Kathy Vargo

Taffy for pulley day

Are there any plans for a rocket kiln plan?  How much rocket expertise is necessary to build one of these?

Reading this whole thread, I was struck with one question, "What is the main thing you want these signs to do?"

Do you want to tell people how to grow these plants themselves, ie sun requirements, moisture requirements etc.  This is information on seed packets or nursery tags.  

If you want to teach people about what plants functional roles are in the food forest then stick with those symbols or words.  This would be a great way to teach people about the whole concept of a food forest.

If you add an additional layer such as human uses for the plant then that's ok.  

But,  you need to figure out what information you are trying to convey then stick with that on every sign.  Keep it as simple as possible or your signage will be bog most people down.  

Plant geeks like me can look up the latin name and delve into growing it and using it ourselves.  Or offer the QR code as a way to get more in depth information on everything but the permaculture function in the food forest.

To paraphrase one of my sons ' Gee mom, you have too many hobbies'.  I took it as a compliment.

My best year in recent years. I amended the minerals after a soil test.  It made a huge difference

Two books, "Root Cellaring - Natural Cold Storage of Fruits and Vegetables" by Nancy and Mike Bubel, at least 2 editions and easily found used.  "The Complete Root Cellar Book", by Steve Maxwell and Jennifer MacKenzie.  They both have building plans.  I really like the passive ventilation systems, no need for a fan.

If you're going to start medicinal forest nursery then you'll need patches that allow some light to get the medicinal started.  Less light if its medicinal mushrooms you want.  Early improvement cuts where your weeding and thinning competing smaller trees are good for mushroom cultivation as well as firewood.

I've just had some time to talk to my sisters who don't live nearby.  We are all stepping up to help watch my mother while her husband takes a trip home to Sweden.  What I discovered is that completely independently of each other, we all started doing more food preserving and canning and gardening or buying in bulk to save money.  We do it with more or less support from spouses and children.  We got it from our mother who had to grow our own food due to poverty in a somewhat rural setting.  Some of our children who are now in their 30's and 40's are into it as well, but not all of them.  Still its interesting to watch and see their evolution toward better lifestyles.  Mine still has a ways to go, so how can I expect theirs to be perfect on the Permies scale of 1 to 10.  Wish i knew how to direct people to those threads.  They sure were fun to read

Thanks Gemma!

Can it be downloaded?