Shots On The Farm

The girls went out with their cameras' and took a few shots around the homestead.  I thought I'd share them with y'all.  The ducks are a recent addition and quite fun to have around.

A Country Life

I love being outside on a sunny day.   I love the look of split firewood nicely stacked.  I love seeing my wife out working the garden.  I love cooking on the grill.  I love sitting outside with my knife and a piece of wood in my hands.  I love watching the chickens scratch in the yard.  I love seeing the cows lying in the field chewing their cud.  I love the smell of fresh cut grass.  I love fresh strawberries from our garden.  I love not being able to see my neighbor's house.  I love living down a long dirt road.  I love a long walk to the mailbox.  I love working hard all day and sitting back in the evening to view the completed work.  I love the feel of the shower after that long hard day.

I'm just reflecting here.  You can't have all of this in a city, not to mention being under the watchful eye of big brother.  What does living in the country do for you?

Ice, Snow, And A Blown Motor

As I have said, I have ignored this blog for quite some time, so it has been hard to get back into things.  But we have had quite an eventful couple of weeks. 

Last week we had a major snow, ice and sleet storm roll through.  I say "major" knowing that for some of you out there 8 inches of snow is not a big deal, but where we live it is.  I work in a grocery store and it was almost painful watching all the people storm the store with the look of a bewildered daze, a cross between a deer in the headlights and a zombie.  That aside, we made it through, only to get another round this past Friday-only less severe.  However, the masses went from the deer/zombie look to a sheer chicken little demeanor-"The sky is falling, the sky is falling...".

This last round only left about an inch of snow, then moved on to bless other communities.  So, yesterday, I get my oldest daughter and head out to cut a bit of firewood, which we accomplished quite well.  We hauled to the wood shed where the log splitter is located and the fun began.  My daughter watched her daddy turn beat red, sweating like it was June trying to start the @#$@##$ thing.  I had never had that much trouble starting it-ever.

I fought and fought, determined to get it running, which I finally did.  By that time my daughter had that look on her face.  You know the one, squinty eyes, a half smirk with a questioning gaze, "really?".  We split most of what we had cut when I figured out why I had such a time starting it-no oil.  Yup, threw the piston strait out the side of the block.  Our day ended there, with my daughter happy that the work was over and she could go build a snowman and her father hiding his face in shame for not checking the oil level because he was in too big a hurry (hey, the wind was blowing and it was COLD). 

Lesson learned.  And the lesson will kepp on teaching for a while as I am back to splitting wood with a maul.  Life on the homestead.

Let's Talk About The Weather

We have enjoyed some very nice weather the last few days.  Yesterday the temperature reached 80 and today it is currently 74.  Nice indeed.  Yesterday I didn't get the chance to enjoy it much as I was at work all day.  Those are the days a person regrets having an indoor job.  Today, I broke a sweat cutting some firewood.  Yes, I am still working on that both for next season and the remainder of this one.  I don't think we will need much more this season, but we are in for some cold weather yet.  The weather man is calling for some rain tonight and tomorrow, hopefully it is a sign of things to come this year.  We had 2 years of drought and I'm not sure I can stand another.  The great thing is that I can feel spring in the air!  I am ready, are you?

Poison Ivy

I have a bad case of poison ivy on my arms from cutting firewood-I will spare you the story of my stupidity.  All I need to say is that it hurts.  I went to the pharmacy to see if there was anything I can do to help my condition without going to the doctor-we need to learn to make do without as it may well be there won't be a doctor that is readily available in the near future.  The pharmacist pointed me to a product called Ivy Dry that works pretty well.  It kills the itch almost immediately and stops the burning.  It hasn't done much for the swelling (my arms look like Popeye's) but it is healing, I can tell, faster than if I had done nothing.  It works by drying up the blisters and does it pretty fast.  Use the link and check it out, every prepper ought to have a bottle of this (I got the spray).

