Plans for season 2010

2009-10-26T12:09:00.000-07:00

I have decided to skip testing the "special" Steiner formulas containing stag bladders etc. and just test what is more down to earth,

microbes and compost tea
and still rather microscopic amounts of extracts of cedars, pines, cypress trees and plantains contained in HB-101 which, for what I have seen in my garden this year is nearly unbelievably impressive in its results.
I have made use of twin-n microbes fixing N within the plants and the results have been very impressive too. I will see if the microbes manage to survive the winter within the plants

I contemplate investing in a plastic backpack sprayer as my all bronze 100 year old one weighs about 8kg empty.

potato trials

2009-08-26T07:01:00.000-07:00

I have finished the harvest of my (not replicated etc. etc.) potato trials on my very poor loamy sand soil (high in Mg, a soil test of my garden will follow) that has been a little bit enhanced with hoof&horn and compost as well as insufficient amounts of P + K.

Without calculating it I can tell that the results are statistically significant and confirm the book that inspired me (and it is inspiring and a good read if you have a faible for books that actually contain information), which was written by L. Hills, Comfrey Past, Present and Future.

My potato trials included Rosara, Kestrel, Maris Peer they were planted in the first week of May. The (T) test row include a single leaf (as I had not more leafs ready) of comfrey Bocking14 directly below each seedpotato, the (C) control group received no leaf.

Rosara: fell first for stem rot end of June, I have not recorded details of the very poor harvest.

Kestrel: held out better to mid July, the size differences were huge,
max. weight C: 260g, T:450g with several potatoes weighing 350, 320, 300 etc.,
total weight C: 5460g, T: 5160g (but the rowlength - were the fork stands- was reduced by 20% due to intense shade of a neighbouring plant, thus a real total per rowlength would be c. 6400g)

Maris Peer: was most resilient to stem rot with little problems, they were harvested mid August,
max. weight C & T 310g,
total weight C:7690g, T: 9290g while size was not influenced with this cultivar the total weight differential is huge (more than 20%) with only one single leaf of comfrey as direct fertilizer!

My conclusion: Never set a seed potatoe without a leaf of comfrey below.

my small green world

Plans for season 2010

potato trials