DIY - Fire Starter

Fire Starter 

Corks in a jar with rubbing alcohol, toss a couple in under kindling, light fire.

How to: Save Heirloom Tomato Seeds

Saving your own tomato seeds is rather fun and has all sorts of benefits. Preserving heirloom seeds, ensuring a supply of your own favorites for next year, helping protect seed diversity, making a giant mess of stinky fermenting goo, it’s all there! It’s also pretty easy.

 As part of our seed selling business we save fairly large quantities of tomato seed but the process is the same whether you are saving from a pile of heirloom tomatoes or from a paticularily tasty one you just sliced up for lunch.

First things first, you need to get your tomato seeds out of the tomato.  You can slice them in half, in quarters, scoop some out of the one you’re eating or just use my preferred method: Squishing. A serrated grapefruit spoon makes a great seed saving tool, especially when dealing with smaller cherry tomatoes. Just cut them in half and scoop out the inside of the tomatoes leaving the skin and outer flesh behind.

Next the seed pulp is ready to be combined with water in a container.  Glass jars are simple and food safe, but yogurt containers and tupperware are perfectly suitable. The only really important factor is that the container needs a lid. It’s going to get stinky so the lid is not optional.

Make sure to label each variety as you go as tomato seeds all look very similar and the colored pulp is going to break down.
Place them out of direct sunlight and walk away for a few days. You’ll start to see the good seeds settle from the pulp down to the bottom of the container.

Now things will start to ferment. This fermentation process is breaking down the protective coating on each seed. After a few days and once you have a good layer of fuzzy stuff, dump it off, leaving the seeds in the bottom of the jar.  Any seeds at the top are duds, the good stuff is all at the bottom.  Top up the jar with some clean water and let it all happen again.  Once the seeds are starting to settle cleanly at the bottom they are done. Be careful not to leave things unsupervised for too many days as the seeds could start germinating.

Once the seeds are ready, pour off any remaining pulp and mold.

Using a strainer, give your seeds a final rinse. They should be looking rather naked by now.

Now you just need to let them dry.  A stack of clean rags or old tea towels work best, as paper towels sometimes stick.

Once again, label your seeds. Package them up a few days later when they’re perfectly dry and you’re set.  Next spring you’ll have more tomato seeds then you can plant.  Trading them with fellow seed savers and planting a few extra for gardening neighbors is highly recommended.

HOMEMADE MOSQUITO TRAP

Items needed:

200 ml water
50 grams of brown sugar
1 gram of yeast
2-liter plastic bottle

Or US conversion:
1 cup of water
1/4 cup of brown sugar

HOW:
1. Cut the plastic bottle in half.
2. Mix brown sugar with hot water. Let cool. When cold, pour in the bottom half of the bottle.
3. Add the yeast. No need to mix. It creates carbon dioxide, which attracts mosquitoes.
4. Place the funnel part, upside down, into the other half of the bottle, taping them together if desired.
5. Wrap the bottle with something black, leaving the top uncovered, and place it outside in an area away from your normal gathering area. (Mosquitoes are also drawn to the color black.)

What's For Dinner - Oven Baked Cabbage Rolls

Oven Baked Cabbage Rolls

12 cabbage leaves

1 pound ground beef

3/4 cup cooked rice

1/2 cup finely chopped onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 egg

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon pepper 

1/2 cup milk

Sauce:

1 cans (8 ounces ) tomato sauce

1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained

3 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons vinegar

1/2 cup water

2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with 1/4 cup cold water

Drop cabbage leaves into boiling salted water; cover and cook for 3 minutes. Drain well.

 Combine ground beef, rice, onion, egg, and salt, pepper, and milk. Mix well and divide into

 

12 portions. 

 Place a portion into the center of each cabbage leaf. Roll leaf around filling; fasten with 

toothpick. Place in a baking dish. 

For sauce, combine tomato sauce, tomatoes, sugar, vinegar, and 1/2 cup of water and pour 

over cabbage rolls. Bake covered in a preheated 350 degree oven 40 to 45 minutes. Remove

rolls and discard toothpicks. Place pan with juices over medium heat and stir cornstarch and 

water mixture into the sauce; bring to a boil and cook and whisk until thickened. Pour 

thickened sauce over cabbage rolls or serve on the side.

The ancient Native American technique of growing Corn, Beans, and Squash together

The ancient Native American technique of growing Corn, Beans, and Squash together in an arrangement called the Three Sisters is the ultimate in companion planting and helps increase harvests, naturally.

