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NEW LIBERTY VILLAGE "The greatest fine art of the future will be
the making of a Considering
the joys, health, and security that growing one's own vegetables and
fruits can offer, most anyone that has grown their own food counts it
unfortunate we have allowed ourselves to become so dependent on today's
huge agribusiness's. Perhaps one of the greatest arguments for having a
family garden, is the very real possibility of a breakdown of the complex and
fragile system that brings our food to the supermarkets. If by any
one of many possible scenarios, stores do not open for business, or if
supply chains are broken, we
best consider now what a state we would be in. We hope the information you find here will be of help and that you will SHARE your questions, advice and experience with us on: Gardening
(composting, insects, saving heritage seeds ....)
"When we eat food grown on depleted soil we too, like
the plants, lose our natural resistance to disease. All the degenerative
diseases have been on the rise in America in recent decades. Dietary fat,
cholesterol, salt and overly-refined foods seem to be major factors, but
a serious deficiency of minerals in our food may be another. Mineral
depletion of soils has been found to be directly correlated with death rates.
And deficiencies of only one of a number of trace minerals -- copper,
iron, selenium, etc. -- have been found in laboratory studies to be associated
with an increased risk of cancer. You may want to grow more complete,
nourishing food for yourself and your family." A great summary of 'Biointensive' gardening by John Jeavons Cultivating Our Garden What is Permaculture? ... It is an attempt to return to systems of small gardens. In some countries gardens produce 90% of the food. It is true in Russia. Agriculture produces very little food. It does the most destruction, it has the most land, it doesn't produce much food that people actually eat. Gardens do. So if you can increase your gardens, you can get rid of agriculture. I think, in the near future, it should be a banned activity. Agriculture is
the most destructive activity on the face of the earth. It is responsible
for poisoning sixty percent of our water supplies, and ruining most of our
landscape. Mining is a minor activity compared to agriculture, when it comes
to soil destruction. Bill Mollison from keynote presentation to
1997 IPC6 Permaculture conference in Austalia Our present agricultural scene
is a reflection of the belief that agribusiness practices are necessary to
feed everyone. This is a result of agribusiness lobbyists' successful work.
Considering our huge exports, I don't think there can be any question of feeding
ourselves for the indefinite future--but almost certainly present methods
are not sustainable, being based on oil. Then, if I may paraphrase Rob, the
big question is: could we feed ourselves using only what we organic growers
consider sustainable practices? News Article: Organic Farming Thrives in Europe The raised bed or growing bed is the basic unit of an intensive garden. A system of beds allows the gardener to concentrate soil preparation in small areas, resulting in efficient use of soil amendments and an ideal environment for vegetable growth. Beds are generally 3'-4' wide and as long as desired. The gardener works from either side of the bed, reducing the incidence of compaction caused by walking on the soil. Soil preparation is the key to successful intensive gardening. Plants compete for available water and nutrients, and an adequate supply must be provided for more closely spaced plantings. Applying extra synthetic fertilizers and irrigation will help, but there is no substitute for deep, fertile soil high in organic matter. Humus-rich soil will hold extra nutrients, and existing elements that are locked up in the soil are released by the actions of earthworms, microorganisms and acids present in a life-filled soil, making them more available for plant use. If your prepared soil is not deep, double-dig the beds for best results. Remove the top twelve inches of soil from the bed. Insert a spade or spading fork into the next 10"-12" of soil and wiggle the handle back and forth to break up compacted layers. Do this every 6"-8" in the bed. Mix the top soil with a generous amount of compost or manure, and return the mixture to the bed. It should be somewhat fluffy and may be raised a bit. To create a true raised bed, take topsoil from the neighboring pathways and mix it in as well. This type of soil preparation is a lot of work. Try it in one or two beds for some of your more valuable plants; if you like the results, you can proceed to other beds as you have time. One nice thing about raised-bed gardening is that it breaks the work into units. Instead of gazing desperately at a garden full of weeds, thinking you'll never have time to clean it up, you can look at each bed and say, "I can do that in half an hour today!" Other chores are accomplished with the same ease. By their nature, raised beds are a form of wide-bed gardening, a technique by which seeds and transplants are planted in wide bands of several rows or broadcast in a wide strip. In general, the goal is to space plants at equal distances from each other on all sides, such that leaves will touch at maturity. This saves space, and the close plantings reduce moisture loss from surrounding soil.Virginia Cooperative Extension http://www.ext.vt.edu/pubs/envirohort/426-335/426-335.html |
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