April on the Homestead

Ok i will keep you informed on the golden egg adventure. LOL
good night and sleep well friends

Hi ya'll,

I let Robin know that her homesteading buds at DG were rooting for her and that everyone sent prayers and happy thoughts. She sounded pretty good, but is still not resting well. She has been nearly 4 days without smoking, so I think she will beat that one this time. Then the army of nurses came in and she had to go. They did a CAT scan and a blood/gas test. I didn't get a chance to speak with her this evening; work has been too hectic and I didn't want to call too late in case she was actually resting. She was originally supposed to go home tomorrow; I'll let ya'll know when I find out.

Not sure that I can swing what this guy wants for mowing regularly; I was pretty tired when he came by today so maybe I misunderstood his quote and I'll give him another call just to clarify. It only took 3 guys (2 on mowers and 1 weed-eating and working the chainsaw) two hours to get this place ship-shape for the most part; they didn't do some of what I asked. That would translate to about 6-8 hours probably for me, maybe a little less since I won't be addressing fallen trees regularly (at least I hope I won't!) and it cost me way more than what I earn in 6-8 hours. So I have to put on my thinking cap about this; on the one hand it is truly wonderful not to be fretting over a couple of acres of unmowed, knee-high grass, but I'll have to see if there is something else I can cut out of the budget to at least partially make up for the added costs. Ugh. Would that I had won the lottery and this was no worry...LOL!!

I'm hoping to get the new beds done and stuff in the ground between now and Monday; we shall see.

Ya'll are making my mouth water talking about all of those berries! I have leaves, but no blooms on any of the bushes I have seen, except for one tiny blueberry bush that I have been hauling around for two years, still in a pot :) I don't have any other blueberries blooming, so I doubt it will set fruit this year. Might be worth yet another trip to Lowe's to get at least one or two so I can have fruit next year.

Good to see you pop in Dyson! No cracks in the ground here, and we are due for rain again this weekend, which means tilling will have to occur tomorrow if I am going to beat the rain. Too many jobs and not enough time...LOL!

Rest well all :)

msrobin please get better soon. We are sending T&P for you
Hineni how many acres do you need mowed ? maybe you have thought of this already but have you tried to lease out that area to a farmer ? we have 8 acres in front and we leased it to a farmer and he has hay in it.. Looks nice and he does the mowing ! i only have to do around the house and the road area. Just a thought :)
well today is cleaning house day for me and i m not really motivated to do it ?
still no golden egg in the nest boxes ??? gee them chickens are sure not listening to me ?

Pod - I would just let the thorn less do their thing. They set fruit on year old wood so you shouldn’t have much old wood if you planted them this year from bags. But those big ol berries do need water.

Think you’re right about the drought though. The weather people said we are supposed to get some rain in here around Sunday. Sure hope they are right.

Been so busy around here with everything else I need to take a day off just to work in the garden. LOL. Got taters pushing up out of the ground I need to cover with hay and weed-n-feed the whole thing. It’s a shame when you have to take off work just to work.

We had a 40% chance of thunderstorms last night. Had a good bit of wind before dark and a little rain but no storms. It was very dry so it's not muddy now, just damp.

Guess today will be indoor work....dang!
I just had to leave the garden because of a downpour. I can't complain though, as we needed more rain. Most of my garden is planted, and under hay. I planted 30 tomato plants, about 20 jalapeno peppers and some cilantro.I hope to make my own salsa this year, as I cook with lots of it, and we pour it on everything.
English peas will be ready next week, and potatoes are blooming. We have been eating lettuce, onions, broccoli and Haikuri turnips for several days.

Lizards_keep, you may get your wish. I just checked the radar and looks like Colmesneil & Lufkin area are in the path of a shower or two.

This year I really expected to get some fruit from my fruit trees, which have been in the ground for 7 or 8 years now but never set fuit because of the late snows, which killed the blossoms. But my apricot tree actually has teensy apricots on it! The plums & apples are blooming. The weather is warm and beautiful. That's the good news, now for the bad: It is supposed to SNOW again Wednesdy and Thursday. Big bummer.

