Time to sprout some more cat grass seed.
Posted on 04/16/2022 6:55:11 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin
Per this article, 1 tsp = 800 to 1,000 mg calcium
From link:
Research suggests daily supplement dose of 1,000 mg of calcium and 600 mg of vitamin D can counteract the effects of osteoporosis. However, it is said that older adults might benefit from a slightly higher dose to reduce the risks of fractures and falls.
About 1,300 mg suggested by “Osteoporosis Australia”.
https://morelifehealth.com/articles/eggshells-calcium
+++++++
My elderly mom just got a DEXA scan that is a mix of osteopenia & actual osteoporosis so we’ll be doing eggshell version of calcium along with a bunch of other nutritional things she’s either on already (Vit D) or we’re adding plus weight bearing & resistance exercises - no Big Pharma drugs.
On my little front yard area, last year I tilled it, laid down goat manure, cardboard and then plastic. I figured during winter it would stay wet and the cardboard would be gone in Spring. Nope. Pulled the plastic back a few weeks ago and the cardboard was intact as were the little goat poop berries. I should have piled some organic matter on top of the cardboard and maybe skipped the plastic. Oh well. No grass or weeds have come back at least. I didn’t get the whole area so I’m going to till the rest, put cardboard down with something organic, probably leaf mold and goat manure mix and plant maters and peppers into it in mid/late May. Johnny’s seed date calculator says May 13-20 for those so I’m not that far ahead of you. Last frost date here is May 6th.
I think I could get away with no-till here. I have silty loam according to websoilsurvey. Thought it was clayey loam but it’s not. Just looked at the soil report a few days ago. At least it’s considered loam and I have a good size area with 1-2 feet worth with very few rocks. Probably a little over an acre total. It does have some clay content. I know because I have sculptures that the kids made out of it several years ago and they’re as hard as a clay pot. My son did a long neck dinosaur and the 1/4” neck didn’t crack and break.
All the no-till people I’ve been watching videos of rely heavily on compost and most even use it as a mulch. Found one guy that puts down compost and then a little mulch over it which seems like a better idea. Nitrogen goes away quick when exposed to air from what I’ve read. I need to become a compost making maniac. That and leaf mold since most of the property is forest and I have to rake or burn leaves a few times a year.
Some day when you have 5 hours to spare... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nojy-QtTwyY - Organic No-Till Vegetable Production with Bryan O’Hara: Part 1 of 5 | Getting Started
We had a couple of days of solid rain here this week so I had time to watch videos. Not into TV. Read all the books I have. I’m bored with the rest of the internet and sick of the news so why not try and find out how to grow food in our dystopian future?
O’Hara uses KNF - Korean Natural Farming - which leans in the direction of bio-dynamics but more based on reality than superstition. Mostly about getting your local forest fungi into your garden. He’s a little on the hippie side but has some good ideas and methods. He tills once for new ground.
Oh thank you, didn’t consider that a discount store would have them. Nice!
I miss the ‘Fitchburg Recycling Center’ - AKA, ‘The Dump.’ LOL!
Time to sprout some more cat grass seed.
>>>Saving cooking water and putting that on your plants when cooled.<<<
Also, running the kitchen sink’s hot water faucet into a jug, until it gets hot, instead of down the drain.
We also do the same with the bathtub hot faucet; a half gallon juice jug does the job.
I think that is the problem: The file is too large.
I’m going to practice this week to see if I can get it right - if all else fails, I’ll call my son - an IT engineer.
“Also, running the kitchen sink’s hot water faucet into a jug, until it gets hot, instead of down the drain.”
BUMP! Thanks for the reminder - I don’t always do this. My kitchen sink, which I use all day every day, is the FURTHEST faucet from the water heater, so it takes some time to get me hot water for washing dishes. The water DOES go from cold to scalding, so usually it’s no problem and the temp is fine once the sink is half-full.
I’m going to fill a jug just to see how long it really takes. I’ll bet it’s at LEAST 2 gallon jugs worth of water before the hot kicks in.
I sound like Greeneyes complaining about something she’s asked her hubby to ‘fix’ for her that hasn’t gotten done yet, LOL! See? She’s still with us! :)
I was just out in the garden moving a small pile of dirt from a corner we had it in and encountered a Kennebec potato that I somehow missed last year. Sadly, my shovel did not miss it today.
However, I was shocked as that decent sized potato was in PERFECT condition after having gone through the winter buried in the garden. There was no rot, it was not soft, and it had not yet started to sprout. No eyes at all.
Which gives me an idea for this fall. Since I do the bucket potatoes, I will harvest some of the crop and then make sure the rest of it is well covered with wood chips for insulation and see about harvesting them throughout the winter or in early spring next year, when fresh veggies are at a premium.
My garlic is a few inches high already. I have 19 rows of six plants each with a few duds. Can’t find them but still, that gives me a sizable garlic crop for next year and for Christmas gifts.
