G'day Everyone, this video is a bit longer than usual, but I had a lot of fun making it so I hope you enjoy it. Thanks a lot for your ongoing support! Cheers :) P.S Visit my Website selfsufficientme.com for more...
I could not agree more about the importance of being passionate about something. It will literally save your life. Before permaculture I was highly depressed, no one could help me, no pills worked. For 15 years I struggled with dark ideas and feeling of hopelessness. Then I found permaculture, and became totally addicted. Without help from doctors or pills, my depression vanished without a trace in a matter of weeks, my energy level went 150%, and I never looked back since. Its been 4 years now, and i'm happier each year. FIND A HOBBY FOLKS!
Absolutely! I'm so glad you found your passion! Our family had three members pass away in the last year and a half, and if it wasn't for our various passions and our homestead not letting us get down, I don't know how we would've kept going! ❤
I absolutely, positively, 10000000% agree!!!! I was never depressed, but I have been growing stuff all my life. I’ll just say that, growing up, I wasn’t the most productive and innocent person but my papa literally saved my life. He taught me everything about growing food. Taking care of a yard. Just staying out of TROUBLE!! That right there is why i say that. It keeps me grounded and keeps me at home, and away from all the drama.
Please tell Peter he is in my prayers. I hope to be able to buy one of his pink prongs! Such a wonderful gentleman. It broke my heart that he’s not doing well. Please give him my best.
Cardboard boxes! I use them to harvest, gather up debris, transport anything, temporary storage for hardening transplants outside , growing sweet potatoes as a raised bed, storage of tomatoes, squashes, potatoes in my garage after harvest, dry off of onions and garlic by laying them across the edges of the boxes; and completely recyclable once done.
I keep a piece of flat heavy cardboard about the size of a cafeteria tray with me. I sit on it, use it to scoop debris, "sweep" make a quick note, fan myself... I also keep a pencil, a marker, and a tape measure. Finally, a dethorned woody rose stem about a foot long to poke into the roses to knock off dead petals, etc. It works better than anything I've ever tried for some weird reason. LOL Oh! a jar of cotton pads in mineral oil and a small fine/coarse sharpener to clean up tools after I use them. Very proud of that - I used to treat my tools like garbage.
That little one looks like it was an ironing board reused with a different top.... quite smart to repurpose the legs of one if you don't want to spend $60 or more for one
The only other things that come to my mind might be considered "essential" to protect yourself: A good water bottle (too many people don't keep hydrated while working in the garden) and sunhat (or sunscreen (which I hate)) and gloves. This is a great video, Mark, and I love your humor, too.
Mark, Peter is exactly right about finding a passion and getting into it. So many seniors fade away quickly due to lack of passionate endeavors. Freedom of choice for whatever we choose is a gift, let's not waste it! Thank you for including this in your informative video. I've learned so much from you, you are the best!
I live with my grandfather-in-law. When I picked up gardening he suddenly came with stories how he used to work in horticulture, and how he and his ex-wife used to grow flowers. Nowadays (with my help) he's got a number of plants growing that are doing really well. He likes to check them out daily and water them. One handy tip for that, make sure it's really, really free draining soil. He loves to water the plants even when they don't need it. It just makes him happy I think. (Also, my plants can be seen on Mark's forum Self Sufficient Culture)
Someone asked me last year what my hobbies were and I was embarrassed. I was so depressed my hobby was vegging all day. Now I'm outside every day sometimes for a brief time if I'm too sore (73 with arthritis everywhere) but usually once I'm outside I don't come in for hours. Getting to know all the birds takes time. 🙂
One of my main tools are chairs. I have several around the garden and one on wheels. Mostly I garden in containers and raised beds. Sitting for projects help me get things done with less pain.