Nixall For Your Livestock And Pets

Nixall has uses in the home, on the farm and on your body and for institutional health. For your pets and livestock it will heal skin irritations, fungus, teat treatment, distemper, cuts, scratches and burns, ear infections, warts, ring worm and many more...


All natural and eco friendly.  Not a petroleum product nor a drug.  100 times stronger than bleach-which is a very harmful chemical.  Interested yet?

The Benefits Of Raw Milk-Revisited

Here is an article I found in my favorites list that I had totally forgotten about.  It is about the benefits of drinking raw milk, as we do from our own cow.  Good stuff.  Use the link and give the article a good read, it is very informative.

Healing Cavities Without Drilling And Filling?

If you have never heard of Dr. Weston A. Price, do yourself a favor and look him up.  He was an incredible man and doctor that learned a bit about health and natural ways of healing and vitality.  Here is one great example of the things Dr. Price learned and taught.  Read the article, then check out the Weston A. Price foundations website.

What is Diatomaceous Earth (D.E.)?

Interestingly, Diatomaceaous Earth, or DE is used all over by health conscious and all natural minded people for various reasons.  The biggest reasons are for pest control in the garden and on and around livestock.  You might ask, what is it, exactly?

DE is a mined substance from fossilized silica shell remains from single-cellular algae, most commonly called diatoms.  These diatoms turned the silica they ingested into thei shells and are related to crustaceans.

If you use DE, make sure to find the food grade, or GRAS (Generally Regarded As Safe) for use around the homestead or business.  The DE used in swimming pool applications is not regarded as a good insecticide, and because of its make up, can cause some serious problems if inhaled.  So, make sure to use the food grade DE.

Another problem is that DE is abrasive to the eyes, as well as the lungs, so use eye protection when working with it.  Come back soon to learn about some great uses for the food grade DE.

Orthorexia-If You Like Healthy, Organic Real Food, You Need To See A Shrink

Apparently, there are psych "experts" out there that say that if you like real, whole, non-GMO, non-pesticide laced, no chemicals, no hormones, no antibiotic food then you must be sick.  And eating processed foods that contain all those things aforementioned is normal.  What next?  Read more here...

Are Free Thinkers Sick?

According to this article they are.  Thus, I must be very ill to try to think outside the box.  It is an illness to question one's authority, so "they" say, or to be disgruntled in any way.  Perhaps what they are after is for all us "little people" to start toeing the line and stop fighting.  After all, "they" know what is best for you and I, right?

Government Witch Hunt On Raw Milk-Stop The Subsidies

It is time for Americans to stand up for their right to consume healthy food.  Don't let the governmant tell you what you can, or cannot eat.  Read more...

An Apple That Doesn't Turn Brown After Slicing, The Latest In Genetic Engineering

Come on people!  Do we really need an apple that doesn't turn brown when sliced?  This is the latest in genetic engineering, coming out of Canada.  Are scientists just bored, or what?  The bottom line to all of this is the mighty dollar, these apples are purported to be cheaper to grow and will last longer after slicing.  My question is, why does man think he has to improve on everything?  Just cut your apple and eat it, done.  Am I just to old fashioned?  God made things perfect, don't mess with it-right?

How Did Colonists Fight Squash Bugs? Can Tansy Be Used?

We have a continuing problem on our little homestead with squash bugs. Every year we battle the little demons, leaving nothing untried. The only sure method of dealing with these bugs and keeping them from killing the precious squash plants is to pick off every little egg we could find. That, along with picking off and stepping on every squash bug we saw. Believe me, the effort always seemed futile. We have even decided to forgo growing squash for a couple of years in hopes of the bugs going away. The trouble is that we always have incidental squash plants popping up in the compost bin or elsewhere. So I am not sure how to get rid of them.




Pesticides are not an option. We like real food. So I got to thinking and wondering how farmers dealt with these squash beetles in colonial times. I am not sure that I found an answer (bummer) but I did come across something interesting and possibly valuable for us homesteaders/survivalists/farmers.



