Good junk!

I do like to make things out of junk, I put a lot of time into my projects but its time I enjoy. Here are a few of my art projects. I am an outside in kind of girl. I could live outside if it wern't for the bugs. Nothing I hate more than to get eaten while trying to enjoy being outside! I like to work with materials I can find in nature. It's nothing for me to be pulling dead bark off of a tree or collecting bags of pretty green moss, twisted branches, baby pinecones......rocks, you name it. So I started doing birdhouses about 20 years ago. I do a lot of stuff in small rocks and I can say that, that takes up a large amount of time.

This lamp had a plain white lampshade. Needless to say that had to go....and so it did!

 Now this took a whole lot of time and is very heavy, I find these frames at a furniture store dumpster. They are just used to ship the furniture so really they are just short of being a plain old pallet. 20x30 17 lbs . I told you it is heavy. Subject made of aquarium rock!

 I knew when I saw this barrel, what it wanted to be, It went real quck and I love, love, love the way it turned out. I have another one that is larger that I need to start on but it hasn't quite spoken to me yet!

 Glitter comes in some really awesome colors now days. I saw a show on Martha where she did some art with glitter, The squares I got at home depot in the wood junk isle for like pennies and glue and glitter the subject. My husband has to take over where I leave off sometimes and it was  his idea to glue them to the 1xs which makes them 3D. 

                                  
 Ahhh yea, collecting fall leaves, need I say more? I actually glued these down not long after picking them. I flattened them a day maybe. After glueing I did a clear spraycoat over them. The color is still good and this is their 1 year birthday

 Dumpster find! Brand new mirror with a crack in the top right hand corner,,,,,behind the tree branch! The frame wasnt all that great, but it is now!

 More of furniture pallets. This is an awesome idea if you have lots of blank wall space that you want to fill. You can use any material to jive with any decor and so much more can be done with this I haent even touched on. A window box at the bottom with maybe some silk grasses and a few silk flowers coming out of the window box and the curtains could be drawn up to the sides.
Well more later. I will leave you on this note......I do love junk!

Carve it out and stuff it Zucchini and Squash

Sometimes all you have to do is use what you have and see where it takes you.

This is what I had.

Having no idea what it is going to taste like I just keep on going.

I know I should, but I never do taste tests while I’m cooking. Fortunately most of the time, I surprise the hell out of myself. Although there have been some major failures on occasion

1 giant Zucchini

 3-4 good size yellow squash

1 hamburger coked and crumbled

½ minced onion. Sweet or Vidalia if available

1-snack size box raisins plumped in water

1 knob of ginger shredded

Small hand full of pineapple cut into small pieces

2 clove garlic minced

Drizzle of pancake syrup

¼ ½ tsp salt

Garlic spice

Topping

Cream cheese

Shredded cheese

Crumbled vegetable Ritz cracker crushed

Cook your hamburger and crumble it up, please drain all the fat off.

While you cooking your hamburger get all the rest of the ingredients together.

You are going to want the outer shells of your squash and zucchini so I used a melon baller to carve out the sq and zuc.

You may even what to skin a couple extra squash and cube them up if you have them but keep in mind that your vegetable shell is the star of the show! So you will need the shell intact.

Be sure to cut your shell so that it will sit with little fuss!

Place your shells on a pan lightly sprayed with olive oil. You don’t want to slip and slide!

Once you have everything on the top of the list throw it in a big fry pan, drizzle with a little olive oil and cook it down on med heat so that all the flavors melt into one another.

Once softened up take off heat and use slotted spoon, to spoon ingredients into the shells.

You may need to use toothpicks to straighten them up and keep them from falling over.

Top each one with a few small pats of cream cheese

Top that with shredded cheese

Sprinkle crushed Ritz crackers to top it off and pop in the oven at 350 for about 30 minutes.

Let it cool and enjoy.

Don’t just eat out of the shell, the shell it one of the best parts for you so eat the whole thing!

Same sex marriage

North Carolina’s Ban on Gay Marriage Appears Likely to Pass

By NATE SILVER

On Tuesday, North Carolina will vote on a state constitutional amendment that declares, “Marriage between one man and one woman is the only domestic legal union that shall be valid or recognized,” thereby banning recognition of same-sex marriage, civil unions and domestic partnerships of any kind.

Both recent polls of the state and an analysis of past ballot initiatives in other states suggest that the measure,  Amendment 1, is likely to pass, although there is ambiguity over the outcome because of voter confusion about what the amendment seeks to achieve.

