You lucky, lucky man. What a delightful way to weather the storm.
Radogast's Non-420 Garden Creation Thread
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You lucky, lucky man. What a delightful way to weather the storm.
Howdy Sweetsue,
The Silver-edged Lemon Thyme, like most Thymes, is very care-free. Don't know if Dale has this issue, but it's common enough to mention regardless: can be used as a salt substitute. Just grab a handful (you'll learn how much you need), chop and bake @ 150-200F for 5-7min. A little salty, a little zingy & no NaCl.
The Silver-edged Lemon Thyme, like most Thymes, is very care-free. Don't know if Dale has this issue, but it's common enough to mention regardless: can be used as a salt substitute. Just grab a handful (you'll learn how much you need), chop and bake @ 150-200F for 5-7min. A little salty, a little zingy & no NaCl.
Rado wow you got all our snow we were supposed to get .... I'm jealous. Mighty fine looking back deck with all them critters rummaging about. Good to keep the birds fed, happy and local they will reward you in the spring/summer by eating all the pesty insects. They are our friends for sure. Man if I lived there it'd be a week before I went back to work!! hahaha
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- #284
This and the other note have been cut and paste to my plant wish list. Much appreciated +reps. Last year's Lemon Thyme is in the bin waiting to go back out on the porch. The silver-edged venison sounds perfect for the moon garden. (Not planted successfully. Just a rock edged planter area.)
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- #285
I savor my time at home. I have a 3 hour commute to work each way. Last month, I only saw daylight at home on weekends.
The indoor garden really helps in the winter.
I'm oncall this week or I would have stayed home on Monday as well as Tuesday/Wednesday. It took all day to dig out the 10,000 sq ft of driveway from the bridge to our garage. I might have finished quicker but I got something like 14 work phone calls. The snow plow guy who did the long part of the drive wouldn't cross the bridge because of ice. I told him there was ice on the drive but I had kept the bridge ice free. Still he wouldn't do it. Since the neighbor had hired him to do the long part- not much I could do about it.
My plan had been to help the neighbor walk their site thrower (as usual) but she took it out last night and broke the Augur cable.. so snow plow was a last minute choice so she could get to work today. My work followed the governor's advice and stayed closed today. I'm not used to this whole snow thing. We didn't have snow growing up in the San Francisco Bay area.
Quite a ramble there. Oh well I'll leave it in.
I took a hot Jacuzzi bath after my shoveling. I'm feeling super mellow !
Six hour daily commute! Damn Rad. Tell me you love the job!
OK, I looked back through the journal and yeah... I'd probably do it too for that slice of paradise. It's a long term view.
It might be time to buy a decent snowblower Rad. I'm pretty sure this won't be your last blizzard.
OK, I looked back through the journal and yeah... I'd probably do it too for that slice of paradise. It's a long term view.
It might be time to buy a decent snowblower Rad. I'm pretty sure this won't be your last blizzard.
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- #287
Yes I love the job.
It also comes with a seriously awesome fringe benefit which I can't divulge without saying too much.
It is a six hour PUBLIC TRANSIT commute so I don't have to pay attention to anything except getting off at my stop.
I spend my time chatting with travel buddies, reading and conversing online.
I spend three to four hours a day reading anyway, so its not that big a deal.
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- #288
Tomorrow is a snow day. We are expecting another foot.
The mail lady delivered snow day supplies
The mail lady delivered snow day supplies
What a lovely view Rad. Sigh. 
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- #290
Winter is planning season.
I just finished reading "Farming in the woods"
This is a book that sheds a lot of light on my situation, discussing the juncture of Permaculture, forest farming, and economic forest management.
While their examples of Ginseng farming in New York, had a different set of export laws than ginseng farming in New England, the cost and work requirements of different approaches is directly transferable. It gave me a good perspective on why Red Maples were allowed to take over.
Having now completed 12 months with the land, this book inspired me to start a site map and play with Permaculture zones and truly examine the locations of flood plains, slopes, swamps, shade tours, etc. This should help a lot with planting the perennial, medicinal herbs I have on order
Major features:
12-20ft wide river on the right edge.
6-9 ft side brook winding through the middle.
3 story ledge of rock in the center
3 acre swamp left of the rock
"Island" at top, center-right
Hash marks are swampy wetlands.
Almost everything not a wetlands or a hard around the house is covered with Red Maple trees.
Close-up of the island. I'll make a more accurate map of this, but it gives me a start to determine survey points.
This is the amount of the land we are actually purchasing. The rest is borrowed
I just finished reading "Farming in the woods"
This is a book that sheds a lot of light on my situation, discussing the juncture of Permaculture, forest farming, and economic forest management.
