Just curious who else is living super frugal

[jtbass2756]

Coop poop and compost will help also. Both can be free with just a little effort on your part. We have a gal at work who collects all the coffee grounds for her worm bed. Anything to get organics in the soil to help hold the moisture.

Our problem is that we both have serious health problems so we have had to back off of a lot of things... LOL....getting old is the pitts! Hubby has heart problems, I have something similar to parkinsons.. balance being the worse of it. I know "how" to make those things happen...just have to do what we can and let the rest go. We just tighten the belt in other ways.

 

[dutchbunny83]

Living more and more frugal each month. But it would take a fortune to do something to get my soil to support a garden. Sandy ...sandy soil. We have 2 acres and basically cut the wire grass! Now I'm about to get a chicken coop finished out of recycled materials with the help of a friend. At our ages....we are where we are....!

The soil here is SOOOOOOOO bad!!!
Great for tomatoes, but that's about it.
We bought 8 pick up truck loads of composted horse manure which has worked wonders in our raised beds, but once tilled into the ground in the other big garden it pretty much washed away. The chicken poo is great for corn because it needs all the nitrogen.
I've yet to be able to grow any fruit successfully (melons, strawberries, other berries, citrus, etc.)
But we spent a small fortune putting in all our gardens and you've seen how small of an area I'm working with, I can't imagine for 2 acres!

 

[jtbass2756]

The soil here is SOOOOOOOO bad!!!
Great for tomatoes, but that's about it.
We bought 8 pick up truck loads of composted horse manure which has worked wonders in our raised beds, but once tilled into the ground in the other big garden it pretty much washed away. The chicken poo is great for corn because it needs all the nitrogen.
I've yet to be able to grow any fruit successfully (melons, strawberries, other berries, citrus, etc.)
But we spent a small fortune putting in all our gardens and you've seen how small of an area I'm working with, I can't imagine for 2 acres!

When we moved on this piece of land back in '88, we tried to haul in top soil, fertilizer, (poop), ....and its like you said....."poof"....it washes away! Also have very little shade, so the hot sun with the sandy soil...just backed everything.. So now we just patronize the farmer's market.

 

[jlynnp]

We are trying to grow a garden but being on top of a mountain we have more rock than anything. They grow faster than the garden!!

 

[LindaB220]

We are trying to grow a garden but being on top of a mountain we have more rock than anything. They grow faster than the garden!!

Container garden? Rain gutter garden? Anything to stick a seed in.

 

[cwrite]

I have developed a whole lot more compassion for farmers since trying to grow stuff. We went from a temperate climate on chalk to clay in the sub tropics - both are hard. So desert, mountain, chalk (cold for most of the year), clay (dry & hot unless it's flooding) ... Everyone should try to grow just one thing to eat! Even if you live on the top floor in a flat.

 

[tntchix]

I have developed a whole lot more compassion for farmers since trying to grow stuff. We went from a temperate climate on chalk to clay in the sub tropics - both are hard. So desert, mountain, chalk (cold for most of the year), clay (dry & hot unless it's flooding) ... Everyone should try to grow just one thing to eat! Even if you live on the top floor in a flat.

Absolutely, I am growing slips for my organic sweet potoatoe pile one side of my house. I also regrow green onions in my kitchen in a jar.

Not a gardener, yet but getting there. *always learning*

 

[DennisK]

We are trying to grow a garden but being on top of a mountain we have more rock than anything. They grow faster than the garden!!

We also live on a mountain top with more rocks than soil, but there is much you can do. We bought a few bails of wheat straw and after spreading it over our garden area, we discovered that it will germinate its own wheat plants which we then turned into more compost. This is our second year of doing this, and this time, I am leaving a patch of growing wheat to mature. For an experiment, I want to try harvesting the wheat, separating it from its chaff, and grinding it into flour. I’ll bet the wheat straw will help jtbass2756’s sandy soil quite a bit.
A while back, on this thread there were folks who tried planting their garden right in the straw bail. I tried it with some success, but I wasn’t very impressed. I have better luck mixing the straw in our existing soil - which, by the way, is a great deal better than when we first started. You wouldn't believe anything would grow in it. The earth has amazing recuperative powers.

 

[LindaB220]

We also live on a mountain top with more rocks than soil, but there is much you can do. We bought a few bails of wheat straw and after spreading it over our garden area, we discovered that it will germinate its own wheat plants which we then turned into more compost. This is our second year of doing this, and this time, I am leaving a patch of growing wheat to mature. For an experiment, I want to try harvesting the wheat, separating it from its chaff, and grinding it into flour. I’ll bet the wheat straw will help jtbass2756’s sandy soil quite a bit.
A while back, on this thread there were folks who tried planting their garden right in the straw bail. I tried it with some success, but I wasn’t very impressed. I have better luck mixing the straw in our existing soil - which, by the way, is a great deal better than when we first started. You wouldn't believe anything would grow in it. The earth has amazing recuperative powers.

This is such and interesting topic. Let us know how the wheat turns out. This fall when you turn your excess wheat in, throw out some cover crop seeds. Clover, daikon radish, rye, etc. Enough that it grown for a few weeks before the winter kills it. In the spring turn it in. Instant compost. Here is an interesting thread:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...ur-yard-for-increasing-free-ranging-nutrition

 

[PlaidBattleAxe]

Absolutely, I am growing slips for my organic sweet potoatoe pile one side of my house. I also regrow green onions in my kitchen in a jar.

Not a gardener, yet but getting there. *always learning*

Any tips on growing the slips? I haven't tried sweet potatoes yet, but that's my next goal for my garden.