Organic Vegetable Gardening

Discussion in 'Growing Organic Marijuana' started by jerry111165, May 19, 2014.

  1. Adopt me?

     
  2. Wow gorgeous view from your backyard there pointswest! Must never get old looking at that year round!
     
  3. Changes almost daily here at the top of the Rockies.
     
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    PW
     
  4. So jealous, walked out of work at midnight last night and saw snow flurries. Ugh, seems like it will never end this year.
     
  5.  
    that's a pretty sweet can you got there PW.... always having to one up us man.. :p
     
    seriously though.. nice work, and great scenery!
    nice getting stuff done early i'm sure...
     
  6. #2826 AugustWest, Mar 28, 2015
    Last edited by a moderator: Mar 28, 2015
    here's what mine is looking like after the snow melted off..
     
    had 2 truck fulls of leaves dump some down there in October..
     
    it compacted down pretty well over the winter...
     
    gonna throw a mess of alfalfa in there and spread it all out evenly. Hopefuly between that and the cardboard sheets underneath, it'll be a decent mulch/weed barrier.
     
    worked pretty well last year, just a few weeds poked up here and there, but it was pretty low maintenance and the worms really dig living in there.
     
    so.. yeah i have some work to do [​IMG]
     
    [​IMG]
     
     
    found some before pics..
     
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  7. Very cool!! I really want to do a bigger variety of Basil this year myself. Last summer input it in everything.

    I used to go to a nice little store in Kittery Point, Maine, run by an old Eye-talian man. This guy made THE best Italian cold cut sandwiches I ever had in my life and guarantee I'll never be able to get again.

    Start with fresh baked long "grinder" rolls, then loaded with unbelievable Italian cold cuts and cheeses. These weren't supermarket cold cuts - he ordered these special from people he knew back in the Old Country. Prosciutto, some kind of special ham and I don't remember what else but so good. He'd drizzle a wonderful olive oil over it that had been soaking in sun-dried tomatoes and then layer some of these sun dried tomatoes on the sandwich.

    I'm bringing this up because instead of the same ol' lettuce for sandwich greens, he used fresh picked basil from his garden! Man oh man - I've tried several times to duplicate this sandwich but I can't because the meats he used were special and I can't find them anywhere. Unfortunately he's gone now so I'll never be able to get it again but certainly won't forget it either.

    Basil FTW!!

    J
     
  8. #2828 RanchoDeluxe, Mar 29, 2015
    Last edited: Mar 29, 2015
    Love the "grinder" story Jerry. Reminds me of the East Coast. No one around here would know what a "grinder" even is.

    Here's a pic of some chicks I picked up a couple of days ago. Absolutely hilarious watching them eat worms and chase each other. After just a couple days they come running for my hand when I put it in the brooder box. Seems they love worms as much as I do!!!

    DSC01387.JPG

    The yellow ones are New Hampshire Reds. The black ones are a mix of Barred Rocks and Cuckoo Marans. I'm hoping the little chicks will help me turn an acre of land into a productive garden without having to till the soil. I'll try and post some pics up of the 'farm' here when I get a chance.

    I plan on using a chicken tractor until they are old enough to lay some eggs. I'll also be getting some meat chickens soon and a couple birds for fly-tying.

    I've been feed them 2 parts ground barley 2 parts ground oats 1/2 part camelina meal 1/2 part kelp meal and a little DE and glacial rock dust. Anyone do something similar? I feel like the 'grit' portion needs to be modified...would simply using sand work? How about decomposed granite?

    Thanks
    RD
     
  9. #2829 donothinggardening, Mar 29, 2015
    Last edited by a moderator: Mar 29, 2015
  10. Yeah right in the middle of it at that
     
  11. It's that time in spring when my cherry tree comes into bloom and the bees start working the flowers. Nature does a lot of work from me.
     
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  12. Here's my lazy grower's cold frame. Just a large clear plastic storage bin from Target.
     
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    Here's my lazy grower's cold frame. Just a large clear plastic storage bin from Target.
     