We have a lot of the tools that you’ve mentioned. I’m disabled so my wife is the main breadwinner, but I’m very good with gardening. I grow almost all of our vegetables and fruits. What we don’t eat I freeze dry. I freeze dry enough fruits and veggies that we barter them for our yearly pig and we buy a young steer every spring and it’s raised on my in-laws ranch in Montana USA. The steer is slaughtered in the late fall. They keep 1/2 of the beef and we get the other 1/2. It’s a 12 hour drive to the ranch from our house in north central Washington state. Their growing season isn’t long enough to grow a lot of fruit and veggies, so that’s why we barter with them for our meat. It’s a great exchange. Both , my in-laws get “fresh” fruit and veggies (freeze dried) and we get free range beef and pork and my wife gets to see family at least once a year.
“Honey, we can make room in the garage for another tractor if you park your car in the driveway. Honey, if you park on the street, we can get another tractor. Honey, we can sell your car for another tractor…actually, we don’t need a car, let’s get the kids tractors…” 😂 Mark, I’m addicted to your videos. They’re fantastic, full of dad jokes, full of useful information, entertaining and enterprising, and salt of the earth. In much gratitude!
As a nurse retired Every person near at or pushing the 100 year mark, loved to read, did not like TV, read their Bible, and always gardened including at age 100 The true secret to longevity I think is in that recipe Oh they were also the remaining spouse who had a long marriage and missed their spouse so likely they were people who knew how to give and take in a marriage and told me that the person they were married to were more important than everything else.
For me, one of the essentials is buckets and/or tubbies! I keep 4 or 5 tubbies and a few buckets. I chuck tools in 'em, use them for trash collection, or hauling material, mixing materials. Absolutely essential.
Seceteurs aka pruners. I am a senior myself, and I wholeheartedly believe that keeping busy and finding a hobby is the best advice he could give. I tell that to the people who come into where I work. I work in a senior living facility. Unfortunately, most are unable to do any type of physical activity, that's why I say to do as much as you can do for as long as you can.
I love the fact that you live in Australia so that people that live in the nothern climates who experience winter get to see you garden in your summer :) And I love these long videos where you go in-depth. So you get to see more of the garden and all the fun and cool projects you are doing. Like growing wasabi under a mulberry tree ;) Cheers from Sweden.
I could only find a 33cm one here in NZ, far too small for use on a proper heap. I made a sort of Heath Robinson version out of an old drawer, bottom removed, and small metal mesh stapled across instead. It even has a handle on one side ! It works well, although the life span may be reduced as the drawer is some kind of MDF rather than wood.
Me too I do have with different hole sizes.. it's very handy when you need fine granules compost.... especially how you said for fine seedling soil....
@@trilliarobinson7862i do have one made from MDF as well..did hold well for a couple of years but now it's gone...i have to make it from wood...I did keep it outside in the rain...here in UK
Chicken wire, mesh and netting. Chicken wire on the soil keeps the cats from using my garden as a cat box...so many stray cats here. It also keeps the chickens from making a dirt bath. Also used to stop the critters from eating my hard work.
We call your mulch fork, a 'pitch fork'- used for hay & straw, also. I use it to rotate my compost piles. I found an awesome tool for pounding posts- it's an heavy metal tube (about 2ft long) with one end weld-capped, and has two handles welded to the sides. Makes it easy for an old woman like me to sink t-posts.. 😁👍
lol, not if it was a homemade one like we have. The posts go in quick, but much too heavy to lift over my head. 😂. The store made is much lighter. The fork he used we call a manure fork because the tines are close and many. I use a 5 tine that is good for most materials.
@@dustyflats3832 LOL! My husband made a post pounder. Yeah, no. Have at it, honey. On a much smaller scale, we got the most awesome tent stakes that are super heavy duty and can be pounded into hardpan like butter. Most recently, we used them to stablize irrigation pipes we're using as rabbit tunnels into Casa Conejo. The property next door is being flipped and the bunnies are exploring their options.
Thanks Mark, 3 hot days in a row and I spent a lot of it on the couch! But I heard your reminder about being passionate about something and got up to clean up the shed! 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻
Congratulations to all the Aussies for winning the World Cup . It was fantastic hosting you here in India. You have been a great team overall . hats off to your fielding . the catches were phenomenal .
