A different sort of gardening...

I am embarking on a new adventure...The "Ruth Stout" method of gardening. Basically it involves using straw to enrich your soil, make compost, and kill weeds, and more. I got two bales of straw yesterday from a local farm, and I'll have 20 more being delivered within the next week or so. I am getting my 20 bales from Quinn Farm in Ile Perrot. Elwood Quinn is such a nice guy...very friendly, and has a wonderful sense of humor.

I've got to move my compost container to a more accessible spot...now, if I can just get a hold of one of my male neighbours to help me, since it has to be lifted over the pool pump in order to get it where it needs to go...can't do it on my own (I tried).

Okay, back to the straw. So basically, you get a bunch of straw bales, and just set them up along the edges of your garden (kind of like a retaining wall). Now, 22 bales sounds like a lot of straw, but this will do for 2-3 years. The bales sit outside, and yes, they will start to decompose, but that's the beauty of all this. You cover the ground (or garden patch) with a layer of straw, and through the season of your garden, you just keep layering as the need arises. Weeds? No problem...don't break your back trying to pull them out...just throw some straw on top of them to take care of that problem.

I'm very excited to try this.

Pumpkins...

I have decided that the pumpkin is a very mysterious plant to grow. Three years ago, we planted pumpkin seeds, just to have the joy of growing our own pumpkins for Samhain. Well, of course, the pumpkin vines took over the whole garden, and I'm pretty sure we had miles and miles worth of pumpkin vines. We had quite a few good pumpkins that year, and gave a few away too.

Well, this year, we had a pumpkin vine sprout up seemingly out of nowhere, as we didn't plant any pumpkin at all this year (don't have enough space in our garden area). Now, what I find amazingly mystical is that the vine started sprouting flowers, and I'd keep checking them for signs of pumpkins starting, to no avail. Then, as if overnight, I have a huge green pumpkin in my garden. How did I miss that???? Well, at this point, it's still greenish, but with an orange tinge starting...figure it will be just perfect for Samhain...but I've still got at least 20 flowers, no sign of any other pumpkins yet, and I'm wondering if these will sprout up just as "mysteriously?"

Anyway, that's just my ramblings for the day...LOL

The joys of iTunes

Ah...yes, I have discovered the wonderful world of iTunes, where I can instantly download music which is sometimes more difficult to acquire on CD format...LOL I finally have music by Inkubus Sukkubus!!! YAY!!! I've also discovered Jaiya, and Goddess of Desire, not to mention downloading more popular songs in the reggae, pop, and rock domains. I am muchly enjoying this.