Elements of a modern homestead: worm composter (under fig tree) solar panels (on garage roof) outdoor shower (left) , clothes line (above), sun oven (front left), xtracycle (middle), biodiesel processor (right) reclaimed urbanite, and self watering pots

21st century homesteading is a interesting combination - a mix of old and new in a eclectic, hybridized life.

Doesn’t this scene from The Good Life just about say it all? {note, watch it and ad lib if you like!)  CLASSIC!

Like Tom so perfectly portrayed, it comes down to choices.  They were "pioneers" too in a sense and they also did not know if it would work out.  Both he and his wife had to make a leap of faith  and then stand against the  criticisms of society.  Today, we know it can be done successfully  but it is still requires hard work and dedication and sacrifice like with most of life's decisions. We, through  choice, have chosen a TV (for movies) but no microwave, a washing machine but no dryer. However,  in the back of our minds, we wonder if we have the courage to go cold turkey.  What if we pull the safety net, could we make it?  Since our family's coat of arms bears a goat, I am sure we'd give it our all.

But I often think about what would happen if I had to hand wash all the clothes.  That would take me ALL day.  Of course, then I appreciate what technology we do have and the helping hands of family. But I am curious : how did true homesteaders live without the choices we have today?  It was hard work, day after day after day. In the lifestyle promoted today by society,  it is  a way of life that goes hand in hand with high hopes and great expectations.

But self-sufficiency in the city, although challenging and demanding,  brings security,  along with a whole new world of surprises.  It is,  as we have proven over the years, a viable alternative lifestyle choice.

What choices have you made?

Pssst!  Like to stock up with some modern homesteading helpers that are seen in the photo?   Check out our online store

The portion of the post is "sponsored" by the fictitious product "Powdermilk Biscuits" "Made from whole wheat raised in the rich bottomlands of the Lake Wobegon river valley by Norwegian bachelor farmers” --Garrison Keillor

The other day, a regular customer to our Front Porch Farm Stand got to talking about raw milk – how expensive it is for a family with kids.   Of course, the conversation turned to how I grew up on raw goat's milk and how our dietary habits have changed over the years.

She wondered what we drank.  I said that we really don’t drink milk at all. Our family has never been big on drinking milk. But when we use milk, we found a way to stretch it.

Stretch Your Stores

I remember my grandmother mixing  powdered milk into regular whole milk as a way of making the milk go further.  She used the instant dry milk and, back then, that did help to make the price of milk more economical.

We rarely use whole milk, but use (Organic) Non-Instant Powdered Milk in our coffee and when baking.  I like to mix up a enough powered milk in a quart canning jar and store it in the fridge for a week's worth of use.

Powdered milk is a very good source of protein and we use the non instant (and, thus, more expensive) kind for more nutritional value.  We find that having fresh milk around when we don't drink or even use that much tends to be a waste as it will spoil.  Having powdered milk around solves the dilemma for us.

Here are some ideas for using Dry Milk:

1. Add to pancakes.
2. Mix in muffin batter.
3. Add to scrambled eggs before cooking.
4. Mix in biscuits.
5. Mix dry milk ahead and refrigerate for drinking.
6. Cook hot cereal in dry milk.
7. Prepare hot chocolate.
8. Make Rice Pudding.
9. Make easy vanilla pudding.
10. Make cold chocolate milk.
11. Make the night before to pour over breakfast cereal.
12. Whiz a milk shake.
13. Prepare macaroni and cheese.
14. Make cream of potato soup.
15. Mix in bread dough.
16. Mix in casseroles.
17. Mix in cornbread.
18. Use in cake batter.
19. Add extra dry milk powder for added protein and calcium.
20. Add two tablespoons to fortify liquid meals with more protein and calcium.
21. Add to mashed potatoes.
22. Make into buttermilk.
23. Add to hot drinks instead of creamer.
24. Use in cookie recipes.
25. Take on trips to use for breakfast cereal.
26. Take camping.
27. Take backpacking.
28. Add to master mix for baked products.
29. Make a cream sauce for pasta.
30. Reconstitute and add to regular milk to reduce cost.
31. Make potato soup.
32. Make evaporated milk: one cup dry milk mixed with 2/3 cup water is the equivalent of 1 can of evaporated skim milk.

List Courtesy of BePrepared2Day

:: Resources ::

Dry Milk No Longer A Frugal Alternative

Powder Milk Biscuits

Recipes Using Powdered Milk via Recipe Chic

and last but not least!

Welcoming the kids

Kicking off spring with our first school tour of the season.

The tour started off by explaining what an urban homestead is and how it can reduce our dependency on outside sources.

