The Men Who Stare and Goats (and Feed Them, and Water Them, Too!)

Anyway you write it, we’re now (sort of) in the goat business.  We started with chickens.  Small enough, not much trouble, easy to take care of, and they produce eggs and meat.  Not a bad deal.

“Leveled up” in the farming venue to ducks, geese and guineas.  Still not too much trouble.  Then along came the goats.  The first one was Snickers.  We didn’t name him; he came with a name.  He had been de-horned so he couldn’t do too much damage.  He was good with the kids (which I liked), but the previous owners called him “Houdini” because he could always escape any enclosure.

We thought we’d cured him of his wandering when we got him.  Sure!  The first month that we had him we had to chase him down and bring him back at least a dozen times.  He wanted to go ‘home,’ which he believed to be elsewhere.  After he figured out that ‘our ranch was his ranch,’ he decided to roam all over the yard.  He enjoyed antagonizing the dog, eating the grass (we didn’t mind; it saved on mowing), and knocking things over.  We finally got the pasture fence fixed up enough so that he could no longer get over or under it.

Then, during the brutal Michigan winter last year, we lost him.  He was old, and we knew that he would die some day, but it was still sad to find him frozen in the pasture one winter morning.  Just before he died we had been given two small goats, were also good with the kids.  So, we were still in the goat business.  The problem is, I had never raised goats before.  Chickens, ducks, and geese are small and not much trouble.  I’m not so sure about goats.

Goats need a little more tending.  Now we’ve got four. Thankfully, these girls are friendly with the kids.  The ladies have horns, so I’m a bit wary. So far they’ve been good and have not given us any trouble.  I keep thinking I really should read up on how to raise goats, or at least how to properly take care of them.  Maybe this winter when the snow is knee deep and I have some time,I’ll go outside and become one of “the men who stare at goats.”

Hey, that movie opens up soon.  Maybe I’ll go see it and get some ideas!

Internet Movie Database Website link for “THE MEN WHO STARE AT GOATS…”

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PICKLES  

by Lara Velez

The true history of the pickle is somewhat of a mystery.

Some believe that the pickle dates back to India–4030 years ago! 

(Recipes below!) 

 The pickle was mentioned in the Bible by Jesus, and also in the Old Testament books of Numbers and Isaiah.

Napoleon valued its health benefits for his army.

George Washington had a collection of 476 different kinds of pickles.

In 850 B.C.,  Aristotle praised the healing benefits of the pickle.  

[Regarding this preserved curcurbit], Thomas Jefferson wrote: “On a hot day in Virginia, I know nothing more comforting than a fine spiced pickle, brought up like trout, from the sparkling depths of the aromatic jar below the stairs of Aunt Sally’s cellar.”

So, what is all the fuss over a pickled cucumber you ask?  Who knows?

I do know that even today the popular pickle is everywhere!

The crunchy, tangy pickle is eaten out of jars, on burgers, and served with [deli] sandwiches. It is sliced, speared, whole, diced for relish, spicy, sour, and sweet. We just love the amazing, multi-talented pickle!

The health benefits of the pickle are incredible:

Raw, lacto-fermented vegetables (pickles) have good bacteria that inhibit the growth of harmful microbes in the intestines.

Pickles have a high concentration of vitamin C.

They help you absorb iron better.

Research shows that vinegar can help with weigh loss.

PICKLE FACTS:

* Americans consume 26-billion pickles a year. That’s about nine pounds of pickles per person  

* More than half the cucumbers grown in the U.S. are made into pickles

* Amerigo Vespucci, for whom America is named, was a pickle merchant before becoming an explorer

* Pickling has been used to preserve food for almost 5,000 years

* The pickle is both a fruit and a vegetable

No matter how you feel about pickles…they aren’t going anywhere.

So, grab a dill, sit down, and get crunching.

How to Make Dill Pickles:

4 dozen fresh, crisp, pickling cucumbers – DO NOT use the commercial, waxed kind!

