So whatever these tiny little bugs are, they've completely ravaged my indoor herbs. I believe they came in on an "organic" mint plant I brought back from the grocery store. That mint paid the price for its betrayal, along with my sage, thyme, and basil. Only survivors thus far are my citrus trees and rosemary, and even they aren't certain. Dad gave the rosemary a haircut almost to the roots, and I'm spraying soap on the citrus trees every day. The little bugs come out of the soil and I zap them. I'll give it another week, and then I'll have to try something more drastic. Those trees are too expensive to just toss, like I've done with my herbs.
It's all so sad - they were glorious two weeks ago.
In other news, my dad planted/transplanted all my failed bulbs. Who knows, if I water every day, maybe a few will come up.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Friday, April 17, 2009
Vermicomposting
Almost anyone giving advice on starting an urban homestead, or even just a more sustainable lifestyle, will advise that composting is the way to start. Composting is a great way to reduce waste, get free soil amendments for any gardening project, and conduct on-site recycling.
Because I started my first urban homesteading research during the winter, an outdoor compost pile was not feasible, but I wanted to get started immediately. Worm composting was my solution.
Worm composting (vermicomposting) consists of feeding a specific kind of worm (red wriggler) organic material which they, with the help of bacteria, convert into worm castings (poop). To vermicompost, you need a worm container, a way to moderate the temperature, bedding material, worms, and organic material.
1) The container: There are many commercial worm-composting systems available, but all are expensive. I had some plastic bins that would fit under my sink from my move, so I used a method described in the book Urban Homesteading to construct my own bins with no additional purchases. I simply drilled holes into the bottoms of two containers of the same size and into one of their lids. The undrilled lid serves as a tray to catch any liquid dripping out of the holes. The drilled lid goes on top of the composter as a cover. Right now, I'm only using one of the actual bins. When it fills up, I'll stack another bin right on the surface of the soil of the first container and start feeding only the top container. The worms will migrate through the holes in the bottom of the container over a period of a few weeks. Then the top container will become the bottom container, and I'll carry off the other container of castings for use in my garden. The two containers alternate in this way.
I should note that the book orginally recommended drilling LOTS of holes, not just in the bottoms and lids. I did this (it took a long time) and then had to cover all the holes over a period of weeks when it became apparent that Colorado is way too dry for a worm composter with that many holes.
2) Temperature control: I keep my worm composter under my kitchen sink, so temperature is not a problem. Also, I enjoy people's reactions when they hear I keep worms under my sink. Outdoor bins MUST be protected part of the year in Colorado or the worms will freeze and die. The sink limits the size of my bin - it is too small for the amount of food waste I have since I cook a lot. For me the convencience is worth it. When I get my outdoor composting set up, that's where the rest of my scraps will go.
3) Bedding material: I just use shedded newspaper, soaked in water and then wrung out again. There are other options, but this is simple and I get the Sunday paper anyway. The worms need moist bedding, and I use it to bury piles of scraps for the worms. I also keep a sheet of moist newspaper on the top of the compost to keep the whole thing moist.
4) Worms: Red wrigglers are the best worms for vermicomposting because they can deal with the scraps more quickly than other breeds. I originally ordered 100 worms but they didn't seem to be eating anything. I read the wonderful book "Worms Eat My Garbage" and discovered that, for the size of bin and amount of scraps I would be putting in the bin, I needed 1000 worms. I ordered more worms from California. Since then I've discovered a man who sells these worms in Pueblo (Colorado Earth Worms - coloradoearthworms.com). I'll go for the more local solution the next time I need worms.
5) Organic Material: Worms can "eat" pretty much all plant material and plate scrapings, but most sources don't recommend putting meat in a worm bin. Too much acidic food (citrus peals, vinegar) can cause the worms to try to abandon the bin (yipes!). Also, worms can go weeks without being fed, if there's still things left from them buried in the bin. I keep an uncovered (to avoid smells) scrap bowl on my counter, and when I have a good amount of scraps, I bury it in my bin. I bury in a zigzag pattern until all the available surface is used up, and then I add bedding and start over again. The earliest burying spots should have been turned into castings by then. You have to be careful not to bury too much at once or the worms won't be able to eat it fast enough and it will rot and smell.
