Jackson Bradley

I can relate to wanting to get going asap. However, I would recommend that you force yourself to observe the land for as long as possible before making any permanent changes. You'll be able to identify microclimates and shade/sun patterns. What happens with water is a big one even on relatively flat land. Where does it drain/runoff and where does it pool and keep the ground saturated. You can also observe animal and insect activity which will help determine the location of these things.

I've had to invest a significant amount of time in making changes to what I thought were the right locations/processes. A lot of that has been related to water and the erratic seasonal weather patterns that observing for a year was not long enough. There is a lot of trial and error. Second to water ponding/runoff, the moles have caused the biggest changes. Initially, I had everything in the ground. The mole activity has forced me to grow most food stuffs in raised beds so building them has been ongoing. Supposedly, they are not supposed to cause damage to plant and tree root systems but they do here. They will eat my walking onions right up to the ground surface and damage most plants if they find them. I have a 2 year old plum that started to have some leaf discoloration. I went to check on it and it pulled right out of the ground with no effort. Just below the surface was a series of tunnels and the roots were all gone all the way back to the trunk.

So some things will be trial and error and others will be done out of necessity. Time gained or loss in those processes will be directly related to time spent observing. Whether observation only or experimenting and then observing.

Lastly, out of sight out of mind is very true in my case. The area immediately around the house is very important for me.

Where I live, the comfrey, any variety, really looks terrible and dies way back if you don't chop and drop it every month or two from Apr to Nov. During the regrow period, you'd have an opportunity for latent seed growth in the middle. However, if you chop and drop to the middle, it'll smother whatever latent seeds that may be there.

Anne Miller wrote:

Did you know that grapes can be trained without a trellis?

Use a 5' stake then remove lower shoots, and allow 3 to 4 branches to form at the top to create a self-supporting, goblet-shaped bush

+1 on this. The method to make grape vines freestanding is called Head Pruning (or Bush Training). It trains the vine to grow as an unsupported, self-standing bush rather than relying on a trellis.

Your production will be diminished by this method but after trying a few different trellis options, getting rid of the trellis altogether is working great for us.  

That vent boot was done correctly. The seal around the pipe could have leaked or wind driven rain could have blown up under the shingles over the boot flashing. I'd get a tube of asphalt crack sealer and run a bead at the edge of the shingles over the metal boot flashing and also cover the 2 nails visible on the boot. Unless the seal around the vent PVC failed, I am not entirely sure that is your culprit.

I'll be honest, nothing beats an ice cold beer when I am soaked with sweat and cooling off in front of a fan!

Joao Winckler wrote:Timing makes a big difference. I've had way better luck sowing in early spring when the soil is still cool and moist, before everything else gets going. Sowing into competition basically never works for me.

+ 1 on the timing. Mid to late winter works best here and allows the clover to beat everything else that grows later in spring.

Yes on transplanting and cutting it like sod. I have done that with great success anytime of year. You may need to water a little if it is going to be dry.

Jay Angler wrote:Jackson, is that fire wind shield easy to assemble and set up? I can imagine it being very helpful in windy areas even to shield a pot on a stove from the breeze.

If you are familiar with or can watch a video of a CLAM screen tent setup, it is the same for the panels and it has some carbon fiber poles you insert at the joints. If it is mildly windy, you can just make it into a "U" or a "V" shape and a few stakes at the bottom are good. If it will be gusty, you can guy out the top of the poles at the panel joint sections.

So about 3 to 5 minutes without guy outs. Yes, made a huge difference when cooking outside. We still use it and it is 3 years old.

A ground fire would not be a good situation because the material is canvas. Anything else works great as long as the fire does not get out of hand and you have coals popping out and on the shield.

And, because I can be a gear junky, we had a folding wood stove/pizza oven that was used for about 1 year and a half instead of the grill. Pizza, quesadillas, flat bread, pots and pans on top, evening fires, etc.

Matt, we started full timing when we had 3 kids and were still full time with 5. We still live in the RV and do some traveling with the 8 of us now. The answer depends on a few things. Will it be hot, moderate, cold where you will be? How long will you be in the RV? 7 adults or will there be children?

Our pattern is to cook inside when it is cold and outside when it is hot or moderate. We travel with a smaller air fryer oven and single burner plug in electric stovetop. They fit easily in the storage compartments of the RV and set up easily on a picnic table or fold out table. This is a very important one.

The limiting factor for us are the 10cuft fridge/freezer not the cooking appliances and space when cooking inside or outside. If 6 of the 7 bodies are made to go away from the outside cooking station or go outside if cooking inside, you'll have plenty of space. Sometimes it is easier for one person to be making one thing inside and another outside. My wife and I do this a lot. We do dishes outside if dry camping and inside in the single bowl sink if we have hookups. You can use and reuse paper plates and the when they are beyond reuse, they become the evening fire or charcoal starter.

Due to the varying state of repair and configuration of the fire pits we encountered, we started carrying our own. Also, sometimes people have burned trash in the pits and if the hosts don't clean them out for every visitor, you could be cooking over burning plastic. A weber smokey joe small kettle grill or the rectangular "Go anywhere" are good options. Roasting hot dogs and sausages are very popular for us and they fit nicely in the small fridge in their packaging. Grilled chicken thighs or breasts, hamburgers, etc. Ground beef is very versatile and compact. Pork tenderloin cooks quick and is great over a fire or charcoal along with boneless turkey beast and both are packaged well and compact. Leftovers get turned into sandwiches, quesadillas or added to the scrambled egg breakfast the next day. If you are a soup person, those are very efficient due to having a lot of dry ingredients.

Unless you are doing something like hot dog fires, where everyone participates, the group may have to get used to not eating at exactly the same time, all of the time. We make pizzas a lot and will make 2 or 3 small ones then get everyone started on eating them and continue to add them to the oven or air fryer oven. The dry ingredients for pizza dough, bread, quesadillas, etc. don't take fridge space so we do those a lot.

Outdoor and/or campfire cooking is very enjoyable.

We are expert at what does not need to be refrigerated and for how long as far as condiments, fruits and vegetables. Potatoes, apples, bananas, avocado, etc. stored on the counter or on wire shelves.

I don't know how often you'll be camping/traveling but you'll figure out what works for you guys pretty quickly, what is enjoyable, and be making some priceless memories!