    [​IMG]
     
  13. Any beekeepers in here? I started building a top bar hive this weekend, but beyond that I really have no idea what I'm doing. I'm kind of hoping to just catch a swarm or bait them into a trap at work and bring em home rather than paying $100+ on a package with a queen. I figure that way, if they come they come and I figure it out, and if they don't I spend this year learning and buy bees next year. Just wondering if anyone here knows anything about bees...seemed like the right type of crowd.
     
  14. You need to find a mentor to help get started. You can start with a swarm if you capture the queen and put it in the hive, the workers will join her. You cannot just put an empty hive out and expect the bees to come to that box, they won't. Check with your local county agricultural extension office, some of them have beekeeping classes. If you want to read about beekeeping read this book: The Hive and the Honeybee by Robert Langstroth, this is the bible of beekeeping literature.

    http://www.brushymountainbeefarm.com/prodinfo.asp?number=903&variation=&gclid=Cj0KEQjwi-moBRDL4Omf9d_LndMBEiQAQtFf89cOtpTyqjwCm_x094-TCehquycpyb0DpMFDuC9ApeIaApfy8P8HAQ


    http://www.acresusa.com/langstroths-hive-and-the-honey-bee?gdftrk=gdfV28961_a_7c2829_a_7c9083_a_7c7212&gclid=Cj0KEQjwi-moBRDL4Omf9d_LndMBEiQAQtFf80dqHVgkUPMkr1jhqc7gG7EW7mdjoh1L-x7niuslZ-MaAl398P8HAQ

    PW
     
  15.  
    Hmm...seems that I've read plenty about people catching swarms in bait hives with beesewax and lemongrass oil.  And I thought wild swarms had a queen with them...when the colony grows too large they create a new queen and swarm.  Anyway, regarding swarms, I'm planning to contact my state apiarist since they get alerted of nuisance swarms people want removed - as long as it's in an accessible location, spray the bees with sugar water and brush into transport box to bring home.  I'm also getting in contact with my local beekeeping club for pointers/mentors.  Unfortunately, their classes are all in January and February here, and I was late to the game this year.    
     
    You mention The Hive and The Honeybee...I have the first version from 1853 and have read parts of it for work (I work in the agriculture history field...), but I haven't had a look at the later versions.  Right now I'm trying to gain knowledge on top-bar specific beekeeping, since it's different than the traditional Langstroth hives, but seems much more suited to what I want to do. 
     
    Thanks for the tips, though!  This is something I've been dying to get into for years. 
     
  16. Little tidbit, when the hive expands and swarms, it's the old bee that leaves the nest as she's already proven her strength. I mean, she did create a hive strong enough to expand and swarm, right? I don't know anything about catching wild swarms, I think that's dependent on a lot of luck, too.
     
    But I second PW's words, best bet is to find a mentor. Somebody who's been doing it for a while will have no problem passing their knowledge and interest along to younger generations.
     
    Let us know what you find out!
     
  17. I feel you on that, I'm on the other side of those Rockies somewhere! Just yesterday we got a wild snow storm, today's like 10c now! Lol
     
  18. In the docu "More than Honey" (on Netflix), a big commercial bee keeper said to the effect, "Rather than one beekeeper with 60,000 hives, 60,000 people with one hive each"

    I've wanted one forever and still have my copy of "The ABC's to XYZ's of Beekeeping" from Rodale Press in the early 70's. In the city limits though. Still, think it would fly except for the 5YO next door. Older kids I wouldn't worry about, but 5?

    Wet
     
  19.  
    Build it up high on some sort of stand and make sure the kid knows exactly what it is.
     
    I'm sure by the age of five he/she's experienced a bee sting or two...  [​IMG]
     
  20.  
     
    Some family members have a cabin retreat 'way out yonder'. Two years ago they set up a couple of hives. Last year was their first catch and they processed it all which amounted to 40 or so pints. They were excited as all get out and it sold exceptionally quickly. They only held back a little bit of which we have a pint. It is excellent!
     
    They are adding a few more hives this year based on their success. It's pretty kewl. On a side note, the absolute best honey I have ever eaten was from a village in France and was largely if not entirely based on lavender pollen. Awesome is all I can say. Food of the gods might be a better description. But alas my French friend has now succumbed to Alzheimer's and doesn't even know who I am anymore.... [​IMG] [​IMG] [​IMG] WTF... get ya some hives before time runs out [​IMG]  
     

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