"From the things we have to do before we can learn them; we learn by doing them." -- Aristotle

As we went through our front yard, we explained that not only is the yard our “grocery store" but it is also our "pharmacy”  as we pointed out all the edible plants and herbs.

Upon entering the backyard, the kids began to “oooh and aaah” as a whole new world opened up right before their very eyes.    We asked the students if they knew how many miles their food traveled and gave them tips how to eat more locally.

As we gathered into the main patio and the students took their seats, the fun began!   First,  it’s “Smell 'n Tell”  as we  handed  out fragrant herbs from the garden to test their olfactory senses.

It’s not only about smell but taste, too.  So,  I whipped up some fresh chard wraps stuffed with hummus and tabouli (made with homegrown mints, green onions , parsley and canned tomatoes).   Jordanne pedaled the bike blender to mix up some vanilla yogurt & berry smoothies.   Both were tasty treats for everyone.

Last, but not least,  the "Backyard Barnyard" circus got  paraded out over squeals of delight, as everyone wanted to pet the chickens, ducks and goats.   They were  fascinated how soft the chickens' feathers were and the way the black feathers shone with a tint of green.  The ducks never fail to get laughs as they waddled out. Blackberry, the pygmy goat, as always, was the star of the show and she loved every minute of it.

We wrapped up the educational tour with a Q & A, discussing what small changes they could implement in their daily lives to become a more responsible consumer and caretaker of the planet.

Take a tour along with us...

Pointing out all the edibles in the front yard

Explaining about where our food comes from

Handing out the herbs

Handful of herbs

Smell n tell test

Slurping down pedal powered smoothies

Showing off the fish

and goats

Passing goodies to eat

Rainbow chard

Homemade tabouli

Chard leaf, hummus and tabouli

Makes for a yummy and healthful snack

Eating the chard wraps

Our new batch of ducks have taken to finding their way on top of the goat house and hanging with goatsies.

I think that's rather "odd" behavior since ducks aren't the "roosting" type. During the day our chickens like to perch, hang on a couple old picnic chairs we've placed throughout the animal compound and our older ducks like to nestle UNDER the chairs.

But these new batch of girls they like doing things THEIR way. Now ALL the ducks are too hanging on top of the goat house!

After a bit of a ruckus start introducing them to the older ducks, they are all getting along nicely. In fact, these batch of gals are the friendlies and most gentle ducks we've ever raised!   Instead of scattering when I walk into the compound to feed them, they all come to me, chattering - all excited to see "mummy."  We have a bit of a causal conversation, darned if I know what we are talking about but we do and they seem pleased.

The greyish clouds are moving out, leaving brilliant blue skies and nippish temps - just in time for fall!

Cassidy drinks in the sun's ray

Through the kitchen window, glimpses of sunlight

Soft morning glow

Time to get to work for us humans while the goats look on in approval

Bees get to work too!

Ahhhhh SUN! Another kitty worshiping the sun

Happy Fall ya'll!

For the past 3 days, there's been wet stuff falling from the sky! Yep, 'tis raining!  Quite a dramatic change in that it's 40 degrees COOLER than it was just last week!

Today the rain's coming down nice n'heavy at times.   The rain gauge reads at a little more than 3/4" of an inch.  What a blessing the rain is for the garden and the salad greens.  I'm hoping the harlequin bugs drown in the deluge.

After months without any rain, the cats have already gone stir crazy and giving us humans that  "make it stop so we can go outside" look.  The goats and chickens who hate rain are hiding out; the ducks, on the other hand, are lovin' the wet stuff.

Yeah rain!

Definitely more ideal weather for canning!  Still putting up some amazing homegrown goodies.  Made a bunch of pumpkin butter from our gorgeous heirloom pumpkins.   I kinda hated to cut the beauties up but it was time to put 'em up.  And, then, just when I thought I had the canning under control, Farmer Sergio brought us a truck full of pears and some tomatoes!

With those juicy tomatoes and this lovely basil (below) that's growing in our garden, I am  going to be putting up some more tomato sauce for those long winter months.

Fall crop of basil

Mashing pumpkins

Pears!

Can-a-thon

Is the rain over yet?

