Liam is to smart, informed and talented to be so young & still not convinced he's not decades older!
To your wife.. big box seeds, soil and fertilizers too often have toxic ingredients.. your soil feeds your food and better to have your own compost to enrich your soil. For seeds you should go with heirloom varieties that are better suited to your growing conditions and investigate easy pest control methods like sprinkling black pepper around the plants. Seed Savers Exchange is the oldest and one I used for ages.. their free catalog is amazing.. forget the big box stores & chemically treated seeds & soil!
Coooool do you also get the baker creek /rare seeds catalog? I always love getting that catalog. This year I got some stunning gaillardia and rudbeckia flower seeds
I FEEL THAT. What are your recommendations? I got a bunch of radishes from them and it was really fun planting and then harvesting all the different colors with my preschooler. Eating them was a little less fun for her but they're not bad pickled
We do the spoon tomatoes because they never get bigger than my index tomatoes. My 9 yo loves them because they’re cute and delicious. I also love the Chinese five color peppers - so good! Like light habenaros that I use for chicken hear marinade.
Honestly I try variations on things we normally have just so my daughter knows there’s more food than the grocery stores suggest. All the tomatoes and peppers are fun, and a lot of the herbs.
The 5 color peppers are spicy. But. If you make things like grilled chicken hearts, they taste great in lieu of the traditional South American peppers. Less intense than habanero, fruity.
Great suggestion and wonderful source. My gardening days are behind me as a New Yorker with one sunny windowsill for growing. Long ago Baker Creek was another source we used for phlox and other wildflowers in a community project to convert grass median strips and highway borders from grasses that need regular mowing. Maybe with gas prices soaring again more local governments will be open to the idea of reducing the areas that need mowing. :~)
I get so jealous sometimes when I imagine what it is like gardening when it’s not 105 degrees out. I made a little meadow in the side yard because mowing is no fun and even my rudbeckia are struggling in this heat and dry
Thank you for the link! I tried to go heirloom as much as possible as I quite like the idea of being able to collect seeds for the next planting. I was quite surprised to find the F1 hybrids are often sterile. I guess hybrid dysgenesis is also a thing in plants too?
I can completely relate to the first garden! My first compost bin, which I cavalierly thought would manage itself, was a sludge like atomic waste slurry. Then, like an idiot, I bought tons of beefsteak seedlings as they looked so small. That ended up well, though, as I took the thousands of tomatoes to the Catholic restaurant for the homeless in Berkeley CA. I haven't given it a shot since, but want to, so this will be inspiring. My niece in California sells microgreens to fancy LA restaurants, and she had a sacrificial eggplant, which seems sadder than a brussel sprout! Sprouts may be in the cruciferous good for the microbiome, good for preventing dementia category, but one can only tolerate so much healthy behavior. They look like little decapitated heads to me and always have lol. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txfdGlxEsG8
I eat the microgreens every day when we have them. I pull out my pocket knife, cut a bunch off, and just chew them down. The ones with a bit of spice are the best.
We also put them on a variety of foods several times a week.
Jul 9, 2022·edited Jul 9, 2022Liked by Mathew Crawford
yes. the practice of growing a "sacrificial" plant to attract insects away from your valued food plants is well known in gardening circles. much has been written about "companion plants" for various crops.
FWIW, I've had mixed results with starting from seed and then planting tomatoes in the ground. some of them grow large and produce well. others are stunted and stay below knee high with minimal or zero fruit. IDK. I find it mysterious.
as far as fertilizers go, I've recently stopped using them on tomatoes and started just pre-amending the soil with a lot of organic matter, compost or dead leaves or whatever, based on the theory that the tomatoes will benefit from all the bacteria and fungi in the soil.
the idea is that plant roots send complex sugars to the communities of bacteria and fungi that live in the soil near the roots. these bacteria and fungi then react to specific sugars given to them by the plant roots in specific ways, shuttling more of certain nutrients out of the soil and into roots. symbiosis. and part of the theory is that adding lots of inorganic fertilizers to the soil disrupts these bacterial, fungal communities so that they cannot help your plants.
IDK if this works any better. I'm no expert. good luck with whatever you do.
My biggest and healthiest tomato plants are always rogue from the year before. Toying with fall planting, even though I have yet to see that recommended.
I'm not sure if fall planting is recommended, but "a person on the internets" said you could do it so I'm giving it a go. One of the loveliest things about being a novice is having the confidence to fail!
