Got Cider?

 Arkansas Black Apple.

Just walk around on the limbs and pick.

There were more than we could pick.

 

All the apples picked by girls made their way into receptacles.  A portion of those picked by boys were analyzed and trialed as substitutes for snow balls.  Since apples do not normally break apart on impact it was determined that their use as snow balls was painful and therefore limited.  For reasons unknown, this conclusion had to be validated a number of times.

Never throw away empty feedbags, they have multiple uses.

 

Washing the apples.

 

Loading the machine.  The ground apples are transferred to the front (next picture).

 

Where they are pressed (with the Yoders, extraordinary friends who have been a tremendous blessing to us).

 

And the cider then flows out of the bottom,

and is then filtered before being put into jars.

 

 Some little kids don't care if it's filtered, as soon as no one is looking...

busted.

 

Ahhhh!

Just as with the feedbags, make the most of byproducts (what remained of the apples was fed to livestock).

One can also turn the cider in to hard cider.  Add yeast specifically for cider and an airlock (device at the top that does not let air in but lets gasses escape).  Let sit for a couple of weeks while the yeast eats the sugar and produces the "hard stuff."  A chemical is used to stop the fermentation once a desirable level of sweetness is achieved but... some people are sensitive to the chemical.  Tonya chose to let the cider completely ferment (so it's dry) but adds fruit juice when serving it.

Got Milk?

Sam: What's the big deal about milk? 

Keena: Isn't pasteurization necessary?  Trins: Yeah, plus who needs all that pesky milk fat?  (Standing outside of our favorite dairy's milking parlor).

Actually many things are not as they appear, and this certainly is one.  The need to pasteurize milk is perpetuated by Big Dairy and gubmit agencies that ostensibly keep us safe but in reality protect Big Dairy's interests (note: I don't think that big companies are bad, companies that collude with the gubmit are bad, this is also known as "crony capitalism').  In many areas of the country there used to be hundreds of small dairies but now only a few exist thanks to health departments that restrict and punish small dairies in ways that benefit large corporations (Morningland Dairy is one of many examples: http://uncheeseparty.wordpress.com/2013/01/18/morningland-dairy-the-final-solution/).  How did this happen?  Pasteurization and regulation has become a tool to marginalize and destroy small producers. Those who do not heat their milk and can't build expensive concrete and stainless steel shrines as a tribute to bureaucrats are subjected to severe health department scrutiny.  This protects the market for big producers and distributors. 

Pasteurization was introduced when refrigeration did not exist. The heating of milk mitigated the effects of dirty large dairies in a nascent industry. Cleanliness was usually a misnomer and when dealing with unrefrigerated milk that had to be transported long distances it created significant problems. Today even large dairies are considerably cleaner and refrigeration is utilized so pasteurization is not necessary with the exception of CAFOs (confined animal feeding operations), where cows are crowded and don't have easy means to put enough space between them and their excrement.

What about nutritional value?  Is overheated milk denuded of its fat good for you?  Which is better, skim or whole natural milk?  The problem with pasteurization is that it destroys or damages some of the enzymes, proteins and vitamins in milk and ironically also eliminates milk's natural ability to kill bacteria (by destroying some of the protein peptide segments and enzymes with anti-bacterial properties).  In addition, the destruction of a particular enzyme (lactase) inhibits our ability to digest the lactose in milk.  In relation to fat, almost 2/3rds of the fat content in milk from grass fed cows is saturated (the most soluble fat, as compared to monounsaturated and polyunsaturated) which helps construct cell membranes, hormones and enables us to assimilate fat soluble vitamins among other things.  Milk fat from grass fed cows also contains significantly more Omega-6 fatty acid.

Guernsey milk: look closely, half way up this jar you can see a line where the fat starts - this jar is at least 1/2 milk fat.  Veritable sticks of butter are squeezed out of the utter of this cow - that's amazing.

