Roland --- Excellent question. We're not sure yet.... We're going to start with the walls and see what comes to us in the meantime. The instructions suggest shingles, which are probably the most flexible for this type of application.

How are you going to make the roof watertight?

Mom --- You're the first commenter on this post, so maybe that's what you're having trouble with?

Hi--sorry! Something technical seems to bekeeps\ing me from reading others' comments on this subject...what would you call this, in the bee's life style? Thanks!

WooHoo! Awesome job!

I got an idea from fritzmonroe.com to order custom dog tags online for labeling my fruit trees. They are $1-$4 each depending on the website you use, and are rustproof, often with the typical chain attached. They work perfectly.

Anna, that's construction 101. Triangles are inherently stable structures, even if the ends are just pinned together. That's the main reason trusses are made out of triangles.

If you want to make a stable rectangle (like your chicken pasture doors) you either have to brace the corners or add a cross beam. In the latter case, it would really be two triangles sharing one side.

DawnLowderPug --- I'm not sure that Ron is checking back to answer comments, but it does look like his trellises are mostly made of bamboo. In my own garden, I use U-posts and plastic trellis material, which is ultra-easy to put up and take down every year. The same materials have been in service for about five years now, and should last another decade or two.

I love your trellis. Is that made with Bamboo? If not, what is it made with? Thanks! PS I'm a new garderner, so in the very early learning stages.

Kenny --- Our farm isn't really appropriate for electric fences, for reasons too complicated to go into here. So this will be a stationary coop with paddocks that we rotate the animals through encircling it.

However, I'd say you could definitely make one of these starplate coops moveable as long as you keep whatever you finish it with light. (Perhaps mostly hardware cloth if you're just doing broilers in the summer.) Once you get all of the triangles together, it's astonishingly solid and resilient.

I am very excited to see this project! And it looks to be very good sized.
I am debating on the design and "permanence" in building a coop for my laying hens and multipurposing the space for brooding chicks and well as seedling starting.
I've tried a cattle panel "hoop coop" but and not overly impresses with it. A bit too flimsy and less than secure. Is moving the dome in the plans? As in utilizing electic net fencing and moving the chickens. Can't wait to see developments and the implementation of this dome used for poultry housing. Always a plus to learn from good folks like Mark and Anna. Thanks.

Patrick --- It sounds harsh, but when shoots are new, ripping them off is actually pretty gentle. I hold the main stem and gently pull off each shoot, and only rarely do I cause any damage. Ripping is better than snipping because the latter leaves the base of the stem behind, which promotes more sprouts from that point. By ripping, you prevent sprouts from that area in the future.

I've been intrigued with the Star Plate for a loooooong time, and am happy to see you guys trying it out. Really looking forward to seeing your progress and outcome!

Are you literally ripping off the shoots or figuratively? Just wondering how much you need to "baby" the trees?

Sheila --- It's hard to get even a rough estimate since it was crinkled up as you can see in the photo. Maybe as much as four or five feet long all stretched out?

That is a beautifulsnake. How long was it? From the second photo it looks quite long.

Eric --- Yeah, I tend to think that the easiest and cheapest way to build things is rectangles, but figured Mark should win sometimes. On the other hand, external coating aside, I suspect Mark's way will use less lumber for framing at least. An 8-foot-per-side structure (meaning it'd be a bit smaller than our current starplate structure) built with typical 16-inch stud spacing would take, I think, 28 pieces of wood just for the walls, while the basic starplate structure needs only 25 for walls and roof. (We're changing the starplate slightly to allow for a bigger door, but the amount of wood is comparable). We'll have to see if the roof and wall materials are so complicated that they make that savings non-worthwhile. Either way, I think Mark's really wanting this for aesthetic reasons, so material costs are irrelevant.

Christopher --- We chose to use 8-foot lumber so we wouldn't have to do any cutting (with 10-foot pieces on the roof, creating a 2-foot overhang). The instructions say that will result in a building that's 11.5 feet tall at its highest point, 12 feet wide, and 110 square feet.

I am just trying to get an idea how big this thing will be... What size are the posts?

Ah, the simplicity of a 1v dome! Twenty five 2x4s and 11 connectors making 15 identical triangles. I used to build them out of rolled up newspaper and a stapler for my kids to play in.

I love domes for their strength and just plain fun, but I think a round house with conical roof would probably be less waste. Plywood bends very nicely around a large enough circle. A plywood yurt basically.

That being said, I can't wait to see the starplate dome.

Get a spray can of WD-40 with a long, thin straw attachment. Spray WD-40 into the hole until the female bee comes out. Then fill the hole with wood putty. If you just fill the hole and don't get her to come out first, she will bore out another way. This works for us.