I’m in the Southern California desert. I plant my vegetables in October and harvest in March-April. Had to get used to winter growing when I moved here. Small tomatoes work best. Too hot for most veggies in the summer, when it can reach 120 degrees!
I recently watched the above video about 'trap' crops (sacrificial plants). Apparently there are actual studies for many of these plants and their effects. Found it interesting for sure!
Interesting and thank you. I did a tiny bit of composting of the roots/grow mats from my microgreens and added that to a raised bed. When space permits, I hope to do more composting, and rely less on commercial fertilizers.
I hope it goes well. I have a feeling it's harder than I thought to get the compost approach to work as well as just using a bunch of fertilizer. But I probably don't know what the hell I'm doing.
I've recently been reading/watching vids on worms/vermiculture. Seems pretty easy and the payoff seems pretty good, especially considering the cost of fertilizer.
In my experience, worms do a fantastic job consuming the material and making a very rich, dark compost. They're great little workers. But one year a heat wave killed my entire herd. A sad day. Gotta keep 'em cool.
My husband has so enjoyed meeting you and I am very jealous!
Excellent garden post Mrs. Crawford. Gardening is so punishing here. I have done a lot of trial and error in the last couple of years in North Texas especially in container gardening and I have reached many of the same conclusions you have- don’t start from seed and transplant it’s almost always a disaster, I tried growing beautiful heirloom tomatoes from seed and they just don’t produce. My recs are marketmore cukes and super sweet 100 cherry tomatoes. I have also had success with hydroponic peppers and basil kratky method . But honestly microgreens and sprouting is the correct solution lol
Do you have chickens???? Do u need chickens? I have chickens. Let me know
My adult son and his family have been keeping chickens in their backyard for years now, and I've been the happy recipient of fresh eggs with delicious yolks the rich color of freshly harvested pumpkins. These eggs taste nothing like bland supermarket eggs. I hope you get your property soon because I promise you'll love real eggs from real chickens eating real bugs in real dirt and grass.
I'll become a paying subscriber in the near future, Mathew. I respect and enjoy your work very much. Thank you for all the time and effort you put into it. And I'm glad you took a day off. As an old man of 74, I can say from experience that over-working eventually catches up with a guy. But it's hard not to work when a person loves what he's doing as much as you obviously do.
Anyway, thanks again to you and your wife for today's interesting post.
Thank you. Maybe in the future, but we don't have the yard and facilities just yet. We're in a house we're renting so that we can pick the right property and moment to buy.
The super sweet 100 cherry tomatoes were one of the three tomato varieties we picked at the garden store and are by far the best producing. Nice and tart, and go very well in feta based salads. Our Cherokee Red's all split, no matter how much I watered them, so I'll be sticking to smaller varieties for the time being.
I had the same problem with my big tomatoes . They barely produced and when they did they just split. I went all in on super sweet 100s this year I have 4 in containers and my preschooler loves picking them and snacking on them. Definitely recommend. A neighbor was jealous of mine because she couldn’t find any started plants in May. I picked mine up in March as soon as I saw them at a nursery and kept them on the windowsill until Easter when I put them in the ground. A little silly but they’re my favorite tomato variety and I don’t like to be without them
Just a quick proofreading pointer that surprised me a year or two ago when I looked closely at how I was used to spelling Brussels sprouts - yes, it's Brussels, like the capital of Belgium.
Congratulations on your garden! The dark magic of turning a brown thumb into a green one involves the ritualistic sacrifice of many plants... sounds like your first round of sacrifices is resulting in a better harvest the second time around :)
I know Bret and Heather, but haven't talked with them about the DoD data.
I don't want to name anyone who hasn't put out the interview because there could be more and less understandable reasons. In some cases, I think there is intentional feet dragging. In others, I think it's a matter of editing time.
You would know better than me, but i would think Bret and Heather would love to discuss the DOD data on their show. I cant imagine how pissed/frustrated you are that this isnt the biggest story in the world right. Im fuming and i didnt do all the work uncovering it all!
Would love to see your current thoughts on Bitcoin.
As for gardening, looks like you're on your way. For someone used to learning and experiment, the difficulty is mostly about maintaining consistent attention over the necessary time scale. And sifting through all the advice. Gardening is a relationship game. You have an implicit commitment and obligation, of some kind or another, to each plant.
I am accumulating BTC now, but I'm honestly uncertain whether it will rise from the $20k area before or after the New Year due to tax implications. However, it's not clear to me the OG Bitcoiners will wait that long before stuffing their pockets full.
