The iconic Saturday Evening Post does a feature on the Urban Homestead!

If Norman Rockwell were alive today, wonder what his artistic rendering of an urban homesteader would be?  That would have been somethin’

Urban Homesteads and Hope

By Jen Stewart

The concept of “urban homesteads” are gaining popularity in recent years. To put it simply, modern-day pioneers who practice this environmentally conscience style of living live as self-sufficiently as possible to protect the earth.

They live in the midst of all of the modern day amenities, but choose not to participate in them, or at least as little as possible. They practice gardening and grow most, if not all of their own foods. They keep animals to give them milk and eggs. Some even convert their vehicles to diesel engines and brew their own bio-diesel fuels.

In an effort to unearth the appeal of urban homesteads, we caught up with the founder of the Urban Homestead movement, Jules Dervaes. We were reminded of a very important message: Each and every one of us can help make one aspect of our life more earth-friendly with minimal effort. All it takes is the decision to make a difference!

Read full article/interview - click here!

Keeping records really helps you to see where you’ve been and where you want to go.  “Keeping track” is a must for any urban homesteader when it comes to what/how much we use, what we grow, how it’s grown, etc, etc.

Besides stats, Farmer Justin has over a dozen “black books” detailing what he’s planted, when, watering schedule and even when/how he fertilizes.  Not only that, but every month we print up a schematic of the garden with each raised bed and other planting areas identified by number. Based on that garden diagram, Farmer Justin systematically writes down what was grown in each bed. That way he has an idea from year to year what was planted, which helps us maintain a successful crop rotation.

For Farmer D’s recent presentation at the recent EcoFarm Conference, we really had to update our graphs and stats.  The last records that were published here on the website went from 2001-2004.  The question was, ” How well are we doing - now, have we gotten better?” The problem was nobody had the time to sit and do paper work, but the recent presentation helped spur us to action.

So, thanks to the Eco Farm presentation, we finally sat down and went through all the notebooks and bills, and we’ve put together stats that are up to date (2001-2009) WOOT!

Where We’ve Been, Where We are Going

Though the site is still a work-in-progress, Jordanne has published the graphs here for your viewing pleasure.

Check them out here where it says URBAN HOMESTEAD CHARTS & FIGURES

One of the real shockers came when we saw that we have, in the last few years, cut our water bill in half while maintaining our high harvest yields.   With an eclectic combination of reclaiming water, using ollas, polyculture and continuous mulching, we hope to continue slashing our water use!

Keeping track helps keep us on the right track!

And with any urban homestead one needs to see how well your project coming along from year to year.  Record keeping is all about comparing you with you.  Records tell you if you doing or did things right or wrong.  Urban homesteading is like a life-school and although actual grades may not be important the fact of improving your skills is!  And of those skills is documenting your journey.

We actually can do better in our documentation - yeah really!  Like how many cans of something we preserve/put up a year, how much do we spend on clothing or personal items, how much are actually saving by growing 95% of our produce etc, etc.

Putting a pen to it, things really start to add (or subtract) up! Oh and it should be fun too.   Just like in baseball, with every swing the batter tries to improve his average and so it is with urban homesteading with every step we try to improve/lighten our footprint and you can’t know where you are going or how far you’ve come unless you’ve marked where you’ve been.

Keeping Track of Tracks

Have you started keeping track of your tracks in aspects of transforming your home into an homestead and your sustainable journey.  Has it been helpful and what records are you keeping?

Care to share your record keeping experience?

She’s doing well.  Slowly, oh so slowly, improving.   Thanks to concern and feedback from one of our readers after I wrote her describing Amy’s present symptoms, we’ve both come to the conclusion that she could be very well suffering from a very, very bad pinched/pulled nerve.

You can read about it here, here and here

Though we are not sure if she’ll ever fully recover, we can hardly believe that she’s gone from looking like this (extreme shock)

to this

She’s one tough cookie!  We are continuing her massage, supplements and water treatments - so far so good.

