THE SECRETS OF CHEF ALICIA’S GARDEN
The secrets of Chef Alicia’s Garden are revealed by The Traveling Chefs in this post. Three months ago, they had started working on their bare backyard. If you want to know how they have transformed it into a healthy and beautiful garden shown on their previous post, keep on reading, because below, they reveal these secrets without reservation.
BIOCHAR, THE ULTIMATE SECRET OF ALICIA’S GARDEN
The Traveling Chefs credit biochar for the amazing yield of their first raised garden bed. It is their ultimate garden secret. They used The Andersons BioChar 10 lb. DG Organic Soil Amendment purchased through Amazon for $23.88. As of this writing it’s unavailable there. But you can purchase a 30 lb. bag from Walmart. Their next 3 raised garden beds don’t have biochar so the leaves of their plants aren’t as green as that on the first raised bed.
HOMEMADE COMPOST – ANOTHER CHEF ALICIA’S GARDEN SECRET.
Perhaps you may not know The Traveling Chefs use homemade compost made up of only three items: soil (mostly sand), kitchen refuse (limited to discarded parts of vegetables and fruit peelings) and tree leaves placed in their improvised composed bin in that order. After about 3 months, they have an effective compost. They paired this compost with biochar in their first garden bed and they’ve also used this successfully in their corn, spinach, sweet potatoes, and squash among others.
They have also purchased a great quantity of organic compost from Costco which also gave them amazing results. They use this one primarily for growing seeds and as part of the 4-part soil mix described below.
4-PART SOIL MIX, ANOTHER SECRET OF CHEF ALICIA’S GARDEN
For their flowering pots, The Traveling Chefs utilize a 4-part soil mix composed of Florida soil (mostly sand), peat moss, compost and vermiculite. They’ve found this mixture also very effective on seed germination.
LOVE AND CARE – ANOTHER SECRET OF ALICIA’S GARDEN
Since 2/3 of gardening is water with 1/3 being soil, The Traveling Chefs make sure their thirsty plants get all the water they need. They water them daily, with the exception of their succulents which they water only once a week.
To save on water, they bought a rain barrel from Amazon made by VINGLI for $49.00. You may use other barrels for cheaper price. They have thought of purchasing metal barrels which they noticed were commonly used in the Philippines for similar purpose. They are however, heavier and those which come with spigots are a bit expensive. Some of these barrels may have contained contaminants which aren’t advisable for health reasons so they’ve thought.
NATURAL PESTICIDES AND POLLINATORS – ANOTHER SECRET OF ALICIA’S GARDEN
Do you know that The Traveling Chefs do not use pesticides or insecticides at all? They instead use natural pesticides which are also free. They let the birds take care of the insects, caterpillars and so on. By “hiring” them as pest managers, The Traveling Chefs get healthy plants and better yield. They control the pests and insects and also serve as agents of pollination. They are a steady source of constant joy for them as well.
Their favorites are the cardinals and the mourning doves. The former are currently building a nest in their orange tree. These birds along with many others are attracted to their backyard because they have a bird feeder, a bird bath, and a lot of flowering plants. It also helps that they practice organic farming.
In addition to these birds, other agents of pollination abound. Butterflies, bees, dragonflies, lady bugs and moths take turn visiting their garden.
THE SECRET INSPIRATION BEHIND CHEF ALICIA’S GARDEN
Some years ago, The Traveling Chefs attended the CEO Entrepreneur Cruise co-hosted by Dr. Rollan Roberts II and Peter Lowe. The former’s “adopted” niece Melody Garcia of the “One Night One Voice” fame has invited them to attend the Cruise. She was one of the speakers in said event. Melody went on to become a world famous speaker, author and coach.
During the event, the guests received a book “90 Day Race: The Secret To MASSIVE RESULTS” written by Dr. Rollan Roberts II. The seminar along with this book have inspired The Traveling Chefs to embark on this business, though not successful yet for lack of experience and focus.
After they’ve retired however, The Traveling Chefs were able to focus on their backyard garden for at least 90 days. The lockdown and travel restrictions prompted by Coronavirus forced them to. They have applied the teaching of the 90 Day Race and have gotten the massive results you may have noticed in their garden.
THE TRAVELING CHEFS BARELY SCRATCHED THE SURFACE OF GARDENING
The Traveling Chefs have barely scratched the surface of gardening know-how. They are aware that to become masters of gardening, they need to invest a lot more time and effort into it. At the moment, they couldn’t provide both any longer. They will soon pursue their love for travel, for cooking and for making new relationships.
Thank you for reading this far. Hopefully this post has somehow inspired you to attempt on something you have dreamt of doing. If you’re a gardener, please share your secrets. Who knows – others may benefit from them.
Last week, The Traveling Chefs have spent a long time with a couple of their friends who also love gardening. One couple got so excited and was determined to start soon. They have inspired The Traveling Chefs to write this post in an attempt to reach more people of similar interests.
If you aren’t into gardening, just continue to do what you love doing for there lies the secret to your own happiness and success at work. Good luck and see you in the next post.