How’s that for a title? Get your attention?
I’m not a scientist, horticulturist, a botanist or any of those other “ists.” I’m just an urban farmer and writer, blindly stumbling through the learning curve, trying to find what works. I couldn’t tell you the proper balance of minerals necessary to grow certain plants. I know the difference between sandy soil and clay soil, but after that my knowledge about soil gets a little spotty.
Oh sure, I could take some extension courses and learn all about soil and its properties, but for me, with limited time available, I’d rather just take ordinary dirt and add rabbit poop to it.
Why mess with success?
There was a time, a few years back, in my Dark Ages of gardening, when I would go to the nursery and purchase the best soil known to man, and I would haul my soil gold home, eight bucks per bag, with little money remaining in my bank account.
Now I go to the bark center, get a pickup truck load of topsoil for $15, bring it home and add rabbit poop.
Why mess with success?
THE WONDER OF RABBITS
Do you know the greatest thing about rabbits? No, it’s not that they are cute and cuddly…it’s that they never stop pooping, which means I have a natural additive for all of my garden beds year round, so I get cute and cuddly and the best fertilizer known to man, all in one neat little four-legged package.
If you don’t have rabbits then ask around and find a neighbor who does. Chances are they will just give you the poop for nothing….and wouldn’t that be ultra cool?
WHAT’S NEW ON OUR FARM?
We have Running Ducks, that’s what!
And they are hilarious!
The name is for a reason…Running Ducks don’t fly, but man do they love to run, and watching them run is worth the price of admission. Check out the picture of them….of course they aren’t running and they look, in that picture, like any other duck, but don’t let appearances fool you. These ladies can run!
Why did we get ducks? Why do we do anything on our farm? We love animals and we’re having the time of our lives. Ducks will lay eggs, so there’s that, but other than that they just poop a lot and make us laugh.
In other words, they’re worth it!
FARM STAND
I opened the farm stand this Saturday and sold quail eggs at $3 per dozen. I’m adding organic chicken eggs this weekend.
QUAIL BUSINESS
Business is brisk. We had a $200 week followed the next day by a $66 day…..not bad at all. If we keep that up through the end of laying season I’ll be happy. Then we have to decide whether to give the girls the winter off from laying or put a light out there and have them lay during the winter. We’ll probably give them the winter off and lose money feeding them. LOL
STRAW BALE GARDENING
The straw bale experiment is going strong. I’ve never seen potatoes grow so rapidly as they are in this straw bales, and everything else in that garden is doing well, from tomatoes to onions to strawberries. At this point in the experiment I can say without hesitation that I am sold on straw bale gardening.
WORMS
Now I want to start raising worms…red squiggly worms…..more on that later. Thank God Bev supports me in all my random glory.
AND THAT’S IT FOR THIS WEEK
I can’t imagine having five or ten acres. I’m so busy with this city lot that I can’t keep up with the chores…how does one do it on five acres????
See you next week. Thanks for the visit.
Bill
The Urban Farm Yard Sanctuary 