This week Jordanne spotted her resting/balancing on one leg (that’s awesome) and she seems to be holding her neck slightly higher.  She’s even growing her tail feathers back (she had worn them away during her weeks and weeks of balancing spasms)

We learned a lot about the resilience of animals and ourselves thru this ordeal. (Read this entry about learning to rely on yourselves when it comes to treating your own animals)

When you bring living animals onto your urban homestead, they become part of you “Extended Family” and being in the city sometimes you are the only ones they can rely on when the get sick or injured and that’s a huge responsibility.

Our advice to folks is do your research first.  Besides learning all their is about housing and feed, learn about spotting/diagnosing and treating problems/illness/disease.  To often when we give our animals  to “experts” to deal with.  But when it comes to urban homestead you will have to ask yourself the question “can I do it myself”  The animal’s welfare is in your hands along with a responsibility to care and treat them.

You’ll win some and you’ll lose some, it comes with the territory.

It was a traumatic time for us all,and thanks to all those of you who told us you cared.

Organic matter is known as the “soul of a healthy soil.”

Adding compost to your yard or garden soil will help your plants grow bigger and healthier. The organic matter in compost helps soil hold on to nutrients and water.

Composting saves you money

Using compost as a soil conditioner or mulch reduces your need to purchase these lawn and garden products.

Composting is practical and convenient

No need to bother bagging leaves and other garden/yard wastes. Simply add them to your backyard bin and watch these items turn into rich dark humus.

Composting is a good alternative to landfilling or incinerating

Yard and garden wastes account for almost 20% of the total amount of trash thrown every year.

Here on the urban homestead we are striving to become self sufficient and reliant.  One aspect in that is growing our own soil.  Thanks to a couple million (worms), a menagerie of barnyard critters, and religious composting efforts we are able to produce enough soil to replenish each year.

I’ve published many a post on this very subject

Check out

Back to the Earth

and

Growing Tips

There’s probably more!

We contribute much of our success and the “superior” taste of our produce to our soil.  As Farmer D likes to say soil is not just something to hold the plants.  Grow the soil and you will reap healthy plants!

Here on the urban homestead, we are even “going up in the world” (quoting from a classic line made by Farmer Justin in Homegrown Revolution - purchase your copy here) , “we are about a 1.5 higher than our next door neighbor!”  It’s true.

That’s due to 25 years worth of mulching, composting, mulching and composting.

Let It Rot

Cinder block “passive or “pile”" composting.

We believe “compost happens” and we have many different composters here on the urban homestead: solar cone digestor (one of our faves!), solar scrap eater, handy dandy tumbler, stackable one’s (got those from the City of Pasadena) worms and our favorites off all - our animal menagerie (aka “pet organic composting systems”)

But the cinder block composter is by far the cheapest and simplest to use.  We made ours out of recycled (free) cinder blocks.   We just pile up yard waste and let rot.

Turning the compost pile

Compost activators helps speed up the process along with a good bucket dose of nettle tea.

Smokin’!  With all the rains we’ve been having, it was full of red worms and….

Grubs!

Come and get it!  The compost pile not only supplies us with soil but treats, treats for the critters that is.  Didn’t get any photos but the chickens and ducks gorged themselves with juicy grubs.

Weekend Wanderings

Farmers Justin & Sergio visit the local nursery that’s right across the street from our urban homestead and check out the vegetable selection looking for heirlooms.

Then onto another nursery around the corner where they check out the dirt.  Of course, we didn’t need dirt but as you know there’s something with farmers and dirt.  *grin*

Goat walk.  I hang with the ladies (scratching Blackberry) while Jordanne forges for goat food (oak leaves, sycamore, acacia, wild buckwheat, etc)

I harvest some wild edibles

On the way home from the goat walk - view of the mountains and majestic sky

Cast-away!

Re-purposing.  Betty, our longtime friend and knitting mentor, gave me a sweater that wasn’t finished.  Ripping, winding and re knitting into a cute little shrug for sis.