Guernsey compared to Holstein on the right, Holsteins are known for volume, the trade off is less butter fat and some would argue less nutritional value but certainly more than what you would buy in the store.  Note the fat is settling out only a few inches from the top in the jar on the right.  Both are natural / raw.  Our family goes thru a few gallons per day.

It is necessary to dry cows off a few months before they "poop out" (in Sammy parlance) little cows.  In the time being Blaise is filling up at a friend's farm (from the utter into the chiller and into our bottles).

 

I even take it to work (I recently accepted a short term WAN migration gig).

 

Now on to other unrelated activities:

 Caleb grew potatoes this year.

 Three types: Blue, Yukon Gold and Pontiac Red.

The girls cut and fried them in coconut oil, delicious (the chicken & milk by TJ, the bread by Tonya and the flowers from our friend Amy).

Calvin's geese, they warn of predators by making a lot of noise when unfamiliar animals (or humans) show up, we've lost fewer chickens since they've been around.

Caleb taking honey straight from a Langstoth frame.  Only beekeepers are allowed to do this.

Arts and crafts project, before: carefully cut on each side of the post and...

carefully line up the new front post with the rear block and press on.

Liberty's Update

So you're wondering what we've been up to lately?

Sewing of course, nothing like those older machines, we can repair almost anything with a rip.

Dad's been doing a little homesteading work, it's exhausting, he says it's amazing what people 100s of years ago could endure, I think he's yelling at one of my brodders, I'm sure they're goofing off.

Trins did a little excavating, you go girl!  Us girls never cause any problems for dad.

We do things like collect used vegetable oil for...

his 1985 Mercedes 300D, it burns diesel or vegetable oil.  It has a separate tank that is pre-heated to reduce the viscosity of the vegetable oil.  He starts up and shuts down on diesel, but all the time in the middle he runs on vegetable oil.  He says the best part about it is stickin' it to the man.  The smell of the exhaust reminds me of French fries.

Blaise trying to work out some deal with my sistas.  They took my advice and said no.

Taming a skittish calf (after chasing her over 6 acres), they have to tether her and either bring food to her or lead her to her mom for milk so she associates us humans with something good / food.

More homesteading type work, my brodders Calvin & Blaise laying the foundation for a gully crossing (Calvin knows girls are better than boys, he didn't want this post getting out).

When we're involved we leave the easy work (like pushing the dump button) to them.  We don't stop for anything...

except puppies... like this one that crawled out of the last pile we dumped (I was wondering why that rock had hair all over it).

Ok Trins, thanks for the puppy break.  Now you can push the button Blaise.

We also stop for chocolate ice cream (which order should I lick these in?).

They were .10 cents each!  Yeah finally ice cream little girls can afford!  Dad said this time we found a worm hole to 1950.

Eggs for food and not so much for profit

The following is from a guest blogger here on the pseudo homestead who now has a few years of experience caring for a flock of up to 80 layers and has seen all aspects of an egg venture, from sourcing, producing, care, maintenance, predator control, snakes in nesting boxes, raccoons impersonating chickens in the coop, marketing, sales and sourcing feed:

Hero boys and girls, dis es Kalvin (as you can tell from the spelling). My dad told me to write something about chickens for the blog. I thought about it for a while and came up with this sorry excuse for a report. Anyway, it's about basic care and my opinions about chickens and eggs, I call it Eggs for food and not so much for profit.

