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“If people let government decide what foods they eat and what medicines they take, their bodies will soon be in as sorry a state as are the souls of those who live under tyranny.” Thomas Jefferson

Saturday, January 29, 2011

What is a wattle fence?

Kelle asked on one of my posts what a wattle fence is. I won't go into great detail since I am working on an article for Backwoods Home magazine and writing all of it here would negate my ability to sell said article. However, I will explain a bit here and it shouldn't hurt. In victorian times, especially in England folks needed to use what they could in order to repair fences. Most homesteads had a stand of small green saplings. In order to make quick repairs on fences, especially in cold winters, they would use these sapling to weave in and out of posts in the ground. The green saplings (about an inch in diameter)were flexible enough to weave through the posts without breaking, but as they dried became much stronger. Depending on how you weave the saplings,these fences can be quite strong and were often used in sheep fields. They would not be strong enough to contain cows that were determined to test fences, nor do I think they would contain my goats. My horses would be contained just fine because they don't test fences. They just take advantage of a hole that is there. During that time they even had people who built what was called a wattle hurdle, which is much like a moveable fence panel. These guys were masters at working the samplings through and around the posts so that when they were finished they were very strong. Hurdles were typically used out in the field to make a small corral for working the sheep. It was easier to work them in the fields than to get the whole flock to the barn. The hurdle makers would actually twist the samplings so that they wrapped around the end posts and could be woven back into the body of the hurdle. This made them self contained and really strong. The great thing about these fences is that they use underbrush that needs to be cleaned out anyways or yard trash that needs to be cleaned up. I have been making mine out of trash sticks on our huge woodpile that my husband was going to burn. These aren't as flexible as green saplings would be and so don't make as strong of a fence. However, I only need mine to keep the ducks out of the garden beds and for that purpose they work just fine. My first fence is probably not the best example of wattling there is and I am still having make slight repairs here and there as the fence settles into place. Most repairs are simply done by adding a few more branches to the top. However, the ducks don't try to go through the mass of branches and twigs and therefore are staying out of the garden beds. This will give my seedling a chance and once the plants are mature enough then I can open the gate and let the ducks have at the bugs. Meanwhile they can run around each section and hopefully get the pests before they get into the fenced area. I can see lots of uses for this type of fence in our future. The best thing is that when the wood at the bottom rots, then you just squish the fence down and add more to the top. Our pine thicket needs to be cleaned out, so I can see using lots of the pine saplings for a wattle fencing. I would also like to build some wattle hurdles and think that the wisteria vine that I need to clean out would do just great for that purpose. We are growing a stand of bamboo also and will be using the bamboo poles to make wattles. It will be a great way to keep the bamboo under control. The closer the posts the stronger the fence. The second section I am working on will be stronger that the first since I am spacing the posts closer. The post can be a thicker sapling (2-3 inches in diameter) simply hammered into the ground. A few years ago I couldn't hardly hammer a piece of rebar into that ground and now I am amazed at how easily I can hammer a 2 inch sapling into the ground to set the posts for the wattle fence. All those tons of compost have really paid off. Anyway that is another blog post. I hope this explains what a wattle fence is a little better. Blessings, Kat

