I don’t claim to be an expert when it comes to gardening but I do know what works for us. I am not an educated Master Gardener like my Mom but I have done a ton of research and asked a lot of questions to people who are, indeed, Masters of their Gardens. With that information I had taken some to heart and thrown some out that didn’t fit our ways of gardening. This blog is about answering some questions I received the other day. i’m hoping that the information I give in those answers will be helpful. Again, I am not an expert so take the information, use it or don’t as I only know what works for us!
Meredith Taylor - THE QUESTIONS:
OK made a visit to your website. I LOVE the photos! I read the first blog. Will read more when I'm done with my chores. I'm definitely going to try your potato bisque soup. That looks GOOD. I'm glad you posted the recipe. You mentioned you folks made composted soil. Can you tell me how you make it, please. Would like to get some going. Also, maybe you can answer this. Last spring I bought some dwarf fruit trees. Surprisingly, I did get some fruit this year considering I hadn't had them a year but my apples were scabby. Do you or Mike know want I can do next year to prevent scabby apples? And, I know now is not the time to fertilize the trees considering they are going into a dormant stage soon, but do you folks have tips on winterizing them? What is your take on lime? I have seen some farmers spread lime in vineyards and orchards this fall. Should I sprinkle a bit of lime around them? Any tips would be helpful and the website is wonderful. Will read more when I get back in. Thanks in advance.
THE ANSWERS:
You don’t know how much I love all these questions, Meredith! This may be my longest blog yet but there is so much information to give you and others who might be interested! Also if anyone else has tips and tricks to share, please do! Let’s take the questions one at a time.
1. Why do we make our own soil?
The number one reason is we can control what goes into the soil. We believe that the soil should have no chemicals in it in order for the plants to live their best lives and provide their best food for us. It has taken a long time to create a balance of goodness in which to plant a seed or a start, a tree or a shrub. Right now we have way over 100 culinary and medicinal plants in our garden so it’s super important the nothing but the best soil be their home. We have designated troughs and areas for specific edibles so we can also directly compost into their areas with their own matter. Example: The trough that holds our bell peppers gets all the parts of the bell peppers we don’t keep. The stems, the seeds, etc., get thrown back into their trough to decompose and return to the soil. All our bell pepper plants were volunteers this year and we still have about 50 peppers in the foliage. We will add a little chicken poop and new soil in the spring.
SIDE NOTE:We also keep the eco-systems intact at the end of their growing season until the next one. So don’t dig up the roots of those ‘done’ plants. LEAVE IT. Trim off the vines and foliage but leave the roots!
How do we make compost soil?
I love this question as my husband has the magic touch for this! We started out composting only grass clippings, dying sod, leaves, dead plants in a large black composter. At the time we also had a worm farm going that we had intentions of using the organic fertilizer they make while eating veggies, fruit and paper. All the worms escaped as I unintentionally left their escape hatch open. (Oh the things one learns in 7-8 years!)
After their break away, we started adding food scraps, coffee grounds etc., to the composter. We do NOT add meat scraps for two reasons: A) We have dogs so there are no scraps and B) the smell would be something I couldn’t handle. We compost year round so the ‘soil’ created by Spring is very rich. We got chickens so their waste was added to the Composter as well as egg shells. It all makes rich organic soil in the Spring! Ours breaks down quickly because the Red Wiggler Worms we had in the farm made their way into the composter! We continue to have zillions of worms in the composter feasting on the matter that is thrown into it.
There are a ton of ways to begin a compost pile and you have the land and animals to help you begin to have a GREAT composting area! You and Scott could figure out a space to build a 3 sided compost holder or just make a pile. You will have to mix it up to get a good blend of all you add to it. Our composter tumbles so it easy to mix. Here is a good website for beginning. We did ours without knowledge and learned as we went along.
How do we make compost soil?
I love this question as my husband has the magic touch for this! We started out composting only grass clippings, dying sod, leaves, dead plants in a large black composter. At the time we also had a worm farm going that we had intentions of using the organic fertilizer they make while eating veggies, fruit and paper. All the worms escaped as I unintentionally left their escape hatch open. (Oh the things one learns in 7-8 years!)
After their break away, we started adding food scraps, coffee grounds etc., to the composter. We do NOT add meat scraps for two reasons: A) We have dogs so there are no scraps and B) the smell would be something I couldn’t handle. We compost year round so the ‘soil’ created by Spring is very rich. We got chickens so their waste was added to the Composter as well as egg shells. It all makes rich organic soil in the Spring! Ours breaks down quickly because the Red Wiggler Worms we had in the farm made their way into the composter! We continue to have zillions of worms in the composter feasting on the matter that is thrown into it.
There are a ton of ways to begin a compost pile and you have the land and animals to help you begin to have a GREAT composting area! You and Scott could figure out a space to build a 3 sided compost holder or just make a pile. You will have to mix it up to get a good blend of all you add to it. Our composter tumbles so it easy to mix. Here is a good website for beginning. We did ours without knowledge and learned as we went along.
https://www.lawnstarter.com/blog/lawn-care-2/composting-101-how-to-start-your-first-compost-pile/
2. Scabby Apples:
First of all, YAY for getting fruit from your new babies!!! Second, we have experienced this too and the cause is supposed to be quite simple - not enough sun or air flow through the branches.
Two of our trees are 22 years old and one is 27 so Mike has gotten pretty good and pruning them but this year, with all we’ve had going on, the pruning wasn’t quite as clean as in years past. One needs to keep the crown of the tree open to allow the sun and airflow. Also this summer we failed to keep the fallen apples and leaves raked up as I needed a lot of help before my surgery which was time consuming for Mike.
The scabs are like a little fungus but our good news is only one of the trees was really affected. Wet, wet, wet leaves are the culprit and we had a lot of rain when the apples were first forming and growing.
We also didn’t keep the sprinkler low and so the water hit the fruit and the trees which exacerbated the problem. Live and learn. Next year it will be kept low! You can treat the trees with spray if you so choose. We don’t and won’t.
Another thing we do is put out apple cider vinegar in small containers to take care of the fruit flies that create worms. Change it often. Once a week is good. We’ve had GREAT success with this.
Another good thing about scabs on apples. They are only on the surface so after you pick the apples and wash them, you can peel them and use them. YAY! The pruning and the apple cider vinegar allow the apples to be bigger at harvest time!
Winterizing your Fruit trees:
Do NOT fertilize them right now! You don’t want to encourage new growth. Pruning is done in late winter when the trees are completely dormant. Mike prunes in late February or early March. He freezes but he does it! NOW IS THE TIME to water a couple of times deeply each fruit tree. Super simple to keep your babies happy through winter into early spring! This is all we do. Nothing more, nothing less.
Dolomite Lime:
We’ve never used it but there’s nothing wrong with it if it’s used properly on the trees that need it. I did a little research (quick) to see if it was harmful and I learned a lot in a little bit of time.
Apples and pears do not. Using it on those trees may kill them. They don’t need the soil to be acidic so personally, I wouldn’t use it. Citrus trees, like the Meyer Lemon are cold hardy but need a more acidic soil. It may need it. I don’t know. I recommend you test the soil first before ever applying the dolomite lime. Citrus tree soil should rank 6.0-8.0 while the apple and pears soil PH should be more alkaline, like 7.5 or something. Peaches or other stone fruit like a slightly acidic soil which if you got fruit from any of these, I would think the soil is fine. I would do your research if you want to apply anything to your trees. We’ve done nothing to ours and we get an abundance of fruit.
I’m always happy to help so if there are more questions, comment below and I will answer them as quickly as I can! I appreciate all these questions as it is sometimes a learning opportunity for me as well! Thank you again!
As Always - Love, Light and Peace!