Easy Composting Method The Best Time To Start Is Now!

Every year I see people burning and bagging leaves, are you one of those people? If so check out this easy and basic process for composting that we have found to work very well.

We stopped giving away our free fertilizer a few years ago and we will never turn back. We now do not throw away any organic material from our yard or kitchen unless it is somehow toxic or gone really, really bad. All of our leaves, sticks, sawdust, chicken manure, food scraps, cardboard, compostable paper products, and much more all end up being processed right back into our garden beds. Is there any other way? I cant imagine going out to the store and buying fertilizers and compost that some company is selling back to the same people that left their yard waste at the curb, doesnt that seem silly?



There are many resources out there on what you should compost and how much of each type of item to put in the pile or bin or whatever you have setup. I go with a simple and very general rule of thumb. We add about 75% carbon material (leaves, saw dust, cardboard, paper, wood chips, etc.). This is the base to any good compost and handily this also makes up the majority of most peoples yard waste (remember that giant pile of leaves you had to rack up last year?). The next ingredient is nitrogen materials (chicken manure, vegetables, plant materials, last years jack-o-lanterns, and all of our kitchen waste). Just to be clear you cannot add any leftovers or meat products to your compost, only things that at one time grew from the ground in some way.

Now that you have all those goodies mixed together the only thing left to do is to wait and turn it over as much as you can remember. I mix mine up about once per week. This allows air to get into the pile and for the bacteria to get to work doing their thing. Many people suggest watering the pile as well but up here in Michigan I would not do that unless it was a drought. I might pour a bucket of nitrogen rich aquaponics water on it if that was needed.

We have found the best way to get started and make sure that our lazy genes dont take over is to keep a small container on the counter in your kitchen for scraps and one just outside your door to move them into every day or two. We use an old mixing bowl inside and an old trash can outside. Once per week or so I take the trash can back to the "pile" and dump it and stir it up with a pitchfork.

If things go well and the pile gets cooking you should be cooked down to useable soil in about 60 days or so depending on your weather. This soil has everything that your plants, flowers, vegetables, or anything else needs to grow. If you do this right you should not need to buy soil, compost, manure, or fertilizers for your garden.

I hope this encourages someone to get started and save some food scraps from ending up in a landfill for goodness sakes!


~The SSL Family Dad

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Starting Seeds on a Budget Start Your Garden Without Buying Supplies

Are you looking to start or expand your garden this year? Lets go down the check list of things we might need - potting soil, seed plugs, seed trays, grow lights, compost, peat, vermiculite, fertilizer, manure, pest sprays, raised bed kits, trellis, tomato cages, and on and on....... I remember the first time we decided to have a small garden in one of your flower beds. We started at the store buying seeds and dirt and all of the things we thought we would need and spent about $100. That year we barely had anything grow and forgot to have someone water while we were on vacation. Not a great first experience but we were determined to start again.

In our new home a few years ago we decided we were going to go big and year after year we are adding more and more to our garden. But we arent huge fans of spending $10 in supplies to get $5 worth of vegetables, anyone else feel like that when you are starting out? Yes, over time you get things that you can use over and over each year thus making it more and more worth while. But what about now, do we really need all of this stuff to get a garden going?



In my opinion most people (including us) spend way more than they need on gardening supplies and then are disappointed at the results their first couple of years. It does take time to get the soil just right, it takes time to learn what works best and when to plant and harvest. Gardening is not something that you can just go out and throw some seeds in the ground and have an awesome garden your first year. It takes time and in some cases a small amount of money. I have found that you have a choice in many cases, time or money.

We are expanding our gardens over time as to lessen the impact on our wallets and allow us time to develop good soil as we expand. We have also learned that while we are not going to win any awards for the prettiest seed starting operation you can get started with little to no money invested at all.

We started saving any containers with clear plastic lids last year and have saved up quite a few of them by now (probably more than we need!) These make the perfect tiny greenhouse seed starting containers. Instead of buying a heating pad and seed starting trays just use the things you already have. We have found these to be the fastest way to get your seeds started! This year in fact most of our seeds were already popping through the soil in the first 48 hours.

