Innholdsfortegnelse for October - November 2019 i MOTHER EARTH NEWS

On a recent evening, Joanna (my wife and farm partner) and I found ourselves with a rare bit of free time, so we loaded up a small picnic into our utility vehicle and went to look for new calves, and to study what the sheep were selecting and in which pasture they were selecting it. With our building site located at the northwest corner of our home farm, we generally look over the place while leaning on either the south or east gates. We recognize all the tree groves, swales, rises, and dips in the pastures and meadows. We know where the other gates and ponds are, even the ones we can’t see. That evening, we found the cattle and calves to the southeast, and then spotted the sheep deep…

Readers, we received a number of responses to Joel Salatin’s “Faith-Based Farming” in the June/July 2019 issue. Joel wrote about how his faith informs his farming. Here are our favorite letters from you.— MOTHER Time to Take Charge I want to thank you for Joel Salatin’s “Faith-Based Farming.” I’ll be 80 years old next month. I’ve had to change the way I grow my crops, because I now use a walker. Instead of growing them in the ground, I now grow my food in large containers that are 3 to 4 feet off the ground. My aim in writing this is to encourage all people to take charge of their own lives and live to the fullest. I’ve read MOTHER EARTH NEWS from the first year it was available. For…

People dream about and acquire rural land or acreage for many different reasons. They may long to return to their abandoned rural roots, or desire to live selfsufficiently by growing their own food and livestock. Regardless of your reason for owning land, the ability to move, shape, smooth, or contour your property efficiently requires the right implements and equipment. From constructing roads, to designing landscapes, to creating building sites, there are equipment options for any size of earth-moving job. Bulldozers For moving soil, sand, general rubble, and tree stumps, nothing can compare to a dedicated bulldozer. Bulldozers, or “crawlers” (continuous tracked tractors), come in a variety of sizes and configurations. In essence, a bulldozer is a diesel tractor sporting tracks instead of wheels, with a substantial metal blade mounted on…

Every once in a while, I buy myself a goose. Goose meat is good; it tastes like duck. Goose bones make a fine stock, and goose liver makes a fine pâté. But I buy the goose for the fat, which is pure gold. Goose fat is a good all-purpose cooking fat that adds a luxurious, silken savoriness to everything it comes in contact with, especially vegetables. Its smoke point of 375 degrees Fahrenheit means you can use it for deep-frying or high-temperature cooking. Melt a few tablespoons and toss in vegetables for roasting, or sauté kale and other winter greens in goose fat instead of oil; you’ll notice the flavor difference. When sautéing or roasting with goose or duck fat, use less fat than you normally would oil. If your…

In the afterglow of a can-do workshop, when everyone feels comfortable enough to explore inferior decisions I’ve made, someone will ask, “What have been your biggest business failures?” Failures don’t inspire, so I tend not to dwell on them. But they sure can be instructive. Here are my biggest “failures” from a lifetime of farming. 1 Not collecting payment right away. My mentor Allan Nation used to say this about being in the food sales business: “It’s good because it’s a consumable, and people have to keep coming back for more. It’s bad because you can’t repossess yesterday’s meal.” Truer words were never spoken. The No. 1 reason businesses fail has nothing to do with their products or services; it’s their cash flow. Just because a venture is profitable doesn’t…

BUILDING BARE-HANDED SURVIVAL SHELTERS In this practical work focusing on building survival shelters by hand, Fred Demara teaches what has been proven to work for such improvised structures (because learning by trial and error is too costly in a survival scenario). The simplicity of these ancient construction methods illustrates the most essential survival lesson of all: the importance of knowing you can do it, deciding that you will do it, and then getting on with it. #9700 $15.99 $13.99 SURVIVING ON EDIBLE INSECTS There are some 1,462 recorded species of edible insects eaten by more than 3,000 ethnic groups. Presented by MOTHER EARTH NEWS, Surviving on Edible Insects catalogs only those that are easy to identify and have a long record of human consumption, including cicadas, worms, locusts, scarabs, and…