Worm castings are excellent fertilizer as-is, and a worm tea can be made of of the castings for liquid fertilizer. So far, my bin has been pretty easy going. I highly recommend reading "Worms Eat My Garbage" if you want to start your own worm bin. I got a copy at the local library. It's easy reading and very informative.
Because I started my first urban homesteading research during the winter, an outdoor compost pile was not feasible, but I wanted to get started immediately. Worm composting was my solution.
Worm composting (vermicomposting) consists of feeding a specific kind of worm (red wriggler) organic material which they, with the help of bacteria, convert into worm castings (poop). To vermicompost, you need a worm container, a way to moderate the temperature, bedding material, worms, and organic material.
1) The container: There are many commercial worm-composting systems available, but all are expensive. I had some plastic bins that would fit under my sink from my move, so I used a method described in the book Urban Homesteading to construct my own bins with no additional purchases. I simply drilled holes into the bottoms of two containers of the same size and into one of their lids. The undrilled lid serves as a tray to catch any liquid dripping out of the holes. The drilled lid goes on top of the composter as a cover. Right now, I'm only using one of the actual bins. When it fills up, I'll stack another bin right on the surface of the soil of the first container and start feeding only the top container. The worms will migrate through the holes in the bottom of the container over a period of a few weeks. Then the top container will become the bottom container, and I'll carry off the other container of castings for use in my garden. The two containers alternate in this way.
I should note that the book orginally recommended drilling LOTS of holes, not just in the bottoms and lids. I did this (it took a long time) and then had to cover all the holes over a period of weeks when it became apparent that Colorado is way too dry for a worm composter with that many holes.
2) Temperature control: I keep my worm composter under my kitchen sink, so temperature is not a problem. Also, I enjoy people's reactions when they hear I keep worms under my sink. Outdoor bins MUST be protected part of the year in Colorado or the worms will freeze and die. The sink limits the size of my bin - it is too small for the amount of food waste I have since I cook a lot. For me the convencience is worth it. When I get my outdoor composting set up, that's where the rest of my scraps will go.
3) Bedding material: I just use shedded newspaper, soaked in water and then wrung out again. There are other options, but this is simple and I get the Sunday paper anyway. The worms need moist bedding, and I use it to bury piles of scraps for the worms. I also keep a sheet of moist newspaper on the top of the compost to keep the whole thing moist.
4) Worms: Red wrigglers are the best worms for vermicomposting because they can deal with the scraps more quickly than other breeds. I originally ordered 100 worms but they didn't seem to be eating anything. I read the wonderful book "Worms Eat My Garbage" and discovered that, for the size of bin and amount of scraps I would be putting in the bin, I needed 1000 worms. I ordered more worms from California. Since then I've discovered a man who sells these worms in Pueblo (Colorado Earth Worms - coloradoearthworms.com). I'll go for the more local solution the next time I need worms.
5) Organic Material: Worms can "eat" pretty much all plant material and plate scrapings, but most sources don't recommend putting meat in a worm bin. Too much acidic food (citrus peals, vinegar) can cause the worms to try to abandon the bin (yipes!). Also, worms can go weeks without being fed, if there's still things left from them buried in the bin. I keep an uncovered (to avoid smells) scrap bowl on my counter, and when I have a good amount of scraps, I bury it in my bin. I bury in a zigzag pattern until all the available surface is used up, and then I add bedding and start over again. The earliest burying spots should have been turned into castings by then. You have to be careful not to bury too much at once or the worms won't be able to eat it fast enough and it will rot and smell.
Worm castings are excellent fertilizer as-is, and a worm tea can be made of of the castings for liquid fertilizer. So far, my bin has been pretty easy going. I highly recommend reading "Worms Eat My Garbage" if you want to start your own worm bin. I got a copy at the local library. It's easy reading and very informative.
Where is Spring?
Another Looooong snowstorm is in progress. I'm really glad I listened to the lady at Hillside and didn't even think about planting roses until May.
In sadder news, my herbs, which were gloriously healthy a week ago, up and 75% died. I think I have spide mites, and I don't know if they killed the herbs or if spraying them with dilluted dishwashing soap did it, but I'm totally bummed. I don't think my experiment with this (below) was very successful. At least the citrus seems unaffected.
My sister loves my Larga Vista raw milk.