The next thing you need to get your seeds started is soil, there are a lot of different ideas with what works best here but again I just use what I have to get going. Last year we made a mix for our square foot gardens of our compost, vermiculite, and peat. I grabbed a bin full of this soil and brought it in as soon as it was no longer frozen. I sifted through and got out any large pieces (leafs, sticks, etc.) and then filled my containers. The only down side to using this type of soil is that you might also germinate a few blades of grass or something from last years planting so just be carful and pay attention to what sprouts. If one of these things is not like the other, pull it out.

Seeds are pretty easy to come by and dont be fooled by expiration dates on those seed packages. With proper care there is no real expiration to most seeds. Germination rates might be lower after a few years but I wouldnt worry too much about that. Look for seeds during the off season in the fall or winter. Most stores have clearance sales at this time and you can get your seeds for as much as 75% off. You can also save seeds from your plants year after year. This is a skill I have not yet mastered but will be trying some of this year.

There are many ways to save money on gardening supplies and still have great results. We are all tempted to go out and buy all the best stuff, shovels, and rototillers, etc. But that is mostly not needed. Check a garage sale this spring and you will likely find all kinds of gardening tools for dirt cheap:)

I hope that this has inspired you to get started or add on to your garden this year. Follow along for more tips and tricks this coming spring and summer and lets all try to feed our families a little more from our garden each year.

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Why You Should and Can Start an Orchard Today!

Want to produce some of your own fruit? Landscaping projects coming up? Check out this video to see how we have been able to get the absolute best prices on fruit and other trees for our small homestead.

One of the most satisfying things that we do around our little piece of the world is planting trees, gardens, and just about anything that grows. But, as most of you already know, this can get to be an expensive habit! Trees take time to grow and so do garden vegetables so many times it is tempting to run out and get bigger trees and plants that already have a growing head start. While there is nothing wrong with this approach it can take a bit more of an initial investment which means it take you longer to recoup your money from your home grown food. So what is the answer?

When we first moved into this home we discovered that spring and fall time sales are one of the best places to get discounted trees. Normally at the far end of the growing season and at the very early beginning. Our local big box stores generally start 20% off sales in early April and late October. If you keep checking and time it just right you can get what they have left for 50% or more off. While this leaves less of a selection if you just get a couple each year you can grow your orchards bit by bit over time and end up with all of the varieties that you need.

One of the more recent discoveries we made for cheap trees was our local conservation offices. Here in Michigan each county has a local conservation district office which is responsible for conservation activities in a local area. One of the programs that they have is an outreach to encourage planting trees which also serves as a fund raiser for the program. Each year in January-March you can go online and fill out a form to purchase all kinds of different trees, bushes, flowers, and other types of horticultural surprises. Each district will have different prices and different products so check around your local communities for what you need and the best price. The fruit trees we purchased were about 4-5 tall and cost $19 each. We also purchased 5 Norway spruce for $5 each. These were about 18" tall and all trees came bare root and ready to plant. Comparable to regular prices at the big box stores this was about 50% off.

Another fun and free way we have tried to get our orchards started was simply by planting seeds. We have saved some apple seed from locally grown apples and planted them indoors during Winter. By the time spring comes around you have a 12" or larger tree ready to plant. While this does take longer to get your orchard started this way it doesnt cost you a thing. Think back 5 years, what if you started the? You would already be harvesting fruit each year and the longer they are in your backyard the better it gets, year over year!

Growing your own food, especially fruiting trees, is one of the most satisfying things we have found. We love to plant and tend to the trees together as a family and love the delicious fruit we get each year. I hope this has given you some ideas or inspiration to get out and start planting some trees! The best time to plant a tree might have been last year but the next best time is right now!

Michigan Conservation offices - http://macd.org/local-districts.html

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Music - "Water in the Creek" by Josh Woodward. Free download: http://joshwoodward.com/song/WaterintheCreek

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