Why buying a home with room to garden is so important

By Ryan Martin

Buying a home is an exciting process, with the opportunity to explore a variety of different environments in a quest to find that perfect space to call your own. When looking for your new home, it’s important to make sure that you’ve got plenty of room for gardening. Modernize knows you’ll be glad that you put gardening on the front burner during the home purchase process—here’s why:

Save Some Money

One of the best reasons to buy a home with room to garden is that you’ll save lots of money on food throughout the year. Even if you grow your own herbs, tomatoes, and greens, you’ll likely save a noticeable amount on your grocery bills. But with room to garden at your own home, you can go a step further and raise some chickens for fresh eggs on a regular basis.

The chickens will pay their rent by providing free fertilizer and keeping intrusive bugs to a minimum both in your garden and around your home. You’ll likely find that chickens are a joy to hang around and will help keep your stress levels in check, as vegetable farming does. In the end, the money you spend on farming and gardening is sure to pay off with money saved on food, health expenses, and lifestyle costs overall.

Decrease Your Carbon Footprint

By making sure that your new home has room for gardening, you’ll reduce your household’s overall carbon footprint as time goes on by minimizing your CO2 emissions and your need for the overall resources, such as gas and pesticides, that go into producing the foods you would normally buy at the store if you weren’t able to produce them at home. The closer your food is grown to your home, the less water, soil, and other resources you contribute to the need for—so kudos for gardening and keeping chickens on your new property!

Become an Inspirational Role Model

A fun benefit of buying a home with plenty of room to garden is that you get to become a positive role model for your family, friends, and even neighbors throughout your community. You can teach others how easy it is to grow tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, pumpkins, sunflowers, lettuce, and even potatoes—as well as care for chickens in a way that is beneficial for everyone involved. Sharing gardening and farming tips with neighbors is a great way to build camaraderie as the newcomer, so enjoy the opportunity.

You’ll love the closer relationship you are sure to experience when spending time in your home garden. You can expect less stress, increased fitness levels, and a healthier lifestyle overall.

What animals are the best range buddies for your chickens?

By Liz Greene

You’ve had your chickens for a while, you’re comfortable with their care and upkeep, and you’re thinking about expanding your little to farm to include some more critters — but you’re a tad short on ranging space. The solution, of course, is to range your new animals with the chickens. However, some creatures share space with chickens better than others, so it’s important to pick the right range mates for your flock.

Horses

Horses and chickens are a match made in heaven. Chickens provide a number of horsekeeping benefits. They pick up fallen kernels and pellets, keeping your horse from mouthing the ground to find bits of feed — a practice that can lead to ingestion of dirt and sand. Chickens also eat undigested feed and seeds that pass through manure, thus saving money by reducing feed waste.

Chickens eat flies, worms, grubs, bees, and all other manner of bugs. If they can catch it, they’ll eat it — which means it won’t be aggravating you or your horse. Furthermore, chickens love digging through manure to find worms and other tasties. Give them a pile of horse droppings and they’ll have the manure broken down and spread around in no time.

Chickens are surprisingly good for mellowing out a spooky horse. A horse with exposure to poultry won’t be startled by sudden movements, loud noises, or the occasional appearance of an egg.

It’s important not to let chickens graze with horses that have been given chemical de-wormers or any medication. It’s also necessary to keep chickens out of the horses’ hay due to salmonella concerns.

Goats and sheep

Goats and sheep are a popular choice for small farms and homesteads. You can allow goats, sheep, and chickens to range together with few problems. Just as with horses, chickens will pick up grain the goats and sheep drop, cutting down on food waste. They’ll be just as happy to eat the bugs that plague your hooved beasties. As an added benefit, chickens will provide companionship to the sheep and goats — and vice versa!

Guinea Fowl

Guinea fowl are the most compatible birds to keep with chickens, but they can be bullies. Most of the time it’s little things, like pushing hens off roosts and scattering the flock; however, if they pick a favorite mark, they can be relentless in their pursuit of a victim.

