Josey Hains

Mary Combs wrote:

Dan Huisjen wrote:
There are plenty of nutcrackers around, the harder task is getting the inner membrane off. Without doing that, the hazelnuts are bitter.

What? Hazel? I have never heard of that. Almonds get blanched but hazels?

Felco is a great brand. Swiss.

We have deer destroying conifers for sure. Nibbling is not huge threat but they do rub on them to get the velvet off during rut season and they definitely kill trees.

Careful with alfalfa and other legumes. Too much is not good. Your ponies might founder.

I read most of this thread so apologize if I overlooked the answers to following questions:

1) What's the water management plan on the property? Keyline, Swales, anything?

2) No-till radishes (Daikon)? Did you try these? You can get them in bulk (AG seed supplier) and they grow fast. The radishes get really long and I heard they are excellent to break hardpan. Also, they compost in the soil and add organic matter.
http://www.friendlyacres.sk.ca/pdf/CoverCropGuideline-2.pdf

William James wrote:These things seem to be the bomb for air layering. Problem is they're expensive if you want to do this en-masse.
http://backyardgrowers.com/clamshell-propagator/

I'm also dreaming up ways to do air layering (or pruning, don't know what the right term is), but I haven't had time to do any trials yet.

I have an idea of doing it with 2 small plastic pots and a few zip ties, arranged in a way that accomplishes what the clamshell propagator does. I have lots of these small pots going unused, so it would be great if something could be done with them.

So far, all the air layering techniques I've seen online (with the exception of the above link) all seem really bad design. Either the root ball container is too small (=fewer roots), there is increased condensation in the chamber which may increase fungus or bacteria, or it just looks as if it would be a pain in the rear-end to put on.

There should be an easier way to do this. I have the feeling that ground layering, while not very practical with trees, is a thousand times easier. One solution would be to let a ground-level branch jump out and then put a pot under it and a rock over it.
William

Air layering is not air pruning as far as I know. Air layering is working with cuttings that are still attached to the shrub. Air pruning is pretty much potted plants without pots (or better pot walls). The plants don't get root bound with the air pruning technique. My goal is to start seeds and sell plants in pots but without this problem. So I am looking for ideas on pots that have either lots of holes, a fabric that lets air and light through or something like that. Ideally sturdy enough to hold the plant like a pot.

William Bronson wrote: I have made some nice large ones from weed barrier. Just sew a tube out of the fabric and close one end with a ziptie. Put the bottom in a relatively low sided container to contain the water.
Panty hose works for smaller size containers.

Interesting ideas. Do they hold up ok? Panty hose sounds a bit tricky to fill and possibly move?!

Does anybody have an idea or source for cheap pots for air pruning? I have a soil block maker but for several reasons I still would like a pot. I looked into net/mesh pots for pond plants but they are quite pricey.

Has anybody come up with an idea yet?

Got another friend to sign up
So close to 40k now!

What are you going to use it for? Only food storage? Get a sea can.
They use them a lot here since you can secure them from theft and mice, moisture etc.