Planting my first SFG: pics and a few questions

I introduced myself here in early April and finally am ready to plant after several weeks of delay. First, the supplier for my bed bungled my order TWICE, so while I have a few extra boards, it took nearly 3 weeks to get all the pieces I paid for. Then UPS lost my vermiculite for 3 days. Then my 7 month old got her first cold while teething and turned into a stage-5 clinger that had me cuddle trapped on the couch or glider for nearly a week.

Anyways, the bed is built and filled and ready for planting! My compost includes an organic mix from a local nursery, Cedar Grove that I was lucky to find at Home Depot while visiting my in-laws in the CA Central Valley, chicken manure, Espoma Land and Sea that I was able to order from the east coast, earthworm casings, and Boogie Brew humus. I then topped off with some EB Stone Sure Start that has kelp, alfalfa, bone, and blood meals, bat guano, and a few other things—not sure if this was needed but it was recommended at the local nursery, and me being a newbie, I gave in thinking I needed all of the things.

The inside dimensions are 39 sq in so I made a 3x3 grid. The trellis was a leftover piece that our gardener had from another client. Will this be enough support for tomatoes, bell peppers, and chili peppers? Do the chili peppers need a tall support like this or will staking be enough? I have a traditional tomato cage, so if needed, I can move the trellis over to one side for bell and chili peppers and place the cage in the tomato square. I also have 2 chili plants—ghost and jalapeño, which I read can grow tall, so not sure how to space them out given I have 4 tall growing plants that should ideally go in the back row to prevent shading. I then have basil, cilantro, and carrots for now (2 more squares to think about), so also hoping for some ideas for the best layout.

We have a ton of squirrels and chipmunks and the occasional turkey in our backyard. There are also deer in the area, but I’ve never seen them hop over the fence into our yard. Outside of caging everything, are there any measures I can take before transplanting to ward them off? I’m terrified of putting everything in the box and waking up tomorrow morning to find everything devoured.

Thanks everyone for the help. This site has been such a great resource!

EastBay, Welcome to the Forum from Fresno, CA!

That's a beautiful bed. Just thinking, how tall are the individual sides? It's hard to tell from a photo. If they are 7" or more, you could make two beds out of it, as you only need 6-7" of Mel's Mix.

I've had a hard time finding real composts this year. Two of my favorites are no longer being sold in CA. So, I have to ask, where did you purchase the Boogie Brew humus? The Cedar Grove in the Valley?

In regards to the trellis, I think it should span 2 squares as support for just the tomato plant. Peppers can do fine with just cages. Regarding critters, cages are helpful. I have a friend that used to live backed up to the Mr. Diablo reserve/preserve, and I watched a deer leap over the tall garden fence. Just straight up and over, no running start. You may not have noticed a deer in your backyard because you don't have a tempting garden, yet.

sanderson wrote: So, I have to ask, where did you purchase the Boogie Brew humus? 

You can order it directly from Boogie Brew with free shipping. Use coupon code GYG for a discount.

https://www.boogiebrew.net/boogie-humus

sanderson wrote:EastBay,  Welcome to the Forum from Fresno, CA!

That's a beautiful bed.  Just thinking, how tall are the individual sides?  It's hard to tell from a photo.  If they are 7" or more, you could make two beds out of it, as you only need 6-7" of Mel's Mix.

I've had a hard time finding real composts this year.  Two of my favorites are no longer being sold in CA.  So, I have to ask, where did you purchase the Boogie Brew humus?  The Cedar Grove in the Valley?

In regards to the trellis, I think it should span 2 squares as support for just the tomato plant.  Peppers can do fine with just cages.  Regarding critters, cages are helpful.  I have a friend that used to live backed up to the Mr. Diablo reserve/preserve, and I watched a deer leap over the tall garden fence.  Just straight up and over, no running start.  You may not have noticed a deer in your backyard because you don't have a tempting garden, yet.

Thank you for the trellis suggestions! The bed is 16 in high. The first 6 in is filled with clean sand which I had seen you suggest to many people. I found the Cedar Grove at the Home Depot in Merced. They still have a ton—my in-laws bought several bags last week for their own garden and said they were still well stocked. So maybe worth a trek up from Fresno?

OhioGardener is right, I ordered it directly from the Boogie Brew website. I had to sift it, but it was very dark and rich with an earthy scent.

Hi EastBay.  Welcome from Atlanta, GA!

Beautiful bed...  And I'm glad to see it's away from that fence, lol!  I learned the hard way that you should have some space there so grass/weeds can't get unmanageable.