Portable Clothes Washer After using the Lavario Portable Clothes Washer (www.LavarioWasher.com) for a live video, I decided to test it out at home with our kitchen laundry. Being able to wash at your own pace and decide when your clothes are clean is satisfying. I used a small amount of water, let the laundry soak, and then added a plant-based detergent, which enabled me to use the leftover grey-water in my garden. After washing with the Lavario, I continued to use it as a hamper where I stored our dirty kitchen towels. If you’re looking for a space-friendly, dual-purpose manual washer, this is the way to go. — Queren King-Orozco, digital content Lightweight Water Filter When an emergency strikes, having a stash of bottled water is valuable, but this requires…

Quill pens have been used as writing implements for centuries, the number of which isn’t definitively known, though there are accounts of their use as early as the sixth century A.D. Compared with reed pens, quill pens are flexible and responsive to light variations of touch and pressure. They have a gliding action when drawn across paper, creating lines that are smooth, fluid, and flexible. This responsiveness gives you the ability to control the width of a line by varying downward pressure. The harder you push down, the wider the line becomes. Artists took notice of these favorable properties in the 12th century, when quills became preferred over reeds for drawing as well as writing. This was the case for most of the old masters, even as steel-nib pens became…

How can I get my kids to consume herbal remedies? They sometimes refuse my standard herbal preparations. Gummies are fun for little ones to make and eat, and a good way to administer herbs. You can make elderberry gummies for cold and flu season by using the recipe below, or try other types of gummies by switching out the herbs! • Coconut oil• ¼ cup grape juice concentrate• ½ cup hot water• ⅓ cup gelatin• 1 cup homemade elderberry syrup• Gummy molds Directions: Coat gummy molds with coconut oil. Set aside. In a large bowl, quickly whisk together the grape juice concentrate, hot water, and gelatin. Add the elderberry syrup, and stir quickly to combine. Pour the mixture into the coated gummy molds. Refrigerate for 1 hour, and then pop…

MOTHER EARTH NEWS SELF-RELIANCE & HOMESTEADING SET Live self-sufficiently with the help of these three premium issues from MOTHER EARTH NEWS! Ditch the store-bought and pre-made life, and live off the land with these guides, each featuring more than 100 pages of content. With this special package, you’ll receive: Modern Homesteading, Self-Reliance and Country Skills, and Self-Sufficient Living. #8556 $29.99 $14.99 HANG-A-POT, PACK OF 4 With Hang-A-Pot, you can instantly transform any interior or exterior space into one of beauty and elegance. Hang-A-Pot easily mounts to a wide variety of surfaces to give you the beauty of perfectly displayed floral arrangements within minutes! From hanging garden pots to displaying beautiful orchids, Hang-A-Pot can do it all! #9680 $18.99 $16.99 TREES OF POWER Trees of Power explains how we can work…

DELUXE HOMEBREW STARTER KIT WITH IRISH RED ALE RECIPE KIT Think you love craft beer now? Wait till you try your own. Just follow the easy homebrewing instructions! This starter kit includes: a Red Irish Ale Recipe Kit, 6-gallon glass carboy, 5-gallon glass carboy, bungs, airlocks, blowoff hose, funnel, auto siphon, bottling bucket, spigot, bottle capper, caps, and more! Please allow two weeks for delivery. Available for shipment to continental U.S. addresses only. #9534 $199.99 $179.99 REAL FOOD FERMENTATION Preserve your favorite foods through every season with Real Food Fermentation. Control your own ingredients, techniques, and additives. Learn a practical food-preparation skill you’ll use again and again. Express yourself by making something unique and whole! #9576 $24.99 $21.99 KOMBUCHA, KEFIR, AND BEYOND Fermented foods and drinks help improve digestion, enable…