Daily Bread

No knead bread is a staple here on the urban homestead.  No Knead Bread recipe

Tasty Treats

Jordanne, who loves to bake, whips up a tasty meyer lemon pound cake made with duck eggs.  Oh so good.

Beeing A Good Neighbor

Another urban beekeeper.  Justin (above) helps out a newbie beekeeper (below) who’s rescuing feral bees in the area

“Newbee” David shows off his bee colony

Ollas Go to School

A bunch of ollas (in stock and available) find homes at a new school garden in Pasadena.  (Photo courtesy of Sarah & Terry) Awesome work - way to grow! Looking forward to seeing more photos  as the garden grows.

Download OLLA PLATING GUIDE for spacing details, suggestions

Or see how we use OLLAS in our garden and noticed dramatic results

A homegrown revolution! Our Freedom Garden planted with Freedom Seeds

GOOD NEWS! For those of you who have been trying to order from  Freedom Seeds the other day and had some troubles.  The “Secure Certificate” has been renewed and we are happily back in business!

Coming up

Smokin compost pile, Amy our duck update, grey water project, and new graphs & stats.

What would you like to see pictured here in these popular pictorial post.  Speak up!

VOTE FOR OUR PROJECT in TWO CATEGORIES!

Don’t forget: you can vote once a day, and you do not have to sign up for anything.

Vote Now

There’s lots happening here on the urban homestead, I can’t even begin to start with details.  So I am going to let pictures do the “talking.”

Once again here’s a pictorial post of what’s happening on the homefront.

Enjoy!

Something Fishy Going On

New critter additions to the urban homestead - fishes!

Working a aquaponics contraption

Brewmeister

Jordanne’s, our head brew mistress, been busy in the kitchen whipping up some wonderful drinks like ginger soda, beer and bugs. Yeah bug!

Jordanne starts a ginger “bug” with grated ginger, yeast, sugar and raisins

Ginger bug recipe here

Now all we have to do is feed “the lil buggy”

Sun Worshipers

When it comes to sunshine, our goats just love the warm morning rays.  Ahhhhhhh

Of course, “her ladyship”, Fairlight has to come in and hog the camera.  Can’t stand not getting all the attention herself.

Fun With Veggies

Harvesting the heads of cabbage

Cabbage head, sprouts pigtails!

Eats & Treats

More marmalade

Baking goodies

Mending & Maintenance

Fixing our new clothes line

Our new solar clothes dryer ready for action

Maintaining the hives

Hope you are enjoying all the pics, because there’s more coming up.  Stay tuned for part 2.

VOTE FOR OUR PROJECT in TWO CATEGORIES!

Don’t forget: you can vote once a day, and you do not have to sign up for anything.

Vote Now

Has this site inspired you, do you glean all sorts of helpful information, enjoy the many pictures of life  here on the urban homestead?   Do you want more?  Would you like to help keep us going and growing?

The kind folks at Franklin Springs Media have give us Homestead Blessings DVD’s to giveaway this month to help us raise funds to keep us online for another year and further continue website upgrades (we’ve been receiving “I have problems with” emails, we are still working on improving this site with limited resources so please be patient with us)

How to Enter

1. Subscribe by making a monthly, tax-deductible* donation of $6.00 or more through PayPal to our non profit, Dervaes Institute, for one year. You will receive your choice of a Homestead Blessings DVD, while supplies last.

Choose from these titles made by the West Ladies of Tennessee:

The Art of Dairy Delights
The Art of Cooking
The Art of Sewing
The Art of Canning
The Art of Gardening
The Art of Growing Herbs
The Art of Bread Making
The Art of Candle Making
The Art of Soap Making

3. Current monthly donors are also eligible to receive a DVD.

What are you waiting for? Sign up to become a monthly donor today!

Thank you kindly for your support of this website and our other outreach projects.

*One DVD is a $20 value. Please take this into account for tax reporting purposes.

NOW IN STOCK!

Or you could just go ahead and purchase a DVD or any of the Homestead Blessings 3-DVD collections that we carry on Peddler’s Wagon.

