personal column

  From

Jules Dervaes

 For more than six months now, I have been a wild man planting, faced with having to make tomatoes while the summer sun shines.  As the seasonal heat cycles away, my tomato lust has not been satisfied.  I had great hopes for those plants. 

My expectations--they were reasonable--were to reap at least one ton of tomatoes of all colors and sizes.  But Nature spoke to me and said, "This is what you'll have."  I couldn't even negotiate.  Anyway, she broke the unhappy news to me gently; and I am, for that, grateful.

This year, just in case I had an el bombo summer harvest, I had devised a backup plan.  To this day I have continued to plant new tomatoes to replace those which have failed to make the grade.  This is due to my stubborn reluctance to throw in the trowel.

Since, as always, nature will have the last word, I fully expect one day to hear that voice, declaring, "No more!"  The way it should be.  Until then, just maybe I can yet sneak in a fall harvest, bringing in some extra tomatoes under the wire.

So now, I have been thinking more and more about the big picture (No, not Terminator 3!).  I am sick and tired of being sick and tired while viewing planet Earth go on its sick and tired way.

 FORGET MARS!  There is no news out there; in the world, national, state and local news, all that stuff has been said and done before.  We are sitting through the most senseless and stupid sequel.  On and on it goes. Can't we pull the plug on this junk?

If you missed it the first time, here it is again--what I am now referring to as the REAL Road Map to Peace.   Come on for crying out loud.  What do you say? Let's get on with journeying down the path! 

diy corner

In this issue...

Phantom Loads - Reducing Energy Consumptions - Savoring Heirloom Tomatoes - Sun/Oven Dried Tomatoes - Planning & Planting A Fall Garden - 4 Keys to Organic Garden Success - Urban Beekeeping - Rain Gardens - Let There Bee Light

  Interested in doing things yourself instead of relying on outside sources for basic necessities We are personally not as self-sufficient as we would like to be, but we believe that many are on  the same path, some further along than others. 

  We hope this newsletter will be a source of inspiration and information to those who want to break free from the modern, artificial environment and culture that we are captive of. 

 See you along the path...

Words of Wisdom

ramblings...

Sun 8/25

Warm days of the season are coming to

to a close and our summer garden has reached its peak.  We have fertilizing, mulching and watering to do for the fall plantings. As well as doing the tasks of harvesting veggies such as tomatoes, corn, pepper & beans; and cucumbers and squash to trellis and tend for disease.

    With the temperatures heating up, the use of more water, and the nightly mentions on the news of the "big blackout", we are turning our thoughts to how we can save more energy and resources.  And because certain harvests were erratic or non-existent, we have also re-awakened our passion of bees and pollination. So,  this issue of our newsletter will be a reflection of our thoughts.

    This season has been one filled with "failures", set-backs and some success.  Our experiment with growing mushrooms in the cellar looked to be promising at first and then just fizzled.  But even though it was a failure, we also see it as a valuable learning experience and we will try, try again.  As we forge ahead into new territory and areas, we will no doubt come face to face with our ignorance, inferiority and inadequacies.

    This Summer has been an exciting and humbling one. From all of us, we hope this Summer brings you bounty and joy in the garden.     Editor of PTF

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