Subject: How much rocky land is enough?

From: [email-masked]
Date: Wed, 22 Feb 1995 18:38:04 -0500

Down here in sounth central KY we have bedrock popping up through the top
soil in places, and lotsa rocks all over. But just about everything grow
here. For a garden, you need to fiddle wiht the soil some, add plenty of peat
and humus and sand as needed to make a good plot. Root crops can be a hassle
unless you create a deep bed for them. Really about all you can do is try.
Talk to locals who have big gardens, and maybe the county extension might
help.

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From: Andrew Evans <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 22 Feb 1995 22:18:20 -0500 (EST)

Yes - also, take inspiration from Helen and Scott Nearing - they were 
able to rebuild spent and poor soil on their various homestead plots by 
getting serious about composting.  If you haven't already, I highly 
recommend reading their _Good Life_ books - they are a matter-of-fact 
account of how the Nearings established and ran their homesteads in New 
England.  They discuss how they used the rocks to build structures and 
how they established their subsistance gardens using organic techniques.  
And they started over 50 years ago, long before the Back-to-the-Land 
Movement.

> Talk to locals who have big gardens, and maybe the county extension might

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