Tightwad Tip-In the Kitchen

I don't know if anyone has noticed, but cooking oil is not cheap. A little tip that I learned from my grandmother was to save your grease. Bacon grease has a special little jar in the refrigerator. Once the grease is cool, I spoon it into the jar. I am a traditional southern cook and all veggies are season with pork fat. A cheap way of doing that is to add a little bacon grease to your beans or peas instead of using fat back which is not so cheap anymore. Same flavor and seasoning, but far less cost. A little bacon grease in the pan to fry up eggs in the morning is also cheaper than using fresh oil and frankly the taste is better also. When I fry something like rabbit or pork chops, I save the cooking oil. I have a jar and when the oil is cooled down I simply pour the majority of the clean oil into the jar. There are always the little bits in the bottom of the pan and those go into a cup to be put on the dog and cat food (not more than a little spoonful each). Cooking oil can be used three or four times depending on what you are frying. Meat usually is about three times, but potatoes and such can stretch it another time before it needs to be discarded. Most restaurants only change out their fryer grease once a week (at least they should). Since we only fry something about once a week this allows me to go almost a month using the same amount of grease. Sometimes, I might have to add a little bit of new grease to have enough. However, that is usually on the third or fourth use. And another plus is that you get a better browning once the grease has been used at least once. The downside to that is by the fourth use you can brown too much too quickly so be careful to keep your temp down to slow down browning. The structure of the cooking oil by that time is breaking down so slower cooking at a lower temp is necessary to keep the food from burning on the outside before it is done on the inside. Usually for later usage I choose something that doesn't need to cook as long like cubed steak instead of rabbit or pork and then I use a lower temp setting. Another thing that I save is the fat trimmings from butchering. I have a bag in the freezer and when I have fat trimmings they all go in that bag. I will render all that fat and then make my laundry soap from it. I also put excess grease from cooking hamburger or sausage etc, into that bag. I had a turkey carcass that I made broth from not too long ago. I always put my broth in the refrigerator overnight for any fat to congeal at the top before I can it. So once I took it out of the refrigerator I scooped all the fat off the top and put in my bag in the freezer. I got a good half cup of fat that otherwise would have been wasted, but now will be put to good use. Saving grease and re-using is definitely a good way to save a little money in the kitchen. Remember that every little bit here and there adds up to a lot over the long term. Blessings, Kat

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Tightwad Tip-Laundry

First I don't like doing laundry and especially hate folding clothes. Second, I hate spending money to do laundry. So a couple of things to cut down on the amount and the bill. First, wear clothes more than once if you possibly can. If I have to go to town and run a couple of errands very often my clothes have not been worn for very long and I was clean when I put them on, so I hang them up on a hanger and let them air. I have a special place in our bedroom outside the closet that I hang the clothes so that I know they have been worn once and this gives them room to air out. Those are the clothes that I choose first for my next outing. After they have been worn a couple of times then they head to the wash. My husband and daughter do the same thing. This greatly cuts down on the amount of clothes that I wash during the week. I will even do this with work clothes around the farm if I haven't gotten too dirty. For instance, I worked in the garden planting and covering rows. The work wasn't too terribly labor intensive so I will rewear my shirt to do the same today and just put on a different pair of pants since the knees were muddy. Another thing to do is once you are washing use the shortest setting on your machine that you can. Those clothes that were worn to town and don't have any mud or dirt on them or stains, put them on a short setting. The less time your washing machine runs the less electricity you use. Of course, dirty stained outside work clothes need more time to get clean. However, those outfits that you wore for just a few hours each time mostly running errands or visiting friends really don't need that long to get clean. Anyway, those are my tightwad tips for the day. Blessings, Kat

