I have some questions because I have never composted before. I read one post where they used a large outdoor plastic garbage can with the bottom cut out and put directly onto ground. No turning, etc. My questions are: I live in south Texas and so it is very hot and dry (but humid go figure) and now I am scared of the potential for FIRE. I could water it but not every day. What about FIREANTS? Nobody addresses this, maybe it is not a widespread problem, but here, it looks like I would have millions if new nasty pets. What if I put layers of diatomaceous earth? Will that not hurt the worms? Can I mail order worms? Bait stores here are for salt water.
I had asked this in another forum but got no responses, so I thought, let me try the other zone 9 people!
Plus, send me ideas on drought resistant plants that are edible and easy for the kids to grow, please! All we can manage now are fruit trees.
Thanks!
I apologize for being slow to respond...our dog got bloat and we had to put him to sleep. I was too sad to be communicating: he was the farm dog from my sister who passed away a year and a half ago...my squirrel and hawk chasing chicken protector who had the biggest heart in the world! He had a spinal embolism this past winter and went paralyzed on his right side...he learned to walk and run again, and was just such a happy dog... I wonder if the paralysis had something to do with the bloat. (Bloat is when the stomach or intestines twist, cutting off blood flow). I will always miss him, but I was lucky to have him in my life for a while...
So, to answer your questions:
I have very poor composting skills! I have never gotten a pile to compost. I have also worried about fire risk because I know it can happen based upon composting starting in hay bales that were baled when the grass is too damp. And I can testify that ants do like my pile of stuff that refuses to compost. Clearly, we need a compost expert who is from our type of area!
DE does not harm worms. However, DE needs to be dry, and compost piles are supposed to be moist, so I do not know how effective DE would be in that situation.
You can mail order worms and the good part is you get select what will work for you. Worms need to have dampness, too, so if water is an issue you can use a container that will help retain water. I have had very good results in an old styrofoam container: it helps moderate temperture fluctuations, as well as keeping moisture. You could use spray foam to create a bigger area to keep them. I saw a youtube video of a guy who raises worms in the desert: he does rows which he covers with foam board that has the reflective silver coating.
Purslane is an edible succulent that you can do quite easily. The stem, leaves and flowers can be eaten and it self sows. It has a lemony taste, and can be used raw or cooked. Limit to about 100 grams per person a day, though, as it does has oxylic acid that can cause upset tummy or cause kidney stones in people who are prone to them. (spinach also has it...if you tolerate spinach, the purslane should not be a problem and it tastes better!)
Herbs are usually more drought tolerant than vegetables, so rosemary is a good one. My basil has done really well in a container. Mint has done well for me in a container in part shade. In fact I just divided some to give away to a guest... My parsley did well in my only container that does not have a water reservoir, but I do water it every day that we don't get rain. I just bought another one to try in a self watering pot.
Another youtube person to look for is a guy named John and his channel is grow your greens. He lives in Las Vegas and deals with the dry and heat. He does raised beds with drip irrigation and heavy mulch.
Self watering containers are also a good way to grow while conserving water: they typically have a reservoir at the bottom, and a drain hole above that to prevent flooding when rain does happen. You can make them for just a few bucks or buy premade.
A lot of plants seem to benefit from being protected with a UV blocking shade cloth in intense heat areas.
All these things create microclimates that are easier to maintain. You control the quality of the soil, the moisture, the light and heat and UV stress. (UV is not as good as visible light, creates more heat which causes more evaporation, and burns plants.) Using containers means you do not lose moisture and nutrients down into the earth. However, the containers and plants you do have help make cooling shade that can make a bigger micro climate over time.
In African desert areas they found that having trees helped with the growth of ground plants: they pull up deep water, support microorganisms, provide food for worms and shade that reduces heat of the soil, plus provide a windbreak to decrease evaporation. Since you have trees, put them to work for garden plants!
If you start a garden, I would do containers just outside the drip line of the trees you have. Find a place to set up a shade house: just a pvc frame with cloth that blocks UV but allows air flow. I plan to do one myself: I also need it to provide some bug exclusion, since bugs are my biggest issue right now.
If you do this, you can focus less on drought tolerance and more on heat tolerance: Peppers are good and do well in heat, though they benefit from midday shade.
Cherry tomatoes do better than other larger types through the hot part of the year. I am still waiting for the everglades tomato seeds we got to sprout. They do well in south florida (zone 10) which tends to be flood or drought (florida is called a wet desert!), so look for those online... Some master gardeners who moved to my area from south florida said they preferred the Sweet 100 variety of cherry tomato, but I want heirlooms and I am not sure if the Sweet 100's are or not.
Water melons planted in a container might be good.
My onions and garlic in containers are doing much better than the ones I put in the ground.
The purslane I put in the ground is doing better than the ones I put in containers.
I discovered my amaranth likes partial shade better than full sun here.
Sweet potatoes are easy and do real well in containers. The leaves are edible, too, for chickens: have to look up how they are for people...
I have one plum type tomato left and it is happy in part shade in a container.
Beans! Beans! Beans! I have been very happy with pole beans and bush beans. The italian pole beans have a really nice flavor, sweeter than the other varities and are my favorite green bean now. I got a late start on my experiment with "southern peas" which are pea like bush beans: they go by a lot of names (cow pea, for example) and there are a lot of varieties. I put them in the ground under my corn and they have no bug issues, are very happy, and are now flowering. Because they went in the ground, I did water them. I ran out of pots... I wish I had tried some in full sun, because the corn does shade them. They are reaching out for the sun, so I think they could've handled more...
Wherever you plant the plants, you can help them by using shade cloth, mulch, or a green living mulch of a complementary plant. (You will have to research "companion planting" as I am not very familiar with it.)
Hope this helps!
don't you just love mothers??
How do you know if a plant is GMO when you buy it at a garden center? Some are marked "heritage", so it seems they may be the only ones assured to be non-GMO. Sigh....
