Ac Baker

Ooo. Looking forward to taste test results!

Last Autumn, when we took on the plot, for lack of labour or alternate materials, we sheet mulched the tussocky mixed grasses with clear, plain, thick cardboard.

The hot, dry summer means this hasn't decomposed as it would normally have done even 5 summers ago.

We finally have rain as of yesterday.  So today I peeled back a lot of the cardboard.  Despite an inch of rain in the past couple of days, the ground is rock hard underneath. It was 'protected' by cardboard gone to "papier mâché" - the term adopted into English from French for durable dried moulded paper.  So I'm glad I had time to uncover these beds.

We're hoping for half an inch or more of rain in the next 36 hours.

Then I can start sowing seeds again - overwintering crops including green manures - at long last.

I'm going for polycultures, to hedge my bets. I'll sow in some seeds that might not germinate until Spring, as well as those likely to grow for a month or so, then go dormant but hopefully hardy for winter.

Home-saved seeds include a Chenopodium landrace / mixture that started as spinach, chard & leaf beet about a dozen years ago.  I usually get an autumn and a spring crop of greens from that.

Many thanks.  Indeed, I think we will go for simplicity.  

One possible site for water storage is right at the top of the gentle hill under the mature sycamore trees growing in the gardens of the neighbouring houses.  

Deedee Dezso wrote:Only distance,  and alot of it (often 100 feet or greater, up to a mile), will help prevent this crossing. Or only planting 1 of any sub-tribe. If I'm growing zucchini (green or yellow), I do not plant any pepo winter squash.

I'm growing on an allotment garden site with up to 40 other people growing squash.  These will mostly be courgettes (zucchini) or pumpkins.

The whole site is only about, I guess 200 yards long.  So getting uncrossed varieties from which to save seed sounds like low probability for me unfortunately.

John C Daley wrote:
- have a single large tank if possible 5000 gallons ..
Use of the big tank allows self cleaning to take place.

Thank you.  So 5000 gallons is just under 23,000 litres or 23 m3 or 30 cubic yards.  That's a biig tank. We could spend around £3000 on that around here.  

We're only looking at rainwater for irrigation. So smaller tanks that get emptied regularly I think may be acceptable? We can get 1m3 tanks at around £100, which is slightly more affordable and flexible to site.

It's been a long, hot, dry summer since the Solstice here.  But the rain has finally returned in torrents today.   Sadly, this is too late for many crops, and heavy enough to be harmful.

So our partners at the local sustainability group are very keen to coordinate rainwater harvesting improvements across our suburb.  There are at least 6 allotment sites with rentable plots in or bordering our constituency.

Today, I've written a brief project proposal, referring to this case-study from 2021: https://www.allotment-garden.org/garden-diary/7597/providing-water-on-allotments-rainwater-harvesting/ about one way to set up such a system for an allotments site.

Our partners are keen, and we may even be able to secure some grant funding.

Advice on how best to proceed, gratefully received!

Yes!  I have two plants, but neither of them manage to ripen their wood in my climate.  So each Autumn they die right back, and never get any bigger ..

I wish I knew why!

Oh, wow. That's a good crop. The few berries on my fuscia are deep aubergine purple when ripe (the flowers are purple & magenta).  I agree, they are tasty, a bit sweet and a bit peppery.

If I had enough, they might make a nice relish?

Hi!

Juweyria Osman wrote:we're students looking for things we can do around our school or county to help sustain our environment. .. we've been looking for things we can do on the ground. ..

Nancy already shared wise words.

I'd also say, talk to your fellow students, and teachers who live locally, and try to find out what might already be going on or what might interest them.

Food is a great way into local sustainability, for example.

Is your school sourcing vegetables and fruits locally and seasonally that can grow in your county? If not, could they do that more?

Is there a community vegetable garden where you could go and help out and learn more about sustainable food growing?

Are there local community food projects that need help, and local shops that are throwing away edible food, which you could help to link up?

Another area that interests a lot of people is helping make people's homes more sustainable, for heating, cooling, energy and water supply.

Thank you for your enthusiasm, dedication and creativity!

Very best of luck.

I got a whole heap (nearly three dozen) very ripe bananas a few weeks ago when it was still too hot to make ice cream let alone cake.

I froze them as puree in silicone moulds in muffin tins.  Then turned them out into a freezer bag, so they fit better in the freezer.

Now I can grab a frozen 'banana muffin' every day, let it defrost, mix in a teaspoon of cocoa powder & boom: instant chocolate-banana pudding.