Cole Tyler

My dog gets at least a dozen a year (mostly young/babies) she has great hearing and smell. It's a little rough on the gardens tho when she digs.

I like to think that the extra rocks, sticks, and weeds all around give good black rat snake habitat, I see plenty of them out on sunny days and find sheds often.

Thats all I do, and yes I get plenty of nibbles from voles especially on the sweet potatoes but thats how it goes in my book.

As an aspiring farmer who sells the main crops I grow it can be frustrating but I like to take a lot more things into account than just the $. Me and the other farm I co-op with eat the nibbled on ones :)

If I have a serious issue with a crop, my philosphy is just grow more or don't grow it at all. I understand not everyone is able to, or wants to take that approach but it works well for my psyche which I value above all else.

Sunchokes!! I'm super excited!

Also, like several others mentioned, Potato Onion...which is good to see because I recall reading that they are well into a state of decline as a species. Was enuf to make me want to try and get some established.

Aubrey Milner wrote:I just moved to my house from being homeless poor single mom living in Louisville ky how what should I do and grow to save money and cut cost I would love if I could live off the land I know it’s just a dream since I live in the Westens and have a small yard but nevertheless I want to use it for free food

Hi Aubrey! The thread is kind of old, so not sure if you'll get great replies but as a fellow Kentuckian I'll offer my opinion.

Fruit trees are great - but take a while, especially if starting them from seed or seedlings. Larger trees that might start producing earlier can be pricey. So be patient, do your research, and find as local sources as possible. Louisville area, Southern Indiana and central KY in general have some options, look up Peaceful Heritage Nursery, as one example. Do you own the house or plan on staying there at least 5 or more years?

If you are looking for easy to grow, cheap calories try first an early round of spring potatoes. The process of "hilling" (basically mulching) them while growing and digging them out for harvest will help you get to know your soil, and likely improve it's consistency. From there you could even plant sweet potatoes in the same spot to get a fall harvest, too. I'm trying it in a section of my garden this season. But a better option would be sowing a legume based cover crop mix after the spring potato harvest to let grow thru summer until you feel like mowing it down or it dies off. I have found both regular and sweet potatoes do well even in not-so-great, virgin soils. I'm also giving sunchokes a try this year. I do suggest some broadforking and hoeing to prep first if grassy, and compacted.

Then after all that, apply more mulch (compost if you can) and let it sit idle all winter. Come spring next year, you'll be ready to put in some more perennial based stuff like fruit trees and shrubs, and you'll have some experience and time for research under your belt by then to make some hopefully good choices on types/varieties, placement etc.

Of course you could always just start sticking some baby trees  in the ground over the next few weeks, along with any other woody cuttings just to see what happens, if you are able to get your hands on a supply for free or cheap it never hurts to try - sometimes things just live! Like, go find an Elderberry bush, take cuttings, place them in a jar of water or damp container of soil until they root out and walla!!

Good luck, keep digging around here on permies, and in your new yard, congrats

I really like the rice idea, I'll have to try that one easy enuf.

Correct me if I'm wrong but the dessicant packs are essentially silica? Which leads me to believe some finely ground up rocks might just do the trick? (Just hit with hammer until pulverized)

Like Clay posted about, I too had the mold form on some squash seeds I guess weren't dry enuf. The only thing I had on hand that I thought might work to save them was a bucket of wood ash.

So I looked it up and sure enuf it's a thing, so I swished them around in a bit of the ash, let them sit out for another week and we'll see! It does appear to have stopped the mold, maybe they'll be ok...and maybe a little sprinkle of ash in each jar before storage in the future is a good thing?

I gave up on storing in paper envelopes after insects and mice seemed to find thier way in no matter what I did. I think some tiny insects must have been in wild seeds I collected, then its like they transfered over to the other paper packs!? Glass jars for me now.

Being as this is a rather contextual topic and it's in a general gear section, I'll add my penny in.

Single person, no electric and living tiny (seperate bath house is where the only "plumbing" is and it has drainage valves/hoses hooked to freeze proof hydrant) coupled with work that takes me off farm for occasional 3 day outings, led me to getting a tankless on-demand propane setup that uses 2 D cell batteries to ignite.

I'm sure I could tinker with it to light with a match if need be.

When it's below 20F for 2 weeks straight, sometimes I only use a gallon or so of water a day to live - and cold is fine, until Im ready for a shower, then I do the dishes at the same time. It instantly makes steamy water for 20 min straight to fill up the tub for baths or laundry if needed as well.

Seems pretty good to me for a couple hundred bucks as it really doesnt use much propane at all, look up the efficiency specs but it takes over a month for me to empty a 20lb tank at my useage. Of course Im not doing ALL my laundry (especially in winter since I cant hang out to dry).

My other option is a pot on the wood burner or propane cooktop in the house, or use another propane heater I have, placed under the tub while filling it up (which is not very efficient but does work in a pinch...which has led me to wanting to modidy the whole setup to accept a woodburner under the tub for options.

Thank goodness for running water at least :) with this setup I dont waste much water since in the winter I still need everything quickly useable but also drainable to prevent freeze.

Also, no idle energy consumption or worry about any of it, the water stays down in the ground in a pipe until I need it. I've created some little ponds to bucket water if ever need be, but the heater does require some pressure to operate (I think 20psi).

Other types of tankless water heaters run as low as 5psi which would be nice.

I met a man recently named Jeff Poppen who is a very experienced biodynanic farmer. Look him up, the barefoot farmer at Long Hungry Creek Farm. He hosts the Southeast Biodynamic conference at his farm.

After experiencing his expressions of biodynamics and farming in general thru some conversation and a couple presentations I 'd say he surpasses my idea of what a successful farmer could be and biodynamics are a very important part of the approach there.

Just looking at that pic, I like the design and you mention some what sounds good to me drainage to work with the design, proper gutters and downspouts can likely make about any roof suit the bill.

The only thing Id consider is make more room behind the house (taller wall) for more useable space under roof. Although the Earth mass back there has its climate control and protection qualities if left (or possibly even make a root cellar/storm shelter area of sorts).

Curious as to the nursery op in Cincy. I'm over an hour drive south in Robertson county KY but work often in that area and have a few connections just across the river near Covington. Maybe somehow we could collab when you are back this way. Theres room to park and lots of gardens here at my place... I'd like to lean into some plant and seed sales so if you have a market maybe something could be good in that realm?

Okra is a fun one. Nice big easy seeds to work with and recognize (and eat in early white form), I always get good germination from direct sowing and they grow fine without care in the garden among other things - they don't seem to compete too much... looking real nice sticking up out of watevers growing just fine under it.

Definitely makes a good craft/decoration as theres lots of noisy seeds in each podhead and the whole thing is very pretty when dried out. Easy to grow more than you'll know what to do about :)

A friend of mine has been doing this well with several tinys on her 15 acre property. Fruitdale Farm in Bainbridge Ohio, theres a website with pics for inspiration.

Major things like building a good sized swimming pond, garden/microfarm op, excellent hiking/biking trails and ecosystem management, round out the tiny house experience so I think atmosphere is equally important as the house. Simplicity, privacy, hammocks and picnic tables just off a little wood deck/porch makes it nice!