Yesterday I tilled (with a shovel, that Mantis tiller has never worked, don't buy one!) my 30 x 30 foot garden plot and planned to set out the tomatoes & squash and other stuff I started in the greenhouse. Guess I had better wait. Hard to believe we really can't plant safely until May!

Good morning everyone,

Just talked to Robin's Hubby, she is still in the hospital. She was supposed to go home yesterday, so I'm not sure what's up yet. I'm supposed to call back in an hour after the Doc has been there.

We are supposed to have rain today possibly, and down to 38 tonight. This is the least wet my place has been since I moved here, but it's not dry or cracking or anything - just not mushy...LOL. All my seedlings that are on the deck will have to get blanketed, and the mater seedlings will have to come inside.

Sue - I only have six acres total; maybe 1/4-1/2 acre is hay, and the rest is divided into the home proper area (home, barn, garden), small separate wooded areas divided by lawn, and then the 'wild' woods back to the creek so it wouldn't really be worth a farmer's while to mess with it. Heck, I couldn't even GIVE the standing hay away for just the work of getting it off the field. Of course, I know diddly-squat about hay so maybe it wasn't edible or usable then, or isn't now either, and those more in the know were just being kind and looking past my ignorance :) I'll eventually figure out something though. I did finally get the weed eater to work, and got the garden area knocked down so I can walk around without it being up to my knees, maybe I'll get those beds done this weekend after all. Part of my frustration is that when I do get time to work outside after careful planning, then my darn tools (mower, weed eater) won't work!!

Caliche - I can't believe you're eating out of your garden already...that is wonderful! My peas are only about 3" high, and the potatoes are just starting to leaf out; onions are growing nicely. Apparently something liked my lettuces and spinach, so I'll have to replant those. I am used to the little cottontail bunnies, but here the rabbits are HUGE, like, 1 foot tall or more! I scared one that was relaxing under the azaleas the other day...LOL!

I'm rather miffed at my Pyrs right now, as I had been sun tincturing some dandelion and violet oils on the deck, and moved them onto a shelving unit outside the cattle panel barricade, never once thinking the dogs would be interested in them. This morning I awoke to complete decimation of all my bottles :( I can't imagine why they would have even been interested, seeing as they were glass and all; nothing in them but plant matter and olive oil. Dandelions I'll get more of, but it's mostly past time for the violets, as they've now been mowed and I don't know if I'll be able to gather another batch of enough to remake it. Phooey.

Ya'll have a great day, and I hope those who need it get that lovely precipitation!

Hi, What are you doing with the violets? There are plenty in bloom here?

Praying for Robin.

Can't believe you are eating from the garden already!!! We are going to have frost in the morning so I have to get some things covered up. I have a few things that sprouted in my WS bottles and I'll have to bring those in. Glad I didn't put the maters out yet.

sending T&P to msrobin
YOU need goats ! LOL i have areas that are just dandelion pits. I wish i had goats for them areas , but with the cost of fencing ? wow don't know if i could swing it .
Those mantis tillers i think are only good for soft soil and raised beds ? IMHO. i see them on the comercials and wonder "wow what nice soft soil they have " no way it would make it in my clay . But who know ? could work ?
I wish i had one for my raised beds. Make it a bit easier when i till in the cover crops.
we are getting frost but i put a bunch of plants in the GH and out from the basement under the plastic wrapped area under my porch.
what are them doggies thinking ???

Hello, My Friends! I tried to post a bit the other night when Al brought the laptop up to me. But I was having signal problems and couldn't stay focused. So, I really appreciate Hineni passing the word along.

First of all, thank you all so much for your well wishes, thoughts and prayers!

