John Brownlee

I came here to look for this exact info as I am considering starting my own goji berry farm. Does anyone here have ideas for good understory plants? I'm in middle western Georgia with fairly poor, sandy soil. I'm going to start with 1,000 sq ft plot, which will allow me about 50 plants max. The idea is to sell dried berries online, fresh berries and leaves to some of the local Asian supermarkets, and sell plants that I propagate from cuttings or root suckers.

I'd like to have as many possible crops out of this plot as possible, and for the majority of them to also be marketable crops. So far I've thought of low growing perennial culinary herbs like oregano and thyme as well as comfrey. All of which can be sold dried, fresh, or propagated to sell plants.

Any other ideas would be appreciated, and also feel free to poke holes in my idea.

I've thought of using comfrey tea. Does it not need a vent to release pressure as it brews? I'm in Georgia so it shouldn't take much time to brew. I do have a bit of comfrey but my plants are in production for cuttings. I don't yet have nettle growing so could I do half comfrey leaves and half a mix of lettuce, kale, collards etc?

Chad, any idea what the nitrogen level might be for compost tea like this? The goal is to push rapid (healthy) growth to get plants to market quickly. I have limited space so turnover is key to success.

I'm looking for ideas on how to make a quick (like 24 hours) liquid, fast acting, organic fertilizer. I'm starting a nursery business,and I need a way to regularly fertilize potted plants, because to sell they need to look good. Bare minimum requirements are organic. I refuse to use salt based chemical feet, and besides, I really can't afford to buy all the fertility. I do have chickens and we use deep litter in the coop. Any input?

John, I tried something similar to your method on my own and it was a total disaster. I'll try it again step by step.

Rick, I'll still take help, and your example looks great.

William, I'll try that.

Yeah computers just aren't intuitive for me. Plants and soil make more sense.

Can anyone help me get topographic info off the damn internet onto a large piece of paper so I can work on a design by hand where I know what I'm doing? Getting some kinda effing frustrated here...

Hi all. My wife and I are looking to make contacts in the Knoxville Tennessee area. We spent a weekend there several years ago and fell in love with the area. It just felt like home to both of us. We have wanted to move there ever since and have not been able to. Our situation has changed in the last few months, and it seems that I need to find a new job. It only makes sense to look for one in the area where we want to live. So I'm wondering if there are any permies in and around Knoxville that can point me in the direction of some places that I can look. I'm using all the job finder sites and Craigslist so that may turn something up. (Been using them for years. Nothing yet) I used to do chemical treatments on lawns for trugreen, and going back to lawncare is out of the question. I'm not looking for anyone to offer me a job, just some recommendations of places to look for work.
Thanks in advance to anyone who can help!

Tim, I have found in the last couple of weeks that your method seems to work well. I look for the tendril and leaf directly opposite the melon to be dry. Also a friend of mine from church told me that his grandfather said that if you wait till the stem coming out of the melon is brown it will be perfect every time.