            Basic care for chickens is fairly simple, but not all care methods are the same. Let's take a look at the basics and evaluate two different methods. The first step In basic chicken care is raising the chicks in the brooder, which is the environment they will live in for the first 3 weeks of their life. In the brooder a heat lamp is used for heat starting at 90F and lowered 5F every week, a constant supply of fresh water is required and the chicks must be fed starter feed (18%-20% protein). yet some methods use medicated feed, which contains a coccidiostat used to inhibit the growth of coccidiosis, a bacteria that infects the chickens intestines. But coccidiosis outbreaks only occur when their bedding is soiled, so cleaning the bedding when it's soiled should save you from having to unnecessarily purchase more expensive medicated feed. When the chickens are 18 weeks old they are ready to have their feed choices switched to layer feed (16% protein and contains a large amount of calcium, which is harmful to chicks). If they free range rationing is a good idea, as this will force the chickens to forage more cutting down on feed costs. Adult housing must be large enough, at least 1sqft per bird, but if you plan to keep them confined all the time you need 5sqft per bird. Most people build a permanently stationary coop with a “run” protruding off the side of the coop to allow the birds “access to the out doors,” however in my opinion this is a very unsanitary method because the birds are offered no new forage and deplete the resources rapidly making the “run” become a dirty cesspit ridden with fecal matter and pathogens (Gwoss!!). I recommend an open bottom coop that can be moved when the ground becomes soiled, and open access to the outdoors where they can forage as much as they want (but the birds are more susceptible to predators so a dog or donkey and even geese will offer predator protection).

            Most people don't put much thought into choosing a breed, however there are important differences. Some of the more common breeds are the sex-link hybrids, Golden Comet hybrid, Red Star hybrid, Plymouth Rock and Rhode Island Red. These are good dual purpose breeds with a nice dress weight and are good layers of large eggs, yet they are poor foragers and not very predator resistant. On the other hand we have not as common breeds such as the Hamburg, Egyptian Fayoumi, Buttercup and Phoenix who are very efficient foragers and due to their small bodies, are fairly predator resistant – but note that they are not dual purpose and are okay layers of small to medium size eggs. As you can see there is a trade-off between breeds; production and egg size costs you in more feed and chickens that are easy targets verses smaller eggs that costs less from chickens better at escaping death. My preference is the Hamburg. These birds are extremely forage efficient, predator resistant and cold hardy, tho they are flighty and need plenty of space to roam, and they may not lay very large eggs but they are fairly good layers of medium sized eggs. My main point about breeds is that research should go into choosing the right breed for your preference. The best egg layer doesn't always give the best egg.

            About my thoughts about eggs as a business …   In the Dream Works clay animated film Chicken Run, the farmer, after tallying up the numbers, shouts to herself “I'm sick and tired of making miniscule profits!” Well, that about sums up the egg business. I can tell you first hand after raising a large flock of 50-80 chickens for more than a year (not even tallying up the cost of the housing), my margins were pretty slim. In my experience and research, the egg venture, in the scope of a farming enterprise, is merely complimentary to larger revenue venture such as poultry meat.  There’s usually always a market for eggs and most everybody knows how to cook with them. So in a farming enterprise you could use the market created from the eggs to establish a market for poultry. Otherwise not very many people are willing to pay twelve dollars for a dozen eggs. But raising chickens for eggs for family and friends and selling the extra eggs to recoup your chicken costs is in my opinion is an excellent idea that will feed your family for years to come.

The Internet is back...

Yeah, we had no Internet access for almost a week. So here are some pics to celebrate the return of connectivity.

In some undisclosed and disorganized carrier cable closet TJ is showing TCP and UDP packets some love. There could be some MPLS packets in there too.

Processing of 200 chickens. TJ managed raising them with Blaise's help. He also managed all inputs, costs, marketing and sales. Surplus restaurant sinks are great for this, pictured is one with three basins.

Chickens prepped for leaving pasture. These don't automatically put themselves into cages, you have to chase them around the movable pens first.

Material for making 80 Warré bee hive boxes. Caleb wasn't sure if he wanted to be in the picture or not.

This is an unruly calf that TJ affectionately named "Calfly," he had to manage her after she was eight months old and had never been handled. When animals are young they need a lot of human interaction so they become easier to manage when older.  I had to control her on two occasions by grabbing her horns and putting my weight on her head.  She started to wear me out (we had to move her ~200 feet twice) and I realized that if she was determined she could have overtaken me. (For my young nephews who view this blog; yes, cows can stick their tongue up their noses. Bring this picture up next time your parents have guests over for dinner.)

