adding Biodynamics in the Organic Gardening forum

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bower
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Re: adding Biodynamics in the Organic Gardening forum

#41

Post: # 5640Unread post bower
Tue Jan 07, 2020 2:26 pm

I see they have a weather column, with the weather you might have in different moon signs. So you would be doing all your work in the sunniest weather. ;) That is, if the weather agrees to be as expected!

Is it true that honey bees gather pollen, gather nectar, build comb and make honey on different days? :o :?:
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Re: adding Biodynamics in the Organic Gardening forum

#42

Post: # 5708Unread post TheDante
Wed Jan 08, 2020 6:33 am

Bower wrote: Tue Jan 07, 2020 2:26 pm I see they have a weather column, with the weather you might have in different moon signs. So you would be doing all your work in the sunniest weather. ;) That is, if the weather agrees to be as expected!

Is it true that honey bees gather pollen, gather nectar, build comb and make honey on different days? :o :?:
With climate change, I do wonder if it puts everything out of whack to be honest. We have the mildest winter this year as well. I hope some of our fruit trees and bushes will get sufficient enough chill hours to fruit properly. We had no snow in our region this winter! Had a wee bit last year. But no matter, having used Maria Thun´s biodynamic calendar these many years and following the tasks as closely as possible, has been a resounding success for us - together with my secret ingredient. They truly complement each other well too. No plant diseases, nothing. ;)

Bees - looks like it really! I wouldn´t be surprised :lol:

For the last 2 years, because of the heat we have had a lot more of those pesky, scary yellow jackets! Got stung by them twice last year. And they keep looking for places to build nests. Inside the polytunnel, under the roof slates, under the shed roof - every conceivable place they can find. It was horrid! The hairs on my back are standing now as we speak. Eck! :x
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Re: adding Biodynamics in the Organic Gardening forum

#43

Post: # 5709Unread post bower
Wed Jan 08, 2020 7:18 am

One thing I noticed about yellowjackets, they are the ones (and maybe paper wasps too) that pollinate our currant bushes in early spring. I was glad that they are farthest from the house at the bottom of the garden. They also used to overwinter on firewood - especially under birch bark in a pile of split logs, or inside a tarp over the wood. I had to brush them off really carefully not to bring them indoors in the winter! They seem to like leaves as well - I got a few stings when raking up my brother's place. Also the hotter and sunnier the weather, the more active and aggressive they are. The yellowjackets overwinter as queens and then make their nest in a hole in the ground. Maybe persuade them to relocate to another part of the garden?
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Re: adding Biodynamics in the Organic Gardening forum

#44

Post: # 5710Unread post TheDante
Wed Jan 08, 2020 7:30 am

Bower wrote: Wed Jan 08, 2020 7:18 am One thing I noticed about yellowjackets, they are the ones (and maybe paper wasps too) that pollinate our currant bushes in early spring. I was glad that they are farthest from the house at the bottom of the garden. They also used to overwinter on firewood - especially under birch bark in a pile of split logs, or inside a tarp over the wood. I had to brush them off really carefully not to bring them indoors in the winter! They seem to like leaves as well - I got a few stings when raking up my brother's place. Also the hotter and sunnier the weather, the more active and aggressive they are. The yellowjackets overwinter as queens and then make their nest in a hole in the ground. Maybe persuade them to relocate to another part of the garden?
oh, they are definitely a pollinator too… I have seen them. However, they ruin our fruit harvests too. Try harvesting blueberries and pink berries especially from the container planted ones on our terrace. They are a TERROR! They literally tear into the berries of all OUR fruit, especially grapes and blueberries/pink berries and blackberries. Now, thinking about it, they really like the darker berries too. I do not mind sharing our produce with them, so long as they don´t sting. But it is not in their character, unfortunately. =(

And our poor cats too… literally curiosity ´killed´ the cat. They think it is a harmless bug.. and they come panting away and running amok in the garden, and we know they got stung. :(

It is impossible to relocate the nest. Just being a few inches around it is enough to aggravate all the soldiers. Paper wasps are deemed to be more harmless and less aggressive than these. And I am really sure ours are the yellow jackets.