North Carolina already has a statutory ban on same-sex marriage, but it is one the few Southern states that have not yet changed their constitutions to ban it. Although all three are sometimes considered Southern states, there is also no constitutional ban on same-sex marriage in West Virginia and Delaware, and same-sex marriage is legal in Maryland. However, the other 10 states in the former Confederacy all have constitutional bans on same-sex marriage and sometimes also civil unions.

Ok I had to add this article to this blog because most of us do not understand complex wording that the government places before us. Personally I think they do it on purpose to confuse us. So amendment one does NOT support same sex marriage or civil unions. Wow what a fight. It almost seems like blacks having to fight for their rights to be treated like humans, or Jews fighting for their right to be Jewish when in fact they or any other color or race should  never be treated as anything less than human. The government should have no right what so ever in saying whom can and can’t marry unless of course it has to do with minors. Really, how can anyone tell someone who to love, or that it is illegal to love someone?

So many people in general and so called Christians have prejudice against gays, lesbians, religions other than their own, interracial marriage, illegal immigrants and on and on and on. Don’t you know that they are THE chosen ones, the know alls, the ones god sent here to tell us how to live?……….Phooey! The GOD or higher power that I believe in wants so much for us to just learn how to love each other and set aside our differences.

When it comes to same sex marriage most people honestly cant think past their imagination of 2 men going at it and are repelled by that. They don’t see THE relationship, the love that 2 people of the same sex have for each other. The fact is that there are too damn many people in this world that never find love and die without ever knowing it!

God condemns gay people; it says it in the bible. Know what people? God did not write our bible or anyone else’s bible for that matter, humans did! AND the books of the bible were not written by the people that the stories are about or at the time that these prophets lived. They were written by writers 100 or more years after the stories ever happened.

They say “Well they were written by the hand of God and God does not make mistakes” The books in the bible were chosen by the church and the only writings placed in the bible were THE ones that the church wanted so they could tell us how to live our lives by THEIR standards. There were so many books that were left out of the bible like the book from Mary Magdalene for one that never made it into the bible for fear that people would know that Jesus held women in as high esteem as he did men………..go figure Jesus thought that women were held equal to men, who would have thunk it?

They say “Well the church does not make mistakes” Yea right and none of the HOLY men in the church like to molest little boys either, knowing that THAT is a greater sin!

The thing is people, that like it or not, some people are just born with their likes and dislikes that don’t always mesh with mainstream society. Maybe its cause a gene went haywire maybe It’s in their DNA or many other reasons. I guess what I’m getting at is if you want to fight something, fight domestic abuse, child abuse, rapist, robbers, killers, pharmaceuticals companies that push pills on the whole human race, drunk driver, taxes, plastic, pollution, chemtrails , taxes, taxes, OH did I already say taxes? Well maybe you get the picture. I choose to pick and choose my fights and in my opinion when I see 2 people that love each other, same sex, different colors, different religions, short, fat, tall, skinny! Whatever! When I see love between two people that is not something that I want to fight against but I want to fight for because as I see it everyone is so different and unique in their own ways and everyone needs to love and be loved and there are more important things in this world to fight against. I will never fight against love.

And one more note quote……Common place minds usually condemn what is beyond their each of understanding! Comprenda?

 Love to all

Namaste


Man made religion, God made spirituality .........Do the right thing.....Be the change you want to see!


This is a next day update. I dont claim to know a whole lot about our bill of rights, I acutally just sat down a minute ago and read them again after being a grown up. Basically  they say that you have these rights, we give them to you, they are yours, UNLESS your state wants to take them away. Yes! Amendment 10 says to me that what ever few rights we have written on little sheets of paper called your bill of rights can be removed from you by the state. Oh wait! It does mention the people in there at the very end seeming kind of like an after thought and mentally by way of wording giving that power to the state before the people. Which means to me that we are the last that has a say when in fact the people make the state, just as the people make a church, or a family or a couple!
It says that the state has the right to pick our lives apart if the bigger government hasn't done it already!

• First Amendment – Establishment Clause, Free Exercise Clause; freedom of speech, of the press, and of assembly; right to petition

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

• Tenth Amendment – Powers of States and people.

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

To be quite honest I cant see anything in amendment one that says anything about unions between 2 adult people. To me it is in reference to assembly's of more than 2 people and to religion and speech and press, which has nothing to do with love and compassion which in fact is what unions between 2 people are. It is a coming together of 2 lights, 2 souls, 2 spirits and should have nothing what so ever to do with the government.

