Coffee chaff in the animal compound

With hard economic times, here are a few ways to pinch those pennies.

There are some advantages to living in the city.  Goods and services are more readily available and nearby as compared to living in the country.  The various shops around town always have some discards for which they usually have no more need.

Did you know that coffee roasters have burlap bags that once contained coffee beans, grounds and chaff as a by product from roasting and that they want to give away both for free? They only need someone to haul them away.  That would be us - thank you, very much!

Chaff, the dry, scaly protective casings of the beans, is cast aside after the bean is ground for roasting.  The chaff from coffee makes a great bedding for the hen house & "mulch" for the animal compound.    I just open up the huge bag and dump it into the compound – smells so yummy! MMMMMMM

:: Resource ::

Coffee Chaff Chicken Coop Litter

Burlap bags in the garden

The discarded burlap sacks come in handy for uses in the garden for soil erosion and weed control.  Not that we need ANY weed control, but the sacks come in handy when we are turning over the beds and don't want the fresh dirt to attract all the cats from the neighbor to use.

:: Resource ::

Uses for Burlap  in the Garden

Coffee grounds feed the worms

And, last but not least, coffee grounds  will perk up your compost pile with much needed nitrogen.    Our blueberries thrive on the caffeine fix! Sunset Magazine did a soil experiment and it turned out the grounds also provide generous amounts of phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, and copper.

Also worms also love coffee grounds!

So you see, there are lots of creative uses for "throw-aways."  Somebody's trash is another's treasure!

:: Resources ::

Coffee in the Garden
Compost Coffee
Give your Garden a Jolt
21 Ways to Use Old Coffee Grounds
Coffee Grounds, Coffee chaff, and Burlap Sacks

Hosing off. Playing in the water, feels mighty fine

Time to dry off

Twist n shout!

Almost dry

Sitting pretty

While Jordanne is hard at work making upgrades  (looking good btw!) on our blog, here's a little pictorial interlude for your enjoyment of one of the many hummingbirds to visit the garden each morning.

This time around, I was prepared and had a camera ready for the action!  While watering the garden, they enjoy a fresh drink and morning bath from the hose.

From what I can tell, this one looks to be a young female Rufous Hummingbird.

My sisters tease me because I seem to attract our resident hummingbirds while I'm outside.  They often remark that the little hummers probably have a crush on me - whatever.  What's with my sisters anyway?

Hey, you sure have purty eyes. How'd you get here huh?

Toads are of essential service, especially in a garden, to eat up cabbage worms, caterpillars, etc.
-  Farmer's Almanac

After a pretty comfortable June, the heat (& humidity) ratcheted up a notch or two and we are in the "dog days" of summer.

Lookie what we spotted in the garden.   Never, in our 25 years, seen the likes of a frog, er toad, here before.  It’s certainly a long way from the stream in the Arroyo Seco.  Wonder how it hitched a ride?   Seems the garden's become part of a Beatrice Potter novel – we had our rabbits,  have our ducks and now a toad!

Reminds me of when I was a kid growing up on 10 acres. I loved catching frogs. We had the green ones and BIG ones.   I'd keep them as pets and then let them go after a few days.  This is the first frog EVER to visit our farm here in the city. Still quite curious how it got here amidst the concrete jungle? Sure hope it stays and helps with our bug problems.

What new critters have you spotted in your garden?

:: Resources ::

Attracting Toads to Your Garden

Toads in the Garden

Create a Haven for Toads

After two years of being screened at many film festivals and community viewings throughout the world, we have published (in its entirety) our award winning short film Homegrown Revolution for free viewing on YouTube.

It has been a crazy ride and exciting to have an award winning film and we sincerely thank those of you who supported this film in many ways.  A big THANK YOU goes out from our hearts to those  who supported us, purchased this video, screened it, shared it or simply let the film's message lead you to a new way of looking at your yard. Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! We really appreciate it.

