Spotlight - The Redbud Tree

The Redbud Tree is one of my favorites.  We have four of them in our front yard and they fill the space with beauty every spring.  They seem to be everywhere in this part of the state and thrive with very little attention.  With the tree being so plentiful, I had to wonder if there were any particular uses for it other than the most obvious – it being so lovely and pleasing to the eye. 

In the course of my research I found out that you can eat the flowers in the springtime and the new, soft green seedpods in the fall.  Wow.  It is a member of the legume family and shares many things in common with the pea.  The flowers, which have been described as having a sweet and slightly nutty flavor, can be eaten by themselves, mixed in with salads or other foods, or even made into jelly or relish.  In the fall when the seedpods are young and tender, they can be eaten raw or cooked like peas.   Like many legumes, the seedpods contain nutrients such as protein, iron and some complex carbohydrates.

 The picture above shows some young seedpods on one of the Redbud trees in our yard.  They look very similar to peas.

Since Redbud trees are usually under twenty feet tall, they makes a good under canopy tree in the forest.   That is not only true for the forests in parks, but also the food forest you might want to start at home.  Whether you’re just looking for an easy to grow tree to add some dimension to your yard, you’re trying to start a food forest and need some canopy trees, or you just want to something aesthetically pleasing, relatively long lived, and easy to care for that will come in handy if things every get really tough, you might consider the Redbud tree.

Events - Sweetwater Farm Greenhouse Free Seminar

Sweetwater Farm Greenhouse in Denison is offering a free seminar on Backyard Poultry this Wednesday, March 21st from 10AM-11AM.  Peg Albrecht will be offering information on keeping chickens.

Gardening in less than ideal conditions

Ok, I'll admit that this not the most awe-inspiring picture of a garden ever, but hey I tried.  At the bottom of the picture, you can see the fence we put up to keep the rabbits out.  It's not very impressive to look at, but it does the job and was made from materials we had on hand.  Given more time and resources, you can do a much better job, but I just wanted to show you that it doesn't nave to be fancy to work.


The top of the picture features some of the sprouts we are seeing.  These are some of the seeds that the kids toiled away to plant for me (I supervised).  The beans and peas are looking good, and the lettuce is ready to eat.  Yes, all of those white things in the pictures are rocks.   I am attempting to grow vegetables in a rock garden!  But look, it's working and the plants are growing.  It just goes to show you that with the proper nutrition, plants will grow in almost any soil.  We have added a lot of natural fertilizer to this garden over the years (rabbit, chicken, goat and horse manure) and it has paid off.   The lucky plants that are growing in the raised beds actually have nice, rock free soil, but honestly, the yield is about the same when I take the time to water properly.  


This post is mostly just to let you know that you don't need perfect conditions to have a successful garden.  Don't get frustrated and don't feel like you have to go out and buy a bunch of materials just to get started.  You only need a shovel, seeds, time and patience.   Compost, fertilizer, and mulch help out too!  Now no more excuses - get that garden started today!

The Crazy Homestead: Chicken Care - Be a Chicken Watcher

The Crazy Homestead: Chicken Care - Be a Chicken Watcher: After locking the chickens up for the night and giving them a bowlful of feed, it has become my habit to sit for a while and just observe ou...

Homemade Laundry Detergent

Found a great tutorial on how to make your own laundry detergent.  Wow, it's easy, and the cost savings are unbelievable!

Click here to check out the tutorial.

Fermentation Update: Sauerkraut

Update on my fermentation journey:  I checked on my second ever batch of sauerkraut today.  It has been steeping for about two weeks.  I had to skim some icky white mold stuff off the top, but I was warned that this is okay.  Tried some afterwards, and it tastes like sauerkraut!  Way better than the first batch.  Yay!  I think it needs to sit a bit longer, but all in all, I'm impressed.  I'd be proud of myself if it wasn't so easy!

