Soil, water, and tea questions

[h.h.]

The link for the beans was more or less the same.
While there is little research in other areas. farmers are always looking for feed. The nutrient values of waste has been studied for that reason.


Starting bucket worm trial this week.
It means that I have to drive into town. The good, the bad, and the plain weird.

If more folks used pot and left all that other shit alone. Time to send Nixon another joint. Court is in Sessions.
It's all about the money. Drill baby drill. Fuck nature. What has nature ever done for us that a bunch of cash couldn't do better? Worms love cash

. Sloppy Steve

Almost cut my hair
Happened just the other day
It's gettin' kind of long
I could've said it was in my way
But I didn't and I wonder why
I feel like letting my freak flag fly
And I feel like I owe it, to someone, yeah

 

[moose eater]

Learned to go stealth years ago. The era of 'Almost Cut My Hair' and David Crosby, will always be one of the banners from days of daring to be stopped & searched on any highway in North America. After a time, "Show me some I.D. and put your hands on the fender," all got to be a heavy dose of 'Why??"

Having a huge pony tail and beard, in an old pick-up truck or hitching, simply meant the increased possibility of an added adventure. Doing that with 3 lbs. of weed and a lb. of hash on-board, meant daring the cardiovascular system to survive another unnecessary venture into "Holy SHIT-ville."

Though metaphorically, imo, it more so references selling out ideals for the otherwise 'graduation' into Archie-Bunker-ville, wherein many accept the dulling of basic principles, as a part of, or in exchange for, what too often becomes accepted as (faux) common sense or (hollow) wisdom & (empty) maturity..

Selfishness, lack of energy, willful forfeiture of the High Road for convenience, and over-simplification of the reality of life. That's what being a burned out, disillusioned, and disenfranchised adult is made of as often as not. Just my observations.

Able to leap tall philosophies and kill dreams in a single bound. Faster than a speeding glacier.

Having been born dead (literally), and at times viewing the whole thing as someone else's unnecessary and overly-taxing obstacle course from some bizarre Cosmic track meet, put together by a yet-to-be-formally-recognized organization of 'Deities in Support of Sadism,' I was, more often than not, at least as much a 'Find the Cost of Freedom,' kinda' guy...

Still intending to poke any primary Deity in the sternum with an index finger, should we ever meet again, asking, before my probable condemnation, "What the fuck was THAT all about, anyway??!! You bored or (cue Al Pacino) -WHAT-??!!"

After which I'm sure I'll catch my own monogrammed lightning bolt, having had the satisfaction of confronting the abyss between some allegedly Omnipotent Authority, and their apparent choice to sit still while horrible shit happened. Wtf??

Re. drugs, etc. my family member involved in opiate treatment pointed out this morning that at the peak of opiate-overdose deaths (2016), 30% more people died -directly- from excess use of alcohol than from opiates, not counting persons killed by drunks as secondary or peripheral mortality that could also be defined as alcohol related.

We both whimsically wondered where the extra funds & outcry are to put together a Task Force to address the 'alcohol epidemic'???

Most often, I'm more content just to have three pups curl at my feet, warming the toes, sigh, and agree with me unquestioningly, when I point out the many absurdities or paradoxes in life. Right before I walk out on my front porch, flip the shallow neighbors the bird, and walk back in, never having bothered to get dressed beyond my underwear. (*One day they may retaliate, and drive by naked in convertibles with Nixon 4 Prez posters).

I like dogs. But for pragmatism, worms may take a distant second place in the hierarchy of pet status here. We'll see.

Meanwhile, the leaves are improving in color, but remind me of what leaves look like with excess salts.

I considered that even after dividing the originally-intended amount of Sea90 by half, along with half of the original amount called for of Azomite, any assumption that they can be used interchangeably, at the same volumes, is not necessarily well thought out.

I should probably read packages of new amendments more carefully.

 

[h.h.]

Picked up 5 pounds of African night crawlers yesterday.
A bigger worm than the Europeans.
Good fishing worms.
Most of the information I find on using buckets involves the Africans. Perhaps just a coincidence.

