Bongchitis

$93....just to b safe

$91

$86

Sugar cane mulch is only $14/bail...which goes a long way and works a treat for me at a thickness of 10cm+ on the vege garden.....a little thinner in the pots. ...and with respect to laundry grey water and chemical loading, just how dirty do your clothes get? It is quite adequate to use 1/2 to 1/3 of the reccomended dosage rates for soaps etc for standard loads. Dosage rates are designed more about resale frequency than wash requirements I would say. I have had no problems doing this. For heavy soiled loads, use more soap, don't save the water if it urks you....and again as long as there is no product contact and you drip/ground water there are no real issues. I reckon there is that much bacterial action happening in a healthy garden anyway......The neighbours cats simply will not shit anywhere else so hello Mr Toxoplasmosis....this is no different to any market garden worldwide except that I am in control and are aware!. and apoth, hold the bucket under the rose before you get in while the water is heating up, perfect water, no bacteria issues and you don't have to stand in a bucket. But it is amazing how much water is caught in an empty bucket in the corner of the cubicle!

Apoth, Grey water comes from several streams in the home (as i'm sure you are already aware): Kitchen: Washing up water sucks cause it has food particles, fats and oils (that clog the soil) etc but if you divert washing up water to sewer and reclaim the water used otherwise (waiting for the water to go hot) you can make some gains....get into the habit of having a bowl under the spout to catch water even when you wash hands or rinse vegies. Bathroom: Sort of same as above, if you can divert the cold water before you get in or keep a bucket in the shower then you can gain a bit there. 1 shower a day, 30 seconds warm up time, average flow of 15 L/min (Australian University figures) yields 7 L of water a day...and my shower takes ages to warm up so I get more. 7 L would be a good watering for a thirsty plant in a pot. Laundry: Look at your detergent and make sure there is nothing nasty wrt what you are growing then simply put your washing machine outlet into a drumafter filtering through a stocking, instead of down the drain, to get rid of lint (if you want, I do as I have drip irrigation). Each washer cycle is at least 20L of water as that is how much my front loader uses........top loaders use much more. You seem like a cluey bloke so none of this would require a plumber and you are assured of 25L of water a day for nicks....which would/should be plenty! Also, grey water, the selected and relatively clean as above, would be fine for all fruit and vegetable requirements where there is no direct contact with the produce ie. root vegetables........but even then I am sceptical, esspecially if you control the quality of the water you save. Good luck mate, & some good ideas by the other guys.

Are my sisters kidney stones interesting enough. They are big and very colourful....must be at least 10 shades of brown!

I have a friend who freaked only once (curled up rocking for hours) but was due to both a very large dose for him (Cubes, 7g dry) and had a bit of a scare on the come-up.....Dose and setting were crap! Otherwise all has been good on dosages much more appropriate for him, 1.5-2g. The less enjoyable experiences have been due to setting ie. responsibility, life issues at the time, nothing planned to do etc etc Tripping on a mental 'clean slate' is very important IMHO......and know your material.

That Parodia is beautiful! WOW. I would love one if someone wants to part with it!

........."When I get that feeelin', I want sexual Heeaaaalin', ...........sexual........Heeeaaaalin!" It's all about the pink .....uhh sorry......green...... with hair!

No expert but I agree that it is a Cereus. I have a C.Peruvianus that is identical....the first actual cactus that I obtained when I didn't know the difference between Trichocereus and Cereus. How many noobs have thought they won the lotto when they see there first 20ft cereus? I certainly am one.

Picked up a couple of these lately, actually scored all of my Trich's bar my seed raised ones from Bunnings or K-mart.......9 in all TBM's, scop's, pach's and unknowns. The pachanois sure have long spines!!! Any reports on activity of the Hamiltons variety of pach?

I know a guy who ordered non descript cubensis prints from an international supplier some years ago before he was warned otherwise. They were sent in a plain envelope etc etc and came through OK. But this guy was lucky and didn't know the legal implications at the time....so it has been done, probably quite a bit but the risks are rediculous IMO.....so much good stuff here.

Hi All, I have a knowledgable friend at work who says he uses this stuff with fantastic results but he says hardly anyone knows about it. I had never heard of it. It sounds like it would be great for cacti but he uses it on everything. Reported to remain effective in soil for 5 years or something (its just crushed rock I believe) and various studies done in the 90's including feeding it to race horses yielding lower vet bills and increased performance. I have not seen these studies or any other evidence (did a quick google search) but he is gathering the info now and I have no reason to doubt him. Has anyone heard of it or used it? It seems like one of those too good to be true type things but this guy is otherwise legit! Anyway, I will gather some info myself and try some.........then post results of course. In the mean time I would love to hear anyones thoughts. Cheers...............Bongchitis

Radioactivity...Interesting, certainly something I didn't think of. One would think that this would be covered in any organic certification requirements for use with food crops. I dunno? I guess unstable nucleii doesn't really count as inorganic........Carbon14. The fact that it is used commercially must mean it yields some benefits...obviously cost but if it was shit I suppose you wouldn't buy it for any price. Anybody use it for cactus, consumable or not?

Just a few basic things I do that are free: 1. Draw the blinds closed until latish afternoon....windows have a large surface area and conduct heat quite well!....then the remaining light untill 7-8pm is enough for the fungi. 2. Put your tubs on the floor....hot air rises. 3. Choose the coolest 'side' of your house, typically the southern end This should work for everyone and should give you at least 5deg C respite from summer. Good luck!

