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 churning butter
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Water, Water, Everywhere
Water is an obsession here at the Homestead. We have to haul every drop
of it in. Or do we? Over the summer, as Mrs. D carefully
tended her feeble garden, she spent alot of time hauling water. Sometimes
two loads a day. And that's with a 425 gallon hauling tank. It got
pretty tedious, and so we decided to earnestly attempt those projects which
would make life more productive around here. Two solutions come
immediately to mind - gray water use, and rain/snow collection.
Being as the precipitation is not overwhelming here, we start with the gray
water. Finances are not unlimited on the Homestead, so Mrs. D sometimes
has to do things piecemeal. For starters, we are saving bathwater and
rinsewater from the dishes for toilet flushing. Not only does this
effectively reuse fairly clean water, but a gallon pitcher of water poured
directly into the bowl flushes just as effectively as 3 gallons from the
tank. Extra bathwater and dishwater is currently bucketed to the winter
garden. The first real project is to harness that laundry gray
water. At 30 gallons a wash, approximately one wash a day, that's over 200
gallons of water a week, and a summer garden can really soak that up!
Measurements were taken, and fittings purchased at a Habitat for Humanity
ReStore. Now it's time to get out the saw and glue and divert that water
to the garden. Mrs. D's laundry drain is fairly accessible, so this seems
to be the easiest and most effective place to start. The next project will
be to do the same for the showers. That will leave the rinsewater from the
dishes for toilet flushing.
Our final project will be rainwater and snowmelt collection. Currently
the gutters are propped up on 30 gallon garbage cans. Unfortunately, this
does not offer full advantage for the potential we could collect from each
storm. Once the gutters are installed properly, we should be able to
nearly fill our 250 gallon storage cube with every storm. With the
acquisition of more cubes, water hauling should decrease drastically. Two
of the water troughs for the animals are already positioned under the eaves of
the barn. More gutters are being collected for the barn.
Right now the Homestead is only using 2-3 loads of water a week. This
is a blessed break from the 6-10 loads during the summer. With a few
dollars here and a few minutes there, some rain and snow, we hope to make our
water system more sustainable by summer 2010. AND THAT"S JUST TURNIN" US
GREEN WITH JOY!!
Thanks,
Mrs. D
Copyright (c) 2009 by Robyn
Dolan
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Feeding the Hungry
Now, anyone with common sense would move to a place where green stuff
actually grows right out of the ground, if they were planning on raising a whole
bunch of ruminants. Mrs. D's first consideration, however, was to find
affordable land. Any affordable land. It just happened to be here in
Northern Arizona. We do have some wild grasses that grow, slowly and
sparingly, but certainly not enough to support much livestock. So we
import hay. Lots of hay. Sometimes we go through so much hay that it
really becomes necessary to shop around. For example, locally sold hay
runs about $13-$14 per approximately 100 pound bale. Hay from
Missouri is about $5 a bale. Shipping on a months worth of hay from
Missouri runs about $2,000. Going to pick it up myself would run about
$1,000 just in gas (3/4 ton pickup hauling 3 tons of hay on a trailer). We
are really in a quandary here.
 
This is just one example. The point is that it all evens out to being
just as well to buy the hay locally. So we improvise to try to supplement
the hay until there's a little bit of grass growing again. The goats,
sheep and cows love to eat any surplus veggies or fruits we might have. We
occasionally come into several cases of cabbage or potatoes or the like, which
are a great treat to them. The rabbits and chickens enjoy them, too.
Any surplus from large canning projects gets distributed amongst them as
well. We suspect the oils in lemon and grapefruit skins may help them stay
healthier, in the bargain. Onions and garlic are always a good supplement
for animal health and variety in the feeding program. If there's a bumper
crop of eggs, all the animals' coats benefit.
