8875_MENSummerontheHomestead

Table of Contents

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4 Aging Gracefully on

the Homestead

Our readers have worked hard to build homesteads, so why retire to the city?

10 Co-Op Farmstands for

Backyard Gardeners

Yard to Market Co-op has created an adaptable model for even the smallest scale growers to sell extra produce — from a bundle of herbs to dozens of eggs.

15 DIY Wind Generator

Turn an alternator into alternative energy in as little as a weekend using hand tools, a handful of hardware, and some inexpensive car parts.

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18 Power an Electric

Fence With Solar

Easy to install and shockingly versatile, a solar electric fence will give you the power to keep your animals in the pasture, even if you’re off the grid.

24 Make Paper From

Grasses and Leaves

Connect with an age-old process and the life cycle of plants to make fragrant, textured paper.

30 Improve Your Flock

With Trapnests

This method will help you select the best hens for your breeding program.

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35 Natural Insect Repellents

Don’t get bugged out — follow these simple DIY recipes to keep pests at bay.

38 After-Sun Care

for Skin and Hair

After spending time in the sun, try these recipes for cooling masks, mists, bath soaks, gels, and more.

42 Want Milk? Get Goats

Dairy goats can supply your family with fresh milk inexpensively. The fun’s a bonus.

COVER PHOTOGRAPH: GETTY IMAGES / RON_THOMAS

Apply permaculture to your land to nurture its natural features.

Summer on the Homestead

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48 48 Medicinal Herbs for

Difficult Growing Conditions

Pick the medicinal plants that will thrive in shady, swampy, or dry environments.

52 Best Organic Fertilizers

Feed your garden soil by choosing natural amendments that are rich in nutrients, minerals, and organic matter — not just nitrogen.

56 Unconventional

Gardening Methods

With this breakdown of several gardening trends, you can experiment with new techniques to reimagine your backyard space.

61 Tips and Techniques for

Water-Wise Gardening

Tap these efficient gardenwatering systems to save on your water bill while still growing food despite drought and heat.

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56 66 9 Permaculture Practices

Apply permaculture to your land to nurture its natural features.

70 Grafting Fruit Trees

Fuse stems with rootstocks to form fast-growing, fruit-bearing plants.

74 Make Jams

With Less Sugar

These recipes and tips offer a variety of options for preserving low-sugar jams without commercial pectin.

80 Fresh Homemade

Salad Dressings

Add a splash of flavor to spring or summer greens with these favoritesalad dressing recipes from bloggers.

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70 86 Fiery Ferments to

Preserve Your Peppers

Unlike store-bought condiments, these spicy concoctions are rich with nutrients and flavor developed through the process of lactofermentation.

90 Make Your Own

Hot Sauce

You can approximate one of the world’s tastiest hot sauces in your home kitchen.

92 Cooking in an

Outdoor Oven

Go beyond bread and pizza.

Learn strategies for firing your hand-built clay oven and baking casseroles, vegetables, meats, and more.

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Co-op members drop off their produce or eggs in the morning and fill out a form recording the items and quantities they’re selling. Shown above are Nitya’s edible flowers and Candace Squire’s nopales.

CO-OP FARMSTANDS

for Backyard Gardeners

Yard to Market Co-op has created an adaptable model for even the smallestscale growers to sell extra produce — from a bundle of herbs to dozens of eggs.

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By Kristi Quillen Photos by Scott David Gordon

I

n 2013, a few folks who knew each other from the gardening community in Austin, Texas, came together with a dilemma — how to sell their extra produce at farmers markets. As individuals who didn’t want to deliver on a marketfarm scale, the barriers to entry seemed too great. They had the idea to create a shared farmstand, a CSA program, or something — they weren’t sure what.

The group, including co-founders Annelies Lottmann and Lesley Williamson, spent most of 2013 meeting

and figuring out which structure would work best. Finally, they decided to organize as a co-op because of their interest in group ownership. In early 2014, members began selling produce at the HOPE Farmers Market, which already allowed gardeners to drop off and sell small amounts of produce. Later that year, they had enough members to form a farmstand at HOPE. In 2015, then-named Yard to Market Co-op received a Value-Added Producer Grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which allowed them to open a second farmstand, at the Sunset Valley Farmers Market in South Austin, and to pay their farmstand workers. The group has doubled its revenue every year since 2014, has about 50 members across the region, and sells 90 percent of the fruits, vegetables, nuts, and eggs that come in.

