Day X 3

I am feeling a little disappointed as I wanted to have up to

the tree at the end of the table cleared to the fence line. Unfortunately my little one is not wanting me to be more then sitting distance from him. So basically after we sat and watched the lizards frolic, the grass near the date palm to the left was cut leaving a very nicely trimmed area from the back of the laundry shed to the area where the previous tenant grew there own garden. I also managed to trim some of the vines from

this tree. The bad thing is all the pictures I am taking after cleanup are not recorded by the phone until much later. I will try to post the newer pictures tomorrow before I go out and attempt to accomplish more then just watching lizards frolic. In any case no matter how much I manage to get done during a day I am enjoying doing it and would like to make sharing my experiences a full time job. I will not hear that it cannot be done. I am determined to make it possible. I am going to call it a Friday night so till later happy reading and ciao.

Day X 2

I told my family about my challenge so they agreed to help when possible. Since my post yesterday we have gotten lots done but I am by no means anywhere near done. We got some brush cleared by pulling it out and what was too hard to pull got the machete. After that the lawn mower was run. I got help with chopping up the dead-fall that will be used in the fire-pit. In between all of this we were dodging carpenter ants. Everytime I turned around I was discovering that my yard is infested with these darn things and boy do they look nasty. Well check out what we have accomplished so far...

 

I would have to say this one is my favorite. I was trying to pull the vines off but I pulled the whole tree down. 

This is just a small section and there is alot more work do be done but I hope to make it into a nice flower/veggie garden. I will post a list of plant seeds that I have as soon as I get the chance. but for now I am going to rest and get something to eat. Til later happy reading and ciao.

Day X

I have been living here for somewhere around four to five years and am tired of my half ass attempt at yard cleaning and gardening. I have gotten to the point of challenging myself to clean this up and make it presentable and enjoyable for the wild life as well as for my family and anyone who may take over after I move away. So here is what I am going to do. This is going to be my daily journal of what I have done and how much I have managed to clean and re/plant. What I ask from you in return is to donate to help me to continue this task and posting my activities.  For any readers in the 727 area code I have lots of plants and planting/mulch materials. If you are interested in getting any leave a message in the comments. Til Later happy reading and ciao.

Organic/Heirloom seeds

I am looking for specific seeds and cannot seem to find a ONE stop shop where I can get ALL of my seeds. I have the standard peppers, tomato's cucumbers, etc. I am having a difficult time finding peanuts (which I found out today are actually legumes, beans for those who don't know the genus thing), and cotton.  I have the wheat and am working on learning the whole mill grinding for flour. I am excited about the weather and the eventual ripening of my seeds. At the present time I am scattering my seeds in no particular plan but am formulating a companion planting plan. I have found some good charts for planting times and plants that work well with other plants,

Plant (Vegetable)	Good Companions	Bad Companions
Asparagus	Tomatoes, parsley, basil
Beans	Potatoes, carrots, cucumbers, cauliflowe, cabbage, eggplant, summer savory, most other vegetablesand herbs	Onions, garlic, gladiolus, chives
Beans, bush	Potatoes, cucumbers, corn, strawberries, celery, summer savory	Onions
Beans, pole	Corn, summer savory, sunflower	Onions, beets, kohlrabi, cabbgae
Beets	Onions, Kohlrabi	Pole beans
Cabbage family (cabbage, cauliflower, kale, kolrabi, broccoli)	Aromatic plants, potatoes, celery, dill, hyssop, chamomile, sage, peppermint, rosemary, beets, onions	Stawberries, tomatoes, pole beans
Carrots	Peas, leaf lettuce, chives, onions, leeks, rosemary, sage, tomatoes	Dill
Celery	Leeks, tomatoes, bush beans, cauliflowe, cabbage
Chives	Carrots, tomatoes	Peas, beans
Corn	Potatoes, peas, beans, cucumbers, melons, pumpkins, squash	Tomato
Cucumbers	Beans, corn, peas, radishes, sunflowers, lettuc	Potatoes, aromatice herbs
Eggplant	Beans, potatoes, spinach
Leeks	Onions, celery, carrots
Lettuce	Carrots and radishes (lettuce, carrots, and radishes make a strong team grown together), strawberries, cucumbers, onions
Melons	Corn, Nasturtium, Radish
Onions(garlic)	Beets, strawberries, tomatoes, lettuce, summer savory, leeks,chamomile (sparsely), pepper	Peas, beans
Parsley	Tomatoes, asparagus
Peas	Carrots, turnips, radishes, cucumbers, corn, beans, most vegetables and herbs	onions, garlic, gladilus, potatoes, chives
Potatoes	Beans, corn, cabbage, horseradish (should be planted at the corners of the patch), marigolds, eggplant (as a lure for the Coloradopotato beetle)	Pumpkins, squash, cucumbers, sunflowers, tomatoes, raspberries
Pepper	Onion
Pumplins	Corn	Potatoes
Radishes	Peas, nasturtiums, lettuce, melons, cucumbers	Hyssop
Soybeans	Grows with anything, helps everything
Spinach	Strawberries, eggplant
Squash	Nasturtiums, corn	Potatoes
Strawberries	Bush beans, spinach, borage, ettuce (as a border), onions	Cabbage
Sunflowers	Cucumbers	Potatoes
Tomatoes	Chives, onions, parsley, asparagus, marigolds, nasturtiums, carrots	Corn, Kohlrabi
Turnips	Peas

