Barbara Clowers

Question about jujube water needs. I am in zone 9. We can and do grow citrus. Should I plant my jujube outside my irrigated area?  I irrigate 3 acres of orange, walnut and fruit trees. Seems like that is much more water than the jujube need.

My daughter had something similar happen. She separated the injured hen from the others. She kept it inside and warm. She lived and is laying eggs again. As for great pry, how old is it and was it trained to guard chickens. Unless trained with stock they are not reliable. If well trained they will die for their flock. I belong to a Facebook Akbash Dogs group. Groups exist for GPs as well. Members are knowledgeable and respond quickly.

We have 27 acres in Yolo county on Cache Creek. We have wild pigs, deer raccoons and coyotes. We may have cougars too. Neighbors across the river do. We have an Akbash dog. I can't say enough good things about him. He keeps away the predators and he doesn't not bark at neighbors or
Delivery people. Can't say they are all like that but I think they are the best. My guy doesn't have a flock to guard but he patrols our property and keeps
The big critters away.

Mike E wrote:I'd just reiterate the early start, as I consider it to be pretty critical - especially in a semi-arid mediterranean climate like ours here in central CA. You want to aim for germination eight to ten weeks prior to the end of rainy season, so you can capitalize on stored moisture in the ground for initial growth of the transplants (when it's most important). "Potting up" the starts as required for root space is important too, especially in regard to tomatoes, as is minimal disturbance of the root systems when you're handling the starts or transplanting them. Combined with mulch and/or a hugel/raised bed, I think they'd yield all summer with maybe a watering or three to help them along if they get too stressed. I watched "organic" row-cropped heirloom tomatoes (no raised beds, no mulch, no nothing) produce for the last month and a half of dry season last year with zero irrigation, withstanding zero humidity and 90+ temps daily with barely noticeable decreases in yield. The quality of the fruit, on the other hand, was greatly improved (lower moisture content apparently = higher brix [sweetness] and better flavor).

Where are you in California. I know a couple of places near the bay area grow dry farmed tomatoes and melons. What they do have is moisture in the air from the ocean. They are on the edge of the fog zone. We lived in Davis, 90 miles from the ocean but the marine influence brought us cool temperatures and really heavy dew almost ever night in the summer. Even so no one has succeeded in dry farming tomatoes in Davis with temps 90-100+ and
Zero rain.

Slaked lime not soaked. Auto-incorrect

Jennifer Smith wrote:I guess as usual I see something else here. 

I am seeing dry picked, clean, sun bleached, old bones.  Nothing tasty there.  I am seeing this gunk being absorbed into the trees and becoming part of them forever.  More a calcium paste than a tasty paste, 

I would not partisipate in this forum if I did not think Paul is worth listening to, and if he believes, I for one will try it.

I just read this in his book today. Page 166. The bone were all saved from the years slaughtering and SMOKED. The were stored in a screened chest so they had ventilation and dried out. Then bone salve burning man came by in the fall. The bones were crushed to fit in the pot. The fire built around the top pot had to be not too hot and not too cold. The right temperature caused the fat from the bones to drip into the water. If a spark reached the steaming oil there could be an explosion. When done you had a sticky brown mass in the bottom and light gray flecks of bone in the top pot. This bone salve was used as medicine on animals and to keep flies off the animals at harvest. The bone salve to use on trees had other ingredients added. Page 114. Add linseed oil, soaked lime, fine quartz sand and fresh cow dung to make a spreadable consistency which we would paint on with a brush or a broom. If you add more linseed oil you can sprinkle it on "like holy water". He says you can make a a similar brew from mineral naptha or beechwood tar but it isn't as good so you should burn pig bristles or cattle hair to add to it. The linseed oil is made from flax seed and holds the other ingredients together and makes it stick to the tree. The quartz sand is unpleasant to eat. In the book he said it lasted for years but did not say decades.

Scott Tenorman wrote:I just plucked a bunch of asparagus seed from my plants.

SUPPOSEDLY, these have been growing in the desert of Southern Utah for the last hundred years or so.  Zone 8a, desert, hot 105 plus in summer with low humidity, 3,000' elevation.  I got them from a local, and he wasn't trying to make any money off of them.  They've grown great for me after just one year in the ground here.  I haven't tasted any of it yet, so I can't comment on that.  

I have one tiny mason jar of berries to share.

I'd love some heirloom stuff for a straight up trade if you think it would be a good match for my area.

I'm just experimenting with stuff, but anything edible is the only criteria.

Let me know.

Ack!  First post. Don't know how to get text inserted. I really want to plant asparagus that will naturalize and grow in hot climate--California. I have California natives to share. Some are edible like acorns but not normal crops. Email me if interested. Bclowers@me.com

I have ten straw bales I bought last fall that are absorbing our winter rains. I am wondering how people lay them out. Any patterns that resemble the keyhole concept that minimizes the pathways?  How wide do you make
The pathways?  This spring will mark our first year on the land. I planted a garden last year but we have deer. They said "thank you" and ate it all. Next year we will have a fence. I am unsure how guilds work when deer are thick. Around here all row crops are fenced and young fruit trees are fenced till they are big enough that the deer can't kill them.

I live in the Capay Valley in Northern California. The farmers here are mostly organic. Maybe some qualify as permaculture. The largest farm, Full Belly, keeps their workers employed all year. They grow a variety of crops plus sheep, cows and chickens. They think it's part of their job to grow other farmers. We have farms that grow almonds, walnuts, stone fruits and citrus, tomatoes and row crops.  Farms are mostly small--20 acres or so and some make more money than others. If you are trying to homestead then you're probably trying to grow everything you need to live. That doesn't leave much time for cash crops and you're probably going to be poor. If you are a farmer and grow cash crops, you are unlikely to have the time to grow all your own food and provide all you need from your land. Are those people farmers or permaculturists?  I think people trying to be self-sufficient are homesteaders. People trying to make a living off the land are farmers. Investing in a farm makes sense but I haven't found a way to do that. I looked and mostly found nonprofits who wanted rich people to give them money. I wanted my money out of the stock market. Still do but other than becoming a partner in a farm, I couldn't find a way to invest with the goal of having a return on my investment. I retired, bought some land and am
Looking at the farmers around me. If you want to become very good at what you do, you can't do everything. The more varied your crops the more things you have to manage and try to do well. If I grow the best oranges and two or theee other crops and get the best prices for them then it makes more sense for me to buy my eggs, milk, cheese, meat and veggies from my neighbors.

Are you looking for kickstarter support or do you want to plant seeds?  Not clear where you are: Sierra Nevada covers a lot of area.