Last month, I came up with a lotion/cream recipe that has so far out performed even my wildest expectations! (will write more about that another time) I passed out little samples of it to several of my friends and got rave reviews back! So, I sold some to a few people as well!
Very unexpectedly, 2 peoples developed mold. To be honest, I am completely baffled by this. It wasn't just a bad batch because I had been using some for myself from the same exact batch (I just finished off the container yesterday and it never did go bad). I also STILL have some from the original batch that I made that doesn't even have a hint of molding on it. So, I really can not explain WHY those 2 peoples' turned yucky.
However, in an effort to remedy the problem and deliver a suitable replacement, I dove into the world of preservatives. After much research, I settled on trying Grapefruit Seed Extract as a preservative. It's not the cheapest, but I believe it is closest to my natural way of providing good quality products as possible. It is paraben free, formaldehyde free, triclosen free. It's made from the crushed seeds and pulp of grapefruit.
I read several reviews on Grapefruit Seed Extract talking about it's lack of effectiveness, and how it was NOT a natural product. In a review and test of effectiveness, it was found that not all GSE's actually work. Some of them are simply not effective, so it's important to get one from a reputable seller. Be sure to buy from a place that has been tested for effectiveness and it's preservative properties are true. Like From Nature with Love.
Also, I'd like to address the concerns that I read about it not being a natural product. I read a lot of outrage that it was not "natural" because of the process by which it is made. Often times during the process of extracting, it gets introduced to chemicals like benzethonium chloride, or parabens. However, it is possible to get a good quality GSE that has been tested and does not have that junk in it. And that is exactly what I did. Here's a link to the exact product I purchased.
And finally, I found no other, better, more natural, preservative. One that TRULY works. The ingredients of which I make my stuff with, are not cheap. They are not common, everyday, ingredients. I put a lot of research and thought into my products. I can't afford to take chances that maybe it won't mold next time. Or maybe it will and I'll need to replace it again. Therefore, I must preserve my awesomeness. :)
For my friends, I'm happy to make stuff and forego the preservative as long as you are willing to accept that it may mold, and not hold me accountable to replace it. I put on my original body cream recipe that it did not have preservatives and I was not sure of how long it would last. I did that even before the mold happened, because I was uncertain how it would hold up, and I didn't want to have to replace it, but when it actually happened, I decided that I wanted to preserve my reputation of providing a quality product. Because I believe the stuff that I make is "da bomb"! :) And I don't feel right about just saying, "Aww....too bad!" Cause that would suck if it were me buying a product that didn't live up to it's expectations. BUT! If you tell me you do not want preservative in your product, please do not ask me to replace it if it goes bad. Ok? You must be willing to accept that possibility. :) The other alternative would be to possibly make it yourself. That's a suitable solution too!
So, there ya go. You'll start to see Grapefruit Seed Extract in some of my recipes and this is why. :)
Friday, March 15, 2013
Monday, March 11, 2013
My Tiger Balm knockoff - a flop? Maybe.
I'd been waiting for MONTHS to make this knockoff Tiger Balm recipe. It took me For-Ever to get together all the essential oils and supplies needed for it. But I finally did it. I made it! It smells just like real Tiger Balm too!
Why make it rather than just buy the real thing? Because the real thing has petroleum in it. Which is made from crude oil. Yeah! Let's rub that all over! Woohoo! ;)
There are a couple of small variations I made on the original recipe I linked above. Mostly just different oils. I didn't have, nor did I intend to get, Emu oil or Andiroba Oil. I also split the peppermint essential oil in half and used Cinnamon Bark for the other half. Making this more like the Red Tiger Balm, rather than the White Tiger Balm.
Does it work? Yeppers! It sure does! Hubby loved it on his sore back last night. However, it irritated my skin. I had tingling, burning, itching, red splotchy places on my arms and hands from rubbing it onto him. So, for me, it's a no go. The essential oils are probably just too powerful for my sensitive skin. This recipe is approximately 50% essential oils.
Also, this is not a cost effective endeavor as I made it, unless you are REALLY wanting a petroleum free product. I figured up the price per gram for each of the essential oils used and then multiplied that by the number of grams for each one used. The essential oils alone cost me over $10. That didn't take into consideration added shipping costs, the menthol crystals, nor the solid oils or beeswax I used. Oh, nor the cost for the tins to put it in.