Tansy is a plant that has shown a natural ability as a pesticide and insect repellent. Townsfolk used to put Tansy wreathes on deceased loved ones and pack their coffins with the flower to ward of worms and insects. Colonists and English, alike would place pots of Tansy on window sills to ward off house flies. They would even put sprigs in bed linen to drive away pests and used it for ant control. Colonists went so far as to put Tansy in their shoes to fight off malaria carrying mosquitoes.



Try this one, Common Tansy is often planted along side potatoes to repel Colorado Potato bug. Research has shown that Tansy does, indeed repel mosquitoes, but not as well as the modern chemicals. Research in Sweden has shown a 64%-72% tick repellent from Common Tansy. Interesting, to be sure.



I don't know if I will find an answer to our squash beetle problem, but I love the way we can learn new things from the past. Maybe Common Tansy can find a place around our homestead.



A word of caution: the oils found in Tansy are toxic and can cause contact dermatitis on people with sensitive skin. Although Tansy has been used for centuries by herbalists to kill internal parasites (which is very effective), be careful. In the USA, Tansy has been limited to alcoholic beverages, so do oyur research before taking it internally.

George Washington On Crop Rotation

General Washington was not just a great, revolutionary leader, he was a great farmer whose heart was always at Mount Vernon, even while he was away.  Can you see any wisdom in this for the homesteader who plants raised bed gardens?


"Consequently two things must be engrafted into our plan: 1st, Crops which are useful on our farms, or saleable in our markets, and 2d, the intermixing these crops by such relations and with such dressing as will improve, instead of exhausting our lands. To effect these is the great desiderata of Farming, and ought to be the pursuit of every farmer. On this ground every experiment is a treasure, and the authors of them valuable members of Society. "




George Washington

(Letter to Charles Carter, January 20, 1788)

Grass Fed Cows Produce Heart Healthy Milk?

If milk does the heart good, it might do the heart better if it comes from dairy cows grazed on grass instead of on feedlots, according to a new study.


Earlier experiments have shown that cows on a diet of fresh grass produce milk with five times as much of an unsaturated fat called conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) than do cows fed processed grains. Studies in animals have suggested that CLAs can protect the heart, and help in weight loss. Hannia Campos of the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston and her colleagues found, in a study of 4,000 people, that people with the highest concentrations of CLAs — the top fifth among all participants — had a 36 percent lower risk of heart attack compared to those with the lowest concentrations.



Those findings held true even once the researchers took into account heart disease risk factors such as high blood pressure and smoking.



The new findings suggest that CLA offers heart-healthy benefits that could more than offset the harms of saturated fat in milk, Campos said.



“Because pasture grazing leads to higher CLA in milk, and it is the natural feed for cattle, it seems like more emphasis should be given to this type of feeding,” she told Reuters Health by email.



Dairy products in the U.S. come almost exclusively from feedlots, she added. And cow’s milk is the primary source of CLA. (Beef contains a small amount.)



Campos and her colleagues looked to Costa Rica for their study, where pasture grazing of dairy cows is still the norm. They identified nearly 2,000 Costa Ricans who had suffered a non-fatal heart attack, and another 2,000 who had not. Then they measured the amount of CLA in fat tissues to estimate each person’s intake.



Since CLA typically travels with a host of other fats, the researchers went a step further to tease apart its effects from those of its predominantly unhealthful companions, they report in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. The difference in risk attributed to CLA subsequently rose to 49 percent.



“Whole-fat milk and dairy products have gotten such a bad reputation in recent years due to their saturated fat and cholesterol contents, and now we find that CLA may be incredibly health-promoting,” Michelle McGuire, spokesperson for the journal’s publisher, the American Society for Nutrition, and associate professor at Washington State University, told Reuters Health in an email. “Whole milk is not the villain!”



Each year, approximately 1.5 million Americans will suffer a heart attack. A third will not survive.



The evidence may now be piling up: another paper out of Sweden in the same issue of the journal as the Costa Rican study also hints at heart attack protection through milk fat.