I’m actually organizing my garden. I have the tomato cages all set up in a nice grid with enough space between them for good air circulation. I’m tired of crowding them and having the blight take them.
Mr. mm and I have been doing some tree thinning, mostly clearing out dead wood, literally. We’re going to put the chipper on the tractor and chip up a ton of branches we have laying around the property and those wood chips will on the walkways between the rows of plants. I’ll lay down cardboard first, then put down the wood chips. They also help keep ticks at bay.
Yes, that’s Greeneyes, alright! Ever with us.
“I’ve asked and asked my hubby to install a second (instant?)v water heater for the kitchen...”
Oops! Now I’m giving you new ideas to nag...uh, suggest to Beau.
I found a few perfect potatoes one Spring that I had missed the prior summer as well. Our frost line is only a few inches at most. Who needs a root cellar? Dig them up and bring them in the house and they’ll sprout. Leave them in the ground and they remain perfect.
“How to Grow Vegetables and Fruits by the Organic Method” by J. I. Rodale mentions a few methods of storing veggies outdoors. Buried barrel at a tilt, trenches, pile in pyramid in the garden. All methods get a fluffy cover with a little soil on top to hold that in place. Only applies to winter/storage type crops of course.
One thing about containers is that they might be apt to freeze sooner than something buried.
Got my 5lbs of Yukons in 55 gal drum sections with open bottom. Loosened up a couple of inches of soil, put the drum section on which sets in the soil a little, smoothed the soil, added leaf mold and nestled taters into it and added some more leaf mold. Leaf mold has some of that very aged goat manure and a touch of bone meal. Those are maybe 3% of the mix. I didn’t bury the taters all the way because everything’s sopping wet and we’re getting more rain tomorrow. Just barely left the tops peaking out and will add more leaf mold in 2-3 days. Then I’ll just go with shredded leaves.
I did two barrel sections out of three for the 9 seed potatoes. The one with five is a little crowded but I wanted to save the 3rd barrel slice to protect one of my comfrey plants that I just put in the ground a few weeks ago and that the rabbit got to. Already have a barrel slice around the other and had a milk crate over this other one temporarily. Both are putting out new leaves so they should be safe now.
Got a few seedlings sitting outside to harden off. One pepper out there as those are a bit yellow so I want to see if the sun greens it up. Might need fertilizing. Might be too much or not enough water according the a web search. Web search also said not enough light so I’m trying that first. It’s 60 degrees, sunny and for a change, no 30mph wind gusts. Those will be back in a couple of days. Spring and Fall we get a lot of wind. Some in Winter too. Zilch when it’s 90 something of course.
Stack on another pallet as we go and for now, set them behind the shop which faces North and doesn't get sun. When the trees leaf out, we'll find a shady spot in the woods because once summer comes, the back of the shop won't have enough shade. Even in our little valley, we might have to use a little shade cloth. Keep them from drying out in Summer and come Fall, we should have mushrooms.
Might try a little cultivated ginseng someday. It grows wild in a few places around here but never has on this property according to the old timers. There are plants in this area that people dig for roots that have value too.
When you've got forest, do Forest Gardening.
My potatoes are set on the ground so being buried in enough wood chips should be able to insulate them well enough.
Mr. mm says he knows a source for drums both metal and plastic. We might be able to abail ourselves of some of those.
Correction, Cheese-wax, not beeswax.
yes
gardening in the high desert and not tilling because moisture conservation is top priority
just a small 30 x 40 plot
I mulch with wheat straw or dried native grass without the seed head
Hi Diana, please add me to this ping list
Got a whole bunch growing in our small garden.
A few orchids:
A few nice plumeria (very fragrant)
Crabclaw
And adenium
As for tips, we are recycling an old badminton net to help with our long beans (basically green beans that are about 2 feet long when done)
Also note our baby papaya tree. Should start bearing fruit in a couple of years.
Green papaya is great for making slaws. Thai recipes generally call on shredding it and mixing with a dressing with hot peppers, lime juice, garlic, and fish sauce (if fish sauce is not to your taste, I'm sure you could substitute it with some vinegar and oil. Wouldn't taste the same but would still be good).
Also some Chinese morning glory.
To cook that, it's great sauteed lightly with some chili, garlic, light oil, and Maggi (if you can't find Maggi, soy sauce would work too)
The Brooklyn Township Recycling Center and Dump is the best at having interesting gardening stuff. I actually look forward to going every couple weeks to see what goodies someone donated to the special items area by the metal barn.
🙃
In one ear and out the other!
He usually will comply IF I give him all the facts and figures behind what I want...but that normally involves MATH which he knows is my short suit.
I knew I should’ve asked for a LOT more than just a greenhouse when I uprooted my life, sold my farm and everything I owned and moved here to help take care of his farm. ;)
But, I get to raise puppies, so there’s that. :)
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