Bungee cords and Baling Twine

Sometimes I worry a little that my children will grow up feeling that they were deprived during their childhoods. Ask me in about twenty years and I will perhaps know what effect our frugal and humble lifestyle has on people when they grow up. I am not sure how they will remember the years of wearing only hand me down and thrift store clothing, working to earn money for anything above food and shelter, wildcrafting, Farmer's Marketing and generally making do with what is at hand. I didn't design it to be this way. The life I envisioned had just a little more money for discretionary spending. It would have included a small allowance, a few more new clothes, a little more exposure to the inside of a restaurant and a little more travel.

In reality; however, life is what it is. I was brought up in a similar fashion, though my parents didn't do any entrepreneurial stuff. We ate simple foods, wore inexpensive and hand me down clothing and tried to keep both ends together in the middle. I remember well  when my dad wasn't able to work for various reasons. I remember things being tight. What I don't remember is feeling poor. We were spiritually rich. We loved each other and we welcomed others in our home and family. I hope my children will recall feeling the same way.

I see eveidence that my children are benefitting from not being able to run to the store for everything though. When we are out of one ingredient for a recipe, that almost never thwarts my clever kids. Applesauce will replace oil in baked goods, mayo can sub for eggs or shortening in many baked items as well. They all know how to use powdered milk for anything requiring liquid milk. It is nice to know that we can all put something passably edble together in spite of missing ingredients.

I am most entertained by my family's use of baling twine, Bungee cords, tarps, duct tape and glue! At this very moment, we have a kennel built out of recycled chain link panels. It has Bungee cord hinges and some of the broken brackets have been replaced by zip ties. Our vacuum cleaner maintains suction due to a duct tape repair. Our pigs are shaded and protected from the heat by a tarp and zip ties. Parts of some of our cars have been repaired with tape, glue and (sorry honey, I had to share it) dental floss!

I think we might get kicked out of some neighborhoods, but thankfully most members of our neighborhood get around on hooves or paws and don't concern themselves much with countryside renovations. Our human neighbors too are kind and forgiving of an area of dereliction here or there. I am thankful for the experiences we are having . Sometimes I wish my chldren had it a little easier, but it will be interesting to see how they turn out and whether they carry on the family dental-floss-holding -in-the headlight where mom hit the deer with the van legacy.

Enjoy yourselves!

P.S. Go here http://www.cowboypoetry.com/stephaniedavis.htm#Baling to read the lyrics to one of my favorite songs.

Lawana

I Am So Glad I Am Not a Truck Farmer!

When I was growing up in the foothills of the Appalachians, some of my friends' parents were "truck" farmers. That meant that they grew extra vegetables to sell on a truck. Before my time, those trucks sometimes went door to door and were called peddlers. There were also gatherings in all the little towns of the area on Saturday where folks would sell their produce.

When my father was young, share cropping was common. Though there are variations on this theme, it involves some agreement between a person or more likely a family who has no land, farming land that belongs to someone else. The proceeds of the crop are divided between the land owner and the share cropper.



SALAD BED



SAD, COLD, LITTLE SQUASHES

The history books I read as a child carried an idea that sharecropping was one way for destitute people to rise out of their poverty. In my lifetime, it appeared that truck farmers were able to earn money also. So here's my point. My family would have long ago been evicted if I were a sharecropper. Even if you adjust for climate, soil type, etc. My gardening efforts are so pitiable! If I were a truck farmer, a Tonka truck would do for hauling the produce!

As it stands, I am not a truck farmer, nor a sharecropper. I do have hopes of selling a few things at our local farmer's market if the weather and my garden will cooperate. For now though I would be excited to just have enough lettuce to build a salad! Perhaps I would do better at hunting and gathering. If God would just let cilantro, lettuce and spinach grow in the forest, I would be set.

THE LONE TOMATO BLOOM!

As it is, it might be wild greens and berries for our family this year.

Enjoy your gardening and if the Lord blesses, could somebody send me a Jalapeno or maybe a yellow crookneck squash?

PEPPERS? MAYBE.



AT LEAST, THE GARDEN HAS A VIEW!

 Lawana

Temperature at my house this morning at daylight: 50 degrees.

I think it is spring

The last few mornings just before sunrise, there was a special quality to the air. There was a muskier warmer scent and a bit of haze. My little garden plot is refenced after the trampoline blew into it. (Thanks Handsome!) We are all getting excited about putting our seeds in the ground. All of the children are old enough this year to appreciate the miracle of gardening. Thanks to my generous friend Debbie, Jesse is going to farm in Topsy Turvys. He will have tomatoes and peppers and one with strawberries. I don't think we will plant tomatoes this year in the raised beds but see if having portable tomato plants will help us lengthen the season for them.

I can't wait to see the little plants breaking the soil. This year we are going to work with the purslane rather than against it. I am going to encourage it and use it in our green salads. It is free, full of vitamins and very tenacious. Last year I successfully reseeded my entire beds with cilantro. My favorite herb is growing like a weed and my most persistent weed is becoming an addition to my salads. Homesteading Montana style is taking an interesting turn.

I am going to try lasagna gardening in one of my beds  and broadcast multiculture in the other. We will see how it goes. I also want to get some Lavender established between my beds. I have to garden in the late evening due to sun sensitivity and I look forward to the wafting aroma of lavender  as my skirts brush against it. I also hope to get some perennial herbs like comfrey and chammomile. I would also like to get started with sunchokes. I see these all as basic, easy to replicate and having the ability to provide varied nutrition and medicinal value in these times when the "normal" way of providing for food, health, healing and aesthetics is giving way to the old ways that I love.

I hope you can get your hands in some soil this week, even if its a small amount like I have. See if you make some connection with a character from your past. I have several tweedy old farmers in my history who each taught me a little bit. I have new friends now who teach me something new every year. I imagine my ancestors would be surprised to see me learning to garden far from the red clay and poke salad of my youth. For me, I am surprised that I can pull it off at all!