When government/state makes the union between to people legal or illegal they are seriously going to far into our lives. These unions will be there whatever the laws, just because they are what they are, unions of love and caring. That my friends is something that no man can take away or should dare to try. We the people have too few rights as it is, why the hell do we want to give more away?

Giving your rights away is giving your power away and is in effect saying that you are not capable of making a sound decision so someone needs to make it for you.

This amendment in NC shows prejudice and intolerance and hatred. It says that one person is better than another, it says that the government feels so big, so much more adult than you that they need to act as your parent!

Im leaving it here cause the more I think of it the more it ticks me off that  people in our government dont have better things to do with their time than to pick peoples lives apart! There are just too many more important things on this earth that need to be fixed other than unions between 2 people!

Pissed about plastic

If: and it’s sad to say only if, recyclers paid for plastic the way they pay for aluminum and copper and other metals, we could actually start to clean up our earth. It has to happen, we all know it, but whom does it start with? One person possibly? Just think if the one person who had some control and some imagination could change the world. Where would this person start? Where would you start?


I would start here.

Find any way possible not to have to use plastic for my products and in doing so I would need to be careful of using paper product also. I don’t want to cut down our trees to save the planet, as it would be contradictory. So, where do I start?
There are so many products that could be stored and sold in and from vats or barrels such as; Dishwashing liquids and powders, Shampoos and shower gels, bleach and any other cleaning goods that we use to clean our homes and then inadvertently trash the earth with the containers when were done. Oh wait! I used the word inadvertently, maybe that’s not the right word to use, let’s look at the meaning of the word.

Inadvertently; unwittingly: without knowledge or intention; "he unwittingly deleted the references".not focusing the mind on a matter : inattentive.unintentional


Marked by unintentional lack of care. See Synonyms at careless.
I guess in some respects I can use that word. Unwittingly? Yes. Without knowledge? No. We just choose to ignore where our trash goes so that would in fact make us ignorant!. Not focusing the mind on the matter? Big yes! Inattentive? Big yes! And yes to all the others. So I guess for the most part I can use that word.

Back to the vats and barrels of products.
I already have enough plastic to store any of these products so why not reuse the plastic.
Stop what you’re doing right now and just go look around your house at all the products that you have in plastic bottles. Now look around you at all the other things in your home that are either plastic or came in plastic packaging.
On the top of my desk alone I have plastic CD sleeves, ashtray, computer and speakers and keyboard. My wacom mouse and pad are plastic. I have a ruler, pens scissor handles, and phonebook, case for my glasses, USB, calculator, camera, and a superman poster laminated. That is just on my desk! Now below there is a printer a giant power box and an empty plastic jug of kitty litter. (I will get to that) and then above me I have possibly 200 cds and a dremel case, all plastic. All of that is just within my reaching distance and it only gets worse as I walk around my house.
This makes me want to cry, seriously! If I take all my plastic and all your plastic and the other billions of peoples plastic, where do I put it? Whatever countries you are from you have to realize that every country has plastic and every country has to have a place to DUMP it. It takes 500 to 1000 years for plastics to break down and even when broken down it is still plastic and toxic to every living thing on earth.

