We had a brief discussion last week or so talking about swales with mosquitoes and keyline plowing. Mosquitoes can be a real issue if the swale holds water for more than a few hours although its purpose is to slow water enough to let it sink in without pooling. Keyline plowing is a strategy although might not be the best option for smaller properties. Each strategy has its pros and cons... I added some files in our permaculture section that explains each strategy for both the small and large property. https://www.skool.com/oasis-builders-8012/classroom/f85f59fa?md=4383e4495b74474b86be3c0b20b448e2 Please let me know if I need to add more info or change anything. Thank you

I ran my notes through Notebook LM for the planning stages and seems fairly clear as a path forward. I think us looking at a 14 day calendar together might be the way to go. I am going to try to post 14 day plan every 14 days. We can all journal and experiment together. It just might be me, but I have some of the strongest tomato starts I think I have ever had. I picked a 3 days fruiting period in February and sowed the seed on the middle day. I am going to transplant today and tomorrow. On the calendar tomorrow is a single strong transplant day... I will mark my cups with todays day and tomorrows date just to see if there is a difference. And it may just be the plant, but if you look at the plants along side, they are leaf plants, healthy but no the growth I see in the fruit plant. February 21 was a Leaf/Fruit day, February 22 was a Flower/Fruit day and February 23 was a Root/Fruit day... these were planted February 22. I also participated in a zone 3 group discussion on the biodynamic calendar found here https://www.skool.com/oasis-builders-8012/classroom/f85f59fa?md=8a76d88605134baba84da1bc305e5cb1

Last year I checked the soil layers in my front in ground beds and found that I had 65% sand, 30% silt, and 5% clay out there. I had already worked in some coco coir and compost at the time, but I worked in more compost at the end of last summer and I put out a cover crop (peas, oats, and crimson clover) that did quite well, especially the clover. After I chopped up the cover crop, I took another soil sample and checked the layers again. I'm happy to report that I now have 40% sand, 49% silt, and 11% clay! I left the chopped up cover crop in place and top dressed with fresh compost and mulch and will be spreading more medicinal flower seeds out there in the next few weeks. Last fall, I scattered a bunch of seeds that do best if they are cold stratified. I figured I'd let mother nature do it for me. I can't wait to see how it does! The first two pictures are before I chopped the cover crop up. The brown stuff in the center of the first picture is one of my lemongrass plants that should start putting out new shoots soon. The last two pictures are after I top dressed the beds. My rosemary bush is as the end of the long bed and my prickly pear cactus along with a few perennials are in the smaller bed that is close to the driveway. The red bucket is a feeding station for my livestock (red wiggler worms).

While the weather is good and it's not too dry l'm making a new addition to the propagation arsenal. It should be ideally sited in a moist semi shaded area, perhaps at the edge of a tree line. Step 1. Mark the bed and clear off the turf to the edge. Step 2. Broadfork in two directions and add compost and sharp sand ( if it needs drainage) Step 3. Leave a day or so to dry, then make a tilth with a clod breaker or rake. Step 4. Mulch with fine compost, wood chip or leaf mold. The bed is then ready for when you find cutting stock or perennial divisions, and if you're given plants or tree seeds. It is a safe place to keep plant material and young plants until you're ready to find them permanent homes .

Going through and sorting and planting a bit tonight