Ulla Bisgaard

That would depend on the type you are looking for. Bunching and walking onions are pretty easy to find organic online. Organic onion seeds you can find at grow organic dot com

I have started using the Hinyoko in dishes, and it’s not too salty, like I first thought. We don’t add salt to the broth we make, so it works out perfectly.
I have used it in Asian style soups and for ramen. It adds the perfect Unami flavor to the dish.
To make a simple soup, I add hot chicken broth, Hinyoko and kimchi to a bowl. Season it with some coconut aminos, add two soft boiled cut eggs on top and top it off with some raw leeks or spring onions.
To make a ramen bowl, I add chicken broth to a pot and add ramen noodles when it boils. After about a minute I separated the noddle, add kimchi, Hinyoko and thin sliced vegetables to it. Once done I top it off with either a boiled egg or tamagoyaki. It’s a very healthy nutrient dish, that takes about 10 minutes to make.
The Tomagoyaki kan be made plain, sweet, with added vegetables or pickled ginger, which enables you to variate your food.

It’s good this thread got a boost. I had forgotten that I wrote here about a year ago. At the time, I wasn’t okay, but I want to say that now I am better. I still struggle, but therapy has and is helping a lot, and I have learned to slowly move on from grief and struggles.
One of the turning points, has been going back to teaching, in a way. Last fall I started giving tours of our small homestead. I am part of our local buy nothing group, and offered a gift of knowledge. It was a huge success, much bigger than I thought. People started asking for more tours and for smaller classes in food preservation.
Last year I had 10 people show up, this year over 30, some who sin’t  even in our buy nothing group, but had it recommended by neighbors. I have had to limit it to 4 tours, since I otherwise get too tired, since I also have to keep up with homestead chores. I find that teaching and connecting to people this way, really helps my mental health.
We also took in another feral, and he has attached himself to me. It made me realize how much I had missed having an animal companion.
Another thing we did, was also to finish my yoga and meditation area, and for me getting into the habit of having my morning coffee outside followed by yoga and meditation. One of the things I have worked on in therapy are being more mindful and expressive in my needs, instead of just giving in. Instead of sulking in the bedroom when my husband talked back making assumptions, I started correcting him and pointing out why I have the opinions I have. It has helped us communicate much better, not just with him,  but also with our adult children.
Sometimes, it can be hard opening up about things others have trouble understanding like what we believe in. I think the hardest thing is to be true to yourself.
So, my point is, that while I am not over my depression, I am slowly getting better. I have learned to stay true to myself and mindful about myself and others. There is a way out of depression and hard times, it’s not easy, but nothing worthwhile in life is. Each day I try to count my blessings. Finding things to be grateful for and happy about, and be open about my needs. I think that’s the way out of the darkness.

You know you are a permie, when you buy too many trees and/or plants, and think “maybe I can find room, if I build a hugel.

M.K. Dorje Sr. wrote: I'm not an expert, but I think pruning the sunburned leaves off your plants, putting the black pepper on trellis ropes and then putting a shade cloth over them is an excellent idea. You might give them a little bit of organic fertilizer, too.

We had similar problems with a nasty heat wave here in Oregon a few years ago. Some of my rhododendrons got scorched, so I pruned them back, mulched them more and now they're doing fine. I would have given them some more afternoon shade if I could have, but it was impractical.

I don't know anything about black peppers, but I do have some experience with tea plants. I know from experience that they prefer a semi-shaded area and don't like direct, hot sun all day long. So your plan makes excellent sense. Good luck and keep us updated!

Thank you so much. One of the tea plants looks okay and the black pepper has stated to set new leaves. The second tea plant has very few leaves left, but branches still look green, so there are hope still. I will prune it back. This was my own stupid fault. I thought we wouldn’t get that high temperatures yet, so I left them outside, even though we hadn’t finished building the trellis yet.
The last one, in that spot, was blown over when we had a storm, so we are building a stronger one.
I am trying to prove a point, with my garden design and methods. I want to prove, that with the exception of salt, it’s possible to grow and raise enough food, for a family, in a space smaller than most. We are able to grow food all year round, so that helps. I have 15 4’x8’ raised beds in the back with our animals. In the front I have a food forest garden, plus 4 more beds. I am currently building a small hugel in the FFG to increase planting space. The FFG is 3300 square feet.
Last year I past growing a metric ton aka 2206 pounds of produce, herbs and grains, but fell a little short of my million calories goal. My final goal is 2 million calories, since that will feed my husband and I, plus the last of our three kids, still living at home.
Anyway, that’s why I am growing coffee and tea. I also grow chicory as a coffee substitute, and many herbs and flowers for herbal teas. Last weekend we finished the shade cover for the coffee area, so I am hoping we can finish the one for pepper and tea, this weekend.

You know you are a permie, when you try to start a movement to reclassify Gophers from garden pest to garden necessity. It’s one of my apparent pet projects. Everyone wants to eliminate them, when they are essential to preventing California from becoming a desert. Once you learn how to handle them, in your growing space, they are fantastic helpers and allies in changing desert dirt to dark nutrient rich soil.

We had a flash heat last week, and it burned the tea plants and black pepper vines I had put outside, so I could plant them. I moved them into my indoor nursery for some TLC, hoping they can be saved.
At first I thought they were dead, but there are still some leaves that are okay, after the last three days.
My question is, Would it help or harm the plants, if I prune them? I was thinking that with pruning they might be also to bounce back better. Any advice are welcome. The plan is to grow them underneath a shaded trellis. Trellis ropes underneath a 50% shade cloth, so my black and long pepper can climb, and then plant my tea underneath it, so they get the shade they need.

Growing up, my parents relied heavily on salt preserved foods. When it was the legal season, my father and his friends, would do fishing and hunting. Most of the fish, would be stored in salt, in a large barrel. Salted pork that was lean, was used raw in sandwiches or cooked, after soaking for a while to remove some of the salt. Other pieces of meat, would first be salted and then smoked. This was the case for some of the fish as well.

Here is a few flower pictures. The forest garden are so wild and beautiful right now.

Timothy Norton wrote:Does anyone have any yearly maintenance they do for their plum trees? Perhaps add compost or certain nutrients?

My plan is to top dress around the drip line with compost on my trees and hope for the best.

Plum trees grow fast, so you need to be on top of your pruning. They will also give more fruit, if they are pruned. Other than that, I just add compost and mulch once a year, usually in fall.
Last year we didn’t get any prunes, instead the trees more than doubled in size. I pruned them during the cold season and this year, they are full of fruit.