An new experiment we're trying this year is to seed between patches of grass
and start a rotational grazing system. This, of course, is old hat to the
experienced farmers out there. Our particular challenges here on the
homestead are: getting the seed to sprout and establish itself, getting
water to the grass, keeping it growing, even as enourmous creatures such as
horses and cows are wandering amidst it. The first problem, getting the
seed to sprout and establish itself, is under experimentation. We are
raking seed into the soft ground during milder weather and covering it with
plywood, plastic, metal, or whatever other cover we can come up with, to keep
the birdies out and kind of insulate it from freezes (and from the sun, come
summer). Hopefully this will help it establish good roots, too, by keeping
the large animals from ripping them out as they walk
across.
Problem two, getting water to the grass, we kind of worked out last
summer. We are blessed with lots of moisture this winter, but come the dry
season, we will haul an extra load of water and put it on the grassy areas in
rotation, so as much of it as possible gets plenty of water. The theory
being the extra $4 of water should save much more than that in hay.
The last challenge, keeping it growing, is ongoing. The sheep and goats
have a low impact on the land. Allowing them to free range over our ten
acres keeps them healthy and well fed, saving on the need to buy so much hay for
them. Last summer, we started letting the horses out to graze in rotation,
and also letting the cows graze daily. This had the effect of grazing out
our ten acres in less than a month. Yet, the horses and cows eat the most
hay, and a great savings would be realized by raising more grass for them to
graze on. The horse and cow plan for this year is still not fully formed,
but several options are being considered. The large round pen was broken
down and made into two small portable pens that can be more easily moved around
the property. We are considering fencing several more paddocks, or
possibly running a solar powered electric wire to create another moveable
paddock. The idea being to allow several paddocks to rest and replenish
themselves while other areas are grazed. It has also been recommended to
have the goats graze, then the cows, then the horses, as they tend to choose
different forages. We'll keep you up to date on our successes and failures
in this area, for now it's back to work!
Thanks,
Mrs. D
Copyright (c) 2009 by Robyn
Dolan
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Puttin' Up
Fence
Mrs. D finally got her fence up this year. Spurred on by
the rise in gas and feed prices, the Homestead needed to find more creative ways
to keep everyone fed. The most common sensical thing seemed to be to let
everybody out to graze. The neighbors, however, took exception to Mrs. D's
goats and sheep getting into their stores (although a few did appreciate getting
their weeds trimmed for free). So finally, after years of scavenging
anything that could concievably be used as fencing or fence posts, Mrs. D and
several helpers pounded in posts, unrolled, stood and tied, or shall we say
wired, field fencing, and when that ran out, strung barbed wire across the last
several yards. This is hard work, and it takes a very special talent to
pull the fencing tight. Mrs. D does not have that talent.
Fence maintenance and repair is now an ongoing project, and every scrap of
rebar, field fence, chicken wire, barbed and barbless wire, wire coat hangers
and baling twine is put to use. T-posts are like gold. Several
wooden posts had to be reset, and unless there had been a recent rain, Mrs. D
had to pour several buckets of water onto the hard clay ground to soften it
up enough to dig new holes. The services of a professional were
bartered for the partial cost of one of Maryruth's cows, in order to set
the gateposts and hang the gates. Frequently, in sinking a t-post, we
would hit rock and have to reposition the post to get it into the
ground.
But the fence is up, and the guys are mostly in. Tying up Mr. Billy
Goat seems to keep the rest of the herd from wandering very far most of the
time. The sheep seem content to stay inside the fence. The horses
are just happy to stretch their legs and assert their superiority over everyone
else. The cows are usually happy to stay inside the fence unless they are
feeling particularly mischievous. The chickens are finding enough
grasshoppers near the house and do not yet feel the need to wander up the street
to the neighbors' stew pot. The coyotes are kept somewhat at bay, but
still manage to sneak off with the occasional chicken when Ana the "Guard"
Llama's back is turned.
Lest you imagine that Mrs. D can sit in luxury, eating bonbons now, let us
set you straight. Just because they stay inside the fence, does not mean
the cows and horses do not reach over the fence to nibble tasty tidbits.