A tool that has been extremely helpful digging up small trees and stumps here in Indonesia is called a dodos. We put long beefy straight handles on them like a shovel. But at the end is a 10cm wide blade that is thick like an axe head but has the handle come straight out the back. It cuts through roots when shovels bend or fold. And it also can be used to dig and pry. Very helpful!
I would include buckets. Although your pan is like a bucket, you can't put a water tight lid on. I so many buckets all different sizes. And use them everyday. Loved the video and lots of great comments.
OMG!! Mark, I have missed you and this was such a wonderful video. I loved hanging out with you and checking out what you call essentials for the garden. Still so grateful to have stumbled on that video of you making the catio for your family kitty. It's like a 'Heyyo' from a friend.
Mark! You missed one other tool....... Humor 😊 Love it when you're humor pops out. Humor....laughter is like a wave...you see someone smiling or laughing..it sends a ripple through out. Bless!
Wow! Six items I really need that I never thought of! I bought a folding table awhile back on your advice, thanks so much for all the great ideas, and making my gardening life easier. *Having read the comments which reminded me, I can't function without non-latex gardening gloves, many 5-gallon buckets, pallets to put young plants and trees on and to transport into the garage during freezes with my tractor, and feed bags: great to put under compost cans, carry compost, give stuff to neighbors, etc.
dad gave me an old hard wood shovel handel he had, I thought I'd never use it, then snapped the handle on my bunnings shovel digging out a tree and wacked the hardwood handle in, wish i had sooner, it's so solid don't think it will ever snap
Great Video Mark.. hello from Ireland, poor Peter and everyone else that this has effected, i know of so many that were not so lucky to end up in hospital and just didnt wake up including my brother in laws brother, 28 and he just never woke up...my own 46 year old sister had a heart attack and now needs a double eye transplant due to blood cots in her eyes.. shocking stuff, stay free Mark!
People need to go to jail!! It's shocking how they forced this poison and scared the shit out of us all and suppressed so much information and shut down any discussion - for WHAT!! I was always skeptical about conspiracy theories but man oh man are my eyes now wide open! I'm so sorry to hear of what your loved ones have gone through. Cheers from Oz.
Mate, I just want to say that you are a wealth of knowledge and thank you for sharing your extensive experience on the toobs with the rest of us, cheers mate👍
The best to put in star pickets with, is a post driver. You just pop it over the star picket, and bash it down. You don't need a star picket remover either. I simply soak the ground, and start wriggling the star picket backwards and forwards. Then after a bit, push the star picket around in circles, and then simply pull it out.
Depends on the soil and how deep the t posts went in if it will come out. Clay soil especially. Most of ours come out easily like you do, but the tuff ones my husband takes a rope with a pressic knot and cantilevers them out. I think the tool he has shown would be needed on a farm.
Depends on the soil and how deep the t posts went in if it will come out. Clay soil especially. Most of ours come out easily like you do, but the tuff ones my husband takes a rope with a pressic knot and cantilevers them out. I think the tool he has shown would be needed on a farm.
No kidding, my yellow Long Prong is the best garden tool I have ever, ever, ever, ever, ever had! I wish I'd had it 30 years ago. I could have dug out way more granite rocks faster. I have enormous boulders here, in clay. But I thought that the Prongs were no longer being made ... I am SO GLAD we can still buy them! They are the best Australian invention ever, seriously they are: they are heirlooms. I love my Prong. If I had to evacuate with one garden tool that would be it, I love it so much!
The Japanese call your #32 Garden knife a "Hori Hori". Hori Horis are great for digging up weeds with tap roots. I use mine a lot. A tool you left out which I use all the time is a hand garden Sickle for weeding. I have a "Zenport" which has an orange handle making it easy to find and hard to lose. It does what a weed wacker does and more. Since it isn't motorized, you can work around plants you might want to keep. You can cover huge areas in a short amount of time because the blade is REALLY sharp! Just grab the top half of a bunch of weeds in one hand and pull the sickle through the bottom part. I even use the blade in the soil under the weeds to get stubborn roots up. I love your #14 watering can. If the spout tip is removable, I would love a watering can like that.