If you plan to keep both chickens and guineas on your farm, make sure to give them extra space to range. While some people house the birds together, it’s probably better to give the guineas their own quarters to avoid problems.

Fencing

No matter what animals you decide to keep with your chickens, it’s important to install proper fencing. The right kind of fence will keep your critters from making a run for it, and thwart the plans of stealthy predators.

If your horses and chickens are ranging together, wire mesh fencing is perfect for restraining everyone. If you’re keeping chickens and goats together, goat panels with four inch openings should work well to keep everyone contained.

However, one of the best ways to stop predators is electric fencing. To deter wolves and coyotes, fences should have seven wires, spaced equally six to eight inches apart to a height of 54 inches.

The most important wire will be the ground wire, which should be placed four to six inches from the ground to keep predators from digging under — and to keep chickens from simply waltzing out.

A Note on Chicken Feed

Chicken feed contains a high level of protein and carbohydrates that can be dangerous to most large animals. Horses and goats are particularly sensitive to chicken feed as eating too much of it can cause bloating and death.

Arrange for your chickens to be fed inside the coop and make sure there is absolutely no way the other animals can get inside. Remember that goats are very clever and persistent at getting to what they want. They may climb through coop windows and will try to squeeze through any door.

Adding more animals to your farm will require more work, but you’ll find that you love them just as much as you love your feathered friends. And besides, watching them interact with each other will be almost as much a reward as the other benefits of animal husbandry.

Liz Greene hails from the beautiful city of trees, Boise, Idaho. She’s a lover of all things geek and is happiest when cuddling with her dogs and catching up on the latest Marvel movies. You can follow her on Twitter @LizVGreene or delve deeper into her internal musings at InstantLo

Do a Good Turn

Its that time of year when your garden is thriving, ripe tomatoes on every vine, summer squash literally doubling in size daily and fresh backyard food for every meal.  Do you find that after eating all you could possibly want and preserving your favorites that you still have a lot left over?

So far this week I've picked over 20 cucumbers. After squash bores destroyed our plants last year we decided to grow a lot more cucumbers in hopes of more survivors.  Only problem is we are now getting 10-15 lbs of cucumbers a week and we don't like pickles. My personal limit for cucumber consumption is one or maybe two a day if I eat only salad with lunch and dinner.  

In January I heard on All Things Considered about a major problem with food banks, getting nutritious quality food http://www.npr.org/2011/01/13/132864584/high-demand-nutritional-dilemma-vex-food-banks.  With unemployment still high nation wide there is a lot of need.  Food banks get lots of non-perishable canned and refined foods but frequently lack a variety of fresh vegetables and fruit due to high cost and short shelf life.   

Rather than unloading your extra on neighbors and friends please make a regular commitment to deliver your plenty to your local food bank that others might also be blessed by your farm.

 

~Allen Johnson

Array of benefits make growing produce at home popular

by Ryan Halston - Guest Writer

Making the choice to grow your own crops, fruits and vegetables is a decision that’s seemed to become more popular along with the “going green” movement. The shift towards being more holistic and putting control over consumption into your own hands has seemed to taken place in the past decade or so. Even if you haven’t made the switch to growing some of your own crops at home, there are a number of benefits that could help to sway the decision. 

Price is often the number one reason that people decide to make the switch to gardening crops and food at home. For example, one packet of seeds is generally less than a grown fruit or vegetable. Sometimes, the price of a pack of fruit or vegetable seeds can be less than the price of one or two of the actual food. For the money that’s being put towards fruit and veggies, there is a lot more bang for the buck in growing at home. 

The affect that growing your own food at home can have on health is excellent. When you grow your own food at home, you can control the use of chemicals that are sometimes rampant on food. There have been instances of pesticide, bisphenol A, melamine, and even asbestos exposure in some cases. Growing your own food at home allows you to oversee any pesticides or problems that may occur with the crops, keeping any possible health risks to a minimum. 

