

Chickens eat slugs! Collect them up and throw them to the chickies!🥰

i put a bird feeder near where i was seeing slugs, and I think its working!

Thank you for the tour! Keep up the great work!! I’ve heard beer in a bowl works to kill slugs.