Best Landscaping, Garden, or Urban Farm Project

&

Best Website About Farming or Gardening

Wow, thanks all!

Reader’s Choice Voting Process

Starting today and running until Friday, April 2, 2010 is the reader’s choice voting period.

During this time our readers, family, friends, and fans will be able to vote for who they think deserves to be called the Best of Green!

Readers can vote once a day until voting ends.

Winners will be announced the week of April 12, 2010.

Make Your Vote Count

Vote for Path to Freedom’s Urban Homestead/Farm @

Best Landscaping, Garden, or Urban Farm Project

&

Best Website About Farming or Gardening

Sorry, a little tardy on posting our harvest totals for February.

Here they are

Produce (fruits, veggies, herbs) 138 lb 13 oz

Eggs Chicken 63  Duck 19

Psst, join our growing (free) social network for gardeners

Well, I definitely did a better job at taking photos of the last two weeks worth of meals.  Now that I am finally caught up, I hope to go back to just ‘Weekly Meal Wrap Ups’ minus the x2!

There’s new things in season and that means new eats to enjoy - like peas, mushrooms, cabbage and more!

Oh, and for those asking, I posted the recipe to the skillet granola a few years back - here’s the link to the recipe again.

SATURDAY

All food items are homemade/homegrown/home preserved unless otherwise specified

Breakfast - pancakes with strawberry sauce
Dinner - flour tortillas, spanish rice with organic black beans

SUNDAY

Filming

MONDAY

Breakfast - fruit preserves & organic peanut butter on bread
Lunch - broccoli with herb butter with CA grown, organic rice
Dinner - avocado , lettuce, squash pickle sandwich with pac choi, radish salad

TUESDAY

Breakfast - fruit preserves & organic peanut butter on bread
Lunch - broccoli with herb butter with CA grown, organic rice
Dinner - avocado , lettuce, squash pickle sandwich with pac choi, radish salad

WEDNESDAY

Breakfast - fruit preserves & organic peanut butter on bread

out

THURSDAY

Breakfast - fruit preserves & organic peanut butter on bread
Lunch - broccoli with herb butter with CA grown, organic rice
Dinner -herb pizza dough topped with dried tomatoes, pickled garlic, peppers and green onions with salad

FRIDAY

Breakfast - fruit preserves & organic peanut butter on bread
Lunch - broccoli with herb butter with CA grown, organic rice
Dinner -  no knead bread, tomato sauce, mushrooms and pasta topped with Parmesan cheese with salad, radishes

SATURDAY

All food items are homemade/homegrown/home preserved unless otherwise specified

Breakfast - pancakes with strawberry sauce
Dinner - flour tortillas, spanish rice with organic black beans

SUNDAY

Breakfast - fruit preserves & organic peanut butter on bread
Lunch - leftovers
Dinner -flour tortillas with broccoli, mushroom, green onions and cheese with salad warmed in the sun oven

MONDAY

Breakfast - fruit preserves & organic peanut butter on bread
Lunch - broccoli with herb butter with CA grown, organic rice
Dinner - broccoli with herb butter with CA grown, organic rice

TUESDAY

Breakfast - fruit preserves & organic peanut butter on bread
Lunch - broccoli cheese casserole with salad
Dinner - avocado, lettuce, squash pickle sandwich with cabbage pac choi slaw

WEDNESDAY

Breakfast - fruit preserves & organic peanut butter on bread
Lunch - potatoes, broccoli, cabbage with herb lemon butter
Dinner - broccoli, green onion cheese casserole with salad

THURSDAY

Breakfast - fruit preserves & organic peanut butter on bread
Lunch - broccoli cheese casserole with salad
Dinner - herb pizza crust topped with pickled garlic, green onions, tomatoes, peppers

FRIDAY

Breakfast - skillet granola
Lunch - pac choi, peas, green onions with CA organic grown rice
Dinner -  no knead bread, tomato sauce and pasta with pac choi, radish salad