I’ve taken to throwing all the herbs and flowers sporadically into the garden. Not sure how much it helps with bugs (some say they do) but it smells wonderful and I don’t have to worry about pollinators.
What a wonderful first post, Mrs. Crawford! I hope it will be the first of many🪴 ☺️👏🏻 (And well done, as always, to your better half reading this - much gratitude!!) 🙏🏻
Ha! Poker. My old man was a fine poker player. During the war, he was travelling on a blacked out train in England; looking for a seat he found a compartment with four GI sin it, playing Poker.
First bluff. Asked if he could join in, and asked for some basic instructions.
Super enjoyed reading about the gardening, Omaha What? Sorry, I can’t even play Euchre. Gardening: just started this year, raised 5 x 5 bed. Next year doing two more, the thing is BURSTING! thanks for the fertilizer tip! I love tomatoes too!!
Oh wow, you're just getting started on your journey of learning about plants!
Pro tip: Compost your food as this makes the best potting soil of all time. Also, follow those watering and sun guidelines very closely (plus the temperature stuff). Lastly, gardeners in America are way, way, way too fond of adding fertilizer to everything. Trust me, you can get plenty of delicious tomatoes without using any fertilizer whatsoever.
I think your opponent likely had the flush. Your bets announced, to him, that you had the straight. He had you in a perfect position for a bluff. At that point you made the correct decision to muck.
Liam is to smart, informed and talented to be so young & still not convinced he's not decades older!
To your wife.. big box seeds, soil and fertilizers too often have toxic ingredients.. your soil feeds your food and better to have your own compost to enrich your soil. For seeds you should go with heirloom varieties that are better suited to your growing conditions and investigate easy pest control methods like sprinkling black pepper around the plants. Seed Savers Exchange is the oldest and one I used for ages.. their free catalog is amazing.. forget the big box stores & chemically treated seeds & soil!
https://www.seedsavers.org/catalog
"& still not convinced he's not decades older!"
This becomes more clear over time among those of us who know him, but that's spot on.
Coooool do you also get the baker creek /rare seeds catalog? I always love getting that catalog. This year I got some stunning gaillardia and rudbeckia flower seeds
That catalog is my enemy. I end up buying everything then looking for change to fill up the gas tank.
I FEEL THAT. What are your recommendations? I got a bunch of radishes from them and it was really fun planting and then harvesting all the different colors with my preschooler. Eating them was a little less fun for her but they're not bad pickled
We do the spoon tomatoes because they never get bigger than my index tomatoes. My 9 yo loves them because they’re cute and delicious. I also love the Chinese five color peppers - so good! Like light habenaros that I use for chicken hear marinade.
Honestly I try variations on things we normally have just so my daughter knows there’s more food than the grocery stores suggest. All the tomatoes and peppers are fun, and a lot of the herbs.
Thank you so much for the suggestions. I’d seen the five color peppers but never seen the spoon tomatoes. My kids would loooove picking those
The 5 color peppers are spicy. But. If you make things like grilled chicken hearts, they taste great in lieu of the traditional South American peppers. Less intense than habanero, fruity.
Caught my typo. Spoon tomatoes never get bitter than my index finger nail lol
Bigger. I give up 🤣
Great suggestion and wonderful source. My gardening days are behind me as a New Yorker with one sunny windowsill for growing. Long ago Baker Creek was another source we used for phlox and other wildflowers in a community project to convert grass median strips and highway borders from grasses that need regular mowing. Maybe with gas prices soaring again more local governments will be open to the idea of reducing the areas that need mowing. :~)
https://www.rareseeds.com/store/vegetables
I get so jealous sometimes when I imagine what it is like gardening when it’s not 105 degrees out. I made a little meadow in the side yard because mowing is no fun and even my rudbeckia are struggling in this heat and dry
In case anyone reading is interested these are the ones I got they are so fun https://www.rareseeds.com/cherokee-sunset-rudbeckia
Thank you for the link! I tried to go heirloom as much as possible as I quite like the idea of being able to collect seeds for the next planting. I was quite surprised to find the F1 hybrids are often sterile. I guess hybrid dysgenesis is also a thing in plants too?
I can completely relate to the first garden! My first compost bin, which I cavalierly thought would manage itself, was a sludge like atomic waste slurry. Then, like an idiot, I bought tons of beefsteak seedlings as they looked so small. That ended up well, though, as I took the thousands of tomatoes to the Catholic restaurant for the homeless in Berkeley CA. I haven't given it a shot since, but want to, so this will be inspiring. My niece in California sells microgreens to fancy LA restaurants, and she had a sacrificial eggplant, which seems sadder than a brussel sprout! Sprouts may be in the cruciferous good for the microbiome, good for preventing dementia category, but one can only tolerate so much healthy behavior. They look like little decapitated heads to me and always have lol. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txfdGlxEsG8
I eat the microgreens every day when we have them. I pull out my pocket knife, cut a bunch off, and just chew them down. The ones with a bit of spice are the best.
