I wish I knew more
I've spent the last two weeks living in a very rural place. Overall it has been awesome. Unfortunately I'm very much city born and raised and my rural living skills are pretty bad.
Now, while my skills are bad that doesn't mean I don't try 😀
Farming
It would be awesome if I knew about how to farm and plant vegetables. I wish I had the skills of @monica-ene and could get things growing here. Sure I have book knowledge but when it comes to actually getting things planted watered, weeded, and getting the soil ready for planting? Hahahaha, I'm totally useless.
Then again, right now the soil isn't at all ready. It is mostly sand and rocks with very little organic matter in it. So, my first order of business is getting rid of noxious weeds and getting beneficial grasses and weeds growing so that the soil is "alive" instead of just being inert sand and rocks.
Trailblazing.
I have 60 acres and much of it I have never even seen. The forest is just way too dense for me to get through. Fallen trees, low hanging branches, mosses and wet area make it a nightmare just t go from one place to another. I wish I knew how to get through the property easily. Having the skills of a surveyor in getting around obstacles and reading the wilderness would be awesome. Having their skills to actually find the property markers on my property so I knew where I land ended and the government land started would be even better.
But those are skills I just don't have (sigh).
Tree cutting and chainsaw use.
Oh how useful it would be to have a chainsaw AND know how to use it to PROPERLY cut down trees. Now a lot of people think you just turn on the chainsaw and start cutting. Unfortunately I know enough to know that doing that can get you in big trouble. Having a saw the bucks or chain that gets bound can make for big trouble. Not reading the tree properly and having it fall on your head..another easy way to get injured. But the land I have is so thick with small trees that being able to cut half of them down to let the other half grow faster would be awesome!
Hauling and Winching.
Of course being able to cut down trees is only half the job. Once they are down I have to find a way to get them off the forest floor and into a pile at home base so I can cut them for firewood. Chip them for mulch. Carry them for timber or whatever else I need to do to clear the property. Guess what. Using a winch improperly and have a line snap and whip back on you? Another way to get injured. Of course I've also never driven with a trailer on my vehicle so yet another skill that I just don't have.
You can only learn so much on YouTube
With the advent of YouTube a lot of people think they can do anything. Just watch a quick video and go for it! Honestly there is something to be said for that. Small DIY projects? Great to try and do from YouTube instruction. Tomorrow I'm going to try and figure out how to connect a battery to my RV in the hopes that it will power the motor to pull in the pullout so my neighbor can move it. Another type of task that YouTube might prove useful Making storage cabinets inside my container home? YouTube.
But for those bush and outdoor skills? Sure I can watch on YouTube for some things but overall I really wish I had a mentor. Someone I could spend a month with to learn skills that are important but not super complex. How to cut a tree. How to winch safely. How to properly clear a trail. How to use GPS to find property markers.
There are many things you can't master quickly. However, tasks like that? I won't master them in a short period of time to be sure. However to learn enough to keep myself safe so I can practice on my own. That would just be awesome.
So... For the Hive Learner prompt of what would I like to learn if I had a month? Bush skills. Identifying mushrooms and edible wild plants. Learning to get through bush properly. Learning how to cut through safely. Learn how to manage the trees with a chainsaw and winch. Oh, that would be so useful. Sure, not super complex, but something really beast learned from someone who knows how to do it.
Ideas? Replies? I'd love to hear from members.
And just for fun. Proof I'm trying. The first apples from my apple tree and the first raspberry from my raspberry bush :)