While their examples of Ginseng farming in New York, had a different set of export laws than ginseng farming in New England, the cost and work requirements of different approaches is directly transferable. It gave me a good perspective on why Red Maples were allowed to take over.
Having now completed 12 months with the land, this book inspired me to start a site map and play with Permaculture zones and truly examine the locations of flood plains, slopes, swamps, shade tours, etc. This should help a lot with planting the perennial, medicinal herbs I have on order
Major features:
12-20ft wide river on the right edge.
6-9 ft side brook winding through the middle.
3 story ledge of rock in the center
3 acre swamp left of the rock
"Island" at top, center-right
Hash marks are swampy wetlands.
Almost everything not a wetlands or a hard around the house is covered with Red Maple trees.
Close-up of the island. I'll make a more accurate map of this, but it gives me a start to determine survey points.
This is the amount of the land we are actually purchasing. The rest is borrowed
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- #291
This morning on the island
What a beautiful view. I love that splash of red arbor in the distance.
My mother always spent February buried in the catalogs, getting her seed and plant orders in line. About this time every year the blood starts to warm to the plans for late spring. I look forward to the chronicles of 2015.
My mother always spent February buried in the catalogs, getting her seed and plant orders in line. About this time every year the blood starts to warm to the plans for late spring. I look forward to the chronicles of 2015.
Wow! Gorgeous property.
All that wetland makes me think: ducks! Hardier than chickens they are virtually care-free in that environment. Rouen are my favorite. Plump little boogers are calm, tend to stay put and absolutely delicious! Americans don't seem to eat a lot of duck (or rabbit, or goose). Do you like them?
The other thing you might consider is grapes, specifically Norton. Thomas Jefferson's fav & they make good wine. In Nature, grapes climb trees. They don't choke out their hosts, get adequate light and don't need spraying. Truly a cooperative effort. Make sure you plant them on the N or E-side as the roots don't like the Dragon (westerly) Sun.
Your pix are like an oasis, my Brother. Thx.
All that wetland makes me think: ducks! Hardier than chickens they are virtually care-free in that environment. Rouen are my favorite. Plump little boogers are calm, tend to stay put and absolutely delicious! Americans don't seem to eat a lot of duck (or rabbit, or goose). Do you like them?
The other thing you might consider is grapes, specifically Norton. Thomas Jefferson's fav & they make good wine. In Nature, grapes climb trees. They don't choke out their hosts, get adequate light and don't need spraying. Truly a cooperative effort. Make sure you plant them on the N or E-side as the roots don't like the Dragon (westerly) Sun.
Your pix are like an oasis, my Brother. Thx.
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- #294
I grew up eating home raised rabbit (Giant Checker) and ducks, deer, elk, etc. shot by relatives who hunt. The only one I didn't like eating was bear, too greasy.
By state law, ducks must be purchased in a minimum of either 20 or 24 ducklings. I wasn't ready to do that last spring.
Last spring, we had wood ducks in the brook. By summer we had a troop of 6 Mallard ducks and their friend, a young Blue Heron.
I didn't see any ducks in fall. About two weeks ago, we had mallards for 3 days.
About 1/3 of our town is wetlands preserve, mostly treeless marsh. The ducks probably feel safer on our land, with tree cover to protect against the red-tailed hawks that nest nearby. Unfortunately for ducks, trees are no protection against the Goshawk we see on occasion. Goshawk are scary fast flying through trees and use bushes as cover when attacking.
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- #295
My first pass at a Horizon Herbs was over $300. I trimmed it down to a more manageable list by focusing on medicinal perennials
American Lotus - The big yellow ones
Uva Ursi - I like to smoke this
Common Milkweed - because butterflies
Henbane -
Foxglove - pretty
Moonflower - I need to try again
Comfrey - open pollinated seeds, I'd like them to naturalize
Aloe Vera - almost every Aloe Vera is a clone, these are seeds! - for indoors
Vervain
Black Poppy - feeding my inner goth
Paw Paw - I've wanted to try this tree since I first heard of it. Thrives in shade.
Hollyhock
Belladonna - a shade lover. I needed to find out how dangerous these are before planting.
Roman Chamomile
Calendula - the marigold kind. Annoying aroma to many pests.
Nightshade
Mugwort - a great plant. Also a good smoke.
Monkshood
German Winter Thyme
Sunflower - Fat Momma - the big striped seeds.
Self-heal
Mullein
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- #296
We have wild grapevines that choke out trees. In one area between the ledge and the brook I took a chainsaw to a pile where the grapevines had dragged down 5 or 6 trees into a 20 ft tall "haystack." I ended up with a tunnel through the debris. I am hoping winter snows will collapse the pile so I can clear out the rest of it.
