Gardeners/farmers: last week I asked Rick Bin about a separate Garden/Farm forum, bump this thread and send him a message if you want to see it happen:

"Float the idea and see what reaction you get. I don't want dead forums, but if it looks like it will get some traction, then why not.

Trial balloon time, I'd say."

Look how many reloading forums there are (five!!)......self-sufficiency, to any degree, is an equally worthy goal. It's hard to keep warm and shoot straight if your stomach is empty and your pantry is so bare that the mice pack up and leave. I'd like to see more than an occasional garden thread, there's a lot of information that can be shared, same as all of the experience with various firearms/cartridges/hunting techniques that's available here.

I'm In!

I wonder if it will take seed, if it will flourish and take root and grow and flower.

I'd also be interested in a farm, garden and tractor forum.

All for it..

Do it!!!

I'm all in.

To be successful, it would have to encompass more than farming/gardening.

Maybe something life self-sufficiency, or how-to do things yourself instead of having someone do it for you.

Count me in,...

GTC

bump

Sure! There's ten Sticky Topics under Reloading>>Big Game; maybe there could be a Tractor sticky and a few others, too.

Count me in. Can we start now? Who uses cottonseed meal on citrus?

Sounds good to me. I am always amazed at the residual knowledge on this site, on just about any topic!(of course, you need your filters on for controversial topics!)

Sounds good. First topic can be the proper pronunciation of Puh-Kahn.!

Sounds good to me.

yup. puh-kahn. not pee-can


I think a gardening / farm forum would be cool.

Great idea, count me in.

I don't post very often but I'll read it.

I'd be in. I live on my grandparents original farm of 70 acres in the house that grandpa built back in 1944.

right on!

We are still eating good out of our 2015 garden in the form of potatoes and canned tomatoes and sauce, pickled beets and cukes, canned carrots, canned beans, dilly beans, sweet/hot beans, and green tomato relish.

The 2016 garden is all mapped out.

I'd like to see it! Wifey & I put one in every spring and I'm always looking for tips and such. Most of my knowledge comes from Green Acres re-runs!
7mm

Growing weed?

That's cool. My garden crapped out last year. I was thinking about tilling today.

I'm in

I would like to see it even though it would probably make me blue with envy on seeing everyone else's gardening since all I have room for is a tomato plant in a five gallon bucket.

IMO it would not several sub-forums. Gardening covers such a wide variety of topics, things like planting, cultivation, weed control, insect control, soil testing, and irrigation will just naturally flow. You might want to consider sub-forums for topics like crop preservation and storage, and another for food prep itself.

Yup.

BP...

forestry, food plots...

Sounds Great!!!

That would be great.

Does anyone know how to store carrots without them getting limp?

I'm in...

gonehuntin: Great idea for a Farm/Garden forum. The latest posts on chickens and bees would fit right in. Posts on tractors, canning, tilling, whatever. People know what fits and what doesn't.

Thanks for putting it together and hopefully Rick will make it happen. Out of respect for Rick's time maybe you can just point him to your post and replies instead of inundating him with emails. However if one needs to be sent let me know. -tnscouter

Sounds like a good idea to me.

+1

Way to early to start a garden here as it is snowing again tonight. But I am in.

Sounds great

bump

cabindweller what are sweet/hot beans? working on my plans for this year

Me too.

I'm in.

Maybe we could have some discussion that doesn't draw those that don't have a clue, but post anyway...

I'd enjoy this too but may I make a suggestion? A "Rural Living" or "Rural Life" Forum would both cover these things and actually fit very well with the Campfire, Hunting, Fishing theme.

And it would also give us a place to bitch in an organized fashion about Rural Discrimination from City Dwellers who have no clue. Lol. Personally, I have some very interesting stories to share about this. lol

The campfire would make a great spot if we could cut back on the political, grump, and conspiracy threads.

I'm interested. Don't post much but I read the fire every day.

Sounds good to me.

I'm in as well have a huge garden and a square baling business on the side

I am in, there is plenty of gardening information stored on this forum from Mickey, Miss Sassy, and others that could be brought forward and shared with others when it is needed also.

I'm In !

Count me in.

Oh, so a city dweller with a "Victory Garden" would not be qualified to offer input?

I have urban friends and relatives with amazing gardens and fruit trees.

Count me in. I think a garden / tractor / farm forum would go over huge here. Some of my favorite threads are on the topic of old tractors and such.