Excuse any spelling errors... Part of this problem is that I am seeing a new doctor that does not know any of my history, so is starting from from scratch figuring out some things really fast. I had mentioned that I had gone to the Doc a few weeks ago with a sinus infection. I was recovering from that and was feeling great till the meds ran out, and then started having problems waking up at night not being able to breath and an excrutiating headache that lasted 8-10 hours. So, back to town to see Doc again. Prognosis isn't great, but is good. EKG and CAT SCANS have ruled out those really serious issues concerning heart problems, lung cancer, brain tumors, etc. Doc suspects sleep apnea, Next test is a pulmonary function test, to find out why I am not capable of breathing deeper or getting my level higher. It's averaging about 94 now. I have to stay here till he can get me set up with oxygen at home, so will probably get to go home Monday. He suspects I may only have to be on it for up to 6 months. I had already stopped smoking by the time I came in, so I'm on the right track. Yes, I did finally did get the lecture today of "I did this to myself and only I can determine my future by not smoking again".

The great news is, we have dicussed my plans at home, and he (Doc) sees no reason why I can't continue with the plans. We are going to limit ourselves to 4-5 members and put up a road side sign. A couple of my nurses are interested in our organic produce, as is a chef at a local resturant. We'll concentrate on supplying the paid members, so that I'm not too overwhelmed and whatever else is ready to be harvested will be sold as available. I know there will be plenty available for everyone that is currently interested, but only committing to 4-5 families won't stress me out much. Figured we can take this summer getting the remaining plans and prep work done. Al is home and learning the fine art of seedling and transplant watering, and when to open and close the greenhouse. He's here to do the heavy work and will be doing a lot of the planting for me when I get home, and we have a couple of young men we could also hire as needed. Hineni and I talked about this today and decided the best plan is to really work on customer quality this year and customer quantity next year. I'll know by fall if I will be able to continue the plans I've made for us. But I'm deternined to get this oxygen thing all under control.

I couldn't help but to think after reading some of the earlier posts, that it sure would have helped some of us out more if we'd been born rich instead of beautiful. Hineni, it just came to me, I wonder if the hay is too old. I don't know enough anything about hay cutting.

I'll go back and read throught the threads again when I get back home. Just wanted to let you all know what was going on and I miss you all!
Is Jay back?

Update on Robin,

They are keeping her until Monday at this time; she's still not retaining oxygen as they would like. But she's rarin' to get back out in the garden, and trying not to go stir crazy :) She appreciates the thoughts and prayers and is anxious to get back to normal.

Edited to say: Well, that will teach me to post without reading the 'new' stuff first..LOL!

This message was edited Apr 17, 2010 7:06 PM

Robin, Thanking God you are feeling better and have some answers. That should lower your stress levels. Great you have quit smoking!!!!!
You go, Girl!! I'm proud of you and happy for you.

I think you are wise to limit your CSA this year and get a handle on everything. Better to succeed in a smaller measure than to fail by biting off more than you can chew. So glad Al is home to help you. No better way for him to "learn to swim" than throwing him in at the deep end. LOL
I'm sure you'll have lots of drive ins from your signs. People are craving good produce. There is nothing edible in the stores.

I had to cover everything i couldn't take into the cellar. frost in the morning. Put hay on the taters in the bags. They are up a few inches. Don't want to set them back by getting nipped. Covered my blueberries and raspberries. Also covered the urns I planted the herbs in. Nothing up but I didn't want to chance the seed getting too cold if it has any chance of sprouting. Podster sent me some new seed and some cuttings. So kind and thoughtful and I really appreciate it. I'll wait until it gets warmer before I try planting again.

Got all my work done today. It's so good to be able to let the goats out and not worry about them getting out. I love watching them play on the hillside. They are very entertaining.

Caliche – chances look good for us getting a little wet come Sunday. Hope so anyway, lol, then I won’t have to water. Got dripped on a time or two today and should get about “50 cents worth” of it tomorrow. It’s sprinkling out there now.

Hello all... fingers and toes crossed hoping for some of that 50 cent rain. Heck, I'd settle for a 25 cent rain and give someone change back too.