Trins posing with an unusual name for a road located in "booger" county.

A "friendly" transmission failure. Ford owner's manuals should include replacement intervals for transmissions and engines. Three out of four Fords we've owned have had a trans or engine or both replaced just before 100k miles. Our Toyota van isn't shown any love, it has 224k miles and has only had the starter and alternator replaced (and maybe some plugs).  Toyotas are also self-healing. Third gear wouldn't work so I simply skipped it for many months and it started working again.

Re-installing a hydraulic motor.  You have to be resilient and determined to recover.  Starting a farm may look easy but it's not.  This is the most difficult endeavor our family has experienced.  I've been frustrated beyond words more than a few times.  When the transmission failed it happened on a day that started out great. The truck was loaded and the boys and I were ready for work when 400 feet later at around 25-30 mph the wheels locked abruptly and jerked us to a stop. Blaise asked "what was that" (as if I decided to instantly put the truck in reverse) and I couldn't provide a coherent answer.

A solar oven designed by a very smart friend.  The angles used optimize the intensity of the sun's rays on the box at the center.  Thick glass helps to contain heat and the black paint absorbs as much of the sun's energy as possible.  I still need to talk Tonya into putting a chicken in it.  (John, I'm ready to test your flux capacitor as soon as it's done).

Farming Lessons for Homesteading

For those who want to homestead instead of making a living from farming here is a post for you.  I'll start with the one I forgot from the Farming Lessons post (#10):

Live within your means:  The least expensive way to do this is start where you're at.  Raising chickens or keeping bees doesn't take much and will build confidence.  If you're ready to move, realize that you need a lot of capital to invest in what you're going to live ON not IN.  Spending money on credible fencing, water infrastructure, perennials, good livestock that will replicate etc. is more important than what you will live in when starting.  I'd rather live in a mobile with productive land than a nice house with little or no livestock and no farming infrastructure.  The house won't feed you but a mobile will free up necessary capital for your endeavor to eventually produce food for yourself (and hopefully others) indefinitely and reduce your cost of living.  I think this is the crucial aspect of homesteading that most don't understand.

Don't become dependent upon inputs.  Grass really is what will make you money (not the kind you smoke, well, I guess that does too but there are other blogs about that).  It took me about a year to realize this, grass will be the center of your endeavor if you raise cows (meat or dairy) or sheep.  And in relation to cows, I think dairy is one of the most profitable.

Calvin & Dairy Queen: a 1,200 lb carbon based milk making machine.  Grass uses the sun's energy to pull minerals from the ground and produce vitamins.  All DQ has to worry about is eating and refining it to produce nutritious fats, enzymes, minerals and vitamins.  DQ has friends that create nutritious meat in the same way (Big Ag's milk and meat are nutritionally inferior, for example, the ratio of good to bad fats is the opposite of that for grass fed animals).

Establish perimeter & paddock fencing AND have a grazing plan in place BEFORE you start collecting animals.  If not you will unnecessarily waste time chasing animals in addition to impairing the future productivity of pastures by over-grazing them.

Learn about the pros & cons of land features.  If you're going to graze sheep and cattle, don't buy a pile of rocks (unless all you want to raise are goats).  I've seen property that has more rocks than dirt just below the surface. Look at the size of the trees (shorter trees may indicate poor soils, disproportionally wide trunks indicate rocky soil) and the topography of the land (southern facing slopes are better for pasture, northern facing for trees).  How accessible is water? Can you build swales with ponds and slow the passage of water thru the property?  There is a lot to consider, research what features are most beneficial to what you want to do.