Fresh dill, to taste (approx. 1- bundle)

 1 qt. Apple cider vinegar

8 c water

1 c salt

10 whole garlic cloves, peeled

2-4 garlic cloves, peeled, and crushed

Several Jars

Wash cukes and cover with cold water. Refrigerate overnight. Pack cukes into jars, tightly. Stuff equal amounts of dill into each jar. Meanwhile, bring remaining ingredients to a boil. Boil for 2 min. Evenly divide whole garlic cloves into jars. Pour hot brine into the jars. Seal. Makes 12 pints. After processing and cooling, jars should be stored 4 to 5 weeks to develop ideal flavor.

How to Make Bread-and-Butter Pickles:

6 lbs of 4- to 5-inch pickling cucumbers

8 cups thinly sliced onions (about 3 pounds)

l/2 cup canning or pickling salt

4 cups vinegar (5 percent)

4-l/2 cups sugar

2 tbsp mustard seed

l-l/2 tbsp celery seed

l tbsp ground tumeric

Wash cucumbers. Cut l/l6-inch off blossom end and discard. Cut into 3/l6-inch slices. Combine cucumbers and onions in a large bowl. Add salt. Cover with 2 inches crushed or cubed ice. Refrigerate 3 to 4 hours, adding more ice as needed. Combine remaining ingredients in a large pot. Boil 10 minutes. Drain and add cucumbers and onions and slowly reheat to boiling. Fill jars with slices and cooking syrup, leaving l/2-inch headspace. Adjust lids and process pints or quarts 10 minutes in a boiling water canner. After processing and cooling, jars should be stored 4 to 5 weeks to develop ideal flavor.  

How to Make Quick Sweet Pickles:

8 lbs of 3- to 4-inch pickling cucumbers (may be canned as strips or slices)

l/3 cup canning or pickling salt

4-l/2 cups sugar

3-l/2 cups vinegar (5 percent)

2 tsp celery seed

l tbsp whole allspice

2 tbsp mustard seed

Yield: About 7 to 9 pints

Wash cucumbers. Cut l/l6-inch off blossom end and discard, but leave l/4 inch of stem attached. Slice or cut in strips, if desired. Place in bowl and sprinkle with l/3 cup salt. Cover with 2 inches of crushed or cubed ice. Refrigerate 3 to 4 hours. Add more ice as needed. Drain well. Combine sugar, vinegar, celery seed, allspice, and mustard seed in 6-quart kettle. Heat to boiling. Hot Pack: Add cucumbers and heat slowly until vinegar solution returns to boil. Stir occasionally to make sure mixture heats evenly. Fill sterile jars, leaving l/2-inch headspace. Adjust lids. Process 5 minutes in a boiling water canner. Raw Pack: Fill jars, leaving l/2-inch headspace. Add hot pickling syrup, leaving l/2-inch headspace. Adjust lids and process pints l0 minutes and quarts 15 minutes in boiling water canner or use the low temperature pasteurization treatment. After processing and cooling, jars should be stored 4 to 5 weeks to develop ideal flavor.

  

About the Author
Lara Velez is Editor-in-Chief of The Recipe Finder’s online cooking magazine. Visit today: http://www.therecipefinder.com If you need a recipe: http://www.therecipefinder.com/findarecipe.html Or receive our FREE newsletter: http://www.therecipefinder.com/newsletter.html

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Canning Made Easy With Personal Advice From a Home Canner  

by C.L. Carr

I’ve been home canning for several years, and I am still always on the lookout for tools and techniques to make my canning season easier and less tedious.

As I look back over all the seeds, pits, peels, cores, toil, sweat, chopping, cutting and mashing of canning season, I “relish” (canning product term!) the various pieces of canning equipment I have added to my repertoire that have truly helped ease my stockpot burdens.

Perhaps you already have these pieces of equipment in your kitchen and have not yet employed them in your canning regime. Or, perhaps after reading this article, you too, will invest in some of these tools to further aid you in your canning season.

I have found these tools irreplaceable and, although in a pinch I could can without them (in some cases), I would prefer to always have them in my kitchen of canning splendor.

1. Steam Canner: There is some debate out there in canning land whether or not a steam canner adequately heats the contents of jars in order to kill bacteria. I have used a steam canner with great success for the past 6 years. I especially like using the steam canner for fruits, pickles, and jams.

A steam canner uses much less water, therefore less fuel, and is easy to handle. I have even steam canned tomatoes with good results. As usual, I believe if you follow the guidelines which come with your steam canner, you should enjoy great results.