MsRobin ~ glad to see you online even if you are still banished to the hospital. I am wishing for a speedy recovery for you and wishing for your patience and stamina to be gifted to your DH. His summer is cut out for him. I like Cajuns' analogy "No better way for him to "learn to swim" than throwing him in at the deep end." Hope he has a set of waterwings handy! 8 )

We need your assistance please. You said rosemary roots easily. I took your word for it and sent cuttings of two different kinds to Cajun. I've never rooted any so if you have any howto advice, it would be appreciated.

Caliche ~ I too am jealous on your feasting from the garden. You must be far to the south and will lose your garden before the northern gardens get going good. At the store this p.m., I told DH I was going home to pour the fertilizer to the mater plants. The store tomatoes were crappy and crappily expensive too! Can't wait for a fresh crop!

Pod – to root rosemary just cut some ends off, stick them in damp soil out of direct sun and other than keeping the soil moist, just ignore them for a few months. All done.

Speaking of crappy tomatoes, I have a confession to make to everyone on this board. Hope you won’t look down on DW and me but as of last week we are now “Recovering Walmart Shoppers”. Although DW did fall off the wagon for a short time, she is now firmly back in her seat. That doesn’t make us bad people, just a couple of folks that are also tired of crappy maters for crappy prices. {=0(


This message was edited Apr 17, 2010 10:26 PM

We are trying to kick the addiction of shopping at Walmart. Believe it or not, it’s harder than you think. We decided to give our money to the local business around here as much as possible instead. I doubt Walmart will miss us but it feels good just the same. =0)

Rosemary will root in water but the root system it develops is weak and may not survive long after potting. Worth a try though.

Pod, I am right in the middle of Texas, where it is blazing hot by June. We have a spring crop and a fall crop. Many things burn up in the summer. I keep a thick layer of hay over everything to keep the roots cool. Broccoli, peas and turnips will be finished in a month, and in the freezer, but many summer crops will replace them in our diet.

Like Lizards_keep said....rosemary roots so very easily, but it doesn't like water, and think you will have better luck sticking them directly in the ground. I have the best luck by just breaking off pieces about 18" long and as thick as a pencil and sticking them in the ground about halfway.

That’s why we close the nursery down from Mothers Day to Sept.; Its just too dang hot to try and put anything in the ground.

I like your idea of using hay though. The only thing I use it for is to cover my potatoes.

Do you turn into the soil after the crop is out or rake and reuse? How thick is thick? See what you started. =0) I think I may try it out on the cukes and squash.

That’s where most people go wrong with the rosemary, they over water. Most herbs like to be hot, dry, and ignored.

Ah, I hear the coyotes …. Maybe they will catch the bunny I ran out of the garden this morning. Hate bunnies.

"That’s where most people go wrong with the rosemary, they over water." Yes but... all the reading I've been doing for Cajun says to keep a cutting moist till rooted? Then a preference for a well draining soil. My plants are up against the sheltered, southeast side of the house where they receive very little moisture and have offered no problems. Guess I need to practice rooting some myself.

Just curious on WM ~ I don't much care for them either. I have a dollar store mentality. Besides, the only time we walk into WM is when everyone and their dog is there too! I hate that. Anyway, as a small business, you have to know your competition. I figured you would tour their garden center. A small business cannot compete with them so always try to be a bit different.

Caliche ~ we are in a spring/fall garden season when grown in ground here too. But I am curious, when you say "summer crops"... what are you considering summer crops?

No rain yet but the radar looks promising!

This message was edited Apr 18, 2010 6:18 AM

i must say i tried to kick the WM habit. *sigh* But i don't know how to make my own Oreo's sad but true. :(
good to know on rosemary ! i am going to try that . My oregano is coming back . But rosemary is not. I may try and propagate them as suggested . Cool !
yes bunnys are bad. bad bunny, bad bunnys

Mainly WM’s foodstuff is getting really bad. The meat has a funny taste, tired of getting onions and lettuce that are brown in the middle, and they have started replacing things with their store brand. Their store brand green peas are a very dark green color and taste something other than what a green pea should. The alternative is to go into another store and pay 15 cents more for a can of Green Giant green peas and get peas of the proper color and taste. IMHO wm is getting the company store mentality … buy what we have or do without. We have simply decided to look elsewhere. We eat a lot from the garden but are a long way from being self-sufficient. That little problem I hope to correct once I retire.