Only 6 bales on that 4wheeler? If it's a weight thing, I understand, but if it's a logistics thing... ratchet-strap or otherwise attach a piece of plywood on top of that trailer and stack 'em neatly on it. You should be able to get at least 12 on that wheeler. Two on the wheeler and 10 on the trailer. Cut the plywood to accomodate 4 bales arranged lengthways, put another four on top of them, and two crossways on top of that. Strap them down and off you go. Or make a flatbed trailer somehow. Again, if that wheeler can't pull the weight, that's another story. Although, my 600 can pull (with a little difficulty, mind you) a trailer loaded with 1000 lbs of moose and gear, so I'd be surprised if that good ol' Polaris couldn't pull your hay.

Hi there! Your strawberries look wonderfully healthy. We had a lil problem with the birds eating ours, but hopefully you won't. Have a great day.

Colored zip ties, very loosely fastened near your grafted rootstock could help you keep track of things. With the help of a spreadsheet, which we all know you are already fond of, it would be pretty simple, i think!

Try to use darker colored ties-the reds, yellows and oranges can be hard to tell apart after a few seasons in the elements. I've found the green, blue, and black hold their colors better. For added insurance of identification, you could trim the ends of the ties in a fashion that is specific to the type of graft.

We have the cat issue also, and the use of the plastic netting is a super way to discourage them. So far, the cats do t eat anything though.
We do have slightly larger critters to worry about, being close to national forest like we are. And I'm not refering to deer. My first year here, my small little garden was completely destroyed, twice, by COWS. new Mexico has free range cattle, and is also a "fence out" state, meaning the land owner is responsible to fence out the cattle if he doesnt want them on his land, as opposed to Texas, which is a"fence in" state. The rancher is responsible to keep his cattle contained. I cant tell you the consternation one feels to go out one morning to find absolutely everything eaten, and cow pies on your patio!
It is too costly to fence our entire lot, and we would have to include an electronic gate across the drive, but we are in process of fencing in a goodly portion of it, including at least part of the garden.

And be glad you have a female dog, Anna, as I do have to watch that our Gibbs, with his policy of " pee on everything" , doesnt get near the lettuce patch!

Heidi --- The Asian ladybugs are very easy to tell because they're more of a tan color instead of red. The photo got the light off a bit, so these look more orange than they are in real life, but they're definitely the good kind of ladybug.

are you sure those are ladybugs and not Asian lady beetles...I have heard there is a big difference in that the Asian lady beetles are not natural predators to aphids.....just wondering.

The word simplicity confuses me lately. When I was a stay at home mom, I thought that I was the definition of simplicity. I did my chores, worked the garden, took care of my family, but yet, I still had time to read and drink my tea for at least an hour a day. But now, I own a business with my husband and we work that business 50+ hours a week each. Is my life still considered simple? I'm not sure. I still do all the things I used to do (except now I have accepted that a perennial garden is the way I need to go in this season of my life) but I have added a 50 hour work week to it. I'm with my husband, so that we are working together and not separated through the day. I pick up my son from school and we eat our meals together everyday. I feel like I'm in a limbo from "traditional" simplicity and a weird configuration of simplicity. My life is clearly different, but in the base of things they are the same. I also have a hard time differentiating between true simplicity and money simplicity. I used to choose to bake all our bread, now I have to bake all our bread to meet our budget. I lose contentment when I think about money and how much farther we need to go to make sure we'll be ok when we get older. We have no debt except for our house, but retirements need to be set. Being concerned for future finances... is that living in simplicity and contentment or just a natural by product of being an aging woman? Yes, simplicity itself is clearly not simple for me!

I would laugh about cat repellant,but in my experience over the last couple months I've needed it, too. In my urban rental situation, I am growing things in a window box (which I've kept inside up until just recently). Twice the cat ate my squash plants, which HAD been growing quite nicely for being indoors. I ended up caging the plants to keep the cat out. Finally it got warm enough to put them outside, and after all the babying, the boxes got dug up by squirrels! I ended up buying some cat grass, which el gato gladly ate immediately.

Thanks, anna... Hope it doesnt take quite that long! One neighbor as a few trees planted.. Maybe some stray pollen will find its way over to our blossoms......

Deb --- I've noticed a similar thing at my Mom's house. She lives in the city, and there tend to be a lot fewer pests and diseases around. Definitely a benefit!

About your bloom-less tree --- it's probably just too young. Dwarf trees bloom earlier, but apple trees usually have to be five to ten years old before they fruit (depending on the variety). We're only getting fruits on our non-dwarf apples for the first time this year, and the oldest ones went in the ground February 2009. It's a long wait, but hopefully it's worth it.

Being simple is easier for some than others, depending especially upon personality. I am a Quaker who struggles with bipolar consumptive symptoms that trigger compulsions to buy that are not about keeping up with Jones at all but feeding a food addiction and wanting to be comfortable and a bit narcissistic. I too would love to be contacted to talk about this.

I am Anna's sis and we both grew up in the exact same place. She was nurtured by the farm longer as we moved in town so soon after I popped out alive.