The taste and enjoyment of growing your own food is another major benefit of investing in your own gardening practices at home. Taking out any type of delivery and shopping system, growing food at home allows for the highest amount of freshness within the food. Instead of being picked and stored for weeks, then put on a shelf at the grocery store, the fruit or veggie can simply be picked whenever you feel necessary. 

A simple first step of growing a few small items like berry plants or fruit trees can be a great help. These types of plants will live for a long period of time, grow, and keep producing. This is not a project that has to skyrocket overnight, as a garden can be built up through time as you become more comfortable with growing produce. Luckily, with the influx of people trying out their own gardening and produce at home, there are a number of outstanding resources out there to help guide any newcomers in growing their own produce. 

My Square Foot Gardens

By Von Christensen- Guest Writer and Avid Gardner

I created two new Square Foot Gardens this year, 2011.  My first two sections of the gardens are with treated wood and/or seasoned wood.  The completed garden box is approximately 35 inches tall and 4’ x 4’.  I placed weed cloth over the grass, and then added large rocks for about 26” and a layer of sand, another layer of weed cloth and about 9 inches of my special soil (a third part compost, third part of vermiculite and third part of peat moss).  I divided my garden into squares and planted.

My front garden is planted with eight squares of bush beans (half yellow and half green).  I can plant nine seeds per square; thus 72 plants.  I planted one square with carrots, 16 plants.  I planted one square of swiss chard, 4 plants; one square of cucumbers; and 5 squares of potatoes or 20 plants.  So my front garden contains 113 plants.  I will water with a drip system (when it quits raining).

Planting potatoes in my garden is interesting.  I dig a hole in my square and take almost all the soil out.  I then place four cut potatoes with their eyes pointing to the sky and cover with just enough dirt.  When their leaves start to show through the soil, I cover them again with my soil.  This process is continued over the next few days until the square is completely filled again.  I do this because the potatoes will grow up along the stem and I can then “pick” the potatoes instead of  “dig” them as is done in regular dirt gardening.  I also plant baskets and tubs with potatoes and use this same process.

In my back SFG I created a mini greenhouse.  My soil doesn’t come to the top of the garden so my plants are about 15” from the top.  Next I planted my tomatoes and put cages over them and secured the cages with rebar on the outside of my gardens.  Because of the rain and colder weather we are having I put heavy clear plastic over the cages, thus creating a greenhouse to keep my plants warmer at night and let what sunshine there is to come in during the day.  When it gets hotter and stops raining, then I will remove the plastic and off they will grow.

I planted six tomato plants (I always purchase tomato plants from Costco as they are healthy and large); one bush cucumber, two pepper plants.  I still have 7 more squares to plant.

I  also planted potatoes in two large 5 gallon pots placed in the flower garden out back and a half wooden barrel.  I can gather the potatoes with my hands rather than dig them out in the fall.

I plan to use this greenhouse method in the fall to create a longer growing season.  With the plastic on during the day (temps not higher than 70 degrees) I will be able to create my greenhouse effect.

By Von Christensen- Guest Writer

Dryer Sachets-DIY

My good friend Holly from Spotted Owl Soap is our guest writer today.

If you've ever wondered what to do with your leftover herbs at the end of the season, you're not alone. Every year I'm faced with a glut of mint, lavender, rosemary, sage and more. Some of it I freeze to use in the kitchen throughout the winter, but usually I can barely make a dent before spring comes around again. If you're faced with a surplus of flowers and herbs you hate to see shrivel with the first frost, here is an idea to enjoy summer's fragrant bounty indoors, all winter long.

Homemade laundry detergent has been gaining popularity with frugal families everywhere and homemade dryer sachets are a perfect compliment. They are also an excellent idea for anyone with perfume sensitivities or allergies. Best of all, they are reusable, natural, and easy to make.