Eggs to adult in about 1/3 of the time of Europeans or wigglers.
13-27 days to hatch compared to 30 -40 days
They have a better appetite.

Not quite twice the price. The only place I've found them is Ebay at about 4 times the price of Europeans or wigglers, and here in town.


Worms are advertised by count and sold by weight. A pound of wigglers is equal to 1,000 worms. Like buying kelp by the grain, numbers don't matter.

I quoted their castings price at $50 for 5 gallons. Turns out that included $10 for the bucket. It was $40 dollars for 5 gallons.

I saw Stephen Stills and Grahm Nash at Doheny Point State Beach. Crosby didn't make it. He tried but a center divider got in his way. Quaaludes and a loaded 45.
Local news channel approached me with their camera to which I told them in no uncertain terms to get that f...ing thing out of my face.

 

[moose eater]

Seemed the African night crawlers I've read recently (here? The worm thread?) are bigger eaters, process faster, etc. Some may be on steroids and weight-lifters.

With my fortune, or having borrowed on an already-spent positive karma's over-run credit account, they'd escape the buckets and hold us hostage for better feed.

I've got a more limited supply of actual food-grade buckets; the difference being (apparently) the stability and potential toxic nature of the plastics/hydro-carbon based materials.

Most of my old beer-making buckets (primarily 6-gal. U.S.) went to salmon brine buckets. Forever fish smelling, and the worms likely wouldn't mind at all, but I need to maintain them as fish-smoking brine buckets.

I've got left-over 5-gal. detergent buckets we haven't used for too much for years now that would work, but definitely not food-grade. Have some 3-gal. food grade buckets from restaurants, and some slightly larger 4-gal. food-grade cylindrical buckets with lids, all of which came from restaurants and previously held different condiments, fruits, etc.

Used to get 4-gal square-ish food-grade mayo buckets with lighter sq. snap-on lids decades ago; used them for everything from storing auto parts in the back of an old pick-up for trips, etc., to loading with items I wanted to stay dry for trips down the river in a kayak or (???), lashing their handles together, then to the thwarts in the various boats, in part as storage, and partly as buoyancy and 'keeping the load together,' in the event of a capsizing.

Probably need to buy some food-grade buckets for worms. Depending on where they come from, they've gone up in price to absurd values over the years. Maybe check into whether or not any of the local restaurants have 5-gal. food-grade buckets with lids, that haven't already been scarfed.

The restaurant supply business in town closed down. last time I checked there, a new food grade, 5-6 gal. bucket with a lid was well over $20 combined. Luxurious worm condos in a good neighborhood, with a lower crime rate.. except for the dope growers..

Caught the 'Wind on the Water' tour in Kalamazoo, with Crosby and Nash, pre-.45 and excess cocaine days. Same place I saw Rush, Dave Mason, REO Speedwagon, and others. Good venue. I think both of our livers were in decent stead back then.

Used to be a small, hole-in-the-wall pizza and sub place south of Grand Rapids, 'Leonardo's.' We'd stop on the way home from such events, in the wee hours of the morning, and, if I recall correctly, get an awesome meatball sandwich on a toasted hoagie roll for ~$1.50 or so. I'd go there again, but no reason to visit the area anymore. Broken circles and all.

Somehow always seemed to have the munchies fairly fiercely on the ride home from those events.

Usually shy away from cameras of all sorts, unless doing activism, and needing to make a statement to the press. Necessary evils.

 

[moose eater]

"Thanks for the meal
Here's a song that is real
from the kid from the city
to you."
(Valdy) (Another hippy Can-a-jun folk music dude).

He once made a film of himself hitch-hiking to his own show. Pretty cool concept in its time. {Pre-VHS days).

 

[h.h.]

I saw CSN both nites at the Forum when they were playing their Dark Star set. Actually had good seats in the lodge area.
Hard to do at the Forum. Often I'd have to ask,who is that we're watching? You'd just see a tiny figure and hear a little noise.

