A couple other notes:
Catnip repels pest bugs. It repels mosquitoes wonderfully, and there is a theory that cats roll in it because the oils produced repel mites and the like, so they don't get so itchy. So I planted 6 cells of it and plan on getting at least 12 plants to plant around the yard so the cats can roll all they want to in it. Like the tobacco, it will self-seed (grows wild all over the place 20 miles southwest of here from self-seeding), so I'm hoping I only have to grow it once for an endless supply.
Catnip also attracts bigger cats, like leopards, lynxes, cougars, and bobcats. With that big-assed bobcat that haunts this area, this could get interesting.
Basil is reputed to repel garden pests. We'll see.
Tobacco repels bigger pests, like deer and rabbits. I'm sensing a plan here.
Grace got me a couple foundations for hummingbird nests, so I've placed one in the back yard, near the tobacco plot, because hummingbirds love tobacco and that would be convenient for them, and the other is in the front yard for them.
Poppies self-seed too, if you once get them started.
The peppermint will take over wherever I plant it, via self-seeding and runners and whatnot. That's what I'm counting on. Not only is it medicinal (good for stomach troubles), but menthol can be extracted from it for all kinds of things... like the menthol cigarettes they're trying to outlaw. Since 40% of all cigarette sales are menthol smokes, I have a notion that mentholated tobacco might eventually be a business opportunity on the black market
I have no tiller, I have no tractor, and I have no horse. So I'll be breaking the ground for the garden spots by hand. I found two shovels - one round point and one square - and two hoes that grandpa had stashed in the coal-house, and today I got a "garden weasel", so those are what I'll be using to prep the garden spots. Last year, all I did was dig a hole in the ground and drop the tobacco plants in... so I reckon this year is an upgrade.
This is starting to sound a whole lot like work - at least more like work than a hobby.
.
Catnip repels pest bugs. It repels mosquitoes wonderfully, and there is a theory that cats roll in it because the oils produced repel mites and the like, so they don't get so itchy. So I planted 6 cells of it and plan on getting at least 12 plants to plant around the yard so the cats can roll all they want to in it. Like the tobacco, it will self-seed (grows wild all over the place 20 miles southwest of here from self-seeding), so I'm hoping I only have to grow it once for an endless supply.
Catnip also attracts bigger cats, like leopards, lynxes, cougars, and bobcats. With that big-assed bobcat that haunts this area, this could get interesting.
Basil is reputed to repel garden pests. We'll see.
Tobacco repels bigger pests, like deer and rabbits. I'm sensing a plan here.
Grace got me a couple foundations for hummingbird nests, so I've placed one in the back yard, near the tobacco plot, because hummingbirds love tobacco and that would be convenient for them, and the other is in the front yard for them.
Poppies self-seed too, if you once get them started.
The peppermint will take over wherever I plant it, via self-seeding and runners and whatnot. That's what I'm counting on. Not only is it medicinal (good for stomach troubles), but menthol can be extracted from it for all kinds of things... like the menthol cigarettes they're trying to outlaw. Since 40% of all cigarette sales are menthol smokes, I have a notion that mentholated tobacco might eventually be a business opportunity on the black market
I have no tiller, I have no tractor, and I have no horse. So I'll be breaking the ground for the garden spots by hand. I found two shovels - one round point and one square - and two hoes that grandpa had stashed in the coal-house, and today I got a "garden weasel", so those are what I'll be using to prep the garden spots. Last year, all I did was dig a hole in the ground and drop the tobacco plants in... so I reckon this year is an upgrade.
This is starting to sound a whole lot like work - at least more like work than a hobby.
.