I started this paper with If recyclers paid us for plastic but in fact it may do our air more harm to actually recycle it so we have to find a way to eliminate it as much as possible.
This is where the empty plastic jug of kitty litter comes in. I needed litter and didn’t have much to spend at that moment and this jug was just $4.00 for 10 lbs of litter. This is where I get nasty. The manufactures put 10lbs of litter that my cat will only shit and piss in and the jug that is left over will be around for 1000 years after my cat took that shit! Is that some shit? This litter could be sold in bags of paper or even the kind of plastic bags that Purina dog food comes in. Even the plastic bags will break down before the heavy-duty jug. Sorry for the language but facts are facts and I am not trying to paint a pretty picture. It is not a pretty picture and all you have to do to get pissed off yourself is to go to youtube and pull up some videos on garbage in the ocean. Make yourself sit there and watch it and then maybe come away with some sense of what you can do to change it. Personally I would really rather buy most products from a barrel and be charged for the weight. Not much different than a good farmers market.
The manufactures should be looking seriously at more green alternatives for packaging of products without depleting our forests of wood for paper. This also looks good for the companies in the eyes of their patrons. How much wood goes to waste or gets burned that could be processed into paper? Why cant companies work together instead of being in it for them selves. Hell for that matter why can’t people all work together.
One of my pet peeves are the razor companies. We all know how inexpensive it once was to shave right? Now days you pay $6.00 for a pack of 8 plastic razors with handles encased in plastic packaging that will all go into the land fill and you pay $21.00 for 8 refill blades that we can use to refill a razor handle that lasts for years. Now it gets even worse! Because they cost so much some people choose to steal them which in return makes the dumb ass companies want to spend money to place cameras in their displays to catch the thieves when if they would decrease our cost they wouldn’t have so much get stolen. People have to shave and these companies know it and they know that we are stupid enough to pay crazy prices. It is so damn redundant that we pay less money for more product and more money for less product. Oh wait! Are they going to tell us that the refill blades are of better quality? They may be a bit better but not $21.00 worth.
We have totally lost our connection to the earth; you know this place where your children and great great great grand children will live in the future. We are leaving behind us a nasty legacy that no other culture since the beginning of time has left. I can’t change it alone, I need your help and you need mine. Ignoring this problem will not make it go away, talking about it will not make it go away. We have to make some changes if we want our next generations to have a planet to live on. I intend to be the change I want to see. What say you?
Check out some of these videos and then look at where you will stand!
The girl that silenced to world for 5 minutes
http://youtu.be/uZsDliXzyAY
Oprah Earth Day
http://youtu.be/PbGKausu2rw

Candied Ginger

So as of my last post you can see that I finally got some sense and started drinking my ginger tea from the root. I love ginger AND I love ginger. SO I took some ginger root to my good friend Mary Moses shop in commerce. HRMagoo and turned her on to drinking the ginger tea from the root. It’s new to me and I really like it. Well while I was there I saw a little packet of something that looked like candied pineapple and she told me it was candied ginger and the little wheels started spinning in my head. So guess what comes next! Let me first say that I have never had candied ginger until I had my own so I don’t have anything to compare it to but the idea of it screamed at me to MAKE IT. And soooo and sooooo and WOW! I’m in love …..I’m sorry! ….did forget to tell you that I love ginger?


The first thing I did was to research some sites and try to condense the recipe to something very straight forward. This is what I found.
It was recommended to use a spoon to scrape the skin off and it took me a couple turns to get the spoon to act right but it was more simple than using a knife and you scrape only the skin and not the root.

1lb ginger peeled and sliced thin, cover and simmer in water till tender.
I had a little over a lb and I boiled about an hour maybe a little less.
Now this is what I have learned. One recipe had you boil it in water twice as in boil once for 20-30 min drain the water and refil and boil again for 20-30 min.
The thing is if you boil it in the same water then the liquid as well as the finished product is very strong. (Too strong for my liking) Next time I will boil it twice in fresh water.

 Drain the water but keep it. (If you like ginger tea, this stuff is potent and great to open your sinus too I might add.)
You either want to measure your ginger or weigh it; you want approx the same amount of each ginger and sugar.

Throw both into pan and add about 2 tablespoons of the liquid back into the pan.

This is where the fun comes in. You need to simmer this liquid until there is just a wee bit of liquid left. I think when working with sugar you need to be on guard, so you will be watching and stirring this luscious bowl of exotic scents and tastes for about an hour. Cook it slow and on the lowest heat that will give you bubble.

Now, while stirring and stirring and smelling, I want you to look deeply into the dark brown eyes of the juice that boiled off those roots and think to yourself how good that must taste. Go ahead….....take a swig! ……………..A careful swig! I may be a wimp but I got more fire off of that tiny swig than I thought I would get. That’s good because it means it will make more tea for me..


Have a bowl of sugar ready to coat your slices in. Once the liquid has cooked down to next to nothing, tilt your pan and drain the yummy goo to one side and with a slotted spoon pull out your slices and toss them in the sugar. I did not have any issues with the slices sticking together. Everything came out wonderful. After tossing pull them out and place on a pan to dry out a little bit. That’s it all done.

I’m going to place these in some little bags and give some as gifts, I said some! Not all!

 I’m thinking now that it’s a good thing that my husband doesn’t like ginger. Yippy skippy!….It leaves more for me!

So there is really no science involved just a lot of standing and stirring but it is soooo worth it.