I mean to read more of the comments. I also want to say hi to Sheila who I love and am holding in the light.

Namaste

Great photos! I have camera envy! I think we are sort of fortunate in a weird way here, in that the area is so high amd dry that nobody gardens, and not much grows. Therefore, the pests havent found us. My tiny little garden last year was pretty much pest free except for a vole issue in one cold frame. No insect damage, might not be so lucky this year. It is good to get a heads up on some of these fruit tree issues. We have two new, small little apple trees that I planted last fall... One cortland and one one thompson county king. ( didnt have ma ny choices by the time I got to the local grower in the fall). They both appear healthy, and are leafing out. The Cortland has blossoms galore ( wich might amount to about 24, since its so small) but the other tree has not one single blossom. Healthy leaf clusters, but nary a flower. Anybody have any ideas why no blossoms on an otherwise healthy tree? And I dont think they froze, because Ive been examining them closely as the buds broke.... Just no blossoms... .??

When it comes to kids, solving the problem of knee patches and such, I don't think there is one solution that is simple (patching)vs one that is not (buying new). Where I live, I can find nice second hand clothing and uniforms that don't need patches. Something has to be done for the kids, and buying new pants isn't always frivolous.

When I first started homesteading, I envisioned going off the grid and possibly living without electricity. Later, I found that living without electricity is technically considered neglect of children, and can get your children taken away from you. I don't feel like making the choice to live with electricity and buffer myself against that possible outcome actually impacts my choice of voluntary simplicity. There are still many other areas in my life to simplify.

That's all I am saying. Having a strict view of what is simple and what is not, and then saying that there is a gradient of simplicity based on material examples is like saying one is not a gardener because they use technique ABC instead of XYZ. It doesn't make sense to me.

I have seen very simple people occupy large homes because that's what they have and they don't feel the need to downgrade. I have seen very excessive, impulsive people occupy marginal homes and live meager lives because of their choices.

Going to the extreme, I don't think homesteading or homeschooling are necessarily choices that advance cimplicity. In my youth, I would have much preferred traveling with a suitcase and bumming off of others. It was simple. I survived. I felt free and ecstatic. That's just a different type of simplicity. I wouldn't do that now. I wouldn't feel content with that.

I've been reading here for a year, but never felt the urge to comment before (love the blog- you have been so helpful to us as we are starting our 3rd year of homesteading). I agree with earlier comments that simplicity, or, decreased materialism, is tougher with kids. We live in a fairly affluent area of New England for a variety of reasons I won't go into. Our family & friends tolerate, even enjoy, our homesteading and simple way of life. We have a 3 year old & a baby, though, and I can see it getting harder as they get older- being so different from their classmates. Homeschooling is not an option, and there just aren't people like us around here. Already, the preschool teachers find the homegrown snacks we bring odd (like baked kale), and I anticipate exactly the sort of dilemma one poster mentioned- do you patch the pants or buy new ones so your kids fit in? Kids can be so cruel, despite the ever-present anti-bullying campaigns that are in school these days, and I'd hate for my kids to be turned off to a simple way of life because they were ridiculed at school for it. Perhaps, though, if they are truly content, it won't matter what the other kids say? I just think it will take developmental maturity for that state of mind to occur & I don't want them to have too much distress while they get there. It's something my husband & I have talked about, and we'll just have to cross that bridge when we come to it. But I do think living the simple life is harder these days, depending on where you live, if it is hard to find like-minded people near you, with whom you can physically interact on a regular basis.

I think simplicity is a state of mind. It's about strength of character. Having kids can challenge your ideas about simplicity, but I don't think they necessarily push someone away from simplicity or make it more difficult to achieve. Just like having an illness that requires constant medical therapy (type I diabetes, for instance) doesn't mean you can't live simply, or that you aren't living simply because you have to incorporate complicated things into your life.

Simplicity for me is flexibility. It's about being prepared to accept life as it is, and of course knowing how to prioritize what's in your life at the moment. A clear, decisive state of mind is what it takes. I disagree that simplicity is any more difficult for people today than in the past. The most complicated things in life, in my experience, are social demands. Those are always present. If it were so easy in the past to achieve simplicity, then all of the philosophies and religions that have preached it throughout history would be unremarkable. We certainly wouldn't be discussing them today.

For me, I have to be careful of mistaking stinginess for frugality. Sometimes I think I am being frugal (and thus enjoying simplicity), but instead I am merely being stubborn and stingy. It hinders me. Because of that, I've learned that material measurements aren't a good way to examine simplicity.

I imagine life in prison is materially simple, but character determines whether or not a person in prison can achieve what many of us hope to gain from voluntary simplicity.

We planted two apple trees (among others) this spring, so learning more has been on my agenda. I just love this blog. Every single post is of interest to me, it seems!

Baxter --- Not at the moment. We'd have to somehow add gutters onto the sides for that to be the case.

Can your tank also Catch rain water.