the rum soaked fist: internal martial arts forum

Fantastic. What's easiest to start with? My first goal is to thicken up the small patch of woods behind my house that is a "buffer". So going to try to help nature a little bit. After that, maybe can try a mini "food forest".

You can find a lot of good info on woodchips.

Some will spread mounds of woodchips all over an area that they will use for gardening and let that sit for a long time as moisture builds up and the all soil comes alive with micro-organisms.

I didn't do it this way but if there is no rush and I have another opportunity I would.

growingyourgreens with Kohler on YouTube is helpful. He has a ton of videos and is a little wacky but always entertaining.

Watch "Growing a Back To Eden Garden with Wood Chips" on YouTube

https://youtu.be/LJ6yZF8Zme0

Of course with gardening there really isn't a wrong way to do things a lot of it is trial, error and research.

Ok thanks, I put a little premixed top soil on some smaller tree areas today. It had compost, peat moss, rice hulls, and some other stuff. Hopefully that helps them out a bit. Next step is probably learn a lot more about helping the soil out. Then I'll plant some tiny plants (probably trees) in there - about one to three feet into the buffer.

Something about this feels good!! - just to help out the plants that are there. Not even trying to feed myself at this point yet.

Theoretically, I have enough space (according to the Afforest guy's specs) to start my own mini forest (including food), but that will be v3.0 or v4.0 after my first trial and error.

What part of the country do you live in?

Just curious what you can grow.

Also Dave Wilson's Nursery has a lot of good videos on fruit tree varieties.

NC - hardiness zone 8. Will try to plant things that are native according to the afforest guide.

Ok cool, thanks on the video suggestions.

Sounds like you are on the right track.

Compost, Azomite and worm castings are my main thing. I used to use a wormery but have since released the worms and have them breakdown the compost in the soil.

Making compost and seems to be a never ending learning experience.

"vertical farming"
- no soil
- less land
- less water
- no weeding
- no herbicides, pesticides, etc.
- vegetables grow faster
crazy!

Yeah its amazing what can be accomplished.

Ron Finely was on Rogan and they discussed that and in my experience the flavor isn't the same as good soil which is what Ron said.

Unfortunately as usual the podcast was mostly Rogan talking endlessly but it was worth sitting through to hear Ron. Not the best interview but Ron is always worth a listen.

The funny thing is that the "white guy" they discuss as having the same message I think is the growingyourgreens guy who also sees growing your own food as the ultimate rebellion.

It's interesting.

I can leave the States and be happier but the fact is growing my own food and the food that I grow what I grow is what keeps me here in a lot of ways.

Perhaps one day, after I retire I have my own organic farm.

Where I live it is famous for stone fruit but I am finding that a lot of other things do well here too like Pink Lady Apples, Kale, Mandarins and avocados. All without any pesticides or chemicals.

I think when you start growing your own food you think a lot more about your food and where it is from. I hear that people actually don't recommend eating store bought strawberries because they use tons of pesticides. Obviously when you grow your own you wouldn't because you are going to eat them. Makes sense that growing is a form of rebellion and on top of that no one gets rich off you growing your own food.

This is a better interview with Ron than Rogan's.

Watch "Ron Finley: The Gangsta Gardener On How to Change a Kid’s Life with A Tomato" on YouTube

https://youtu.be/wAHxGUZZsy4

I will share it on the sincere hope thread.

roger hao wrote:I have banana -papaya-coconut that have matured and producing fruit
Thanks for the ant info - really strange that they have worn pathways
that look like mini cow or dear paths.
Also they carry the gravel from the nest about a foot away from their exit
and they have an exit hole and an entry hole.

Must be nice!

People try to grow bananas in Northern California but I don't think they ever develop the right amount of sugar.

Decided to try some hydroponic lettuce. I got rockwool cubes as a medium at first, but decided to return them and get biodegradable hemp cubes instead. Slight delay. We'll see how it goes in a month or so.