Screened out some Peat. Mixed in some rice hulls, a little bit of char, and oyster shell flour. Moistened it and salted it with alfalfa, kelp, etc. Just a tiny bit. The worms aren't trying to escape, so far.
Still wanting to divide each bucket into two. I think a smaller population will be easier to judge food wise. Maybe yes, maybe no.

Also starting some mealy worms. A little insect frass, mostly to feed the birds. Try some snails as well. Gone buggy. Bugs in the basement. Need some bats for the attic.

 

[moose eater]

Yep, one concern with worm bins is increased fungus gnats. no real threat to plants, per se', but sucking them up your nose when eating dinner becomes an annoyance. Used to get a vengeful sense of satisfaction via mental images of the process involved in Gnatrol.

Biggest problem I had with Gnatrol was the last time I bought any, all they had was a 2-1/2 gal. jug!! That was probably 16-18 years ago. For my rates of application, using yellow sticky cards all the while back then (only sparingly used now), 2-1/2 gallons was guaranteed to last WELL beyond its printed shelf life date.

Worm buckets can certainly be covered with nylon bridal veil screening; smaller whitish-colored bug screen from the fabric store that's tight enough for gnats and no-see-ums.

I'm thinking that with the current experiences in the mothers' mix, and Doc's comments re. porosity, etc. that rather than removing some of the perlite in this current mix in order to accommodate that amount in rice hulls, just adding 1/3 (or so) of that amount of perlite in rice hulls in -addition- to the existing amount of perlite, with <1 cup or so of the zeolite, and maybe reviewing the total amounts of N, P, K, sulfur, mag., ca, etc., and maybe making some adjustments; at the moment suspecting any adjustments will/may be downward in volume.

Used to argue with myself if some of my ratios for amendments (worm castings, N, P, K, dolomite, etc.) should be based on the mix, minus the amount of perlite and other more or less inert items, versus basing the ratios on the overall volume, including inert items. Evidence of a bored mind, or worry for the sake of worry? I don't think so, but who knows.

I need to do another trash and slash burn to harvest some more wood ash (even though I didn't really use any in this last mother mix). The burn pit, and related slash piles of punk-wood, are all buried in snow, but I'd thought ahead, and covered them all in tarps earlier in the year. However, now the tarps are all under about a foot or so of snow.. I hate the idea of working in order to work. Takes some of the wind out of my sails every damned time!!

Using several puffs of GTH#1, and some medicinal, frozen, pre-cut, multi-strain canna-butter brownies with walnuts (pretty tasty really), (sometimes with a reasonably potent tequila beverage), to get to sleep in the wee hours of the night, often results these days in my waking up with a brownie buzz still going pretty good.

I wake up less than rested anyway, with or without the regimen described, so waking up stoned -and- less than rested, is often/sometimes a ticket for longer periods sitting, an extra cup of coffee or so, and the post I entered 2 or 3 posts ago or so. Mostly accurate in levels of cynical perception, but more colorful than usual in expression and hyperbolic affect.

Such moments lead me to half-conscious and (from what I perceive in response) somewhat humorous conversations with my wife and son in the early A.M. when they're preparing to launch into their days and I'm still talking with one eye closed, and the other only half open..

Oh well.. Probably beats the shit out of Ambien.

 

[h.h.]

I think if the food is kept on the dry side and the gnats don't have a lot of hiding spots, you'll be okay.

I agree with Doc on porosity. I wouldn't adhere strictly to measurements. I'd use the extra third portion of perlite as needed. Kind of do it by feel.
I don't know if more nute amendments would be necessary. I think maybe if you have a 7 gallon pot using 2 gallons of perlite/hulls/rock, you have in effect a 5 gallon pot. Maybe not that cut and dry. Really all it means is you may need more nutes down the road but not as many as thought initially based on total volume. Not knowing that number, I'd rather be short and top dress.
I like top dressing anyway. Keep the soil fed. It's only the top few inches where the party's at. Dancing girls, carne asada, and Tacate.