It made 2 - .8 ounce containers. So, not even 2 ounces. Which, you can purchase a 1.7 ounce container of Tiger Balm for just under $10 through the Frontier Co-op Wholesale group (if you have one local...which we do).
Finally, you COULD cut your costs a bit by using different, less expensive essential oils. I order mine from Mountain Rose (see the little link on the side of my blog under Favorite Suppliers). So, technically, subbing out the Cinnamon Bark alone for a much cheaper one from...say...Aura Cacia, purchased through Frontier would make it more cost effective. But I used all Certified Organic Essential Oils from Mountain Rose.
So, for ME, this was a flop. For my husband, it was GREAT! And I COULD make it more cost effective. If I do make it again in the future, I definitely WOULD trade out the cinnamon bark for a cheaper brand.
Without further ado, a recipe for you. :)
In a double broiler, melt together
10 grams of shea butter (or any other hard butter, like cocoa butter, etc)
10 grams of beeswax
6 grams of coconut oil
1 gram of sesame oil (vitamin e oil is good too, I just used sesame cause it's what I had and it's high in vit E content)
While it's melting together, weigh out your essential oils
5 grams Camphor
6 grams Cajuput
1 gram Clove Bud
4 grams of Cinnamon Bark
4 grams of Peppermint
Also, weigh out 4 grams of menthol crystals, or menthol essential oil. Since Menthol Essential Oil is solid at room temp, crystals are an equal replacement here.
When your solid oils and beeswax are thoroughly melted, put in your menthol and let it melt as well. Which, by the way, it will melt between 105 - 111 degrees. So it doesn't need to be overly hot.
Once that's all melted together, take off the heat and pour in your essential oils and gently stir to incorporate. Then pour into your awaiting container.
It sets pretty quickly, so enjoy! :)
Saturday, March 2, 2013
A Confession of Sorts
This may just blow the mind of some of my friends. But I'm gonna out myself anyway. As I was cleaning today, it dawned on me that I bet many people would never guess this about me. So I decided I'd make it the topic of my next post. Are you ready? Here it is:
I do not use earth friendly cleaners.
There. I said it. Now pick your jaw up off the floor. :) And hear me out. :)
I KNOW you can use lemons and vinegar and baking soda and people rave about their effectiveness. I agree. They are lovely and wonderful. BUT! They do not provide clean for as long as the harsher store bought stuff and you have to clean more often and put a little more scrub power into it. I know, I'm lame, but seriously, I just don't have it in me.
I make my own soap, lotions, laundry detergents, we grow or raise the majority of our own food, I school the kids at home, cloth diaper, etc. this is one area that just isn't worth it to me! Its toilet bowl cleaner, and shower cleaner. That's it. Anything else is simply soap and water. But when it comes to the shower and the toilet....I don't care, really. My butt is not sitting in the toilet and if ever there was a place that harsh chemicals were called for, it's the toilet. 6 people, 1 toilet, yeah, give me the big guns. And the shower, well, I'm lazy. I don't clean the shower nearly as often as you'd probably think is necessary. Plus, we have really hard water from the well. By the time I get around to cleaning the shower, the hard water stains are really tough to remove.
Now, if I actually had the opportunity to clean on a regular basis without a child screaming and pulling at my leg wanting love and picked up, then I'd probably still be using lemons and baking soda. I think it's wonderful! But, it's my small compromise. One of these days, I'd do anything to have another chance to pick up or comfort my little ones when they want nothing but to be somewhere else.
So for now, I'll take the quicker, easier way out so I can spend more time with the kiddos. In fact, today was the first time I'd scrubbed the shower in probably 3 months. I sprayed on the kaboom, left the room for 15 minutes, came back, rubbed it off, rinsed and done. Thank you very much. While I was doing so, I thought MAYBE one of my friends would like to know that I am not Mrs. Homemade and Earth Friendly everything. I do still have my vices. :) So there ya go. :) The truth is out.
I do not use earth friendly cleaners.
