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I can see why cauliflower (or dogweed, as my Dad called it--Collie-flower) might be a replacement for a lot of things. It can be cooked to nearly any texture and it's almost tasteless. So much for those of us who actually enjoy the taste of varied foods.

This morning, 10 and 23. Spinach is still alive. We'll see how it fares after this next cold snap.

In a sense, but not sustainable. My attitude toward plants is casual neglect, or STUN. If it can't survive, if I have to keep buying seeds, it shouldn't be here and I'll try something else.

I have kamut, spelt, and a couple more old varieties of wheat. My birds are finally getting the idea that they can eat over their heads as well. I have comfrey but right now it's in an area the chickens don't access until it's big enough to divide. Same with horseradish. Berry bushes will go in...

Yup. So they can tell which ewes have been bred. Baaaaad.

I'm "weeding" mustard, lettuce, amaranth and sorghum in the grass for the chickens. Flax is doing great and reseeding itself already. I need to include some more low growing herbals and fall/winter greens. Sort-of a forage plot for them. Eventually I suspect the forage will outcompete the grass...

Yes, most are disposable. Which is precisely the problem. Non-renewable resource in a real emergency. Years ago I made small sterile surgical kits (pre-threaded needles of various sizes, needle threader, extra thread, scissors, tweezers) but I seem to have given away all but one. I sterilized...

Sorry, couldn't resist. Tune of "Merry Christmas to You" Leaves are steaming in a compost pile Chickens scratching at the dirt As for piggies, we are done for a while, And apples pressed begin to spurt. Everybody knows the smell of homestead Christmas time Cider, ham and fire-light Scent of...

My goal is to grow as much of my food as possible. No way I can do 1/4 acre of boxes. I simply don't have the resources. On the other hand, I now know how to grow dry beans and corn here. Watermelon does great in the woodchips, as do sweet potatoes. I'll try amaranth in the dry garden next year...

I have chickens, but I don't let them into the garden areas for a number of reasons. They have just recently realized that they can dig, but they pretty much ignore areas that don't have bare soil. The areas I am working with are thick with perennial grasses which they seem to completely ignore...

Six plum seeds have roots on them. Cold stratified in the refrigerator since June. I am hoping for plants that bloom late and have an extended bloom period to avoid late frosts. My old almond tree did that, and I'm planting its seeds. My mother's plum did the same but only over a period of a...

Potatoes last year--maybe a dozen tiny potatoes from 28 plants. Onions about the same. Garlic has a high die-off rate each year so I have tried to spread it out to see where it actually grows. Soil is a swampy, mucky mess in the spring, then turns into concrete. I have a bunch of different...

They're considered disposable, like everything else. I grab them at the dollar store periodically to add to my stash. I am having a hard time sourcing reusable suture needles.

I am trying to figure out how to fix my clay soil so I can do root crops. Potatoes and onions are two things I still buy. I am thinking maybe buy one or two of those big round hay bales and put pigs on it. Greenhouse is looking good, only spinach and cilantro at the moment. Two arugula were...

I have to look at it with both eyes from about an inch away, then slowly back out. Basically force my eyes to cross. When the center of the crossed focus matches, the image pops out. Still makes my brain hurt.

At one point someone have me a book of those images that look random but pop into 3d when you look at them right. THOSE make my brain hurt.

The funny thing is, whoever drew it had to put 5 legs on the bottom in order to make the top 4 work.

I Have seen no significant difference in spring vs fall pruning. I just prune whenever I have time after the plants are fully dormant. The advantage to spring pruning is that you can tell where the buds are. Fall pruning you may get stems dying during the winter that you had intended to use, but...

Legs on the elephant.

I got all of those except the tiny guy in the center.