Peter Mally

Brenda Groth wrote:actually the aclu did save his father's job one time back in the 70's...and so he is considering it. We are learning a lot about the medical marij law..what a joke...they aren't really standing behind it at all (the state)

That's because the State is pissed off that the People voted for it. The biggest problem was that the law wasn't well thought out when it was put on the ballot. Since it was a ballot initiative the State has no choice but to go along with it. I do question why Synder isn't more on board with it as it brings in a TON of money to the State at a time when we really need the economic boost here.

thanks for the help guys, I'll have to try everything, I was also given the suggestion of using garlic and dawn letting it sit for a couple days then mixing it with water.

As for where it is, it's actually on a separate piece of property from our house, about 5 total acres, about 2.5 tilled. I'm going to put a chicken tractor out there, but don't have the money to put up anything to keep the chickens we do have in the area to eat the beatles, though I would jump at that if I could.

ok, so we have 300lbs of potatoes planted and doing well...that is till the last week when we found potato beatles!!! AGGRRR!! What is a good cheap way to get rid of these little beasts? we tried dish soap and hot sauce but it didn't do much good. They've plowed through probably close to a dozen or so plants (striped them right down to the stalk).

Evelyn Bryndas wrote:Hi Peter,

Thanks for responding, and thanks for the advice! That is why I was considering WWOOFing at first. It would be a short, temporary first "taste" of this kind of work. Do you think that would be a good idea?

So you don't think pursuing a college-level degree in horticulture or sustainable agriculture, or something along those lines in necessary?

no problem, I've never heard of WWOOF till just now, so idk how good it is.

The biggest problem with Internships is that rarely do you get paid for your work, which in turns makes wanting to work less desirable. If you are getting something for the work then it makes it much more enjoyable. My wife worked for a half share at a CSA last summer. This year we took it over as they moved to a bigger place. If you can find something like that, it may be a good way to get the experience you want.

As for college. Well that is really up to you. However just think about whether you want to spend more time in school or if you really just want to get the experience. IMHO actual hands on work is more valuable than a school setting. Theory is great, but application is much more important.

Hi and welcome.

If you are really interested in doing some kind of permaculture agriculture, check out local farms that are practicing in such a way that you agree with (or as close as possible). You may be able to find some that are either looking to hire (either pay or trade) or are looking for interns (most likely not paid). It's the best way to get started. Not only will you get hands on training but you'll be able to pick the brain of someone thats been doing it longer than you and start to build a network for a time if you decide to go out on your own.

Listen and learn, work hard and get your hands dirty.


a good place to start is craigslist

well so far I have done two feedings with my epsom salt fertilizer on my sugar snap peas and they are looking much better than the control bed.

I'll definitely get a soil test kit and do some samples and figure out what the soil is like. The area we are farming was a CSA for 3 years before we started doing it this year and they only did side dressing for many of their crops and didn't do much in the way of prepping the beds. We couldn't this year due to time and money constraints. This fall/winter we plan on doing more, plus I am putting out a couple of chicken tractors to help with it as well.

My wife makes food for our dog, and she prefers it over the store bought (and we buy Taste of the Wild for her and the cats) food. Typically it's gluten-free grains (millet, split peas, lentils) chicken gizzards, beef livers, mackerel, eggs for proteins and for vegetables she LOVES frozen peas but also will get carrots, the dog also like blueberries and slices of apples. We'll get a big cooked down bone from the local butcher.

I'm just curios on people's experience with using it and how well it works.

I started an experiment with using epsom salt fertilizer on some of our sugar snap pea's. I was wonder if anyone else uses espom salts for fertilizer and what kind of results that they get

Neal McSpadden wrote:This is my very basic demonstration system: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7tlgqzmQmM

It goes over the components of what you'll need. Sizes vary, of course. The demo system is only 5 gallons of fish tank, so you'll probably want to build something larger eventually.

AP has 4 fundamental components: a fish tank, a grow bed, a pump, and symbiotic bacteria that convert fish waste (ammonia) to plant food (nitrate).

For me there is nothing quite like doing, so I always recommend setting up a small system to help you understand how the pieces fit together. Experiment small, then build big.

Oh, and generally solar and inexpensive don't go together unless you are able to source free solar parts.

Thanks! I'll check it out.

Yeah, the solar panels wont be for a while longer than this. definitely starting small makes a lot of sense.