George Sundiszno

The book about water harvesting is actually the second one by Brad Lancaster. He lives and teaches right here in Tucson. There are several outfits who professionally will do the work, but with the book and sweat (LOTS) equity you can save a ton of money.

Also, there is a free permaculture club (join meetup.com, free) to find them. Also an aquaponics club. Tucsonap.org > I belong to both and great group of people. Great networking opportunity.

Give a holler if you need more!

Welcome!

In case you make it to Tucson now and then, there is a permaculture club here. Go to meetupDOTcom (free!) and search for permaculture. There is also an aquaponics group. I belong to both. There is a permaculture guild here. Brad Lancaster and also Seedsavers.org

Lots of resources and like minded people.

For those who are just starting, black soldier flies are like caviar or fancy ice-cream for birds! Once they discover them, if they can get at the black soldier flies, the birds will decimate your population very quickly. So you will have to protect them vigorously. =^D

Use mushroom spore to decompose sawdust the fastest.

Be aware that aromatic woods like pine and cypress are deadly to most small critters so don't use anywhere near BSF, not even for bedding.

Ladybugs for the aphids! You can buy little plastic tins full of them for a whole lot of nothing. You can use boric acid for the ants, best at their source if you can find where that is. Read up on boric acid FIRST. FOOD GRADE Diatomaceous Earth is great against ALL arthropods (bugs) so consider carefully before applying it. It is nearly permanent if you use it outside where it can't be washed away and it will kill good bugs as well as bad. It cuts their exoskeletons and they dehydrate. You might also look into getting praying mantis for your garden.

POOL AND INDUSTRIAL GRADE DIATOMACEOUS EARTH IS POTENTIALLY CARCINOGENIC. GET "FOOD GRADE". It also must be used with reasonable caution but is benign unless you breathe a lot of it in. You can actually de-worm intestinal worms from people, pets, livestock with it.

READ UP ON IT FIRST FOR YOURSELF. BE AN INFORMED CONSUMER.

Good luck!

Very simple, reasonable solutions for bed bugs. BEEN THERE, DONE THAT!!!

a. FOOD GRADE Diatomaceous Earth. READ UP ON IT FOR YOURSELF FIRST. (LEGAL DISCLAIMER). Yes, wear a mask, but the amount you dust with is miniscule. It kills by cutting their shells and dehydrating them. It is effective as long as it is there. Meaning if you vacuum it up you must replace it. Benign, except for breathing a LOT in. You can de-worm your pets, livestock (intestinal worms only), yourself, etc. Safe for kids, pets, everything except bugs. Good against cockroaches and also ecto-parasites. Be aware that you don't want to use swimming pool DE because it has been altered and is carcinogenic. FOOD GRADE IS GOOD, SWIMMING POOL VERSION IS BAD!!! Is often available at animal feed stores. Very cheap. I have found this product, with permithrin mixed in, at Ace Hardware.

b. natural repellent spray. 1% peppermint oil, 1% clove oil. 98% water. Fragrant. Perhaps use around the room more so than on mattress.? Great for travel since you don't really control hotel hygiene and it might be enough to keep them away from you for the duration of your visit. Thoroughly wash clothes at home BEFORE putting back into storage. Also, de-bug suitcases, etc with the rubbing alcohol. See item 'd.' below.

c. mattress cover. Go to WalMart/chain stores. Look for mattress liners intended for incontinent people. Cheap effective barrier between bugs and mattress.

d. high octane rubbing alcohol. CHEAP/DANGEROUS (FIRE). This you must use CAUTION with. Don't be smoking the big cigar while applying. Is very flammable. However, if you are careful and spray down your mattress it kills eggs. It evaporates quickly but until it does treat it like it will burn your house down if used incorrectly. Last resort since the others work so well.

If you are battling them, understand that they can survive for a LOONNNGGG TIME. Figure at least a half-year of constant corrective procedures after the last bite/sighting/bug.
I lived in a place that was rampant with bed bugs. It was a life-changing event.

Other words of advice. If you discover bed bugs in/on your bed DO NOT DRAG THE MATTRESS THROUGH THE HOUSE!!! Think about how you move stuff. If you have bedding, put it in a bag or some sort of sealable container before moving it. This is hard to do, as you really really will want to 'get rid of them', but dragging them around through your house is the worst option!

Good luck and stay vigilant! If you have ever had these nasty little visitors you'll understand what I'm talking about.

As for the heating/freezing options they work very well. However, they require a lot of energy (okay, freezing a house in Alaska is free for half the year, but what about your pipes/etc.). Get DE and be HAPPYHAPPYHAPPY.