Skyepony's WunderBlog

They liked me, they really really liked me.

Aqua, where are you now with that beautiful horse???

Are you at Skye's????

Beautiful Saturday evening, hi Skye and all!

Splash - About the bananas, I probably do not have much better results than yours. A lot is in the seasonal conditions and probably more is in the breeding, for example the Blue Java Cavendish type yields better than the common little finger Cavendish that I mostly have. Pile on the compost, bananas love rich soil and humus. You'll get two kinds of babies: spiky leafed and big-leafed. The spiky-leafed ones are the keepers...they have a better connection to the mother so less need for photosynthesis initially. Big-leafed babies are better for giving away since they are more independent. Keep each banana clump down to three or two mothers at most. Shelter from the wind helps alot, and plenty of water. Grouping multiple clumps of different varieties together helps with wind shelter. I've seen bananas growing ditch-side with their roots immersed, although that is not ideal.

Watch out for salty well-water...it is a growing problem that is only getting much worse, especially when the St. Johns Water District hacks give our water rights away to big corporate water. It is the public's aquifer, it belongs to us all! For example, see:
http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/news_local_names blog/2011/04/water-districts-conservation-lectures -all-bottled-up.html

(edited Sunday morning: noticed that the link above does not work. Just google the phrase

districts-conservation-lectures-all-bottled

if you want to read the article.)

Phish fans, here is a link that you may like, surprised if you don't know this site already (or similar...)Phish on bt.etree:

http://bt.etree.org/?searchss=&cat=5

Just cut'n'paste the line above into your browser (it is safe...etree has been around since the late 1990's in its several evolving forms)

Sunday morning comin' down, have a good one!

P.S. A good link on bananas from UFL IFAS EDIS:
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/mg040

deleted

For another story on the St. Johns WD, google:

st-johns-water-district-sells-us

Thanks skye and guygee!

I have the bananas planted at the edge of the wetlands. Started with 2 plants in 1990 and now we have about 20. they are clumped together probably cover an area of about 20ft wide and 5 -6ft deep into the wetlands. So far our biggest problems have been the winds. They break the stalks, we have two stalks propped up now trying to hang on long enough for the nanners to ripen. I will try to spread them out by weeding them out a little and see if that helps. They are pretty much growing in/ rooted in muck not sure how much they need fertilizer!

Thank you for the links Guygee!

Hey Skye,

Quick post before I head out for a bit - chores!

Saw this & thought it might interest you. Its sad really & I'm beginning to wonder if its a Catch 22 situation! Solar Panels are great, but the pollution produced not great...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-1496 3354

Spash ... not sure if fertilizing would be a good ideal ... they would grow taller causing even more breakage of the tops ... Good luck !

Skye ... nice catch on the TRMM !!!

Gloomy day here ... light showers and a cool wind with a temperature of 67 degrees ... Fall is here !

Quoting splash3392:
Thanks skye and guygee!

I have the bananas planted at the edge of the wetlands. Started with 2 plants in 1990 and now we have about 20. they are clumped together probably cover an area of about 20ft wide and 5 -6ft deep into the wetlands. So far our biggest problems have been the winds. They break the stalks, we have two stalks propped up now trying to hang on long enough for the nanners to ripen. I will try to spread them out by weeding them out a little and see if that helps. They are pretty much growing in/ rooted in muck not sure how much they need fertilizer!

Nice blog, Skye!

About Bananas.
The plants dont really like to be close together.
Ideally, remove the small "suckers" that spring up around the mother plant regularly.
A spade works for this, just drive the spade in between the mother and the offspring.
The sucker will be able to come out with a good pull if you loosen the earth around it.
Plant the sucker for the next crop. Plant sucker 6-8" deep, and mound with mulch around it.
They dont like to be too wet when they are small. But dry is worse!