Corn acts as a support for climbing bean vines, the beans fix nitrogen in the soil for the high feeding requirements of corn and squash, and the squash provides mulch and root protection for the corn and beans. After cooperating beautifully in the garden, corn and beans form a complete protein when eaten together! How's that for a mutually beneficial relationship?

The Three Sisters are all easy to direct sow in the garden and are a great project for children, teaching them about the beauty of natural harmony while providing a fast-growing reward for their efforts.

The Iroquois believe corn, beans and squash are precious gifts from the Great Spirit, each watched over by one of three sisters spirits, called the De-o-ha-ko, or “Our Sustainers". The planting season is marked by ceremonies to honor them, and a festival commemorates the first harvest of “green” corn on the cob. By retelling the stories and performing annual rituals, Native Americans passed down the knowledge of growing, using and preserving the Three Sisters through generations.

How To Make A Hanging Gutter Garden

 Materials

1 – 8′ PVC white rain gutter cut into 3 32″ sections

6 – PVC white gutter end caps

2 – 1/8″diameter steel cables cut to desired length

6 – Feeney Cross Clamps (see image below)

6 – 1/8″ diameter Feeney steel rods

2 – Galvanized eye hooks

Potting soil and Plants

Tools

Cordless Drill with drill bit set

Hand saw or hack saw

T-square or straight edge

Tape measure

Permanent marker

Level

Eye protection

1. Determine the center of your gutters and draw a reference line (otherwise your gutter won’t hang right).
2. Mark and drill the holes for the steel cable rods. Find a drill bit the same diameter as the cable to minimize the wiggle room.
3. Space drill holes a few sizes larger to make sure you get good drainage (plant roots hate sitting in water for long periods of time).

1. Locate a spot that gets at least 4 hours of sun. 
2. Drill pilot holes (a hole slightly smaller in diameter than the screw diameter) to make screwing in the eye hook a lot easier. Make sure the holes are the same distance as the steel cable so they hang straight down.
3. Slide the gutters through the holes and secure them with the cross clamps at your desired heights. 
4. Secure the gutter with the cross clamps and half circle steel rods.

Now you’re ready to fill it with organic potting soil and plant them with your choice of shallow rooted plants.

Special thanks to Goods Home Design.

http://goodshomedesign.com/hanging-gutter-gardenhow-hanging-gutter-garden/

Regrow your green onions!

Did you know you can regrow your green onions?? You can cut off the roots and 

put them in water, then the roots will absorb the water and start to grow a new 

green onion. It takes a good 2-3 weeks for the green onion to grow completely 

so you can use it again, but it grows a whole new one!!!

Cooking On A Log

Cooking on a log...

Cut the log evenly on both sides so it stands up freely. Then cut it into vertical segments most of the way down the length of the log. Stuff in some newspaper into the cracks as deep as you can get it, leaving a wick at the bottom, and light it up.

That's all there is to it—the log burns from the inside out, and you have a simple, handmade stove.

Missouri’s Wild Turkey Population Remains Strong

Missouri’s Wild Turkey Population Remains Strong

Missouri is recognized as offering some of the nation’s best turkey hunting. Each year, the state’s turkey harvest ranks among the highest in the country. The improved production of 2011 should result in an increase in the number of 2-year-old gobblers during the 2013 spring season. The hatch of 2012 should continue this trend into 2014. Missouri’s turkey population remains strong, offering hunters a tremendous opportunity to enjoy one of the state’s most cherished natural resources.

By the Missouri Department of Conservation

Spring Turkey Season Starts April 15!

Getting the Garden ready for Spring planting without using Gas, Electricity or Oil powered machines. Off-Grid Goodness!

  While browsing online, I found a good source of tips and information that will help those off-grid or living the "simple life" to save some money and get the garden ready for Spring planting that's just a few months away.

"Once you have the grass mowed and the weeds chopped down, the next step is to break up the soil for planting. Heavy duty tools like a Broadfork can make this job easier. The 20 inch wide fork is specially sharpened to take big bites from the ground. Extra-long 60 inch handles give you lots of leverage to break the soil loose. There’s much less bending over than a hoe requires, and no need to chop or hack at the soil. Best of all, the dirt is left loose and pliable, not packed down by heavy power equipment.

Once the soil is broken up, the next step is to cultivate. Instead of using a bulky gas-powered tiller to over work your soil, you can create a smooth planting bed with an easy-to-use rotary cultivator. To use this tool, you simply push it in front of you as you walk down the rows of your garden. The wheel breaks up the soil and works in your peat moss or compost while you get some exercise.

