Episode-838- Listener Calls for 2-10-12
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So it is Friday and we have some calls today on some great stuff. Today we hear about hugelkultur, layer gardening, 5.56 vs 223, fuel storage in IBC totes, repelling cats, protecting windows from burglars with edible plantings, Starbucks and the 2nd amendment, alternative energy and more.
Remember to be on a show like this one just pick up your phone and call 866-65-THINK. The best way to improve your chances of being on the air is ask your question or make your point up front, then provide details. Also call from a quite area with a good connection and speak up so you can be well heard. I can’t put all calls on the air but I do my best to get most of them on.
Join Us Today as we Discuss…
- You can now get to The Survival Podcast with by using tspc.co note not dot com, dot co
- Storing fuel in IBC Style totes
- Plantings that deter people from structures and produce something edible
- Thoughts on layer based gardening and using rotted hay and manure
- Keeping cats out of the garden
- The myth of privacy on the web, sort of
- Keeping cats out of a garden
- A reminder about Starbucks “2A for $2 Day” on Feb 14
- More on wood chips and hugelkultur
- Alternative energy in Main, a civics lesson
- 5.56 and 223 are not the same
- Using close cut stumps for hugelkultur
- Planting annuals when you have existing wood mulch on the ground
- A listener tells us about his first year of blogging
Additional Resources for Today’s Show
- Members Support Brigade
- TSP Gear Shop
- Join Our Forum
- Emergency Essentials – (sponsor of the day)
- Western Botanicals – (sponsor of the day)
- Article on Maine’s Alternative Energy Issue
- Cat vs. Motion Activated Sprinkler – Video
- 5.56 vs 223 Remington Information
- TraceMyPreps.com – Blog by the last caller today
Remember to comment, chime in and tell us your thoughts, this podcast is one man’s opinion, not a lecture or sermon. Also please enter our listener appreciation contest and help spread the word about our show. Also remember you can call in your questions and comments to 866-65-THINK and you might hear yourself on the air.
Planting aggressive shrubs to detain people from getting in your windows is a great idea. But what is your ESCAPE plan? What happens if you need to use one of those windows to escape your home when you have a million thorns waiting for you on the outside?
Throw a quilt or comforter over it. Also, if you’re desperate to get out, fire for example, thorns are the last thing you’re going to be worried about. What’s a couple of scrapes vs. being burned to death? It’s still a good way to keep the casual criminal from seeing your window as an easy target.
My point was to be prepared to exit that window need be. You are correct in that should the house be on fire you’re not going to care about thorns. However it would be wise to have something to help yourself past that situation. I’d hate to be tangled up in a thorn bush with flames heading my way. Nothing worse than being caught in the brier patch.
Not that this is directly related; I have been using 13 light bulbs in my kitchen dinning room 60-100W In winter when it is so dark I use 75-100w I really need the light. The heat that those bulbs put off allow me to keep the furnace turned down to 50-60. So yes I am paying higher price for light but more than saved that on the electric heat. So pay for light and the byproduct or waste if you will is very useful.
In summer I put in 60w bulbs and have them on a dimmer so that gives just enough heat to warm the hard chill off in the AM but does not increase any cooling that I may have. I live in SW WA so cooling is not a big issue.
This year we have put in a wood stove so I will be looking for an less expensive way to create an abundance of light. I know compacts won’t be an option. I would rather use 4′ tubes if florescence are use at all.
The garden of Eden is a great example of how to use wood chips. Watch it just get over the religious notes and focus on the gardening aspect if you need to. Tons of info and even better pictures.
Got a link for the garden of Eden vid? I’ve got a feeling that if i search garden of Eden in YouTube I’ll get a LOT of links.
Thanks!
http://www.backtoedenfilm.com you can buy the video or watch the full thing for free.
To speed up stump break down we use a small chain saw or saws all and cut a grid on top of the stump then covering with some manure and soil really speeds it up. Our stumps are doug fir 2′-6′ in diameter.
Re: the shrubs.. Murphy’s law of Combat
38. Make it too tough for the enemy to get in, and you won’t be able to get out.
Another barrier for under windows would be Hardy Orange
http://www.arhomeandgarden.org/plantoftheweek/articles/hardy_orange_2-9-07.htm
HO is cold hardy down to zone 5 in protected areas, is drought resistant, and long lived. The small oranges stay on into winter. They are edible….but….they are very seedy and sour. From the link I posted above: “What pulp is produced is exceedingly sour. Don Shadow, a nurseryman in Tennessee, has a recipe for poncirus-aide. Take a barrel of water, a barrel of sugar and add one sour fruit. The fruit can also be made into marmalade and the rinds candied. “
@Roundabouts is right on. I saw this done in Oklahoma where some loggers where clearing out cedars that were choking out the more desirable trees. They cut them down and cut a “tic-tac-toe” pattern in the remaining stump.
On our land, we’ve sped up the decay process of stumps by drilling holes and then pouring in a sugar source (like old syrup, plain sugar, even buttermilk..) to get the microbial action going and just put a thick layer of mulch and soil over it. It’s amazing how quickly this works and it’s a lot cheaper than hiring someone to come out and grind out the stumps!
This is Trace, from TraceMyPreps.com. Jack thanks so for answering my questions, that was exactly the information I needed. I’ve never called in before because I felt like most answers I could research myself; between Google and the TSP forum, most answers are out there. But these two were specific enough that I needed to go to you.
Also a big thanks for mentioning and linking to my blog. You were my motivation, my 3rd post was titled: ‘Finding Direction = TSP’ (http://tracemypreps.com/2011/09/19/finding-direction-tsp/). Your math was off a bit though, I’ve been blogging for 4 months and I’ve done over 60 posts, I blog three times every week (Mon, Wed, Fri) per your advice to post regularly and often! I’ve learned so much doing my blog, it’s really helped focus me in developing my preps, and the community I’m developing is amazing. Also thank you for your 5 Min w Jack, I knew nothing when I started and that’s helped so much.
@Trace I thought you said a year ago in your call? If you are nailing it 3+ times a week that is awesome.
For anyone looking at rural land in Maine, the more dug-in term for people further south is Flatlanders. If you are looking in NH, the term Masshole is well-rooted.
Talking about internet privacy there is TOR and TAILS. TOR is an anonymity setup and TAILS is a TOR setup programmed onto a flashdrive so you can use it anywhere. Also, with TAILS, it has true amnesiac features. That means that it doesn’t save any information after you’re finished and the computer you used doesn’t have the information either. Just do a quick search and you can find them. Just be careful. It is possible to find a program that is already compromised.
Thanks for everything, Jack.
Congrats Trace. Good luck with the site
I love the video on keeping cats out of your garden/yard.