Our unlikely little film was a surprise success story.  For those of you who don't know the history, I'll recap briefly.  For those of you already know it, go ahead and skip to the end of this post to watch Homegrown Revolution.

Homegrown Revolution was made in a whirlwind three days after a last-minute invite for Dad to speak at Peter Sellars' UCLA class in 2007.  Jules Dervaes was to be the lead-in and local authority on sustainable food to Michael Pollan's presentation.

By now, we had given so many presentations, the explaining of our project and "Urban Homesteading" was becoming a tad redundant - there are only so many clever ways we could explain what we have been doing the last 16+ years.  Plus, the fact that this was a night class had many of us expecting a room of yawning and under-caffeinated students blinking sleepily at their laptop screens and surfing Facebook, content to get class credit simply for being a body in the seat.  Short of handing Red Bull out to everyone, we seriously thought NO ONE would wake up for this Urban Homesteading and sustainable food presentation.

Looking back at the time, I realize how far the movement has come to the point it is today.   It wasn't long ago at all, but in 2007  the movement was just blooming and I was finding out that most students didn't care or know about Urban Homesteading -- or even anything environmental or sustainable.   There's always the usual small but core group of students who were into changing the world and activism but we knew we had to reach to the others in the class that might not even have a first thought about the food they ate or about gardening.

At the family meeting / lunch following the invite, Dad turned to me (since I have unofficially become the tech geek / "electronic gadget whisperer" of the family ) and inquired about a video slideshow we had put together for a virtual tour of the Urban Homestead called "One Step at a Time."  This video brochure had been published on our website at the time  since it was first uploaded in 2004 (soon to be uploaded to YouTube for kicks).

As I am not a video editor and had no training at all, my foray into  messing about with video clips had been a sink or swim experience.   After mucking about in Adobe Premier, I had managed to put together some footage that resulted in One Step at a Time and that short film seemed pretty cool when it was made; but I was now slightly embarrassed about it and wanted to give Dad something newer and peppier for the students.

Anais and I got to work in those three days before the presentation.   We had multiple tapes of footage of the garden, animals and various projects throughout the yard but very little of ourselves.  So, I spliced those with some of the news media interviews for a  narrative effect.

I really wanted to do little interviews on our  own footage; but given the short amount of time and our aversion to being filmed by one another, it just wasn't happening. (NOTE: Seriously, I did try.  I approached Justin with a camera as he did his biodiesel brewing and asked him in  my best TV reporter voice to explain what was doing.   I received an  "are you kidding me?" stare for my troubles.  Turns out, it's hard for  us to be enthusiastic about giving each other interviews.  Try explaining to someone who already knows what you are doing, what you are doing.  It isn't easy. )

For fun and to appeal to the college kids who were my own age, Anais and I added in some well known musical favorites to create a edgy  mash-up type music video.

Turns out, as R.E.M's moody guitar in "Drive" snapped up the students' attention at  the first minute to the final frame of the fist-in-the-sky rallying  image and the drumming strains of "Revolution Cry", we had gained this class' full focus and subsequent and  enthusiastic ovation and shouts.   Yes, even the too-cool-for-school jocks of UCLA's NCAA basketball team were into it.

Later that week, we decided to publish Homegrown Revolution on YouTube (cut to 10 minutes since YouTube wouldn't allow videos of  longer lengths at that time) and it kind of went viral for a time and gained over 500,000 views.

We started to use Homegrown Revolution for an intro to Jules Dervaes' workshops and presentations and considered it a type of "video brochure" or "infomercial" to Urban  Homesteading.  Fast forward to late 2008 and we received a phone call from the awesome  folks at the Wild & Scenic Film Festival asking if we wanted to  submit our film for consideration.

I seriously had no idea what they were talking about!   Film?  What film? We don't have a film, I thought.