As a small business we do scout out the competition from time to time but usually our customers come in telling us their grips about one place or another. The WM here in Woodville and the one in Jasper aren’t that good to start with. The one in Lufkin is another story. Most of our customers are sick of WM plants, and that’s all the bad talk about WM from me.

Our claim to fame is the fruits, nut, berries, early bloomers and the unusual. We don’t carry any bedding plants and little in the way of flowers and hanging baskets you find in the box stores. We try to find things that you can’t get anywhere else. When was the last time you saw a Betty Boop rose or a Black Walnut Tree or a Fuchsia hanging basket in a box store? We have a customer wish list that I take with me every Monday when I go buying. I have been pretty good at finding most of the things people want. That’s what makes people drive 40 miles to come to your place rather than somewhere else closer to them. Anyway, I didn’t mean to sound like a commercial but you did ask =0)

Yes, the rosemary cutting, as with any cutting, should be kept moist. The reason is that the only way it has to get moisture (since it has no roots) is what it can suck up through the tiny stem stuck in the ground. So it needs more moisture than normal. Once it has developed some roots to do the job it doesn’t need the additional moisture to survive.

(Do you turn into the soil after the crop is out or rake and reuse? How thick is thick? See what you started. =0) I think I may try it out on the cukes and squash.Lizards_keep)

I am just into my second year of hay mulch, after trying for several years trying to garden without it. I may need to till the soil again next year, but will know more about it by next spring.
For several years, DH worked in Corpus Christi, and we lived in our cottage at Rockport, and rented out our home here. The renters had a pack of hunting hounds that they kept in our fenced garden, and completely destroyed it, so it was necessary to till and start all over.
I learned about hay mulch many years ago from Ruth Stouts book, "No Work Gardening".
I use square bales, and to plant in spring, I simply push back the old hay, and dig a hole for the tomato, pepper, etc. and plant it. As the plant begins to grow, I push the hay back close to the stem, and as it rots down, I just add more hay. By midsummer it will be stacked about 6 inches deep or more. The earthworms will do my tilling for me, after the ground is again perking along normally. The soil becomes wonderfully loose and fertile within about 3 years, and no tilling is further necessary. Also, you will find that much less water is needed as the soil does not dry.
This method works very good for everything, including melons, cucumbers, etc. With vining crops, you need to get a heavy mulch down early, as you can't add more once they vine.
About the only thing that I don't hay mulch are my iris.
Another great benefit is that in case of a late frost, you can make tents of the hay flakes by propping them against each other over the young plants, and remove them next morning.

Caliche ~ we are in a spring/fall garden season when grown in ground here too. But I am curious, when you say "summer crops"... what are you considering summer crops?

Summer crops are tomatoes, peppers, melons, squash, eggplant and anything that can take the heat. Cole crops and onions will be planted in the fall for winter.

I have tried hay mulch but it always blows away! I have considered laying chick wire (the 1" hole stuff) down on the walkways between rows of plants. Anybody else with a serious wind problem? Any other solutions?

No … but I just got scorpion stung on the finger if anyone wants to feel sorry for me. LOL. Them little ?#@?#$$%? hurt like the dickens. Bet I have gloves on the rest of the day!.

This message was edited Apr 18, 2010 11:41 AM

Ouch! I sure hope you are gonna be okay, lizard. Guess I have been lucky, no scorpion stings ever. My sister was stung on the hand in her laundry room -- was very sick -- a few weeks later she said, Well I just killed the little @#$%^ who stung me. I said how did you know it was the same scorpion? She said, I could tell by the sneaky grin on its little face! LOL

Good for your sister! They do have sneaky little grins you know. Really. This one didn’t make it far before the wraith of Lizard laid him low. LOL.

