RE: potato update (end of may)

You are viewing a single comment's thread from:

RE: potato update (end of may)

felixxx in #garden • 10 months ago

I just couldn't get over your statement, that plants NEED mulch and untilled soil. How come 80% of the veg sold here in DE are out of dutch hydroponic farms? They don't even have soil.

Anyways thanks for the reply.
There are no pests here.
I have a lot of cockchafer larvae (which are kinda dying out, so I am not actively going after them) and voles (which I hate and they built an extensive tunnel network over the whole patch due to me NOT tilling)

Voles are the nemesis.
They ate ALL my peas.
They killed 5-6 fruit trees (Which was painfully expensive)
One day, I caught 10 in traps. Until I caught a dormouse, which I like a lot and I gave up trapping.

So, as I was trying to express in my post about my mulching problems: Tilling is the best method for my context.

10 months ago in #garden by felixxx

0.00 FOODIE

1 vote

Sort:

Trending

[-]

goldenoakfarm 10 months ago

It all depends on what you grow food for. Plants, like all living things need biology and nutrition for health. Soil left with the biology allows the plants to reach higher levels of health, thereby resisting diseases and pests without help. The higher the level of health in the plants you eat, the more nutrition you get, of a higher quality.

Plants can be grown in all kinds of mediums, but how high is the Brix measurement of nutrition in them? Over here there is a BIG division over hydroponics and organically grown food.

I agree that mulch has its problems. Last year the voles ate all the pea seedlings, twice. That's the very first time since 1998 that I've had that problem. But using cover crops for mulch is a better way of preserving soil health, but is more labor intensive than I can manage, so I use a lesser method, mulch.

We each use the system that works for us in the long haul, one that will preserve and increase the soil over time.

0.00 FOODIE

[-]

goldenoakfarm 10 months ago

As I reread your post, you said you caught the voles in traps. I'd not come across vole traps over here... Is there a link on them?

0.00 FOODIE

[-]

felixxx 8 months ago

Just found this and had to think of you

It's in German, but I don't understand much. Heavy accent.
Anyways, this guy was full-time vole catching.

0.00 FOODIE

1 vote

[-]

goldenoakfarm 8 months ago

I'm thinking I need greater fire power atm, as something is wrecking havok in the Small garden and I think it's larger than a vole by a good amount...

0.00 FOODIE

[-]

felixxx 8 months ago

Not very familiar with the American fauna... hope it's not a grizzly :P

I wasn't exaggerating: One year they ate all pea shoots (I planted like handfuls of it as cover crops) and killed 8/10 fruit trees.
In total biomass, I might have as well fed a goat from that.

I just stick to what works: they don't eat the herbs or poatatos, so that's what I grow now.

0.00 FOODIE

1 vote

[-]

felixxx 10 months ago (edited)

https://www.bauhaus.ch/de/p/swissinno-supercat-wuehlmausfalle-20064536

I got something like this.
If you buy something like it, I recommend, you also buy their special tool to stamp out the hole it goes into.

It works great, I just ended up killing the wrong animal :(

edit:

It's also worth noting that some people say trapping will make them breed more. Can't really confirm, but sounds plausible...

0.00 FOODIE

1 vote

[-]

goldenoakfarm 10 months ago

Thank you!

0.00 FOODIE

[-]

goldenoakfarm 10 months ago

I found it on e-bay:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/235534449712?chn=ps&mkevt=1&mkcid=28&com_cvv=8fb3d522dc163aeadb66e08cd7450cbbdddc64c6cf2e8891f6d48747c6d56d2c

I also found the tool on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/SWISSINNO-SuperCat-Tunnel-locating-Serrated-edge-Reusable/dp/B000PKII2M/ref=asc_df_B000PKII2M/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=693713553304&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=3981796595421926247&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9001656&hvtargid=pla-385656999258&mcid=2fa7c88c4908334b810456fc3651d2a4&gad_source=1&th=1

Thanks again for the info!

0.00 FOODIE

[-]

goldenoakfarm 10 months ago

Yes, lower population = higher litter rates due to better food sources...

0.00 FOODIE