Permaculture, Regrarians, etc. 2017

[Beekissed]

I'm in my third year of a BTE garden, though I've made mistakes with it along the way and don't think I've got the same results as many others. I'll be working this year to correct those mistakes, if possible.

 

[tortoise]

I'm attempting a BTE / low-profile hugelkulture to make new soil over blacktop. DH thinks I'm completely crazy! I've been putting layers of dry leaves, wet grass clippings, sticks from pruning, and straw sheep bedding. Just started it this spring, so I have a long wait-and-see ahead.

 

[Beekissed]

I don't think that's a bit crazy....think about how quickly grass and weeds start growing in any leaf or mulch debris that collects in the corners of streets and sidewalks. This past year I was in a little Mayberry type town in VA and saw a foot tall tomato plant growing in the tiniest crack against a shop wall and someone had given it a support...it was producing!

I think you could build soil on top of that old blacktop and eventually have it deep enough to grow just fine. Might take a few years, though.

 

[baymule]

I dug trenches for a pea patch, filled with wood chips, put the dirt back and put wood chip mulch over that. I ran out of tractor turn room or I would have done the whole corner of the garden like that. I will mulch the remainder and plant purple hull peas. We'll see how it goes.

 

[Amiga]

Peas are growing nicely on some foot-deep duck bedding I planted. They are primlarily for building soil, but the sprouts are yummy!

Might put in some field peas soon.

I was impressed last year. It was a very dry summer, and flax, radishes and mustard did very well. So did buckwheat. I am converting lawn to garden,

 

[Beekissed]

That's a lot of food, Free! Kudos on the food forest!

I have a BTE garden and have a few perennials started in there but not many as of yet~garlic, chives, raspberries, rhubarb, strawberries, asparagus. The rest of the space is used for annual food stuff.

I have an apple orchard and a few peach trees, some new apple saplings where I have compost rings around them, planted to potatoes also.

The jury is still out on how I feel about the BTE method but I'm committed now, so I'm hoping it gets better with time.

 

[Amiga]

One of the Permaculture principles is that each element - each part of the system - has more than one role. Ducks provide manure, eggs, meat (for some), eat slugs, snails, and weeds.

Another principle is that more than one element does the same job. Ducks eat weeds, I eat some, and the compost eats some.

A principle that is so vital and for many so challenging (I know we will get there), is that there is no waste. Everything coming out of an element provides something to other elements.

 

[lcertuche]

I hope you continue this post. I love perennial type forages. I'm thinking I need to be picking some poke salad, lol. A friend brought some cooked with eggs (the traditional way). It was so yummy. I never let DH chop it down because I want it to reseed and give up plenty of greens for years to come.

 

[tortoise]

I still remember how my sister and I painted my 2 year old brother with poke berries. From the top of his head to his toes. I will never forget how mad Mama was. My sister was 4 and I was 5 at the time. Even his hair was colored. DB was a lovely maroon color for a few days.

Did he get sick? They're poisonous and can be absorbed through the skin!

 

[lcertuche]

Did he get sick? They're poisonous and can be absorbed through the skin!

No and we even fed him a few for good measure! What's that old saying 'God looks after children and fools'. I don't know how anyone survived growing up back then, lol.