In sadder news, my herbs, which were gloriously healthy a week ago, up and 75% died. I think I have spide mites, and I don't know if they killed the herbs or if spraying them with dilluted dishwashing soap did it, but I'm totally bummed. I don't think my experiment with this (below) was very successful. At least the citrus seems unaffected.
My sister loves my Larga Vista raw milk.
On left, my herbs in happier times.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Worm Update
2 weeks ago I realized I had over-fed my worms in my worm composting bin, because there was some mold. So I left it alone and checked it today - looks great! LOTS of worm dropping and most of the food is gone. I added another layer of newspaper bedding and will add some more food. Soon I'll start a second bin and transfer the worms to it. But now I can make worm tea for my spring plantings!
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Using soap to kill insects
My poor indoor sage is covered in spider mites. Once again, my locavore yahoogroup comes through with information about using soap to get rid of them, like my Dad suggested. Here is a great article on it:
http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/insect/05547.html
Hopefully I'll be able to try it tonight.
http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/insect/05547.html
Hopefully I'll be able to try it tonight.
Friday, April 10, 2009
Dad's Home Improvement
My 68-year-old father is a landscaping, home improvement machine! He's fixed every door in my 95-year-old house. I got a new storm door as my early birthday present. He also put in a motion light on the front of the house and fixed an outdoor power receptacle that did not have a cover on it.
But the BIG work is the retaining wall. Like many houses in the older parts of Colorado towns, mine is elevated above the sidewalk/street level. Which means I spend much of the spring and summer shoveling my yard back into my yard. Dad has torn out the makeshift retaining wall along the front of the house and put in a beautiful wall made of bricks designed for retaining walls. He's also shoveling the raised soil from my hellstrip to fill the gap made by the removal of the old retaining wall's 10x10's. This soil is rich from years of rotting leaves and will make a great place to plant climbing plants along the chain link fence that surrounds three sides of my house. Maybe it could even support the Concord grapes recommended for this area? The hell strip will be HEAVILY mulched using wood chips I got from AAA tree service for $75/truck load. Either way, the appearance of my front yard is hugely improved, and the long term maintenance just got much simpler.
I love my dad!
But the BIG work is the retaining wall. Like many houses in the older parts of Colorado towns, mine is elevated above the sidewalk/street level. Which means I spend much of the spring and summer shoveling my yard back into my yard. Dad has torn out the makeshift retaining wall along the front of the house and put in a beautiful wall made of bricks designed for retaining walls. He's also shoveling the raised soil from my hellstrip to fill the gap made by the removal of the old retaining wall's 10x10's. This soil is rich from years of rotting leaves and will make a great place to plant climbing plants along the chain link fence that surrounds three sides of my house. Maybe it could even support the Concord grapes recommended for this area? The hell strip will be HEAVILY mulched using wood chips I got from AAA tree service for $75/truck load. Either way, the appearance of my front yard is hugely improved, and the long term maintenance just got much simpler.
I love my dad!
Friday, April 3, 2009
My parents come to visit
Dad was up at 4am staring out the window wanting to get to work! He's fixing a lot of little things around the house and helping me with my landscaping. I have a feeling we're going to disagree on the vegetable garden, but almost everything else we agree on.
I also finally got a downy ball to put vinegar in my rinse cycle. Small steps!
My latest batch of bread dough failed - way too wet. It gets wetter as it sits, so I think I have to keep that in mind when I'm mixing it. I'll use the remnants for pita (which doesn't care as much) and then start a new batch.
Dani on my yahoogroup explained her reasons for using Lasater's family pack of beef, and so far this is sounding like my best option for local, grassfed, sortorganic beef. I think $5/pound is pretty reasonable for that, and it's definitely cheaper than individual cuts from Larga Vista...but what about buying half a cow? Still have to do the math.
I also finally got a downy ball to put vinegar in my rinse cycle. Small steps!
My latest batch of bread dough failed - way too wet. It gets wetter as it sits, so I think I have to keep that in mind when I'm mixing it. I'll use the remnants for pita (which doesn't care as much) and then start a new batch.
Dani on my yahoogroup explained her reasons for using Lasater's family pack of beef, and so far this is sounding like my best option for local, grassfed, sortorganic beef. I think $5/pound is pretty reasonable for that, and it's definitely cheaper than individual cuts from Larga Vista...but what about buying half a cow? Still have to do the math.
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