Adjusting to Cabin Life

Week 1: 1/23-2/2 

The first two days of being alone were spent cleaning, organizing, and getting use to the daily routine.  On the third day, my cousin Michael, who is in med school at the University of South Dakota, drove up for a visit!  In the three days he spent with me we climbed trees, watched sunsets, hiked through the prairie grass under a blanket of stars, and had great conversations about life.  He was extremely generous and drove me to Watertown, SD where we had a hot meal and saw a movie.  He is now gone but should be back within the next several months.

Watching the sunset from a cottonwood with my cousin Michael

Aquaponics

In high school I bought a 20 gallon aquarium starter kits and kept fish in it for about three years.  When I moved away for college it was packed away in a box and left in my parent’s basement.  During my last semester at school, I toured Growing Power in Milwaukee for one of my classes.  Their simple, yet productive aquaponic system was outstanding.  The idea of using fish poop to feed plants and using plants to clean the water amazed me.  And then it dawned on me.  I have a fish tank, I like growing plants, and I need a way to feed Claire and myself next summer.  Why not try to make my own aquaponic system?  So I tried (I am still trying I might add). 

My tank has a Top Fin 20 pump (nothing special) that uses carbon filters to clean the water.  Because I want the fish poop and nutrients, I decided to replace the filter with crushed porous rock from a fish store.  I’m not even sure if this does anything but the idea is that there is still some filtration happening.  I also have a small air pump that puts oxygen into the water.  I used a water conditioner to make tap water safe for fish and then I let the system run for a month without anything in it.  After that month was up, I added one goldfish ($0.30).  I only added one to make sure it would survive.  After a couple days, it looked happy so I added six more.  I also added a snail to keep the glass clean. 

On that same day I added my plants!  I had previously taken cuttings from Claire’s oregano and mint plants and let them sit in water.  I had also taken several chives from our friends Logan and Leiloni and placed them in water as well.  I filled small pots with rocks and planted one cutting per pot.  As seen in the picture below, my Dad and I made a pot holder out of ½ inch plywood that rests on the edges of my tank.  I put a coat of varnish on to protect the wood from the constant moisture.  This pot holder keeps the bottom inch of each pot submerged in water.  There are four extra holes that are meant for tomatoes and peppers.

The pot holder we made for my tank

It’s now been one month since I added the seven fish and I am now down to six.  All four plants (oregano, mint, and two chives) have rooted and started growing.  The mint seemed to explode with life as soon as I put it in the water.  It now has a foot of white roots growing down into the tank.  The oregano was slow at first but is now sending up new stems and leaves.  The chives have been steady the entire time.  I keep a grow light (really just a 32 watt compact fluorescent bulb in a bed side lamp) on at night which seems to help.  The tank sits on my workbench in the cabins garage which I keep heated to 65 degrees.  I am eager to see if the plants continue to grow and if my new seedling will work the same.

My 20 gallon aquaponic system

This project cost me $40 (the startup kit was $100) and my only future costs will be fish food and a couple more dollars tacked on to the utility bill.  

I spent my weekend reading and walking.  Friday was sunny and there was no wind so Misty and I drove to a parcel of land close to town and went for a two hour walk.  We scared up two hens and Misty found a deer shed!  I was able to talk to Claire for a whole hour and it was simply wonderful.  I am reading the book “Tom Brown’s Field Guide to Nature Observation and Tracking” and this weekend I am taking his advice and acting like a child.  Instead of walking on two legs during my walks, I crawl through the grasses and the cattails on all fours.  This changes my perspective of things and allows me to see like Misty does.  The grasses seem like trees and there are pheasant, deer, and rabbit tracks hidden beneath.

This week I am expecting a visit from my brother Mateusz and our other family dog, Mocha.  Now that I have settled into the cabin lifestyle, my goal this week is to start building things from scrap lumber and salvaged barn lumber (I have to go salvage it first).  Tune in next week to see my progress!