2. Pressure Canner: Years ago folks were scared away from using pressure canners because they seemed “dangerous”. Pressure canners on the market today are very safe to use and a MUST if you wantto can vegetables and meat. I recommend obtaining the biggest pressure canner you can afford!

You’ll be glad for the investment!

3. Food Mill:  A few years ago I purchased a food mill through Lehman’s (please follow link at the end of this article to find out where you can obtain your own food mill). It was one of the best investments I ever made. The food mill eliminates many steps, such as peeling, and is wonderful for making all types of sauces, syrups, juices and purees. Most food mills come with various screens that will aid in anything from removing small seeds to making chunky salsa.

4. Food Processor:  My food processor saves me tons of time in the chopping and slicing department. From salsa to pesto, I’d be hard pressed to be without my food processor.

5. Double Burner Outdoor Cooker: On hot summer days, I take much of my canning outdoors and complete my canning on my outdoor cooker. Trust me, during canning season, almost every burner on the stove is being used, so an extra burner or two does not hurt! Plus, the house stays cooler, you get a tan, and the canning gets done. Talk about your multi-tasking!
In addition to the above equipment, it is a good thing to have large stainless steel bowls, a set of good knives, a sturdy cutting board or two, and a lot of patience! Canning is a lot of work, but in the end, the rewards are well worth the effort. I accumulated much of the equipment listed above over a period of time, and now that I have these tools, I would prefer never to look back. In fact, if I can find other equipment and tips to make my canning season easier, I’ll be sure to check into it…and pass it on to you!

About the Author

More tips on canning and canning equipment, as well as other information on self-sufficiency and homestead living, from C.L. Carr can be discovered at http://emergencyfoodpreservation.blogspot.com or http://survivalcentral.blogspot.com

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A Few Fall Survival Gardening Tips  

by John Wesley Smith

Late July and early August is the time to start planning for fall gardening. You may be in the harvesting and preserving mode, but you can keep on gardening and add to your food supply with new crops of several vegetables. You don’t have to limit yourself to a spring crop of lettuce or carrots.

Not only does gardening provide you with food for survival, it teaches you valuable lessons that help develop a survival attitude. A gardener should always be analyzing, evaluating and looking ahead. As a gardener, you do this all the time without giving it a second thought. How are those beans doing in that location? Why are the tomato leaves turning yellow? What are organic solutions for insect problems? You’re asking questions, seeking answers, and applying those answers.

How does this apply to fall gardening? The first step to take is to evaluate how the season has gone for you. What succeeded? What failed? How can you make better use of available space? Should you try different varieties? What can you do differently next season or for the remainder of this season?

Because climate is so diverse throughout the country, I can only give general tips and offer more questions than answers here. Check with your local university extension service for growing guides for your area. The experts in your local area know about frost dates and weather patterns you’ll experience. They can make recommendations as to the best vegetable varieties for you. They will also be familiar with what problems you might anticipate from insects and diseases. Realize their solutions to these problems conform to conventional gardening methods, and you may need to look elsewhere for organic or natural solutions.

A first fall frost date is very important to know. For example, if you want to plant something that takes 55-60 days to grow, do you have 55-60 days left before a killing frost? Can you give the plants protection to get them past that first frost? Have mulch, plastic or floating row cover on hand. Do you have a cold frame or greenhouse? If you’re container gardening, you have the advantage of being able to bring containers into a garage or greenhouse if frost threatens.

Try growing plants that like colder weather, such as kale, cauliflower or broccoli. Try a crop of lettuce, especially if hot weather in spring causes it to bolt too soon. Be sure to keep seeds and young plants well watered and fertilized, just as you would for a spring planting. Use mulch to keep soil cooler and more moist if it’s too hot when you plant.

Whether you plant transplants or seedlings depends on how much cold the crop can tolerate and the time left before frost. Vegetables that tolerate frost include beets, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, chard, collards, garlic, kale, lettuce, mustard, onions, parsley, spinach and turnips. Vegetables that don’t tolerate frost include beans, cantaloupes, corn, cucumbers, eggplants, okra, peas, peppers, Irish potatoes, sweet potatoes, squash, tomatoes and watermelons.

