VARRI GREEN FARM
GROWING IN HARMONY WITH NATURE


COMPOST AND SOIL STRUCTURE
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ANCIENT SHELLS PERCOLATE UP FROM THE GROUND, RICH WITH ORGANIC DECAY.  STONES, BONES, AND BITS OF THE PAST
ASSIST THE SLOW CONSTANT GRIND THAT MIXES 'THESE' NUTRIENTS WITH 'THOSE'.  SOIL IS THE VERY LIFE BASE NECESSARY
TO FACILITATE  HEALTHY PLANT GROWTH. A PLETHORA OF MICRO-BIOTIC LIFE, ORGANIC MATTER, AND MINERALS, SLOWLY
BREAK DOWN AND ADD FUEL TO THE SOIL THAT OUR PLANTS GROW IN. THE GROWTH AND FRUITING HABITS OF PLANTS BOTH DEPEND ON THE HEALTH OF THE MEDIUM THEY LIVE IN. BELOW, I HAVE POSTED SOME SAMPLES OF THE SOIL RIGHT HERE ON OUR FARM AND EXAMPLES OF  HOW WE UTILIZE THE VARIOUS TYPES OF SOIL, GREEN MANURES, MOSS AND OTHER AMENDMENTS THAT HELP US TO KEEP OUR GROWING SPACES HEALTHY AND ALIVE!
'FEED THE SOIL, NOT THE PLANT'.




ABOVE YOU'LL SEE OUR PLASTIC 55 GALLON DRUM BARRELS. THESE ARE RELATIVELY INEXPENSIVE AND MAKE EASY
COMPOST. SIMPLY PUT THEM ON THEIR SIDES AND ROLL THEM BACK AND FORTH (WITH LID ON OF COARSE).
THE BLUE BARREL HOLDS COMPOSTED RABBIT MANURE, THE ORANGE ONES HOLD COMPOSTED CHICKEN MANURE AND THE OVAL TIN BELOW IS COMPOSTED COW MANURE. COMPOST CAN BE CONSTRUCTED OF MANY DIFFERENT ORGANIC MATERIALS SUCH AS, KITCHEN SCRAPS, USED COFFEE GROUNDS, COLLECTED GRASS CLIPPINGS, OR ANY LIGHT YARD VEGETATION. THESE TYPE OF MATERIALS ARE CALLED GREEN MANURES. WE HAVE FOUND GREEN MANURES TO BE JUST AS EFFECTIVE AS ANIMAL
 MANURE. GREEN MANURES CAN BE ADDED AROUND THE PLANT OR TREE BASE AND WILL PREVENT WEED GROWTH, RETAIN MOISTURE IN THE SOIL, AND WILL EVENTUALLY BREAK DOWN INTO MICRO-NUTRIENTS THAT FEED THE ROOT SYSTEM.
MOST TREES ABSORB THEIR NUTRIENTS AND MINERALS WITHIN THE TOP SIX INCHES OF SOIL.



WE MIX VARIOUS MANURES WITH WORM CASTINGS, SAND, PEAT MOSS AND SOIL. DEPENDING ON WHAT WE'RE PLANTING. FOR EXAMPLE, CACTUS' PREFER STRAIGHT SAND. ACID LOVING PLANTS LIKE BLUEBERRIES REQUIRE CHOPPED OR GROUND PINE BARK, OR IN OUR CASE, PINE NEEDLES. THEY ARE BOTH USED IN THE SOIL AND AS MULCH. IF THE TREE OR PLANT REQUIRES AN ALKALINE SOIL THE SAME HYDRATED LIME WE USE FOR THE OUTHOUSE CAN BE MIXED IN THE SOIL TO BRING DOWN ITS 'PH'; WHICH BY THE WAY STANDS FOR 'POTENTIAL HYDROGEN'.  FREE WOOD CHIPS CAN BE DELIVERED SEVERAL TIMES A YEAR. WE ALLOW THE PILES TO BREAK DOWN FOR A FEW YEARS, AND THEN WE USE THE COMPOSTED WOOD IN OUR SOIL MIX. ALL COMPOST MUST BE TURNED TO GIVE AIR TO THE MIX AND HASTEN THE COMPOSTING ACTION. THE ORGANIC STANDARD WHEN USING ANIMAL MANURE, IS TO ALLOW YOUR PILE TO COMPOST FOR AT LEAST 120 DAYS BEFORE ANY FRUIT HARVEST. THAT COMPOST MUST THEN BE TURNED AT LEAST FIVE TIMES WITHIN THE 120 DAY PERIOD. I LET MY COMPOSTS SIT IN THEIR BARRELS FOR A LITTLE LONGER AND TURN THEM MUCH MORE FREQUENTLY, AS THIS HELPS BREAK DOWN THE LARGE CHUNKS IN THE BARRELS. HEAT IS USUALLY QUITE RELEVANT IN THE COMPOSTING PROCESS, ALTHOUGH WE HAVE ALL OUR BARRELS IN THE SHADE, THE PLANTS AND TREES STILL SEEM TO APPRECIATE WHAT LITTLE ANIMAL MANURE COMPOST I FEED THEM.



