Garden Planning and Hopeful Planting

The rhubarb, chives, marsh marigolds, and crocuses have poked their heads out, and the blueberry buds have swelled and beach grass is coming up. Hopefully the plants haven't called spring too soon. Though it is only 20-30 degrees out, it feels so warm since it's actually dry out.

 My garden map for the year is filled out in pencil with plans of what to plant where. I completely geek out with the garden map and make it to scale on grid paper and color code things. This is the third year I've made a map, and this year I'm stepping my record keeping up with an extra database to make tracking crop rotation easier. I made rock number labels for each raised bed. Now I can simply look in my database and see that bed #1 had kale, then lettuce, then peas in it. Crop rotation is important for both nutrient and pest management.

I have 46 raised beds, with more on the way!

Basil

Kale
 

I started a few flats indoors. I can't figure out how to prevent legginess.....I have my lights within centimeters of the lights but they all just want to reach up, up up......do I just not move the lights when the plants touch them? I wish I had more room to experiment with starts!

Potential Peas

I planted a packet of peas under row cover, in a hoop house, outdoors on March 12, and of course the temps immediately dropped to 20 degrees. Peas will sprout and grow in surprisingly low temperatures, but 20 is pushing it. People always wonder how I can plant so early and make it work. #1 is having dry, covered beds that warm up on sunny days. #2 is that many times many things don't work! It's a gamble to plant early, but at $2.50 a seed packet, it's not really risking much if something doesn't sprout. I stick to peas, onions, kale, spinach and lettuce for super early crops. If something doesn't sprout early you can always replant. If seeds haven't come up in a couple of weeks it's usually safe to say it's a bust--don't wait and wait and wait to replant just because you know the seeds are there. Now if the snow that just started falling would stop, I'd say "Get planting!"

Sustainability in the Barn

I mentioned many months ago that I wanted to stop using purchased straw in the chicken coop. At $25 a bale, I tend not to keep the barn floor as clean as I'd like. My current floor space of 8x12 feet requires quite a bit more straw than my old 3x8 coop. I also wonder about where the straw comes from--what kind of pesticides am I adding to my compost pile by using this mystery straw from down south? Is it from GMO wheat? Also, the thought of having something trucked and barged up here just so my chickens can poop on it seems a little extravagant if you really think about it.

Thanks Nicole!

When you need to find something it seems like you can always count on Freecycle! I posted an add for bulk shredded paper and had a response within a day. A friend at the Dept of Labor has been graciously calling me when their "file consolidation" pile stacks up.

Of course I'm always skeptical--even of my own ideas. I was worried about the shredded paper matting in the coop. And when on the first day the chickens had paper sticking to their legs, I envisioned them eventually becoming entirely covered in paper mache. But, after a month of using solely paper for the bedding, it's worked out even better than straw!

Over-flow

A couple of times a week I fluff things up with the pitchfork and occasionally toss in tote-fulls of new paper. The only down side is that it is a little unsightly in the pasture. Like straw, it spills out the doorways when it sticks to chicken feet and boots. Another concern is the toxicity of ink and bleached paper in the compost. In my research on composting paper, it's hard to find definite answers. In some instances it seems as though the composting process has the ability to cleanse toxins from the heap, which would be desired when using either paper or straw. For now, I'm simply hoping that is the case.  I plan on getting my finished compost tested for toxins and for nutrient content in the near future.

To me the pros of eliminating straw from the barn far out weigh the cons. 

If you need bedding for your critters, consider networking with a local office for their shredded paper!

Organic and GMO

It seems as though many people think organically-labeled food as a hoax--a hoity-toity extravagance. I always wonder why people don't see organic's significance. To me, it's a vote against the big agribusiness of conventional farming, which is characterized by the heavy use of pesticides and synthetic fertilizers. I can vote for a president who plants a big White House garden, but what does that do? Monsanto still rules the capitol. Go to the "Monsanto's Government Ties" list here to view the actual personnel.  I don't know how it can be legal!

If you're not familiar with Monsanto, here are a few Wikipedia notes about the Monsanto company:

• They are the creators/manufacturers of DDT, Agent Orange, and PCBs, all highly toxic chemicals.

• They created Round-Up as a weed killer. Then they made Round-Up-Ready corn, wheat, canola, alfalfa, and cotton seed. (This means the plants that bare your food get sprayed with Round-Up, don't die, and go on to produce your food). Upwards of 200 million tons of Round-Up are applied in the US annually, and it doesn't decompose. We all need clean water to drink....

