Wanting to farm, or wanting to garden, however you want to look at it is a common desire. I've read several tweets and blog posts and facebook statuses that expressed that desire.
Raising your own food, eating what you produced for yourself. Salads, sweet corn, green beans, peas, tomatoes, squash, broccoli, cabbage, brussel sprouts, radishes, tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, eggplants, zucchini, tomatoes, onions, garlic, tomatoes, and dried peas. Oops, I mentioned tomatoes more than once. That's okay, cause tomatoes are something you can't have too much of. Well, you can, but it's better to have too much than not enough.
A big garden is a good thing. It will allow you to have fresh food and enough left over to can or preserve. Corn will make 1 or 2 ears per plant. So you need to plant enough sweet corn to pollinate and then plant some more in a few days. Some people will plant several little plots of sweet corn , one every 7 days so they will have fresh sweet corn over an extended period, since the plants that are planted together should set ears at the same time. It even tells you so on the little seed packets. One thing to consider, the sweeter the corn, the sooner you need to cook or preserve it after picking.
There are charts giving recommended planting dates for different areas of the country. If you can't find one in your local store, search online. 3 of the places that I sometimes go in have the guides posted on the wall.
If you read part 2 of I Want to Farm, I talked about fences. If you have a garden, again, fences are a good thing. Tender young seedlings are tasty fodder for all sorts of animals. You don't want cows, sheep, goats, or pigs roaming through the garden. Tasty fodder. That means good food. And even worse, what they don't eat, they can trample to death or root up. FENCE THEM OUT OF THE GARDEN!
Geese will eat newly emerged plants. So if you have your garden up and growing well, put some geese in there and fence them IN. It can cut down on your having to use a hoe.Mulching around the plants can reduce the weeds as well.
Did I mention canning? It's something you need to read up on if you don't know anything about. A good time to do this is before you plant your garden. WHEN the garden is producing is not the time to be trying to learn about canning. And when the garden is producing is not a real good time to trying to gather the supplies you need for canning. because everybody else that is growing a garden and wanting to can is trying to get their supplies then to. You'll need around 4 million jars plus lids and rings. The jars are reusable, but the lids aren't.
I know I keep jumping around here, but chickens and guineas are great for insect control and very detrimental to tomato production. Something about almost ready-to-be-picked tomatoes that guineas and chickens find irresistible. So they don't resist and you can wind up with a big bunch of tomatoes that have little spots pecked out of them. So if you have tomatoes raised. in cages, some netting might help keep the birds from pecking all your hard work away.
If you're lucky enough to get your garden to produce and you manage to preserve what you produce, you need to have some place to store it. So a freezer night be another good itme to have in place. Some foods work better canned, some work better frozen. And some (potatoes, rutabagas,onions, fruit) keep best in a root cellar or fruit cellar. You can read about that here .
I mentioned tomatoes several times earlier. They are wonderful fresh and can be canned in several ways. When I was a child we used to can a LOT of tomato juice. mostly in quart jars and half-gallon jars. Good for making soup.
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Saturday, April 23, 2011
I Want To Farm (Pt 2-Livestock & Fences)
'Good fences make good neighbors' --- a line from a Robert Frost poem, Mending Wall.
In the poem it was talking about repairing a stone wall separating two farms. 2 farmers working together to complete the chore, each putting the stones that had fallen on their side of the fence back in place. And one questions the other as to the need of the fence, since they both have trees on their farm, not likely to trespass and do damage to the others farm. 'Good fences make good neighbors' is the reply.
If you plan on raising livestock, good fences do indeed make good neighbors. Fences that keep your animals where they 'belong' and keep you neighbors animals where THEY belong. Even good fences can fail. A storm blows through and knocks down a tree. you get a call from a very disgruntled neighbor about a cow mooing outside their bedroom window at 3 in the morning when they have to get up and go to work at 7. Another nice little call is a neighbor calling about YOUR pig rooting their flowers up. Flowers they spent a LOT of money on at Home Depot. Or that their PRIZE rose bush has just been destroyed by your goats eating it. The rose bush that was their grandmothers favorite before she passed away and left it to them in her will 10 years ago. You get the idea.