Hate to admit it but its not the first time. I hate wearing gloves. Just happy it wasn’t a Black widow spider or a Copper Head.

AZ if you have that much wind …. What keeps the plants in the ground? The wind here just tries to screw all the little things out of the ground. LOL

Caliche – thanks for the info. Think I will ask around and see if anyone has any bales that they can’t feed and try a small section to see how it works.

Hi, Everyone! Not sure when I'm going home yet, but I'm feeling so much better. Got to get up and roam the halls for awhile, too. WhooHoo!

Can I add my 2 cents worth regarding using hay mulch? We started with clay soil and we've used mowed/cut hay for 8 years on our vegetable garden and flower beds. Especially cheap, since we bought a hayfield and Al keeps 3+ acres mowed like a yard. We have learned not to use the first cut of the spring, nor the last cut in the fall, due to too many weed seeds. We grow in wide raised rows that have not been tilled since the initial tilling in 2002 and have added no store bought amendments or chemicals or animal manure since then. We had our first soil samples done this spring and the soil is in excellent shape, requiring nothing more than just a little 10-10-10 feritlizer and lowering the PH slightly from 7.3. The worms are plentiful, but I haven't seen much in the way of bad bugs or worms taking up residence, except grubs, and I'm killing every single one I see. Wild rabbits visit our rows and leave droppings and we hand cultivate in the used mulch late fall or early spring, whenever I get to it. I can harvest potatoes directly from the soil without digging tools, so the mulch worked in has contributed considerably to the soil being friable and tillth excellent. The mulch under our trees that does not get turned over or in, I have noticed the grass/hay growth around the edge is much thicker, lusher and greener. I think there's a lot to be said for the nutritional value of just simple hay. This is simple feed hay.

I use the mulch several inches thick on all of my planting rows. It will keep down a lot of weeds and what grows is generally easy to pull. It retains a lot of moisture, resulting in less drying out. I do run soaker hoses on the rows under the mulch and would run them once a week or so for deeper watering. The only problem I've really seen, is that a lot of rain water isn't captured on the row top or pentrates through the hay mulch, but I'm guessing as the rain water is soaking into the narrow lower paths, that the moisture is spreading under the rows, causing the plant roots to reach a little deeper. There's also one other little issue, but it's quit managble. We dump and spread the bagged mulch in the walk ways to dry out at least around 35-45% before adding to the rows. It will mildew and mold rapidly if not allowed to dry out a bit. Using the mulch also keeps the food cleaner, less washing time and cuts down on soil backsplash which could carry diseases. Just a win/win situation, even not growing naturally or organically.

Caliche, I haven't tried Stout's basic method. But am thinking I will put it to the test with the melons and squashes. But a lot of what I do, is loosely based on her methods.

I've rooted Rosemary a couple of times with good success. I use smaller pieces (6-8"), and trim the lower few inches, using rooting hormone and keep the soil slightly moist...and it does take awhile, a good 6-8 weeks minimum to even look like it's thinking about about it. Sometimes, I kept a baggie loosely enclosing the cuttings, for additional humidity. Good to know the larger pieces will root too.

Lizards, what a great marketing idea. Let all the other nursery's do their thing, and you cater to the special requests and out of the ordinary.

Well, with trying to think and type, and walking, lunch, Doc visit, medicine routines, etc, it's taken me almost 3 hours to type this. Sure feels good being back amongst friends on DG!

Hope everyone is enjoying their weekends!

Oh, my...ouch about the scorpion stings!

We live on a windy hilltop (a lot of 30 mph sustained) and we don't have much trouble with the mulch blowing. Once it gets wetted down and matted together a bit, it won't go any where.

Good to have you back MS and hope you get to go home soon.

I was wondering about the water penetrating the hay. Thatch roofs are just layers of straw and it keeps the water out. Pine straw does the same thing. But then out under the timber the pine straw is maybe 8 or 10 inches all over and it doesn’t seem to hurt the weeds and trees any.