Start with dried flowers or herbs of your choice. I like Lavender because it grows well in my area and the scent is a personal favorite. Other herbs and plant parts that work well with lavender are mint, citrus (dried rind or lemongrass) and rosemary as well as most common flowers. Be creative and use favorites that grow plentifully in your area. Nearly anything that works in potpourri will work in a dryer sachet.

An average sachet contains 1-2 cups of dried herbs. You can use a variety of pouches from sewn fabric cases to pre-made muslin baggies to heat sealable tea bags* - even an old sock with a knot will work as long as it is free of holes.

If you keep essential oils in the house, you may add a few drops of complimentary scent to your herb blend. Be aware that adding flammable oils to a hot dryer could be dangerous, so proceed sparingly and with caution. Steer clear of synthetic fragrance oils which are often more volatile.

Seal or tie the sachet container shut and pop it in the dryer with moist clothes. The sachet can be reused many times. For lavender sachets, it helps to squeeze the bag between dryer loads. This frees up more of the fragrant oils inside the buds.

If you've already taken the "green initiative" and started venting your dryer inside your home**, you'll enjoy the added benefit of a natural air freshener.

Once dryer sachets are exhausted, they can be placed in dresser drawers for a light fragrance.

Dryer and drawer sachets make great gifts for anyone with sensitive skin, new babies or perfume allergies. Lavender is simple to grow in many climates and the sachets are very inexpensive to make - mine cost just pennies. It's not uncommon to see these sachets in stores for $12 each.

(example: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001G7PZ1U/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_1?pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B0007YS8VW&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=12MHQRQH5RMWSBHEYZNC)

* Heat sealable bags and muslin bags are available from herb and spice suppliers such as San Francisco Herb (sfherb.com). For those who can't grow lavender, it can be purchased in bulk from the same company - around $10 a pound (20 sachets).

**http://www.brighthub.com/environment/green-living/articles/14901.aspx

Eat the Season Friday

Thanks Kristi for guest writing our "Eat the Season" this week!


Dehydrated Apples


PREPARATION

Peel and core, cut into slices or rings one-eighth to one-quarter inch thick. Peelings may be left on, however they tend to toughen during dehydration.

Fruits that are to be dehydrated are pretreated to prevent discoloration by oxidation, to keep a fresher color, to have a more pliable texture, and to help retain vitamin A and C.

Each of the following pretreatments perform a useful part of the dehydrating process and each has merit. Personal preference should be your guide.

Sodium Bisulfite:
Dissolve 2 teaspoons of sodium bisulfite in one quart of water and add cut fruit. Slices of fruit should be soaked for no more than 10 minutes. Drain and dehydrate. (CAUTION: Sodium Bisulfite can affect anyone with asthma, allergies or other respiratory problems.)

Ascorbic Acid:
Dissolve one tablespoon of pure crystalline ascorbic acid in one quart of cold water. Add cut fruit and soak for a few minutes; remove with a slotted spoon; drain well and dehydrate.

Lemon Juice:
Use one cup lemon juice to one quart water. Soak the fruit for no more than ten minutes. Drain and dehydrate. (Lemon juice is only one-sixth as effective as ascorbic acid.)

NOTE: After pretreating, the apple slices may be sprinkled with cinnamon or flavored gelatin crystals.

DRYING METHODS

Sun Drying.
This method takes 3-4 hot days (98-100 degrees F). Be sure to cover fruit with screen or cheese cloth to keep away insects. Bring in or cover at night to keep moisture from collecting. To "pasteurize" sun dried fruit in order to prevent contamination from insects, freeze for 28-72 hours.

Oven Drying.
This is generally the fastest method. The temperature should be no higher than 140 degrees, leave the door ajar; place a fan so it blows across the opening and carries the moisture away.

Dehydrator Method. The temperature should be 150 degrees for 2-3 hours, then reduce to 130 degrees until dry.

Fruit is dry when it is soft and pliable with no moist area in the center when cut.