THE TILTH OF THE SOIL IS ALSO VERY IMPORTANT. IF THE SOIL IS TOO MUCKY, THEN YOU'LL GET A HIGHER FREQUENCY OF COMPACTION. IF IT'S ALL SAND, IT MAY NOT HOLD ENOUGH WATER OR ENOUGH NUTRIENTS TO FEED THE HOST PLANT FOR VERY LONG OR THROUGH PERIODS OF DROUGHT. COMPOST HELPS ARIATE COMPACTED SOILS, JUST AS A CLAY OR A MUCK ADDITION TO A SANDY SOIL MIX WILL HELP RETAIN WATER AND NUTRIENTS. THE PICTURE ON THE RIGHT ABOVE HAS AN EQUAL MIX OF ALL THESE INGREDIENTS WITH LOTS OF ORGANIC MATTER. TURNING IN EARTH, OR TILLING, BREAKS APART HARD COMPACTED SOIL FRAGMENTS AND CREATES AIR IN THE SOIL. EARTH WORMS SUCH AS NIGHT CRAWLERS OR RED WIGGLERS AS SHOWN BELOW ARE THE BEST FORM OF NATURAL TILLAGE. THEY ALSO ADD MICRO-NUTRIENTS TO THE SOIL AS THEY GO. MOSS'S LIKE THE ONE PICTURED BELOW ALSO ADD AIR AND ORGANIC MATERIAL, AS WELL AS THE NATURAL DECAY OF WEEDS; LEAVES, PLANTS, AND BUGS, THAT ONCE BROKEN DOWN, ALL BENEFIT THE HEALTH OF THE SOIL THAT OUR PLANTS THRIVE IN. WE ARE NOW CONSIDERING INTER-PLANTING BEAN COVER CROPS WITH PLANTS THAT WE KNOW WILL BE DEMOLISHED BY BUGS BECAUSE OF THEIR VORACIOUS APPETITES AND SMALL BELLIES, CHURNING OUT EXCREMENT AND BREAKING DOWN GREEN PLANT MANURE WITH RAPID PACE.  BUGS, THEIR WASTE, THE REMAINDER OF VEGETABLE MATERIAL, AND ADDED GREEN MANURES LIKE HAY OR GRASS CLIPPINGS ALL ADD TO THE SOIL, ONCE WE TILL IT IN.

  

IF YOU CONSIDER ALL YOUR OPTIONS, YOU MAY FIND VERY FEW LOGICAL REASONS TO USE SYNTHETIC FERTILIZERS LIKE
MIRACLE GROW, OR ANY GIVEN  #-#-#  BAG OF WHAT HAVE YOU, ESPECIALLY IF YOUR EATING WHAT YOU GROW. THE PROBLEM CAN ALSO BE NOTICED BY DISCONTINUED USE OF SYNTHETIC FERTILIZERS. THE PLANTS AND THE SOIL BECOME DEPENDENT UPON THEIR USE, AND WHEN NOT AVAILABLE, PLANT HEALTH SOON BEGINS TO DECLINE. ALSO, THE FARMER BECOMES DEPENDENT ON BUYING MORE AND MORE FERTILIZER. ORGANICALLY AMENDED AND ENRICHED SOIL HAS A SLOWER AND MORE NATURAL N-P-K (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium) BREAKDOWN, AND ACTUALLY CONTRIBUTES TO INCREASED MICROBIAL ACTION IN THE SOIL, MAKING A RICH SOIL BASE FOR NATURE'S FANTASTIC TILLING MACHINES, WORMS, WHOM WILL EVENTUALLY TAKE
THEIR RIGHTFUL PLACE, RULING THE FUTURE OF OUR PLANET.



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