Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

hi everyone, yes the killer bit maybe does need some clarification, killer as in tasty and potent - and a good thing!!

heres a receipe for the elder flower wine, cant find my elderberry one, but will keep looking and post later

Elderflower Wine (copied from an old book) from Alan Joellenbeck

3 pints (1.5 litres) elder flowers (stems removed)
3 gallons (11 litres) water
10 (4.5Kg) pounds sugar
2 (1Kg) pounds raisins
Juice of 3 oranges
Juice of 1 lemon
1 pkg wine yeast

- Wash and drain elder flowers and put in primary fermentor.
- Make a syrup of water and sugar, pour it hot over elderflowers, cover and allow to cool.
- Mix orange and lemon juice with the yeast, add the liquid, cover and let stand for 10 days.
- Strain and add the raisins.
- Cover and let stand for 4 months.
- Bottle the wine and store in a dark place for 6 months before using.

takes some time, but its definately worth it..........

as for the cucumber issues, would definately also suggest the milk solution, had the same problem myself before, although i have gone as high as one part milk to 5 parts water (depends on whether milk is skimmed, semi skimmed or full fat - as this influences water proportion.) unpasturised i think is better as bacteria are more prevalent, but pasturised has also worked for a friend of mine.

Where do I get diatomaceous earth from. Does it have another name?
Bunnings don't seem to know what it is and suggested using detergent!!!


I have an aphid problem...

try asking for Dipel

how about borrow some ducks from a local farm!

There's been some discussion about mixing ducks with AP, I think there were some issues about pathogens getting into the fish and then into the people (?) it was a while ago

plus, my ducks would lurve to get into the growbeds and I'm fairly sure they would just be after the lettuces, silverbeet and chillies and would leave the aphids alone

Fair enough!

Friends of mine keep telling me that I should try quails in my growbeds as they won't scratch or cause much damage..

You can get it from a swimming pool shop i.e. a shop you buy the equipment + chemicals from, not the place you buy the pool from, but you can only get it in a big box. Better still make friends with a pool owner who uses a diatomaceous earth filter and see if you can "borrow" a cupful. I've got a boxful, but it doesnt have instructions on how to use it on plants - any suggestions?

Is Dipel (BT) the same as DE? I thought they were different, but had a similar effect.
I agree on the quails, much smaller and tastier to eat.
I have chickens roaming around the yard - completely unfenced in middle of suburbia (apart from property fences) - so far they haven't tried getting up to the grow beds. I know they can jump that high, because their hutches are the same height. They have also jumped up into the raised soil garden beds. Maybe it is the blue barrels they don't like???

DIATOMACEOUS EARTH

Pure DE powder, this is untreated, unheated agricultural DE not the DE used in swimming pool filters, which is dangerous and has no pest control properties.

This is from the Green Harvest website:
http://www.greenharvest.com.au/pestcontrol/DE_prod.html

BAD KE14, BAD.

No, dipel and DE are very different things, dipel is a bacterial powder that you apply, kills caterpillars by the bacteria getting into their stomach.. Diatomaceous earth is basically fossilized algae that is very abrasive, insects don't like it at all, and it tends to literally suck the moisture out of many insects....

Janet is the queen of DE (steve pictures here description of insects being sliced to ribbons )

but I want a source of de in oz not in us.

Now that I don't know...... I've asked at a number of nurseries in the past and I've always been given the look...

The Greenharvest Link you gave fizzyj is an Australian link ....LOL

If you want smaller quantities ...Try these guys (50km down the road from me... we got all the good stuff LOL)...

DIATOMACEOUS EARTH (eBay Auction)

Small business trading as Natures Mix....

DIATOMACEOUS EARTH (Link to Web Site)