Comments for The Sustainable Living Project

Comment on Peat Free Compost by Tara

Tara — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 22:25:23 +0000

Hi goo,
I know this post was months ago (I’m wandering around here enjoying your site for the first time) but just in case you’re still bothered by weed seeds in your potting compost….cook it!
You really don’t need garden compost for seed starts, the seed itself contains all the nutrients required except sun and rain so plain old garden soil is plenty rich enough. If you bake the soil first in a roasting tray to ‘sterilise’ it, you will have no viable weed seeds either!

Comment on Power Down Celebrates the Jalo by goo

goo — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 15:54:47 +0000

Two! Lucky you. I think if more people realised how easy and versatile these tools are they would be using them. Thanks for stopping by!

Comment on Power Down Celebrates the Jalo by barry higgott

barry higgott — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 21:40:14 +0000

I have two Jalo hoes with plough, scufflers, and disc harrows.So easy to use

Comment on Five Fabulous Uses for Bicarbonate of Soda by goo

goo — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 09:47:09 +0000

Thanks for the great tips Jackie! I’ve never tried removing oil stains with bicarb, I presume you mean massage oil – we mostly have to deal with engine oil here, which is hopeless! – I will look into it.

Comment on Five Fabulous Uses for Bicarbonate of Soda by Jackie

Jackie — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 03:27:54 +0000

Does anyone know how to remove oil stains from sheets? The sheets for my portable massage table are discolored and smell from oil that wouldn’t wash out. I’m thinking of trying a quasi-fizz bomb approach: soak them in a bucket of weak vinegar solution and add a hand full of baking soda… I tried a similar strategy recently with burnt pots — beans forgotten on the stove, what a mess — and it was incredibly successful. Bring a 50:50 vinegar:water solution to a boil in the burnt pan, turn off the heat, and gradually add a few teaspoons of bicarb. Let it sit till it’s warm enough to put your hands in, and scrub with a new scrubber. Magic!

Comment on Celebrity Squares by Earthpal

Earthpal — Sun, 13 Nov 2011 19:06:15 +0000

Thanks Goo, that’s very useful advice. I’ll give it a go again. Desperate to start growing stuff again. I love the square foot idea.

Comment on Celebrity Squares by goo

goo — Sun, 13 Nov 2011 09:12:40 +0000

Hi Earthpal, yes we grew coriander, it’s a favourite in our household too. I think it’s tricky because it is so prone to bolting. There is an Italian variety called Calypso which is truly a cut and come again variety, it will yield three cuts without bolting. I’d strongly recommend this to any one who struggles with coriander. Our other trick is to treat it like a mustard cress and just sow it thickly in pots every two weeks and crop viciously when only a few centimetres high – concentrated flavour, but a bit of an effort to stay on top of it!

Comment on Celebrity Squares by Earthpal

Earthpal — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 16:46:48 +0000

Well done Goo! It looks fabulous – very pretty too. Have you tried growing coriander? That’s one of my favourite herbs but my attempt to grow some last year failed. I will try again using your square foot ideas. Inspiring stuff.

Comment on How To Make Comfrey Fertiliser by goo

goo — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 17:28:41 +0000

Hi Jerry, we use the wild comfrey that grows abundantly all around us here. It is possible to purchase a sterile form of the plant, known as Bocking 14 from many vegetable seed suppliers. This has the advantage of not setting seed all over the place as it can be quite an invasive plant. I'd check out the charity Garden Organic if I were you.

Comment on How To Make Comfrey Fertiliser by jerry derouen

jerry derouen — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 10:43:01 +0000

where can i purchase comphrey plants