Douglas Alpenstock

Jay Angler wrote: I have a lot of trees budding up. If we do suddenly get a cold snap, it could be a problem.

Yeah, I'm worried as well. We're getting extended "chinooks" with warm and melty weather, punctuated by extreme cold. This is the perfect recipe for winter-killing perennials including fruit trees. Their "toes" are still well frozen in (due to my heavy fall watering) and snow covered so hopefully they won't be fooled.

We've been seeing the change in winter norms for 15 years. Observation indicates something is up. It's a worry.

John F Dean wrote:I suppose there is a time to bring up the term Permaculture, but I try to avoid it.  I get negative vibes when I hear buzz words, and I am certain other people may react negatively to some buzz words.  I avoid the term organic as well.   Though it is not frequent that I have conversations with others about gardening, it does happen.  I will showpeople what I am doing, and 3x plain why.  If it is a conversation away from my place, I may as for advice from someone else and then steer the conversation. If someone is bringing up using the contents of the Dow and Monsanto catalogs on their garden, I might make a comment like, “ I got to the point I couldn’t afford all that stuff so I started looking for a cheaper approach. This is what I do now.”

Agree 100%. Buzzwords close the door. Meeting people where they are plants seeds.

Good topic! Let me take a different tactic and shoot some spitballs from my perch at the conventional smuggites with their noses in their phones ... here goes:

"You know, this is actually a super conservative method -- I'm using the techniques my great-great-grandparents used.

"How do I know it works?

"Well, you and I are both here, aren't we? So obviously it works. Those "old folks" were our age once, and they had a helluva lot more skills and knowledge than we do.

"Well, I have a smartphone. It's all there.

"How much of the totality of human knowledge is available on your smartphone, through the Internet? Maybe 2% if you're lucky? (*That has big shock value.*)

The Earth keeps on turning. The big system of the biosphere keeps rolling. It doesn't need humans at all.

Our big global distribution systems can crash. The gardens that your great-great-grandparents built were indestructible because they didn't need supply chains, only effort and brains. Many came from war zones and crushing poverty -- and yet thrived. Maybe their methods are worth a look.

(The kicker:  If you notice, the meta-message is to gently subvert the prevailing notion that history is a linear progression of infinite progress. Change and disruption and innovation, certainly. And new technologies. Not all bad -- much has great value. But what defines progress?)

Belt for me. Actually my jeans don't fall off (reasonable G2B ratio -- gut to butt). But when I add all the hardware I need, cell phone, Leatherman, keys, knife and lighter, AAA flashlight, and whatever else occupies my back pockets, I need a belt. Preferably with a Batman logo.

Joseph Lofthouse wrote:

I love wearing dresses for this very reason. And I get the added bonus of feeling free in mind and body.

Call it a tunic, add a belt with a hori-hori (or machete) in a sheath, and no-one will give you any guff.

Hmm! Who will be the steady pendulum, the regulating Moon to Paul's raging, volcanic Earth?

John C Daley wrote:Crime pays but Botany doesn't
This is an interesting video ...

Oh, wow, absolutely freaking awesome! A Chicago mob vibe with Latin tree names. Guerilla gardening with prison tats. I have to watch all of these.

Thanks for this John C, you made my day.

Battery bank setups are expensive. If you have reliable grid power and smart metering for the peak vs. off-peak hours, would it make more sense to organize your high-use appliances with timers so they run when the magic juice is cheap?

This could be challenging in one regard. I think that the metal lids used for glass canning jars have an inside coating that appears to be plastic. Thoughts?