Count me in and I too would also like a moderator who would squash any belligerent, non subject bickering crap.....

I might even suggest that it would be named somehow to honor Mr. Coleman. He would be all over it!

That is absolutely wonderful idea !

I apologize...I did not mean to stereotype. This was wrong of me. I have the upmost respect for City Dwellers who buck the ideals Society tries to enforce on them! As you know though Urban Food Gardens are becoming rare and many Municipalities are even trending towards outlawing these.

In many Cities now it is OK to grow "ornamentals" but illegal to grow "Food Crops". This is because of the ignorant neighbor next door looking over your fence who thinks they are ugly to look at and reduce the value of their property. In fact I try to promote Backyard Chicken Farming in the City just for these type of neighbors.

These are the type of people I was referring to in my statement, not the Gardeners

Great idea! I am in.

I'd probably spend a little time there.

I'm in

Soul,.....tractors GOT IT !

Sounds great to me.

back up for the afternoon crowd

I'm in.

I'd be very interested in a forum that tractors, machinery, farming and ranching would be discussed. I myself am an early iron freak but I do enjoy reading about agriculture in general around the country.

Great idea, anything outdoors and that is not political is needed here. I can read about others doing manual labor for hours w/out tiring. I sometimes break a full body sweat reading about the rural life.

The new thread must include trucks, dogs, axes and rifles. Wide open spaces w/ unrecognizable machinery on it would be cool too.


mike r

Maybe start a Farm and Garden forum and then expand as the demand warrants.

I can see a Tomato forum getting just as ugly as the Optics one. People can get pretty prickly about their 'Maters!

ha ha, Ben, you are a funny guy. As if that would ever happen, especially in an election year.

Or maybe you're a spy, for an agency that wishes to quell free speech and discourse on Freedom.

Geno

Oh, count me in on the Garden forum.


I usually have a half dozen squash plants, 18 or more peppers of hot and mild varieties, strawberries, a permanent herb garden, horseradish, cabbages, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, etc.

So, you bet, having a place to go without having to sift thru the other stuff on the campfire forum, sometimes in the food section, etc would be nice.

OP, Thanks for starting this.

Geno

PS, do we need to sent Ric a PM or just keep this going?

I'm in

It wouldn't hurt to send RB a quick note "Garden forum!", but I've sent him the link to this and asked him to watch and comment.

I'm in for a gardening forum. In fact I'm looking for a tiller right now. Is an older Troybilt Horse still the way to go?

thats what I use.

check craiglist / facebook swap shops.

had to repower mine last year with a Harbor Freight $99 dollar Briggs knockoff.

suprised how well the cheap-o engine runs.

I would find that forum very interesting.

I'm in.

Count me in! Greenhouse gardening, for those of us who live in Zone 4 would be a great help.

Get er done I might not be able to help as I dont have a garden or a farm. But hoping to start a garden sometime in the future. Would be a good resource.

Hydroponics

Rick,

I didn't PM you about this forum because I figured you had a ton of them but please do this. We need somewhere to go where politics aren't front and center.


Tractors/farming/gardening/food plots etc. would be an awesome topic that I would go to frequently.

Thanks!

Rooster

P.S. Thanks to the O.P. for suggesting it

TTT.

+1

I'm in

If "politics" is what turns off most people, then maybe there ought to be a subforum for it, and leave the rest of this forum as is, with its wide variety of topics.

I like the idea. Al

I have to say I am pleasantly surprised by the response here.

Ok, let's talk about the name and topic breadth.

"Rural Living"

"Farms, Food Plots, Gardens, and Tractors"

????

This ought to be interesting !! wonder if stick is an expert here too ?? LMAO

I'd visit for sure, starting to get more into gardening and maybe even a few animals soon. Broke ground and made a garden last year for the first time at our new place. Didn't do that great but about all I expected for a first year plot, expecting better this year.

"Rural Living" covers a lot. I like it

"Rural Living" sounds good.

Throw in Sticky's for specific sub-topics? Sticky Points right off the bat: Tractors, Fruit Trees, Container/Balcony Gardening.

Maybe sub-forums or sticky's for different climates, regions, zones, etc. We will be planting very soon for instance. Native species comes to mind as well. The diversity would be interesting.

I'm in.

BTW, You have just spoken about my city of residence. Who the hell do they think they are to tell me I can't raise vegetables on my property! They can pound sand. We finally got a commissioner who gets it and everybody and their brother are wanting me to vote against him this time. phugg them.

