Biodynamic treechange (homesteading)

It's Very Simple Really

Al Gore has never been shy when it comes to telling it like it is.

His latest campaign at We Can Solve It is pretty straight, too.

This post has been lifted from their site.

 

Buzzing Bees and Lush Perfume Herald Spring's Arrival

This time of the year is one of my favourite - everything comes alive, and there's no place more alive at the moment than our citrus grove.

Located on the northern side of our property, and bathed in sun all day long, the grove contains 12 mature citrus, being a mix of oranges, mandarins and a lemon. We will be augmenting this extensively in the coming year by extending the orchard into the adjoining paddock, but at the moment these dozen trees provide us and the local wildlife with more than enough citrus fruit.

These easy to grow small trees generally provide fruit through the cooler parts of the year, and given their high vitamin C content, and it's use in the prevention of colds and flu, the winter bounty they provide is timely. However, by planting a range of different cultivars within each species, you can lengthen your harvest period extensively. For expert advice, you should contact your local nursery or fruit tree supplier.

Blue Eggs Lead To Black Chook

About three weeks ago, you might remember my story about our broody hen and a dozen blue eggs we bought for her (Blue Eggs and ...What?).

Well, say hello to our first little black chook!

An Araucana chick, it looks as though this will be the only member of the clutch, as her 'foster' mum hasn't been that keen to stay on the 'nest' and hatch the remaining eggs. We were warned that this was a possibility, and given that this is our hen's first go at hatching, not really all that surprising - not an ideal outcome but a good experience none the less. And we've still got a way to go yet!

Our next step is to find out how and when to let this one into the main run and mix with the other chooks. Madly posting on a few key chicken and poultry forums for tips and hints.

It would be ideal if we've got a hen here that we can then add a few more Araucana chooks to over the coming summer. We'll keep you informed.

Do You Want The Best Tasting Food? Start Saving Your Seeds.

Earlier this year we had the delight of picking and eating our own tomatoes - truly one of life's joys - and hand grown, chemical-free produce is one of the sweetest taste sensations I know. And we are looking forward to an abundance of taste sensations to share with our customers in the coming months.

The image at left shows some of the first pickings from the tomato patch earlier this year, and they came from a mixed pack of heirloom seeds that Diggers Seeds supplied. Containing six varieties - Red Sugarlump, Black Krim, Orange Jaume Flammee, Yellow Peach, Green Zebra, and White Cherry - the seeds were not individually wrapped, so we didn't know what we would get until each seed had sprouted, grown and fruited.

Free User Guide For Great Sites To Visit

 

Recent visitors to the Biodynamic Treechange website will have noticed the addition of a some new lists and links located on the left hand side of our website (yeah that's it, scroll all the way down).

These reflect a slight shift in the content of this site, and this will become more apparent over the coming months as we ramp up the vegetable garden and CSA side of our venture. Spring is virtually upon us and it's busy times ahead.

Olive! They've Got's Me Spinach!

This is the best part of what are doing here at 'Near River' - harvesting, preparing and then eating our own produce. Well someone has to do quality control!

At the end of last week we received a big dump of rain, 100 mm (4 inches) in around 12 hours, which had us worried that we'd lose some of the crops and beds that we've been tending. Thankfully that wasn't the case, and this morning I went out to harvest our first bag of spinach. Cutting the plants at ground level, and then bringing them in to quickly rinse before loosely bagging them and placing in the fridge. I can't wait to cook them up tonight for dinner - hmmm, yum.

Why You Need To Know How To Send A Submission To The Raw Milk Review

Do you believe it is your right to choose what you eat and drink? Then read on...

Food Standards for Australia and New Zealand (FSANZ) has commenced a review of the right to produce and sell raw milk products including milk and cheeses.

What is raw milk you ask? Put simply, it's milk straight from the cow (or goat or sheep or buffalo) without pasteurisation. There is a body of belief that this milk, full of beneficial bacteria and enzymes, is better than 'processed' milk, and before factory farming began, all the milk that humans consumed was 'raw'. In many parts of the world selling raw milk is illegal, which is currently the situation here in Australia. While it is permitted in 28 states in America, there has been a pitched battle in some sections of the community regarding this issue. My earlier post, The real deal with raw milk and the raw deal with unreal milk shed some light on this, and further information can be found here.

Proponents believe that beneficial components of milk are destroyed by pasteurisation, specifically immunoglobulins and the enzymes lipase and phosphatase, which are inactivated by heat. Raw milk contains vitamin B 6, but the heat treatment may cause as much as 20% of the vitamin to be lost. Pasteurisation also kills some of milk's naturally-occurring bacteria, such as Lactobacillus acidophilus, useful for the culturing of yogurt. Raw milk proponents point out that these "friendly" bacteria aid digestion and boost immunity.

Buy The View To Eat

White House Lawn For Sale

My mates over at Kitchen Gardeners International, promoters of local food, globally, have come up with a great scheme, following on from their 'Eat the View' campaign that I posted about last week. They are having a Great White House Lawn Sale - literally!

Read this from KGI for all the details.

Yippee, It's Our First Anniversary

This week marks the end of our first year here at 'Near River', and what a year it's been!

That said, this post is about where we've come from,  people we've met along the way, and what's next - some reflection and acknowledgement.

What we are doing here is following a dream, with the aim to be the most productive, efficient and profitable bio-dynamic farmers in the country, supplying the highest quality produce to our community. And while matters have not progressed as far as we had hoped, we've certainly had some real wins and are moving in the right direction.