You CAN Homestead

The wonderful world of vinegar! Vinegar can easily be made from any fruit or even old wine or beer.   You can easily make it from fresh apple cider, or fruit scraps.  Here are some ideas:  Recycling fruits for vinegars: Pineapple vinegar – to 1 pineapple peeling chopped add 1/4 cup sugar and about a quart or liter […]

Today we talk about growing and using loquat as food and medicine Loquat leaves for medicine, fruit for wine, seeds for medicine and a special drink Blackberry-under appreciated for it’s medicinal uses Black cohosh – not just for  women How are you doing on your preps?` Diet for perfect health  

Today we have updates and just sharing for the first 20 min.  Then we get more into common herbs: Basil Holy basil Cayenne Cinnamon Garlic Ginger Rosemary Turmeric Arugula Parsley And more on making self watering planter cheap and easy!

Making medicine from herbs.  Where do we start?  First you will need the herb.  You can grow your, find them in the wild, own or even purchase online or locally.  Just  a word about wildcrafting.  Take just enough and leave at least 90% to keep the species growing.  many wonderful herbs have been over harvested and […]

Hippocrates – the father of medicine – stated, “Let your food be your medicine, and let your medicine be your food.”  He also stated “Medicine should do no harm.”  Modern medicine does harm.  And with “factory farmed food” it’s questionable what harm our food is doing.  So I’d like to challenge you to consider herbs for food, beauty, cleaning […]

Is neem safe to use in the garden.  My answer is yes.  Neem oil comes from the fruits and seeds of the Neem tree (Azddirachta indica), a fast growing tree from India.  Neem is used in India for cosmetics and in Ayurvedic medicine for many afflictions.  The most common are inflammations, skin diseases, fevers, and rheumatic disorders. As homesteaders we know this as an insecticide. I researched Neem as I was concerned about using it in my garden.  I was delighted to learn of all of it's medicinal uses.  I was ready to buy the seed and get it on my homestead.  But alas it doesn't tolerate cold below 35F.  It can be grown indoors as a houseplant, but I will just  buy it.  There is a warning that pregnant women should not handle it -causes aborting in rats. http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=1924&page=23 We talk about the rising food prices and what we can do. I'll tell you about gardening in an apartment.  Here is a link. http://tlc.howstuffworks.com/home/sixtysixthings-growhome-containers-withoutgarden.htm I found an interesting article on alternate ways of cooling a home.  does that spark an idea? http://tlc.howstuffworks.com/home/ice-block-ac.htm We discuss basic goat care, trimming hooves and checking for problems. Trim hooves with a specialized hoof trimmer or straight pruning shears. Hooves should be trimmed flush with the foot.  The hooves tend to curl under and get debris built up. A goat should stand on a properly trimmed hoof at about 45 degrees.  Disinfect tools between hooves  and goats. Here is a link to a pic: http://www.piedmontdairygoats.com/HowtoTrimHooves.jpg We discuss dehorning and castration. Signs of  a healthy goat: Eyes clear and bright.   Tearing or cloudy eyes probably mean a pinkeye infection. Coat smooth and shiny.   A dull coat could indicate parasites.  Fluffed up coat means  the goat is not feeling well. Appetite good.   However, it is normal for a doe in labor to refuse to eat. Attitude alert.   Hunched back and droopy tail mean something is wrong Here is a link that you can read the Merck Veterinary Manual online http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp    

  Don't fear the lard. Just the thought of fat grosses most people out. Artery clogging animal fat; YUK!  But don't fear the fat IF it is from pastured pork!  Don't be brainwashed by the big food corporations that want to sell you their fake fats wi...

  I hope you all had a great holiday. I have a tip for anyone that may have overloaded their sink and clogged a drain with all that holiday cooking.  Vinegar and baking soda is a great way to unclog a drain.  Just pour in about 1/3 to 1/2 cup baking...