Good fences also keep their animals out of your animals. That cute little Yorkie-Poo that weighs 7 pounds soaking wet can kill 3 chickens. And house dogs allowed to run loose at night will join into a pack and chase calves. That 10 pound Poodle may not be leading the pack, but it will definitely join in the feast when that big German Shepherd brings down a 500# calf.
Good fences also keep peace in the home. Because the damage that your animals do to your neighbors yard can be done to your yard too. And trust me, Mom was NOT happy when sows found their way from the hog lot to the yard and started rooting for grubs.
Goats like to climb and can find great joy in jumping around after they have done their climbing.If you think hail damage makes a car look bad, try seeing a car that has had goat kids jumping on the hood and the roof and the trunk.
. Poultry and rabbits can do a lot of damage to a garden. And they aren't very particular about whether the garden they are feasting on is yours or your neighbors. There is something about a tomato that is just about ready to be picked that chickens and guineas can't seem to resist. Ducks and geese LOVE young sprouted corn. Also peas, beets, tomato seedlings, turnips, carrots, etc, etc.
So 'good fences do make good neighbors.'
And
In the poem it was talking about repairing a stone wall separating two farms. 2 farmers working together to complete the chore, each putting the stones that had fallen on their side of the fence back in place. And one questions the other as to the need of the fence, since they both have trees on their farm, not likely to trespass and do damage to the others farm. 'Good fences make good neighbors' is the reply.
If you plan on raising livestock, good fences do indeed make good neighbors. Fences that keep your animals where they 'belong' and keep you neighbors animals where THEY belong. Even good fences can fail. A storm blows through and knocks down a tree. you get a call from a very disgruntled neighbor about a cow mooing outside their bedroom window at 3 in the morning when they have to get up and go to work at 7. Another nice little call is a neighbor calling about YOUR pig rooting their flowers up. Flowers they spent a LOT of money on at Home Depot. Or that their PRIZE rose bush has just been destroyed by your goats eating it. The rose bush that was their grandmothers favorite before she passed away and left it to them in her will 10 years ago. You get the idea.
Good fences also keep their animals out of your animals. That cute little Yorkie-Poo that weighs 7 pounds soaking wet can kill 3 chickens. And house dogs allowed to run loose at night will join into a pack and chase calves. That 10 pound Poodle may not be leading the pack, but it will definitely join in the feast when that big German Shepherd brings down a 500# calf.
Good fences also keep peace in the home. Because the damage that your animals do to your neighbors yard can be done to your yard too. And trust me, Mom was NOT happy when sows found their way from the hog lot to the yard and started rooting for grubs.
Goats like to climb and can find great joy in jumping around after they have done their climbing.If you think hail damage makes a car look bad, try seeing a car that has had goat kids jumping on the hood and the roof and the trunk.
. Poultry and rabbits can do a lot of damage to a garden. And they aren't very particular about whether the garden they are feasting on is yours or your neighbors. There is something about a tomato that is just about ready to be picked that chickens and guineas can't seem to resist. Ducks and geese LOVE young sprouted corn. Also peas, beets, tomato seedlings, turnips, carrots, etc, etc.
So 'good fences do make good neighbors.'
And
Friday, April 22, 2011
I Want To Farm (Pt 1-Livestock)
It's a theme I have been seeing more and more lately. From the farmers itching to get in the fields who are looking at snow being on the ground on Easter. From people living in town that are wanting to get out of town and grow their own food. And not to mention a few ex-hippies that sold out to "the man" and never got to experience 'living off the land' back in the 60's.
For the farmers wanting to get into the fields, I can only say: I think it snowed on April 24 back in 1969 in Northwest Tennessee. I'm not sure about that, I'll have to ask my mom. UPDATE: I talked to Mom, it wasn't snow, Dad was trying to sow Lespedeza and my mom was trying to wait to have my little brother until after he got through.
As for the townfolk wanting to get a 'few acres' and grow their own food. You need a plan. And then double whatever you calculate to be your needs.
If you buy a cow with a baby calf at side today, plan on at least 14 months from now before you are going to be eating that wonderful succulent steak that you raised yourself. Say that again. 14 months. MINIMUM. That's about how long it will take to raise that little calf up to a 1100# slaughter ready animal. It might get done sooner depending on the breed and how you feed it. If you give the cow some grain to supplement the pasture she is grazing on, she will give more milk, which will allow the calf to grow faster. If you give the calf feed while he is suckling his momma he will also gain faster. You could even wind up with a calf weighing 700-800# by Thanksgiving if you're lucky. I know that's a lot of ifs, but farming is full of those.