One important fall gardening task sounds merciless, but it’s necessary. Pull up old plants that are no longer producing well, such as tomato plants that have passed their prime or are diseased. Avoid putting diseased and insect ridden plants in your compost. Ask yourself what you can put in the space left behind by the uprooted plants. Maybe you want to start adding soil amendments like organic matter there and not bother with planting anything in that spot.

Since pumpkins and several squashes aren’t ready to harvest until fall, make sure you keep everything that’s still in your garden well watered. Of course, anything you plant, whether transplants or seeds, needs watering as well. Don’t count on the weatherman’s predictions for rain.

When weather gets colder, listen for frost and freeze advisories and warnings. Before a hard freeze, root crops such as carrots and radishes should be harvested or mulched. Harvesting of mulched root crops can often be extended will into the winter. If your winter is mild, you may be able to continue harvesting until spring.

Plan ahead. Consider what plants will make it through winter where you live. For example, I plant yellow potato multiplier onions in early September, which gives them a chance to become well established so they’ll get through winter and produce next season. If you enjoy perennials, are there shrubs or bulbs you can plant before long? What can you buy now for planting next spring?

Fall doesn’t have to mean the end of your survival gardening efforts. It simply means that as the seasons change, so does what you grow and how you garden. With survival gardening, you need to grow all the food you possibly can.

About the Author

Explore this and other topics related to survival at http://www.destinysurvival.com where John Wesley Smith is author and editor.

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Raising City Chickens–Urban Survivalism!

 The Kansas City Star has a great article today about raising poultry in suburban and urban environments:   Kansas City Star

The perspective of us little survival nuts is this:  Do whatever it takes to feed your family! Grow a garden, raise animals, hunt, fish, gather wild edibles–to survive one more day, a person needs to be adaptable, resourceful and willing to think outside of his or her experience.   

As we quoted on a different page, “The key to survival is mental toughness. The difference between surviving and death is the will to live and a desire to push on.”  –Narrator, Out of the Wild: The Alaska Experiment

Many municipalities have an incorrect view of poultry and livestock.  The officials often think that ‘farm’ animals have no place in a suburban or urban environment.  What they haven’t realized is that chickens are in the same family as parrots, parakeets, and other birds.  The image of a chicken is that it is a dirty, smelly, and unsanitary creature.

 Chickens come in a variety of shapes and sizes.  They can be as large as a small turkey, and as small as a pigeon.  Chickens also come in a variety of colors and temperments.  Some smaller ‘bantam’ chickens look more like a dove than a chicken.  Chickens are not particularly dirty–at least no dirtier than any other type of bird.  If chickens or their nesting facilities are dirty, don’t blame the birds, blame the owner!

So, if fresh, clean, known-source meat and eggs is what you are after, by all means, raise some Backyard Poultry!

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(or Shovels, Rakes, Buckets, etc.)

by Grandma

What do seeds (http://www.seedsavers.org), tools (tools!), and the good earth have in common? They are all part of the big picture – the garden picture that is.

Can’t grow a garden without ‘em.

Did you choose your seeds from your catalogs yet? Did you order in February? No?

 Shame on you. How do you expect to get a garden in on time if you aren’t ready?

Did we order in February?

Of course not, but that’s beside the point. Actually, we had seeds left over from last year, and we did a seed exchange with some other folks.  We actually prepared well in advance for the planting season.  This may be a first for us!

So why isn’t our garden in yet? Well, for starters we live in Michigan and not only is it “not past danger of frost” yet, it’s been non-stop raining.

In fact, we thought about raising a rice crop. The weather has been somewhat uncooperative– the ground is completely saturated.

Our garden plot is close to being ready. We’ve actually used the area for the past two planting seasons. It is where the chickens used to be. They’re now located out back, behind the barn. Where they were is, well let’s just say we didn’t have to compose the ground. We also try to rotate the crops, even in that small plot, so the soil gets a rest. It’s still rich from the chickens so that’s not a problem.

We’re dreaming of fresh tomatoes, picked right off the plant. Ah, fresh chopped onions for the stew. Carrots, eaten raw (cleaned and washed of course). Corn on the cob – come on picnic time!!