 

[moose eater]

In the past, the only top-dressing I ever did, even when running all-organic, was when there was a ph issue that called for additional dolomite or wood ash if too acidic (fairly rare), or something on the acidic end for when it was too alkaline (sulfur, coffee grounds, etc.), which was more common, but still a long time since anything like that was frequently needed.

(*Over the past bunch of years, my mixes were reliably at a ph of ~6.8 or so w/o any real need for adjustment after initial mixing, other than for when I got a questionable bag of amendments.. As I'd written earlier, I'm considering going back to that level. It had seemed to work fairly well, overall).

Since then, I've acquired a small collection of top-dressing amendment 'recipes', some of them fairly elaborate or inclusive in make-up.

I know that lighter is better than heavier where nutes are concerned, as is soil density, but in re. to which base volume is used to establish proportions (inert included, or only that which is potentially active) has never been a clear conclusion for me.

The Classic 2000s are a completely different critter for establishing or perceiving needs than the Classic 600s were. And in my state of affairs these days, picking up the classic 2000s with one hand to ascertain whether or not they're reaching readiness for H2O can be misleading, depending on how healthy my arm and back are feeling at the moment; how much rest, previous exertion, carb intake, time of day/night, etc., -all- quite literally affect that moment when I simply ask 'em, "Hey, how YOU doin'???" Notes for the aging gardener.... (*I think using Joey's voice and over-used line from 'Friends' offends them as well).

I'm contemplating going back to the Classic 600s at the previous plant counts, using a newly modified (healthier and happier?) organic mix, reverting to a organic tea base for feedings later on, with the exception of the old stand-by of boosting ever so subtly with a minor dose of Dyna-Gro Bloom at the time of transition from veg soil to bloom soil for micro-nutes and that bit of a bump when the newer bloom soil is getting its engines started. Small lines of clean cocaine for plants in transition.

.75 lb. per box in this last run wasn't a moment of somber playing of taps, but it was FAR from what had become standard productivity... Again, not totally unexpected in consideration of all the changes. Still, fewer party horns and hats, and less confetti.

Realized last night I'd left pumice out of the intended/pending changes to porosity and soil looseness. I'll be likely incorporate at least some additional aeration via pumice, as well. I'd say it's going to be 'lighter' medium, but in light of the characteristics of pumice, that'd be a bit misleading in some ways.

I noted when I first/recently transplanted the GTH#1 mother, she had -notably- less happy roots than the others. Not sure if her desired environmental conditions are that much different from the others, or ????? Even when the others were complaining quite clearly in their stems, petioles and foliage, they had pretty awesome, happy snow-white roots. GTH#1, not so much.

She's like that spoiled bitch that always needs to do her hair, nails, & make-up, and complains at every opportunity, but man, she's -HOT-. Rarely dated or sought out chicks like that, so GTH#1 and I are going to have to work hard to find things to appreciate about each other over the long haul. There could be one of those pending divorces wherein you realize you're losing some decent aspects to life as you knew it, but so glad when you finally go different ways.. We'll see.

 

[h.h.]

I think it depends on the substrate. The closer one gets to rock, the less compensation required. Stuff with a high CEC value like char, gets precharged.

My top dressing generally consists of ground beans, a dusting of bird manure, simple teas, and such in minute amounts .Nature doesn't add a cup of nitrogen. Nature provides fire so ash may scatter. I take the place of the blowing wind and the flooding stream. I am a raging fire. Mariah with a coffee grinder. A worm with a God complex. Redemption in the worm bin. Baptism by compost. Never on Sunday and endless summer.
Getting a little religious.

 

[moose eater]

I located a very reasonable price on pumice in Los Anchorage. I think they can also compete well re. rock phosphate.

Lowe's will likely forever be the better perlite source, for what remains as necessary in the various mixes.

Thus far, zeolite and rice hulls are going to be shipped in from afar, unless I place an advance order preceding my trip to Anchor-town, and at this point, the timing isn't right. I'll be in A-town well before they can get a large bag of rice hulls in for me.