Further, the benefits of CLA may extend beyond the heart to the prevention of cancer and diabetes, suggests McGuire, pointing to results of other animal studies. “Milk is actually the only food ever ‘designed by nature’ to be fed to mammals,” she added. “We need to look to milk as the perfect food and learn everything we can from it.”



SOURCE: here American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, online May 12, 2010.

Five Acres And Sustainability

Over the next few weeks, done on a peridic basis, I will explore the idea of small acreage and how to be sustainable.  Not that I am an expert on anything, but we are working toward this end, ourselves.  We are doing this for several reasons, but the top two are the fact that the government and current political climate leaves nothing to chance and the stewardship of God's land.

With this in mind, I have to believe that there are folks out there that are where we aere 12 years ago.  They might be concerned about the state of things, or just want to live a healthier life eating real, whole foods.  Again, I am no expert, but, over the next several weeks/months, I will share some ideas, pictures, anecdotes and general things we have done.  This effort will, I hope, inspire others to a life more sustainable on small acreage.

With that in mind, I want to refer you to an old article I wrote on sustainability to give you a good understanding of what I am refering to.  One thing is for sure, you can grow crops and much of your own food on a small amount of land.  I would argue that you can do a bunch, even in the city (of course, I would get out of the city, if you can).

I look forward to sharing ideas with you and hearing from you.  Come back often and enjoy your visit.

Still Slow On The Homestead

Things are still pretty slow around the homestead.  We were awaiting to order broiler chicks, but found out we don't have to wait now.  We have taken orders for this spring batch and are looking forward to that.  I have been thinking on how to deliver water inside the tractors better.  I may have a solution, but it will be dificult as the chicken tractors are made of PVC.  It is one of the draw backs of the pipe design that it is hard to build anything onto them.  They have a wooden base, so that is a place to start.

My plan is to build a platform on the back of the tractor to set a bucket on.  From there, I can hang a bell waterer inside the tractor and, hopefully, gravity will take over.

My beautiful wife will be speaking at an herb gardening club tomorrow.  She was invited to do this last fall and she has been planing it since.  She will be promoting Fertrell and selling some salves and tinctures she has made.  I think she is a bit nervous, but she will do fine.

Plans are also in the works for additional fence and a re-stocking.  We are looking at a couple of pigs for the freezer and some beef to fatten on grass, utilizing some mob grazing techniques I have learned.  Lots to do and very little time.

In keeping with out preparedness plans, we bought a new safe.  We really like it and if you don't have one, get one.  You will need to keep your firearms out of the hands of evil doers.

That is all, for now.  We are all just looking forward to warmer weather and the flea market.  Until next time...

Getting The Rabbitry Going Has Been A Long Wait

I spent a great saturday at home.  To start with I got up early and fixed the family breakfast consisting of farm fresh, Omega 3 eggs from our wonderful hens, with toast, of course.

After that I set in to work on the list of tasks I make for myself during my home time.  Fortunately, I only accomplished one of the things on the list.  Fortunately? you ask?  Yes, my major goal for the day was to complete some more rabbit cages.  This has been weighing heavily on me, lately.  We have gotten several calls, recently, for fresh rabbit.  Several people want them for their own meat and several want them for pet food.  We got an email the other day that asked for fresh rabbit to feed to a cat that has allergies.  Apparently the vet told her to try feeding rabbit as the cat is allergic to beef and chicken.  Of course, farm fresh with no additives and hormones and antibiotics is what she is looking for.

Another gentleman wants as many rabbits as he can get to put into organic pet food.  I guess there is a market for this sort of thing.  But, this is what has caused me distress.  We didn't have enough space to have an effective breeding program.  We have put a few into our own freezer, but that is all, really.  We have sold a few live rabbits for pets, but nothing as a profiable business venture.  We had always intended to expand and work on a system for breeding, but never really got around to it.