There. I said it. Now pick your jaw up off the floor. :) And hear me out. :)
I KNOW you can use lemons and vinegar and baking soda and people rave about their effectiveness. I agree. They are lovely and wonderful. BUT! They do not provide clean for as long as the harsher store bought stuff and you have to clean more often and put a little more scrub power into it. I know, I'm lame, but seriously, I just don't have it in me.
I make my own soap, lotions, laundry detergents, we grow or raise the majority of our own food, I school the kids at home, cloth diaper, etc. this is one area that just isn't worth it to me! Its toilet bowl cleaner, and shower cleaner. That's it. Anything else is simply soap and water. But when it comes to the shower and the toilet....I don't care, really. My butt is not sitting in the toilet and if ever there was a place that harsh chemicals were called for, it's the toilet. 6 people, 1 toilet, yeah, give me the big guns. And the shower, well, I'm lazy. I don't clean the shower nearly as often as you'd probably think is necessary. Plus, we have really hard water from the well. By the time I get around to cleaning the shower, the hard water stains are really tough to remove.
Now, if I actually had the opportunity to clean on a regular basis without a child screaming and pulling at my leg wanting love and picked up, then I'd probably still be using lemons and baking soda. I think it's wonderful! But, it's my small compromise. One of these days, I'd do anything to have another chance to pick up or comfort my little ones when they want nothing but to be somewhere else.
So for now, I'll take the quicker, easier way out so I can spend more time with the kiddos. In fact, today was the first time I'd scrubbed the shower in probably 3 months. I sprayed on the kaboom, left the room for 15 minutes, came back, rubbed it off, rinsed and done. Thank you very much. While I was doing so, I thought MAYBE one of my friends would like to know that I am not Mrs. Homemade and Earth Friendly everything. I do still have my vices. :) So there ya go. :) The truth is out.
Monday, February 25, 2013
Factory Farm vs. Free Range vs. Organic vs. Vegetarian Fed
I'm going to talk chickens here. This post has been brewing for almost a year now. Ever since we got our own chickens and I started diving into 'that world'. Like everything I do, I do it with my whole heart. I did not go into having chickens half heartedly either. Yep, I researched this to death too. As is my typical style. :)
First off, lets take a look at a pic of a factory farm.
Factory chickens are given, on average, 67 square inches of space. That's approximately the size of your iPad. Sad, isn't it?
Then, let's look at your typical Cage Free, or "Free Range" chickens.
My bet, is that these chickens are also Certified Organic, and/or vegetarian fed.
If you visit this link, you will see a glimpse of the sadness these birds live in - http://www.upc-online.org/freerange.html
While you may think you are doing a good thing by buying free range or certified organic, the truth is, it's no better than buying factory farm. There is just as much over crowding and inhuman treatment. When the chicks hatch at an egg farm, the roosters are often thrown away. Even while still alive. The beaks are trimmed off the hens so they can't peck each other. Which often happens when they are overcrowded and aggravated with each other.
This past spring, there was a local certified organic farm selling off some of their year old egg hens for $1 a piece. They were advertised as stew hens. Meaning they were too old to be plump and juicy, they had passed their egg laying prime, and wouldn't roast up well, but would be good for making stew or broth. After the first year of laying, a hen's output is reduced to only 80%, and each year after that it will continue to decline another 20%. For us home farmers, it's not that big of a deal. For factory farms where eggs are their livelihood, it adds up, so they get rid of them.
So, a few friends and I decided to snag a few of these Certified Organic stew hens and take them to the Amish to be butchered. If you look closely at the picture just above, you will notice that these chickens are missing a lot of feathers. That's exactly how the chickens looked that we picked up. I was appalled! They were so skinny and scraggly looking! There was zero meat on these birds! As was apparent upon pick up from the Amish. I was sincerely embarrassed to have even taken these birds to butcher.
That was my first hands on experience with the myth that Certified Organic somehow meant a better chicken. Next, is the myth that vegetarian fed hens are somehow more superior. Which, they are not. What that really means, is that the chickens NEVER get a chance to live like real chickens and forage for their own food. Chickens are birds. What do birds eat? Lots of things! Leaves, sprouts, greens, grains, etc. BUT! They also eat bugs, worms, mice, snakes, pretty much anything they can find. They LOVE to scratch through a compost pile and find maggots or larvae.
