Td Roadsend

thomas rubino wrote:I think you will want a Montana Masonry Heater  (aka) RMH.
Depending on how big your building is, you might want an 8"batchbox.
Do you have power available?  
Having supplemental lights would help keep your sprouts from getting too leggy.

Awesome!  That gives me some more things to dig into.  It’s hard to know where to start looking when you don’t have a baseline to start from.  😆

We are off grid, on solar.  I’d rather not run solar to the greenhouse if it can be avoided, but I’m aware it may be something I need to look at.

I have had wonderful results in my tarp covered greenhouse… in the Spring and Summer.  😝

But I’ve gotten greedy.  I want more.  🤣

We have spent the last couple of days felling the trees which cast shade on the south facing hill I’d like to build into.  We are mostly swamp in and around the house (cored wood) so building up in behind seems like the best option in terms of keeping the greenhouse at a handy distance.  Currently we are thinking we are going to have a double panelled plexi or greenhouse plastic wall with a solid wood roof and the back side built into the hill.  I’m hoping that will give us some serious insulation.  Then it’s a matter of figuring out how to maintain a baseline growable temp year round.  Thinking about incorporating a bee house too (but I tend to have big ideas without the foundational knowledge to actually work out all the deets).  So I’m here, tell me what to do!  I’m in your hands, ready to be a sponge and soak up all the knowledge and lived experience you are willing to share.

Thank you!

Northern BC here, and hoping to embark on my greenhouse build this Spring.  I’ve had a tarp greenhouse for early spring growing, but am looking to build something permanent that I can grow all year in.  I’m planning to build into a south facing hill - currently clearing the trees that would block the light.  So this has been an awesome thread to stumble on.  Anyone with any updates for further information?

Just checking how things turned out for you.
We would be open to considering having someone join us out in Northern BC on our off grid wilderness homestead.  Many hands and all that.

tuffy monteverdi wrote:

Joylynn Hardesty wrote:I think I was unclear. This human mother had not been pregnant in the last two years prior to the adoption. Lactation from her latest child had long been finished. She alternated formula and nursing until her milk came back in.

Can animals do that?

Spontaneous milk production without some kind of pregnancy or recent birth isn’t a thing in humans or any animal, as far as I know.

This is not as uncommon as you think.  I personally know of a number of Women who have begun lactating after an adoption, I know a man who did as well.  There's lots of really cool information out there on this if it's something you are really interested in.

Joylynn Hardesty wrote:I know a woman who had previously birthed and nursed her children who then successfully nursed an adopted child.

Do animals have this ability?

Yes, they most definitely do.  Wild animals "adopt" infants and juveniles and that can include nursing depending on the species.

John F Dean wrote:I made the mistake of publishing research and presenting it at a conference.   ...  I finally asked, “ Are you suggesting I should alter my findings to fit your preconceived notions?”  I am not sure if he liked me before that, but he certainly didn’t afterward.

As a researcher (PhD candidate) I feel this HARD.  LOL
Since beginning my homesteading journey I am seriously considering changing my focus, there is a lot right here that I want to explore.

Well Dang.  LOL
If you weren't so far away I would be happy to extend an invite to our little wallow.  Alas, the piggies and their humans are way off in Northern Canada.
They are absolutely adorable, I'm sure you'll find a very excited and happy homestead for them.

nom nom nom

Re my adopted kune kune piggies (two and three years old):

For the most part all three girls' coats are in SOOO much better condition with good food, pasture, and space to wander... but Holly, and to a lesser extent Duchess, both have gotten these balding patches.  Having seen pics here in another thread of a Kune Kune with mites I wonder if somehow the girls have ended up exposed.  Could something like that have come from a purchased hay bale?  Or what else might we be looking at?  Any and all thoughts or ideas would be welcome and appreciated.  I love my piggies, they are the realization of a ten year dream for my son and I, and I want nothing but the best for them.  They have our hearts.

I've attached two pics of Holly's coat and one of Duchess.  
I'll come back and add one of Patsy, aka Two Four, with her face full of slop to cover the "cute pig tax".