fishing in the wild waters of PHX

I need to learn how to fish.  Because if you teach a man to fish he can fish in the canals. I know fishing in the canals sounds disgusting, but fish make for good and cheap fertilizer, especially for corn. Here and here is the info I have found about fishing in the canals. Short [...]

Compost tea and solar panel

I got the idea of making compost tea from the Grow  House as well as the book Gardening When it Counts.    It is also my first experiment with solar energy.  The solar panel pictured above hooks up to a tiny little air pump.  This system is supposed to be used in backyard ponds.   I bought it [...]

Weekend update: Gardening for hard times

I am trying an experiment, based on what I think I read in Gardening When It Counts: Growing Food in Hard Times by Steve Solomon. I filled bottles with compost tea and put the bottle upside down “above” the plants. The tomatillo seems to be doing the best. The rest of the plants still look a [...]

Book review for “Gardening when it counts”

I been reading Gardening When It Counts: Growing Food in Hard Times by Steve Solomon and frankly it just overwhelms me.  After reading the watering section I am not sure if he is telling me to water more or water less.  I suppose one needs a little bit of a mathematical mind to follow his recommendations,  maybe [...]

Update on the Garden- Low yields and over-watered

Before leaving for 9 days I asked my neighbor to water my garden once while I was gone. I can tell from the exact position where I left the hose that he did not. Despite that everything (except the gopher attacked agave) looks good. In fact, I am glad the garden did not get any [...]

Survival Mom and why I am sick of beans

One of the rules or expressions among the preppers is “eat what you store and store what you eat.”  Another sentiment is “practice is better than just reading,” which I totally agree with.  With those two sentiments in mind the Survival Mom is challenging her readers this month to cook rice and beans seven days [...]

I am pleased to say I was stung by a bee

While I was trimming the mesquite trees this weekend I was stung by a bee. I have always been nervous about bees since I was stung as child and swelled up like Charlie Sheen’s head.   Also, once in Oaxacca I ate a bunch of grasshoppers and woke up that night covered in hives, and sweating [...]

Update on the Salted Oranges

4 days ago I salted oranges.  Today, as instructed, I tried them.  I used two with some Mikes Hard Lemonade and they were delicious.  Best way to cure scurvy.

Salted oranges

I got about 30 oranges on my tree in the backyard this year. It is my understanding that it is about the 6th or 7th year that one actually starts to get fruit from a citrus tree. I think I am now at that point. Last year I got three oranges, and they were sweet [...]

Scurvy

Anybody know anything about canning oranges? Got a lot of oranges and want to can them for the end times. Below:  My orange tree in the backyard gave out 20 oranges this year.  Last year three.  All the years before, none.   Update:  My friends over at facebook made a couple of good suggestions for [...]