Adam Old

John Elliott wrote:if I was going to do permaculture and mycology, I had better go to a place that had good rainfall.

Not necessarily. I remember quite clearly a hike in the Arizona desert, and stopping to sit in the shade of a bush, and noticing that under every single shady bush there was a lone dried mushroom which had sprouted. The desert was literally teeming with fungi waiting for the rains to come.

be careful with housefly maggots. A friend of mine just let her flock eat maggots from a raccoon she had killed as it was trying to get her hens, and the four at the top of the pecking order died from Botulism.

just an FYI, Fiskars now makes a really nice push reel mower with 4+ inches of clearance.
http://www.amazon.com/Fiskars-6201-18-Inch-Staysharp-Mower/dp/B0045VL1OO

yeah, the coon-proofing is happening first. She's definitely not broody enough to be sitting on the nest at night, I think she'll be up in the rafters for a while, since her friends got eaten. I guess I'll look into closing off a section of coop for the chicks to see if she'll come around.

My flock got taken out by raccoons the other day, all except one Buff Orpington hen. I feel sad for her, because she misses her flock, so I was thinking I would get some chicks. I wasn't sure if she would raise them herself out in the coop or if I would still have to raise them, then introduce them when they are older. Does anyone have any ideas? The weather is quite warm--can I just stick them in the nest with her or will she peck them?

I live in El Portal, just north of Miami proper on the Coastal Ridge beside the Little River. I love all the Toensmeier books, I wish I had known he was lecturing in May--I would have come!

Hey all, I'm new to this forum, but I've been living in South FL for a handful of years now, trying to incorporate some permaculture design techniques to my little quarter acre down here. just thought I'd say hello.

I've had a rough time with the totally different soil, pests and growing conditions from Central California where I grew up, but slowly started finding what works and what doesn't. Plus, having mangos and pineapples and passionfruit growing on my doorstep is pretty excellent.

I recommend against it. Chickens and the mites that live in their feathers can be super allergenic--inside is much worse than outside.

Marjoram is good for most anything oregano is good for.

One thing i like it in is a Mexican dish, I just know as "rajas" (means rags) made out of poblano peppers. basically grill or broil poblano chiles until their skin blisters and comes off the chile meat but not too long. Flip them a few times so they are evenly done, rinse under cold water and remove seeds stems and skins. then chop the chiles lengthwise into rags. sautee an onion, mushrooms and garlic, add the poblanos and marjoram, then simmer in some stock until it evaporates. I finish with cream and some white oaxaca cheese, but you can do without dairy too. serve as tacos or on meat.

yum

I recently found out about this mimosa groundcover, which is pretty beautiful, as well as a nitrogen fixer.
Sunshine Mimosa