The more they reach over, the more the fence sags, until they think that maybe
Mrs. D meant to leave the fence down in that particular spot, and they just walk
over it. They then proceed to have a lovely adventure and lead Mrs. D on a
merry chase getting them back into the yard. A little grain in a bucket
does tend to get them in alot faster. A brisk, early morning walk along
the fence line, inhaling lungfuls of fresh air, is now a part of the daily
routine. An additional benefit/bane of this activity is that Mrs. D can
moniter the condition of various aspects of the Homestead, and plan her work
accordingly. When and where the fence needs reinforcing, what trees need
replacing, what interesting items the latest wind or storm blew inside the
fence, etc., etc. Hmm, forgot about that pile of horseshoes, I could use
those...
Thanks,
Mrs. D
Copyright (c) 2008 by Robyn
Dolan
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Gettin' Cheesy
So you have cows, goats and sheep (yes, sheep!) but you have no clue what to
do with all that extra milk you're not drinking. As Mrs. D sits by the window
with the winter sun streaming in, shamelessly eating her boxed macaroni and
cheese, she can think of several things. Besides making soap, of course. Two of
them are "ageing" in her refrigerator right now, but with this cooler weather,
she is about to move them to the "cheese room" in her workshop. One cheese is
still in the press, to be removed tonight or tomorrow. One is currently
suspended in cheesecloth from her cupboard door, to hopefully achieve a thick,
creamy consistency and a mild, mellow flavor that will disappear into greedy
tummies before the week is out.
Cheesemaking is one of the oldest and tastiest ways of preserving milk.
Although it is nice to have one's own cave in which to age the curds,
as mentioned above, even a refrigerator will do in a pinch, 'til the
weather cools down. Several cheeses can even be eaten without ageing, such as
cottage cheese, ricotta, feta, mozarella, cream cheese, and too many more to
mention here.
This month Mrs. D is going to explain how to make a very simple cheese
that you can even make with that store bought milk you got on sale but never
drank. Whether fresh or storebought, start by getting it out of the fridge and
pour about a gallon or so into a large container with a lid. Set it on the back
of the stove, if you're not going to be using it, or in the oven with just the
pilot light, or somewhere warm and draft free. We are going to let it set
overnight. In the morning, or sometime the next day, lift the lid and
sniff. It should smell pleasant, but slightly acidic, and should not yet be
curdled. Stir gently. If it feels slightly thicker than when you put it in last
night, it is about right. I am not sure that store milk will thicken, but just
check for a slight acidity. This is called ripening the milk.
Now we are going to stir in an acid to make the solid cheese curds separate
from the watery whey. Use your choice of one of the following: 2 teaspoons
citric acid or 1/4 cup vinegar or 3 tablespoons lemon juice. Add to milk and
stir gently for 2 minutes to completely incorporate it into the milk. Separation
should occur immediately. If milk is too cool, put it back in the oven with just
the pilot light for another few hours, or heat slowly on the stove. If
separation does not occur immediately, continue to gently stir in tiny amounts
of your chosen acid until it does. When the milk is curdled and the whey is
separating, continue to stir gently and slowly for a few minutes. This helps
force more of the whey out of the curds. Now line a colander with
cheesecloth, and put it in a large bowl if you are saving the whey for other
purposes. Carefully pour the curds and whey into the colander. With all the
curds in the colander, tie the corners of the cheesecloth together and lift
curds up. Hang this "bag" somewhere it can drain for a few hours. When dripping
slows or stops, put bag back in colander and untie. Rinse curds in warm water to
remove more whey. Salt if desired. Hang bag again to drain water. Put curds in a
bowl and stir with fingers or a fork. Now you decide. You can eat the cheese
just as it is, put in omelettes, stir fry, or add some milk and use as cottage
cheese or ricotta. Mmmm...