At two weekend markets, members can drop off any items they want to sell — even just a bunch of herbs or a half-dozen eggs. To join, they fill out a membership application and agree to certain commitments, including not using synthetic inputs. Members pay $75 to join, which adds capital and puts everyone on equal footing; if someone leaves the co-op, they receive $65 back. Before market, members weigh and bundle their produce according to the group’s guidelines, and on market mornings, they fill out a form that documents what they’re selling. After markets, Lesley, the finance director, compares these to the sales records, tracks what’s been sold, and pays each member quarterly.

Whatever doesn’t sell at the markets is brought to Austin-area grocery stores in.gredients and Wheatsville Co-op, as well as the restaurant Black Star Co-op.

Produce is also advertised on neighborhood Listservs, where individual buyers can claim products — eggs and specialty fruit are especially sought after. The five-person board that represents all 50 members meets monthly and sends out newsletters to inform everyone of schedule changes or seasonal news, and all members come together to vote on group matters at an annual meeting. Yard to Market has become an entry into the local food market for everyone from windowsill gardeners to small farmers.

A Little Profit, A Lot of Community The model works well for Nitya Uthenpong, who in 2002 began transforming her yard with native plants and heirlooms. At one time she nurtured 17 raised beds, and over the years, she realized she could share her extra produce if she had an outlet. She’d thought about taking produce to market — but not every market. She didn’t want to give up every Saturday. So when she found out about Yard to Market Co-op through her daughter’s school, she joined.

“Now I know someone will be at the market, and I can just drop my extra produce off,” she says. At a recent market, she brought items she had picked that morning — some edible flowers and a few WWW.MOTHEREARTHNEWS.COM

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an attractive solution when compared with trying to install a fence energizer that runs on 120-volt alternating current (AC), especially for remote or very large fencing systems that suffer from a lack of utility outlets near the fence line.

The Basics Before getting too much into the advantages of solar over conventional grid electricity, let’s review some electric fencing basics. The fencing type you choose, its height, strength, materials, and wire spacing will all depend entirely on what you’re trying to keep in or out.

A properly installed electric fence won’t cause serious harm to animals (or people!) that happen to come in contact with the energized wires.

While most electric fencing consists of only a few bare wires strung between some lightweight insulators, it’s an animal’s learned fear of the fence — not the strength of the wire — that keeps the animal contained. Most animals

that make initial contact with an electric fence will immediately back up.

However, if the energized wires are spaced too far apart, an animal may be able to extend its head through to the other side before touching an energized wire. Feeling the sting further back on its neck, the startled animal may bolt straight through instead of backing up, no doubt dragging your new fence behind it! For this reason, you must use the correct wire spacing and fence design for the animals you’re trying to contain.

Some electric fencing systems use wires that are woven into a brightly colored flat tape or rope. This type

Conductive wires woven into a flat tape makes for a fence that’s much more visible to livestock (and people) than bare wires.

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Solar Fence Energizers Electric fencing requires an energizer to deliver pulsed charges to the conductor, usually at or less than one high-voltage pulse per second.

Comparing energizers can be confusing because few rating standards are used in their marketing. Some units list their output in volts, while others use joules (the international unit of energy measurement). Some brands advertise how many acres of fencing their unit can energize, while others publicize their power output in miles of fencing.

PREMIER 1 SUPPLIES; ADOBE STOCK (2)/ VMORFIELD, NSPOONER; PREMIER 1 SUPPLIES (2); JEFFRY R. YAGO

Poorly spaced wires enable this ewe to extend her head under an energized fence.

of electric fencing material makes it easier for animals to recognize what happens when they get too near and thus remember to steer clear. Larger animals, such as horses and cattle, may be more manageable when using wider electric fencing tape because it’s easier for them to see than bare wire.

One of the newest forms of electric fencing is electrified netting. Woven into this non-metallic netting are tiny electrically interconnected metal strands. This fencing material works to contain smaller animals — goats, chickens, turkeys, rabbits, and even cats and dogs — better than widerspaced electric fence wire.