Real chickens are not vegetarian, my friends. Real chickens eat meat. So the next time you see these special key words:
Free Range
Cage Free
Certified Organic
Vegetarian Fed
Remember what you've learned here.
All these chickens are not getting the kind of nutrition needed for a high quality product. Just like when humans are missing certain nutritional supplements, we don't feel our best and can not perform our best. Well, neither can chickens. If you want a chicken to produce quality meat and eggs, it has to live a life the way God intended them to!
Not depressed, stuck inside breathing their own dust and feces, and expected to perform like a robot.
I admit, allowing true free ranging does open up the possibility of dangers from vermin. We've lost a few. But so has the factory farm down the road. It goes with the territory. At least I have happy chickens living the life they are supposed to, and they are loved.
So here's my little plea to you. Buy from a local farmer or family instead of at the grocery store. Stop supporting big businesses practicing inhumanely.
That is all.
First off, lets take a look at a pic of a factory farm.
 |
| Image borrowed from - http://advocacy.britannica.com/blog/advocacy/2007/05/the-difficult-lives-and-deaths-of-factory-farmed-chickens/ |
Factory chickens are given, on average, 67 square inches of space. That's approximately the size of your iPad. Sad, isn't it?
Then, let's look at your typical Cage Free, or "Free Range" chickens.
 |
| Again, image courtesy of, http://advocacy.britannica.com/blog/advocacy/2007/05/the-difficult-lives-and-deaths-of-factory-farmed-chickens/ |
My bet, is that these chickens are also Certified Organic, and/or vegetarian fed.
If you visit this link, you will see a glimpse of the sadness these birds live in - http://www.upc-online.org/freerange.html
While you may think you are doing a good thing by buying free range or certified organic, the truth is, it's no better than buying factory farm. There is just as much over crowding and inhuman treatment. When the chicks hatch at an egg farm, the roosters are often thrown away. Even while still alive. The beaks are trimmed off the hens so they can't peck each other. Which often happens when they are overcrowded and aggravated with each other.
This past spring, there was a local certified organic farm selling off some of their year old egg hens for $1 a piece. They were advertised as stew hens. Meaning they were too old to be plump and juicy, they had passed their egg laying prime, and wouldn't roast up well, but would be good for making stew or broth. After the first year of laying, a hen's output is reduced to only 80%, and each year after that it will continue to decline another 20%. For us home farmers, it's not that big of a deal. For factory farms where eggs are their livelihood, it adds up, so they get rid of them.
So, a few friends and I decided to snag a few of these Certified Organic stew hens and take them to the Amish to be butchered. If you look closely at the picture just above, you will notice that these chickens are missing a lot of feathers. That's exactly how the chickens looked that we picked up. I was appalled! They were so skinny and scraggly looking! There was zero meat on these birds! As was apparent upon pick up from the Amish. I was sincerely embarrassed to have even taken these birds to butcher.
That was my first hands on experience with the myth that Certified Organic somehow meant a better chicken. Next, is the myth that vegetarian fed hens are somehow more superior. Which, they are not. What that really means, is that the chickens NEVER get a chance to live like real chickens and forage for their own food. Chickens are birds. What do birds eat? Lots of things! Leaves, sprouts, greens, grains, etc. BUT! They also eat bugs, worms, mice, snakes, pretty much anything they can find. They LOVE to scratch through a compost pile and find maggots or larvae.
Real chickens are not vegetarian, my friends. Real chickens eat meat. So the next time you see these special key words:
Free Range
Cage Free
Certified Organic
Vegetarian Fed
Remember what you've learned here.
All these chickens are not getting the kind of nutrition needed for a high quality product. Just like when humans are missing certain nutritional supplements, we don't feel our best and can not perform our best. Well, neither can chickens. If you want a chicken to produce quality meat and eggs, it has to live a life the way God intended them to!
Not depressed, stuck inside breathing their own dust and feces, and expected to perform like a robot.
I admit, allowing true free ranging does open up the possibility of dangers from vermin. We've lost a few. But so has the factory farm down the road. It goes with the territory. At least I have happy chickens living the life they are supposed to, and they are loved.
So here's my little plea to you. Buy from a local farmer or family instead of at the grocery store. Stop supporting big businesses practicing inhumanely.
