Any Gardeners Out There?

[oyarde]

I've got ~4,000 square feet tilled out of sod in really good soil, I'll have to go over it a couple more times but it's mostly done. I've also got enough room to probably triple this if I want, but I want to get my cantalopes in first. Just depends on how much I can make myself do, but damned if I can imagine how folks used to farm before gasoline powered equipment, that would be hard, not fun.

Plots like I plant now , as a youngster on my family farm were not done with a small tiller usually , like I do now , my Grandfather had a team of two mules he would plow with ( for fun , not right , I know) , and we had an International A ( very small tractor ) that had a full set of implements that we used , we had slightly larger equipment for the large fields , I think you are right , not much fun really without gas engines, just needed , serious labor in order to eat.

[oyarde]

I did plant some more green beens, bell peppers and sunflowers today , did a small amount of tilling , planted a tree for my Mother . Changed the oil in my Honeys SUV , that is enough work for a Sunday.

[WilliamC]

I've got my plot well-tilled, raked and leveled and next will build up the rows along which I want to plant. I figure I'll have 5 rows with about 4 1/2 ft per row, each about 18 ft long.

I'll work in some manure in the rows next, then mound it up, put down a cheap weed barrier over the rows and put down straw in between. Hopefully by next weekend the 72 seedling pots I started will have started to germinate, I may go ahead and germinate another batch just in case, it would only cost another 5 bucks.

Also going to put up a bit of a temporary greenhouse over some of the other plot with strawberries and tomatoes and peppers and what not, to better keep them from flooding or getting eaten by birds and such. I'm splitting the cost for the material, it shouldn't be more than $150 total, but it should easily last through multiple crops of various veggies.

I do have more yard I could till and would love to do so but I want to get what I've got going to work a bit first. Rabbits would still be a real cheap way to add tasty protein and I need to advertise around to see if someone can show me exactly how to slaughter and butcher them; if I can make myself learn this first then I'll do it.

[oyarde]

Rabbits are the easieast to skin , I pinch the loose skin together at the throat , pierce under the skin there , run the knife down to the ass , peel out the back legs by hand , pull all skin up to the the head , cut the head off , slice under the ribs to the ass , open it , pull out all , rinse it out , soak it in a bowl of water , quarter it like a chicken with a cleaver.

[oyarde]

Of course , mine are already dead by shotgun ,hunted with # 6 or 7 1/2 shot , so , no need to dispatch them . I do not intend to feed them , just eat them.

[WilliamC]

Rained last night, cooled things off. Weeded the vegetable garden, put in 8 okra seedlings, that's about it today.

[phill4paul]

'maters, bush beans, string beans, cantaloupe, squash, cukes all good to go. Peppers next weekend.

[XNavyNuke]

Rained last night, cooled things off. Weeded the vegetable garden, put in 8 okra seedlings, that's about it today.

In addition to eating okra fresh, it can be allowed to mature and used as an oil seed crop.

http://m.extension.illinois.edu/smal...o_the_test.pdf

XNN

[Revolution9]

People go hungry there because they are lazy. Wife just went to Guyana to see family - says it's the same old shit. Lazy people not wanting to so much as cook for themselves, but they have plenty of time for booze.

I have no sympathy for these sorts. As you wrote, you can barely take a step without tripping over food. No excuse for being hungry in such places.

Steak doesn't grow on trees

HTH
Rev9

[XNavyNuke]

The yacon plants have found homes. Thanks for the interest shown.

XNN