Banana plants produce fruit after about 18 months, then when you harvest you need to cut the plant down low.
Use the cut-up stalk and the leaves for mulching around other plants.
The stalk and leaves have ALL the nutrient that the plants need, and is the best fertilizer.
It is not a good idea to leave the stool to regenerate if you want good fruit. Remove the suckers and replant 3' feet away.

A "stand" of bananas is pretty, but for good fruit, plant some suckers where you can keep the weeds away and look after them.
Wind is indeed a problem, which is why Trop. Storms are so hated in the West Indies.
But plants can be propped-up with anything (Bamboo nearby?).

Good luck. Hope this helps.
Nothing is like a Banana that has not been Chemically ripened in the Plantations.....(which all store-bought bananas are)

"The Best Fertilizer is the Footprint of the Gardener" said some Wise Old Soul!

Quoting Skyepony:

That tape tree I've played on since the early 90s when we managed to find send & copy without the internet.. .
.

How true, Skye! Many would contend that bittorrent has taken all of the fun out of music trading. For my part, I still participate in old-fashioned mail vines on a semi-regular basis.

Morning Pottery, Thanks for the info. I think cutting the suckers is a great idea. I love the bananas fresh from the tree also. We dehydrate for chips, and freeze remainder for banana nut bread, but only after we've eaten our fill. We cut two stalks yesterday and have three more growing. End of the week we should have fresh nanners to eat!

Hope all is well down there looks like you could possibly get some storms coming your way.

Skye

Want you to know I really appreciate the planting info. Life is finally slowing down a little and I'll be home to tend a garden! Yeah! I have mostly herbs now because they take less time and attendance. I'm originally from midwest so your planting calendar is superb! Thank You!

Good morning!

Interesting to read about the bananas. We've had them for as long as I can remember. Don't do much to them except prop them up when the fruit starts getting heavy.

Another thing I use them for wrapping fish in the leaves to cook on the BBQ. Keeps it nice and moist, never sticks to the grate, and impresses the guests.

Speaking of Pottery...make sure you get over to my blog, circa post 72 and check out the pics of his newborn grand daughter.

Have a great day!

Skye ... we'll be sending you cooler temperatures before you know it ... and if remains on the below normal side it will be sooner then you think ...

Really think it will be a winter with a couple of bouts of -10 degrees or cooler ... the last couple of years we have only made it below zero a few times and then not far below ...

Its 62ºhere at 1:30, a gloomy day after the rain moved out earlier ...

Quoting Skyepony:
99L is gone..

Rob~ Thanks for spreading the good news! Congrats Pottery!

Wab~ You keep those cool temps & send that rain!

Little farm news from you neck o the wood..

Monsanto's Corn Is Toppling Over
"As the summer growing season draws to a close, 2011 is emerging as the year of the superinsect - the year pests officially developed resistance to Monsanto's genetically engineered (ostensibly) bug-killing corn.

"In late July scientists in Iowa documented the existence of corn rootworms (a ravenous pest that attacks the roots of corn plants) that can happily devour corn plants that were genetically tweaked specifically to kill them. Monsanto's corn, engineered to express a toxic gene from a bacterial insecticide called Bt, now accounts for 65 percent of the corn planted in the US.

"The superinsect scourge has also arisen in Illinois and Minnesota.

"'Monsanto's insect-killing corn is toppling over in northwestern Illinois fields, a sign that rootworms outside of Iowa may have developed resistance to the genetically modified crop,' reports Bloomberg. In southern Minnesota, adds Minnesota Public Radio, an entomologist has found corn rootworms thriving, Bt corn plants drooping, in fields.

"[A] 2008 study, conducted by University of Missouri researchers and published by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that within three generations, rootworms munching Monsanto's Bt corn survived at the same rate as rootworms munching pesticide-free corn-meaning that complete resistance had been achieved. Takeaway message: rootworms are capable of evolving resistance to Monsanto's corn in 'rapid' fashion."

- "Monsanto Denies Superinsect Science," by Tom Philpott, Mother Jones, September 8, 2011

Thanks for the 'congrats', Skye.
Momma and Small Person are home and doing Good.