They soon convinced us that they were really asking for Homegrown Revolution which one of their members had seen on YouTube.  This touched off a flurry of more video editing.  Since the original version contained a lot that was not our footage, we began to re-shoot a lot of scenes and I soon had Homegrown Revolution up to over 25 minutes long.  But because Wild & Scenic had accepted Homegrown  Revolution into their program as it appeared on YouTube, we knew we  had to keep it to 10 minutes.

In the end, the final product came out  at 15 minutes after we all refused to cut out anything more.  There was also concern from some of Film Festival folks about remaking  Homegrown Revolution so much that it would no longer feel like the  original version so we felt a little restricted in our creativity.     I did try to obtain the rights to some of the footage / interviews that appeared in the original version but with so little time to  remake the film, it turned out easier to just re-speak most of it  instead of dealing with all the paperwork.    Again, all this had to  be done in a short amount of time - definitely not enough time to be at one's full creativity.

Unfortunately, although most of our words as they appear in the 2009  version of Homegrown Revolution had been spoken to interviewers  previously, it was hard getting family members to say the same lines  with enthusiasm and with the same passion as they had when speaking to  someone "new" and curious to what we were doing.  Looking at the film today,  I can see all the mistakes and where it could all have been better.

But this was a collaborative project done by all of us -- with each family member taking part in the filming, editing and structure of the film.  Neither of us had any previous film editing / filming experience but we hope the passion and enthusiasm show through any technical flaws and other problems.

It's also important to note that the film was made entirely in-house on computers powered by solar/green sources.  All transportation was done in a biodiesel-fueled car and all camera/mic batteries were rechargeable and charged with solar energy.  Waste was kept to a minimum – paper composted or recycled and all publicizing materials printed  on post consumer paper.

We are humbled by the impressive impact Homegrown Revolution had in  the film festivals both nationally and internationally. It  was never created for a film festival circuit but has a true homegrown, homemade story behind its creation. Today,  whenever I am frustrated by learning something new or seeing where I fail in trying to get something perfect, I just need to look at where our little film that could has taken us.

I am compiling a  tally of the festivals and known public screenings to be published at HomegrownRevolution.com but here are the AWARDS and HONORS Homegrown Revolution has gained so far:

WINNER

Best Environment & Ecology Film North America,
Swansea International Film Festival, UNITED KINGDOM

Prize of the Mayor of the Capitol City of Slovakia
Ekotop Film Festival of Sustainable Development, SLOVAKIA

Best Short Documentary
Southern Appalachian International Film Festival, TENNESSEE

El Capitan Film Award
Yosemite International Film Festival, CALIFORNIA

Best Sustainability Film
Green Screen Environmental Film Festival, CALIFORNIA

Robert T. Nanninga Award for Excellence,
Cottonwood Creek Film Festival, CALIFORNIA

-----------------------------

HONORABLE MENTIONS

Westpac Award Best Short Film Runner Up
Reel Earth Environmental Film Festival, NEW ZEALAND

NOMINATED - Best Film, Climate Change & Sustainable Technology
CMS Vatavaran Environmental & Wildlife Film Fest, INDIA

FINALIST
European Spiritual Film Fest, FRANCE

Footage aired on Oprah's 2009 Earth Day show

You can still purchase the DVD here for community screenings or to just own a copy. We're still sending the film out to festivals who request it, so if you know of any film festivals or other opportunities, continue to send them our way. Thanks!

Pssst...!

Sharp eyed or observant readers might notice we now have a new YouTube address:  http://www.youtube.com/urbanhomestead

We'll still have the http://www.youtube.com/dervaes one but we might FINALLY be getting into sharing how-to videos.  We are launching this new channel for video clips showing snippets of life from the Urban Homestead as well as some how-to videos.

So be sure to subscribe to this new channel to get all the latest videos - thanks!

Berry good time!

Cucumbers

Honey

Wild arugula

Duck & chicken eggs

Blueberry patch

Pole beans climb upwards

Broccoli

Tomatoes!