That is all.
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
A-MAZ-ING healthy, healing, hand and body....cream?
Winters in Wisconsin are brutal on my skin. I've always had dry skin, but between gardening in the summer and the subzero temps that get down to -40 with wind chills up here, which don't stop for us to haul wood and tend the chickens each day! My hands are a mess! A painful, split and cracking, chapped mess.
I set out to make a healing lotion. I've done several lotions before. In fact, I've been dappling with making lotions for about 7 years now. The breastmilk lotion I made a year or so ago was fantastically healing! But it didn't last long. Within a week it was molding. I was so embarrassed to have sent some to a friend. Probably by the time it got to her in the mail, it was already gross. :(
Anyway, I set out to try to find something else that would work. This lotion that I made today is WONDERFUL! It is so rich and creamy feeling and absolutely delightful to smell and rub all over ya! It's just .... well..... it's AMAZING!
Some of the ingredients are not your typical household ingredients. Nor is this a cheap lotion. It is a bit pricey. But considering the amount of money I've wasted on store bought lotions that didn't work and dermatologist appointments, I think it's very reasonable and worth it.
First of all, I used Kokum Butter, as well as Shea Butter. Both can be purchased at Mountain Rose Herbs.
Kokum Butter is a white, hard butter similar to Cocoa Butter. However Kokum butter supports your skins elasticity and natural flexibility and helps to rejuvenate tired, worn skin cells.
Shea butter is a softer butter that forms a breathable, yet water resistance film on your skin.
I also used Coconut Oil and Sesame Oil. The benefits of coconut oil are too vast and long for me to even attempt to list them all. Trust me, it's amazing stuff! As far as for my choice of sesame oil, well, it was just an easy to come by, reasonably priced, carrier oil. I didn't want to use olive oil, but I needed a good liquid oil. I find grapeseed oil to be drying, so didn't want that. I wanted to possibly share some of my creation with a friend who has a son with nut allergies, so I needed to skip the almond oil. So I just picked sesame oil. Turns out that after a little research, it's a GREAT oil for dry skin, is easily absorbed, has antioxidant properties, and even UV protection! However, pretty much any liquid oil would work fine.
In fact, I've also incorporating Safflower Oil in place of the Sesame Oil. It really just depends on what I have on hand at the time that I'm making it. Safflower Oil is also a great source of Vitamin E and even has wrinkle reduction properties! Something all of us beautiful women want, right?
For more info on the oils please check out these links:
Kokum Butter
Shea Butter
Coconut Oil
Sesame Oil
Safflower Oil
Aloe Vera. You can either buy aloe, or do what I did initially and actually use the aloe straight from the plant. Aloe is known to hydrate skin and accelerate repair! Per Natural News
Lanolin. Yes Lanolin! The thick stuff you use when you start breastfeeding and have sore nipples! Being a La Leche League leader, I have PLENTY of Lanolin available! I went easy on it in this recipe because I wasn't sure how it was going to work and I didn't want this lotion to be too thick and sticky. Info on Lanolin, if you're interested.
Emulsifying wax. I ordered this from Mountain Rose as well. It is used to blend oil and water so that it doesn't separate.
Purified or distilled water.
Essential oils of your choice. You can use any oils that are good for dry skin. I chose oils mostly for their smell. But, Lavender, Lemon, Orange, Frankincense, Myrrh, Tea Tree Oil, Eucalyptus, Chamomile, would all be good. I prefer certified organic essential oils from either Mountain Rose or Aura Cacia.
Pure Vanilla Extract. I couldn't find my vanilla fragrance oil so just put some extract in it. :) Did the trick!
And lastly, some Grapefruit Seed Extract as a preservative.
In a double broiler, I warmed and melted all the butters and oils together.
When they are thoroughly melted, I added the water, wax, lanolin and aloe. I left them on the stove for 2-3 minutes before pulling them off to blend. I figured it couldn't hurt to warm up the other ingredients slightly to blend better.
At first, you can see the water and oils/butter separated.
I used an immersion blender. Also known as a stick blender. It blends up very quickly and easily. It's still warm at this point, so will be more liquid than when it completely cools. Then, I added my oils or fragrances at this point. Pulsed a couple more times to blend those in.