Keeping Chickens

I've just added the Chicken Keeping website to our list of useful links.  I thought it had some great information on keeping chickens in your backyard.  Terry Golson, the brain behind the site, offers a lot of information on care, feeding, housing, troubleshooting, and more.  We just recently lost our rooster, Mac, to an illness that we didn't recognize until it was too late.  I wish I had found Terry's site sooner.  Her information on what can be done for sick chickens may have helped.
In spite of losing Mac, let me say that chickens really are not hard to keep.  We use a movable chicken tractor constructed of wood, PVC, chicken wire, and tarp (for weather protection).  We scouted out a friend's tractor for building ideas, and there are loads of plans available online.  Just Google it.
The tractor gets dragged to a new location every two weeks.  Inside are nesting crates that we fill with hay for them to bed down in and keep warm.  They've been mowing the backyard for us! What's more, the dirt left behind is fertilized, scratched up, covered with hay remnants, and ready for seeding.  Since we let them have the run of the backyard during the day, the hens don't always lay their eggs in the coop.  After taking the time to make up nesting crates that looked lovely to me, the hens gently let me know that those crates weren't so hot.  They made their own nesting sites in various spots throughout the yard.  Everyday is an egg hunt for us, and that's fine.  Whatever makes them happy.
Chickens are a great small livestock to keep in your backyard.  They bring a whole new dimension to your gardening efforts by giving you nitrogen rich fertilizer with their manure.  The eggshells are also great for the compost pile.  Chickens don't need a lot of space, and in return for shelter, food, and water, they offer eggs, meat, fertilizer, and entertainment.  Now that's an unbeatable return on investment!

Garden Bed Construction - Double Digging

Prepping out some more garden beds for spring planting is one of the projects that I'm tackling during these cooler months.  There are many ways to construct a garden bed.  This method, known as double digging, is what I'll be doing.  Here's a clip from a video that John Jeavons and his team put together to explain how this is done.  John Jeavons is author of How to Grow More Vegetables (and Fruits, Nuts, Berries, Grains, and Other Crops) Than You Ever Thought Possible on Less Land Than You Can Imagine.  Long title.  Great book.  You can find it in our store.  I highly recommend that you grab a copy for your home library.  Click here to pick up a copy on Amazon.

A note on regions:  If you live in an area that gets a lot of bad weather at this time of year, then know that you can build garden beds up until the ground freezes.  It'll be too late to actually plant much in it, so I'd recommend covering it with mulch until spring planting.  For my part I'm very, very fond of hay.  Raked leaves or wood chips are also fine options.  Use what you've got.  Water it once in a while if the season proves to be dry.    

Chasing an annoying rooster back into the coop.  That'll keep you in shape.  Good grief!

Speaking of chickens, we've just added The Chicken Health Handbook to our store as a recommended book for troubleshooting the health of your small flock.  Please visit our shop, and check out the various books on gardening, health, and homesteading that we have found helpful.  Winter is a great time to increase your gardening knowledge, as there's less work to do outside.  Happy reading!

What's for Dinner?

Jenny here. Dinner tonight will be omelets made with eggs from our hens, and the season's first chard from our garden. Being able to feed my children food that we've grown ourselves gives me such satisfaction. Homesteading is very, very cool.

Pokeweed

For the last two years, our yard has been home to pokeweed.  Having never encountered it before, it took a while for me to figure out what it was.  I finally asked a couple of my native Texan friends, and they didn't hesitate to identify it.  I am still debating what to do with it.  I hate to pull out a potential food source, but this particular food source can be poisonous if not prepared properly.

Here are some things that I've noticed.  First is that it seems to be drought and heat tolerant.  Everything in the yard has been struggling this summer except for the pokeweed.  It has doubled in size!  Second is that it is very prolific.  Apparently the birds eat the berries and pass the seeds.  I noticed little sprouts in the raised beds early this year and pulled them right out.  That proved a very easy task and they haven't grown back.  Last year, before I knew what I was looking at, I allowed one to grow in one of the beds.  The things was nearly as big as a tree before I pulled it this spring.  It took a shovel and a lot of digging to finally get the roots out.  I have allowed the patch to grow next to the peonies on the north side of the house, but I'm afraid they are taking over.  To top it all off, I just noticed it growing in the rose bush island out back.  It's starting to feel like a plague! 

Those sounds like bad things, but if I can keep it controlled, I have to admit that it's somewhat attractive and is obviously happy with our harsh soil and climate.  And like I said before, it can be eaten.  I've heard some people refer to it as a southern delicacy.  (Does anyone remember the song Poke Salad Annie)?  There are even recipes for it on some of the more popular recipe sites.  I'm not convinced to try it out yet because of all the 'cook it just right' warnings, but I'm not sold on just pulling it up as a nuisance plant either.

If you have pokeweed on your property, or find it just shows up one day as a gift from the birds in the area, these are some things that you'll have to consider before you decide what to do about it.  I'll keep you updated on ours, and will be sure to let you know how it goes if we ever decide to eat it!