The best measurement of an electric fence energizer is how many joules of energy it delivers per pulse. A joule equals 1 watt-second of power output, or, more precisely, the amount of work required to generate 1 watt of power for 1 second. The largest off-the-shelf fence energizer I found locally had a rating of 6 joules and was advertised to energize up to 100 miles of fence wire. If this unit failed, all 100 miles of fence wire would instantly become useless. However, if you use multiple smaller energizers, any single failure would mean only one of the fenced areas would become non-energized.

Remember that these ratings apply to the total length of wire used, not necessarily the length of the fence. So a 6-joule energizer that can energize 100 miles of fence wire would provide enough power for a 5-wire fence that’s 20 miles long (or a 4-wire fence that’s 25 miles long, and so on). A solarpowered energizer with an output of 0.5 to 1 joule should easily meet the needs of most small-scale homesteaders, providing enough power to energize miles of fence wire or enclose up to 50 acres of pasture.

Most self-contained solar energizers consist of a weatherproof enclosure containing a maintenance-free battery,

This electrified netting not only keeps the sheep in, it also keeps would-be predators out.

with a small solar module attached to the top on an adjustable mounting.

Solar energizers with a larger capacity may require a bigger solar module and battery, mounted separately from the energizer. The flexibility of the separate battery and module will be especially useful if you need to reposition the module away from the shade of nearby trees or would like to mount the module on a raised pole.

Fence energizers powered by an external 12-volt battery typically cost half the price of energizers with a smaller built-in battery and solar module. This price savings can help offset the added cost of buying a separate

external battery, solar charge controller, and solar module. Not only does this approach allow the use of a wider selection of solar modules, but the larger battery provides weeks of standalone operation during extended periods of low sunlight.

More expensive solar energizers may offer optional features, such as a digital display or meter, selective output levels, system trouble alarms, increased lightning protection, and a lower output at night to save battery charge. Large solar energizers are designed to be mounted on a wooden post, and only require connecting a jumper wire to the fence and a ground

Whether you’re using a self-contained solar energizer that rests on the ground (above) or a pole-mounted energizer and solar module (right), it’s important that they receive ample sun. www.MotherEarthNews.com

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Dry iris leaves completely, bundle, and then cut into 1⁄2-inch pieces.

MAKE PAPER Connect with an age-old process and the life cycle of plants to make fragrant, textured paper.

By Kristi Quillen

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any of us are conscious of ways we can use resources sustainably, create things ourselves, and value the objects in our lives by making them with our own hands. But we don’t necessarily think of the paper we use on a daily basis and the huge amounts of energy and water consumed by commercial paper mills. When you make paper by hand with plant fibers from your own backyard, you’ll participate in a long-practiced art and connect with plants around you — just as you grow your own bright, oddly shaped tomatoes and make rich, flavorful sauce from them, savoring every drop.

Tear a piece of commercial, bleach-white paper. It’ll tear easily. The fibers, the stuff from which it’s made, will be barely distinguishable. Handmade paper is stronger, harder to tear; 24 THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO SUMMER HOMESTEADING

lead: Allison Evans lily leaves: Kristi Quillen; other 2: Jeff Hansen

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and when you do tear it, you’ll see the long individual fibers that bind it together. You’ll smell the earthy bromegrass or lily leaves that formed its pulp and the chamomile flowers you added to the vat. This paper makes thoughtful stationery, special occasion cards or decorations, and gifts. It’s art; you could even just hang it on a wall.

Practicing this craft will tune you in to the characteristics of your local, native plants or the ones you’re growing in your own yard. You’ll notice which plants around you might make good paper, and you’ll attend to when their leaves or stalks are ready to be harvested. You can plant milkweed to encourage butterflies, for example, and later harvest its stalks or pods for making paper.

Choosing and Harvesting Plant Fibers To make paper, you’ll harvest your material, dry it, cut it into pieces for cooking, simmer it to break down the fibers, and then process it in a blender or by hand-beating until it disperses into water to form pulp. But first, choose the type of plant fiber you’d like to use.

Types of fibers and harvesting. In this article, you’ll learn how to make paper from grass fiber and leaf fiber. Bast fiber (from the woody stalks of some plants) makes the strongest

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: KRISTI QUILLEN; JEFF HANSEN (2); PAGE 24: ALLISON EVANS

From Grasses and Leaves

paper and is most commonly used by papermakers, but it’s also more time-consuming to harvest and process, so you might move on to this fiber after you try grasses and leaves.