From: http://www.seasonalchef.com/appledehyd.htm








Beef & Sausage Pot Pie (You can also use chicken)


2 cans Cream of Mushroom or Cream of Chicken (10.5 oz)
1/4 cup Water
1 pound ground beef
1 pound sausage (or use 1-2 pounds diced chicken)
1-2 scallions or very small onions (optional)

Options for veggies
Corn
Green Beans
Carrots
Potatoes
Peas
Spinach (diced really small)
Lima Beans
Or anything else that sounds good to you
Salt and Pepper to taste

Topping
Mix 4 servings worth of Bisquick with 1/4 less cup water than the recipe calls for. (You could also use your favorite biscuit recipe instead. Buttermilk biscuits are also really good.

Brown meat that you are using (Beef & Sausage or Chicken). If you like onions and 1-2 scallions or small onions. Mix meat with Cream of mushroom or chicken.
When adding veggies, things like green beans, lima beans, carrots, and potatoes need to be precooked. Cook them until they are almost as soft as you would normally eat them. If you cook them until they are "done," they will be mush by the time you cook the whole pot pie. Mix veggies with meat mixture and put in the bottom of a pan or dish. Mix Topping and spread evenly over filling.

Cook for about 45 minutes (or until top is golden brown)

Hint* Most times I will only put on half the topping, cook it until that is done, and then add another layer of topping. This makes a thick crust and ensures that it is not still gooey in the middle.

Herb Drying

My husband does all the gardening – EXCEPT for the herb garden. The herbs are in scalloped lined sections in an 8 foot square of our back yard garden. In it, I have fennel, chives, lemon balm, oregano, cilantro, sage, two kinds of thyme, basil, peppermint, chocolate mint, rosemary, and this year I tried Sweet Woodruff until I read about it. It is toxic, except in small quantities in wine. I immediately moved it to another part of the garden as it is a lovely looking plant.

I have experimented with several ways of harvesting and storing and using the herbs. Once the herbs are in containers in the cupboard, they are easy to use. But getting them there is a bit more complicated than I thought it would be. However, it is so fun working with the aromatic herbs that I don’t mind the time it takes.

This year I established what I think will be an ongoing routine in harvesting the herbs. I cut the herbs, rinse them well and put them in a strainer where I can shake them or pat them dry. Then I move them to the drying screen I made.

The screen is made from a piece of nylon screen my husband bought that would generally replace a torn screen in a screen door. I taped the edge of the screen all the way around with black duct tape folded in half with the screen edge inside the folded tape. This makes for easy handling without snagging the edges. Next I folded the screen in half width wise. It is now a folded screen about 4 x 5’ feet in size. I then taped the folded edge as I did the outside edge of the screen, which becomes a permanent fold..

I lay my folded screen on a table or on the grass in the sun. Bugs and stray bits of dirt and leaves will not get inside the screen. The herbs go between the screens spread out in piles. Each pile is marked with a marker showing the name of the herb (unless I know I can recognize it when it dries) if there is more than one kind of herb on the screen drying. I clip each corner of the screen with a large metal black clip, but any clip will do. Weights can be attached to the metal clips on the corners if a breeze comes up. Also, I can clip the edges between the corners together with clothespins in a breeze.

I have even been known to move the screen into the garage, onto the patio, or wherever, if a storm threatens. Between drying, I store the markers, clips, screen, etc. in a Christmas wrapping paper box in the garage.

After a day or two, when the herbs are completely dry, I crush the leaves of each individual batch of herbs into a dish, and discard the stems. I then store them in the plastic, amber pill bottles you can get inexpensively from a pharmacy. I have several sizes as some herbs are more prolific than others. Another way I store them is in zip loc bags if necessary.

The only herb I prepare before it dries is chives. I cut those into small snippets before drying in a bowl or cookie sheet.