• As of 2012, Monsanto is associated with 11 active Superfund sites and 20 archived sites in the US

• They have been/are involved in countless legal battles over pollution and gene patenting 

• They are responsible for all the rBHT (and artificial growth hormone) in our milk.

• They are the makers of genetically modified corn, soy, and who knows what else. These products are widespread and are not labeled in the US, so if you're not buying organic, you're eating GMO. What's the big deal about GMO? It hasn't been tested, so we don't know if it's safe. See the above track record and wonder if Monsanto cares if GMO is safe. 

 Here is a list of companies who have dumped $$ into the anti-labeling campaign. Do your health and the planet a favor and boycott them!

Did you know our government subsidizes corn, Monsanto's major seed crop, which needs tons of Monsanto's pesticides? 2011 saw upwards of $4.6 billion in corn subsidies! This subsidy in turn makes cheap corn-based animal feed and processed foods. So here our tax $$ are working in two ways:

1. They help corn farmers afford Monsanto's GMO seeds and pesticides, and 
2. They help consumers pay less for their burgers, corn chips, and corn-syrup drinks. 

My thoughts on this:

1. Monsanto has enough $$
2. Considering the obesity levels in our country, I think it would be wiser to subsidize fruits and veggies.

Many produce items in the grocery store are from foreign countries because they are cheaper than US-grown produce. Why not subsidize the healthy food instead of the processed food and keep diversified fruit and veggie farmers in business? Producers and consumers would win. The way things are now, only Monsanto wins.


Which brings us back to organic. Defeated by the bureaucratic nonsense of big-agribusiness in the government, I can vote for sustainable farming methods by choosing to spend our grocery dollars on organic food to support organic farmers. Even more than that, it shows conventional farmers that I don't support their farming methods.

I also think of the extra money I spend on organic food as a form of health insurance. By eating organic I can bypass the chemical residues that remain on/in non-organic foods. Think about it this way:

If you were getting ready to spray Round-Up on the lawn and your son dropped his apple into your mixing bucket, would you let him eat it? When you buy non-organic from the store, essentially the same thing happened, but you just didn't see it. Seriously, would you let him eat it?!

The food system in our country is quite the out-of-site-out-of-mind phenomenon for most people. It's infuriating to think about what we are being fed, both literally, mentally, and subconsciously. Most of us aren't buying our food directly from farmers who can tell us about their practices. It's a scary food world out there right now, and the organic label is something we can rely on.....and even that is a statement I don't fully believe. With a large chemical company running the agricultural system of this country I wonder how easy it is for them to makes changes to the USDA organic certification standards. With organic gaining such popularity I often wonder if more farmers are switching to organic production or if standards are lowered so the label includes more farms. Ensuring that large farms are operating within the guidelines is also a fine line.

Huck's first potato harvest

So in the end it seems like the best message is: GROW YOUR OWN FOOD!  You won't be able to grow it all, but every step counts.  If you gather, hunt, fish, and preserve, in addition to 4-season gardening, and you pare your food selection down, you'll be shocked at what you can provide!

I first heard of all this back in 2001 in a sustainable agriculture class at UMaine. I never thought it would get this bad. For more info on GMO, Monsanto, and the corruption of the EPA, check out the internet--there's tons of information out there. A good start would be watching a few of the many food documentaries, including Food Inc. and  King  Corn. Get appalled,disgusted, and inspired to feed yourself!

The Fertility Facility

It started with one small bin. I built it out of the heaviest, ugliest pallets you've ever seen. It was my first pallet project, and at the time I didn't know there was a patient art to pallet scrounging. Armed with a skill saw, hammer, and crow bar, I used a full pallet for the back and cut another pallet into pieces for the sides. It measures 18x41x48 inches. I rested a scrap piece of tin roofing over the top to keep the rain out. Surprisingly, it took my family of 3 and flock of 9 chickens almost two years to fill it! It looked like it was full after about a year, but when the contents got to the lid, you could actually see the magic of composting: One week you think you've poured your last bucket of slop in as the lid teeters over the mound. The next week the pile has settled a few inches allowing for another addition. This happens from week to week as the pile is continuously breaking down. It's feels like such a magic show to keep adding to the pile, and it's a wonderful confirmation that your pile of scraps is indeed a compost pile. 