We also put them on a variety of foods several times a week.
yes. the practice of growing a "sacrificial" plant to attract insects away from your valued food plants is well known in gardening circles. much has been written about "companion plants" for various crops.
FWIW, I've had mixed results with starting from seed and then planting tomatoes in the ground. some of them grow large and produce well. others are stunted and stay below knee high with minimal or zero fruit. IDK. I find it mysterious.
as far as fertilizers go, I've recently stopped using them on tomatoes and started just pre-amending the soil with a lot of organic matter, compost or dead leaves or whatever, based on the theory that the tomatoes will benefit from all the bacteria and fungi in the soil.
the idea is that plant roots send complex sugars to the communities of bacteria and fungi that live in the soil near the roots. these bacteria and fungi then react to specific sugars given to them by the plant roots in specific ways, shuttling more of certain nutrients out of the soil and into roots. symbiosis. and part of the theory is that adding lots of inorganic fertilizers to the soil disrupts these bacterial, fungal communities so that they cannot help your plants.
IDK if this works any better. I'm no expert. good luck with whatever you do.
My biggest and healthiest tomato plants are always rogue from the year before. Toying with fall planting, even though I have yet to see that recommended.
I'm not sure if fall planting is recommended, but "a person on the internets" said you could do it so I'm giving it a go. One of the loveliest things about being a novice is having the confidence to fail!
I’m in the Southern California desert. I plant my vegetables in October and harvest in March-April. Had to get used to winter growing when I moved here. Small tomatoes work best. Too hot for most veggies in the summer, when it can reach 120 degrees!
Hey, that's interesting. I think you're on to something.
I think your fall planting idea sounds promising. just gotta get the plants to survive the cold season.
My rogue tomatoes do every year and I’m in Minnesota!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8N4rwnM92I&list=WL&index=26&t=648s
I recently watched the above video about 'trap' crops (sacrificial plants). Apparently there are actual studies for many of these plants and their effects. Found it interesting for sure!
Interesting and thank you. I did a tiny bit of composting of the roots/grow mats from my microgreens and added that to a raised bed. When space permits, I hope to do more composting, and rely less on commercial fertilizers.
I hope it goes well. I have a feeling it's harder than I thought to get the compost approach to work as well as just using a bunch of fertilizer. But I probably don't know what the hell I'm doing.
I've recently been reading/watching vids on worms/vermiculture. Seems pretty easy and the payoff seems pretty good, especially considering the cost of fertilizer.
In my experience, worms do a fantastic job consuming the material and making a very rich, dark compost. They're great little workers. But one year a heat wave killed my entire herd. A sad day. Gotta keep 'em cool.
My husband has so enjoyed meeting you and I am very jealous!
Excellent garden post Mrs. Crawford. Gardening is so punishing here. I have done a lot of trial and error in the last couple of years in North Texas especially in container gardening and I have reached many of the same conclusions you have- don’t start from seed and transplant it’s almost always a disaster, I tried growing beautiful heirloom tomatoes from seed and they just don’t produce. My recs are marketmore cukes and super sweet 100 cherry tomatoes. I have also had success with hydroponic peppers and basil kratky method . But honestly microgreens and sprouting is the correct solution lol
Do you have chickens???? Do u need chickens? I have chickens. Let me know
I enjoyed meeting your husband---we're in a good community.
We have been successfully growing heirloom tomatoes, but not as big as an experienced gardener would.
We plan to get chickens after we buy property. I'll let you know.
My adult son and his family have been keeping chickens in their backyard for years now, and I've been the happy recipient of fresh eggs with delicious yolks the rich color of freshly harvested pumpkins. These eggs taste nothing like bland supermarket eggs. I hope you get your property soon because I promise you'll love real eggs from real chickens eating real bugs in real dirt and grass.
I'll become a paying subscriber in the near future, Mathew. I respect and enjoy your work very much. Thank you for all the time and effort you put into it. And I'm glad you took a day off. As an old man of 74, I can say from experience that over-working eventually catches up with a guy. But it's hard not to work when a person loves what he's doing as much as you obviously do.
Anyway, thanks again to you and your wife for today's interesting post.
