elle sagenev

Been doing it ages and they're about as helpful at 6 and 9 as they were smaller. I had them plant the potatoes last year and they were RANDOM. Potatoes everywhere. lol Plus some pumpkins I was surprised to find randomly around.

Get small shovels. They love to dig all the things. Accept that your kid is going to be wet A LOT. My kids were always around while I did things but they weren't always engaged with me. Also, sometimes they start helping and then just end up with their shovels digging all the things. Oh, and get a nice little Vtech kids camera. Kept my littles occupied for YEARS taking pictures on my jaunts to check on things.

Chris rain wrote:Yeah, old thread.  I've been looking for updates on 55 gallon bee hives.  I want to know if these are a fad, or they have long-term success.  Are there problems that keep people from using them?  Very sparse info.

Please post your results, good, bad, unpopular etc!  Thanks!

I made one and my bees froze to death. It's far too large to start a new colony in in my area. It's still snowing and cold when bees are delivered here. They tried to ball up and keep warm but they just couldn't, and I insulated mine.

I have a massive, stinking, loud, ground vibrating oil well near me right now. So, even buying a property "in the middle of nowhere" does not guarantee you niceness. Your location sounds nice, and being in the budget makes it sound nicer.

I'd say a drawback might be crime. There has been an uptick in crime in our area because of oil drilling. It brings different people out. We have dogs. Keeps us safe.

Leigh Tate wrote:If you're fortunate enough to have neighbors with like interests, that's a true bonus. We have very nice neighbors, but for the most part they view us as the neighborhood nuts. :p

I've slowly been building a dam at the edge of our property using dirt from all the holes I did. I can't tell you the number of times I've seen the neighbors stopped and just staring at the dam in confusion. Add that to the free range pigs and I'm pretty much the oddest person they've ever met.

We have a lot of leaning trees due to wind here in WY. It might not be a problem at all.

I know most of the people around us now. I did not always know them. I think it's nicer to know. We've received help from the neighbors, and offered it. Sharing of time, knowledge, etc is great. I've also had ducks go on a walk to the neighbors and they called me to let me know they were there so I could go get them. So it's always nice to have a friendly relationship with those around you. However, I've also had to file a police report because I went to introduce myself to a new neighbor and got molested. So, not all neighbors are good neighbors.

Something I had never thought of before is the impact marijuana legalization has on the power grid.

https://www.utilitydive.com/news/pot-power-how-utilities-and-regulators-are-dealing-with-the-budding-mariju/409172/

This article popped up while researching something for work and it blew my mind. grow houses blowing transformers. 45% of Denver, CO's new energy use is from MJ growers. Maybe this blows my mind so much because I am already in an energy unstable area. Our power goes out fairly frequently. I cannot imagine what would happen to our power grid if MJ growing was legal here. I do not think it could handle the increased use.

I also found it interesting how limited companies are in dealing with this issue thanks to federal laws still declaring pot illegal.

Did you know the federal sentencing guidelines are based on MJ weight. Each illegal drug has a given weight in MJ and final weight and final sentence is based on MJ weight. So one oxy pill would be equal to 2grams of MJ. There are a fair amount of things that would need to be changed when it becomes legal. I do think it's a matter of time. I think it should be legalized. It just brings problems with it, like everything else.

I had been told, and maybe I was misinformed, that some counties in Oregon require pot be grown in a greenhouse instead of outside. Pot seems like a pretty permaculture friendly plant if grown properly outside. Growing it indoors is where the problems come from.

Anyway, just some interesting things I learned and wanted to share with the permie community. Feel free to educate me further!

I am not a super successful beekeeper. My bees died though when snow completely covered the hive. the lack of air flow caused mold and death. So, being in Michigan it's important for you to think about snow!