Here are a few plants that are ready to go in the ground, however, with the weather dipping, the planting season has been going rather slow.
The Swiss chard, bell peppers, kale, and few tomato plants pictured here will join the collards, kale, and broccoli that was planted just a few weeks ago. Hopefully, over the next few weeks I'll have quite a few plants in ground and I will add a late start of seedlings before the summer gets into full bloom, in other words, before it gets hot hot!
The Swiss chard, bell peppers, kale, and few tomato plants pictured here will join the collards, kale, and broccoli that was planted just a few weeks ago. Hopefully, over the next few weeks I'll have quite a few plants in ground and I will add a late start of seedlings before the summer gets into full bloom, in other words, before it gets hot hot!
As can be seen to the right, I have a decent share of collard greens and kale already planted and coming along slowly. I'll probably give them another feeding boost with a mild mixture of fish emulsion along with some ground-covering to keep the moisture level conducive to hardiness and growth.
Last year's strawberries are back and spreading, and should produce a lot more fruit than the year before. I need to hurry and build a tent made of netting over these plants to keep the birds from having their share and mines also.
I wish I would have planted them in a sunnier spot, but we'll see what happens. I'm looking to plant a few more fruiting plants this year (fingers crossed.)
I wish I would have planted them in a sunnier spot, but we'll see what happens. I'm looking to plant a few more fruiting plants this year (fingers crossed.)
What would spring and summer be without the drudgery of grass cutting.
As part of my journey towards self-reliance, I bought a old-fashion styled push mower like the one my grandmother had me cutting grass with eons ago, though her's was made of wood and iron.
This mower took me through the spring and summer of 2013 and it's also tackling this year's high grass (as seen here), which had sprung up after several days of proverbial, May showers. Even though this type of mower has a better cutting profile than the average power mower, it is not a mower you actually want to use on grass this high, for it will work you hard and the cut will not be as clean and sharp as what it can produce (leaving more trim work than desirable); as a matter of fact, I was just a few inches of grass short of using a hole or sickle, or calling up Sam, my former lawn care guy.
The challenge here is that the more I reach my goal towards a 'permacultured' homestead environment, the less grass and inedible growth I will have to cut or mow....
This growing season like the others has caught me a little off-guard and it seems like it just wasn't going to happen, but I realized, if I just keep moving forward regardless of the setbacks, I have at least half-a-chance of success, which is much better than most endeavors and challenges in life.
Please keep coming back, I will be posting more progress soon. ~ Jerome
As part of my journey towards self-reliance, I bought a old-fashion styled push mower like the one my grandmother had me cutting grass with eons ago, though her's was made of wood and iron.
This mower took me through the spring and summer of 2013 and it's also tackling this year's high grass (as seen here), which had sprung up after several days of proverbial, May showers. Even though this type of mower has a better cutting profile than the average power mower, it is not a mower you actually want to use on grass this high, for it will work you hard and the cut will not be as clean and sharp as what it can produce (leaving more trim work than desirable); as a matter of fact, I was just a few inches of grass short of using a hole or sickle, or calling up Sam, my former lawn care guy.
The challenge here is that the more I reach my goal towards a 'permacultured' homestead environment, the less grass and inedible growth I will have to cut or mow....
This growing season like the others has caught me a little off-guard and it seems like it just wasn't going to happen, but I realized, if I just keep moving forward regardless of the setbacks, I have at least half-a-chance of success, which is much better than most endeavors and challenges in life.
Please keep coming back, I will be posting more progress soon. ~ Jerome