The zeolite is most attractive from 2 different spots; one a mine where I envision a couple guys with cheap canned beer in their hands, leaning on a front-end loader, sweating in the later winter sun, while filling bags with granules into larger flat-rate USPS Priority Mail boxes, and the other that advertises 'free shipping,' but where the pricing conspicuously resembles other's lesser-priced materials, with the cost of the aforementioned flat-rate box figured in. Another 'no free lunches' moment.

Maybe save all of $2 going with one over the other. So, the 2 tank-top bros in the desert, or the store with the catchy name and variety of offerings?

I hesitate to hit the 2 or 3 more troubled mothers with a foliar spray, knowing the NPK and other numbers on the amendments already added; again, presuming those numbers are accurate.. cough cough...

That said, if I do attempt some emergency first aid via foliar amendments, it'll be very light, and limited to 1 or 2 guinea pigs. If they become contorted, shrink in size, and begin hollering "Help me!! Help me!!' in a shrill voice, I'll know I'm in the wrong movie.

Reviewing amendments on-line last night, I saw one site that, at the bottom of the page, stated something about the 'Down to Earth' guarantee. I wondered about the time-frame involved, and if filing an inquiry about the changes in bat shit 15-18 years ago would fly in their claims dept. All without knowing exactly what their stated guarantee consists of.. Presumably it would be along the lines of "We guarantee you're shit out of luck."

With my internet slower than ever, I didn't click the link and find more chores to do in the middle of the night... I sometimes know when to accept defeat without getting too bloody.

Same source in Los Anchorage that has reasonable prices and availability on their pumice supply, wanted too much (imo) for the 8-oz. canister of Great White; I can clip an easy $20 off their pricing with free delivery elsewhere, but they did have Mammoth P, and some other goodies I'll need/want.

Off to another exciting day. Got some of my shop work done yesterday that had been languishing.

I'm told the Sam's Club in town has begun closing. A person I know went by there, and in a place with diminished budget for LE, I was told there were no fewer than 4 squad cars there, providing security and traffic control. At least 5 U-Haul trucks parked in the parking lot, and people had been standing in line for hours before it opened at -15 f. in order to score all of 25% off of items that often/sometimes run as high or higher as sale prices in the regular stores.

I know of persons who've used Sam's Club bulk Miracle Grow organic soil in larger bags, and wondered what they'll do now?

I wondered how much of a proposed (real or not) bargain needs to be announced for people to behave like hyenas on a zebra kill?

I wondered if people in Japan watch our mayhem over such events, in the same manner we watched the morbid mess when folks there were trampled to death over a toilet paper sale 30-some years ago?

I wondered how many on either side of the salt water realize there's little difference in such displays of weirdness?

I wondered how many people have the cash & free time on-hand to load up a whole truck with marginal deals,. on a work day, in the middle of the morning?

I wondered if Sam's Club was paying for the extra security apparently now required to run their fire sale, and taking up what is probably 90%+ of the City's currently-available LE tribe? (If it was a rock concert, the sponsors would likely get a bill for such BS. Will the Wal-Mart Klan suffer such indignity?).

In short, any more, I wonder a LOT.

The lines of vehicles reportedly reached over to the adjacent mall's parking lot, with cars and pick-ups (some of them reportedly loaded like the Beverly Hillbilly's truck) jamming every entrance, and nearly every sq. ft. of asphalt. The lines at the door and police presence led the person I spoke with to wonder if there'd been the customary Black Friday fisticuffs over that -one- item left that some otherwise ordinary, ordinarily-more-sane grandparent would absolutely NEED for little Johnny!!!

Yeah.. We've obviously evolved.. Devolved.. Something.. As long as we're not stagnant. I hate standing still, unless I have a good doobie or line of coke happening... Or maybe a good beverage.. Or I'm tired.

 

[h.h.]

Those two guys drinking beer may be the same outfit that I ordered from originally. Wasted my time. A place out of Nevada, I think. Obsolete web site.
I went with Kelp4Less. Code HAPPYPLANTS for 5% off.