I constructed the cages very simply.  I used 1x2 inch wire, 2 foot tall, cut into 11 foot sections, laid flat.  Incidentally, this is where a long hallway with 12 inch ceramic tile comes in real handy.  Then I cut 2 pieces of the same for the roof.  I bent, or, folded the 11 foot at the 3 foot mark (the side), to make a 90 degree angle, then I bent it again at 2.5 feet (the end) at 90 degrees, then again at at 3 feet at a 90 degree angle (the other side) and one last time with the remaining 2.5 foot section (the other end) to make a box.  I simply J-clipped it together.

The 2 top sections were cut at 29 inces and laid on top and J-clipped to form the top, or, roof.  The bottom is 1 inch x 1.5 inch square woven wire (special order) at 3 foot.  I simply cut a piece at 2.5 feet to fit in the bottom.  I then J-clipped it, one inch recessed to allow for it being raised up.

Then I cut a door, big enough to fit a large rabbit, my head and hands in.  I used some scrap wire to make a door and fastened it on with J-clips.  Voila!  That's it.

I did make a wooden stand for them with some scrap lumber I have laying around.  But, now we have all the rabbits in their own cages, except for two, they are to be sold.

After all that, we bred three of our does with two of our bucks.  That always gets me to giggling.  Let's just say it goes very fast-like rabbits!  Now we have three does bred and should give birth in a month or so.

It feels good to have a plan with the rabbits now.  Our family loves the meat, ourselves, and look forward to having some in the freezer again.  Lord willing, we might sell a few, as well.

The best part of the whole thing was the fellowship it provided.  My two girls helped me construct them.  My oldest one (9) even squeezed the pliers on a bunch of J-clips.  I was impressed with the strength of her small hands!  The two of them both told me how they love saturdays because they can work with their daddy and just be with him.  I almost cried.  Folks, that is child training at it's best.

Afterward, we took out the metal detector and hit some spots on the property.  All we found was some junk, but, my lovely wife found some Usnea, a lichen that is a big antibiotic.  For the life of me, I could not understand why she was getting so excited over a dead oak branch lying on the ground.  Then she explained it to me.  She plans to tincture it and keep it for our medical needs.  We'll need it when the political stuff hits the fan.

To round out the day, we discovered the chicken pox on our oldest daughter.  She'll be staying home tomorrow.  Our youngest daughter (7) is freaked out with fear that she will catch them and die.  We try to reassure her, to no avail.  Truthfully, we are glad to see the chicken pox.  It is best to get them over with when they are young.  My wife and I both had them as children.

So, it was a good day.  One load has been taken from my shoulders and my children and I tied some strings of fellowship.  God is merciful and loving, isn't He?

Garlic As A Healing Herb

I thought I knew a lot about garlic, but, after doing a bit of research, I found that I knew very little.  We grow our own here, and enjoy the herb in many of our foods.  The smell of the kitchen when garlic is cooking is fantastic.  And the taste is heavenly.  I love the spice of it, and truly enjoy eating it.

We also enjoy the health benefits of it.  I learned a long time ago that garlic is a proficient healer, and take it, fresh, when I feel like I am coming down with something.  The herb has proven, more than once, that it does heal.

Like I said, I did some research on garlic for an article I was writting on hub pages, and I came across some interesting facts about this fascinating herb that I thought I'd share with you.

First of all,  what are the actions of garlic?  Garlic is an antibacterial, antiviral, antiseptic and antiparasitic-to name a few.

What is garlic active against?  Again, to name a few, Tuberculosis, staph, E-coli, herpes and the flu.

In my opinion, garlic is our first line of defense.  Are you worried about swine flu?  Take some garlic, everyday.

A couple of posts ago, I wrote a few tips on being prepared.  I was speaking of natural disasters, but, we all know that there are any number of things that can bring about disaster, ranging from the natural to the political.  In any case, it is prudent to also consider what you would do if medical service was unavailable.  So, in you prerarations, make sure you have a supply of garlic.  Look for a good sale and take full advantage of it.  Better yet, add that as a staple to oyur garden.  It is incredibly simple to grow.

To learn more on this amazing herb, use the article link above and begind some research on your own.  Thanks for stopping by.