Once your garden is cultivated, it’s time to plant. To keep your rows nice and straight, just drive a one-foot stake at the end of each row and tie a string between them. Then use the string as a guideline.

Dreading the thought of crawling around on your hands and knees to plant all those seeds? No need if you get yourself an old fashioned corn planter. All you have to do is pour the seeds into the cup on the side, push the steel blade into the ground and squeeze the handles. The seeds will drop right where you want them. It’s a very efficient system and allows you to finish a chore that could take hours in just minutes.

If you want butterflies decorating your garden, once you have the seeds in the ground, plant oregano, borage, catnip and hollyhocks between the rows. The colors and scent attract the beautiful creatures. Butterflies also like bee balm, red carnations and begonias.

After planting your garden the natural way, don’t stop there. Make a pledge to water your vegetable plants by hand every day with a good old-fashioned watering can. And instead of relying on pesticides -- which over time can work their way into the ground-water and damage the environment -- to keep the weeds down, get out there every day with a hoe and pull them up.

To keep bugs away, sprinkle a mixture of garlic power and flour on your plants. It works especially well for cabbage flies, but use it sparingly. The mix will get pasty on the leaves if applied too thickly.

 
( picture gained from here )

OLD TIME GARDEN TIPS

Here’s a trick to keep the woodchucks from stealing carrots from your garden. Fill glass gallon jugs with water and place them around your garden. The woodchucks see their reflections and, apparently thinking it’s another animal, run away. Sounds silly but it works.

If you’d like to force hornets, bees and wasps to move out, try hanging moth cakes on your deck, under the eaves, or anywhere else they like to build their nests. They don’t like the smell so they fly far away and call somewhere else home. "

Article taken from this site.

Homesteading in a Camper or Travel Trailer during Winter

I reviewed some online articles concerning how to homestead in a travel or camper trailer during the Winter to keep warm in about -9 degrees F, these helpful tips were gleaned from "The Tiny Voice of Reason"  and Homesteading Today's websites/forums.



    You can use hay bales as insulation for the skirting around your travel or camper trailer, however, keep in mind that the mice will be moving in and that hay is prone to spontaneously combust and is a fire hazard. Another form of insulation that would work would be creating a wind break by using permaculture, or various sized plants in pots or planted in the ground in various heights and staggering areas to create a barrier for the wind as wind is the main cause of heat loss during Winter, especially if you have no trees or are in an open area.

    Wood siding for sheds is a good skirting for campers and trailers for winter, consider adding foam board and heavy plastic to the underside of the trailer and over the crawlspace to conserve more heat and buff the cold winter winds. Also, get the vent cushions to cover your AC during winter, these are often found in RV stores or online.

   Buy some cheap shower curtain liners, fold them in half, cut to your window size and put them over the windows on the outside of the camper/trailer just to where they overlap the window frame (and if you have a patio door frame, do the same) and make sure to tape with outdoor heavy duty tape found at Home Depot or other hardware stores and also consider caulking with wet weather caulk on the interior of the camper/trailer where there's cracks, such as around the around the main doors, windows & closet seams where they meet the floor and use expanding foam to fill the areas around the floor seam of the popout if you have one.


   Invest in Styrofoam insulation panels (12 pack for $8) from Home Depot and  put those inside the cabinets, closets, the storage space in the bedroom closet and under the sinks.  Under the tub, and that small space behind the toilet where the pipe sits in front, and stuff in fiberglass bats and make an inside cover with a square piece of Styrofoam insulation. Insulate your sinks as well!

    Put a wool blanket under your flat sheet on your bed, and consider layering two or three thick microfiber blankets on top for warmth when you sleep, also layer thin and thick blankets for your bed coverings, layers do wonders and if you don't have electricity, consider investing in a hot water bottle or pack, otherwise plug in that heating blanket!

    Put thermal curtains or blankets over your windows, open them while the sun is out for passive solar heating and close them up when it starts to get dark. Also, consider painting a few 2 Liter soda bottles black, fill them with water and let the sun heat them up during the day outside, bring them inside to let the warmth leach into the camper/trailer, if you find one or two isn't enough try a few more but larger water containers will take longer to heat up and may end up freezing and having the opposite effect instead.

Invest in a generator if money allows and stock up on fuel when it's the cheapest. Do not store fuel next to your camper/trailer, but in a safe area a good distance away in approved containers.

Some have installed wood stoves into their travel trailers, this can be a dangerous fire hazard and if you have one installed make sure that you have at least two fire distinguishers handy and never leave your camper/trailer unattended with a live fire in the wood stove.