Gardening has been more fun than blogging

Wow, it has been almost a year. Time to start blogging again. The problem is gardening has been for fun than blogging. Nevertheless, I've learned a lot and I think sharing my successful techniques is important as more people realize that with a garden you can feed your family. And it's not just the 'wholesome food' aspect. It includes the urgency during tough economic times.

I'll start posting some of these cool techniques that generate 100% success, minimized labor at startup and weeding, and makes your garden look great. Let me know if it makes sense to you. I know I've read gardening books with '1001 tips' for the gardener. And, sure, it's nice to know you can cage tomatoes or even hang them upside down. But how do you get good soil tilth? How do you actually do a raised but without paying for expensive lumber? How can I mulch without paying for bales of straw? Well here are my ideas. The next post will be an overview.

What has been happening in the garden and the world?

In the garden:

1. I've tilled in 6 pickup truck loads of aged manure
2. and 2 loads of leaf mold (shredded and decomposed leaves from the township)
3. bought a water container to be mounted on a garden tractor trailer to wheel 55 gallons
of pond water when summer hits
4. everything is in except corn
5. my raised beds are a hugelkultur like (read more here)
6. Bought 2 tractors. One has the rear mounter tiller! It was $250 - a great deal
The other tactor is a Sears with a 3 bin grass catcher. Along with the bagging push mower all clippings are used for mulch.

To do:
1. get truck load of spoiled straw from the stables to use in garden paths
2. finish all the deer fencing
3. plant corn using the Golden Harvest seeder

In the world:

What if Wall street employment suffers from new legislation. Here is an offer from Jesse:

Retraining may be a daunting task

According to the email below there is some concern among employees in the financial services sector about their future employment prospects if reform legislation should be enacted, and some tentative, but perhaps unrealistic plans, of coping with it if it happens are expressed.

I can always use a little help around the kitchen and the yard, cleaning up and minor repairs, and I would gladly pay a fair wage based on effort, moderated by experience and capability. My son and helper is leaving for university soon to begin his studies in engineering, which is the manipulation of real things for practical purposes with benefit to the customer. So it might be unfamiliar to you. And I am not getting any younger.

...
I suspect there will be a lot of cheap labor available from dislocated FIRE sector workers in the years to come, as well as from those serving out community service judgments. At least the highways will be cleaned of litter. Perhaps exposure to the common people and honest labor will do them some good.

I am a little concerned that this type of person probably has little or no practical skills, but they do claim to bring high energy and a willing spirit, so it could be put to work on the cleaning up of America and Europe, and the rebuilding of their infrastructure. They make themselves sound like teachers, firefighters, policemen, or even soldiers, but there are dimensions of duty and honor and self-sacrifice and service to others in those callings far beyond any monetary recompense of which they probably have little experience or even a vaguely realistic expectation.
...

And if you should happen to play any card or board games with them, I warn you beforehand, they cheat, obviously, clumsily and shamelessly, to win, with a somewhat cavalier regard for the written rules. Ah, but I forget, that has long been your raison d'etre, your hallmark, and a particular area of specialization and expertise.