One final note. Mrs. D had been getting frustrated with her cheeses for
years, trying to achieve identical results every time. What she didn't take into
account was that homemade cheese is a living art. Many factors influence a
single batch, and the most important thing is not to be able to duplicate mass
produced store bought cheese, but to produce a food that her family and friends
can enjoy, or at least laugh about with her.
Back to that boxed mac 'n' cheese...hey, it's organic;)
Thanks,
Mrs. D
Copyright (c) 2007 by Robyn
Dolan
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Wild Goat Milking
Isn't this the California dream...move to the country, get some goats and
chickens and live off the land?! Then Mrs. D tried to milk that confounded goat
and discovered exactly why that animal is so often chosen to depict the
devil.
So she worked with the creatures, fought with them, bribed them, and still
they did the "bee stung me in the butt dance" and the "drama queen 'I'm being
cruelly slaughtered' bellow and feint". So Mrs. D had to look at other
options. Besides the freezer, there was the possibility of building a
milking stanchion. This marvelous example of ingenuity, along with some humane
hobbles, possibly a belly strap and a bucket of sweet feed can make a milker out
of the orneriest critter. And so we proceed...
For best comfort and convenience (Mrs. D's own!) she wanted the critter up
off the ground, so she needed to build a stand about 18”-24” tall, 15”-20” wide
and at least 40” long. She used a couple of old wooden planter boxes, laid
a highway railing across them and put an old piece of plywood on top of
that. The stanchion is under the barn so one side is a stall panel and the
other is secured with t-posts. Next in order of importance is the feed box/neck
hobble.
Mrs. D put a raised feeder on top of her stanchion and fixed a lead rope to
the pole end of the barn. The homestead milkers wear collars, so the
goat’s collar is clipped to the lead rope and she greedily keeps her head in the
feeder which is generously supplied with tasty morsels. As for the other end, on
a good day, when said doe is not being the drama queen, humane velcro hobbles
are gently wrapped around her back ankles during the milking.
On a normal day, said drama queen is gently but firmly wrapped around the
midsection with a horse halter which is fastened to the stall panel to prevent
her from laying down on the job. The horse halter was chosen over a rope
or belt, as it puts some width around the creature’s belly so she doesn’t
wriggle out of it.
Now catching that rascal is a whole 'nuther story. An enthusiastic
teenager has been Mrs. D's best solution. There are no roping tricks she
can pass along. When Mrs. D grabs the rope, the goats stand 2 yards away
and laugh at her. However, the milkers allow themselves to be handled
in exchange for goodies. It’s just the standing still for milking
they have a problem with. Thanks to the wonderful technology of the
milking stanchion, Mrs. D's homesteaders enjoy fresh goat milk on their
cereal every morning.
Thanks,
Mrs. D
Copyright (c) 2007 by Robyn
Dolan
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Doin the twist - spinning wool
Winter seems to have finally arrived at the
homestead, if the snow flurries outside Mrs. D's window are any
indication. Mrs. D thinks
that the best way to enjoy a storm is to watch it from in front of a nice
warm fire, with a cup of hot chocolate, and a big bowl of popcorn. And for
those few minutes before reality sets in and driveways have to be shovelled,
goats milked, stalls mucked and animals fed, this puts a great big smile on her
face.
On a cold homestead evening, Mrs. D
likes to warm up and unwind by spinning wool. It all started in the
spring when Mrs. D decided to shear the sheep. She grabbed a friend who is rather as crazy as herself, chased
the critters down, and lassoed ‘em around a tree. Next they got out the
shears and start clipping.
With
fleece in hand, or more truthfully, many pieces of fleece, it was now
time to clean it. She threw out the worst pieces and swished the rest
around in a tub of warm, soapy water. Next she rinsed it in several changes of
cold water. This way she keeps some of the lanolin in it to soften her hands and
ease the spinning process. The wool is now air dried.