Enough dreaming. There’s work to be done! All those dreams will be for naught if the ground isn’t roto-tilled, raked and planted. All those dreams will be just that, dreams, if we don’t get busy with the hoe and get rid of those pesky weeds.

Hey, the garden isn’t even planted yet. Don’t scare everyone off with talk of weeds!!

So, let’s get going. First, choose your spot. Second, clean up your spot. Third, rototill or turn over your spot. Fourth, rake your spot. Fifth, plant your spot. Sixth, go have a coke and relax a week or so until the weeks show their face — then the work REALLY begins.

Happy gardening!

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Get A Head Start In The Garden By Growing Plants Under Grow Lights  

by Susan Slobac

(Continued below…)

(Path to Freedom Urban Homesteading video on YouTube with Jules Dervaes, website:www.pathtofreedom.com)

There are many different types of grow lights available, and what you will use depends on the kinds of plants you are growing, in which stage of growth they are, and your budget. Young seedlings require grow lights that are in the blue temperature range, which helps the little plants to grow. Mature plants that you wish to flower and set fruit require grow bulbs in the red and orange light spectrum. You also need very bright light for indoor gardening, because you are trying to imitate natural sunlight.

Many gardeners choose LED grow lights for indoor growing. LED grow lights are easily suited to any color spectrum you need. These powerful grow lights also produce much less heat than standard grow bulbs, eliminating the need for fans and cooling systems. LED grow lights also consume less electricity than non-LED grow lights do, saving you money over time in energy costs. LED grow lights are also much lighter in weight than standard lighting fixtures, which makes them easier to hang over your plants, and they do not require extra equipment such as ballasts in order to operate properly.

You can learn more about LED grow Lights, other types of indoor gardening lights such as HID lamps, metal halide lamps, high pressure sodium bulbs and all other types of lighting equipment including digital ballasts, light movers, reflectors and hangers suitable for indoor gardening by looking for information online.

About the Author

From years of indoor and hydroponic gardening, Susan Slobac has developed an in-depth knowledge of LED grow Lights and writes frequently on the subject.

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As usual, the news of the day is hyped beyond all recognition. Is swine flu akin to the deadly influenza pandemic of 1918 (Wikipedia: Spanish Flu)?

Or is it just another scare like the West Nile virus or the Avian Flu?

Shock journalism may have cried ‘pig’ one too many times. Hopefully ’swine flu’ will just be another flash in the pan, and there will be no full blown epidemic.

In the following YouTube video, Steven Harris presents a dark and frightening future–a future that started yesterday!

(Continued below…)

While his predictions may be overblown, he does remind us that static situations can change rapidly. Those that are most prepared are most likely to survive.

I have realized in making my preparations, I really haven’t positioned myself or my family to leave our safehaven (’the doomstead,’ as LATOCers call it).

We are going to work on that next…

For swine flu products or other survival gear, visit Nitro-Pak!

An interesting infectious disease tracking site: Health Map

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Our New Baby Gosling!

Last night we had a baby!

Fortunately, no birth pains for mama.

At 4:30 this morning little ‘Peepers’ chewed an escape hatch around the top of his egg, and burst forth into the world!

Technically it isn’t a chick, instead it is called a gosling. For you non-farm folks, that’s a baby goose!

We are so happy to have our very first springtime baby…

I have seen the miracle of avian birth at least one hundred times, but I am still amazed every single time that I see it!

What do baby geese have to do with survival?

Well, we eat our geese and their eggs!

I know, you city slickers are saying, “Yuck!”

But we like Christmas goose!

YEAH!

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Lesson #2: Identifying Maple Trees and Harvesting Sap from Them

In this lesson, Charlie Shelton (’The Survival Nut’) explains how to identify maple trees.

Young maple trees have a smooth gray (or as the Brits say, grey) bark and a narrow unfolding ‘Y’ of branches at the top.

Of course, identifying the trees during the summer months is easiest, since the trees have their leaves.

An autumn maple leaf

We wrap the tree with yellow ribbon and number it for our sap collection in the Spring.

Happy gathering!

Read all about our maple syrup adventures in Grandma’s Shoestring “Oh, Sugar, Sugar!”

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