...this is just one companion chart. I have not yet had the chance to put together a complete zone 9 chart. For now I am going back outside to play in the dirt. Till later happy reading and ciao.

Green Movement

This is nothing new. This is how our ancestors lived. Only difference is we now have the technology to create our own power yet we insist on buying into the grid living. We have lost our way and the knowledge we had. We have become dumber due to the things we have allowed to happen. Synthetic drugs for instance do more harm to our body then the healing the are said to do. They push this stuff on commercial television ads. "BUT WAIT!" Wait until they get to the side effects. The way to combat the body damage these drugs do to us is to stop taking them. "These drugs I am on control my homicidal urges," you may say. Why would you have these urges to begin with if the food you eat did not have chemicals in them that damaged parts of you that gave you these urges. We are damaged and dying from birth these days.  There is more electricity and harmful radiation among other things in the air these days the our bodies soak up that hurt us then there was before electricity started being installed in every home. We need to take a stand in more ways then one to take back our lives. The media these days does not report real unbiased news so most of us have no idea what is going on. Look around you and read or listen to someone else's opinion. Verify it for yourself via other sources and make your own conclusion. We are headed for disaster and the only way we can heal ourselves is by gardening and eating what we plant. It is great fun and brings you back in touch with mother nature, which in turn helps you discover who you really are. I for one feel better for working in and with nature.

Two of my orange trees.

That is it for today.Till later happy reading and ciao.

Beautiful Weekend

I had a great weekend. I actually spent more time outdoors this weekend then I normally do on any given day. It was not to hot and just breezy enough to be bearable. I watered my garden and tasted my first tomato. It was ripe but not quite soft enough but it was still tasty none the less. Strange thing though some of the seeds had black spots in the center. The tomato looked more like a bell pepper inside.

The plant is so overgrown I keep cutting it back. I am having a great time with this as it seems to forever be flowering then giving me more tomatoes.

This is my strawberry plant and it is going on its second round of flowering. By the way the strawberry seeds I ordered came in today. I plan on planting some this week hopefully.

The only plants I actually have grown from seed do far are...

my brussel sprouts and whatever else I have in this group. This started out in one of those tubs you get from hospital stays (the marigolds were seeded straight into the garden). I had at least six different types of plants in it but this is all I have left. As I mentioned previously my corn died during silking due to lack of time to take care of it. It is late and my boyfriend just got home from work so I will say till later happy reading and ciao.

Late As Always

I can never seem to get started on time. Not to mention when I want to do yard work or cleaning my boyfriend surprises me with that being his day off. I would love to be able to get him to spend a day working in the garden with me but his would be my excuse. It is too hot outside. I have come to the conclusion that global warming is a bi-product of population. By that I mean the more people there are to house the more buildings are built and the more heat builds up in certain areas due to poor building design. Are buildings not supposed to be built for heating/cooling efficiency on top of good air flow from coast to coast? Anyway I digress.
My planting always seems to get done out of season. Thankfully I live in zone nine so I can plant anytime with rarely a problem. The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map can be found here. Well I have done my best to get some work done this week. I added some leaves and coffee grounds to one of my compost bins. I went to check it today and this is what I saw...

It has compacted a bit but that is fine. I will give it a few more days then add some more leaves and some of what most people would call weeds. During the time I'm hot composting I keep the bins lidded which helps the vegetation rot quicker.

This is the bin I use to add from when I am composting. I also use this bin to sift from into...

here so I have pure unadulterated dirt to use for planting in. I have always loved playing in the dirt and those that know me would say I am just making things harder with the way I am doing it but this is how I like doing it. I am going to finish now and work on getting some more planted while I wait for my heirloom strawberry seeds to come in. Till later, happy reading and ciao. 

