Homemade Potting Soil Mix

It's nearly time to start sowing seeds for your spring gardens. Of course you can buy commercial potting soil mixes, but read the label carefully. Do you want chemically enhanced soil? Watch for Miracle Grow and other "helpful" additives.

Mixing potting soil at home is easy and economical. It takes a few basic ingredients and a dish pan to mix it in. I usually start with compost from my bins, but alas, it's frozen solid. Instead, I purchased a 40 lb bag of ordinary potting soil without any additives. This should cost about $5.

For my seed starting mix, I use equal parts of soil, peat moss and horticultural vermiculite. This mix is light enough for seeds to germinate. If I need to transplant healthy seedlings into larger containers, my transplant mix contains equal parts of soil, peat moss and Turface for drainage.

If you can afford it, choose coir rather than peat moss because coir is far more sustainable than raiding the peat bogs. Horticultural vermiculite is available at garden centers. I buy it in super large bags, but it's also available in smaller amounts.

Turface is tiny bits of clay used for drainage on golf courses and athletic fields. It's sold at landscape suppliers for about $12 per 40 lb bag. (I learned about Turface from the bonsai community.)  If you can't find Turface, you can substitute chicken grit for drainage, which is easily available at farm stores. The baby grit is quite fine and can get dusty; granny grit is slightly larger. Caution: even a small bag of grit is very heavy.

Now go play in the dirt!

Increased Egg Production

What's wrong with this picture? Nothing, I suppose. Egg production from my backyard flock is way up. I should hardly be concerned!

The numbers bottomed out - predictably - the week of the winter solstice. (Remember that egg production is dependent upon light, not necessarily temperature.) That week we gathered only 11 eggs from the girls. With the increase in natural daylight and a little supplemental lighting in the early morning, egg production is currently up to about 23 eggs per week.

Thelma and Louise (our Buckeye-Delaware hybrids) began molting around Thanksgiving. The poor things looked quite miserable for a month or so. It takes all their energy to grow new feathers and they ceased laying eggs entirely for about eight weeks. Happily, they are both back into production now.

So what's wrong with the picture? My silly Easter Egger, Cassie, hasn't laid an egg since Dec. 21. She's not molting or sick, just unproductive. It's not uncommon for egg laying to slow or stop in the winter, but she's less than a year old and should be doing something other than eat, sleep and poop. All that expensive organic chicken food needs to translate into organic eggs. This is an urban farm, not a zoo. Tick-tock, Cassie.

Dead Bees

I'm sorry to report that the honeybees at Red Bucket Farm are all dead. It was not the polar vortex that secured their demise. I suspect the hive was dead before Christmas.

We last noticed bee activity in early December. Usually, we see some evidence of them over the winter. The housekeeping bees will toss dead bodies out into the snow, and little bits of bee poop will be obvious near the hive. But this year there has been no sign of life at all.

Due to various complications from the previous season, we entered the winter with only one populated hive. In the spring we will clean the dead hive and try to determine what killed them, but it's very likely this will remain a mystery.

I've ordered two 3-pound packages of bees (at $92 each!) to re-populate the hives in the spring. The packages will look similar to the photo above. We can use some of the comb and honey from last year to give the new girls a head start. If we're lucky and the weather is favorable, we can then divide one of the hives to populate our third hive box.

Meanwhile, I'm begging you to not use any lawn pesticides this spring. Urban bees fare better than rural bees because urban foraging opportunities are far more diverse than mono-culture farming methods provide. Nevertheless, lawn chemicals are completely toxic to bees. If a bee guardian can keep bees alive through the winter until the spring dandelions bloom, then all is well. Please remember,

dandelions = bee food

Landscape Pesticide Registry

The deadline to register for the Landscape Pesticide Registry in Wisconsin is February 1. 

Go straight to the website for the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection at http://datcp.wi.gov.  Click on the Environment tab and then click on Landscape Pesticide Registry. It's easy to register your own address. Then you can register the addresses of any neighbors who use commercial lawn pesticide application. The lawn company is required to contact you (usually by telephone) and give 24 hours notice that they will apply pesticide. This gives you enough time to protect your garden crops, poultry, pets, bees, and children from the harmful effects of pesticide. 

Remember the deadline is quickly approaching. Don't delay. I've found this to be effective and helpful. 

Sub-Zero Hens, Again!

The hens at Red Bucket Farm are tolerating our current sub-zero temperatures rather well. The small ceramic heat emitters inside the hen house keep the sleeping area above zero degrees. The sun shines on the coop in the morning, and the girls roost together in the window. We've covered all the screens with plastic to keep out the wind, and we even covered their roof vent for now. With the addition of supplemental lighting in the early mornings, egg production is up---we had 19 eggs last week. I've been cooking them treats like oatmeal, millet or bulgur during the coldest weeks of winter. All is well!

Lighted Plant Stands

A corner of my music room has been designated as indoor greenhouse. I nuture my tropical bonsai trees here all winter, but recently I've begun seeding for spring crops. The shelving unit (above left) is commercially designed with three shelves and adjustable lights so I can lower the lights over new seedlings. I have wrapped the unit with reflective bubble insulation to keep out drafts and hold in a little heat.

My second shelving unit is a cheap wooden unit from the home supply store. We upgraded the lighting a year ago to Flouro-Wing grow lights. These units are so bright that I shelter the room from the light with a room-dividing screen. Yes, I think the upgraded lights are more effective than regular shop lamps, but any light works so don't let this limit your gardening goals. I've wrapped this unit with insulation, too.

My onion and scallion seedlings are up but struggling. I've just sowed seeds for basil, parsley, spinach, kale, shallots, carrots, Brussels sprouts, and Swiss chard. 

And now I can hear the chickens squawking. Off I go......

Cranberry Vodka

Here is something to warm those cold January evenings: cranberry infused vodka.

Simmer 12 oz cranberries with 1/2 cup sugar, 2 tablespoons water, and a little nutmeg until the sugar is dissolved and some of the cranberries are popped. Cool slightly and transfer to two quart jars or a half-gallon jar. Add 750 milliliters vodka. Store in a dark place for two weeks, turning the jar occasionally. Strain and serve.

How is this related to urban farming? I found the recipe in the Nov/Dec 2011 issue of Urban Farm magazine. For medicinal purposes only, of course!