Harvesting Potatoes

Harvesting Potatoes

and cooking potatoes too.

This week's video reflects back to the day we planted the potatoes (notice my son is planting them), we show the harvesting of the potatoes, demonstrate a recipe using our potatoes and enter some potatoes at the fair. See how things turned out. 

Recipe:
Roasted Rosemary Potatoes

5 pounds potatoes
1/4 cup olive oil
5-6 springs rosemary
garlic powder or granulated garlic
Kosher salt
black pepper

Preheat oven to 425º.
Pour oil into a 10"x 13" pan.
Wash potatoes and slice them into bite-sized pieces. Add them to the pan.
Pull the leaves off the rosemary stems and sprinkle them over the potatoes.
Sprinkle potatoes with kosher salt, pepper, and garlic.
Stir potatoes, making sure to coat all of them with oil.
Put the pan in the hot oven and cook for about 1 hour, or until potatoes are soft. Stir potatoes again before serving.

Potatoes are a high starch, cheap food. But, as far as I am concerned, they are essential on the homestead. A five pound bag of potatoes could cost as little as $1.69 (August 8-15, 2012; Albertson's Flyer; Price with Preferred Savings Card). The question is: Why would anyone in their right mind grow their own potatoes if you can buy 5 pounds for a buck-seventy? Heck, I may have only gotten 100-150 pounds of potatoes and will likely only eat 50 pounds during the season and from what I can preserve (some will suffer spoilage and some will be given away). That works out to about $85.00 for all that hard work in preparing the soil, planting, watering, weeding, harvesting and storage.

Rumors have it that potato farmers will not even eat their own potatoes (rumors; not validated (http://veggierevolution.blogspot.com/2010/10/experts-avoid-nonorganic-potatoes.html)). I wondered why. Here's a web site that may demonstrate some of the farming practices in growing and harvesting potatoes:

http://oregonstate.edu/potatoes/vine.htm 

I am not being critical only to the farmer; consumer responsibility comes into play here as well. Think about it: 5 pounds of potatoes for a dollar and sixty-nine cents. In the same ad where I discovered this deal on potatoes, Albertson's was offering 3-two liter bottles of soda for 4 bucks. Consumers are not willing to pay for good food. We want food that looks good and "seems" good and is CHEAP. After all, Endothall is an organic solid of white odorless crystals. If we don't know it's in there, then it can't hurt us, right? 

http://water.epa.gov/drink/contaminants/basicinformation/endothall.cfm
http://www.lclabs.com/MSDS/E-4505MSDS.php4

The problem for me is: In order to create a potato that is marketable to the general consumer, it must look a certain way, it must be a certain size, it can't have blemishes, it can't have protrusions and be grown together with other potatoes and the like. Farmers want to harvest potatoes on their schedule and beat the fall moisture that will cause all kinds of problems. So, they soak the potatoes in herbicides to kill off that which is above the ground.  

According to Dr. Holly Menninger, NY Invasive Species Research Institute (http://ccetompkins.org/environment/invasive-species/hydrilla-endothal-treatment-faq), "The use of any aquatic herbicide poses risks to non-target plants and aquatic organisms." She does throw a "but" in there, but (there's mine), that just does not sit well with me. I chose to grow my own. 

Links:



Hope you enjoyed the video.

Fermenting Pickles

Fermenting Pickles

How to Ferment Cucumbers

If you like dill pickles, you love this recipe. This episode of Back to the Homestead starts out with a short demo of what wild fires in Southwestern Idaho can look like...a small one...but nonetheless a wild fire (as seen from the homestead).

Then we discuss how to ferment cucumbers by using lacto fermentation. We'll take the fermentation process from harvesting from the garden to the week after the process has started and the taste test.

Recipe:

Small and medium cucumbers with no blemishes
Peppers (Mild, Medium or Hot)
Garlic
Dill (or Dill Seed)
Brine

Brine: 1 gallon of water to 12 tablespoons (not teaspoons) of sea salt (or kosher salt).

Processing and Cooking Beet Greens

Processing and Cooking Beet Greens
as well as battling squash bugs and a short garden update.





After the dust storm, we got busy catching and squishing squash bugs as well as harvesting from the garden. This week, we'll show you all how to process and cook beet greens.

Beet Greens are very low in Saturated Fat and Cholesterol (we make up for that in the bacon we add). It is also a good source of Protein, Folate, Pantothenic Acid, Phosphorus and Zinc, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin A (220% in only one cup of beet greens), Vitamin C (eat two cups and you'll get 120% of your daily minimum), Vitamin E, Vitamin K, Thiamin, Riboflavin, Vitamin B6, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Potassium, Copper and Manganese.