Of course, fresh herbs are the best. But dried herbs are great too. Also, fresh herbs can be frozen in ice cubes, stored in plastic bags in the freezer, and then added to soups and casseroles all year long.

I would like to experiment with herbs in teas. Anyone have suggestions? Also, suggest other herbs with which you have been successful.

~Carolyn Christensen

Flowering Forebears

In the late 1920's, my grandparents, Carl and Gerda Johnson realized their dream, bought a farm in Shelley, Idaho and built a home about a mile east of the city. Gerda loved flowers and proceeded to plant some of her favorites as soon as the house was built. The descendants of those flowers are still growing in my garden in Sandy, Utah. One is a purple columbine, and the other we called "bluebells". It is fun to see these flowers come back each year in my garden, as they have been doing for 90 years. It is a living tie to my grandmother Gerda Hanson Johnson.

~Carolyn Christensen

Herb Hungry? Have some Ideas

This article was written by my (Marisa) Aunt Carolyn, she has the most amazing herb garden. Michael and I love to walk around her backyard and touch and smell all the different herbs.

Flavors for Vinegars:

White wine vinegar & rosemary, raisins, orange peel, garlic

Red wine vinegar & sage, parsley, shallots or chives

Cider vinegar & chilies, garlic, oregano

Rice vinegar & Coriander Leaf (cilantro) and garlic

White wine vinegar & fennel, garlic, parsley

Herb Butters

Mind and Dill

Lemon balm or verbena and grated orange peel

Basil, oregano, thyme and pureed shr8imp

Marjoram and garlic

Garlic, sesame seeds (or oil) and chives

Flavored Oils:

Olive Oil & garlic, oregano, thyme

Sunflower Oil & dill & garlic

Olive oil & basil, chili, garlic

Walnut oil & lemon verbena or balm, lemon type

Combinations of Herbs for Freezing or Drying Together

Coriander leaf and chilies

Chives and dill weed

Dill, mint, parsley

Oregano, thyme and parsley

Save, thyme, chives

Lemon verbena (or balm) and tarragon

Mint, lemon balm and dill

Oregano, basil and Thyme

Maximizing the Flavor of Herbs

To develop the flavor for dried herbs, soak them for several minutes in a liquid that can be used in the recipe – stock, oil, lemon juice, or vinegar

When using herbs in salad dressings, allow the flavor of the combination to develop by soaking for 15 minutes to an hour

Work the flavors of herbs into meat, poultry and fish by rubbing them in with your hands before cooking

For steamed or boiled vegetables, add the herbs to melted butter (or olive oil) and allow to stand for 10 minutes before seasoning the vegetables with it.

To intensify the flavors of whole spices, toast them briefly in a dry, heavy skillet before using.

Dried and fresh herbs may be used interchangeably in most recipes. Use three to five times more fresh herbs than dried, depending on the strength of the herb.

Featuring: Coriander (Cilantro)

Did you know that coriander and cilantro are the same plant. Usually, when the seeds are used, or the leaves are dried, it goes by the name of Coriander. When used fresh, we know it as Cilantro.

In the Arabian fantasy, The Thousand and One Nights, Coriander is referred to as an aphrodisiac.

Chewing the seeds of Coriander can calm an upset stomach.

In all probability, the herb came into use by the ancient Hebrews, who made it one of the bitter bergs involved in the ritual of Passover.

Seeds of the coriander have been found among the funeral offerings in ancient Egyptian tombs.

Coriander leaves have a bold taste that combines a strong sage flavor with sharp citrus notes.

Recipe that includes Coriander (Cilantro):

Cowboy Caviar

1 can black-eyed peas drained

1 can shoe peg or regular corn drained

3 roma tomatoes (seeded and chopped finely)

3-4 green onions chopped finely

½ - 1 cucumber chopped finely

3-5 T. chopped Cilantro

4-5 oz. Kraft (light or fat free) Zesty Italian Dressing

Optional: Chopped Avocado

Serve with: Tortilla Scoops or Chips