Since I erected my new portable greenhouse a couple of months ago, we have had rain, snow, hail, frost, and very few sunny days. It has been a strange beginning of Spring here in Oregon. But the little seeds I planted in their trays have sprouted and are slowly growing. Next year I may decide to put up a solar panel to heat the greenhouse trays and any tender plants I have therein.
I was trying to figure out how to fill the empty Earthboxes I have in the greenhouse without having to buy potting soil, of which I'm not too fond. While standing out in the side pasture, petting some of my goats, it came to me. Take a bucket and shovel. Skim the top soil off all of the gopher and mole hills into the bucket. The soil is already loosened and is not as wet as the compacted soil around the hills.
The grass around the mole hills is so richly green, fertilized by my herd of goats. I don't have to mess around with a heavy wheelbarrow or clumpy wet soil. It works great! Now I can plant my peas in the boxes and have a nice harvest in about 60 days. I soaked them in rain water for 3 - 4 days before planting. That seems to help, too.
Around the edge of the garden, where all my root vegetables are, I'm going to put in several mole plants. A friend did this in her garden and never had a bit of trouble with moles or gophers. Of course, she fertilized her growing area with mint fodder. It adds nitrogen to the soil and also seems to repel gophers and moles. We'll see what happens.
Many of the country people I've talked to lately are tabulating the cost of buying groceries against growing their own, especially with the rising cost of fuels. Other factors we are figuring in is the rising cost of electricity for running freezers. Many of our vegetables and fruits seem to do well coming out of a jar that we have canned in bulk. There are lots of shortcuts and money-saving ideas in doing home preserving: canning, freezing, dehydrating, etc. About the end of gardening season, I gather the basic veggies from the garden and combine them into what our neighbor calls "End of the Garden Stew". It can be a quick supper with only adding a little meat at the end of a cold winter day.
I've been planting gardens and harvesting since I was a little girl, over 60 years. Basically, I'm lazy so whatever way is going to gain the most with the least amount of work, is usually the route I take. Besides, anything left in the garden that we cannot eat (corn stalks, pea vines, rutabaga & cabbage leaves, etc.) the goats stand on the other side of the fence and drool, while begging for those morsels. Nothing goes to waste.
If I grow an abundance of one thing, I can always check with my neighbors for trading purposes. Local people have also organized a Sunday afternoon "Farmer's Market" located beside our little country market which is on the Highway. This begins when the seed planters among us have lots of small plants to sell.... all the way through the summer months and into fall. The extra dollars cover costs incurred when it comes to healthy country living.
I was trying to figure out how to fill the empty Earthboxes I have in the greenhouse without having to buy potting soil, of which I'm not too fond. While standing out in the side pasture, petting some of my goats, it came to me. Take a bucket and shovel. Skim the top soil off all of the gopher and mole hills into the bucket. The soil is already loosened and is not as wet as the compacted soil around the hills.
The grass around the mole hills is so richly green, fertilized by my herd of goats. I don't have to mess around with a heavy wheelbarrow or clumpy wet soil. It works great! Now I can plant my peas in the boxes and have a nice harvest in about 60 days. I soaked them in rain water for 3 - 4 days before planting. That seems to help, too.
Around the edge of the garden, where all my root vegetables are, I'm going to put in several mole plants. A friend did this in her garden and never had a bit of trouble with moles or gophers. Of course, she fertilized her growing area with mint fodder. It adds nitrogen to the soil and also seems to repel gophers and moles. We'll see what happens.
Many of the country people I've talked to lately are tabulating the cost of buying groceries against growing their own, especially with the rising cost of fuels. Other factors we are figuring in is the rising cost of electricity for running freezers. Many of our vegetables and fruits seem to do well coming out of a jar that we have canned in bulk. There are lots of shortcuts and money-saving ideas in doing home preserving: canning, freezing, dehydrating, etc. About the end of gardening season, I gather the basic veggies from the garden and combine them into what our neighbor calls "End of the Garden Stew". It can be a quick supper with only adding a little meat at the end of a cold winter day.
I've been planting gardens and harvesting since I was a little girl, over 60 years. Basically, I'm lazy so whatever way is going to gain the most with the least amount of work, is usually the route I take. Besides, anything left in the garden that we cannot eat (corn stalks, pea vines, rutabaga & cabbage leaves, etc.) the goats stand on the other side of the fence and drool, while begging for those morsels. Nothing goes to waste.
If I grow an abundance of one thing, I can always check with my neighbors for trading purposes. Local people have also organized a Sunday afternoon "Farmer's Market" located beside our little country market which is on the Highway. This begins when the seed planters among us have lots of small plants to sell.... all the way through the summer months and into fall. The extra dollars cover costs incurred when it comes to healthy country living.
2 comments:
I was blog walking and found your blog (via Shelley's blog) - very interesting. I would be interested in a good home made mayo recipe if you are willing to share.
thanks,
Thanks for stopping by Val's mom! Re: your comment. I have a huge collection of herbal teas that I enjoy... but there's nothing like making my own cappuccino, from grinding the beans to frothing the milk...ohhhh...looooveeee.
Oh, and it looks like you'll have to post that mayo recipe, I have my own but I'll certainly try yours to since I'm always open to change. :)
Happy blogging!
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