There's only about 40 calories in a cup of greens. If we throw in one ounce of bacon, we only add about 130 calories and a TON of flavor. If you add 1 tablespoon of olive oil, you'll add 120 calories. You'll save in saturated fat if you go the olive oil route.

There is no specific recipe:

Hand full of Chopped Beet Greens
Chopped Onions
Chopped Bell Peppers
Bacon (for the fat) Could use Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper to taste

ENJOY!

Links:

Quick Sauerkraut

Back to the Homestead - Quick Sauerkraut




Directly translated, Sauerkraut means "sour cabbage." Sauerkraut is finely shredded cabbage that has been fermented by various lactic acid bacteria, including Leuconostoc, Lactobacillus, and Pediococcus. It has a long shelf-life and a distinctive sour flavor, both of which result from the lactic acid that forms when the bacteria ferment the sugars in the cabbage. It is not to be confused with coleslaw, which consists of fresh cabbage and may receive an acidic taste from vinegar (so says Wikipedia).

Vitamin C in Sauerkraut: 100 Grams has 15mg
Vitamin C in Cabbage: 100 Grams has 37mg
Vitamin C in an Orange: 100 Grams has 53mg

Sauerkraut wonderful all by itself. I especially enjoy sauerkraut mixed up in salads and even cooked into other recipes (though the benefits of the homemade sauerkraut is lost during cooking).

Here is my recipie:

3 Tablespoons of Sea Salt to 5 Pounds of Cabbage.

In the video, I had 3 pounds of cabbage that I prepared. When considering 3 pounds is 60% of 5 pounds, we used 60% of the salt needed for 5 pounds of cabbage.

1 Tablespoon = 3 Teaspoons
3 Tablespoons = 9 Teaspoons

60% of 9 teaspoons is 5.4 teaspoons. We used 5 teaspoons because we were just shy of 3 pounds.

Links:

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sauerkraut
http://www.germanfoodguide.com/sauerkraut.cfm
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_much_vitamin_C_is_in_an_orange
http://cashsunshine.blogspot.com/2008/09/cabbage-rich-source-of-vitamins-and.html

Squash Bug Trap

Squash Bug Trap & Frost in June - Back to the Homestead

We are moving along. The bean and pea seeds that I replanted in the bare spots of the rows are starting to come back. I took your advice and held off on watering them for a while but nature keeps interfering with my plans (not complaining at all). It's strange how some plants need more water than others. They are greening up a bit but I am still keeping an eye on them.

This video has a kaleidoscope of topics: Frost, Green Beans, Rain, Wind, Squash Bugs, Duckweed and...well...there's got to be a topic or two that I could squeeze in there. We had a big storm come through the area and blew...well...like it blows in Idaho. There sure is no shortage of wind here in the potato state.

You'll see in this video:

1. Wind on the Homestead
2. Duckweed Update
3. Building a Squash Bug Trap
4. Frost in June

I have another experiment that I am going to try. Stink bugs and squash bugs look so much alike to me. I know they share some similarities. According to http://bugguide.net/node/view/182:

The stink bug's classification is as follows:

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Hemiptera (True Bugs, Cicadas, Hoppers, Aphids and Allies)

Suborder Heteroptera (True Bugs)

Superfamily Pentatomoidea

Family Pentatomidae (Stink Bugs)

The squash bug's classification is as follows:

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Hemiptera (True Bugs, Cicadas, Hoppers, Aphids and Allies)

Suborder Heteroptera (True Bugs)

Superfamily Coreoidea

Family Coreidae (Leaf-footed Bugs)

Subfamily Coreinae

Tribe Coreini

Genus Anasa (Squash Bugs)

They follow the same classification all the way down to the Suborder. They are "True Bugs." Nope, and I don't know if there is a "fake bug" out there. Anyway, it makes sense that they will follow some sort of pattern that are similar. Hopefully they both like a bright light at night.

In this week's video, I demonstrate setting up the squash bug trap. I will check it every day until I start getting some bugs in the trap (or not) and let you know how it turns out on subsequent videos.

Here's a link to the video where I got the idea: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKc5acECuQk

Lastly, I have a video I uploaded called, "Video Response to Strong Points during SHTF or DHTO - Back to the Homestead." I was tagged in a video and posted my response...



Enjoy!

Worms On The Homestead

Worms On The Homestead
Making a Worm Bin

Part 1:2


This video is part 1 of 2. On the first video, we visit a potato beetle and learn about putting together a worm bin. What can worms do for your homestead? EVERYTHING!