Now Mrs. D picks up the process in the
winter evenings with carding. Wool cards are similar to those square,
spiny dog brushes, but with smaller spines. She takes small pieces of wool and
fans them out across one card, then brushes them from one card to the other
several times, separating the fibers and cleaning out the little pieces of this
and that stuck to the wool. She puts the clean, carded wool aside and keeps
working. Once she has a good pile of clean, carded wool, she can start
spinning.
The basics are the same whether using a
drop spindle or a spinning wheel. She ties a leader, or already spun
piece of yarn to the spindle. She starts the spindle spinning and guides
and twists the fibers as they pull through. The spun yarn winds itself
around a bobbin. Every so often, the bobbin needs to be
emptied and the yarn wound onto a niddy noddy, which is a simple
frame to hold the yarn.
Once she has about 80 yards of yarn on the
niddy noddy, she will take it off, wet the entire "knot" and hang it up to dry
with a weight at one end. This will set the twist of the yarn. When it’s dry
she’ll start on another one of those winter night projects that keep her warm
twice - once while she’s crocheting and then again while she’s watching it
snow under a nice cozy blanket.
Stay warm,
Mrs. D
Copyright (c) 2006 by Robyn
Dolan
Makin' Soap
Fall is the traditional time
of year for making soap. Although Mrs. D makes soap year round nowadays,
she thought it would be appropriate to talk about soap this
month.
The art of making soap is ancient.
Back when the hunters were sleeping off the feast and their women were down at
the crick washin' up, a big ole rainstorm washed some fat mixed with wood ashes
from the cookin' fires down into the crick water. Someone noticed that the
dishes got cleaner, hair got softer, clothes looked better and voila - soap was
born. If they'd had microwaves and dishwashers back then they would never
have made this amazing discovery. But in spite of all its fancy shapes and
smells, soap is still just basically lye (water soaked through wood ashes), fat
and water, or as Mrs. D likes to make it, milk. We like to use milk rather
than water because it makes a gentler, more nourishing soap. Soap made
with water will strip away every bit of grease and grime - good for laundry, bad
for skin. So, first we clean out the fireplace and put the ashes in a big
barrel with a drip spout at the bottom and a drip pan underneath, set it up
under a rain gutter so the rain water will go into the barrel, soak through the
ashes and come out the bottom into the drip pan and there's our lye.
Careful, 'cause it's very caustic (that means it'll burn ya) so keep animals and
children away. Mrs. D generally prefers to go to Safeway and pick up a can
of Red Devil lye, modern conveniences. A precaution - make sure to get
only Red Devil lye, most others contain aluminum, and this will prevent the fats
from saponifying and neutralizing the lye.
Fat is next, so we go butcher the hog, save all
the white blubber in a big pot, cover with water and melt it, cool it, and skim
off the clean white lard; or just go back to Safeway.... Almost any kind
of oil or combination of oils will work - soybean, olive, coconut,
avocado. Mrs. D likes to use a combination of lard for hardness,
olive oil for moisturizing, coconut oil for lather and castor oil for extra
moisture and lather.
Finally we need water or milk. As stated
above, water is good for laundry soap, but will strip your skin of its natural
protective oils when saponified into soap. Milk has wonderful protiens and
fats and will help heal and protect your skin. Mrs. D uses milk from the
homestead goats or from friends' cows (ha, ha Safeway).
Let's put it all together. Using only glass,
enamel or stainless steel pans (aluminum will corrode), melt the oils and keep
at about 100F. Carefully add the lye to the milk, stirring
constantly. The lye-milk combination will heat up. When it reaches
approximately 100F carefully pour it into the oils. Stir, stir, stir until
the mixture is so thick it traces, or leaves a trail on the surface of the mix
when you lift up the spoon (wood or stainless, no aluminum). Add any
smelly stuff (fragrances) now and mix well. Pour into shallow,
non-aluminum (is there a pattern here?) pans or plastic molds and let sit for
12-24 hours. Cut into bars and let sit until firm enough to remove from
pans. Separate bars and cure for 5 weeks.