Just the oposite here....Lewiston just passed an ordinance allowing a certain number of Chickens.....not sure of the details since I live about 25mi out of town but I was glad to hear about it.....

I just put in a small garden that doesn't amount to much but I'm always looking for advice.....let er rip......

I myself would prefer something more like "machinery" and not just "tractors". Case in point, where I live self propelled swathers ,balers and harrow beds are very popular machines and none has a tractor associated with them.

I also do like the "Rural Living" topic.

Rick,

Whatever name folks come up with I'll be visiting/posting.

If there's posts about combines, balers, and other industrial equipment, I'll just have to wade through them. Not my area of interest. I'll not be interested in which spray is better for my 5000 acres of soybeans either, but maybe some folks are. (I don't have 5000 acres of soybeans.... or anything else either )

Chickens, pigs, family small scale beef production, goats, bees, "truck farms", family gardens, that kind of thing will be what I'm looking for.

Topics more along the lines of self sufficiency rather than industrial farming are what I was thinking would work for me.

Then again, there's a number of forums I rarely if ever visit, so whatever you and the folks come up with, I'll be sure to visit often.

Thanks,

Geno

I would like to see this happen as well.

Agreed, something aimed at the homesteader/hobbyist gardner/farmer. But, I do like seeing folks older/restored tractors! Myself, I'm only doing a small raised-bed plot that's all of 16' x 4', so I'm trying for maximum efficiency from every square foot available.

I was thinking the same as Valsdad. Although I'm cool with whatever people want. If the post title is thoughtful than I know whether to read it or not, and that would take care of most of the "sub forum" needs. -tnscouter

gonehuntin,

check into this technique for small areas:

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=square+foot+gardening&t=ffsb&ia=about

Another method (I hope you're not a Francophobe, every once in a while they come up with some good stuff, like small bore smokeless cartridges):

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=french+intensive+gardening&t=ffsb&ia=about

Good luck with it all.

Geno

PS, old restored Ford/IH/JD tractors, like my uncle had on his little 5 acre place are cool. Some of the combines in the wheat growing are I live in could fit about a dozen of those under them it seems tho, and that's way too big for my interest.

fwiw,
The only part of country living that can leave me GRUMPY is repeated visits to my local John Deere parts counter in my effort to replace the 1973(two years older than I am)4020 Diesel that my Grandfather bought, my father rebuilt, and I am trying to keep the exterior and particular the battery system from eating me alive... I coulda boughta kubota for the money I've spent...(true)

Beware of old tractors. They are mad about the lack of a retirement plan...

Regards, Matt.

Hope it happens and hope there is traffic. Cowboy Action and BPCR are topics I'm very interested in and that one would think would support fairly popular forums, yet the ones here get little play. A Handguns Reloading forum would be nice, yet there is none. Go figure.

No offense, but there's no such thing as a 1973 4020. I don't know when the actual production ended...maybe they made them into '73, but the models years end in 1972.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Deere_Model_4020

Yep I got a farm and a tractor.

Bumping for more to come chime in.

Instead of Tractors , how about machinery. Include hydroponic and auto watering/drip irrigation equipment....

Rural living is fine.

Perhaps add "livestock" to the mix. Lots of people have lots of animals, from chickens to cows.


Thank you, Rick!

I'm all for it.

Garden/farm forum sounds good

Bout time!

All this can be found over at Mother Earth News.

....

I'm in.

"Colemen Country"

I like the idea, be a great forum, go for it!

I like "Back to Basics" or "rural living"

encompasses everything from working on old farm machinery, canning meat, raising chickens to trapping fish in the wild and starting fires with a rope and a stick. Not to mention everything in between. I know I'll really get into it! Thanks Rick!

I'd say to semi-limit it to home or hobby-business stuff. A guy who has a few bee hives or a few fruit trees to sell stuff at a farmers market would qualify but not a full blown business. Most of us aren't farmers. We're hobbyists.
At the same time, info about pesticides or irrigation on a large scale is also applicable to hobby farming so that needs to be considered.

I'd like it. I've always posted about the gardens, tractors, fruits we use (domestic and wild), tractors and other machinery. Helpful hints for growing things are always appreciated.

I'm not one of the "big boy" farmers, but I like reading their post and seeing pics of their operations.

I'm in!

(one suggestion- no politics allowed)

Really?