Poured it into my containers and cleaned up! Done!
It is amazingly rich, thick, creamy and it smells divine!
**********
If anyone wants to purchase some from me, let me know!
You can Shop here!
If you would like to request unscented or different essential oils, or fragrance oils for scent, let me know! As a CYA - I'm just a mom, at home, making stuff. It may take me a few weeks to get your order to you. Especially if you happen to order while I'm waiting for supplies to arrive. So please be patient with me. :) I will do my best to be quick though!
Last update on 3/29/13
Saturday, February 16, 2013
Get your seeds in order!
It's that time again! Can you believe it? Time to get your seeds in order for spring planting! If you need to still order some, now is the time!
In just 1 month, it will be time to get the indoor plants started here in Wisconsin! For the more southern, warmer, areas, it's already time to plant! Not sure about your area? Just put your zip code into this handy dandy little site it will tell you the best time to get your plants started. http://www.almanac.com/gardening/planting-dates/TN/Clarksville That link also helps you know what needs started indoors, and what doesn't.
We do some serious gardening around here. So my list is pretty extensive for my seed needs. Most all though, will not need to be purchased this year. Thanks to growing heirloom plants (see my previous post about that) and participating in an heirloom seed swap.
Items we'll be planting this year that I need to get started indoors next month are:
Tomatoes - I will plant Amish Paste Tomatoes, as well as another variety, but will need to plant them FAR away from each other in order to prevent cross pollination so I can save the seeds. Most modern breeds of tomato do not cross easily, but heirloom are old variety, not modern, so I'd rather be safe than sorry and grow some crazy hybrid the following year.
Peppers - All varieties. Jalapeno, bell, chilies, etc. These will cross pollinate and need to be separated by at least 500 feet to prevent that.
Celery - One of the slowest growing crops on the planet Earth. Probably not, really, but they do take around 6 months to grow. Even in my 6 month time frame, they still didn't go to seed. So maybe longer is necessary in my area for that.
Watermelon - In most areas, this can be started outside in the ground. But for us, I start them indoors to try to get them done a little sooner.
Potatoes - (Aprilish) I won't actually plant these indoors and transfer, but I will go through my cellar stash and choose which ones I want to use for new potatoes and cut them to plant. You want to allow at least an inch or two portion with an eye, or sprout, on it. Allow it a few days to heal where you've cut it before planting. I've cut them and left them for a month before and they grew fine. Even with huge foot long sprouts. When you plant, just put the eyes to the sky, about 6 inches deep. If the sprout is too big to go underground, not a big deal. They'll still grow fine.
Sweet Potatoes - Around April 1st I'll go through my stash and choose a couple of sweet potatoes to cut into 2 inch cubes to start slips. It takes approximately 6 weeks to prepare a sweet potato into planting outdoors. For more info on how to do this, you can go here - Start sweet potatoes
If you are going to start your onions from seed, you may want to start those now too. I haven't had much luck with seed onion so last year I bought small bulbs from a local farm store and planted white and red onion. I'll do the same this year. It was cheap enough and the onions are very good. Nice sized, good harvest, stored well.
Peas can be started outdoors in April as well. They are cold tolerant and don't do well in heat so you want them to be done before the hot weather hits.
Broccoli, Cauliflower, and Cabbage.
In May, we'll start the rest of our items in the ground.
Lettuce
Green Beans
Dry beans, such as kidney, black turtle beans, pinto, navy beans
Squash
Zucchini
Pumpkins
Cucumber
Carrots
Spinach
Corn
And anything else we can think of that we want to try.
So, get your seeds ordered! :) The time is coming up fast!
My two favorite places to shop for seeds :
Seed Savers Heirloom Seeds
Baker Creek Seed Company
In just 1 month, it will be time to get the indoor plants started here in Wisconsin! For the more southern, warmer, areas, it's already time to plant! Not sure about your area? Just put your zip code into this handy dandy little site it will tell you the best time to get your plants started. http://www.almanac.com/gardening/planting-dates/TN/Clarksville That link also helps you know what needs started indoors, and what doesn't.
