Saturday, May 28, 2011

Re-Purpose Garden Projects


"Collars" to keep cut-worms off cabbage, brocolli and cauliflower can be made from fish tins, card board tubes, or pop bottles. We need so many we have to get creative and try anything...but they all have a new purpose!





Milk jugs serve as individual "hot caps" for bedding plants or seeded cucs, sqaush a& melons. Just make two flaps out of the bottom of the jug, then press the jug into the dirt with the flaps out in opposite directions and pile on the dirt to keep the wind from whisking away your hot caps. It works for me!

Old socks have served to keep frost off newly germinated seedlings and/or transplants in our gardens in the springtime. while small socks cut open to lay flat cover seedlings, larger socks can usually be cut open and then in half to make two transplant "blankets". It only takes a few minutes to protect a whole bunch of plants ... especially if you only need to grab a pail of "transplant blankets" and put cover the plants. Evenings when frost is threatening are usually calm so there is no risk of the little "blankets" blowing off. Just go early the next morning to collect them all into your basket again. Then I have laundered them so the moist rags wouldn't go moldy in my basket ... 'cause, of course, I want to save them for the next go 'round...or next year.

We keep all of these things to re-use them annually. That way we only have to do the work of collecting and cutting them once.

- the "collars" get stored in old broken laundry tubs in the shop.

- the sock "blankets" also get stored in a re-purposed five gallon pails with a lid ... to keep out mice & cats & other critters that might like to make a snug home in my re-purposed "blankets".

- the "hot caps" are strung up on long lengths of old baler twine then hung behind the shop 'till next year ... I wish I had a picture to show you of the guys carrying the string of hot caps out to the field garden this spring -- it looked like they had a huge white feather "boa" scarf, lol!

Thursday, May 19, 2011

How To Plant Your Garden


FOR THE GARDEN OF YOUR DAILY LIVING ,

PLANT THREE ROWS OF PEAS :

1. Peace of mind
2. Peace of heart
3. Peace of soul


PLANT FOUR ROWS OF SQUASH:

1. Squash gossip
2. Squash indifference
3. Squash grumbling
4. Squash selfishness


PLANT FOUR ROWS OF LETTUCE:

1. Lettuce be faithful
2. Lettuce be kind
3. Lettuce be patient
4. Lettuce really love one another


NO GARDEN IS COMPLETE WITHOUT TURNIPS:

1. Turnip for meetings
2. Turnip for service
3. Turnip to help one another


TO CONCLUDE OUR GARDEN WE MUST HAVE THYME:

1. Thyme for each other
2. Thyme for family
3. Thyme for friends


WATER FREELY WITH PATIENCE AND CULTIVATE WITH LOVE. THERE IS MUCH FRUIT IN YOUR GARDEN BECAUSE YOU REAP WHAT YOU SOW.

Friday, May 13, 2011

The Spider


Our guys have nicknamed this little tractor "The Spider". It is a 1935 Ford 9N that we bought off a neighbor. We also have the manuals to go with it. So it may well be something the boys can learn & tinker on ... though thankfully, right now it does not need tinkering. It's ready to go to work.


Putting the narrow wheels at their maximum width adjustment makes this an excellent row-crop tractor.