Last of the big pumpkins

Elephant garlic

Artichoke

Purple broccoli

Nasturtiums

Soil blocks filled with seedlings

The nursery: trays of soil blocks

Cilantro

Anna apples

Tomatoes and ollas

Squashes grow up the trellis

Hops

Chard and olla

Late spring garden

To live, we must daily break the body and shed the blood of creation. When we do it knowingly, lovingly, skillfully, reverently, it is a sacrament. When we do it ignorantly, greedily, destructively, it is a desecration. - Wendell Berry, The Gift of Good Land

This week we were blessed with two, that's right, two storms which brought us some much needed rain.  What a blessing such rain is so late in the season!

I just LOVE this time of year, don't you?   What a joy it is to look about the garden, witness seedlings pushing through the soil and anticipating the first fruits and vegetables of the summer season.

I can't say this enough and I quite possibly sound like a broken record,  but we wouldn't have the success we have with sowing without out soil blocker - every gardener, farmer should have one.  We've had ours for over 15 years and it's a gardener's best friend.

What sorts of goodies are coming from your garden these days?

:: Resources ::

Using Soil Blocks

Wacky weather whiplash pattern continues.  Last week it was a scorching 95 degrees; then quicker than you can say  "summer's here?" a  few days later it's cold, overcast and raining (what a BLESSING!).

The poor plants are totally confused and so are we - sweater on, sweater off, on, off?

In the garden, the elephant garlic is just about ready to harvest and we've been digging up pounds and pounds of tasty potatoes!  Just today made a potato salad with home canned pickled carrots and homegrown celery - so yummy!  Can't beat the flavor and texture of homegrown potatoes!

The summer crops are slowly replacing the spring greens and brassicas. Justin informed me that they already spotted the hated (invasive) bagrada bug due to the heat. Bugger!

As head manager of the front porch farm stand, my duties include not only managing the operation, taking orders and such but also  filling them. Think that's my favorite part: to be out in the garden early in the morning harvesting the lovely bouquet of greens.   I do declare that one morning we all picked nearly 30 lbs of greens to fill the orders that morning!  Whew!

Bouquet of greens, indeed.  One of our customers exclaimed, "If I ever got married, this would be my bouquet."  Awwww.

APRIL HARVEST

276 lb produce

Eggs 141 (Duck) 73 (Chicken)

2011 YEAR TO DATE

939 lb produce

Eggs 486 (Duck)  190 (Chicken)

Jamboree!

Guess what sis & I been doing?   We kicked off the fruit season with a medley of jams - sweet grapefruit, strawberry rose, strawberry lemon verbena and just plain ol' strawberry.

With all the wonderfully fragrant roses and herbs growing in the garden, I pick a few hand fulls and infuse them in with the fruit preserves.    Turns ordinary jam into extraordinary!

What sorts of canning activity are you doing?  Do you like to go beyond the same old and experiment with adding herbs, flowers and spices?

Here's one of my favorite "outside the jar" canning blog

Sorry for such a short post, love to write more but we have a BIG produce (edible flowers, salad and lots of greens) order to fill this morning and major world news outlet coming at noon to do a story about our urban homestead.

More later!

Flowering kale. Saute with a little olive oil for a tasty treat.

Justin working on his urban bee operation. Fairlight could care less

Seedlings everywhere!

Justin has ""bait hives scattered thru out the yard to catch wild bees

Bean seedlings

Backyard garden

Baby roses

Nasturtiums

Bulls blood beet

Snow peas

Blue hibiscus

Centaura

Clusters of baby roses

I just love seeing seeds pop out of the soil

Squash

Pineapple guava (flowers are edible!)

