Michigan Thread - all are welcome!

[RaZ]

left my eggs in a bucket last night on the retaining wall... It stormed... Was messed up day yesterday... anyway... There was a enough water in the bucket that the eggs were completely covered... they're ok, yes?

They are OK. Put the bucket on the stove, boil them and make egg salad.

That's what the Washington people are saying.

Busted!

 

[NovaAman]

RaZ... Oh RaZ... Lol

 

[HollyDuckFarmer]

Gaitngirl- your maybe-girl-maybe-not, sounds just like mine here ?! Guess we wait it out. I hope you get eggs, I dunno if they'll lay in a nest or not. Yesterday all the eggs were in straw, but the day before they were on the dirt. Not too surprised to hear of the smack down, that girl was the boss here. Glad they're settling in.

Ok RaZ, lasagna garden tomorrow! I've got seedlings ready to go in...I was trying to decide today what to plant where. I always hate that part.

 

[Opa]

Looks like today has the potential to be a little on the damp side. We definitely need the rain but I wish that it would have held off until I got the rototilling done.

 

[gladahmae]

Looks like today has the potential to be a little on the damp side. We definitely need the rain but I wish that it would have held off until I got the rototilling done.

Agreed! I mowed the area I'm going to put my sunflowers in as short as I could without damaging the mower too much yesterday, and contemplated starting the rototilling. I managed to talk myself out of it though.

Had DH pick up a 5# bag of peredovik sunflower seeds on his way home from work, and judging by their height (4-5ft) I guess I'll be tilling the whole area instead of just tilling rows like I originally planned. For some reason I thought they were the taller 6-8ft variety. Still, hopefully it'll be a beautiful sight later this summer!

I am SUPER EXCITED about this morning though!! Brethren is meeting me and she is taking my orpington rooster!

All that will leave is to figure out what to do with our very nice EE rooster (not aggressive to me or the kids in any way....prefers to stay out of your way) since DH and I have decided that we like the look of our Wyandotte rooster better. (He's also not shown any aggression toward the kids.)


Regarding this newspaper/mulch thing....my back flowerbed is a nightmare to keep neat. If I go through and weed it as best I can, then put down newspaper over everything BUT the existing plants I want, and then mulch it when I do my coop cleanout, that should do the trick, right? How will that affect how water gets through? I have a hard time keeping it watered like it should be because of the amount of sun, sandiness of soil, and wind we get. Will the newspaper and mulch help with that? The flowerbed is 8x32.....I have a lot of weeding to do.

 

[HollyDuckFarmer]

I think just water the layers as you add them. So you are always adding a layer overtop of an already saturated layer. Should help moisture retention, long term.

 

[gladahmae]

Yeah I could do that. I guess I'm just concerned that if I use the 'shiney' newspaper that it will block the weeds well, but will also be a moisture barrier later in the summer.

 

[SillyChicken]

Yeah I could do that. I guess I'm just concerned that if I use the 'shiney' newspaper that it will block the weeds well, but will also be a moisture barrier later in the summer.

pssssssssst... don't use the shiney ones!

 

[RaZ]

Don't use shiny ad fillers from the paper. Use the regular newsprint. Water will pass through to the soil, the paper prevents weed seeds from germinating and/or sprouting. The mulch keeps the newspaper in place while providing a layer of insulation to the soil and helps it retain moisture for your plants. And it looks nice. The newspaper will decompose in a couple of months.



It was kind of windy so I wet the newspaper as I put it down on top of the weeds. This is a straw bale garden so there is no mulch.





I have since planted flowers, sweet potato vine, tomatoes and peppers in the bales. Before long, the vines will completely cover the bales.

 

[Maah]

Don't use shiny ad fillers from the paper. Use the regular newsprint. Water will pass through to the soil, the paper prevents weed seeds from germinating and/or sprouting. The mulch keeps the newspaper in place while providing a layer of insulation to the soil and helps it retain moisture for your plants. And it looks nice. The newspaper will decompose in a couple of months.


It was kind of windy so I wet the newspaper as I put it down on top of the weeds. This is a straw bale garden so there is no mulch.

I have since planted flowers, sweet potato vine, tomatoes and peppers in the bales. Before long, the vines will completely cover the bales.

Love this idea!!