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ursulas_alcoveIn keeping with garden advice, I looked for the nitrogen fertilizer I used last year. I used an organic feather mix that is slow release. I liked it and it was easy to use. While it was easy to find this year and reasonable at $17 a box, the shipping costs for a couple of boxes from CA was $78! It wasn't oversized nor are the boxes heavy. Either their shipping algorithm is screwed up or something is way off. Yes, I left an "abandoned" cart. But prices are going up. Last year I bought packs of coco coir for about $7 or $8 a pack. The discount was bigger in packs of 6. This year I can only find single packs at $22 a pack. Same exact size. Same company. Just wow!
That means a couple of things. One - I'll be looking at bokashi to fertilize. Two - Like it or not, I am going to go flip that compost pile and water it periodically. I'd chase over to Starbucks for coffee grounds, except that uses gas. Once I have the backyard beds all built, I may call for a chip drop. It's a LOT of work hauling those chips up the hill. We'll see if that even happens. The third thing I am doing is making biochar. My latest bed is getting the winter cover crop as plant food. I guess that makes four things. My costs will be water and seed for the cover crops. Just hoping my watering can makes it through the year.
Rain has been a scare commodity. I'll be harvesting the comfrey leaves for the buckets soon. Any digging or reshaping of the land (cinderblock leveling) will be put on hold. The clay will break the shovel. I have a broken tool collection.
It burns me to know that we get plenty of water BEFORE the last freeze but not after. I can't collect rainwater in March when it's plentiful. Hard freezes trash the container and the spigot valve. April 6th was our last hard freeze. We haven't had rain since nor is any forecast for a while. Going forward, I am going to have to do something about that. I am considering a water trough heater, just for those April days when temperatures dip. Before climate change really hit this area hard, we'd get close to 4" of rainwater every month - like clockwork. Now, it's all or nothing. I don't like it but I need to adapt. El Nino not only means high temperatures for the summer, but it also means drought in our area. I've been buying organic straw for all my beds. The Oya will be installed in the newest garden bed. I may make oyas out of old terra cotta pots. I also snagged a failed pottery attempt from Tosten. He was making clay pots with lids. The glaze failed. I think it'll work.
https://youtu.be/gkLRanqTKWw?si=tjvXEz4SRjdbEa0S
My latest video is out on the potatoes. In it, you'll see the latest "purchased" raised bed. I picked up a 2 for 1 sale on Birdies beds last fall. I don't know if I'll like it. My galvanized steel "fire ring" garden has never done well. A lot of garden catalogs are getting rid of a lot of products. Shipping has gotten too expensive. I picked up a wooden bed too, 41" x 36". If I can get that set up this year, it'll hold a zucchini squash plant. That depends on whether I can finish getting the mulberry tree trimmed. It's been too windy. I have quite a ToDo list. As time allows, I'll be working more with items I make out of scrap things. There is no money for purchased items any longer. (With the exception of perlite or soil that I have to get from the hardware store if I am to plant this year)
That means a couple of things. One - I'll be looking at bokashi to fertilize. Two - Like it or not, I am going to go flip that compost pile and water it periodically. I'd chase over to Starbucks for coffee grounds, except that uses gas. Once I have the backyard beds all built, I may call for a chip drop. It's a LOT of work hauling those chips up the hill. We'll see if that even happens. The third thing I am doing is making biochar. My latest bed is getting the winter cover crop as plant food. I guess that makes four things. My costs will be water and seed for the cover crops. Just hoping my watering can makes it through the year.
Rain has been a scare commodity. I'll be harvesting the comfrey leaves for the buckets soon. Any digging or reshaping of the land (cinderblock leveling) will be put on hold. The clay will break the shovel. I have a broken tool collection.
It burns me to know that we get plenty of water BEFORE the last freeze but not after. I can't collect rainwater in March when it's plentiful. Hard freezes trash the container and the spigot valve. April 6th was our last hard freeze. We haven't had rain since nor is any forecast for a while. Going forward, I am going to have to do something about that. I am considering a water trough heater, just for those April days when temperatures dip. Before climate change really hit this area hard, we'd get close to 4" of rainwater every month - like clockwork. Now, it's all or nothing. I don't like it but I need to adapt. El Nino not only means high temperatures for the summer, but it also means drought in our area. I've been buying organic straw for all my beds. The Oya will be installed in the newest garden bed. I may make oyas out of old terra cotta pots. I also snagged a failed pottery attempt from Tosten. He was making clay pots with lids. The glaze failed. I think it'll work.
https://youtu.be/gkLRanqTKWw?si=tjvXEz4SRjdbEa0S
My latest video is out on the potatoes. In it, you'll see the latest "purchased" raised bed. I picked up a 2 for 1 sale on Birdies beds last fall. I don't know if I'll like it. My galvanized steel "fire ring" garden has never done well. A lot of garden catalogs are getting rid of a lot of products. Shipping has gotten too expensive. I picked up a wooden bed too, 41" x 36". If I can get that set up this year, it'll hold a zucchini squash plant. That depends on whether I can finish getting the mulberry tree trimmed. It's been too windy. I have quite a ToDo list. As time allows, I'll be working more with items I make out of scrap things. There is no money for purchased items any longer. (With the exception of perlite or soil that I have to get from the hardware store if I am to plant this year)