Between bees and these, I would have the former any time of the day definitely.
Last edited by TheDante on Wed Jan 08, 2020 7:47 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: adding Biodynamics in the Organic Gardening forum

#45

Post: # 5713Unread post bower
Wed Jan 08, 2020 7:46 am

Yeah - I have met a few on a hot sunny day when picking blueberries as well! They seemed to be guarding the fruit for themselves especially right around their nest.
To avoid stings you need to harvest when direct sun is not on the plants. Early cool morning or late evening, if you can't avoid sunny weather days. My currants are in the west end of my garden and are shaded late in the day. I always wait until they're in the shade before going to pick, so I don't have to deal with the competition.
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Re: adding Biodynamics in the Organic Gardening forum

#46

Post: # 5714Unread post bower
Wed Jan 08, 2020 7:51 am

Re: mild winter - if you do get a day below freezing, it may be worthwhile to peel back the tarps over your manure pile and see if there are any queens on the tarps. I know I have seen them on ours. They are alive but not moving in the cold - you can destroy them easily and reduce the trouble for next season. They are definitely wintering somewhere, so now is the time to reduce the population if there are too many.
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Re: adding Biodynamics in the Organic Gardening forum

#47

Post: # 5716Unread post TheDante
Wed Jan 08, 2020 8:00 am

Bower wrote: Wed Jan 08, 2020 7:51 am Re: mild winter - if you do get a day below freezing, it may be worthwhile to peel back the tarps over your manure pile and see if there are any queens on the tarps. I know I have seen them on ours. They are alive but not moving in the cold - you can destroy them easily and reduce the trouble for next season. They are definitely wintering somewhere, so now is the time to reduce the population if there are too many.
We had a check when we had the horse poo delivery on Sunday. So far we have never had them under the tarps. Thanks though ;)

I did remember they built a huge nest under the window screens. OMG! It was insane. Had to call in a pest thingy guy. (Sorry, sometimes, I have a hard time finding words, my poor head has to get around a mix of American & British English and German words) And last year (still feels like 2019), they have been also going under the window screens and trying endlessly to build more nests, as well as under the 2 sun screens/umbrellas we have at the terrace, polytunnel, work table in polytunnel, shed, everywhere!

Our garden is situated in the Southerly/Easterly direction.. no chance! :lol:
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Re: adding Biodynamics in the Organic Gardening forum

#48

Post: # 5723Unread post bower
Wed Jan 08, 2020 8:23 am

If they're not nesting in the ground, but building a nest you can see in window screens or under umbrellas, those must be paper wasps, or another kind, not the "yellowjacket" which is the worst for mindless aggression. Paper wasps will sting though if you're too close to the nest or if they find you menacing in any way. I had a load of them one year, and finally gave up trying to remove their nests from close to the house, and try to live with them instead. I did get a sting or two but mostly they were busy about their own business - which seemed to be the ants getting into my greenhouse. They wiped them right out, so in the end I was glad they came around. The next year and afterwards I haven't seen them around at all. Until next time...
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Re: adding Biodynamics in the Organic Gardening forum

#49

Post: # 5726Unread post bower
Wed Jan 08, 2020 8:30 am

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Re: adding Biodynamics in the Organic Gardening forum

#50

Post: # 5728Unread post TheDante
Wed Jan 08, 2020 8:33 am

Bower wrote: Wed Jan 08, 2020 8:30 am Here is a link about paper wasps.
https://www.clemson.edu/extension/beeke ... wasps.html
cheers Bower... had a quick google too ;)

https://www.rescue.com/latest-buzz/outd ... lowjacket/

We might just have both. We have had an odd 1 or 2 nests close to the ground near some wood pallets too. Most of nests are from what I have described in my previous posts. No matter, I soooooooooooooooo do not wanna be any closer than I can help really.
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Re: adding Biodynamics in the Organic Gardening forum