If you think about it, you are just doing what Mother Nature does naturally. In the woods the leaf litter falls every fall and stays there to rot/compost till the following fall when another layer of leaf litter is added. We have a hickory grove and each year the litter is several feet thick. What do you think of shredding it and dumping it in a pile to compost? I think I have just changed my way of thinking as related to gardening.

Thanks to you and Caliche both.

Lizards, exactly what Mother nature does! I have read mention of several people using earth scrapings under leaf mold at the edge of the woods for potting mix.

Regarding using the leaf litter in composting: I have a nice little booklet from Rodale Press on Compost Making from several years ago. At that time, the general opinion was that shredded/chopped leaves worked better overall when tilled into the soil or used as a thin top mulch. The leaves decomposed at a different rate and in a different way than other compostable materials when mixed together in a compost pile. More recent study may have changed that idea. I finally had to take a break from doing so much intensive studying, because I was starting to feel system overload. Besides my KISS method was producing some really good results for me.

I just like to share some simple low cost ideas that work for me and hopefully will for other's too.

I use oak leaves to grow potatoes and when they break down, they get turned under. I have also harvested leaf mold and used it in flower beds. The pine straw works excellent for mulch as the moisture will get thru it when other mulches present a moisture barrier.

Caliche ~ you mentioned you may need to till the soil again next year then later said earthworms will do my tilling for me, if I may suggest, I don't think the tilling will be beneficial to the worm population. I have tilled a garden spot for quite a few years. This year, the blessed tiller wouldn't crank for me so I used my spading fork. I was amazed to find no worms! I think tilling has caused that as I have turned in much compost and leaves in years past.

Do you have success keeping tomatoes delivering fruit the summer thru? Seems mine generally won't set blooms well when the nighttime temps get too high but will start back in fall for me. The only one that produced nonstop last summer was Porter ~ a small vining heirloom tomato. Needless to say I am growing it again.

Picked up some Epazote today. Does anyone use it ~ either dried or fresh?

Lizards_keep ~ glad to hear the scorp didn't nail your typing finger... LOL
Now where did I put my gloves??? lol

Funny Pod. My finger still hurts too! But DW says not enough to get me out of plant shopping tomorrow. LOL. Hope you got more rain than we did.

Nope on the rain... we are doomed! How fun to go plant shopping every week. For that I could be jealous.

good evening
last fall i mulched some beds with regular hardwood bark mulch. This spring i lifted it and tons of worms and very dark soil underneath . I will continue to use this stuff. The straw i used just sat and blew away :(
What is leaf mold ? actual mold on leaves ??
i have tons of leaves from our oak tree's . I used to use them in the chicken coop and for mulch but it just got to much to rake it up. Cant find a better way to collect them .
Wish i had one of them sucker things you attach to a mower. aaahhh to dream

Lizards_keep, sorry about the sting! Must have had a hot day where you live, as the scorpions don't come out here until hot weather. Then it is time to shake out your shoes before putting them on.

msrobin, glad to hear that you are improving and feeling better. Congrats on quitting the smokes.

Podster, tomatoes usually perform pretty well under hay through summer. It is often an iffy deal but always worth trying. My favorite tomato last year was the pear shaped Juliet. It didn't let up all summer.
When I say 'till', I mean in the old sense of the word, I turn it with a spade. I do not like the rototiller churning my garden soil. I also think it is harmful to the earthworms.
I usually only turn the dirt when opening up a new garden area, as the earth here is extremely rocky. I often have to use a mattock to get the rocks out.
Then after the soil gets healthy, I don't dig into it again, as it causes more weeds to sprout.

About baled hay....whatever you do, don't use coastal bermuda grass. It will sprout and be very difficult to get rid of. I like sudan hay as it is very coarse, allows the rain to seep through and rots fast. And it is cheap. Baled hay will not blow away if you lay it in flakes about 4" thick, and you can walk on them without compacting the soil.

He was in the bottom of a plastic pot that had a dead plant in it. When i pulled the rootball out he got me. Did wear my gloves the rest of the day though. LOL