I just can't commit to extended conversations these days, and there was quite the extended one here in the past on compost teas. I even joined a Yahoo group about it, and there are some very passionate people researching the subject, most with some quite interesting contraptions to sell you....... So, I just enjoy the alchemy, whether it's voodoo or not.
Honor and respect. Relationships. Our blessings come from the community of the soil organisms and we should be willing to give back to the community in return for what it has brought forth. I now see that this is about community and respect. We should be active partipants in this process, not just takers. We are a part of this community and our respect and participation is required. Connectedness. Balance. The soil devours all, yet brings forth all.
It is mystical and magical, this web of interconnectedness that we so often fail to perceive and respect.
Wow, thanks for the boost.
Charlie
Wow... That's kinky.
****** "It is mystical and magical, this web of interconnectedness that we so often fail to perceive and respect."****** -Charlie
And this is most sig worthy!
And thank you for writing so eloquently on a wide range of related subjects. This place is much more interesting because of your contributions. Much appreciated.
Not to put a great deal of significance into where I am now, but my first memory from childhood is sitting in a bare flowerbed, looking for the "germs"..........
Now it is my turn to be honoured.
Aw shuck's, I jes' be a simple country boy. Thank you. I'm always trying to learn from and stimulate, both IRL and in the digital world Sometimes it just takes different approaches with different folks, eh?
M. Scott Peck wrote, and this is just a paraphrase of the idea, that marriages, and thus by implication other relationships, only thrive and grow as a result of friction, that friction stimulates growth and without this growth the relationship is stagnate and dead. I think this applies to all other relationships as well, friction coming in many different forms, some pleasant and subtle and some not, such as my taking a clue-by-four to sheldon. In our case, yours and mine, we both have things to learn from one another and the friction is more subtle, guestioning and ideas that cause a mental friction, of sorts, that stimulates growth.
And there you go again, trailing off on a thought with the dots! ;-)
I dunno, if not significant, it seems to be a defining memory at least. We all have our little guys in here, still directing parts of the show, I believe. I have come to kinda like my little guy, it's some of the older guys that I am still having problems with.
Anyhows, back to the "germs"........
I tried something today, alchemy wise, based upon your alfalfa meal slurry. Last night as I was down in my cups and feeling more than a little sorry for myself, I decided to collect the results of my crying in my beer pity party in a bucket. Today I added alfalfa meal to the Household Compost Activator and applied to the pile. So now it is my turn, in our Mutual Admiration Society, to give credit to you for starting me thinking deeply about decomposing and living stuff and the relationship between life/death produce/waste as applies to soil structure and life in general.
Which brings to mind this twisted little thought, that rather tickles me.......when one recycles a part of oneself, through composting amendments, which is then returned to the garden, to produce a thing that is consumed.... in essence, this makes one a self-cannibal, neh?
And with that gruesome thought......
Sai gobe Charlie
You've defiled something and someone very sacred to me.
Charlie wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com:
i don't see using liquid waste as self-cannibalism, just being practical (assuming no hepatitis or other issues precluding said use). i live in an old house (1815). i have at least one grave in my pasture (her name was Sally Batchelder). i bought this place 9 years ago. last week the previous owner came over to spread ashes of his daughter... returning her to where she grew up. it's a good circle, really. lee
I apologize if this shows up twice, it hasn't come through yet for me on my server)
Charlie expounded:
Definitely my kind of woman, and I'm happy you shared your memories of her with us.
Warmly returned to you too, Charlie. As I've said before we all have our moments, I've surely had my share, and I really do try to not be mean - it's so hard to communicate on this flat, black and white field. None of us are black and white, that's for sure! :o)
We got home late last night from the Maine homestead (hubby did some brush hogging and we tended the bees), One of our neighbors came over to tell us that there's a new neighbor, a sow black bear, another neighbor was feeding her apples, but Larry told him to stop, because she's a threat to our hives - he did, but we think she's already visited the hives and got a snout full of 8,000 volts from the electric fence we've got up around them. There's a nice pile of pooh full of berries about a bear's length from the fence (scared the sh*t outta her, I'll bet!). Thankfully the hives are fine.