Opened a bag of SEA90. That stuff is gonna last a long time. Unless I want to brine a turkey or put salt out for the pigs. Deice my driveway. I can see easily over doing it. Have you ever tasted it?
Some sodium is good. They're recommended dosage was 1 tsp./gallon for drench.
I used a forth of that to a couple of gallons.

Plowing the ground on the south side of the house, getting ready for a small hoop house.


Recommended

 

[moose eater]

Thanks for the code for savings. That'll come in handy, and makes up for the $2 price difference.

Haven't yet tasted the Sea90, but coming from the Sea of Cortez, I wondered what psycho-active properties it might possess? ;^>)

Apparently there were heated arguments in the Meat Dept at Sam's Club. Good place to get bloody, as it'd be harder to isolate DNA there. Animal? Human? Neanderthal? No difference to speak of? All of the above?

I'd have to go check my notes, but I had added the Sea90 directly to the mix, dry, with all the other amendments, for a good tumble or three.. or four..

I can pretty much guarantee that I exceeded the limits you're employing with the stuff. I'd commented earlier that the leaves on some of the moms looked like plants with excess salts. Little bit saggy and weary. Every now and then they flip me the bird.

I need to decide soon if we're going to use our own seed, taken from this last year's spud harvest (all of which was quite productive with the exception of the Delta Rose; a nearly total dud, despite the seeds having nice characteristics.. made me wonder .. again, more wondering...). If we're ordering seed from down south (18 lbs. +/- to a USPS flat-rate box), then I need to start getting my list thought out..

Other than that and my shop, I can't even comprehend using energy thinking about the veggie garden at this point.

Sun's going down. Looking for a deal on a 4-place snow-go trailer to be able to take sufficient freight sleds and machines into the mountains for my two sons and I. It's getting on that time of year for an extended visit to 'mountain lake church services.' 'Nuther couple months or so.

 

[h.h.]

It's summer for winter around here. The ground is starting to freeze but mostly where I've provided water.
I put in 100 trees last year which left me behind in developing garden beds. That and I don't move as fast anymore. A couple hours plowing and I'm ready for my nap.
Not my pictures. Same plow. My dirt bike, not. My snow machine, not. My plow. My solitude. I once rode Huskys and BMWs, now I push a Subaru.

Sodium appears to be required for many plants native to sodium-rich soils. Plants that need sodium also include species that have special types of photosynthesis adapted to hot, sunny climates (C4 and CAM photosynthesis). These include cacti, succulents, and many warm-season grasses such as corn and sugarcane. In some plants, sodium can have a variety of beneficial effects and can substitute for some potassium; in others, sodium can be toxic.

Plaster, Edward. Soil Science and Management (Page 304). Cengage Textbook. Kindle Edition.

 

[moose eater]

I'm thinking this is a good time for a Yucca extract bath for the mums, and see if they feel any brighter about tomorrow. Neutralization of salts seems to be in order right now.

Fruit trees? Ornamentals?

We can typically plant carrots and spuds about May 20-25th, and most bedding plants can go into raised beds here between then and (the classic 'put your plants out' date) June 1st. Not that we -can't- get frosts after June 1st, but that's traditionally been the mark on the calendar for many here for putting veggies, etc., outside.

Hot houses can be a bit earlier, and varies fairly radically anymore, depending on the year/spring. During some recent springs, folks could have gotten away with hot house planting in early to mid-April, and one or two years we could've planted outside by later April, setting a record not too many years ago where we reached temps in the +80 range. Incredible. And no, these weather patterns aren't exactly 'normal'; not within my life-time, anyway.

Folks who grow reefer outdoors here often start the clones or seeds about February or March. If done outdoors, and not auto-flowering, keeping them in anything up to a portion/section of a 55-gal drum, and movable via a hand-truck or (????) so they can be taken into a shed manually, or (???) to provide the photo-period.

Greenhouses can be blocked off from light, and the newer agricultural cloth (white cotton-canvas looking stuff) permits not having the traditional black poly visible from the air, that used to amount to a neon sign for aircraft that translated into, "HEY!!! OVER HERE!!! WE'RE GROWING WEED!!"