Almost forgot! After I took out the slices from the pan I was left with crusty, sugarcoated sides. So I took the liquid root juice and added it back into the pan and warmed till I melted all the sugar off the side and then placed in a jar. I can seal and use it to make tea. You just need hot water and root juice to taste.

I’ve already showed you the benefits that I found on ginger and if you like the taste of it as much as I do then you will love it candied. So, give it a try and tell me what you think!

Namaste

Merilee

Ginger Tea is just plain good for you!

     Well its almost Christmas 2011 and I am sure there are a bunch of you getting sick with the change in the weather. So let me tell you what I added to my garden last spring. Ginger! Easy peasy too, I got a root from the grocery store and put it in a pot and now at the end of the growing season I have doubled what I started with, so next spring I will add to it, Yes I think I will have a very large patch of ginger because I have fallen in love with the tea I make from the root. I have tried many ginger teas but they all  have pepper in them which makes them bitter after using the tea bag a 2nd or 3rd time. With fresh ginger I not only don't  have that issue, I know that what I'm getting is fresh and not processed in any way I know exactly whats in it.
This is a copy from another site that will explain the health benefits of ginger. I did not write it and am only borrowing it to spread the knowledge,

http://www.boost-immune-system-naturally.com/health-benefits-of-ginger.html
Ginger and the Immune System

•strong antioxidant
•Antimicrobial (kills bacteria - including salmonella) - internally and topically as an antiseptic
•two natural antibiotics are found in ginger
•contains anti-inflammatory agents
•helps eliminate congestion
•contains zingibain that dissolves parasites and their eggs
•ginger root tea eases some throat pain
•kills cold viruses
•inhibits production of cytokines which cause pain and swelling
•combats chills and fever
•ginger inhibits 5-LO enzymes, the only food for prostate cancer cells , prostate cancer cells die in one to two hours without this enzyme
•gingerol (an extract of ginger) inhibits pancreatic cell growth
•beneficial to prevent constipation-related cancer
•an effective ani-tumor agent in leukemia cells
•an extract of ginger causes lung cancer cell death
•gingerols inhibited the growth of Helicobacter pylori associated with dyspepsia, peptic ulcer disease and the development of gastric and colon cancer
•ginger extract raises significantly the thymus index, spleen index, percentage of phagocytosis, and thus improves the immunologic function relating to tumors
•gingerol inhibits cell adhesion, invasion, motility and activities of breast cancer cell lines
•gingerol induces viability reduction (killed) gastric cancer cells
•a ginger extract causes apoptosis (cell death) of breast carcinoma cells
•ginger inhibits cell growth and modulates angiogenic factor in ovarian cancer cells
•6-shogaol (component of ginger) induces cell death in colorectal carcinoma cells
•compounds of ginger inhibits proliferation (stops growth) of ovarian cancer cells
•a component of ginger suppresses metastasis (stops the spread) in any type of cancer cell including leukemic, skin, kidney, lung, and pancreatic cancer cells - one of the most exciting and powerful health benefits of ginger!

Ginger and Circulation
•stimulates circulation
•may help prevent heart attacks
•has natural blood thinning properties
•lowers blood cholesterol levels
•cleanses and stimulates blood
•prevents internal blood clots
•may prevent TIA’s (mini strokes)
•therapeutic properties for hypertension

Ginger and Digestion
•cleanses colon
•reduces colon spasms and cramps
•helps clear gas
•relieves indigestion
•excellent for nausea, vomiting and motion sickness
•stimulates production of digestive juices
•helps bowel disorders

Ginger and other Body Systems
•lungs: helps with respiratory problems, eases asthma symptoms
•helps eliminate hot flashes
•relieves headaches
•promotes menstrual regularity
•helps with morning sickness
•helps reduce inflammation of arthritis
•supports kidney health
•topical gingerol provides protection against UVB-induced skin disorders
•reduces the severity of post chemotherapy nausea

Ginger and its Nutrients
•high in potassium
•manganese which builds resistance to disease, protects lining of heart, blood vessels and urinary passages
•silicon which promotes healthy skin, hair, teeth and nails
•helps assimilate calcium
•also contains Vit. A, C, E, B-complex, magnesium, phosphorus, sodium, iron, zinc, calcium, beta-carotene