But back to the plan. Depending on the state you live in, it will take from 1-10 acres of pasture to support a cow/calf pair year round according to State Extension Services. At least as near as I can recall. Part of that pasture ground will have to be separated from the rest so you can cut and bale hay off of it to get the cow and calf through the winter. This isn't a necessity, but it is MUCH better to haul hay if you're not in danger of slipping and falling in a cow patty.
A barn to store the hay in is a good thing. Especially if you have square bales. It's a pretty good thing if you have those big round bales, too. If you're only going to have 1 or 2 cows, you'll probably want to find someone who will custom cut and bale your square bales of hay. You might find a square baler really cheap and decide to bale your own, but that's not a very good idea. I once heard of 3 preachers who went into the hay baling business, by the end of a month 2 had turned to drinking, 1 had turned to drugs and all 3 had turned away from God. You'd need to get with local farmers or Ag Extension personnel to determine how much hay you will need to take your cattle through the winter.
You might decide that 14 months is too long to wait to get some farm fresh meat to eat. In that case the next alternative might be to get you some goats. Goats are smaller and if I remember correctly you can run 8 nanny goats on the smae acreage as 1 cow takes up. Goats were one of the first animals domesticated by humans. That means they have been frustrating peoples attempts to keep them penned up longer than any other animal. Baby goats are cute, except when you walk outside to head to work and find 5 kids standing on the hood of your car. The kids are ready for slaughter earlier than a calf will be also.
Before you decide to raise goats for eating though, buy some goat meat at the store. If you don't like the taste, don't raise goats. A pretty good rule of thumb is don't raise something you won't eat.
Sheep are another alternative. I think the conversion chart there is 6 ewes=1cow. I'm not sure. You can probably find it somewhere on the internet if you really want to know. And it to varies from state to state. And even from region to region within states.
Pigs are another alternative. Just make sure you have lots of patience and plenty of fence. The pigs will try both. Repeatedly.A sow can have 12-16 piglets in one litter. I even saw one have 18 in a litter. Luckily we had other sows that farrowed at the same time to even out the litters cause she only had 12 functioning teats :-(
Poultry is another "protein possibilities" Chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, guineas and quail. Poultry are dual source of protein. The females lay eggs, the males are good to eat. But keep a few males around if you want to raise poultry next year. Always keep in mind when dealing with poultry, "Bird Brained" is a term that is sometimes used to describe someone with a limited attention span who does bizarre things for seemingly no reason. ALL poultry are 'bird brained'.
No matter what type of livestock you decide to raise, good fences are a necessity. More to follow on that in the next part.
I'm sorry. I forgot about rabbits. They are another alternative. Quite tasty and you can raise them in your garage.
.
For the farmers wanting to get into the fields, I can only say: I think it snowed on April 24 back in 1969 in Northwest Tennessee. I'm not sure about that, I'll have to ask my mom. UPDATE: I talked to Mom, it wasn't snow, Dad was trying to sow Lespedeza and my mom was trying to wait to have my little brother until after he got through.
As for the townfolk wanting to get a 'few acres' and grow their own food. You need a plan. And then double whatever you calculate to be your needs.
If you buy a cow with a baby calf at side today, plan on at least 14 months from now before you are going to be eating that wonderful succulent steak that you raised yourself. Say that again. 14 months. MINIMUM. That's about how long it will take to raise that little calf up to a 1100# slaughter ready animal. It might get done sooner depending on the breed and how you feed it. If you give the cow some grain to supplement the pasture she is grazing on, she will give more milk, which will allow the calf to grow faster. If you give the calf feed while he is suckling his momma he will also gain faster. You could even wind up with a calf weighing 700-800# by Thanksgiving if you're lucky. I know that's a lot of ifs, but farming is full of those.
But back to the plan. Depending on the state you live in, it will take from 1-10 acres of pasture to support a cow/calf pair year round according to State Extension Services. At least as near as I can recall. Part of that pasture ground will have to be separated from the rest so you can cut and bale hay off of it to get the cow and calf through the winter. This isn't a necessity, but it is MUCH better to haul hay if you're not in danger of slipping and falling in a cow patty.