Today we talk about farm updates.  What has been going on with the chickens, pigs and goats.  I hope you have your seed catalogs out and are planning your garden.  Remember don't be afraid to start small.  Small raised beds or container gardening can give a bountiful harvest and build confidence and skills.  You can grow something now indoors.  A little supplemental light would be a great boost at this time of year.  So we discuss different lighting ideas. First one may ask "why garden".  Gardening is economical.  You can eat better quality food for much less money than the grocery store.  Your food will retain more nutrition because it is fresh and hasn't travelled across the country.  You can grow awesome vegetables and fruits you may never see on a grocery store shelf.  Just read any heirloom seed catalog and see all the beautiful pictures.  It's good exercise ad healing for the soul to grow things.  And it is fun and exciting watching you new babies grow! So, how do we start?  We start with tiny seeds.  I'm going to attempt to grow all my veggies from seed this year.  It is more economical and I have the best choices for what  I can grow.  Not just what the big box stores and nurseries sell,  which is usually all the same things.  So decide what you like to eat and order a bunch of seeds.  To start seeds you will need containers.  There are many options, peat pots or pellets, homemade paper pots, soil cubes, and the plastic or wooden boxes.  You can even make self watering pots from soda bottles or milk jugs.  Some beautiful pots can be made from concrete and vermiculite. Next you need a soilless seed starting mix.  You can do this with a 1 to 1 mix pot peat moss and vermiculite.  There are many recipes available.  Or you can buy a prepackaged one.  You can plant right into the pots or germinate seeds in vermiculite or on paper towels.  I'll give a tip on using jello and milk  and using a cornstarch jell in planting. Since peat is great at holding water but has no nutrition you have to feed the seedlings once they develop true leaves. Once your plants start growing they will need light.  This can be accomplished with a south or southeast facing window.  But this time of the year it is better to supplement with light.  fluorescent bulbs are probably the cheapest route to go.  But after Christmas LED lights for Christmas trees will be really cheap.  Some people even make light boxes and we will discuss that. Once your seedlings get 4 sets of leaves they can be planted if no danger of frost.  You will need to harden them up for about a week by bringing them outside several hours a day.  Place them in a protected area.  If it is still getting cold at night keep them warm or bring them in.  So let's get going!   A link to using recycled 2 liter bottles fro self watering seed pots: http://lifehacker.com/5913914/turn-a-soda-bottle-into-a-worry+free-self+watering-planter Build an LED light box http://www.cheapvegetablegardener.com/2009/01/cheap-led-light-and-grow-box.html A seed starting chart: http://www.organicgardening.com/learn-and-grow/seed-starting-chart  

Today we go into more detail about growing food indoors the minimalist way -  sprouts and cactus juice. http://www.gotsprouts.com/ Favorite sprouting site on the web: http://sproutpeople.org/ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DmD_jwytYFQ great blog with free downloads: http://www.markbraunstein.org/growmicrogreens.htm  

Today we have farm updates.  Talk about planning for spring garden and things you can do now.  Talk about edible lotus, tamarillo, venison heart and more.

Today is just kick back, low key.  We talk about eating cactus... Yikes!  And, how easy it is to ferment food... You CAN ferment your own food for preserving, better nutrition and much better health!!  But be careful you may get addicted like me and start looking for things to ferment.  Have fun! I misspoke in the beginning.  I should have said cabbage and cucumbers most likely won't need a starter or whey when fermenting.  Carrot probably would need a little starter.  Also I don't think I mentioned to stay away from plastic and metal when fermenting. Recipe for Kim Chee.  It is kind of more of a process.  But here is how I do it.  Use a Napa (also called Chinese) cabbage.  For each 5# cabbage use 3 TBL. salt (or 0.6 TBL for each pound.) It must be kosher or pickling salt.  Don't use iodized table salt.  Cut the cabbage up and massage the salt in.  Add at least 3 inches of ginger root.  Lots of garlic. (Like a whole head)  And add some kind of hot pepper.  I just often us the crushed red pepper.  just mix it all together in a large bowl.  Usually I just mix the cabbage and salt. then add the rest of the stuff in the jar.  You have to press it down really tight. water will start coming up and the cabbage needs to stay under the water.  So weight it down with something.  I use a pimento jar.  I then just put the lid on loose enough to let co2 escape but tight enough to press the jar down.  If you don't have enough water building up to cover the cabbage, you can make some up.  For 1 qt of water add 2-3 TBL salt and you can top up any fermented veggies with that.  I cover my jar with a bag to keep the light out.  I then sit it in a plastic dish pan.  Most times when it ferments it will bubble out some liquid.  If you smell a dead rat, it is probably your fermenting cabbage. LOL  Taste it in 2 or 3 days and when it is sour enough put the lid on tight and stick it in the fridge.  Enjoy and I hope you get hooked like me.  I even make fruit Kim Chee.  It is so yummy!  I am going to add this to the website under the podcast where I talk about fermenting in case you need to find the instructions again.rmenting. Here is an email I replied to someone asking for my Kim Chee recipe:

  radish   Today we talk about radishes, bone broth soup, hair goats, parkia, and more. http://www.trekearth.com/gallery/Asia/Malaysia/West/Kedah/Jitra/photo90817 2.htm  link to great pic of parkia speciosa http://www.humansarenotbroken.com/ great health and diet info here and a bone broth soup recipie under the food prn section http://www.ebay.com/itm/18650-Headlight-5W-CREE-LED-HEADLAMP-FLASHLIGHT-ch-/220813264325?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item33697f05c5. Link for headlamp    

        We talk about Jicama, deer season, groundnuts, macuna bean,  meat goats, and more. http://www.herb-roots.com/roots/groundnut.html http://www.livebetteramerica.com/food-101/ingredients/jicama http://www.secrets-of-longevity-in-humans.com/mucuna-pruriens.html http://www.boergoatshome.com/articles.php  

We start the goat series today and edible plants that may surprise you. http://www.critterridge.net/raisingmeatgoats.html http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/cats/population/estimates_and_projections_by_age_sex_raceethnicity.html http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SC54UJnDgLY