The MOTHER of All Memories The year Jack Henstridge gave a seminar on cordwood building, my family went to the MOTHER EARTH NEWS Eco-Village to see him. Our twin sons, John and Dan, were 8 years old that summer. The day of the seminar, my husband and I went off to attend the cordwood workshop, and the kids and their leaders went on a nature walk. During the seminar, we worked on a cordwood structure. Afterward, we saw all the kids and their leaders gathered around a kid on the ground. It was John. Dan said they were walking along and somebody remarked, “Oh, a bird nest.” John picked it up, but it was a hornet nest, and all the hornets flew out and stung him. One of the leaders…

When I worked as a commercial gardener, one of the most interesting things I learned about was the influence of microclimates. Even though all the gardens I maintained were within 30 miles of each other, I soon discovered that what grew well in one garden was no sure indicator of what could be persuaded to thrive in another — even when the other garden was right next door! Conventional wisdom states that what a gardener can grow is limited by the USDA Hardiness Zone they’re gardening in, but I’ve found that isn’t the whole truth. Another important factor should also be taken into consideration: every garden’s unique microclimates. Season extenders, such as row covers, are invaluable for warming up soil and protecting crops from the elements, but smart gardeners can…

When you render animal fats at home, you’ll not only save money, but you’ll also add a wide variety of flavoring options to your pantry. Batch size doesn’t matter. Render a little at a time, or render in big batches — whatever works for you. The only real drawback to rendering your own fats is the time it takes. Luckily, regardless of the type of fat you work with, the process will be pretty much the same. First, chop the fat into small pieces (1-inch dice or smaller), place the pieces in a heavy pot, and add a small amount of water to prevent scorching until the fat begins to melt. Melt the fat over low to medium heat, stirring frequently; don’t let it bubble furiously. When the solid bits…

The Fat Kitchen is a comprehensive guide to rendering and using whole animal fats, including lard, tallow, and poultry. Cooks will learn the distinctive qualities and best uses of each fat, along with methods for curing and storing them. In addition, 100 scrumptious recipes highlight traditional cultural favorites, such as matzo ball soup, pasta carbonara, and more! This title is available at www.MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by calling 800-234-3368. Mention promo code MMEPAJZF. Item #9101.…

Despite a long history of livestock breed development in America, few breeds can claim they originated from the vision of an American president. The American Mammoth Jackstock, however, can. George Washington understood the growth of our new country would be dependent on superior draft animals, such as the fine working mules of Europe. At the time, America didn’t possess the large donkeys needed to breed such desirable animals. But during Washington’s presidency, the king of Spain gifted him with an Andalusian jack (a male donkey) named Royal Gift, along with two jennets (female donkeys) of the same breed. Not long afterward, Washington’s long-time friend, the Marquis de Lafayette, sent him a jack and two jennets from the Isle of Malta. Washington bred the Maltese jack with one of the Andalusian…

MOTHER EARTH LIVING GUIDE TO CBD OIL With the Mother Earth Living Guide to CBD Oil, you’ll discover the history of hemp, the science of CBD, and the natural ways you can use it to lead a healthy lifestyle. Pulling from a panel of experts, this special issue dives deep into the myth and facts surrounding CBD, teaches versatile ways to use the hemp plant, and even explains how to add hemp seed food into your diet. #9690 $9.99 $7.99 CBD IN MCT 1000MG OIL Whether you’re sore from working in the garden all day, have a headache from being out in the sun, or feeling anxious, CBD in MCT Oil (1000mg) will help relieve the pain and soreness. CBD in MCT Oil is a natural product for skin care,…

Positive Charge I’ve always enjoyed your magazine, but Paul Scheckel’s battery article (“Get Charged Up with Off-Grid Battery Options,” June/July 2019) was incredible. Very well written, with enough detail to really explain the options and choices. I’m a retired electrical engineer, and I don’t believe I’ve ever read a better battery article. Dudley Crisp Demand for Batteries Although Paul Scheckel’s article on off-grid battery options was informative, we’re curious why he didn’t include information on nickel-iron technology. There’s only a brief mention of “flooded” systems that need to be replenished periodically by adding distilled water. Even though there are strong proponents and opponents of nickel-iron technology, we feel it’s worth mentioning, since it doesn’t have the toxic elements of flooded lead-acid (FLA) or lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries, and it…