We do some serious gardening around here. So my list is pretty extensive for my seed needs. Most all though, will not need to be purchased this year. Thanks to growing heirloom plants (see my previous post about that) and participating in an heirloom seed swap.
Items we'll be planting this year that I need to get started indoors next month are:
Tomatoes - I will plant Amish Paste Tomatoes, as well as another variety, but will need to plant them FAR away from each other in order to prevent cross pollination so I can save the seeds. Most modern breeds of tomato do not cross easily, but heirloom are old variety, not modern, so I'd rather be safe than sorry and grow some crazy hybrid the following year.
Peppers - All varieties. Jalapeno, bell, chilies, etc. These will cross pollinate and need to be separated by at least 500 feet to prevent that.
Celery - One of the slowest growing crops on the planet Earth. Probably not, really, but they do take around 6 months to grow. Even in my 6 month time frame, they still didn't go to seed. So maybe longer is necessary in my area for that.
Watermelon - In most areas, this can be started outside in the ground. But for us, I start them indoors to try to get them done a little sooner.
Potatoes - (Aprilish) I won't actually plant these indoors and transfer, but I will go through my cellar stash and choose which ones I want to use for new potatoes and cut them to plant. You want to allow at least an inch or two portion with an eye, or sprout, on it. Allow it a few days to heal where you've cut it before planting. I've cut them and left them for a month before and they grew fine. Even with huge foot long sprouts. When you plant, just put the eyes to the sky, about 6 inches deep. If the sprout is too big to go underground, not a big deal. They'll still grow fine.
Sweet Potatoes - Around April 1st I'll go through my stash and choose a couple of sweet potatoes to cut into 2 inch cubes to start slips. It takes approximately 6 weeks to prepare a sweet potato into planting outdoors. For more info on how to do this, you can go here - Start sweet potatoes
If you are going to start your onions from seed, you may want to start those now too. I haven't had much luck with seed onion so last year I bought small bulbs from a local farm store and planted white and red onion. I'll do the same this year. It was cheap enough and the onions are very good. Nice sized, good harvest, stored well.
Peas can be started outdoors in April as well. They are cold tolerant and don't do well in heat so you want them to be done before the hot weather hits.
Broccoli, Cauliflower, and Cabbage.
In May, we'll start the rest of our items in the ground.
Lettuce
Green Beans
Dry beans, such as kidney, black turtle beans, pinto, navy beans
Squash
Zucchini
Pumpkins
Cucumber
Carrots
Spinach
Corn
And anything else we can think of that we want to try.
So, get your seeds ordered! :) The time is coming up fast!
My two favorite places to shop for seeds :
Seed Savers Heirloom Seeds
Baker Creek Seed Company
Sunday, February 10, 2013
Heirloom vs. Organic for your garden
I am definitely no expert when it comes to this. In fact, I'm only a couple of years into this journey. Although I've been gardening for many years (about 8), I never really thought too much about where my seeds came from. I was only concerned with growing organically. Until a couple of years ago when we moved to the country and started getting really serious about it. While organic is good, it needs to go much deeper than that.
Many of you have probably heard of Monsanto. Or Genetically Modified Organisms. I haven't done a whole lot of research on them cause I'd rather spend my time researching what I DO want to learn, not what I want to stay away from. I have instead invested my time into learning how to grow heirloom organically, and how to harvest my own seeds. All I really know about Monsanto and GMO, is that it's bad news and I don't want anything to do with it. So, THIS is not that kind of post. I DO want to help you understand WHY heirloom is more important than organic when you pick out your seeds to start your next growing project.
Short and sweet answer is that Organic can sometimes still be a hybrid. Or a cross. If you plant a hybrid, the seeds that you will get from it are unstable. Meaning, you won't necessarily get the same thing that you got the seed from. I like to use the reference of people and babies. Two people can have multiple babies, but they are not exact replicas of each other. Each child will have a unique personality and appearance. Well, a hybrid plant will produce multiple kinds of seeds, or no seeds at all (seedless grapes, watermelons, cucumbers, etc) in which are unpredictable and unstable. If you only intend on planting and not collecting seeds for future use, then it's not too much of an issue. Just know that you will have to repurchase your seeds the next time you plant (as is the case with GMO or Monsanto seeds). This is not a self sustainable way of gardening.