#51

Post: # 5731Unread post bower
Wed Jan 08, 2020 8:41 am

Yes, you can definitely have too many paper wasps, or too many nests close to the house or the place you're working. And the link also mentioned they may damage fruit! Not so good for a fruit farmer.
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Re: adding Biodynamics in the Organic Gardening forum

#52

Post: # 5798Unread post TheDante
Wed Jan 08, 2020 2:20 pm

I remembered I took some pics… eck!
IMG-20190629-WA0000.jpg
IMG-20190623-WA0000.jpg
IMG-20190710-WA0002.jpg
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Re: adding Biodynamics in the Organic Gardening forum

#53

Post: # 5805Unread post bower
Wed Jan 08, 2020 3:19 pm

Those are paper wasps alright! You might discourage them by applying some linseed oil to the wood.
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Re: adding Biodynamics in the Organic Gardening forum

#54

Post: # 8595Unread post Growing Coastal
Sun Feb 02, 2020 11:01 am

Another interesting fact that I see about moon planting is that proponents seem not to agree about when is the best time to sow seeds. My friend who goes by the moon always says to plant when the moon is new and increasing. The link below says it is different timing for above and below ground crops.

https://www.gardeningbythemoon.com/moon ... gardening/
At the new moon, the lunar gravity pulls water up, and causes the seeds to swell and burst. This factor, coupled with the increasing moonlight creates balanced root and leaf growth.
I usually plant when I am ready . The moon can influence seeds no matter when they are planted, I think.
Seeds will either sprout or wait. ;) However, I did plant at the new moon at Xmas and my two little micros are beginning to bloom now. Seems pretty quick to me.

Devotees are adamant that it works.
quote from the comments section
https://www.farmersalmanac.com/why-gard ... moon-20824
I know planting by the signs works! My Daddy, wish he was still here, always planted by the signs on about a half acre. We had so much excess, he had me carrying grocery bags full to all our neighbors, my Mother canned, and we still had more than we could eat. I miss his tomatoes! Once, I asked him why he planted by the signs, probably around 7 or 8 years old. He told me he wouldn’t the next season so I would know. When he did not plant by the signs that one year, the garden did not produce half as much. Luckily Mother had canned so much the year before we didn’t suffer!
I recall one year when I took the advice to weed at a certain moon in a particular month and that worked well with the weeds staying gone. Wish I could remember when it was! :lol:

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Re: adding Biodynamics in the Organic Gardening forum

#55

Post: # 8614Unread post bower
Sun Feb 02, 2020 2:16 pm

Well... a quote from I'm not sure where, an hour of weeding in may is worth ten hours in july. ;) That seems to be true.
I like weeding best when the ground is a little bit dry. Sunny with a breeze seems good. If the ground is too wet, the roots cling onto it and resist being removed or take half the earth with. So just the right dryness (and not actually hardened) is ideal for removing a whole weed with least disruption to other residents.
If the weather would agree with the moon, it would be easy to plan what to do when. As gardening stuff needs to agree with the weather.
The only thing I've really noticed about the moons is that on a sunny day with the moon in leo I'm most likely to be bothered by wasps. Don't know if they are 'fiery' but heat activates them, and their stings sure are like extra fire. OTOH when the moon is in scorpio, always seems to be when stuff like millipedes or ground beetles turn up where you don't expect them (I mean without turning over the ground - they scurry around on the surface or even turn up in the house!). I also noticed more than once that my bread is really slow to rise if you put bread on when the moon is nearly new - like the yeasts really feel that dregs of energy in the old moon. I planted pepper seeds on a full moon once - and they didn't germinate until the next full moon! :shock: :) And personally, I usually get in a gardening mood when the moon is in Taurus - it makes me frisky. :P
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