We know what fresh eggs taste like and we look forward to it. We can't wait to have chickens running around the yard.
I have a broody hen I’m going to get chicks in a week or two, you’re welcome to some of those when they feather out
Thank you. Maybe in the future, but we don't have the yard and facilities just yet. We're in a house we're renting so that we can pick the right property and moment to buy.
Cheers.
The super sweet 100 cherry tomatoes were one of the three tomato varieties we picked at the garden store and are by far the best producing. Nice and tart, and go very well in feta based salads. Our Cherokee Red's all split, no matter how much I watered them, so I'll be sticking to smaller varieties for the time being.
I had the same problem with my big tomatoes . They barely produced and when they did they just split. I went all in on super sweet 100s this year I have 4 in containers and my preschooler loves picking them and snacking on them. Definitely recommend. A neighbor was jealous of mine because she couldn’t find any started plants in May. I picked mine up in March as soon as I saw them at a nursery and kept them on the windowsill until Easter when I put them in the ground. A little silly but they’re my favorite tomato variety and I don’t like to be without them
Just a quick proofreading pointer that surprised me a year or two ago when I looked closely at how I was used to spelling Brussels sprouts - yes, it's Brussels, like the capital of Belgium.
I will let her know, but I would not have known myself. Thanks.
Congratulations on your garden! The dark magic of turning a brown thumb into a green one involves the ritualistic sacrifice of many plants... sounds like your first round of sacrifices is resulting in a better harvest the second time around :)
Ooooh, I would love to read a poker Substack! I have no idea if that was the right decision but I find poker endlessly fascinating. 🙌
Hey Matt Godbless you and all the work youve done for the good guys.
Can you say who it is that has interviewed you and then didnt run the story? Have you been in touch with the people from the darkhorse podcast?
I know Bret and Heather, but haven't talked with them about the DoD data.
I don't want to name anyone who hasn't put out the interview because there could be more and less understandable reasons. In some cases, I think there is intentional feet dragging. In others, I think it's a matter of editing time.
You would know better than me, but i would think Bret and Heather would love to discuss the DOD data on their show. I cant imagine how pissed/frustrated you are that this isnt the biggest story in the world right. Im fuming and i didnt do all the work uncovering it all!
I meant in regards to the DOD story
Liam is a rock star and so are you!!!!
Would love to see your current thoughts on Bitcoin.
As for gardening, looks like you're on your way. For someone used to learning and experiment, the difficulty is mostly about maintaining consistent attention over the necessary time scale. And sifting through all the advice. Gardening is a relationship game. You have an implicit commitment and obligation, of some kind or another, to each plant.
I am accumulating BTC now, but I'm honestly uncertain whether it will rise from the $20k area before or after the New Year due to tax implications. However, it's not clear to me the OG Bitcoiners will wait that long before stuffing their pockets full.
I’ve taken to throwing all the herbs and flowers sporadically into the garden. Not sure how much it helps with bugs (some say they do) but it smells wonderful and I don’t have to worry about pollinators.
What a wonderful first post, Mrs. Crawford! I hope it will be the first of many🪴 ☺️👏🏻 (And well done, as always, to your better half reading this - much gratitude!!) 🙏🏻
Ha! Poker. My old man was a fine poker player. During the war, he was travelling on a blacked out train in England; looking for a seat he found a compartment with four GI sin it, playing Poker.
First bluff. Asked if he could join in, and asked for some basic instructions.
Two hours later he'd cleaned them out.
Never trust a prankster :-)
Super enjoyed reading about the gardening, Omaha What? Sorry, I can’t even play Euchre. Gardening: just started this year, raised 5 x 5 bed. Next year doing two more, the thing is BURSTING! thanks for the fertilizer tip! I love tomatoes too!!
Oh wow, you're just getting started on your journey of learning about plants!
Pro tip: Compost your food as this makes the best potting soil of all time. Also, follow those watering and sun guidelines very closely (plus the temperature stuff). Lastly, gardeners in America are way, way, way too fond of adding fertilizer to everything. Trust me, you can get plenty of delicious tomatoes without using any fertilizer whatsoever.
I think your opponent likely had the flush. Your bets announced, to him, that you had the straight. He had you in a perfect position for a bluff. At that point you made the correct decision to muck.
It's the
"likely had the flush" and "perfect position to bluff" that make the fold difficult. If this is a bluff 24% of the time or more, I should call.
This is where knowing an opponent very well becomes part of the assessment, and I'd never seen the man and hadn't played myself in quite a while.