A barn to store the hay in is a good thing. Especially if you have square bales. It's a pretty good thing if you have those big round bales, too. If you're only going to have 1 or 2 cows, you'll probably want to find someone who will custom cut and bale your square bales of hay. You might find a square baler really cheap and decide to bale your own, but that's not a very good idea. I once heard of 3 preachers who went into the hay baling business, by the end of a month 2 had turned to drinking, 1 had turned to drugs and all 3 had turned away from God. You'd need to get with local farmers or Ag Extension personnel to determine how much hay you will need to take your cattle through the winter.
You might decide that 14 months is too long to wait to get some farm fresh meat to eat. In that case the next alternative might be to get you some goats. Goats are smaller and if I remember correctly you can run 8 nanny goats on the smae acreage as 1 cow takes up. Goats were one of the first animals domesticated by humans. That means they have been frustrating peoples attempts to keep them penned up longer than any other animal. Baby goats are cute, except when you walk outside to head to work and find 5 kids standing on the hood of your car. The kids are ready for slaughter earlier than a calf will be also.
Before you decide to raise goats for eating though, buy some goat meat at the store. If you don't like the taste, don't raise goats. A pretty good rule of thumb is don't raise something you won't eat.
Sheep are another alternative. I think the conversion chart there is 6 ewes=1cow. I'm not sure. You can probably find it somewhere on the internet if you really want to know. And it to varies from state to state. And even from region to region within states.
Pigs are another alternative. Just make sure you have lots of patience and plenty of fence. The pigs will try both. Repeatedly.A sow can have 12-16 piglets in one litter. I even saw one have 18 in a litter. Luckily we had other sows that farrowed at the same time to even out the litters cause she only had 12 functioning teats :-(
Poultry is another "protein possibilities" Chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, guineas and quail. Poultry are dual source of protein. The females lay eggs, the males are good to eat. But keep a few males around if you want to raise poultry next year. Always keep in mind when dealing with poultry, "Bird Brained" is a term that is sometimes used to describe someone with a limited attention span who does bizarre things for seemingly no reason. ALL poultry are 'bird brained'.
No matter what type of livestock you decide to raise, good fences are a necessity. More to follow on that in the next part.
I'm sorry. I forgot about rabbits. They are another alternative. Quite tasty and you can raise them in your garage.
.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
It's Those Little Things...
Those funny little things. Things like today. I was in line at the grocery store, the express lane. You know, 10 Items Or Less. I had 2 items.
This nice lady in line in front of me had 2 kids in the cart and looked like 10 items. She starts putting her items on the conveyor. Well okay, she actually had 11 items, but that's not that big a deal. I'm still standing there holding my 2 items in my hand. Then she says excuse me, and walks past me to get a couple of bottles of water from the cooler. The one she had walked past to get into line. Now she is at 13 items. Hmmmmm.
I'm looking at her items:
Frozen Lasagna, vegetarian, gluten free. Umm, okay, not exactly the kind of thing I go for, but to each their own.
Gluten Free chocolate flavored cake? Definitely not something I want to try, but it's not my groceries.
2 packages of Gluten free cookies sweetened with Cane Sugar. Somebody in the house must have a gluten allergy.
3 containers of Soy Milk.
Environmentally Friendly fabric softener sheets.
Environmentally Friendly laundry detergent, dye free and phosphate free.
2 organic yogurts.
And 2 bottles of water in minimal plastic bottles.
Definitely a person who is trying to live a good lifestyle.
She gets all her items rung up and is paying for her items with a debit card.
I look up and her little girl is standing up in the cart. Not in the basket, the top part right in front of the handle.
I said 'Ma'am, your daughter is standing up in the cart'
She never even looks up from her paying and says "Oh yeah, she does that all the time, it's fine"
. The clerk looks up and tells her "She really needs to sit down, Ma'am"
Again the lady says that it is okay, if she falls out it won't hurt her. She has a mind of her own and she'll sit down when shes ready to.
She puts her groceries in the cart and starts off with her daughter still standing up.
Lady, if you're reading this, you may be making some wonderful choices for your children, I just hope they live long enough to appreciate the things you're doing for them.
Yeah, it's those little things like that that tick me off.
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