Amish

[ninnymary]

Back to the original question. What makes amish gardens so good?

I think it's the poop and care they give to their gardens.

Simple life - I gree with you. There seems to be so much controversy on some topics. I stay out of them. I try to fill my life with positiviness and not negativism. (Hope I spelled that right.):/

Mary

 

[Rosalind]

YOU live like an amish for 10 years, then come back and tell me how it is.

This is a rhetorical question, right?

Pros: Plenty of healthy exercise, lotsa fresh food (Fastnacht Day wasn't that long ago, and I miss ring bologna & shoofly pie), easy to decide what you're wearing in the morning, if you like animals you'll have fun working with them, nice warm quilts, learn a trade, being taken care of by community in hard times, resourcefulness out the wazoo, beauty of nature around you, NO DEBT! Depending on what you grow and how well you set up the farm, you can end up working less than an office job overall. Companionship, as big families live close to each other, you won't get lonely.

Cons: Puppy mills, religious bigotry, enforced conformity similar to USSR, spousal abuse and child abuse often is supported by Bible quotes and approval by religious leaders, child labor, divorce not allowed so if you're stuck with a loser you're really stuck.

Loss of appliances and so forth is not that bad. You adjust, and there are plenty of electricity-free substitutes from Lehman's.

 

[Ladyhawke1]

YOU live like an amish for 10 years, then come back and tell me how it is.

This is a rhetorical question, right?

Pros: Plenty of healthy exercise, lotsa fresh food (Fastnacht Day wasn't that long ago, and I miss ring bologna & shoofly pie), easy to decide what you're wearing in the morning, if you like animals you'll have fun working with them, nice warm quilts, learn a trade, being taken care of by community in hard times, resourcefulness out the wazoo, beauty of nature around you, NO DEBT! Depending on what you grow and how well you set up the farm, you can end up working less than an office job overall. Companionship, as big families live close to each other, you won't get lonely.

Cons: Puppy mills, religious bigotry, enforced conformity similar to USSR, spousal abuse and child abuse often is supported by Bible quotes and approval by religious leaders, child labor, divorce not allowed so if you're stuck with a loser you're really stuck.

Loss of appliances and so forth is not that bad. You adjust, and there are plenty of electricity-free substitutes from Lehman's.

 

[ducks4you]

Cons: Puppy mills, religious bigotry, enforced conformity similar to USSR, spousal abuse and child abuse often is supported by Bible quotes and approval by religious leaders, child labor, divorce not allowed so if you're stuck with a loser you're really stuck.

Loss of appliances and so forth is not that bad. You adjust, and there are plenty of electricity-free substitutes from Lehman's.

Puppy mills--my dog, Pygma was probably from one of them. Found her with an 8 week litter at an Amish auction. Nobody took ANY puppies, so I thought I could handle one more dog. Sorry about the picture quality.

Religous bigotry..hmmm...don't EVER talk about different denominations with them.

Loss of appliances--I have had loss of appliances before. Then, I live without...until I replace them.

 

[Big Red Hen]

They simply love and respect the land God has given them. They take care of what they love & work hard to supply for their families. And I think all that horse maure has something to do with it too...

 

[ducks4you]

I promised to talk to my Amish farrier about this, and so I did, when I had my horses trimmed yesterday. Here's what he said (about gardening):
1) Get your soil tested
His soil had been OVER-manured over the years, and they had to use additives to address this.
2) Use a cover crop
He planted oats. The only problem was that it was wet when time to till it under.
3) Rotate your crops.
Sounds a lot like US. He also laughed to think that I was starting EVERYTHING inside this year to transplant outside...including radishes. :/ ..go AHEAD...laugh :/

We have talked before about compacting soil. He (as a horse trainer, too) won't let his horses out when it's muddy because they compact the soil. This makes the soil drain slower.

We also talked about heirloom varieties and how there are SO MANY heriloom vegetables that are purple.

BTW, it takes 8 draft horses to do the work of 1 tractor. I've seen it done. Just thought you'd all like to know.

 

[Beekissed]

That was informative! Thank you! And I didn't even laugh about your radishes...... Sometimes ya just gotta try things!

 

[ducks4you]

Beekissed, You're SO SWEET!! You'll have to come over to my house for pie!

 

[Beekissed]

That was informative! Thank you! And I didn't even laugh about your radishes...... Sometimes ya just gotta try things!