GARDEN QUESTION: Posted on ‎12‎/‎15‎/‎2014‎ ‎9‎:‎45‎:‎44‎ ‎AM by US Navy Vet
I have about 1.5 acres of land in my back yard and I need advice on what/when to plant on it so all the dirt does now wash down to the bottom. Whatever I plant/seed needs to come in thick and fast. My daughter had 2 horses back there and now the land is pretty bare. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/3237364/posts
UPDATE FROM KATHY ON ARROWHEAD: ‎12‎/‎17‎/‎2014‎ ‎7‎:‎41‎:‎03‎ ‎PM · 353 of 393 Kathy in Alaska to Arrowhead1952; WhyisaTexasgirlinPA; Windflier; txhurl; Iron Munro; Old Sarge; 2ndDivisionVet; ... UPDATE FROM ARROWHEAD'S DAUGHTER, LISA... I wanted to send you an email update for the last couple of weeks. To be honest we are seeing very small progressions and sometimes there are weeks where there is not much to report. But I do have a few things I wanted to pass on to you and to the FReeper community!
Things are moving very slowly, and sometimes seem to be moving backwards, but hopefully we're taking 2 steps forward for every 1 step back. :) Dad's big achievement this week was that he was able to walk about 70 feet (with heavy assistance) during one of his physical therapy sessions. This was on a day that my mom was there, and this pleased the therapist and Mom very much. Also, the therapists have noted that Dad's posture is getting much better, he is able to sit up very straight in his wheelchair as opposed to slumping over or leaning to the side as before.
Dad's therapists (physical/occupational/speech) met with Mom this week to give her an update, saying that he is moving very slowly but still making small progressions. The neurologist on staff met with her as well and said this process is going to be very slow-and-go and that we are in for a long haul, but that the things he is seeing are relatively normal for this type of brain injury.
Dad's voice has gone from being quite strong a couple of weeks ago to very weak, and it is increasingly difficult to hear him or understand what he is saying or trying to say. He also has an incredibly hard time focusing on a task or on a command/question, as his attention span is noticeably shorter. The therapists are having a hard time getting him to respond to commands these last few weeks or answer any questions, but we hope that with time that will come.
We still do not have a long-term prognosis, as it is impossible at this time to say what the true nature of the injury is coupled with the fact that every traumatic brain injury patient is different. The speech therapist did another "swallow test" recently, as the first one did not go as well as she had hoped. While he does have a strong swallow, and can repeat it, his epiglottis - the flap that covers the trachea and doesn't allow solids/liquids to go into the lungs - is not closing at all. Because of this, he is still on a feeding tube and will be for the forseeable future, as anything put into his mouth runs the risk of being coughed into his airway. If the epiglottis does start closing regularly, they will test again and reevaluate.
Please pass on our thanks again to everyone who has taken the time to pray and send messages and cards and pictures - we are so appreciative of those and Dad does enjoy looking at them. My aunt told me this week that she handed him one that was upside down, and he made sure he turned it right-side-up before he looked at it, so there's that! Thank you all again so much for the continued love and support. It has been almost 2 months and we still need all the prayers we can get. With Love and Hope, The Schwausch Family - John, Linda, Lisa and Merfie Blue (the doggie, of course :))
If you'd like his address, just FReepmail me. And thank you to everyone for sending the family letters and prayers. Maybe you can find a postcard with your state on it...they could see how many states he could collect. Contact Kathy if you want the address.
Try to plant a garden there. The weeds will take it over in no time.................
My suggestion is a comnbination of almost all of the above (except for tile drain).
A series of terraces, interrupted by alternating rhizomacious ground cover, either flowering, or not flowering(or rhizomacious herbs) to hold the soil back.
When in doubt, use local successful plantings, especially rhizomes as you can cheaply duplicate/clone by root cuttings (spring) and tip roots (summer).
Terracing will slow down the topsoil creep, and rhizomes will hold back the soil, and facilitate plant duplication.
I like the idea of clover and dandelions for bees, pollination, and sequential fowering of dandelions, as well as dandelions roots bringing up micronutirents as deep as 15 feet.
Also, Clover seed and dandelion seed is generally cheap !
It's from an organic gardening site; I didn't garden that way but borrowed ideas from them.
Recharge your soil by using buckwheat as a cover crop
The author of Pleasant Valley (somewhere in Ohio) experimented in rebuilding depleted soil on farms. I think he used grass and let horses or animals graze but I don't remember exactly what all he did; it probably was clay soil which is harder to deal with.
Sorry about your dad. It sounds tough on everyone.
Thank you for posting Arrowhead’s report. Head injuries are sometimes slow to heal.