Heather Davis

I'm posting here to share my dad's attempts to protect his hazelnut harvest this year from squirrels.  Last year he lost most of the nuts to the squirrels in mid August, before they were ripe and only got a couple gallons that were left, also before they were ripe.  This year he is going to put up tall thick black plastic and thinks that will keep out the squirrels. I'm thinking that an electric fence close to the ground and up at the top could help.  We have looked into rodent zappers also.  For shooting squirrels, it sounds like we'd have to be set up by the hazels in the early morning, fighting off mosquitos, shooting squirrels from before dawn ever morning for several months, which isn't going to happen.  Any more ideas, please let me know!

Hello!  I'm resurrecting this thread since my dad and I are about to attempt to protect his hazelnuts from squirrels, without just picking them before they are ripe.  We have red squirrels, grey squirrels and chipmunks.  According to Dad's notes, he started seeing rodent activity on August 11th last year, so we would like to have all our defenses up this week.  Our ideas include burying a fence made of layers of chicken wire, black plastic and then more chicken wire, followed by an electric fence up higher, or thick black plastic that they won't be able to climb easily.  We are also looking into getting a rodent zapper and a trap to reduce the overall population.  The bushes are about 5' x 10' with many stalks so flashing isn't an option.  They are so heavy with nuts that the branches are touching the ground.  We are in Camden, Maine.  I appreciate any ideas or encouragement and will keep you posted!

In the late 60's and early 70's my folks lived in California and learned how to grow Indian corn from some Mexican Indian friends. They were given seed corn and grew it for many years. They moved to Maine and continued growing the corn, drying it and then making hominy, corn meal, etc as a staple food on their off the grid small farm. I grew up having tamales and homily and it was delicious. They used wood ashes and also pickling lime. Last Thanksgiving, I bought some dried blue corn that is a variety grown by the Tarahumara people in Mexico. I ordered Mrs. Wages Pickling Lime and found the directions on http://www.howtomakehominyfromcorn.com/making-limewater.html. It turned out well but is a lot of work, so I haven't done it again. Store bought prepared corn in the form of masa, canned hominy, tortillas, etc doesn't taste as good as freshly nixtamalized corn. Here is a good resource, as well: http://www.culturesforhealth.com/pickling-lime.html

We moved to a smaller property when I was a teen in the 80's and there wasn't enough room to grow hard corn and sweet corn without cross pollinating (and ruining both) so my folks stopped growing Indian corn. Recently they cleared more land, expanded their garden space and started growing hard corn again. I can't wait for fresh tamales again!!

Does anyone have a good reference for the optimum and minimum requirements for growing rice as far as growing season and climate?

R Ranson wrote:I'm afraid that submerged in water and kept in our dining room (only part of the house hot enough), it's going to start to ferment and stink. Anyone have experience with this?

I'm curious if yours will ferment, too! What about pulling or ladling off the clear water and gently adding fresh water every day? Or you could try with sterile potting mix instead of garden soil?

This is a fun podcast of an interview of a dry rice farmer.... http://www.rootsimple.com/2015/12/071-farmer-mai-nguyen/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+HomegrownEvolution+%28Root+Simple+%29

Podcast intro: Wondering about the next generation of farmers? Meet Mai Nguyen. She grows grains and vegetables in Northern California using a no-till, dry-farming method with draft horses–all in the midst of a historic drought! During the course of the conversation we discuss:

Southeast Asian vegetables
Growing rice
Dry farming
No-till agriculture
Growing wheat
Sonora wheat
Red Fife wheat
Dark rye
Managing risk
Sheep and draft horses on a small farm
To find out more about what Mai is up to check out her blog farmermai.com.

While researching my ancestors, I obtained meeting minutes from Belchertown, Massachusetts from March, 1780. My distant great-grandfather, David Bartlett is listed as a Hog Reeve.
Here is the excerpt:
Twelfthly Voted to let hogs go on the commons well yoked and ringed
Thirteenthly Voted (David Bartlett, Urial Chapin, Lt. Daniel Smitth, Cyril Shinway, William Town, Paul Thirftin) Hog Reeves

In Ventura, CA, Casitas Valley Farm raises heritage breed pigs and feeds them apples, persimmons, pomegranate, squash, etc. from their farm and other local farms. You can camp there for a small fee. I attended a talk by Geoff Lawton in August, 2014 and took these photos when the pigs woke me up just after dawn. I hope to camp there again sometime this year.

I soaked three white sapote seeds for about a week (forgot about them) and then wrapped them in damp paper towels and the have sprouted. I'm going to plant them into pots today. I'm still going that the seeds I planted straight in the dirt will come up, too!

I heard about a moringa tree nearby so I can get a cutting to stick in the ground. I also received some seeds I had ordered online.

D. Klaer wrote:

Yellow sapote - Growing well, yet to flower

How did you sprout the sapote seeds? Are yellow sapotes the same as white sapotes? I have started Loquat, Cherimoyas and Papaya from seed by wrapping them in damp paper towels and putting them in a plastic bag "greenhouse" unit they sprouted, but the white sapote seeds kept molding and not germinating. I planted 6 white sapote seeds in planters next to other plants and hope they germinate, but nothing yet and it's been about 3 weeks. I collected some Carob pods and plan on making carob powder, trying to ferment the carob since it's very sweet and also planting the seeds. Moringa is on my list as well, although I'll harvest the leaves and keep them too short to fruit.

I have figs trees that I started from cuttings and am going to try air rooting my friend's passion fruit. Next season, I want to try sprouting guavas, too. I don't have any room to grow trees, but give them away or keep them in planters. My goal is no cost gardening / food forest, although I'll buy seeds. I borrow my friend's yards and community garden plots. If I had my own land, I think I'd be willing to spend some money, but I'm having fun learning how to be resourceful!