It's official Garden Year 2011has Begun

Well, it is official. Our garden year has begun as the cabbages, broccoli, cauliflower, and salad greens went into the ground yesterday. The second round of broccoli and cauliflower will hit their prospective beds within a couple of weeks. The green peas will go into the ground this weekend along with the onions and beets. I really have my husband confused poor guy. For the past several years we have tilled into the hard pan clay inches and inches of compost. Then between each row we layered mulch that later became compost. Our soil now has a nice tilth and is deep rich dark black soil. So we are no longer tilling because it is no longer necessary and actually damages the soil and releases potential nutrients from it. Instead we are raising beds in the areas that used to be rows and planting on top of layers of unfinished compost that are topped with finished compost. We are changing from traditional rows over to more of the French intensive style of gardening now that our soil is in good health. Our intentions are that there will be less compaction and damage to the soil that we have spent years getting into good shape. This will also free up some room for larger plantings of beets, corn and sunflowers. These are good livestock crops for us and it is important that we grow as much as we can for the stock. We also have a few patches that will become a permanent herb garden and room for berries bushes. I will try to get some pics later today, but will give a brief overview. Where our rows once were, I made wide beds/rows. I first layered down some feed sacks (paper), then a thin layer of stall cleanings, then a layer of leaves,then another thin layer of stall cleanings, then soil from immediately around the bed which would be the walkway, and then finally topped with a good several inches of compost. I then scattered my seeds and covered with another thin layer of dirt from around the bed. Then the whole bed was covered with a sheet of plastic to create a mini greenhouse. The composting action of the stall cleanings will warm the bed for the seedlings along with the greenhouse effect of the plastic. But the plastic will keep in the warmth at night and protect the seedlings from any frost. I did this year's ago in my much much smaller garden and had a wonderful yield. Now the walkways are being carpeted with leaves and later all the gleanings from the barn that has been deeply bedded over the winter. The chicken coop which is also deeply bedded will start off the new garden compost pile for the year once this one is emptied. Chicken manure is really too hot to safely use straight into the garden. One thing that you must be careful of is creating too hot a composting environment in your beds that you burn up your plants. That is why it is important to use either cool manure (rabbit) or very thin layers. The cleanings from the rabbit litter boxes and the stalls of the horses is what we are using. With the horse manure it is important that there be lots of carbon material and very thin layers of stall cleanings. Since our chickens head to the stalls to scratch around first thing in the morning everything is broken down into small pieces and will add just enough heat and compost very slowly under the seedlings so that they get warmth, but no burn. The added benefit is that since the composting action is slow, nutrients will be released all through the growing season. At the end of the season, just that much more beautiful black topsoil has been created. Anyway, today we will be working on the wattle fence around the next section and then it will be time to add more crops to the spring garden. Blessings from the farm, Kat

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

No Buy February?

In the past I have chosen February as a month with absolutely no buying, not even at the grocery. It has always been a good chance to dig deep into the freezer and pantry and use things that need to be used and rotated out. Having this month has always meant that we don't have anything freezer burnt and that fresh produce going into the freezer especially is this year's produce. However, commodities prices are on the rise. Shoot, everything in cost is rising rapidly. So here I am with February right around the corner and wondering if I am going to follow my tradition or not. Since I only go to the grocery about once a month, I have noticed a big difference. Sugar still keeps going up and has been a huge increase over the last year and shows no signs of slowing down. I doubt I will use as much sugar this year as I did last year since I won't need any jams and jellies, but I will need some over the course of the next year. I do go through staple goods on a regular basis and they are something that is constantly rotating in our home. So with all of this said, it seems much wiser to purchase now rather than later. What I am thinking is that maybe I need to use February to simply pad my stock of staple goods and that will be the only buying that I do. Maybe by doing so I can do a "no buy" month later in the year or at least watch the pricing index on goods that I cannot provide myself. While we stay stocked up in these goods and certainly have enough to last us awhile, they do constantly move through our home. So I am thinking that I would much rather pay the cost now while I can rather than pay more of the cost later. So what do you folks think? I am personally thinking that February needs to be staples only month, might as well get while the getting is good. Blessings from the farm, Kat

