The Roots

Greetings,
     The gardening has been going well.  Since I stopped posting a few years ago I've been practicing what I've learned in the garden a lot more.  However, like Lord of the Rings, getting the whole story sheds abundant light.  In growing up, I quickly learned the more I would try to excel in different aspects of life the more opposition I would face.  By the time I turned 18 I began seeing it as helpful to spend time alone.  I was working at a crowded bar at the time.  Getting away from all the energy was relaxing.
    I am a kind person.  At the time, kindness was not popular in the world.  So I began walking the Thames River, often with a beer.  It was rare to find nature without nicely trimmed grass in the part of the city I lived.  I enjoyed watching the birds and walking till I had no idea where I was.  It became a challenge to find my way home at times.  It was nice and peaceful.  Eventually I ran into this Library that was unlike anything I'd seen before. That was when I realized pursuing peaceful resolutions was rewarding me.  This was the National Archives of U.K.
   That realization helped me get through some college instead of worrying about more temporary things.  I met someone who had just returned from helping out in a foreign country.  We talked about ways natural resources could be used to help feed a lot of people.  A bit down the road I began digging into clay soil and plantings starts in it. I didn't have much success at first, but I slowly and at times quickly learned.  The roots needed softer soil to grow into. Leaves break down into more nitrogen and branches into more carbon. By layering mulch I didn't have to water as often. I started watching videos and reading all about gardening.
   I noticed other people had little interest in my gardening so it became a place I could get away too.  When I'd be frustrated I would work in the garden until I could barely stand.  After about a year of that I was able to find a new path and learn new skills.  I began getting an abundance of food and getting stronger.
   I also began doing yoga more and learning to let energy go without responding.  This eventually allowed me to safely spend time with people from nearly any walk of life.  Though now I'd spent time watching the spiral patterns of life.  I've found happiness, genuine love, and trust while learning about gardening, yoga and making friends in places where I entered knowing no one.
   I feel like even though people have emotional attachment to stuff and/or desires they should still be treated with as much respect as a ladybug, to say the least.  So the past few years I have been back in the garden.  In nature I often see many expressions of beauty.  I'm guessing a lack of natural nutrients in the food supply has a lot to do with current and past health issues than our science understands. However, I love gardening, so of course I'd say that.  Namaste   

Citrus Artichoke Companion Planting and Compassion

     Greetings readers, it has been awhile since an update.  Currently the garden is mostly barren, however the soil is filled with various seeds waiting to sprout in spring.  Last year the tomato harvest was more abundant than I could eat or give away.  Blessings.
     
       What remains is artichokes, proudly unaffected by the frost, as well as a few onions. There is also a grapefruit tree. Knowing citrus plants don't tolerate frost and being too lazy to cover it every-time the temperatures drop, I planted it right next to the artichoke plants.  I am surprised at how well it is doing.

      The artichoke leaves have now grown slightly over the grapefruit tree. Amazingly enough, the grapefruit tree is not only surviving, but growing into the artichoke's protection.  There has been a fair amount of new growth since the first frost of the year.  I heard that underneath a plant canopy, frost takes much longer to settle.   This also can lessen the cold if for some reason you have to sleep outside during cold conditions.

      It has been a difficult year, dealing with a lot of aggressive behavior.  The rewards have been great though.  By turning the other cheek I have been able to explain how toxins and malnutrition affect emotions. A bit over 7 years ago, I had a conversation with a friend about world hunger.  I felt there was little I could do to help, much less reverse the process, because it is not profitable.  So I choose to stop dating and stop working to build my own wealth, in order to make an actual impact.

       That is very much why I started this blog.  To offer what I have been learning about feeding and healing myself without monetary input.  During that time I have learned a tremendous amount and am grateful.  I've not only learned a great deal about gardening and nutrition, but how to meet people where they are at.  Over the years many of the most sincere people I've met have been wanderers, homeless and "mentally challenged."  I quickly learned many of these people really could use a listening ear and someone to accept them for who they are. This helped me come to peace with behaviors of people that have caused me to feel mistreated in the past.

      After 7 years had passed I decided to return to a more comfortable lifestyle.  Mostly because the loneliness is rough.  I took a vacation to New York to celebrate and accepted a job above minimum wage for the first time since then.  I'm not sure where my journey will lead me now, but I am excited for new beginnings.  I plan to still continue being generous and compassionate, simply am now seeking the Middle Way that Buddha spoke of.  Thank you everyone for reading.  Until next time

No till gardening

     Here is a series of photos showing the method of no-till gardening I find most useful as well as how it's done.  Thanks for reading.  Decide where you want you garden. Spread leaves and mulch found around nearby trees over the designated area.  Water once and let sit for around a week. When dry rake everything to one side, then use a hoe to cut off the weeds.  Next rake everything to the side you just cleared of weeds, and repeat. Mix any dug up soil into the mulch.  Now it will be ready to plant starts in.  This won't give you sterile soil so bugs or bacteria will likely take out seeds.  Happy planting :-D

Honey Bees

    I've been looking into getting a hive of honey bees, the main pollinators of our planet.  Getting honey and wax would be awesome and the bees would help the garden thrive!  So I began calling around and realized it is a bit out of my price range for this year.  Nonetheless I've been learning a great deal about them since.

   Bee populations appear to be in decline.  Without bees, the almond industry would not exist.   Many other staple crops rely on bees for pollination.  However there is a multitude of problems affecting these critters.  The main ones are mites, and viruses transmitted by those mites.  Most hives are unlikely to last more than a year without some type of miticide.  So what can we do to help?

   Based on what I have been learning about soil composition and companion planting.  By providing soil with more diversity and life in it, plants are able to grow much stronger.  They are more likely to have the ability to fight off a lot of the same issues affecting monocrops.  Companion planting is the idea of planting multiple crops together, usually to lessen the presence of harmful pests.  What does this have to do with bees?  If their environment during the off-season provides them with enough diversity of micro-nutrients, they would have an immune system better prepared for the travel and monocrop pollination during the active seasons.

   This sounds like an expensive process.  It really doesn't need to be though.  With proper composting and no-till methods a garden can be started without spending much beyond supplying water to the site.  Many plants can be started by seed.  If this bee-friendly environment can also supply a wide variety of foods and flowers, it can benefit the community in countless ways as well.

Greenhouse

Recently I've had the blessing of getting a greenhouse.  It is great for starting plants inside that couldn't be started outside, until after the last frost.  The increased humidity makes it easier to keep them watered and it provides cover from wind and rain.

So far a friend and I planted lettuce, spinach, collard greens, peas, and jalapeños.  In a few months they will be ready to be planted outside.  I also found a palm tree sprout and put it in some nicer soil.  If it starts growing I'll be stoked!  The days have gotten longer and the chickens stated laying again.

I've been looking into selling produce at a local farmer's market.  There are a few hoops to be jumped through.  Luckily I have met some really incredible people who have made the process much more understandable.  Beyond that, I am beginning to plant so a variety of produce will be ready to be sold when market day comes around.