Then I would certainly not contribute, with that sort of regulation on a forum.

By the same line of thinking, we should also prohibit someone that makes their living in the firearms industry from posting in the shooting forums.

Here's a clue for you...

People that want advice on how certain things work, and why they work that way, are not going to seek that advice from other beginners. The input of people that actually know the mechanics of a specialized subject are the most valuable part of the discussions.

I was thinking of a similar reply as you posted this one. Who better to appreciate free advice from but someone who has toiled and suffered with hard work and mistakes yet became successful in building a Full Blown Operation? These are the guys you WANT to share advice and experience because apparently they know their stuff and have already proven it!

True...but all the sources and propaganda at Mother Earth News are from "the other side of the aisle".

Oh, make no mistake... The other side of the aisle is here too.

I see them post daily.

Cant anyone read a 2d paragraph?

I read the entire post before I posted mine.

It still reads like you don't want much input from those that do it for a living. Your first sentence states that clearly.

I was gonna' toss in "Coleman's Corner". I'll always cherish the memory of playing tech adviser at a distance when he repowered his Troybilt horse.

Jeez, I miss him and his postings.

I've got Troybilt Horse boneyard here, for any Fire types that come up short of parts,....

"Tractors, Implements, and Equipment" should cover the gamut of traditional and brand spankin' NEW tech that's proliferated and will continue to. WTH CARES what the header says, ....ALL of that will inevitably be turning up.

Mother Earth News is / has become an F'n liberal yuppie JOKE,.....and I expect we'll see REAL, and better savvy, here.

Hell if guys want to jaw about vintage tractors, what's the harm in THAT ? I've built and operate my place with vintage iron, and am no big fan of throwaway plastic chit, myself.

GTC

yes, I am in and interested
phil

The broader the input base the more info shared. Coleman Country would work. This has the potential to be great.


mike r

Absolutely^^^^^^^^^^^ The more the merrier....if the "purist" nit-pickers don't like it create a sticky with a visual demonstration on how to hit the back button.....

PS......Another vote for "Coleman Country"...............

Rick is asking for opinions. If you don't like mine, you might change my mind if you say "I disagree because..." and state your reason politely. Getting mad and insulting won't change anyone's mind, mine included. I'm not a bit adversed to changing my mind if I see good reasons to do so. I do it all the time. Getting mad like you do won't do it, though.

I thought that's what I did do..?

I stated my reasons very concisely. Nor was I "insulting" in any way.

As far as what makes me mad, or doesn't make me mad... well, you can't regulate and control that either.

What you said was that if you don't get your way, you'll take your ball and go home.

No, I said I wouldn't participate.

Which is exactly what you said you wanted....

If this thread is any indication of how the forum will be, I'm out as of now.

Climb down off your high horse cowboy.....what RB actually said was that if agricultural professionals weren't allowed he wouldn't participate......I'll bet there's plenty of forums on this site you don't participate in..........Hypocrisy???????

Not to interrupt a great argument here but going back to the Title of the thread...I take it "Coleman" was a past member here who you all lost?

If this is what I am understanding with this, a thread Title in his dedication would indeed be a very appropriate Gesture of respect.

Mickey Coleman was indeed a very well respected guy here that had been a member since the early days. He died unexpectedly last year.

Go back and read some of his posts. He was a great guy, and we all lost a lot with his passing.

Thank you, that's exactly the info I need!

My vote is for "Rural Living"

New members would be drawn to that title I believe.

Rooster,

true that, however, some members in suburbia and (heaven forbid) cities might not realize what topics are being discussed, like small scale gardening and backyard chickens.

Just a thought.

Geno

Great idea!

Mike

Oh, look.
They're already bickering.



Farm and Garden should cover it all.
Dedicated to Coleman is good.

If someone doesn't want to read about restoring a 318 JD mower/tiller, don't click it.

Now, back to the bickering....

But first.
This needs it's own forum too.
How about "Get a Room!" with a motel sign flashing above it?

So,

I don't know a thing about gardening, but I would love to learn from those who do. In other words, one more vote for a gardening forum.

Absolutely Great Idea!

So you take your ball and go home. Why don't you just try to politely disagree instead of posting insults? You just might get someone to change their mind.

What specifically do you feel insulted about?

If that was what I inferred, then I do apologize.

When I see recommendations as to who can post within a forum, I see that as very restrictive and regulatory. I get enough restrictions and regulations with our government. Doesn't everyone?