Heirloom will produce seeds that you can harvest to plant future gardens with, indefinitely. However, you will need to take precautions to make sure that similar plants don't cross, or become a hybrid. You'll want to learn what plants self pollinate and rarely cross, and which plants are pollinated by bugs and bees and sometimes get crossed, as well as how to prevent crossing. Some plants are even biennial. Meaning they don't go to seed until the 2nd year. For those, you'll want to learn to properly store over winter so that you can plant them back out and gather seeds the following year. This IS a self sustainable way of gardening, and one that is becoming lost. ( For more information on how to collect seeds and prevent crossing of species, please see this link at Seed Savers.)
Most people just go to the store and buy seeds, or to a greenhouse and buy plants. But what if that were not available? Would you know how to grow, harvest, and store in order to feed your family? While gardening can be great fun and a very enjoyable hobby, it is also a very important way of life. It is your backup plan in case it's ever needed! And truly, it is becoming a lost art. If it seems so unusual for US, how do you think it will be for our children and grandchildren to be able to feed themselves?
Even if you only plant a couple of pots of something, or some herbs, I encourage you to learn about heirlooms and seed harvest. Just in case it could ever be useful! :) We are less than a hundred years since this was THE way of life! No grocery stores existed! How quickly we forget!
So, this year when you start planning your garden, please consider incorporating some heirloom varieties. Two of my favorite companies are Seed Savers, and Baker Creek Seed Company although there are several more as well. Just look for the key word of Heirloom.
Happy gardening!
Many of you have probably heard of Monsanto. Or Genetically Modified Organisms. I haven't done a whole lot of research on them cause I'd rather spend my time researching what I DO want to learn, not what I want to stay away from. I have instead invested my time into learning how to grow heirloom organically, and how to harvest my own seeds. All I really know about Monsanto and GMO, is that it's bad news and I don't want anything to do with it. So, THIS is not that kind of post. I DO want to help you understand WHY heirloom is more important than organic when you pick out your seeds to start your next growing project.
Short and sweet answer is that Organic can sometimes still be a hybrid. Or a cross. If you plant a hybrid, the seeds that you will get from it are unstable. Meaning, you won't necessarily get the same thing that you got the seed from. I like to use the reference of people and babies. Two people can have multiple babies, but they are not exact replicas of each other. Each child will have a unique personality and appearance. Well, a hybrid plant will produce multiple kinds of seeds, or no seeds at all (seedless grapes, watermelons, cucumbers, etc) in which are unpredictable and unstable. If you only intend on planting and not collecting seeds for future use, then it's not too much of an issue. Just know that you will have to repurchase your seeds the next time you plant (as is the case with GMO or Monsanto seeds). This is not a self sustainable way of gardening.
Heirloom will produce seeds that you can harvest to plant future gardens with, indefinitely. However, you will need to take precautions to make sure that similar plants don't cross, or become a hybrid. You'll want to learn what plants self pollinate and rarely cross, and which plants are pollinated by bugs and bees and sometimes get crossed, as well as how to prevent crossing. Some plants are even biennial. Meaning they don't go to seed until the 2nd year. For those, you'll want to learn to properly store over winter so that you can plant them back out and gather seeds the following year. This IS a self sustainable way of gardening, and one that is becoming lost. ( For more information on how to collect seeds and prevent crossing of species, please see this link at Seed Savers.)
Most people just go to the store and buy seeds, or to a greenhouse and buy plants. But what if that were not available? Would you know how to grow, harvest, and store in order to feed your family? While gardening can be great fun and a very enjoyable hobby, it is also a very important way of life. It is your backup plan in case it's ever needed! And truly, it is becoming a lost art. If it seems so unusual for US, how do you think it will be for our children and grandchildren to be able to feed themselves?
Even if you only plant a couple of pots of something, or some herbs, I encourage you to learn about heirlooms and seed harvest. Just in case it could ever be useful! :) We are less than a hundred years since this was THE way of life! No grocery stores existed! How quickly we forget!
So, this year when you start planning your garden, please consider incorporating some heirloom varieties. Two of my favorite companies are Seed Savers, and Baker Creek Seed Company although there are several more as well. Just look for the key word of Heirloom.
Happy gardening!
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