]]> http://urbanhomestead.org/journal/2010/10/06/falling-from-october-sky/feed/ 9 http://urbanhomestead.org/journal/2010/09/14/future-fear-sbs-dateline-2/ http://urbanhomestead.org/journal/2010/09/14/future-fear-sbs-dateline-2/#comments Tue, 14 Sep 2010 13:36:08 +0000 Anais Dervaes http://urbanhomestead.org/journal/?p=22807

FUTURE FEAR SBS DATELINE (watch video)

Others are approaching the future differently, believing the biggest threats we’re facing are problems that we’ve caused ourselves. Richard Heinberg is one of the world's foremost peak oil experts, who warns that we’re addicted to fossil fuels and must adapt before they run out. David takes us to a Los Angeles suburb to meet the Dervaes family of so-called ‘urban homesteaders’. They've already adapted and are living self-sufficiently and almost entirely off-grid.But are they all being over cautious, or will the rest of us be under prepared?

Heinberg thinks that if we're going to survive, we need to change the way we live.

RICHARD HEINBERG: We've got to work together on this because individual survivalism just isn't going to cut it. You know, if I've got my vegetable garden and my neighbour is starving, then the only way I'm going to be able to continue eating is to stay up all night with my shotgun to make sure no-one goes over the fence. What kind of life is that? We're creating out of this paradise, Earth, we're creating a hell for our descendents. I think it's our duty, not just to somehow try to survive this but to change what we're doing and to create a survivable planet for everyone, for our communities and for our descendants.

I met a family that's doing just that.

JULES DERVAES: Some more tomatoes here, we're about 90% self-sufficient in the summertime because this is all our bounty.

Jules Dervaes lives in Los Angeles, right next to a major highway, but he's turned his backyard garden into a farm.

JULES DERVAES: These are heirloom squash from Italy, and they hang from the trellis here. Just watch your head.

He's got two daughters and a son.

REPORTER: How do you like this yourself?

JUSTIN DERVAES: I love what I do, so I can't complain. I've got a green thumb.

They grow 350 different fruits, vegetables, herbs and berries. They all survive on what's grown here.

JULES DERVAES: This is our barnyard. It's in the city, so we've got a nice little animal enclosure here. We've got five ducks, eight chickens and two goats.

And while I'm there looking at these goats and chickens, I can hear the traffic next door, whoof whoof up and down the highway, but you could be in the middle of the countryside.

JULES DERVAES: We're looking at a planet that has run amok. So you have to be sensitive about which direction you're going. If it's going the wrong direction, it's either you're going to turn around early or you turn around at the edge of the cliff.

Come up here to our store on the front porch - Nice to meet you.

They obviously had a fear for the future too of what's going to happen. But they're going around it in a different way.

JULES DERVAES: This is a completely different dream, we're talking about self-sufficiency, we're talking about neighbourliness, we're talking about a community of helping one another.

ANAIS DERVAES: It has the herbs from the garden. And we've already made some ice-cream. Yeah we have a hand-cranked...

JORDANNE DERVAES: It's cool, yes, it works for us. But it's a little scary because out there, it's no. It's, you know - you could actually forget about the bad things out there.

There seems to be this common strand running through America right now - A fear of the future, and a sense of doom. But I saw people responding in very different ways - from preparing to hide from change, to preparing to make change happen.

JULES DERVAES: So we figure we're preparing ourselves to live simply. I mean this here is riches, but people don't understand. If you look around, you'll see riches here but it's in the form of tomatoes and peppers and animals. So we're going backwards, and I say a step backwards is progress.

Afterthoughts

Though Mr Brill was here for well over four hours, tis a shame that the piece didn't capture the entire workings of the urban homestead - we'd need a whole show or two, there! A seasoned and well traveled journalist, was really taken with the place and after the filming as the sun set we sat down to a homegrown meal (which he enjoyed) there in the garden while Blackberry and Fairlight looked on.

We received an email from one of the SBS staff which said:

"We had so much wonderful footage and it was such a such a shame that we couldn't have included much much more of the Dervaes' in our piece (especially for me as a Researcher who sets up stories and then hands over the reigns to a producer and editor)."

Perhaps if enough folks write in?

The debate continues, what happens when the times turn bad? Escape or take a stand? There are the extreme preppers and practical preppers - what's the future going to be? Is sure is a scary thought, especially for us in the city who have, as urban homesteaders, taken practical steps towards positive change. Of course, it's not just an American problem like it sounded in the piece, we are all are on the same train - though some countries may be slightly behind we are all traveling the same track. One day we are going to have to deal with the future because it's happening now.

So what are you doing to prepare for an uncertain time? Which side are you on?

Now that fall is just around the corner I can honestly say this was the COOLEST summer (ever), well, that I can remember - temperature wise. From June-August there were only two or three "really hot" weeks. So Cal gardeners, how did the cool summer affect your garden? Did you find it an easier or harder growing season?