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Just a little update

Well, my back has finally recovered. I still don't know what I did to it but it was bad....really bad. I couldn't even sit at the computer for more than a few minutes at a time and being on the couch or in the bed was extremely frustrating. My husband and Petunia took over the feeding chores and did pretty well getting food for everyone. It is a good thing that I prepare extra soup and can it up. We ate a lot of soup. We also ate a lot of cheese/crackers, cereal and sandwiches. Frankly, I am a little sick of cereal and sandwiches. The one thing that I learned is that I don't need to put off teaching Petunia how to milk any longer. I have known that I need to teach her so that she can, just in case. It is one of those things that I just didn't get around to doing. My mom had to bring over one of her canes so that I could get out to the barn and do the milking. Thankfully, that was all that I had to do. It was painful enough to do just that. Needless to say I have gotten way behind in my farm schedule. I should have had the cole crops under the row covers by now, but I don't. Housework is behind also. My back is still a little sore and I have to be careful how I move and such, but thank goodness I am back to being functional. I did start incubating eggs this past week so we should start having chicks in a few weeks. Yipppeeeee!!! The girls are getting back into the swing of laying after their winter siesta and we are up to about 8 eggs a day now out of 11 hens. I have 3 more due to start laying in March. It is nice not to have to ration eggs anymore. Despite things being pretty cold there are subtle signs of spring around. For one, the days are starting to get longer (just a little bit). We have had a pretty mild winter this year with only a few days here and there with freezing temps. This would have been a great year to keep the garden going with greens and such. I guess it is good to have a couple months off from gardening. When I have the garden going I am in it everyday and by the end of the year I am simply tired of it. The next few weeks will be busy as I add compost, finish wattle fences, plant the coles, onions, and green peas. I will be in full swing in the garden in just a few more weeks. So I guess I need to spend the next couple of weeks getting the spring cleaning in the house done and odds and ends chores finished and put away. I have quite a few sewing projects to finish. It seems like I never finish with the sewing. Today it is pouring down rain so that seems a good thing to do. Maybe I can make a good dent in that and finish those winter skirts that have been sitting half done for the past 2 months. Speaking of skirts....My sister gave me a gift certificate for Kohl's for Christmas. While the children were at their Sunday church activities Sunday night I went shopping. I bought a few things for the kitchen and then couldn't find anything else that I really needed for the kitchen or the house. I then took a look at the bras because I really do need some new bras. I then struck a huge dilemma...why are all the bras padded?! I am well endowed enough, the last thing I need is extra padding. So I couldn't find a bra that would not make me look bigger than I am so I headed over to the clothes. There in the women's clothing section I scored!!!! On the clearance racks I found some great skirts for this summer and some awesome shirts also. The best thing is that no one item was more than 3.00. I bought 5 skirts and 3 blouses and was tickled pink. It made up for the bra issue. It was fun to actually buy something for myself and not just something for the house, or the kids or the farm. I haven't spent money just on me in a very very long time. I know that sounds selfish, but I think we all need to do something for ourselves every now and then. The kids were funny though as they are used to me usually getting stuff for them and were quite disappointed when I started pulling stuff out of the bags. However, once Petunia got over her initial disappointment she did say that it was good that I used my present on myself. Little Britches didn't think so though. Well, I guess that is about all I have been up to the last few weeks. It is hard getting back into the swing of things after being down for so long (2 weeks is a very very long time for me). I just simply don't know where to start. Blessings, Kat

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Back Pain

I live with pain on a daily basis and can usually muster the stubbornness to get through it and get what I need to get done. This is different. This is debilitating. This pain is crippling. I don't know what I have done or how it could have happened since I was taking a couple of easy days resting on the couch with the heating pad and doing some mending that needed to be done. I worked really hard getting everything outside taken care of before this storm we were supposed to have and never did. I was sore and my body was whooped. So, I did the basic chores and decided a couple of days on the couch doing some writing and mending wouldn't hurt. I was wrong. Yesterday afternoon I started to get excruciating pain in my lower back. I couldn't get comfortable and the heat from the heating pad just seemed to make it worse. By last night I could barely walk. If I attempt to stand up straight, my legs give way and I fall. This morning I can walk around the house only if I stay hunched over and hold onto something because my back can't hold me up. What has happened to me? And what am I gonna do? If I can just make it through today, then my husband is off the next two days and will be home. I hope I will be better by then, but after not being better this morning I don't have high hopes. I wish I knew what was going on and if I am not even slightly better tomorrow I am going to have him take me to the doctor. I doubt at this point that I could even drive because I have no strength in my back, which means moving my legs is not very easy. I am trying to figure out how I am going to get out to the barn to milk and feed. That is the one thing that I am kicking myself for right now. I have been putting off teaching my oldest how to milk and getting the girls used to her milking when I can't. So I am the only one who can milk and someway, somehow I am going to have to get out to that barn and do just that. She can feed, but only I can milk. So ladies, take this from my experience.....teach someone else in your family to milk and make sure the girls will allow them to do just that. I also needed to make cheese today and I made broth yesterday that needs to be canned today. I took some robaxin last night, hoping that would relax the muscles and help. It didn't. I also took a Lortab which would normally knock me out in a second since I rarely even take anything for a headache. It didn't even touch the pain level. The pain in my shoulder is gone though! I am trying to move around a little to keep from getting stove up and not being able to move at all. My legs are still giving way though. I am praying that the Lord gives me the strength to get through morning chores and that this is something simple that will heal with rest. To be honest, this is humbling and scary. I have always been such an independent, strong willed person. I have always managed to do what I need to do despite pain or injury. This is the first time in my life that I can't do that. No matter how much I want to or how determined I am, my body won't. Here is hoping that your day is better than mine is looking to be and that none of you have to go through this. Blessings from the farm, Kat

Sunday, January 9, 2011

I Should Have Known Better (Civil War History)

I should have known better this morning than to read this ridiculous article in the Washington Post. Really I should know better than to read anything in the Washington Post, knowing that most pieces are simply opinion. I suppose I was merely intrigued that a story about the Civil War was being written in a NEWSpaper. I thought newspapers were for news that was well....new, not history. I opened it anyway. So here is my response to this non researched garbage. Mr. Loewen claims that the south was actually opposed to states' rights. Mr. Loewen could not be further from the truth. The south actually believed that piece of paper called the United States Constitution that gave them all right to govern themselves as an independent member of a constitutional republic. Oddly enough, the majority of the people of the northern states also felt that each individual state had the right to decide what to do for themselves. It was only a select few mostly northern Congressmen who felt otherwise. Sounds a little familiar doesn't it, the people strongly oppose a bailout but Congress does it anyway. They didn't listen to the people then and they aren't doing it now. Secondly, Mr. Loewen claims that the imposition of overwhelming taxes and tariffs on the southern states is a lie also. If he had bothered to do any research at all he would have seen that the southern states had a much larger export market than the north and its fledgling factories. Most tariffs and taxes were levied on exports, so who paid those high export taxes? Well, that would be those that did the most exporting, the south and the cotton industry. The Morrell Tariff was actually the straw that broke the camel's back. The south already paid 80% of the nations taxes and when time came to spend that money they were routinely outvoted in Congress in favor of northern infrastructure. Why were they outvoted? It is simple, more people in the north than south meant more representatives for the north. His third "myth" holds that even though the majority of whites in the south were too poor to own slaves, they were optimistic about one day reaching the upper eschelons of society and wanted to secure their ability to own slaves at that point. What a bunch of baloney. He also states in this area that there was such an air of white supremacy that they were afraid to go against their kind. And uses this statement "The consequence will be that our men will be all exterminated or expelled to wander as vagabonds over a hostile earth, and as for our women, their fate will be too horrible to contemplate even in fancy." by then Georgia Supreme Court Justice Henry Benning. Well, if Mr. Loewen had bothered to do any research he would understand that this statement was in response to the Haiti slave rebellions. The south was indeed looking for a way to move away from slavery because it was no longer economically viable since the invention of the cotton gin (just like we no longer use draft horses on most farms anymore). However, they realized that just turning all those people loose with no homes, no jobs, no food was not the way to go. In fact, the plantation owners in Haiti had done just that. They sent all of their slaves packing. Essentially, they threw them out of their homes (owned by the plantation), took away their food supply (again owned by the plantation) and sent them on their way. The slaves retaliated because there was no means for them to support themselves and they burned and looted the plantations and very few plantation owners escaped death. So this comment that Mr. Loewen uses out of context to try to support his feeble opinion, was actually a valid fear held by the south because it had already happened elsewhere! I will give him this, he does come slightly close to the truth with his myth #4. Lincoln didn't care about slavery nor did he care about the slaves. He actually was in favor of putting all slaves back on boats and sending them back to Africa. However, the only reason he cared about keeping the nation together was because of money. I have already explained that the north at that time simply couldn't have done without the large amount of money that it received from the taxes imposed on the south. Lincoln knew that and didn't want to lose a huge source of revenue, his main source. This brings us to his final "myth" which I have already touched on a bit. He says that even though it is impossible to disprove that slavery would have ended on its own, it is difficult to accept that it would have. Well, that is his opinion. How many things have developed and evolved in agricultural history. I am sure there was a time when farmers could not even fathom the invention of the tractor and the end of using draft horses to pull a plow. I am sure there was a day when farmers could not fathom a machine that would milk their cows for them. Large draft horses became more of an economic burden on the farmer once the tractor was invented. It would have been the same with slavery. Think about it Mr. Loewen. Slaves had to be housed, fed, clothed, medical needs attended to all year long whether there was a crop to harvest or not. With mechanized equipment that could do the work only when needed and didn't cost anything the rest of the year, slavery was not a sound business expense. Farming is a business whether you know it or not. We don't just play in the dirt for the fun of it (ok it is fun, but that is not the point). In closing I would highly suggest that Mr. Loewen do some research before he puts his opinions on paper and states them as fact. History is history, it doesn't need to be twisted into a story to suit whichever audience you want to reach. Slavery existed in the United States, get over it. There are more important things to learn from the Un-Civil War (there was nothing civil about that war) because what happened then leading up to that massacre is happening now to lead to another possible massacre and folks if we don't wake up and learn our history we will repeat it. Arizona is now fighting for its right to keep illegals out of its state. Sounds like the same states' rights that were an issue in 1861. Many states including my own, have declared Obamacare unconstitutional and sent out Declarations of Sovereignty in response to imposing a glorified tax on the people of their states. Sounds like the taxes and tariffs of the 1860s also. The American people both black and white need to get around this smoke screen and mirrors trick being imposed on them by constantly bickering over slavery. The rest of the issues are still happening right under our noses! Slavery happened, it happened here and it happened in Egypt 4000 years ago and it has happened at some point in some time throughout history around the globe. But what is happening now is that the American people are willingly taking up those chains of slavery yet again because they fail to understand the real truth of history. Mr. Loewen if you want to write about the Civil War, write about something worthwhile. Something we can learn that will help us today when we as a nation are facing the same tyranny and oppression and invasion of states' rights that only a few faced 150 years ago. I will hop down off my soap box with this quote,

"But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.--Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government." (The Declaration of Independence)

The men and women of the south knew this document. They believed in it and had fought for it and died for it. They believed it so deeply that they were willing to risk lives and fortunes to keep it alive. You see, they suffered just as the colonies did, in a long train of abuses of which they could do nothing about. So they set to provide new Guards for their future and their children's future. Mr. Loewen have you even read the Declaration of Independence?

Ok, I am done ranting and tirading now. I just had to get that out of my system. Blessings from the farm, Kat

Saturday, January 8, 2011

Deep South Winter Storm

I really hate these winter storms here in the deep south. I know, I know....you folks up north are just laughing at what we call a winter storm here. Here is the difference. Folks up north understand snow and ice, folks in the south understand cold and mud. Folks in the north understand how to drive in snowy icy conditions, folks in the south think snow and ice mean GO FASTER, CHANGE LANES MORE OFTEN, NEVER SIGNAL, SLAM ON BRAKES!I know my sister in Maine is laughing her head off right now as she prepares to shovel the snow so that she can make her morning snowy drive to work. I don't envy her and that is why I live where snow is supposed to be a once in 20 year thing. Usually our winters mean lots of rain and mud, not lots of snow and ice! Global warming my foot and don't even go there about the "climate change" they are now trying to call it. Anyway, I am sure the stores were a nightmare yesterday. What a blessing to always be prepared (remember Hurricane Andrew and Hurricane Ivan taught me that). I do however, have a very busy day ahead of me because of this mess coming from the door that somebody in the north left open. In normal winter conditions here I don't really make any big changes to the barns. They stay pretty open. I just deep bed the goat barn and they have a large stall to cuddle up in on cold nights. The rabbits are content with deep hay in their cages and on really cold nights I throw a cover over the cages. However, I am battening down the hatches at both ends of the aisleway so that it doesn't become a wind tunnel. I also have my old stallion in the stall next to the goats, so will give him some extra bedding and close up that gap at the bottom of his stall. Both stalls are closed it, but open to the aisle which is open on the north and south end. The rabbits are housed in the aisle. Then there is the chicken coop. It is closed on the north side, but the other 3 sides are open along the top. So I will close up 2 of those sides, add more bedding for the chickens and fill up their grain feeder that hardly ever gets used. Having something to eat all day while cooped up will help keep them warm. Then it will just be a quick check to refresh water. I am filling extra water buckets all around because I know my hoses will be frozen and possibly my outdoor spickets. Then there is the big horse barn. My husband decided to take off part of the north side wall so that he could turn my big foaling stall into the tractor spot. This means that the barn can get pretty windy. So I will cover the stall facing the opening and the side door opening. Then there is just the small door on the south side and the 2 horses that use that barn will be able to get in out of the freezing rain, sleet or snow. I will back some extra bedding in there and go ahead and take some hay over there so that everything I need is right there. I have extra coffee cans to have feed rations pre measured out and all that needs doing is to grab a can and dump it. And again I have a big trashcan in the barn for water so I don't have to haul to many water buckets, just a couple gallon jugs of hot water. I try to make everything as simple outside as possible in this weather. Sleet is no fun to run around outside in for very long and everything is so spread out around here, that a lot of time is spent in the elements moving from barn to barn. It would be nice to have everything in one spot and that is my goal one day, but alas that day is not here. We are good in the house, but need to bring in more firewood and stack as much as we can get. The propane is good and set to go. I am cooking a turkey, Sunday morning so if we lose power it is simple to heat the turkey and canned veggies over the fire. I also have canned soups and stuff and am baking bread and some cookies also. We are good as far as the house goes. All the laundry is done. You just never know with our power out here in the country on good days (it goes out on bright clear sunny days!), so with this weather....limbs falling, lines breaking, town a priority....well you get the idea. The one thing I am really upset about is this will keep me from working on the wattle fence around the garden. I have been having so much fun building that fence and it looks like it will have to wait a few days. Oh, well...that is life on the farm. Maybe I can eek out a little time to work on it today and this storm might give me lots more material to work with! Blessings from the farm and stay warm and safe.

Thursday, January 6, 2011

Amazing Kid!

This kid has got to be my new hero. He is truly an amazing speaker and he has been invited to speak at a California conference. I believe he will be the intro speaker for Joel Salatin. Blessings, Kat

Sunday, January 2, 2011

Fence Post Cutting for Women

Well the goats have really damaged their fence. Actually, it is so badly damaged that they no longer stay in it, unless they choose to. Part of the problem was that we skimped on fence posts. At the time my husband didn't want to fell any trees to make posts and instead wanted to buy steel T posts. I have never really liked t posts because with enough pressure the fencing just slide down the post as the ties loosen. Well that is exactly what has happened to most of their fence line. Field fence is a bear to straighten out. It must be completely taken down laid out flat and straightened. You simply make more of a mess if you try to straighten it out while it is up, especially attached to t posts. I have been waiting for my husband to help fix the fence. It absolutely must be done before the garden is planted or we will have the same problem as last year....goats walking over their fence right into the garden. Last year I would have had a really good harvest had it not been for the goats that ate half of the garden produce (if not more). They inhaled all of my fall greens. I only have two pastures that are fenced for the goats, the perimeter around the horse pastures is in barbed wire and definitely is not goat proof. The other pasture fenced for goats is the one that my neighbor in his enthusiasm to bulldoze his side of the fenceline drove two tree through the fence, dropped another on the fence and broke off 3 of my fence posts (wood). So the whole line between his property and mine in that pasture is destroyed. Yes, he cut the trees up and got them out of my way, but he didn't repair the damage done. So the goats are visiting the neighbors on that side and using his fields to get to the neighbors on the backside. I am tired of calling goats back home, my husband has the flu and is working very long hours lately, so it is up to me to solve the problem. The goat pasture attached to the barn is first on the agenda. There are several spots that the boys have broken the wire and that won't be salvageable, but I have a plan. Anyway, back to the fence posts. I don't like chainsaws much, but I am comfortable using a small one. Unfortunately we only have a big one. So what is a girl to do? Using an axe kills me and knocks me out of commission for several days due to the pain of hefting the heavy thing over and over. Believe me, an axe may not weigh much when you first pick it up but swing it over and over and it will begin to weigh a ton. So I broke out my trusty axe, made sure it was nice and sharp and went to work. I chose cedar trees to cut since I use my oak in the fireplace, and cedar is naturally insect resistant. I chose 10 inch diameter trees for several reasons. The thickness of the heartwood is what makes a fence post last and smaller diameter just doesn't have much heartwood yet. The soft outer wood will become softer over time so you need a tree with a good thick heart. Second, trees with this diameter will usually yield at least 2 good sized posts which means fewer trees to fell. And three, a 10 inch diameter isn't too terribly hard to cut through. So I took my trusty hatchet and used the v cut on one side and then cut through from the other. This helped to control which way my tree fell, especially if you take a look at the way the tree is growing. Oh, first I delimbed the bottom limbs so that I could get to the trunk. Once the tree was down then I delimbed the rest of the trunk with the hatchet. After 2 trees, I resharpened my hatchet. A dull hatchet makes for a lot more work on your part. All in all I got 4 trees down, delimbed and ready to cut into posts in 2 hours. Not bad for a girl!. I will cut those today and then get them prepared to set. Ideally you want to let the posts cure for several months to a year. I don't have that kind of time. So I will strip the bark from the bottom of each post (again with my hatchet) and paint that portion with a mixture of linseed oil and charcoal to act as a preservative. You simply crush the charcoal into a powder, mix in the linseed oil and paint it on. I will then set those posts, take the fence down, straighten it out and put it back up. Then I am going to run two strands of hotwire along the top portion of the fence. That will keep my boys from trying to climb it. That should solve that fence problem and then I can work on their other pasture fence. So for women I highly recommend working with a hatchet that is lighter weight than trying to use an axe. It is also easier to control. It cuts smaller bits than an axe would and probably takes more swings, but you can accomplish more and feel less pain afterword. I must admit my muscles are sore, but I am not in screaming pain like I usually am after trying to use the axe. Blessings from the farm. Kat

Butternut Squash Souffle

Kelly requested the recipe for my butternut squash souffle. It really is super easy and I hope she and any other butternut lovers out there enjoy!

Butternut Squash souffle
2 cups cooked and mashed butternut squash
3 tbls. soft butter
1 cup sugar
1/3 c. milk
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
3 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Heat the oven to 325 degrees and grease a 1 1/2 qt. casserole dish. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and beat with a mixer until well combined. Put it in the casserole dish and bake for 75 minutes or until set. For an added treat in the last 20 minutes or so add marshmallows to the top (this is the trick to getting my kids to eat some).

My hubby loves this recipe. I also have butternut squash soup recipe that is really good and truly is the only way that I can eat butternut squash. I will post that also. Blessings, Kat