Karen Briggs

I plan on planting pumpkin and watermelon. I figure that I can plant them in the same plot, but I don't know where nor how much space they need.

So I guess my first question is can I plant the watermelon and pumpkin on the same mound.

The package says that I need a mound every 6-8ft and then place about 8 seeds in the mound. My plot isn't that big!

I have two plots one is 10 x 17 and the other is about 6 x 12

I was thinking that I might be able to plant them among the corn, but I worry that I will be trekking through vines when I go to harvest the corn which harvests about a month prior to the pumpkin and watermelon.

Anther thought was to plant the pumpkin and watermelon in mounds that are only 2 feet apart from each other.

I am also planting corn, lettuce, beans, zucchini, and cucumbers

Thanks in advance for your help.

I was wondering what your thoughts are on upside-down hanging basket/bucket gardens. The most common are the tomato 5-gallon bucket and the strawberry bag.

How is the harvest from from these? How does the fruit taste in comparison? Since they aren't in the ground, do they need more water? What about the soil (what kind of soil is needed)? Do some colors do better than others? Etc.

thanks,
Karen

I noticed that I never did do anything with those tomatoes that I harvested last fall. They have been in my freezer this whole time.

If I planted the frozen tomato might it grow into a tomato plant? Would it produce good tomatoes?

Thanks,

Leila Rich wrote:Karen, ...mine sits in an open bucket in the cupboard under the sink, which makes it easy to lob teabags etc into!
I probably empty it every couple of days.

Sorry all, forgot about this post.

This is what we ended up doing. We currently are using a 5 gallon bucket without a lid and there is no stink. It never gets more than half full before we take it out to the main pile. Since it is a "wide-mouth", it is much easier for my younger ones to use.
After the meal, I just pull it out from under the sink and we scrape whatever scraps into. Much easier than the coffee can.

Thanks for the suggestions.

I don't know much about RMH.

I was wondering if I was to put a portable one in my basement and hook it up to my current duct system, if I could somehow heat my entire home.

It is a one-story ranch with basement.

Hi all,

My son was thinking that it sure would be nice to have a compost bucket inside that everyone could easily access. Currently we dump our scraps into a coffee can and then take that to the pile once it gets filled up (so about 2x a day).

It isn't as easy to scrape the scraps into a coffee can as it is to scrape them into a trash can. (especially for my younger children.) So he he got to wondering, is there a way to put compost into a trash can / waste basket without having my kitchen stink? He was thinking something along the lines of the horrid diaper genie thingy. (sidenote-those things stink worse than the diapers. blech!)

anyone have any DIY compost bucket ideas they care to share?

Stummbled on this when I was looking for a program to help my design some bedrooms. Skimmed over it and thought I would mention it to y'all in case any one out there is interested.

Garden Planner

Tyler Ludens wrote:Here's a how-to: http://www.greeniacs.com/GreeniacsGuides/Compost/Toilet-Lid-Sink.html

Thanks. I thought I had included that link. Guess I forgot it. And in bedded in that post is a video that shows what it looks.

There is a B&B in California that uses them. (still DIY but not as rustic looking as the one shown on greeniacs)
(lid part starts about 50 secs in)

I guess these are common place in Japan. Makes a lot of sense and seems that it "saves" wasted water by using it resourcefully.


Anyone have any experience with one?

Our main bathroom tank holds nearly 3 gallons. Am I right in thinking that we use 3 gallons of water everytime we flush?! We are still working on a way to jimmy that since it doesn't require that much water to flush the bowl.

I know that I am not going to need 3 gallons of water to wash my hands. So how much water does a toilet lid sink use?

Currently, we just wash our hands in the bathroom sink with bucket to catch greywater and then empty the bucket into the toilet bowl, so I don't see how it would be any different in that regard. (save me some foot work).

A sink on the toilet sure would make it easier for my little ones to reach the sink, and I wouldn't have to worry about them forgetting to turn off the water :sigh:

They look pretty easy to make.

I would love to read through the many threads on urine and peeing, but I have a cold and don't feel like it right now.

Why is pee good for the soil?

What about germs? (like blood-born pathogens and poop diseases, is there urine pathogens/diseases)

Do women have different pee than guys? our pee comes out differently, so does it pick up bacteria on the way?

If you pee on the garden, doesn't that stay on your veggies? Ewww, I don't want to eat that!

So you put it on the compost pile. Why?

Well, I guess I am just asking the same question in a different way now, but maybe some of you can explain to me what is special about pee.