Tips On Building Your Own Soil
Down at the south-west corner of his lot, which incidentally is a double lot, snuggles a friend’s glasshouse. Partially screened off from his dwelling by a hedge of purple lilacs it is his haven of refuge, from the bustle and troubles of a restless world. A castle within an estate, lacking but the moat and drawbridge.
On a placard nailed to an inside panel of the greenhouse door, are pasted numerous clippings and data. Some are freshly stuck there while others are soiled and faded. Of all these clippings, one is well worthy a re-printed enlargement. The expression was penned by William Coles in 1657, to find a place of prominence, nearly 350 years later, on the placard that hangs on the castle door. And all this just goes to prove how wise a green thumber can get to be.
Written Over 350 Years Ago
“And if Gentlemen which have little else to doe, would be ruled by me, I would advise them to spend their spare time in their Gardens: either in digging, setting, weeding, or the like, then which there is no better way in the world to preserve health. If a man wants an appetite to his victuals, the smell of the earth new turned up, by digging with a spade will produce it, and if he is inclined to a Consumption it will recover him. Gentlewomen, if the ground is not too wet, may doe themselves much good by kneeling upon a cushion and weeding and thus both sexes might divert themselves from Idleness, and evil Company, which oftimes prove the ruin of many ingenious people.” – William Coles, 1657.
Here are a few other clipping and data for the plant growing enthusiast!
Cow Manure
The best of the natural fertilizers (organic fertilizers) because it supplies both humus and food to the soil. Failing its use substitute any well known brand of chemical fertilizer (inorganic fertilizer) supplementing applications with liberal quantities of compost, peat moss, green manures or leaf mold.
Compost
A simply constructed bin will help to keep the compost heap tidy. This source of organic matter or humus should be placed in some out-of-the-way corner of the garden. Here will go all lawn clippings, leaves (except evergreens) all unused green vegetation except those that are diseased and which should be destroyed instead. Alternate layers of soil with the refuse to promote decomposition and add a good commercial accelerator to hasten the process.
To kill any odor and to avoid sick building syndrome that develops in hot weather an occasional scattering of lime is advisable. For the purpose of hastening decomposition sulphate of ammonia, in place of a commercial accelerator, may be used to good effect. Though not essential it will nevertheless prove beneficial if some complete chemical fertilizer is added to the heap to avoid sick building syndrome on plants. So that the compost will decay evenly fork it over at least once a month. Should a drought occur, hollow the top of the pile and wet it down every once in a while with the garden hose. Compost is ready to use when it has rotted to the extent that the materials of which it is made, break up easily when forked over. It takes about a year to have it in this state of fertility.
Leaf Mold
Leaf mold is nothing other than decomposed leafage of deciduous trees (those that shed their leaves in the autumn), not evergreens.
Peat
Peat is formed of vegetation that has decayed under water. It is sold in bales of various sizes by seed stores and dealers in garden supplies.
Green Manure
Green Manure crops are living plants that are especially grown for digging into the soil. When turned under their tops and roots decay in the ground and form humus. Fall Rye is one of the most popular green manure crops. It should be sown in the early autumn and spaded under after it has grown about 6 to 8 inches high. Buckwheat sown several times throughout the growing season is turned under when it has attained a height of 8 inches. Followed by a heavy seeding of winter rye about the middle of October and spaded in when it is about 8 inches high in early spring, it will greatly help to put impoverished soil in a state of improved fertility.
Tips to Make a Simple and Easy Pumpkin Soup Recipe
Do you always have leftover pumpkin after Halloween or Thanksgiving, and want to know how to cook it? Do you love pumpkin soup and want to make sure that you do not make any mistakes? Whatever your reason, there are lots of important tips for cooking with this versatile squash relative.
While most people stick to plain old pumpkin desserts, there are lots more options out there. Let us take a look at some of the things you should know about the pumpkin before you get started cooking. You will have a lot more luck!
The first thing to remember is that not every pumpkin will make great soup or pie. The kind of pumpkin you carve at Halloween has been bred to grow big and fast, to stand up to a lot of abuse, and to look pretty on your doorstep. Unfortunately, that means that it is not the best choice for food.
While jack-o-lantern pumpkins are cheap and readily available at supermarkets and roadside stands (especially right after Halloween), they are not always the best pick for eating. They can be fun to feed to local animals and they compost well, but their flesh is not most people’s top choice when they want to eat pumpkin.
That does not mean you cannot eat them at all, but it is a good idea to “hide” this type of pumpkin in other foods. Cook your surplus pumpkin down by baking or boiling it, scrape the pulp out of the shell, and blitz it in a food processor once or twice. Then put it in pumpkin bread, cookies, or even chili.
For foods where you want that pumpkin taste to shine through, like pumpkin pie or an easy pumpkin soup recipe, look for smaller sugar pumpkins. Chock full of potassium, vitamin A and fiber, these pumpkins have a lot more flavor, are much sweeter, and have smoother, more pleasant flesh. They are often used for desserts, but work for any meal where you want the flavor of pumpkin to be a major player.
Use pumpkins in chunks for your pumpkin soup, or cook them in it and puree them with some broth for a silky texture that cannot be beat. There are even a few recipes that call for cooking the soup right in the pumpkin, then stirring the softened flesh off the walls to create your soup. It all depends on what you prefer. Just make sure that you process your pumpkin with care to prevent it from cooking incorrectly and spoiling the recipe.
Pumpkin is a great choice for making soup, and a whole lot more. By paying attention to the type of pumpkin, you have and making sure that you cook it correctly, you will have a much better chance of getting a great fall meal. Try all the great options for making pumpkin soup, and do not forget to buy the right kind of pumpkin.
Bee Removal in Florida – the New Reality
Honey bee removal in Florida has changed a lot in the last few years. South Florida and parts of Central Florida have seen an increasing number of Africanized bee colonies become established. Even North Florida is beginning to see some colonies being established. Public safety has become a priority.
This change is due to the difference in behavior between Africanized bees and the European honey bees managed by beekeepers. African bees, also known as “killer” bees, are extremely protective of their nests and easily provoked. Learning some simple safety measure is highly recommended by those in the bee removal business.
Even if a nearby bee colony consists of European honey bees, danger exists. African bees can easily take over. Queens live between 6 months and one year. New queens leave the hive temporarily to mate. If an African bee colony is nearby, and if the queen mates with one of their drones, the existing European hive could rapidly become Africanized.
In the Southwestern U.S. Africanized bees have been well established for many years. Records show that one-half of all Africanized bee attacks occur after the victim was aware of the nest. In those situations, removing the bees would be the right thing to do. If the nest had been removed when discovered, those attacks would not have happened.
Bees are an endangered species and they are needed to pollinate our food crops. Because of those facts, in the past we encouraged bee removal experts to save nests of wild bees. The situation changed when African bees began invading Florida. Beekeepers now are hesitant to keep Africanized bees.
Where Africanized bees have become established, there may be 100-200 colonies per square mile. Removing one wild bee nest does not significantly reduce the overall population of bees. State officials are NOT attempting to destroy all wild nests, or even all Africanized bees. They do recommend however, that any bees found nesting near people be removed immediately, and that all honey bee removal be performed by a state certified Pest Control Operator.
A trained and certified Pest Control Operator should 1) recognize whether the bees on your property are a swarm or a colony and be able to explain the difference to you 2) discuss the removal procedure with you before beginning the honey bee removal 3) wear a veil, sting suit and gloves to perform the bee removal, 4) remove all dead bees and all combs associated with the colony, 5) discuss bee-proofing.
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