I used a Hori Hori at my landscape job and have a similar device for at home. It’s my ONLY go-to tool that I consistently use for just about everything.
That’s a big YES on the hori hori knife and any Japanese sickle you can find. Sickle is great to cut back ornamental grasses and those plants that are going to seed - esp. if you don’t want any more of that seed!
Also loving the channel from in the depths of a yukky British winter. I was born in Mackay and now I live here, for my sins. Got a very big garden so can’t wait for spring to get in it. Spring is cold here but I coat up and get out there anyway.
We had a 55 gallon drum that we had put on a stand, painted it black, had a small door cut into the side and that’s one of our compost barrel that we can turn. We also have a large compost bin made out of used wood pallets and lined the inside with chicken wire. We can “stir” the compost with a pitch fork
Another use for pallets is to raise fabric beds off the ground. Much of my lawn area is sodden over winter, even with standing water at times. I found two pallets hidden in the roof of my garage, and they now have a forest of tomatoes growing in eight fabric pockets, protected from the sun (the pockets), by a layer of white recycled bubble wrap. Less to mow, and tomatoes to boot !
@@trilliarobinson7862 We planted “No Mow” grass on our mountain side and it our orchard. The roots grow 6-9” deep and once a year when it shoots up it’s seeds, we hit it with the weed wacker to scatter the seeds. It cannot be “mowed” less than 4” tall. We had to fall 17 pine trees and get rid of the scrub to give us enough of a fire break around our house. We literally live in a forest, as we bought 54.5 acres of the side of a forested mountain and our house is 1/2 way up our property. We have breathtaking views of the surrounding mountains and the canyon floor.
Bloody ripper of a video Mark. Love my Ryobi tools. Gotta get a post hole auger but. And wise words from Peter. Advice I should probably heed. Thankyou mate.
Oi Mark. You forgot the most important tool buddy. THE DOGGY. We all know that a doggo is not only a mans best friend, but also a mans best gardening companion. Even when youre spending 2 hours watching a ladybug eat aphids... doggo is always with you motivating you to keep watchin.
A plastic tub for making up your germination mix. A rack for your seedlings. A small shed for storing your seedling trays, amendments etc. I use a slasher for trimming up the grassy areas, but I don't have much. A hedge trimmer for if you have hedges is also useful. A bow saw is also good if you only have the occassional tree to cut.
Hi Mark, isn't it weird that we get a fondness for a spade/shovel and just keep using that one for all your jobs in the garden. Many prayers for Peter 😘😘 this world needs more people like him. Must say I LOVE LOVE LOVE Hoselink!!!! On the Wishlist is a mulcher.
Yes, I love my short handled shovel, aluminum garden rake and 5 tine pitch fork. It’s about the balance, weight and how it fits your hands. And I love the drip emitter irrigation! So helpful in so many ways.
If you don’t have a raised bed garden a rototiller is something I’d consider essential. That garden knife is a modern iteration of the Japanese Hori-Hori tool, I have a couple versions and use them for all kinds of stuff, such a great tool. I’d also say a worm composting bin is also essential for organic gardening because it’ll provide an endless supply of worm castings as fertilizer.
Thank you. You have helped me a lot. I’ve found a lot of healing in gardening I’m also a veteran but from the US. I’ve been lucky to serve with some of your Aviation guys. Your passion and always being so positive with encouragement to try new things got me to starting a indoor nursery for transplants, prepped plenty of compost and getting ready to start building several raised garden beds! Lots of caning ahead as well. I also got me 2 deer in the freezer. Keep them videos coming!