All sorts of applicable methods for making 12 hours of darkness for the ladies when the Sun says there's actually 20 or so.

But by mid-to-later August, they need to be long-ago ripened and cut. We can have frost in mid-August, most of August is wetter, and back when we got more typical weather, we have seen notable amounts of snow as early as September 1st in this area.

Cantwell one year got a freakish storm that left them 5" of snow in early or mid-July.. Depressing moments for a gardener.


A friend in the mountains has seen destructive hail come that time of year or in later June, but they're at 1,500 ft. above sea level, and we're just over 500 ft. where I am.

Shorter gardening season compared to many places down south, but when the Sun's visible for 21' 50" the plants go ape-shit, if in correct soil, etc.

 

[h.h.]

I was doing the manual thing a few yeas back. I was just running CFL's at night and moving them outside during the day and then outside to finish. As long as everything finished before May/June.
I tend to give them 24 hour light during veg. It always seems to work the best for me. At least with CFL's. Google seems to agree.

I have around 200 fruit trees. Maybe 10 nut trees, grapes, currents, and gooseberries.
Too many days going hungry. Everything is dual purpose. If I can't consume it or it doesn't serve to aid my consumables,..
Flowers are my ornamentals. I only excuse them because the support beneficial insects.

Just under 6,600' here. The weather is temper mental. It will warm up in spring and then have a cold snap. Much depends the wind and mountains to the west.
I don't know what has influenced what the most, the wind currents or the mountain? Or was it the snow and rain? The chicken or the egg?
The weather circles around us. Mostly sunshine with the odd storm wiping everything out.
I have thoughts of covering the hoop houses with hardware cloth for hail protection. They could double as bird pens.
I'd like to do some fish ponds under them. I could probably grow out some tilapia. Don't much care for tilapia. Not a lot of value. Rather have trout. That takes running water, but that's what makes them healthy.

Need to change my light setup. Five little ones looking healthy yet a bit frail. I could put them outside to harden them off a bit.
Too much work now days. They're all in the basement.

Need to get some heat to the garage. Put everything on a flatbed trailer.

 

[moose eater]

Gave some yucca extract last night to the SLH and GTH#1 mums. 1-1/4 cups of H2O2/gal. with 2 tsp. of a 10% yucca extract. Haven't visited them yet this morning. We have a mutual restraining order with each other; I promise not to disturb them unnecessarily, and they promise to still look somewhat healthy when I do drop by. A Hollywood or Prudhoe Bay pipeline worker marriage, of sorts..

In the process of procuring a 4-place trailer (maybe) to enhance the ability to take a third person with a third machine to the mountains, should my older son be able to get the time. I become more neurotic than normal when spending larger amounts of money. Deer in the headlights, until I can find some internal balance that says, "Hey.. What ever.. It's all good," and actually bullshit myself into some sense of calm about the security of the immediate future.

I began a thread inquiring about functional LED BR or PAR 30-38 flood style LED bulbs in the range of an actual 10-15 watts, with an equivalent output of 120-150 watts incandescent/conventional bulb, potentially in the far red spectrum, to add to my boxes, in the corners, to add to the red spectrum, maybe a bit of blue, and increase watts of light therein and thereby. So far no hits. May need to go back to offering free beer.

 

[h.h.]

I ordered this one a few days ago. Bit of a chance. A lot cheaper than the equivalent looking light on Amazon. I've ordered other stuff from this outfit with no complaints on quality. Orders take about 20 days.
https://www.gearbest.com/grow-lights/pp_780047.html?wid=21

 

[moose eater]

Thanks. I'll give it a peek.

Heading down to the River now for a bit.

May or may not end up following through, & putting the mums into the gigantic planters here, a size or 2 up from the Classic 2000s, in order to inspire a return to greater happiness among them before taking cuttings.

Go backward a bit in many changes, keeping the better ones, but reducing amounts, and doing my own math instead of relying on others set recipes. It seems to work out a bit better when I play it that way.

 

[h.h.]

I can't say yay or nay on the light' It has few specs listed. I can say more when it gets here. That may be a good 2 weeks.