Other Facts and Health Benefits of Ginger
•was listed in U.S. Pharmacopoeia from 1820-1873
•British research has found ginger to be as effective as drugs at relieving nausea after surgery
•Patients with rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis studied at Denmark’s Odense University got relief from pain and swelling after taking ginger daily for three months
•gingerol promotes healing of inflammation and minor burns
•may prevent transient ischemic attacks (TIA’s) know as mini strokes
•Israeli researchers found that standardized ginger extract has dramatic effects on cardiovascular health, lowering cholesterol levels and preventing oxidation of LDL which contributes to cholesterol deposits on artery walls

Ginger Recipes/Uses
•Suggested use is 1/3 tsp. ground ginger or 1 tsp. fresh ginger root in food or drink up to three times daily
•Motion Sickness - drink tea or juice mixed with 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger one-half hour before traveling
•Add in juicer to fresh raw fruit or vegetable juice
•Add to smoothies - See My ‘Ginger Berry Smoothie’ Here in Easy Healthy Smoothie Recipes
•Add fresh to Asian stir fry dishes, marinades, fruit salad dressings
•Add ground ginger to breads, cookies, spice cakes, pumpkin pie.


This is my system for making tea with ginger root. Like I said its easy and oh so yummy. Get a root from the grocery store and keep it handy this season for emergencies or grow it or use it every day.

Stay well this season and Merry Christmas
Namaste
Merilee

Gardens are magical aren’t they?

Gardens are magical aren’t they?


Having a good gardening system is working so well for me, everything just seems to flow at the moment. I walk out in the morning with a nice cup of hot joe and look around at everything going so right!
I am greeted first by a little wren that has quickly made a nest in one of my houseplants. Seems they found it the very day I set it out. She gets upset when my 19-year-old cat comes out for some sun, not knowing of course that Basil (the cat) is not so interested in her at all. Yet she still sits in a tree screaming at the cat until the cat falls asleep and then the little wren will quietly go back to her nest
I walk thu the veggie garden and look around for vole holes which now I have a remedy for that I think is sure to work. No holes, that’s good! I grab a little bit of some greens to take out to the chickens and tell them good morning. I watch them a while as they are such good entertainment and I wonder to myself, why I left the chair in there with the birds. (poopy chair)
With the price of soil amendments I am especially glad to have this wonderful system of awesome soil making in place.
Grass clippings to the compost pile and some to the birds
Bolted cabbage and other greens go to the chickens a little everyday
Indoor kitchen waste is split up between the worms and the compost
In the meantime the chickens are making up my nitrogen compost that I can retrieve at a later date.
I really like the use what you have method that applies to so many things, such as; I have lots of trees, lots of trees = lots of leaves. So I grab my big bed sheet and rake up about 4-5 big sheets full of leaves and they go in the coop for the birds. The birds get so excited to have something new to pick thru looking for bugs, and they do find a lot of them. In about 3-4 months I will have all that poopy enriched mulched up leaves and that will end up in the garden.
The worm bin is going full steam ahead. I actually think I have too many! So every now and then I will add a chunk of them to the garden. Say I have 4 plants square. I will dig a hole and throw in a chunk full of worm filled worm poo and cover it back up and then water it in real good.
The best way I have found to make worm tea is to put a spade full of worms and casting into a screen bag and dunk it in your bucket of water a few times. You will see it turn a darker shade and that is the good stuff. Pull the bag out and put anything left in the bag back into your worm bin. Don’t leave the bag in the water long enough to drown the worms! Please!
I use that water to give my veggies an extra boost.
So I don’t have to buy straw for the chickens as often cause I use a lot of leaves.
I don’t have to buy fertilizer at all!
Supplement the chickens’ diets with greens and grub specials I dig up and they don’t eat as much store bought food.
Out of all this I get fresh eggs and organic veggies and herbs
The best thing about having this system in place is that things are moving more smoothly everywhere in the yard. I have more garden space to have to work but its not taking as much time as before to do things. Some of the smoothing out I had to do was to get the chickens closer to the garden side of the house. This way I have my garden 3 steps away from my compost pile and the worm bin and the chickens’ house is only a few more steps away.
We have one rain barrel at the moment but are working on getting more. I do love my rain barrels.
I was going in this direction anyway as far as growing what I eat but I was on youtube and looking over peakmoment videos and there was one on a lady that said how much food could I grow on my land. And then I said to myself, “self, How much food can we grow on our land?” AND THEN…..AND THEN….. I decided that at least for this year I’m not planting anything unless I can eat it
So anyway, the whole point of this blog, is just to profess my happiness in this beautiful day and to share the feeling of things going right for a change!
If I get too old to garden ? OH NO!