Selfsufficientish.com

Hi,
We recycle our coffee grounds into the compost bins. Grace uses them for the roses and some other plants.

How about the leftover coffee in the pot? Can it be used too? Applied directly to the soil around plants?

Regards,
Chuck

Hi,
This is a very interesting idea!

I use some pallets as a makeshift wall to obscure unsightly parts of the garden (equipment, supplies, tanks, etc.). I wonder how these might hold up if arranged in series to make a wall?

I'll think about this one.

Regards,
Chuck

Hi All,
Thanks for the explanation. We're not growing beets...but it sounds like something we might do.

Regards,
Chuck

What's a "chutney"?

Chuck

Hi, Last year we grew marigolds in each of our six raised beds. In addition, we interlaced them with green onions. The goal of course was to manage pests 'organically'. Firstly, it seemed to work pretty well to ward off pests. Secondly, the marigolds grew to be over 3' tall. They did look gorgeous, ...

Congrats!!

Maintaining a continued frugal existence might prove harder than it seems. However, I wish you both the very best in this effort. Paying extra on a mortgage is always nice when it can be done.

Regards,
Chuck

Hi, Nice pic!! Our spuds are about 6-8" tall....planted about a dozen Russet potatoes 20 days ago. Of course, we are anticipating at least one more cold night so we obtained some fabric to cover the plants like a blanket. Still hoping we won't have to contend with the cold anymore this spring. ...

Hi, My wife and I had a conversation about using gray water. However we couldn't figure an easy way to 'plumb' it. Because of the high humidity and temps we experience here in the summer, we usually take 2 or more showers a day. Thought about a solar heated outdoor shower. I might be able to rig tha...

Hi, I'm sorry the UK is experiencing a dry month..along with the Carolinas. Minnesota, Maybe you can 'float' a large piece of ice down some rivers to my place. =) I remember in the movie "Mosquito Coast" that Harrison Ford built an ice machine in the jungle. He had to carry a large piece t...

Hi, For over 20 years we avoided any type of garden. We managed to cut the lawn when required and spent time in the house hiding from the hot and humid South Carolina climate. If it didn't rain I thought...good...no grass to cut. =) I have never stressed about rain until this year. We are in our 2nd...

Dave,
Have you got the controller setup now?

We've been using a 120VAC thermocube to control our fan. Our solar panel project is on hold...until I raise enough capital to buy a battery. =) I'm paying to replace my rotted subflooring at the moment...so that's a big hold on solar.

Regards,
Chuck

Hi,
We're growing Concord grapes.

Grace has been redoing the soil. It has a lot of clay...so she has been replacing a lot of it with a better quality soil.

Regarding neighbors, they are optimistic it will look much nicer. =)

Regards,
Chuck

Hi, I took spring off Monday in order to do 'something' outdoorsey. We noticed that 9 of the grape plants we planted last year against a fence separating us from our neighbor was producing some nice leaves. We were concerned about controlling the crop...but our neighbors are prone to add some non-or...

Hi, I actually haven't thought about 'completing the loop'. That's an interesting idea to grow our own fish food. For the moment I'm going to stick with purchasing 'protein' pellets. I'm curious if soybeans might work? Maybe some sort of processing. Then again the idea of growing worms might work to...

Our spuds update!

We have 4 to 5 potato plants growing in each of the two 20 gallon containers. The plants are about 3" high and starting to spread out. Leaves look great.

However, I don't have the heart to cover the plants with dirt. =) I'll leave them be.

Regards,
Chuck