Tanja Sieger

Thanks a lot for your opinions.

Charlotte, I really liked the video and learned a lot, thanks!

just investigating on the toxicity... got me curious ...

I copy you some info I found in the article (link below for more information)
The red clover plant itself is not toxic. The toxin, slaframine, is produced by the Rhizoctonia fungus which grows on clovers and alfalfa during periods of stress (high humidity, drought, and continuous grazing). Hay made from contaminated forages is also suspect, and the slaframine can remain in hay for several years.

http://equimed.com/news/health/clover-and-your-horses-health


red clover is actually a medicinal plant (at least for humans)... very useful for regulating problems with menstruation and menopause.

I have checked on several options as well and decided to just take the seeds from the one that grows in the garden anyway... and spread it bit by bit... the main reason why I opted for this reason is because I got to know that there is transgenetically modified white clover (and maybe others as well). Here one of many articles: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21947755

So I don't recommend buying seeds if you are not entirely shure where they come from...

Eric:
We have very good, well drained soil, no shade, just gras everywhere... We dont mow very regularly but let it grow pretty high.... So from what I read mint is not the best idea to plant mint as in these conditions it might spread a lot... but I have thought as well about the "low maintenance"...

Dave:
Thank you... that's exactly what I thought... I don't mind (actually want it) to spread somewhat... so that it covers the ground around the tree... but just doesn't want it everywhere... but that sounds good... some sheet mulch to keep it in check and mowing twice a year, and harvesting of course... so that sound pretty much like what I wanted to hear... Happy that you have made this kind of experience...

Thanks to all of you for taking the time to reply to the question!

Thanks for your answers.
What does "in areas it won't invade too far" mean? Our land has nothing on it, no rocks, no paths, no nothing... all one even patch... So I don't think that I will find a spot where it doesn't invade to much. Maybe underneath the pine tree but there it doesn't serve me as a ground cover...

Here it doesn't die back in winter. It diesn't get that cold.

Hi everyone,

I know that mint is invasive but at themoment it's the only thing I have got arround and I got a lot of grass wanting to get its space back. So I wanted something to cover the ground around the trees fast. I would rather have mint all over then grass all over... is this a bad thought? I know I might regret this decision so I would highly appreciate your opinions on this...

I have planted some trees, given each of them a calendula and will put in some peas and garlic (will plant them in toilet paper tubes first and plant them as plants already instead of putting the seeds/bulbs in the ground as I am not sure how they will cope with all the paper, cardbord and mulch...), I also ordered lavander.

I read a lot on internet but I didn't really find any information on how things spread, when they aren't able to make side-roots because of the thick layer of carton and mulch... I thought of planting pumpkins nearby whick cover the soil nicely, but I can not water the plants so regularily... might not be the best option either... any ideas?

I live in Argentina, with cold winters (frosts but no snow) and warm winters. Mediteranean climate. We are close to the ocean but no salt influence.

I highly appreciate your experience & thoughts!

Yea I saw that (put the picture in this post way at the top) but aparently there were other people that had problems with it. Supose it depends on how thick the wall is, how you stack the bottles, what material you use for the wall, ... but it's really just a guess...

Thanks for your answers.

We are on a tight budget so I am not thinking of buying wax when there are similar free options, but thanks a lot for the idea.

Well as I have understood until now expansion wouldn't be a problem as long as I fill the bottles with warm water and seal them well.

My friends told me that I should be careful with this idea though because the weight will be an issue and also it might not be possible to start with the bottles right from the bottom of the wall because the glas bottle might not resist the weight of the wall on top of it and burst. They don't know how this is with filled bottles but empty bottles are prone to burst when the wall above is too heavy.

So many things to think about...

Thanks so much for your answers:
Wayne: yea I thought of puting some clorine in the water to avoid that. I would love some light to come through the bottles but am not depending on this light source for the house.

Rebecca: Perfect, thank you! I did not know that. Very helpful!

Christopher: great, thank you. I actually thought of just using white wine bottles that come with caps or spirit ones. I thought of bottoms facing inside though and not all cobbed in so that some light passes through. i would leave the whole neck and a bit more facing the sun and some 3 cm of the bottom facing into the room to make light transmission bigger and the wall less thick. Nevertheless there will still be around 20 cm of cob wall.

Thanks John but I don't need the water for insultaion as it is an interior wall in a really well insulatet strawbale house. Water is aparently the best thermal mass you can find. Therefore I wanted to use the filled bottles as a termal mass inside a wall that receives sunlight during the day in order to help us heat the house.