The curing time allows the saponification process
to further neutralize the lye so that the soap is safe for all but the most
sensitive skin types. Curing also allows the bars to harden so they lather
better and last longer. If you find yourself with a bar of soap that seems
rather soft, let it sit a few more weeks. It should harden up and be most
satisfactory. Enjoy.
Thanks,
Mrs. D
(c) Copyright 2005 by Robyn
Dolan
Haulin' Water
Well, in case you hadn't noticed, it's been
awhile since I updated this site. What between vacation, deaths in the
family, teething baby and computer crashes (yes, that's plural!), it has been
quite a challenge to keep up.
The garden is in and doing nicely.
Parts of it are,that is. If all goes well, we will have abundant tomatoes,
corn, beans, squash and melons later this summer. Lettuce and carrots
don't seem to like me too much. But the comfrey and mint and basil do, so
that's good news.
Due to a rash of attacks by wolf-dogs on my
goats, which nearly wiped out my herd, you will be seeing some cow's milk soap
in the store for a while. Be assured that this is made with the same
loving care as our goat's milk soap, only this milk is coming from a neighbor's
happy, hand-milked Jersey cow.
Summer on the homestead brings water
conservation to the forefront. Here in Northern Arizona we have to go so
far down to get water that it is really cost prohibitive (way too expensive!) to
drill a well. What we and many other folks do is haul water. There
are many variations on this practice, but what Mrs. D does, is to hook up a
small utility trailer with a 400 gallon tank on it, to the pickup, and drive
about 7 miles to the town well, fill-er-up, and drive home. Next, the 400
gallon tank is hooked up to a small water pump which then pumps the water into a
2500 gallon storage tank which provides water to the house and homestead.
Now, I suppose all this sounds like an awful lot of work; it is! It is
also very time consuming. Hauling it yourself really heightens
the awareness of how much water a homestead and family can
use. We have become water misers. Bath and
dishwater is saved for the garden. So is most of the laundry water.
We actually know that it takes 30 gallons for mom's shower or bath, only 10
gallons for dad's, and 5 for baby's bath. Our low flush toilets use a
gallon per flush; dishpans have made a comeback at the kitchen sink;
laundry is 30 gallons per load. We have discovered that there is actually
a real purpose for that cute little glass that comes with the toothbrush
holder set.
Water is such a precious commodity here in
Arizona, even in the high country, that folk are prone to invent rain dance
ceremonies of all kinds. So if you happen to be drivin' through on your
way to the Grand Canyon this summer, and you see some of us off in the distance
actin' kinda strange, don't worry - we're just prayin' for rain.
Thanks,
Mrs. D
(c) Copyright 2004 by Robyn
Dolan
The First Article
October on Mrs. D's homestead is planning
time. Which animals still need to be bred, which ones to fatten up for the
freezer, and which ones to sell so they don't consume excess feed over
winter. Hens hatched this spring are finally starting to lay eggs.
This year's miserable failure of a garden is ready for harvest, and the
weather's finally cooled down enough here in Northern Arizona for another
planting of lettuce, spinach and carrots. Produce prices in this
neck-of-the-woods have not been very favorable this year, so out comes the
"lasagne gardening" book, for a new plan of attack on next years
garden.
The County Fair brought us an abundance of
prize ribbons and now it's time to start planning the Christmas baking and
present making. Family and friends seemed to enjoy the rice bag heating
pads last year; this year's presents are still top secret. But Mrs. D's
Homestead.com will be featuring homemade soap and lotion bar gift
baskets, also filled with other homemade goodies.
Come on back soon.
Mrs. D
(c) Copyright 2003 by Robyn
Dolan
Disclaimer: All information is provided for
entertainment purposes only. Mrs. D's Homestead and Robyn Dolan are not
liable for any misuse or consequenses resulting from use of this
information.
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