Before you buy, talk to the neighbors.  Stop them on the road, knock on their door (I know this can be unnerving, I'm always afraid of being greeted by a shotgun).  Ask what are the problems with the area, why shouldn't one live here? Any regrets? Go to the local store, gas station, etc. and ask the same questions. You'll get valuable information about the neighbors, local gov. and potential problems.

Don't assume you need a lot of acreage.  It is amazing what can be produced on only a few acres.  Renting fallow land is also very inexpensive.

Corroborate what you hear/learn.  For example, some may say a particular type of pig is the way to go.  We're familiar with one called the Osabau.  Some say it's great to raise on grass and its meat supposedly offers higher Omega 3s.  They're expensive too.  Others will agree that they do eat grass, BUT take more than twice as long to fatten, and they don't get as big as common pigs.  Net result is that you pay more for a pig that will grow slower (without inputs) and nets less meat.  Moral of the story is talk to multiple people who have done what you're interested in doing in order to avoid costly mistakes.

Diversify but not too much.  This mostly applies to those who want to make a living farming. We've observed that the successful farmers diversify but only in their area of specialty.  For example, one farmer we know only offers meat, but he diversifies in beef, lamb, pork and chicken.  The successful vegetable farmers we know offer 90 different vegetables.  A berry producer we know offers various berries and orchard fruit.  It's the same with successful dairy farmers.  I think the key is that they can function stack infrastructure that they otherwise would need to reestablish in a different configuration if they pursued something outside of their general area

Efficiency is key, build it in early or you are doomed.  Water access is a great example.  Build ponds & swales to fill the ponds, install gravity fed troughs and or drill wells and install irrigation before collecting animals or planting.  I have witnessed both animals and plants being put in place first and trust me - water infrastructure seems like a lot of work initially but it exponentially saves time later and you will definitely need that time to work on other things.

Function Stack.  This truck can carry most of the family, move animals, tow, dump dirt, etc.  There are nicer and newer pick ups but they would limit what I can do. Buy things that allow for multiple uses.

Live free:  Thanks to that supposed wonderful emancipator we eventually got the 13th amendment, so live like it.  Doing what you'd like on your property without having to worry about permits or someone interfering with what is yours and making your life miserable is wonderful.  You see an unwanted pest in the garden?  "Boom," problem solved.  Want a pond?  Excavate.  Want an addition to your house?  Just build it.  Need to remove a tree?  Take your pick.  Shed?  All you have to care about is what size, color and where you're going to put it.  Is that Ford costing too much to maintain?  Well it sure would make a good parts car.  What would you like to raise?  Anything you want.  The list goes on and on, and guess what?  Where more freedom exists it's cheaper to live!  The multiple multiple thousands you'd spend on property taxes can be less than $10 for the same acreage (at least where we're at).

Now here are a few things to look forward to:

Installing cattle gates (as has been mentioned before, no need for a gym membership out here).

From the scalder to the plucker (Caleb is working the cones [which you can barely see behind TJ] and prepping the chickens for TJ to scald).

And straight into the hands of a consumer (I've skipped the messy stuff in between).

Oh yeah, in relation to living free being inexpensive... that also mean you have to be resourceful.  This is actually a county maintained road.  I had to figure out a way to get past this tree or take a different route that would take me 20 miles out of the way.

I had some straps in the van so I pulled limbs off to make space and drive around the trunk.

Bee gauntlet: we were moving hives and the entrance covers came off on two (look closely at the bottom left of the two closest hives).  We placed the intact hives first and the last intact hive was behind these two agitated hives.  The worst part was getting stung in the face (we only brought one veil with us).

Grazing and milking.  Notice the area partitioned by electric wire. By managing where and how much time cows spend in a particular area you will significantly increase the production of grass.  Don't cut cows loose to roam wherever they want in a pasture.  Managed grazing allows one to maintain more cows than is otherwise possible on a particular piece of land.

Function stacking activities: farming (that's a piglet), fishing (note the tackle box) and swimming with Sam.