Re: Monsanto and the bugs...
Genetic plant modification is taking us all very close to a tipping-point in terms of Global Famine....
As we eliminate species-variation and concentrate upon single-specie foods, we are risking losing all of our grains.

This is a bigger threat than most people are aware of.
Staples like rice and corn in particular have been the worst affected, having been reduced from hundreds of species to a couple, in short time.
Without variation, any disease that gets the upper hand in these almost Mono-Crops now could eliminate the entire Global crop.....
And we have nothing to replant with.

Scary thought.
Sorry!

Good morning all!

Pottery you are so right about our grains. We're going genetically engineer ourselves out of existence! Time for coffee! Looked at 98l and she has a long way to go. Her pieces parts all over the place.

Congrats on the grand baby Pottery. I have 4, 6 - 14yrs old and just love them!

Skye, everyone have a great day!

Pottery you are spot on regarding monoculture industrial farming...it is leading to disaster. Besides crop yield/pure profit other variables in the cost function that measures the success of agriculture should be soil gained or lost, robustness to disease, flood or drought, and adaptability to changing conditions. Instead, the tendency is for short-term profit to rule and trump any hope of sustainability. I think it is worthwhile studying the homesteads of third-world sustenance farmers to see what methods of multi-cropping they have developed, and try to improve from there by dropping cultural food prejudices and experimenting with different plant guilds.

Constant stream of trucks carrying the yellow gold ... Harvest in full swing now !!!

75 degrees very pleasant here at 3 ...

Quoting whitewabit:
Constant stream of trucks carrying the yellow gold ... Harvest in full swing now !!!

75 degrees very pleasant here at 3 ...

Wondering what is the equivalent in black gold? Will the crude still flow the same for your children and their children?

Quoting guygee:
Pottery you are spot on regarding monoculture industrial farming...it is leading to disaster. Besides crop yield/pure profit other variables in the cost function that measures the success of agriculture should be soil gained or lost, robustness to disease, flood or drought, and adaptability to changing conditions. Instead, the tendency is for short-term profit to rule and trump any hope of sustainability. I think it is worthwhile studying the homesteads of third-world sustenance farmers to see what methods of multi-cropping they have developed, and try to improve from there by dropping cultural food prejudices and experimenting with different plant guilds.

Excellent book on the subject, studies, and end results from Bountiful Gardens, called "How to grow more vegetables(in less space) than you ever dreamed possible"

Not just a how-to book, but MAN it covers everything. Beautifully diagrammed chapter that covers planting by the moon, and why it works. Also seed planting minimum distance, two to five year plans on growing, soil rebuilding, companion planting, excellent water conservation, just EVERYTHING from info gathered worldwide on successful sustainable gardening in even the worst of conditions.

Quoting aquak9:

Excellent book on the subject, studies, and end results from Bountiful Gardens, called "How to grow more vegetables(in less space) than you ever dreamed possible"

Not just a how-to book, but MAN it covers everything. Beautifully diagrammed chapter that covers planting by the moon, and why it works. Also seed planting minimum distance, two to five year plans on growing, soil rebuilding, companion planting, excellent water conservation, just EVERYTHING from info gathered worldwide on successful sustainable gardening in even the worst of conditions.

Thank you for the advice aquak9, is this the book you are recommending(?):
How To Grow More Vegetables - By John Jeavons

http://www.bountifulgardens.org/prodinfo.asp?numb er=BEA-0300/
?
I am in the middle of several experiments, my main goal initially is to establish an upper canopy of fruits, legumes and nuts. I want to see how far I can go in supporting myself off of my rather meager land holdings, and right now I am more "snacking off of the land" than actually coming close to living off of it. I still have a completely open mind regarding most of my plans at this time, so now is the right time for some good instruction from others before I get committed to that which cannot be undone. Assuming that the book above is the book you are recommending, I will get myself a copy and get back to you once I can do some reading.
Thank you, and good night to all.