Bin #2

The Fertility Facility began out of necessity. The two sheep and two goats I was raising in 2010 made for a lot of dirty bedding to take care of. I built bin #2 and started adding our food, garden, and barn scraps to it. It soon became "full" as it was mostly barn litter (poopy straw) and didn't quite have enough green to keep it composting quickly. So I built bin #3, which became a holding tank for barn litter. I continued to add greens to bin 2 for about a year. Eventually, I came up with the composting co-op idea, but I was working full time, had a two year old, and was milking the animals twice a day. It just didn't pan out to put more on my plate. In mid-2011 I became a bona fide stay-at-home mom and starting drawing out the plans for mass composting. In January 2012 the program started and I gradually expanded from composting for nine households to composting for 23 households, a preschool, a bread bakery, a bistro, a grocery store/deli, and a food bank. So I did some more building:

 

#4, the first co-op bin, & #5

 

 #6 & #7

 

#8 & #9, which form the northern fence around my garden

 

 

#10 & #11, continuing the fence

#12 & #3, which are a separate experiment

#13 & #14, waiting to be needed and completing the north fence.

 The storage bin, packed full of leaves for future use as biofilter

Some Numbers:

Now, February 2013, just over a year after beginning, I have filled (to ultimate capacity,) 10 bins.

• Two bins are actively getting added to.  
• Three bins are starting to cool, meaning they're about half way done. 
• Two bins are mostly done and are getting finished by worms (who just show up when it's time)
• Five bins are completely composted and are awaiting spring use.   

     Spreadsheet Totals

• 220 hours (not counting building, turning piles, and record keeping) on the project.
• 5269 gallons of material collected 
• 19,661 pounds of material collected
• ~11,500 pounds of additional material from my barn
• ~600 pounds of cover material (collected leaves, garden debris, straw)

Surprisingly, this doesn't take up much space in my yard, considering how much material has gone in. Volume wise, the break down of the material is astounding. The first round of breakdown has a shrink rate of about 50%. The reheat and final breakdown shrinks by another 33%. 

So I started by piling up 1188 cubic feet of material and ended up with 392 cubic feet of compost. 

Last summer I saw bags of 1.5 cubic feet (~2 5-gallon buckets) of compost selling at a store downtown for $20. That means I created about $7920 worth of compost. In other words, if the market was there and I could sell everything I produce, I actually could make a fair wage! Collection fees could also boost the $$ potential. 

So after it all, I've got a huge accumulation of greatness just waiting to grow something delicious. It's been fun, and I don't see reason to stop! If I could just get my paperwork act together to get the license/permit, I could "open" for official business and make some $$. For now, I'll just keep composting!

Recycling Projects

I'm obsessed with not throwing things away. I always look to pass unwanted items on to others, repair the damaged ones, and re-purpose the things that don't fit into the first two. Here are a few recent projects:

Worn Out Socks

When we wear a hole in a sock, I simply tie a knot in it and throw it to the dogs. They love to play tug with it and throw it around. Not only do you get to keep your spent sock out of the landfill, but you also bypass having to buy faraway-made toys for your dogs! If you wear natural fibered socks (pure cotton, wool, or bamboo), you're in extra luck. After your dogs have demolished the sock, you can just throw it in the compost pile!  If you don't have a dog, simply cut the sock into pieces for easier decomposition by your hard-working microbes.

Nappy Pot Holders

So I've had the same pot holders for about 7 years. They had a ridiculous amount of stains and burn holes. Most First World people would have thrown them in a landfill long ago and purchased new ones. Most Third World people would be grateful to simply have pot holders, ratty or not . At my place in the Fourth World, I can use a few scraps of fabric to revamp the old into new:

 1.  Wash potholders, measure dimensions, cut fabric, and make a pouch.

 2. Add loop of ribbon, sew pouch shut with old potholder inside. Quilt stitch an X across the square. Voila!

This one is made from an old wool sweater. I used the bottom of the body to make a couple of potholders, the top of the body to make a purse, and the arms to make some awesome volcano leg warmers. Scraps went into the compost. 

The result of some old potholders, a few cotton scraps of cloth, a holey sweater, some ribbon, a sewing machine, and 30 minutes of my day. What can you save from the landfill with a simple upcycle?