Ok, today let’s do with some small information’s in farming. This includes some of my experiences and some of my friends too ...

Sometimes you dig through your moss to get soil....but the soil you get should not be as reproductive as you think. You will have to test your soil thoroughly before planting to see what is it’s deficiencies or requirements are, which is not practical in all conditions when you go with your backyard for a small farm to tend to your household needs. There’s a much more easy way to increase your soils’ productivity using the EM concentrates ,which I have mentioned in the earlier post. For eg, if you are planning to grow tomatoes in your backyard  it’s better to add egg shells to make your soil less acidic. (Two eggshells a plant keeps the plant healthy).

Make sure you till you soil nicely with a hoe or rotor tiller. Never use pesticides as this will slowly kill your plants too. You can mix some compost too in your soil to increase your soil’s productivity. (Here again the EM concentrates can be used to make compost. Other soil friendly procedure of making compost, I’ll describe in the coming posts). After all this hard work your land is almost ready.

Now for your seeds. As I have said before study your area and then select the seeds that you prefer to grow in your backyard. Make it in small quantity if you are a starter...,this will encourage and enthusiase you in many ways.

After selecting your seed plant them indoors or else try to plant them in shade....try using disposable glasses or small containers to give them a good start. Nowadays there are small seed growing trays available in market which you can use to grow seeds, these can be used again and again. But I prefer small containers or disposable glasses, this can be readily available at all times in our homes and can reduce the cost of farming too. (To fill the small containers use compost and your backyard soil in the ratio of 60:40). If each seeds are planted in individual small containers they will have ample minerals, water and space to spread their roots soon. After planting water them two times daily. You can see them sprouting within a day or two.

After the sprouting give them two to three days to get their strength....and then slowly take out from their containers and plant them in the place you have already cleared.

Some important things to remember :

If you want your plants to grow well, remember these tips about what to plant near what, and what to plant away from what.

Here is a small list:

·        Cucumbers don't grow good near fragrant flowers.

·        Plant tomatoes near basil and parsley.

·        Pumpkins and potatoes are never supposed to be planted near each other, because they are sort of the same thing, but you can plant watermelons and pumpkins near each other, just make sure they are not too close to each other or one will choke the other.

·        Do not grow tomatoes near corn, they both like nitrogen, and they will fight over it and you will not get good tomatoes and corn, so I am just telling you now to not plant them near each other.

Another important thing :

Decide how much light and water your crops need :

·        Watermelons need as MUCH sunlight as they can get, and when they are flowering, they need a lot of water too.

·        Tomatoes need quite a bit of sunlight, still always get as much as you can, and always give them a lot of water. Give them extra support too after flowering, sometimes they can tolerate the weight of their fruits.

·        Corn is a very thirsty plant, as grass is consider corn as a just giant grass, and give it a somewhat large amount of sunlight.

·        Pumpkins need a large amount of water when they have fruit, and they need a lot of sunlight too.

·        Beans need about as much light as tomatoes, but make sure their water is just so the soil is damp to a few inches down (the deeper the water goes, the better but don't make it muddy).

·        Chilies are like beans.

I’ll describe in brief in coming blogs how you can make natural fertilizers and ‘growth tonics’ for your crops, and more over the most important part controlling pest in an organic way. That’s the most important part as that’s where the poison comes in our food mainly.