Not all plants make good pulp strong enough to hold together into a sheet of paper, and some plant fibers are usable but require many hours of beating by hand or with special machinery to break down the fibers. A good guideline for usable material: If the plant stands over 2 feet tall on its own, it most likely contains enough cellulose to make paper. To know for sure the practicality of processing any specific fiber into pulp, you’ll have to read other papermakers’ accounts or rely on your own trial and error.

You’ll need to collect at least 2 pounds of dry plant material to make it worth your while. A pound of dry grass material makes about ten 81⁄2-by-11-inch sheets, and 1 pound of dry leaf material makes about 15 sheets.

Be sure to harvest responsibly. Take only small amounts, allowing the plant to recover, and be aware of the effects you might cause by taking plant material (disrupting insects, for example). Make sure you have permission to forage on others’ property or on public land.

You can experiment with how your harvest affects the resulting paper. Plant fiber and paper often appear different when plants are harvested in fall than when they’re harvested in spring.

Grass. Paper made from grass is usually a bit weaker and more brittle than from leaf fiber, but it can be interesting in texture, it’s easy to find, and you can harvest grass in any season. You’ll use the whole stalk — all but the roots. After harvesting, dry grass completely and then bundle to avoid mold.

Leaf. Usually, long leaves are the best source of fiber. Tear leaves against the grain; the more difficult they are to tear, the more likely they’ll be to make good paper. Iris leaves and lily leaves make strong paper and are easy to process.

Thicker leaves, such as yucca and hemp, are more timeconsuming or not practical to process by hand. Spring and summer harvest: Only cut individual outer leaves near the base of the plant to ensure continued growth. Fall harvest: Collect leaves as they fall from the plant or when they’re able to release gently. Dry leaves completely and then bundle to store them.

Simmer cut plant material with an alkali, such as washing soda.

Cooked milk thistle, before it’s broken down further in a blender.

Making and Preparing Pulp To turn your harvested plant material into paper, you must first cook it — literally, in pots — and beat it by hand, with a blender, or with another machine to break down the fibers into pulp. Keep in mind that these instructions are for grass fibers or leaf fibers.

You’ll cook the plant material in an alkaline solution.

Washing soda is the most readily available alkali — you can find it in supermarkets. It’s not as pure as soda ash, which most papermakers use, so it might leave residue on paper or cause it to decay more quickly, but it’s less expensive and works for most plant fibers.

Supplies for cooking. Scissors; the alkali (20 percent of the dry fiber weight; 31⁄2 ounces of washing soda and 8 quarts of water per pound of dry fiber); a large, nonfood, nonreactive pot (stainless steel, glass, or enamel-coated); a scale; pot holders; nonfood, nonreactive stirring utensils; a mesh strainer; a bucket; and rubber gloves. For beating fiber, you’ll need a nonfood blender.

Safety notes. Besides using nonreactive utensils and pots, use separate papermaking pots and utensils, and, if possible, don’t work in the kitchen. You’ll want to work somewhere you can splash water and get water on the ground. Some plants might give off harmful vapors when cooking, so be sure you WWW.MOTHEREARTHNEWS.COM

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AFTER-SUN CARE

By Janice Cox

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pending the day outdoors on a sunny day is one of life’s greatest pleasures. Sunlight is necessary for healthy bodies and minds. It’s our main source of vitamin D, and it’s important for strong bones. Studies have also shown that sunlight is an instant mood booster and a cure for some types of depression.

Without proper care and protection, however, the sun can also cause aging of your skin, sunburn, and even skin cancer. Sun exposure can damage unprotected skin in as little as 15 minutes, and overexposure to the sun can also break down collagen — the protein that gives skin elasticity — making wrinkles and lines more apparent.

Avoid being outside in direct sunlight during the middle of the day, which is when the sun’s rays are strongest. A good way to test the sun’s strength is to check your shadow; if it’s larger than you are, then the sun isn’t directly overhead and you should be safe. If your shadow is smaller than you, then its rays are strong and you’ll want to be prepared with the right supplies, including sunscreen, a widebrimmed hat, and sunglasses.

for Skin and Hair After spending time in the sun, try these recipes for cooling masks, mists, bath soaks, gels, and more.