Honeysuckle

Bantam chicken

Garlic

Hops start crawl across the arbor

Grapes

Miners lettuce

Baby rose

Bloody dock

Walking onions

Bronze fennel

Lemon verbena

Lettuce

Bulls blood beet catches the evening sun

Onions, kale and mints

Baby chard

Raised beds full of tasty and colorful greens

Flowering carrot

Giant broccoli

More tomato starts

O THE month of May, the merry month of May,
So frolic, so gay, and so green, so green, so green!
Thomas Dekker

Hope you enjoyed a little peek into our garden to see what's growing on.  Such beauty and bounty can't help but think of my favorite verse: "let us rejoice and be glad"

This recent article stresses the importance of how we all should start taking gardening seriously.    Growing your own food in the city: it’s a challenge but a good one - an a very important on too!

Garden As If Your Life Depended On It, Because It Will - Alternet

There are at least five reasons why more of us should take up spade, rake and hoe, make compost and raise good soil and garden beds with a vengeance, starting this spring and with an eye toward forever.

READ MORE

It's officially Spring and what a rocky start  weather wise.   We spiked into the 90’s for a few days and then dipped back under 60 with gray skies  and drizzle.  Crazy!

Busy, busy, busy - bees, biodiesel, soil blocks, picking, packing, watering, planting, building, etc. Where does the time go?  Not complaining; it’s good to have longer days to work on the farm here in the city.

Sis handed me a “to plant list” of things she needs for her home canning operation.    She makes a mean jalapeno jelly and wanted to make sure that I didn’t forget to plant them!

Squash, tomatoes, peppers and beans are all up and ready to transplant into the garden.   The new strawberry starts are filling in nicely. We are expecting to harvest berries in early June and the potatoes are just about ready to be dug up.  I know I’ve been looking forward to homegrown potatoes – they are way better tasting than the store.

The small invasion of aphids is now under control, sweet!  We spotted a couple ladybugs and have already noticed a huge difference on the chard and kales.    Thanks to the exceptionally warm weather last week, the greens seem to have grown a few feet (ok, inches) overnight.  We are now offering a slew of assorted greens at the front porch farm stand.  Sis is manager and CEO ("chief" for short) of the front porch farm stand and she’ll be posting more of what the stand has to offer.   It’s a wonderful feeling to feed the family and be able to offer the surplus produce to folks who are wanting to eat closer to home.

The hennery is cranking out eggs – yeah!

Last week, I helped a friend who manages a few urban bees divide a few hives for spring expansion.  Of course, we had to suit up on the HOTTEST day of the year (so far).   It was sweltering!  Hive work waits for no man, so we both suited up.  Long pants (I HATE long pants), long sleeve shirts and were sweating buckets just after a few minutes work.   I got some delicious honey comb in trade for a couple of hours work. What a treat and worth the (sweaty) effort!

The rescued hive is still here, bees going to and fro. It’s a wonderful site to see bees working the citrus.

March Harvest Tally

252 lbs Produce

Eggs      Chicken 91   Duck 160

2011 Tally to Date

663 lbs Produce

Eggs      Chicken 117   Duck 345

Spring is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush. -- Doug Larson

Eulogy: In Loving Memory of Our Garden Shoes

Our mantra “make do, use up and wear it out” on the urban homestead is serious business.  Any item we use has to be ratted and tattered before it gets replaced.   This week, some  really old garden shoes finally died in their line of duty having served us well.   The “cheap” garden shoes had a good, long run – over 10 years or more, I can’t remember!   We had put off getting a new pair.

However,  the old garden shoes had split at the soles and finally had to be laid to rest in our trash can with our other rubbish. Since they were vinyl (egad!) I couldn't even put them in the recycle bin for a chance of an afterlife.  Hate throwing away something we have had for a long while, but it’s sure nice to be able to go into the mucky areas of the garden and not get socks wet!

We’ll see how long these babies last… hopefully, another 10 years or more!

Remember that old saying “They don’t make things like they used to"?  With our modern culture whose emphasis is on consumerism, " Planned Obsolescence" is the norm today.

What things do you  “make do, use up and wear out” ?