Greg Hamilton

Does anyone know what happened with this? Its appears the "farm scale" stuff is perfect for me, but it appears all the course are no longer :-(

what most of us are saying is dont remove ANYTHING

anything you remove will be your best topsoil and best organic material.

There are tons of no till and no dig videos on youtube as well as tons on sheet mulching.

Its not rocket science.

I didnt use mulch I put finished compost on top of my grass, just piled it right on top, no preparation at all. Each year I add more compost.

most people suggest newspaper or cardboard sheet mulching to have a better guarantee of not having much grass or weeds. If I did it again I would have done that. But my beds re now 6 years old and this is the first year we've had to do significant weeding and thats only because we let them go last gardening season.

check out "sheet mulching" or "sheet mulching cardboard" on youtube

depending on how much soil you put on top you might not need to punch any holes. The cardboard will decompose by the time the roots get there and the roots will punch through whatever is left.

even if a little grass makes it through its easy to hand weed.

I did beds two ways, some I put some much compost on top of the grass I didnt even need cardboard, the others I started the first year as straw bale beds and the second year added compost to them and the third year completely covered them with compost and they are just raised beds now.

You can also use lots of newspaper and the roots will grow through easier.

I have a couple hundred square feet of gardens that were all grass originally. I only dug one small area the first year before I learned it wasn't required.

All those grass roots are good for the soil, especially as they are decomposing. As far as mycorrhizae leaving existing root structures for them to take the path of is better not worse.

you'd be better off covering it with cardboard and soil and leaving it to compost.

not the question but animals that eat mosquitos and mosquito larva would probably be a better answer. Dragonfly, bat, duck, etc

will this be reprinted?

Chris Kott wrote:I was looking at your fencing in the video. I think the answer might be there, and in your order of operations.

Would it make sense to put the ducks in the tractor in the enclosed space of the grazed paddock, but near as possible to the end nearest the next paddock, then shift the surrounding fence to enclose the new paddock and the tractor, still on a small piece of the grazed paddock?

Even if you were to herd the ducks from the tractor to the newly fenced fresh paddock in the manner you did in the video (assuming non-contiguous paddocks), it would mean moving the ducks directly into containment (or never having them leave containment), whereas in the video, any escapees of the move into the tractor were free to run around the tractor, or anywhere else.

-CK

yes, have the tractor on one end of the paddock. build a new paddock and open the end to it, then shorten the old paddock. At some point move the tractor to the other end, keep adding paddocks.

We move our pigs this way constantly. I just treat a paddock end like a giant gate and open it. Then when they move to the new pasture to get the goodies I shorten up the old paddock.

But I also train my animals to a call when I feed them. So I rarely have to herd them I just have to call them.

Ken W Wilson wrote:I live in town and have feral pigeons in the area. If I built nest boxes on the side of a shed, would I be very likely to attract any?

Can anyone give me the rough dimension for nests boxes when the birds are free to fly whenever they want?

doubtful, you'd probably have to raid nests and steal older babies, feed them and keep them enclosed for a month and then let them start flying.

Nathanael Szobody wrote:Carroll,

I googled King Pigeon, which is a common meat breed, and you can find some for $75 each.

However, for our permaculture purposes we want to make sure we have a breed that won't fly away. I would look for people who raise pigeons and tell them what you're looking for: a free range pigeon that will always come home to roost. Start with craigslist,  like here: https://atlanta.craigslist.org/eat/grd/d/pigeons-for-sale/6541963989.html

very good point.

Pigeons make the most sense when they free range for most their food, but come home to roost. I keep a couple dozen homers, though I don't eat them I just fly them for fun. They used to be the most eaten bird though and I know the best tasting meat I've ever had was pigeon.

for personal consumption I'd just raise homers and accept the fact they wont be that large and you'll need a couple for a meal. Raising them to sell would be a different story as restaurants would want decent sized birds.

I haven't used shampoo but a couple times a year for over twenty years, my wife maybe ten. Our hair is gorgeous, healthy, and clean.

Hot water and fingers


as far as soap, I think the base is pretty helpful in eliminating various bad things that you don't want growing on you, that said I'm betting the less grain and sugar and the more primal you eat the less it would be required.