FROM LEFT: GETTY IMAGES (2) / PHOTOGRAPHEE.EU; WAND_PREPAN

After-Sun Rinse

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If you burn easily, this simple solution will help calm your sensitive skin. It contains 3 well-known sunburn soothers: witch hazel, baking soda, and lavender essential oil. Yield: 3½ ounces.

• 2 tbsp water • 1 tbsp witch hazel • ¼ cup baking soda • 1 to 2 drops lavender essential oil Directions: Mix together all ingredients to form a thin, milky solution.

Shake well before applications. To use, gently apply to your skin after a day in the sun and allow to dry. Reapply if necessary. You may also want to rinse your skin after coming back inside, as this lotion leaves a fine, powdery film on your skin as it dries.

Safe Sun

Here are some simple tips to keep in mind when you’re outdoors this summer.

• Don’t use exfoliation treatments, such as scrubs or dry brushing, before going out in the sun. These make your skin more sensitive.

• Some essential oils and medications will increase your sun sensitivity. If you have questions, consult your physician.

• Wear a hat with a 3-inch brim all around.

• Apply sunscreen 15 to 20 minutes before going out in the sun to allow the cream to bind to your skin and increase protection. Reapply frequently.

The sun can also be very drying to hair, so it’s always a good idea to cover your head with a hat or scarf when spending time outdoors. This is especially important if you dye your hair, because the sun can also lighten

Avocado HairConditioning Pack Fresh avocados are great for soothing dry, sun-damaged hair. They’re rich in natural oil, protein, B vitamins, and vitamin A. They contain more protein than any other fruit, and their abundant natural oil will coat your hair and form a protective barrier, keeping your hair well-hydrated, soft, and flexible. Yield: about 2 ounces.

• 1 ripe avocado, mashed • 2 tbsp sour cream or plain yogurt • Juice of ½ a lemon Directions: Use a fork or blender to combine all the ingredients until they form a smooth paste. To use, apply the entire mixture to dry hair and massage it into hair and scalp. Wrap your hair in a warm towel or put on a shower cap and leave the treatment on for 20 minutes. Rinse well with warm water, then shampoo as usual.

the color. Consider spreading a small amount of sunscreen on your hair for added protection, and don’t skip the areas where you part your hair or have a cowlick, as those spots burn easily.

Cooling Cinnamon Body Powder Use this fragrant, cooling powder after bathing. You can also sprinkle some over your bed sheets to soothe hot skin and help you sleep. Asian women have used ground rice as an ingredient in their cosmetic powders for years.

Rice flour contains gamma oryzanol, a UV-light-filtering ingredient.

The addition of cinnamon gives this cooling body powder a wonderful scent. Rice flour is available in many grocery and natural food stores.

Yield: about 4 ounces.

• ¼ cup rice flour • ¼ cup cornstarch • 1 tbsp ground cinnamon Directions: Mix all the ingredients until well-blended. Pour the mixture into a clean, dry container. To use, sprinkle the powder onto your skin or bed sheets.

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BEST ORGANIC FERTILIZERS

By Howard Garrett

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rganic growing techniques have been practiced for as long as humans have tilled the earth.

Only since World War II has agriculture become dependent upon toxic synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. These manmade chemicals temporarily increased the yield of many crops, but also increased the long-term cost of production, caused air and water pollution, changed soil structure, and jarred the entire ecosystem.

Organic fertilizers, whether they’re meals, manures, or composted plant material, contain N-P-K (nitrogen-

phosphorus-potassium), trace minerals, enzymes, vitamins, and lots of organic matter. Of those ingredients, 100 percent are useful to the soil and plants.

In contrast, synthetic fertilizers contain no organic matter. Soil microorganisms must have this carbon energy source, and, if it isn’t provided, the microbes will take it from the soil. That drains soil health with every fertilizer application.

Unlike synthetic fertilizers, organic fertilizers don’t create high levels of salts, such as nitrates, which disturb or even kill beneficial soil organisms. Organic fertilizers release nutrients slowly and naturally. All components are usable by the plants, because organic fertilizers

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don’t contain useless fillers as with synthetic fertilizers.