It was 37° Saturday morning when we woke up. Autumn is definitely here!The foliage up near the house is at peak. One of my favorites are the white birches. I love the little yellow triangles of leaves that dangle and shimmer in the wind. My other favorites are the oaks, the deep russets, burgandies, golds and shades of brown. The dark season, time for reflection, contemplation, and reading good books. The woodstoves will be in full swing from now on!
{....]
your electric fence is a form of a pesticide. I bet no one ever said that.
consider pest control goals of prevention, suppression and eradication.
the electric fence is by itself incorporating the two methods of prevention and suppression. by preventing the pest access while suppressing the pest's desire to continue with attempts to gain access you've reduced the damage to the desirable product to a level of acceptability.
the suffix -cide actually means killing or reflects death as in the word suicide. to the unlearned and unknowing student the word pesticide always means to kill something which is considered a pest causing damage to that which is desirable. for the schooled agronomist, killing the entire population of that which has been termed or deemed to be a pest is not always the best solution and actually should always be left as the third and final choice.
take for example a soybean Farmer finds one of his fields covered in waves of grasshoppers eating large amounts of foliage from the soybean plants. the Farmer overreacts and makes the mistake of and application of insecticide without properly evaluating the circumstances and all variables of the total equation. in this case the Farmer acted in an environmentally unfriendly manner because what he perceived to be a crop under attack about to be devastated was actually an acceptable condition because bean production is not effected until over 70% of the plant foliage has been removed. aside form the Farmer's choice to release unnecessary insecticides into 'our' environment the economics of his choice yield a no return while creating an undue expense. due to modern methods of soybean production and row compaction the crop will most always produce its canopy by the time grasshoppers show up. from our studies and observations the wave of grasshoppers will move across the tops of the plants rarely penetrating the canopy.
I was going to expound further concerning the menacing pest known as asian rust and fungicides, but the dryer just finished and if I don't go and fold the clothes I'll be required to operate the iron in order to remove those pesky wrinkles from my shirts.
best, Jim
Just a little black and blue once in while! ;-)
That usually heals.
You are right, communicating on usenet is an art form nearly, that is difficult to master and maintain.....especially when one allows onself to get het up about something.
I've had a several run-ins with black bears, long ago on some scout trips. I have a lot of respect for those critters.
I looks to be a rather unlovely fall here, as far as the colors go. A few of the hard maples flared briefly, but so far, everything is just kinda fading. I too love the oaks, they have a pastel look from a distance. We've had little cool weather, until about a week ago, which is unusual. Our avg. first feeze date Oct. 11. We're still getting lots of peppers, green beans, cherry tomatoes and okra. The leeks of course are good to go for quite a while. Had the garlic ready to put in, but I procrastinated a overlong and had a couple inches of rain, so that is delayed for a bit.
We no longer are able to burn wood, but did for many years, early in our marriage and as kids. Wonderful on several levels. Elder son has a stove in his basement and an insert in his fireplace, so it is still available. I love going and helping him cut and split wood.
Care Nostalgic Charlie
And her idol, George W. Bush, is still the center of all that is evil in this country. There is no terrorist conspiracy against America that is any larger than Timothy McVeigh's. Bush needs a reason for the squandering of America's resources (and enriching himself) and he found it it a Saudi, Osama bin Laden, who was a CIA lackey. We set him up in Afghanistan and now he is a nationalist. We helped him defeat the Russians and now he has us in his sights. If we create more "terrorists" in suppressing him, the more money Hallibton, Bechtel (Sen. Feinstein), will make.
I wish you two the best.
I wish you two the best???
W T F are you going on about, Billy?
This is not about Ann RIchards or whatever you misread. The Mrs. Richards we were discussing was my high school english teacher.
In Missouri.
Hell, maybe I am confused? Did you respond to the right article?
Charlie
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