Steven Gallo

I have no good solutions but am interested in seeing what emerges from this thread.  I'm in Southern Maine and I have not been able to find any reasonable methods of getting a stable, winter-proof, plowable driveway that isn't standard pavement.  

Maybe I can add a somewhat unique perspective...

I love this forum, you people are an amazing group, and I've come here for a ton of growing information.  That said, I'm a normie more than a permie and still have a lot of normal consumer habits.  I've known about RMH for years and while I think they're awesome, I would have a laundry list of questions, concerns, and emotions around them that would all need to be satisfied before I ever considered building one in my home.

Are they legal/code breaking?  Who would I get to install one?  If I attempted to DIY one, would it be considered illegal?  Is it safe/how certain could I be that if I did DIY one it wouldn't burn my house down (and it would have to be 10000% certain)?  Is it worth giving up precious square feet of my dwelling?  Can it be built in the basement?  Is the ease of maintenance there?  How does it work on larger, multistory homes?  Will it evenly disperse heat to all my rooms (if not, it's a no-go for me)?  

The average consumer fixes most problems by throwing money at a solution that makes sense and is convenient.  If there was a number I could dial right now that would get a reputable, insured craftsman here tomorrow to build an up-to-code, safe, well-made RMH at a reasonable cost, I would make that call right now.  If that isn't what's on the table, 95% of consumers are not even going to consider it.  

Just my .02

Casie Becker wrote:May I suggest you try beneficial nematodes instead of neem oil.  They cover the insects you have mentioned as well as fire ants and fleas. When I use them I have to hope for a period of cooler and wetter weather than is common in my area but it really helps me with the fire ants.  Everything else incidental but nice as a side benefit.  I doubt you can get away with not mowing at all.  Even here where we are currently in drought I have to go pull several saplings that have sprouted in my yard. If you invest in a good tool for uprooting particularly stubborn species of tree and shrub you may be able to reduce it to only a few times a year.  Especially if you mow a few paths for the most important access points.  

As a child I grew up playing in fields of scrub cedar, prickly pear and wild grasses that were taller than I was. We would trample our own paths and uproot whole rooms to play in.  We thought we were building secret playhouses in the grass but as an adult I now know our parents were tall enough to easily see us as we played.  Good memories, much better than any I have of a lawn.  Just make sure your kids know what not to dig up.

Thank you for the reply.  I've considered nematodes before but was told that they have to be applied in late summer where I live, which is too late for what I would like to do.  

I don't mind mowing infrequently, I more meant that I don't want the upkeep of a manicured lawn.

My main concern with long length is ticks getting on my kids.  The ticks in my area are a serious problem as it is and I do not want to create an environment that encourages their growth.

Hello!

My lawn is about 4 years old (GC that built our house seeded it all with contractor seed, covered with straw).  We've had perpetual issues (grubs, bare spots, guilt from water use), I don't like the idea of mowing, and manicured lawns are boring anyway.

I was hoping to get some advice!

Goals:

Convert about 2 acres of somewhat sandy, acidic soil in southern Maine to something meadowy
Increase biodiversity, encourage pollinators and other beneficial critters
Still keep it short, comfy, and manageable enough to be used as a yard for activities
Eliminate or reduce the need to mow

Concerns:
Length - I have 3 daughters and 2 dogs, and don't want to encourage tick growth
Usability - I would like to keep the yard "playable", we spend a lot of time outside
Workload - I've seen some recommendations for ripping up the existing lawn to meadow.  I do not want to do this!
Choices - I don't know what plants might hit some or all of those goals while also being native to my area

My spitball plan was to seed the entire lawn with clover, wildflower mix, and maybe some ryegrass as a nursery plant.  I was also considering neem oil to deal with the grub infestation and the Japanese beetles that make a meal out of my fruit trees every summer.

Any guidance is appreciated!

One addition - I actually planned to use sphagnum moss, not peat moss.  I didn't even know there was a difference until I looked it up!

Hi everyone,

I made an attempt at starting a small food forest last year.  My wife and I were brand new to permaculture but put in 2 ~15 ft hugelkultures and 1 terrace.  We had limited success, which I now realize was due to poor soil quality, lack of mulching, etc.

This year, I'm planning to address these issues.  I'm bringing in a few yards of 50/50 organic compost/loam mix from a nearby farm for the garden.  I have a ton of small branches and cuttings from cleaning up my woodline, so I was also planning to make biochar and introduce that into the soil.  I have a bunch of peat moss on hand so I'm hoping I can mulch with it, but I'm not sure if that's a good move.

Right now we have 3 fruit trees that survived and are now flowering, but practically nothing from last year is still alive.  We'll be planting a large mix of veggies, flowers, berries, etc.  We live in southern Maine, for reference.

I'm hoping someone who knows a lot more than I do can give me thoughts on if this plan sounds good.

Thanks!

Persicaria maculosa seems to be the one.  The leaves did have very dark colorations that faded over time.

It's strange that they are only growing - like crazy - around the bases of the two trees we planted.  I wonder if they piggybacked in the planter from where we bought them?  I don't see how else that pattern would be explained.

Bummer that it's invasive, but we have a small garden.  As long as it won't mess with our tress, I'll just chop and drop.  Thank you all for the help!

Hi folks,

My wife and I started a little garden (attached, slightly old picture).  There are two hugelkultures, one terrace which is largely clayish soil.  The mound in the back is a two-year-old stump pile from when the house was built, so I guess you'd say it's a naturally occurring hugelkultur.  

We've planted a peach and plum tree in the terrace.  A few weeks later, a leafy plant we didn't recognize started sprouting up en masse under the trees.  I couldn't ID it at first, but after some research I believe it's American Pokeweed.  I attached a pic I took today.

I live in Southern Maine, and I don't think I have ever seen this plant before.  I have no idea where it came from, but it is growing like crazy in the clay bed around the trees.  Lots of mixed info on if it's an invasive pest or something desirable - some love it, some hate it, some eat it.

Am I right that it's Pokeweed?  Will this stuff hurt our trees?  I have three daughters ages 2, 4, and 7, and I'm worried the youngest may confuse them for blueberries, which grow nearby.  I'm considering going out today and chop-n-dropping all of it.  

Thanks!

Darn.  We were afraid of that.  Our old boy isn't aggressive enough to do the job then - the most he's good for is an occasional howl.

I don't know how we'd go about fencing that area, being that it's such uneven terrain.  Time to do some research.

Thanks for the info.

One specific question - what do we do about critters?

The back ~9 acres of our land is untamed woods and wetland.  We've spotted squirrels, deer, turkey, rabbits, etc. .  We have a big, loud dog that keeps things out of our immediate area, but my wife and I are concerned about the wildlife eating our plants and getting into our compost.

I don't think a physical barrier will work for that spot.  I've read that strongly scented herbs and animal scents can be used, but does anyone have any advice on keeping wildlife out of the garden?