Uses for worms:

1. Castings for the garden
2. Composting table scraps
3. Chicken food
4. Fish food
5. To go fishing with
6. Aerate the garden
7. Gross out others who are squeamish over worms

Here are the supplies you will need for making this worm bin out of a 55 gallon drum

1. 55 gallon drum
2. Natural Aire Filter (Aire is the name of the filter)
3. 2" Round PVC pipe (about a 5 foot section)
4. 2" PVC pipe cap
5. Two 3/4" water hose repair end (the male ends)
6. 2" pipe coupling
7. 2" to 3/4" PVC pipe threaded reducer (threaded on the female 3/4" end
8. 2 or 3 tarp clamps
9. 5 Teflon or plastic bolts and nuts
10. 36" screen
11. 3/4" Drain Hose
12. Water hose cap end

Making a Worm Tower

Part 2:2


Here are the supplies you will need for making a couple of worm towers:

1. 5' section of 4" PVC pipe
2. Two 4" PVC Caps

Yep, that's all you will need.

I didn't put a list of tools on either of the lists. I don't have a wide assortment of tools and don't know your tool situation. You'll make due with what you have. We're homesteaders; we always make due.

Here are so links to some great resources. If you want my opinion; Worms Eat My Garbage is the bible of worm composting:

Contemplating Permaculture

Contemplating Permaculture

This week we talk about permaculture, tomato watering and Memorial Day.

"Permaculture is a branch of ecological design and ecological engineering which develops sustainable human settlements and self-maintained agricultural systems modeled from natural ecosystems." Well, so says Wikipedia. Basically, I understand permaculture as being a landscape, big or small, that is a "wind-up-and-go" ego system. You wind it up and let it go for a time before it need a little more winding. There may be some directional changes, but for the most part, once it's established, it will go and go for generations (if not forever).

Lately, I have been listening and reading about  preparing for a "time of need." What if we can not get down to the store and get seeds and seedlings? What if there is no place to get seeds or seedlings anywhere? What will we do? If there ever comes a time where we can't get seeds or seedlings, then the grocery stores will be void of produce as well. Sure, you could get a seed bank from some manufacturer but who's going to be around to complain if you ever have to actually use the seed bank if none of the seeds spout?? Practice makes perfect (that's a whole other show topic).

We have two options: 1. Save seeds and 2. Establish an ego system that is self sustaining and required much less human intervention.

Saving Seeds

I have always wanted to do more seed saving but never have. Maybe it's because I have no knowledge base for the skill. That's the root cause. I know why I have never saved seeds: FEAR. I have the fear that I will go through all the trouble of saving seeds, storing the seeds and planting the seeds only to find that NOTHING HAS GERMINATED and I have a garden void of produce.

However, I must have forgotten my motto: "If someone else can do it, so can I!" So, recently I have noticed a few things happening around the homestead that has impressed me and got me to thinking (dangerous I know). Seedlings are popping up all over the place from last year's garden. If after two tillings and pilling up of the soil in mounded rows seeds from Swiss Chard and Tomatoes are coming up, then maybe I can do this seed saving thing and save some money. Likewise, seeds that come from plants on the homestead here will make better plants next year here on the homestead and get stronger each year subsequently.

Permaculture

My homestead is not so far from a permaculture system as I think. The rows are absent of permaculture as are the beds that the tomatoes and squash are planted in. Here's what I think I will dream of and learn about: What if there could be created a system where plants are gown in areas (bed-like areas) with other plants that do well growing together (like tomatoes and carrots)? Each year, the plants are allowed to grow, offer their harvest (though not completely harvested), and die naturally. Seeds are saved. Around the time where seeds will be started on the inside, the saved seeds are planted in the protection of indoors or a greenhouse. Then, after the season begins and the volunteers are starting to break ground, an inventory is taken and the seedlings are reinforced with seedlings we grew indoors or in the greenhouse.

We could create a food forest where veggies are gown under the bows of the trees like spinach, greens and kale. Heck, we may even let the dandelions grow a bit. If we notice too many grasshoppers or slugs, we'll change our paradigm and see too many of these critters as an ego system lacking ducks or turkeys. Hummmm???

Anyway, I have just been doing some thinking and reading and studying and dreaming. We'll keep you up to date with the goings on around here on the Walker Homestead. In the mean time, here are a few links that will help:

Black Solider Fly Harvesting:

http://blacksoldierflyblog.com/

This link is where I got the idea for the Black Solder Fly harvester bucket. This is a GREAT site and FULL of information.

Tomato Watering With PVC:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UUbfpkNEslw

This is by a fellow named Donald. You should check out his channel (but don't forget about us here).

This link is one that will get the gears in your head turning all over the place!!!

http://permaculture.org.au/

Finally, here are some other links that you'll find helpful: