Permaculture

Consider applying permaculture practices when possible. These design systems and principles have prime directives. Care for the earth is # 1, take responsibility. Care for people and return surplus. Growing food produces yield, can create profit, and produces waste that should be recycled. Permaculture is becoming more self sufficient and sustainable using local resources and closing the loop. Everything in the system has a function, while creating natural control methods. Use a practical approach to problems facing modern society and learn how to be more self sufficient. A well designed system utilizes the proper placement of shade trees for energy efficiency. Create a food forest incorporating fruit trees, berries, vegetables and other suitable,  edible plants. Choose plants that work in your climate zone. Prepare the soil beds for vegetable crops, seasonally, not only with annuals but perennials too. Like one of the last blogs, it starts with the soil! Develop a MASTER PLAN with zones and get started. YOU CAN DO IT! Benefits are endless. " Natural farming is a process of bringing your mind as closely in line as possible with the natural functioning of the environment so you can understand what needs to be done and what must be done to work in harmony with its processes" (Masanobu Fukuoka "One Straw Revolution").

When it comes to soil, our task is to imitate processes, to build up and keep it covered. Recycle local energy and nutrients back into the system. To plan efficient systems using polycultures and elements which fulfill more than one function. It is a task that requires more of us at the beginning, especially land with poor soil, but the benefits soon become evident when we pass through the heat of the summer without watering, fertilizing, cultivating, or weeding the soil that feeds us.

Starfruit Banana Lime Dish

Since this is a father daughter blog I though I'd share with y'all one of our favorite seasonal fruit dishes. I grew up spoiled! I had access to a number of different fruit trees right in my backyard. Can you say kid heaven..I never  had to interrupt my play to go inside to get a snack, I'd just pick it right off the tree!

Every ingredient in this fruit salad comes fresh from the backyard but you can certainly find all of them at your local organic food store or fruit stand. Just in case your local grocery or fruit stand does not call starfruit by it's nickname, it is helpful to know that the fruit's real name is Carambola.

For this salad you will need starfruit, bananas, and a single lime. Now do not be scared by a starfruit; they are so delicious and so many miss out on this amazing fruit because they are too afraid to try it. You will need to cut the starfruit into thin star shaped pieces and then remove the seeds. Slice the banana into thin circular pieces and mix together with the starfruit. The amount of each fruit you use depends on how many people you plan on serving; it is best to eat this salad fresh. Once you have mixed together the starfruit and the banana simply squeeze the juice of a lime over top and stir together. This makes for a refreshingly sweet tart fruit salad PERFECT for a hot afternoon!

These are beautifully ripened starfruits! 

Bringing The Garden To The Table

So I thought I'd share with yall the awesome salad I made last night. The BEST part about this salad is that most of the ingredients came straight from our organic garden. The kale, bok choy, nutrient greens, carrots, and tomato were all fresh picked TODAY! They were never sprayed with pesticides or herbicides but I gave them a quick rinse to get any dirt off. Here is a lil picture I took before I prepared everything.  Beautiful huh? Anyway I cut everything up and added some walnuts and fresh pineapple and then drizzled the salad with a poppy seed vinaigrette. It was delicious!
Try to buy Local or Organic Produce... Especially lettuces because they are in the dirty dozen.
For this salad you can use any type of fresh lettuce or greens (what ever your favorite is), add some tomatoes, carrots, walnuts, and fresh pineapple. You can use your favorite dressing but I recommend a poppy seed vinaigrette for this one.
Most importantly..... ENJOY!!

Here is a short video of some of our worms. If you look and listen closely you can see and hear them hard at work; it's quite amazing!

Vermiposting

Worm House

The art of worm composting: breaking down kitchen waste in a controlled environment; feed red wigglers (the worms used for vermiposting) vegetables, fruit (citrus is not recommended for the worms), coffee granules, egg shells,and  tea bags. The worms consume the bacterias created by the food waste bi-product and turn it into a nutrient rich waste...or in simpler terms, worm poop. To prepare a bed, use a container with air holes to circulate and create aerobic activity. Wood boxes and plastic work well or purchase a worm farm (available commercially). Cut up newspaper and or cardboard in strips, cover the bottom of the bed and add dampened peat moss. Add the worms to the bed and start feeding; it is recommended to cover the holes with screen to keep the wigglers from escaping until the adapt. When feeding, dig a hole by hand, add kitchen waste, and cover back up. Come back in a couple of days to watch them working. Keep the worm bin out of direct light and cover if desired. Do not let the little critters dry out. Drill a hole in the bottom of the bed and keep a container under the bin to catch the liquid after the vermipost is dark brown or black; this liquid is a great fertilizer. A handful of finished worm castings can be used around any plants and is great for vegetable and fruit crops. Feed your plants four times a year. YES, this an organic fertilizer; plants naturally love it! It mimics nature.

Newspaper and Peat Moss

Red Wigglers hard at work

Worm Tea: An EXTREMELY valuable fertilizer!

This is how we store our worm tea

Composting

So you want to grow plants? Understand the soil biology and how the natural food web works creating a living soil. It is your job to not destroy or kill the living soil. Composting is the method of creating your own soil while recycling waste and returning surplus back to the earth. Kitchen waste that is biodegradable, basically fruit and vegetable waste, egg shells, coffee grounds, tea bags, or any other waste product that breaks down, news paper (black and white) can also be recycled into compost.

There are two ways to create a high quality humus, the first is a compost pile at least 3 ' x 3' x 3' with 3 parts carbon or brown matter (leaves, sticks, paper) 1 part nitrogen or green matter (grass, vegetative matter). Water or moisture must be present, along with air to start the heating up process that begins the composting. As it heats up to over 130 degrees, it actually cooks out any harmful bacterias and bakes the mixture. The pile could be turned to speed up the process, approximately 3 -4 times, in three month depending on climate conditions. When the process is completed, the steam will stop rising and the pile will cool down. No bad odor, only a rich, earthy smelling, nutrient packed humus. The second method is vermiposting (worm composting) , using worms and creating castings (or worm manure).

This is our kitchen compost

This an example of a 3'x3'x3' compost pile

This is the finished compost. DARK, RICH, & NUTRIENT PACKED!

The Begining of The Soil Food Web

Welcome back to the living world! Ever thought about creating your own eco-system where life goes on in harmony with nature; balanced and teaming with not only beneficial insects above the ground but micro-organisms under the ground building soil structure and supplying the plant roots with the nutrients naturally. Become familiar with the biology of the soil and how to build substance thru composting or just adding quality soil to your beds to not only retain water but to add fertility naturally. The cost of petroleum based synthetic fertilizer is rapidly going up, not to mention the disruption and destruction of the soil food web. 

The Soil Food Web consists of many living organisms, each with a function to compliment each other, including but not limited to beneficial bacterias and fungi that together have the job of supplying and transporting nutrients that are available to the plants thru the roots and more specifically from nodules that act like fertilizer sacks that store nutrients until they are needed. Plant health starts with the soil. The natural occurring forest is an example of such a untouched functional environment. 

Plant your garden as you live each day, with JOY and GRACE

Welcome to The Garden Corner at Gardens Unique Blog Spot

Gardens Unique is a concept of creating green spaces and transforming them into usable and beneficial areas that not only provide beauty but bounty too. You must start with a plan; ask yourself what are my goals? Do I want shade areas, buffers, butterflies, or even edible gardens. The possibilities are endless. Plants serve a purpose and provide a function. These concepts should be considered in plant selection: Right plant, Right location, hardiness, pest problems, and overall costs to maintain. In today's environment a cost effective approach to land use is essential. Creating a sustainable master plan is a common sense approach to long term success with minimal expenses. Follow us through the journey into the incredible living world of plants, wildlife, and nature at its best. Learn to create an environment that is Safe and Saves.