Feeding the soil and plants with nothing but N-P-K is like feeding your kids nothing but soda. Soil and people need a balance of nutrients. For some unknown reason, fertilizer recommendations continue to emphasize these three nutrients with special emphasis on high levels of nitrogen. Studies have shown that 80 percent or more of all synthetic nitrogen applied to the soil will be volatized or leached out, and the 10 to 20 percent that does reach the plant will be harmful. Other studies show that an excess of chemical fertilizer slows or even stops the activity of microflora and microfau-

FROM LEFT: GETTY IMAGES (3) / CJP, SASIMOTO, ZEROCATTLE; TERRY WILD STOCK

Feed your garden soil by choosing natural amendments that are rich in nutrients, minerals, and organic matter — not just nitrogen.

na, such as beneficial bacteria, From top: Bat guano has natural fungicidal qualities; earthworm algae, fungi, and other microcastings contain many trace organisms. Harsh fertilizers also minerals; and compost can easily be cause damage to macroorganmade from food scraps. isms, such as earthworms, millipedes, and centipedes, which are extremely important to the but good to mix with cottonnatural processes in the soil. seed meal.

The most important material Bone meal is a source of calin an organic program is organic cium and phosphorous recommatter that becomes humus durmended for bulbs, tomatoes, ing the decomposition process. and other vegetables. Rock phosHumus becomes humic acid, phate is better and cheaper. other beneficial acids, and minChelators are organic comeral nutrients. Organic fertilizers pounds with attached inorganic are better than artificial products metal molecules, which are more because they’re the derivatives of available for plant use. Chelated plants and animals and therefore iron and other chelated nutrients contain most or all the trace elare used when a direct dose of ements that exist in growing a particular nutrient is needed plants and animals. In addition, to quickly solve a deficiency. organic fertilizers are naturally Compost, humus, humic acid, slow-releasing and provide nuand microorganisms have natural trients to plants when they need chelating properties. it. Synthetic fertilizers glut the Coffee grounds. Apply old cofplants with nutrients immedifee or grounds directly to the soil ately after application, which is in beds or potted plants. Both are usually at the wrong time. acidic and loaded with nutrients, Here are my recommendations including N-P-K. for natural, organic fertilizers Compost is the best fertilto boost your garden’s producizer and is key to any organic tion and build soil health. The program. It’s high in nutrients, chart on Page 54 summarizes humus, humic acid, and microthe N-P-K ratio and the benefits organisms. Analysis will vary of most of these soil-boosting based on ingredients. The best amendments. composts are made from a variety Alfalfa meal provides many of local organic materials, such nutritional benefits for plant use as hay, sawdust, manure, leaves, and soil organisms. One very twigs, bark, wood chips, dead important ingredient is triaconplants, food scraps, pecan hulls, tanol, a powerful plant-growth regulaBest to apply once or twice during the and grass clippings. tor. Alfalfa is very high in vitamins, plus growing season. Be careful not to overCorn gluten meal is a natural weedN-P-K, calcium, magnesium, and other use, because it contains up to 10 perand-feed fertilizer. Broadcast in spring valuable minerals; sugars and starches; cent nitrogen. to prevent crabgrass and other annual proteins; fiber; and 16 amino acids. Use Blood meal is an organic source of weeds. For cool-season or winter weeds, at 10 to 20 pounds per 1,000 square nitrogen and phosphorous. Expensive, broadcast again in fall at 15 to 20 pounds feet. See recipe at right for makper 1,000 square feet for the ing alfalfa tea with alfalfa meal. control of henbit, dandelions, Alfalfa Tea Recipe Bat guano is a natural allannual bluegrass, and more.

Put 1 cup alfalfa meal into a 5-gallon bucket, fill bucket purpose fertilizer containing Make sure the product you buy with water, and let it sit overnight. Apply this thick tea nitrogen and lots of trace elcontains 60 percent protein. generously to the root area of shrubs and flowers, or use as ements. It has natural fungiCornmeal functions as natua foliar spray after straining away the solids. Use it quickly cidal qualities and almost no ral fungal-disease control when because this mixture gets stinky if it sits around too long. chance of being contaminated used on soil or in bed preparawith pesticides or chemicals. tion. Apply at 10 to 20 pounds WWW.MOTHEREARTHNEWS.COM

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