It's kinda hard to take your ball and go home when the game hasn't yet started. Don't you agree? Or would anyone that chose not to post in a particular forum be taking their ball and going home?

If that's the criteria, then I took my ball and went home from most of the forums here but a couple in the past 24 hours.

Farm and Garden
Gardening
Rural homesteads
Self Sufficiency/DIY Ideas
Rural Living Equipment

I'd be there and sure to learn alot that I lack. I can contribute 30 years experience in irrigation design, repair, installation.

I tend to read more than post here, but I do like the idea behind the overall theme of the forum proposal.

What ever you decide to call it (if), the sub forum name should attempt to reflect the types of topics that most any newcomers might expect to find behind the title imo.
Maybe something like "Aspiring to and sharing country/rural Living" or something similar... just a thought, Good luck with it...

Bump---I am in

I like "Rural Living" -doing it, learning more about it, and sharing it. I'd spend more time on this site, in such a forum, even though it's a great place, already.

I want a Mumbly Peg forum!

http://www.artofmanliness.com/2011/06/07/mumbley-peg/

I like the idea. "Rural Living" sounds good to me.

I'm good with "Maters-N-chit"

"Coleman Country, Seed, Soil, and Water, most Critters Welcome"

I've got a serious question:

If Rick creates a 'Rural Living/Coleman Memorial' Forum, will I end up with 18 tractors, 13 different blades, an irrigation system fit for a small country, and 47 different types of livestock? That's what seemed to happen after participating in the firearms forums....

Here we are, gents. Enjoy.

If there are any recent threads that need to be moved into this section, please link me to them and I'll get them over here.

Thanks Rick

Much appreciated.

Now I have another way to "waste time".......
while learning.



Geno

Ethan,
Interesting... Will work that into conversation with my parts guy. You are getting the credit wether you want it or not...
Matt.

It's up...Fantastic...Thank you Mr Bin!

Great, and at the right time too. Lots are starting plants from seeds, as we are.

In my mind, the thread on raising meat rabbits should go along well here. We've been doing it for several years, build a shelter that is fenced all around to keep varmints out, cages suspended off the ground. 8 to 10 weeks are about right for slaughter, they skin out real easy when young. Very good meat.'

Chickens are another topic that could fit here, not only for eggs but meat chickens. We have raised cornish cross if I remember right, again, in 6 to 8 weeks they are ready to butcher. They get so big they can hardly walk. I made a way to raise and clean up if anyone is interested.

I have also heard of raising quail. Easy to house and raise to killing stage, but never done it.

We have raised out pigs for butchering. We buy a couple young piglets once they are weaned, then raise them out. Frankly, we haul them to a local slaughter house and have them do the work. It's a LOT of work to process start to finish, I aint as young anymore!

This could spread out into sub categories very easy!

"Sign...Sign...everywhere a sign...Blocking out the scenery breaking my mind...Do this...Don't do that...can't you read the Sign?"

One of the reasons I joined and enjoy the fire is because of the true lack of Signs here. Something I noticed about Websites with too many Signs...They fade away and become no more.

The open communication and dialog here on the Fire is what makes it popular and draws participation. I hope everyone here realizes how rare this type of unregulated dialog is becoming.

We all have the will power to regard or disregard content using our own self responsibility, Or at least we should. Asking for more signs could be a mistake and from what I see unproductive effort anyhow.

I have a feeling the owner of this site may have driven over a few BLM "Flappers" himself...

thanks again Rick!

Thanks Rick!

Man that was fast!

Is there going to be a Round-up ready garden sub-forum?

I look forward to hearing from the burnout hippies from the 60's, man they grew some good stuff.

Yep, right below the organic sub-forum.......
We could challenge them to a sword fight,
but those greenies might like it.

Rick, thanks for the rural living category.
I think Monsanto should sponsor the roundup ready sub-forum.
They care about people.

Chipotle is not going to cook with GMO ingredients.

"How to Garden with Agent Orange"

Awesome! Thanks Rick!

That's funny right there...

Great to see this get some traction, thanks Rick.

Cool forum and one I imagine is pertinent to us all. I'm sure this will be full of information and useful tips. Good job!

Life is good!

The rabbit thread AND the pigeon/plastic (explosive) owl thread.

This is where they belong.

Count me in!!!

Started the day planting red kale and Bok Choy then spent the rest of the day fixing my greenhouse and starting my spring bedding plants...