For us, after 25 years of growing food on our city lot the challenge comes with keeping the soil healthy.   Because healthy soil equals healthy plants.  But with limited space one has to make sure to rotate crops on a yearly basis; however, this is becoming more and more of a challenge with our neighbors enormous pecan tree.  It steals the afternoon shade and limits our moving sun loving crops around.  We hoped that by dosing the beds in nettle tea would help but not sure how long tomatoes can be planted in the same bed.  One might be able to get away with for two growing seasons, but not sure after that.

I think the cool weather help keep the summer harvest at a steady stream instead of a huge tidal wave. We did have to battle with a moderate infestation of the hated harlequin bugs (only remedy we've found is hand to hand, er, trowel combat) Also, this summer we had these wee little grasshoppers munch tiny holes in our summer greens. Wasn't much to do about that either - just wave the white flag and give the greens over to the chickens, ducks or goats. There were some mite issues on the beans and for some beds it was a two pick harvest and then goat food. Our goats love bean leaves which is great because in summer, greens are rationed and hard to come by.

On the canning front, I have to say I am a somewhat behind.  I was doing a good job there for a bit keeping on top of things but then got busy with other projects and now am staring at a good bunch of veggies that need to be dealt with.   Of course part of me panics that brings on a slight case of paralysis of the brain and body, but then I tell myself "just take a deep breath, pick out one veg and put that up and then move onto the next one."   Or perhaps I could just send out a call to friends "help" and then send them home with jars of goodies for their assistance.  Even with all the new projects and obstacles that got in the way this year, we are putting up more than we did last year.  I couldn't believe it till Jordanne pointed it out saying, "there's more can goods than ever and the season isn't over yet."  She's right!  There's still peppers, more beans, cucumbers, tomatoes and figs to be put up.

We were blessed with a wonderful winter squash harvest and that has grow into a pumpkin sized debate. I want to keep the stash for winter eats (soup, baked, pie, etc) and preserves (pumpkin butter) but the other camp wants to sell a few on the front porch farm stand. I am tempted to stick to my squash but they may be right, although I love seeing the shelves full of squash - there can be too many winter squashes!

The end of August starts a whole new chapter in the garden. Much of the summer crops will slowing come down during the month of September, replaced by cooler weather crops. Already flats of soil blocks are filled with fall sowings.

August Harvest Totals

1,228 lbs Produce

28 Duck Eggs

94 Chicken Eggs

50# Honey (updated)

2010 YEAR TO DATE TALLY

4,878 lbs Produce

131 lbs Honey (updated)

278 Duck Eggs

597 Chicken Eggs

Growing Your Own Groceries?

So who here's a Tallier? Care to share y0ur garden harvest totals? Whether it's just a handful or a couple hundred pounds - all helps towards reducing our food print!

Don't forget there's a FREE SEED GIVEAWAY at our one of our sister networks, Freedom Gardens to help you get started

Photo courtesy ORGANIC CONNECTIONS MAGAZINE

“In the old days, people had relationships with nature and connections with animals,” he said. “When you remove that and put it in a factory someplace far away, people forget about it. When you have a different relationship with your animals and with your plants, when you treat them real well, they respond. Your own health and the health of the planet are intimately related, and as a society we’ve gotten away from that. So we just brought this all to pass in the city, in our Urban Homestead, and we’re spreading the word far and wide.”  - Jules Dervaes

Dervaes Gardens sits practically on top of a Pasadena, California, freeway and is only blocks away from the famous Rose Bowl. Outside are all the trappings of twenty-first-century life: automobiles, satellite dishes, supermarkets, car washes, and stores carrying produce brought thousands of miles for the convenience of their customers. But inside, Jules Dervaes and his children have created what they call an Urban Homestead. Virtually every square inch of land they have available to them—a tenth of an acre in all—is utilized for growing their own food. In addition to the hundreds of varieties of fruits, vegetables, herbs and flowers, there is a beehive for honey, ducks and chickens for eggs, and goats for numerous purposes.

Read complete article at Organic Connections Magazine

[ Just to clarify!   Khaki Campbell ducks not "Camel" ]

:: Resources ::

Rock Dust - remineralize your soil

Freedom Seeds - seeds grown by the people for the people

Helping hand, Marc helps us gals make dinner

Homegrown toppings

Digging in! Homegrown & homemade

Hanging out with the chickens. Fun times!

Say Maaaa

Taking the goats for a Sunday stroll

Ooooh, that feels good

Smooch. Give me a kiss!

Goat & human bonding

Come on, let's play!

Chatting with Betty, our knitting mentor and adopted Grandma

Gals & Goats

Chocolate cupcakes get devoured

Smile

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