As a fellow veteran though I am of the American variety, I must disagree with the sledgy method! No sledgies for posts! Too cumbersome. Get a post driver. Much easier and even a weak novice you can’t miss the post, really. Truly I do thank you for your sufficient humor knowledge and insight. God be with and bless our hearts to His service.
in my top 3 is a notebook. Im a bit absent minded, I mark down when I water and fertilise or anything else i see of interest. Its saved my butt countless times.
10:18 You are a madman to order plants online. Here in Poland, that two plants would be delivered as mulch. Couriers and mailmen usually play soccer with boxes, especially if those boxes have the fragile icon on them.
I live in the U.S. - zone 6a. Obviously, the climate here requires different skills, but I enjoy your compost and soil-treating hints. I also love dogs. 😍
10:56 An even more Aussie name for a small sledge hammer like that is a "Gympie", this being because they were apparently developed and first used in gold mines near Gympie Queensland. Anyway it was the name I was always taught to use as a tradie in Australia.
In 1980, I worked in the Douglas Fir forest of northern California digging fire line. Fire fighters will be familiar with the McLeod that is used for clearing land to 'mineral soil'. The weight of it is quite useful with one side of the long handle a hoe and the other side a strong rake.
I agree with all the subtleties, I hope you make the rounds on the podcasts one day lol. I think you know way more than you can say here. Thanks for the gardening videos, you helped get me into it seriously many years ago now.
I use a couple of different tools: a left handed - hand spade (short handle), a 1/4" metal screened box for sifting compost for my seed mix and a single tooth hoe (kind of like a hard tine rake with only one tooth to get into hard to reach places). Your videos and humor put almost as many smiles on my face as my garden. Thank you for sharing.
Hello from the Madison, Ohio USA I thoroughly enjoy watching the channel. I've got about 4 acres that the family and I are slowly converting into a small farm. Tons of great tips. Thank you
Handsaws are more versatile than most people know. I work in communications and I'm often having to climb poles that are completely overgrown to the point even a bucket truck couldn't push through the vines without breaking. I keep a Gosaw in my truck. It has an Acme thread at the end of the handle, that screws right onto any painters pole giving extremely long reach. 16ft in my case.
Thank you again Mark! I find all kinds of knife's in second hand stores and use them in the garden. They are practical to have in different areas. Almost every flowerpot has a knife in it, and never have to search for one 🔪
As a 40 yr old man who finally wants to start gardening and becoming self sufficient this is by far my favorite channel for massive amounts of information. I know it will still be trial and error but I’ve already learned so much just to help prepare me for any failures that might and will happen at first. (Or even the future). Peters words hit to the bone. 🙌
❤ your garden is an amazing place ❤ i think an important tool in the garden is a nice comfortable chair, somewhere to sit and look and plan future garden projects
A compost screw/aerator is the one tool I use weekly in my suburban garden. I can turn the contents of my plastic compost bins in minutes, right down to the very bottom, so I do it weekly - before, I HATED doing it with a fork - total PIA and not a good a job. Amazing how quickly the contents break down when regularly turned and watered.
We’re in the process of buying a Subaru Sambar 4WD little pickup from Japan for heavy work around our property where we can’t get our old Ford Ranger 4WD pickup into. We also have a Honda 4WD Quad with a trailer for very tight places. My wife and I were both raised on farms so people find it amazing how we can figure out ways to repurpose things to make things work together for whatever we need built.
I have a mostly cemented yard so I do mostly container gardening. One of my go to tools is a 32 gallon garbage can with wheels. In the summer I use the inside for storage for smaller plastic pots (that might blow away with the wind) or my fall leaf claws I use to pick up leaves in the fall). In the fall I will store leaves inside that I will be using later for mulching. When working in the garden I will flip the lid over and use it as a makeshift tabletop that I can move around the yard easily and keep my tools, phone, and drinking water handy. I will also use it as a tabletop when potting plants (putting a soil mat down first makes clean up a breeze).. I would also mention that I upcycle scoopers from food or laundry packaging (like the scooper from the dry nonfat milk I use for making bread in bread machine and in nonfat lattes) in my fertilizer bags to help scoop out from the bags without much spillage/waste.
