Write a Book, in what time and how?

[Stevie342000]

Thanks Charles, with all the projects that we are involved in besides the allotment not sure that there would be enough time to right a book. Beyond writing it where do you start with getting it published.

Apart from which do we need another one on growing and concepts that we perceive as new which in fact are not, raising awareness that working the soil in a more naturalistic way, whilst protecting biodiversity by minimal use of chemicals or choosing plant species according to your area in the country or protecting heritage seeds with a mix or modern blends. They all have their place perhaps this is an area that could do with further research and publication.

As for ponds it is not about the frogs or the toads, it is about the food chains and webs that that allows to develop in the area that you are growing in. Stronger more diverse food chains and webs means in the longer term that there are more predators, succession will ensure over time that there will be a top predator. Which in the longer term is good for the environment and your growing of food stuffs.

Growing fruit, vegetables and flowers for the home is about more than just the growing if we are to succeed in ensuring that our food is free from chemicals by growing it ourselves the environment needs to be protected in that process.

Back to the plot, the marestail is not near to the edges it is in patches across the plot there is not a particular lot of it, when you consider the size of the plot which is 82′ x 32′ or so about a square foot tightly packed would be about right. I heard the only thing to do is too keep hacking away at it and it will eventually give up the ghost. The roots go down to hades or 2 metres or more, so are very difficult to remove, this of course goes against the no dig policy as well.

Turning over of soil by digging destroys the horizons within the soils which form naturally, which is what the No Digging is about, it is about returning the soil back to nature and letting nature do the digging for you, whether that be at the micro, meso or macrophyte level. The soil is a living organism, there are complex relationships between plants, their roots, and organisms that live in the soil. It’s like yoghurt it is a living culture, so digging it breaks up that culture.

As for seeds, a mixture of hybrid and heritage is the way to go for me, a lot of F1 species such as Tomato Inca F1 are designed to be used outside, which is a plus point, as it frees up greenhouse space. Especially for other species from the tomato family i.e. Aubergines, Peppers etc.

As for slugs they should reduce over the next year due to the clearance, so much of what you do in growing is common sense, if there are less or no weeds or places for them to hide then they will be no food. Of course there is no food for them so that controls numbers as well.

The reason for companion planting flowers, fruit and vegetables for me is one of that is how it would be in nature but in a managed way. What you are trying to achieve is a variety of foods for different invertebrates. The pond for me is there to encourage damsel and dragonflies, what is nicer than to be sat under the shade of the tree, with a steak on the grill and to see such sights as you sit reading a book on your bench? The mixing of fruit trees/bushes, vegetables and flowers in the same space is the way it would have been done in the days before mechanisation, which is what Larkrise to Candleford is about if you look hard enough or Cranford.

The idea is to encourage more invertebrates such as hoverflies, butterflies and other creepy crawlies is to have a refuge one which pollinates your plants and in turn is aesthetically and visually pleasing to the eye.

Should plots be left bare in winter? Not for me they should be productive all year round we are not in farming; a mistake many make with their regimented rows. Square foot planting is an interesting concept, in a square foot you could for instance plant 4 lettuces inter-planted with 16 radishes or 1 cabbage and 4 lettuces.

Not forgetting green manures which play a role in fixing nutrients, nitrogen is water soluble and will leach out of the soil, hence my concerns of bare soil, look at grass it is lush and green most of the year but yellowing in spring. Why? partly due to lower light levels or being covered with snow but mostly due to the leaching of nitrogen and the inability of symbiotic bacteria/fungi not being able to fix nitrogen for the grass, ergo yellow grass.

Of course it is all about how much do you want to grow, how much can you store, how do you store you produce? There are older methods, such as a cool shed or cellar for the roots and fruits which store such as carrots, potatoes, apples and pears. Then there are chutneys, pickles, jams and other preserves and lets not forget drying and freezing.

There are varieties which can be grown all year round, the lunar calendar does play a role in when you plant, from a scientific standpoint, if a crop has a high water content it then follows that that will be influenced by the moon, if the latter can influence the tides it then follows that it will affect crops.

Another reason for me to grow flowers as well is for the herbal remedies that can be concocted from these, as in James Wong, some of those receipts are old not knew. Is there nothing new under the sun or are we just re-inventing the wheel?

For me it is about getting back to nature but in doing that it is not necessarily associated with the yoghurt weaving or living in a yhert, nor is it hippy dippy green movement who in general mostly alienate a whole section of society. Sustainability is not just about cutting consumerism, it is economic and political but the other aspect is not it the right thing to be doing, we are very wasteful and we have finite resources.

Well that is chapter two finished, never did do short always did long and I think you will find I have used exactly the right amount of words to say what I needed to say.