Check your PM's Cheers..........Bongchitis

Sweet! VVVVV Gets ~10 Melocactus bahiensis seed, 1 T.Bridgesii baby (10cm) and some Hot Thai Chilli seed VVVVV

UPDATE: Purchased Chilli's: Czechoslovakian Black, Mulato, Scotch Bonnet Chocolate.........I love brown/black/purple fruit and flowers such as pansies, chillis, Black Russian tomato, cherries etc Planted: Grosse Lisse Tomato, Leb cucumber, Scarlet runner beans, Burkes Backyard Thai Chilli, Mint, Strawberries, Passionfruit, mushrooms Seeds/bulbs ready: lettuce mix, Rocket, Garlic, Ginger, Lemongrass, Basil, Lavender, Chives, Rosemary, potato, carrot, corriander, spinach Revised list of fruit trees: Valencia Orange, Tahitian Lime, Eureka Lemon, 3 variety grafted apple, 3 variety grafted stone fruit, Grapes, Blueberry, Blackberries, Avocado, Macadamia Nut, Lychee, Paw Paw I am also going to build a glass house for my modest cacti collection that may be able to accomodate some tropical species......and doesn't have to be fruit!.......hello Mrs Viridis, how are you? This is going to take me years to get right aside from the fact that I have 6 largish trees in my backyard that needs to go ASAP, 2 gums (stunning but dangerous, jusk ask my fence!), 2 turpentines (Last forever, keep the stumps for my passionfruit to climb and to hang my punching bag from) and 2 pines...enough said! The upcoming weekend involves sourcing some of these fruit trees, preparing beds for veggies, investigate grey water collection options and drawing up a schematic of my water delivery system...and then I will know if I need a pump!

Thanks Darklight, ....ohh I think I will grow a lemon for my GnT's Looks like no kitchen waste then and possibly a fine screen pre the blue metal filter, or multiple stage filters that allow cleaning independant of each other ie the first stages will be the dirtiest and can be isolated????? Kitchen waste also contains fats and oils which wouldn't help the filtration process. Laundry grey water contains lint etc that will also cause problems....or do I just not treat it at all, focus on using safe detergents and sound practices and just dump it all on my Native front garden, grass, or fruit trees. I will also never throw away another drop of urine....urea is great and piss from the source is sterile...and tastes great! Hahahaha It would seem like a case of suckit and see.......better living through reckless experimentation! I might as well make this a rolling diary or grow log if you like with updates weekly...get some pics to you guys if anyone is interested in the progress.

Hahaha......I knew I wouldn't be dissapointed asking the question Yeah I forgot the thornless blackberries (from Scotland) with fruit as big as ping pong balls..apparently! ..and you need to sign papers as they are for restricted distribution and a weed hazard. I did sort of neglect the more exotic species didn't I. But with the grafted 'fruit salad' trees that Moses put me onto I can cover more bases with one tree and fit more stuff in.....Avocado, Paw Paw, Macadamia, Lychee...............all things I previously thought may be too difficult for me wrt climate. What is peoples experience with multiple graft trees? I know that pruning the more vigorous scions is very important for future balance of the tree but once a month? Just how hard are these trees to maintain considering I am semi-experienced and I would perhaps want an apple and a stone fruit with 3 varieties on each. Ultimately, sustainability is the key so anything that is 'low percentage' or really fidly I may steer clear of. ....and what do you guys use for mulch? My choice to date has been sugar cane mulch which seems to do the job but breaks down really quickly so you need to re-apply constantly to maintain a 100mm coverage. Has anyone used minimally treated grey water in a drip style amorphous rubber watering system? Perhaps I should just use poly tube and dripper offshoots ala hydro to prevent clogging. Anyway, keep the ideas comming please and Thankyou to all who have had input so far.

Yeah avocado and mango would be fantastic but I don't think I have the climate. I would love someone to prove me wrong though. It is amazing how many plants can grow out of their natural habitat using a little extra care, micro climates etc like p.viridis in Melbourne but these are trees. Anyone grow either of these in Sydney?

Guys, I think this a scop but the yellow hue and thickness/size is alligned with what you are discussing. Just thought it may be of interest. Cheers..........Bongchitis p.s couldn't fix the pic below but you get the message. 4+ m tall!

I did my thesis on on-site waste treatment systems (evapotranspiration beds etc) and visited Rouse Hill sewage treatment plant West of Sydney to look at there treatment of water meant for re-use. Understanding the science behind this dispells many concerns...but it is hard to overcome the fact that you are drinking effluent. Rouse Hill actually supplies a seperate recycled water line, coloured purple, for people to wash cars etc but are not supposed to drink it........but in all honesty, I would have no problem, except for directly after rains where the volume of effluent spikes dramatically and treatability of such volumes is deminished ie. less residence time in the post treatment wetlands etc (nature provides the final cleaning step). Treatment at home, although not as clean, should be fine for any gardening exploit except root vegetables, any non food contact use really. I can't remember who said it earlier, but it seems its all about 'time' for nature to deal with the undesireables ie preping your patch early. How many people have chucked some dog shit into the compost heap, or had a cat shit at the base of your newly planted tomato. How many 'natural' interactions are going on in your veggie patch that you are not aware of. How many people test the soil before they grow veggies?......worry about some percieved risk in the water whilst growing veggies in a toxic waste dump. What do your neighbours do on the other side of the fence next to your garden? All of these potentially having far greater impact on health than some relatively clean water! It is something that the nation needs to get its headaround fairly quickly. We need to educate with the facts as our water issues are only going to get worse...and we are already in trouble.

...and tell them to "Read these Nike's"

I am up for the larger cutting for $120 please. Check your PM's.