Running Scared

It has been brought to my attention that the news has been running scared of Ron Paul to the point where there has been what is called a media blackout on him. Now they grab a hold of something Ron Paul says and twists it to sound the way they want it heard. All of a sudden news is now covering Ron Paul saying that he does not want the Oval Office. It was a simple question by interviewer Terry Moran, "Do you see yourself in the oval office?" To which Paul answered no. That in no way means he does not want to be President. That same question could be asked of anyone. I cannot see myself in the White House even though I have given serious consideration to running. This in no way means that I do not want to be president it just means it is hard to picture.
I do not watch the news on television anymore as it is only stories covered that do not have much bearing on the true state of country affairs. I have to look it up online where there are several sources to corroborate the truthfulness. It is sad that it has gotten to the point where the media is no longer reliable for unbiased truth in news worthy reporting. There are a few other things that have caught my attention lately but that will come in a few days. Time enough to research it better and allow me a little more time to play in my produce patch. Well till later happy reading and ciao.

Compost

Each person is different when it comes to composting opinions. Some say never put meat in the compost. I read one account of where an individual did just that with no ill effects. Some say vermicompost under your sink. This consists of shredded newspaper, worms and leftover produce in a container under your kitchen sink. Still yet others throw in produce only with dirt and yard waste. Me on the hand, I do not use anything that I am unsure of. In other words when it comes to produce, how long has it been in the store? Where did it come from before it got to the store and how long was it in transport? Too many questions I know but if you consider this stuff sits around on occasion for at least two weeks at a time it can not possibly be good. After all composting is supposed to be the natural process of decay by biodegradable products good for the planet. Chemicals are harsh and destructive and therefore should never be used on anything ingested by the living (human or animal). I use cut grass and dead leaves and sometimes when available I get coffee grounds from my local Starbucks (not meant as a plug). I would really love to have my own home with a good ten acre spread so I could have some farm animals to help with better compost nutrition. Certain types of animals' excretion may be used as fertilizer. that is much more natural then what is made by man. I am working on a collective list of natural soil nutrients so as soon as I have that ready I will make that available here. 'Till later happy reading and ciao.

A Time to Sow

Well it is time again to get those seeds started. I just came back in from sifting some compost.

 I went out to turn my compost and found this... 

The tiny green sprouts I moved into this container are tomato's. There is one more plant in here that I believe to be from an orange seed. I know that I am not supposed to put seeds in the compost but I did not want to throw them away and had no other place to put them at the time.

My tomato plant is bent outta shape due to the quick wrap job we did to protect them from the cold weather this winter.I also have

brussel sprouts and eggplants that have done fairly well. Better then most of the stuff I have planted so far and then there is

my rosemary. I had corn but during silking they require alot of water and I lost that because of the little time my job allowed me to have. The strawberry plant produced some yummy strawberries but not nearly as much as I expected. I am going on my third year of planting and I have learned alot. In all the research I have done I have taken notes and done a little trial and error and discovered some things that might make this work better for me. I have bought seeds for different produce but what I am still looking for is cotton seeds and strawberry seeds. I am looking for organic. I believe that using companion planting and having flowers in the garden to attract beneficial insects prevents the use of chemicals. Using chemicals kills beneficial insects and causes pest infestation. I apologize if this is a bit jumbled. I sort of just threw this together as my attention was divided between a fussy baby and a fussy kitten. More to come as time allows. 'Till later happy reading and ciao. 

Could Farming Be Illegal?

I have been doing research on homesteading or self sufficient off the grid living. It is a topic that has had my interest now for almost three years. I want to make a few points though. About six months to a year ago I heard about a food bill that would make it illegal to grow your own food to buy sell or trade. The name of that bill was H.R. 875 Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009. This came about due to the MASSIVE e coli outbreak that was having food companies recall millions of dollars in food. I have become interested in watching documentaries in the last six months and discovered Food Inc.. It is my conclusion after watching this that the commercial food industry was responsible for this problem. Cows are grazers, grass eaters. Corn is not in there diet. This documentary shows that commercial farmers feed there cows corn which in this film states it causes e coli in the stomachs (for those of you who don't know cows have more then one stomach).H.R.875 was not the only food bill though, congress changed the name to H.R.2749. The Senate had there own version, bill, H.R. 2751 which they changed to Bill s510. I have yet to discover any further information but my suggestion to those interested are keep an eye on this, contact your political establishment and let them know this is a violation of our individual freedoms and you are against this passing. I will be keeping tabs on this myself and updating my readers as information comes in. 'Till later ciao and happy reading.