One Alaskans greenhouse

[flowerbug]

Years ago, in a health facility I worked in, we used to eat cucumbers cooked. Radishes too, with a wee bit of the green stem left on to retain the red colour in the skin.. I remember them being very yummy. We also used to make a salad with cucumber called 'raita', which was basically cucumber grated on a box grater, mixed with sour cream, toasted mustard seeds and a bit of salt and sugar. Maybe some dill. I still make it I like it so much.

the last sounds similar enough to tzatziki sauce which is good for a lot of things too. i like it all.

 

[Cosmo spring garden]

Years ago, in a health facility I worked in, we used to eat cucumbers cooked. Radishes too, with a wee bit of the green stem left on to retain the red colour in the skin.. I remember them being very yummy. We also used to make a salad with cucumber called 'raita', which was basically cucumber grated on a box grater, mixed with sour cream, toasted mustard seeds and a bit of salt and sugar. Maybe some dill. I still make it I like it so much.

Yummy raita.

 

[Alasgun]

It’s time for the first Comfrey cutting! Half way thru whacking the first plant i decided to take a picture☹️ But enough remained to give an idea of the growth over the last 1 1/2 month. from the cleanup around the base i started a bucket of Comfrey tea; a little treat for those plants receiving preferential treatment; in the greenhouse!

There are over a dozen other plantings around the property which will get cut in the next couple days as well. It all get tied in bunches and hung to dry and will be used to make tea or as a treat for the Rabbits.

 

[flowerbug]

It’s time for the first Comfrey cutting! Half way thru whacking the first plant i decided to take a picture☹️ But enough remained to give an idea of the growth over the last 1 1/2 month. from the cleanup around the base i started a bucket of Comfrey tea; a little treat for those plants receiving preferential treatment; in the greenhouse!

There are over a dozen other plantings around the property which will get cut in the next couple days as well. It all get tied in bunches and hung to dry and will be used to make tea or as a treat for the Rabbits.

there's a good chance i'll be removing the two small patches i have out there because the deer are attracted to them and then going from those to other plants in the front. Mom wanted to get rid of them from the start and i really like the plants but it is looking like i can't have them with our current inability to fence the area i'd need to enclose.

 

[Alasgun]

@flowerbug, that’s too bad. Our arrangement works fine but i can see your point of view. They refer to Comfrey as a “dynamic accumulator”
and in your case that’s the deer😳

Today i machined a small spindle on a 3/8 rod and mounted a blender blade to it for the purpose of “blending” the fish emulsion barrel. For the most part digesting is a good way to go but there’s always some parts that are slower than the rest, the froth makes it look real yukky, but underneath all that foam is a nice layer of smooth liquid that’s easy to work with. The plants really like they’re weekly dose of gooey goodness. To a 2.5 gallon water can i add a qt. of fermented rabbit urine, 1 cup of fish emulsion and 1/4 cup of Molasses; this special diet is reserved for the greenhouse residents.

 

[Alasgun]

The first cutting of Comfrey is hanging in the barn, in a good year i’ll get 4 more cuttings; this has all the makings of a good year!😊

i’ve got a couple of these small mint beds (chocolate) that get cut in the morning. We’ll usually get 2 more cutting‘s of this as well. Dried and crushed the total will fill a gallon jar and we’ll drink tea from it all year.

 

[heirloomgal]

The first cutting of Comfrey is hanging in the barn, in a good year i’ll get 4 more cuttings; this has all the makings of a good year!😊

i’ve got a couple of these small mint beds (chocolate) that get cut in the morning. We’ll usually get 2 more cutting‘s of this as well. Dried and crushed the total will fill a gallon jar and we’ll drink tea from it all year.

I like how you've got the mint hemmed in by the bricks. I was a newbie gardener when I planted my first mints ever so casually and now I'm....full of repentance. If only had has used bricks like that!

What does the molasses contribute to your fertility mix @Alasgun ? That's a new one to me. I'm so fascinated by your organic methods, and I'm just thrilled with the results I'm getting with the amendments I've tried based on your thread here. I'll never garden without kelp, alfalfa & azomite again!

 

[Alasgun]

@heirloomgal, thanks for the kind words! On several occasions ive thought of opening up the space between them and have one wide oval shaped bed. Maybe next year😳

Molasses;; you want un-sulphured blackstrap, sulphur kills the soil microbes organic folks strive to generate.
Now take your bottle and roll it over showing you the ingredients; as you read the list imagine your in a garden center looking for some super duper plant food. You pick up a bottle and it says nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus, calcium, bla, bla, bla and you are sold so you buy a bottle. Some folks have commented to me “ when i got home i opened that bottle to sniff it and it immediately reminded me of Molasses. Gee, i wonder why?

2 tablespoons in a gallon of water and used once or twice a week, all by itself will make notable improvements in just about anything.😊
Too much or too often will leave the soil somewhat sticky at the surface. The next good watering usually fixes that.

Lay the bottles side by side and compare the ingredients, you’ll notice the similarity. Besides that; i’ve never seen any liquid fertilizer listed as 100% organic, a lot of Molasses will be organic!

 

[catjac1975]

@ducks4you, we’re at that time of year you can set outside and read a news paper ALL NIGHT LONG without additional light. Tie on a fish hook; no problem etc. Over the years i’ve grown fond of our really long twilight periods; both morning and evening. I overhauled a steam turbine in Hawaii one time; was there a week and boom; the sun went down at 7:00 and it was dark, plum dark. The irony is; this job was in February and we already had more daylight than that!

Im not to familiar with any of the artificial plant enhancement methods but i can tell you most stuff really likes our long days.

some folks really go in for the BIG vegetable competition at our state fair each year; pumpkins approaching a ton, cabbages over 100 lbs etc.
We’re on the other end of the spectrum, square ft gardeners. I have people wanting to give me this or that start each spring and i have to politely decline, telling them all the space is taken and i don’t have any room for experiments. Other than one experimental tomato each year it’s the same variety’s year after year.

You growing season is all very intriguing and fun to read about.

 

[meadow]

@Alasgun, I hope you don't mind me asking some questions about your hoop tunnels. 🤓 I was looking through the earlier posts to learn about kelp and alfalfa meal, and noticed that the shape of your hoops changed from semi-circular/arched to rounded corners/rectangular. Which do you like best? (and why?)

Are the hoops made from electrical conduit? What are the blue 'clips' you've used to hold the cloth in place?