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I am now drying the chives rather than composting. Thinking they would make good mulch for keeping pests away. What vegetables would you mulch these with?

Hi folks—I’m working on a long-term experiment combining urban permaculture, microcontroller tech, and AI observation in a single 29-foot garden bed.

The space is small (Central Coast California), but it’s packed with herbs, pollinator flowers, vertical growers like peas and cucumbers, and early-stage food production from beans, fennel, peppers, and blackberries. I’m using ESP32 boards and sensors to monitor soil moisture, temperature, and eventually light exposure. AI helps with logging, alerts, and livestream overlays.

The goal is to see how far a limited-space tech-driven system can go when permaculture thinking meets affordable automation.

For those curious, I’ve set up a livestream that runs daily. It’s not monetized—just a calm feed where you can watch the garden grow, observe pollinators come and go, or even catch a spider building a web in the early hours.

Since I’m posting my live stream here, I added the “self-promotion” flair so I don’t run afoul of any rules.

🎥 **[Livestream: My29FootGarden – Sun, Soil, Skynet](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fjS7pykNrd8&ab_channel=My29FootGarden.Sun%2CSoil%2CSkynet)**

Would love feedback from others working with limited space, automation, or observational permaculture. This is a hobby project (not a content channel), but it’s evolving fast—and the plants seem to be running the show more than I am. 🌱

Let me know if anyone else is experimenting with sensor feedback loops, low-cost greenhouse control, or AI-driven journaling tools for garden management!

I wish I took physics in school because it would be pretty handy right now I think..and I guess not too late to learn!

I have 2 rain barrels that one I put higher then the other and the other on the ground—hardly any pressure. To which I assume it just needs to be a bit higher up and not flat on the ground.

Is it possible to be able to get enough pressure to use a hose with sprayer at the end? Do I just need to raise it higher? It’s coming from a gutter one a 1story side, so can’t lift it up much anymore. I just don’t want to have to use a pump each time and would prefer to hand water but I also work a lot so don’t always have the time.