I established a bare root grapevine on the trellis next to the deck last year. I'm hoping it takes off this year.
By North and east, do you mean north and east slope, or north and east side of a tree ?
Lovely list. There's lots to watch on that list. I'm very familiar with Horizon. I always laugh at my initial lists, and then I try again to pare it down. That usually take a few tries.My first pass at a Horizon Herbs was over $300. I trimmed it down to a more manageable list by focusing on medicinal perennials
American Lotus - The big yellow ones
Uva Ursi - I like to smoke this
Common Milkweed - because butterflies
Henbane -
Foxglove - pretty
Moonflower - I need to try again
Comfrey - open pollinated seeds, I'd like them to naturalize
Aloe Vera - almost every Aloe Vera is a clone, these are seeds! - for indoors
Vervain
Black Poppy - feeding my inner goth
Paw Paw - I've wanted to try this tree since I first heard of it. Thrives in shade.
Hollyhock
Belladonna - a shade lover. I needed to find out how dangerous these are before planting.
Roman Chamomile
Calendula - the marigold kind. Annoying aroma to many pests.
Nightshade
Mugwort - a great plant. Also a good smoke.
Monkshood
German Winter Thyme
Sunflower - Fat Momma - the big striped seeds.
Self-heal
Mullein
-tags
Hey Radpgast,
That's an awesome list! Some useful, and some just plain gorgeous.
When I plant grapes to climb a tree, I plant them on the N or E-side of the tree itself. Then I train them to spiral up. Once they've made a full revolution they pretty much have the right idea & you can back off. Then train some so they grow out the lower branches. Picking grapes in the shade is a true Summer-time pleasure.
Just a couple notes off the top of my head:
Foxglove, Belladonna, Monkshood and Nightshade are all virulent poisons. Be very careful where you plant them.
Pawpaw are an awesome native to the US. Delicious fruit tastes like banana pudding and you'll never find them in any store, because they don't travel well. Be warned though: they fruit much better when they have a friend nearby. Also, they stink, so plant them well away from the house.
Chamomile is fun to grow and maxe a very soothing tea, but needs a fair amount of sun.
Calendula mixed w/ Tagetes spp. Marigolds make an excellent pest barrier. They also look really nice together.
What's the scoop on UvaUrsi?
That's an awesome list! Some useful, and some just plain gorgeous.
When I plant grapes to climb a tree, I plant them on the N or E-side of the tree itself. Then I train them to spiral up. Once they've made a full revolution they pretty much have the right idea & you can back off. Then train some so they grow out the lower branches. Picking grapes in the shade is a true Summer-time pleasure.
Just a couple notes off the top of my head:
Foxglove, Belladonna, Monkshood and Nightshade are all virulent poisons. Be very careful where you plant them.
Pawpaw are an awesome native to the US. Delicious fruit tastes like banana pudding and you'll never find them in any store, because they don't travel well. Be warned though: they fruit much better when they have a friend nearby. Also, they stink, so plant them well away from the house.
Chamomile is fun to grow and maxe a very soothing tea, but needs a fair amount of sun.
Calendula mixed w/ Tagetes spp. Marigolds make an excellent pest barrier. They also look really nice together.
What's the scoop on UvaUrsi?
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- #299
Poisonous herbs are a major part of medicinal herbs. My wife knows how to use these. I'll plant in "don't touch" flower beds.
First I've heard of Paw Paw stink. Its this only in fruit bearing season, flowering season, or throughout the growing season?
I was going to plant them within view of the back porch, assuming they might attract birds and possums. Thanks for this info, it's valuable!
Uva Ursi is the major ingredient in kinickinick, Native American non-tobacco smoke. Unlike mugwort, which gets one noticeably high, Uva Ursi seems to operate as a call/invitation to spirits. I have smoked a pipe mix of Comfrey, Uva Ursi, Mullein, and Yarrow - based on lists of Native American smoking mixtures and what was available at the herb store. In my personal experience, (3 of 3 tries) my Uva Ursi based blend has resulted, within a day or two, in spiritual revelations, including seeing the world through the eyes of a famous New Orleans Voodoo practitioner and direct advice on how to manage a part of the land. I don't smoke Uva Ursi unless I am prepared for a spirituality enlightening experience. I can't speak for others (I haven't done much research on this herb,) but there is a Coyote trickster element to my Uva Ursi encounters. It might not be the Uva Ursi, maybe it's the Mullein(a conjure herb) but this blend has been a powerful smoke for me in the last few months.
I love just sitting here listening to you guys talk. 