Stay tuned... Major announcements coming soon.
posted from Bloggeroid
Follow along our adventure as we make the transition from corporate city life to the world of natural farming. Each day brings a new experience and brings us to a deeper understanding about the life and spirit that made America great. At our farm we do our best to give the animals we raise a natural, free, happy, stressfree lifestyle. Our mission is to learn and share how to manage a farming operation that is both profitable and humane.
Wednesday, November 8, 2017
Friday, November 3, 2017
Exciting New Beginnings - Sad Endings
This is a bitter sweet post to write.
With every new beginning, comes an ending. It is time for Little Sprouts Farm to enter into a new beginning, which means the end of what is. Our farm and our family will be leaving the Rogue Valley soon, to pursue our mission of “launching a thousand small farms” across America.
In the beginning, our farm was created to produce food to heal our own family… the foods that are not available in the store or on most farms. The success with our own children brought customers seeking to duplicate our success, and the farm was born. Over the next few years we centered on creating food with as much nutrition as possible, food that truly heals.
Then we ran into the reality that the conventional farm model does not work. Small farms operating with standard wisdom simply can not make a profit and must be supported by off farm income. That is a real problem for our society because as long as farms must be subsidized by other income, our food supply will remain dominated by large corporations more interested in profit than health. This is the problem we next set out to solve.
Through divine inspiration, trial and error, resourcefulness, and plain hard work… we have arrived at a business model that allows small family farms to make a living on the farm without outside income, a truly sustainable farm, one that is self sufficient. We accomplished this through a re-evaluation of the entire farming model, and re-discovering the laws of nature that farms should be built on. It is based on the notion that "Farms should be PRODUCERS, not consumers". This new farm model allows an inexperienced individual or family to launch a small farm of their liking with minimal resources and training, yet be profitable within 2 years without outside income to support it.
We have done the work to produce the “model”, and have begun documenting it through the books we are publishing. But one necessary step remains… proof. A farm must be stood up from scratch, follow the program, and prove that it works. This first proof point is critical to the success of the final step.. bringing this farm model to the public at large and launching a thousand small profitable family farms, all producing the highest quality beyond organic foods to heal those hurting. With God's blessing... we will be there in 2 years.
So, we are becoming our own first customer. We have decided to move the existing Little Sprouts Farm to a new area, out of state, where no one knows us. We will set up shop there, from scratch, and following our program, prove that this works. Our target at the moment is East Texas, for a variety of reasons.
This does NOT mean Little Sprouts Farm is going out of business here in Oregon! We are in the process of migrating accounts to our new website, and will continue offering home delivery until we move, and then shipping on what is legal to ship across state lines. We value each customer, and deeply appreciate your support all these years, and hope that we can continue to serve you in this way.
That said, we need to start scaling back the farm operations here to concentrate on our upcoming move, hopefully before winter sets in. This means a few things:
- Goat milk herdshare is cancelled as of Oct 31
- Eggs is discontinued as of November 1
- Feed is discontinued as of November 1
- Farmigo will be canceled within the next few days, replaced by our new online store.
We want to thank you, and this community for making the last few years possible. Our customers are more than just customers, they are family. Many of us have laughed together, and cried together. We have shared success and failures in our journey of health. The excitement of going the next step in our mission, is tempered by the sadness of saying goodby to our friends and customers in this valley. But it is a necessary step to pursue the rescue of the American food system from the ground up.
Please feel free to email or call or come by and visit with any questions.
Thank you and God Bless,
Dave, Brenda and the Little Sprouts
Monday, October 9, 2017
Tonight's menu at the pig table
Tonight for our produce fed pigs, we have the following:
Fresh vine ripened whole pumpkins served on a bed of pumpkin vines with roots. For a savory side dish, a collection of whole kohlrabi. (They had watermelon as an appetizer!)
Fresh vine ripened whole pumpkins served on a bed of pumpkin vines with roots. For a savory side dish, a collection of whole kohlrabi. (They had watermelon as an appetizer!)
posted from Bloggeroid
Friday, October 6, 2017
Largest turkey ever!
This year we started offering bird processing for customers as a service. The other local bird processing service shut down, so we stepped in with our equipment to fill the gap. And wow there is a large demand for processing this time of year!
One of the most surprising was this guy, a Tom raised by a location family. The biggest turkey I have ever seen!
This guy was so heavy it took both Hunter and I to handle him! We didn't have the opportunity to weigh actually, but I am sure it was close to 70lbs!
Amazingly, it was healthy! It could walk well, unlike most commercial breed turkeys. It had a good layer of fat inside and the liver (nature's window into health status) was beautiful! Everything was just... Big!
Honestly, most turkeys (and chickens for that matter) are not healthy when we see them. They are suffering from various degrees of malnutrition and toxic exposure, mostly due to highly selective breeding and poor quality Feed of mostly soy (horrible food source!) Often the organs are not even useable due to poor health.
But this guy... Healthy and huge! So naturally we were curious about the Feed. Opening the gizzard showed the vast majority of intake was grass! This was a truly great fed turkey. What a difference it makes!
The moral of this story is... Be careful which feed you choose. Just because it has a popular name on the label does not mean healthy. About all soy containing feed, and anything without organically raised ingredients. But there is more... Keep in mind that feed companies are motivated to add no more nutrition than necessary in order to increase their profits. Yes, the trade-off is between their profit and your health. They must draw the line somewhere to compete on price.
This is why we have turned to using our own produce to raise animals. Skip the commercial feed completely. Plus, designing our own feeds to our own quality standards. That way we know what's in there, and what it provides for the animals, and ultimately for you.
This turkey was a great lesson in "doing it right"!
One of the most surprising was this guy, a Tom raised by a location family. The biggest turkey I have ever seen!
This guy was so heavy it took both Hunter and I to handle him! We didn't have the opportunity to weigh actually, but I am sure it was close to 70lbs!
Amazingly, it was healthy! It could walk well, unlike most commercial breed turkeys. It had a good layer of fat inside and the liver (nature's window into health status) was beautiful! Everything was just... Big!
Honestly, most turkeys (and chickens for that matter) are not healthy when we see them. They are suffering from various degrees of malnutrition and toxic exposure, mostly due to highly selective breeding and poor quality Feed of mostly soy (horrible food source!) Often the organs are not even useable due to poor health.
But this guy... Healthy and huge! So naturally we were curious about the Feed. Opening the gizzard showed the vast majority of intake was grass! This was a truly great fed turkey. What a difference it makes!
The moral of this story is... Be careful which feed you choose. Just because it has a popular name on the label does not mean healthy. About all soy containing feed, and anything without organically raised ingredients. But there is more... Keep in mind that feed companies are motivated to add no more nutrition than necessary in order to increase their profits. Yes, the trade-off is between their profit and your health. They must draw the line somewhere to compete on price.
This is why we have turned to using our own produce to raise animals. Skip the commercial feed completely. Plus, designing our own feeds to our own quality standards. That way we know what's in there, and what it provides for the animals, and ultimately for you.
This turkey was a great lesson in "doing it right"!
posted from Bloggeroid
Attack!
Hunter headed out to do his harvesting of the Frost bitten plants for pig feed today only to find a sad sight. A group of a few neighbor dogs had slipped into the garden through the squares in the fence and we're actively attacking the chickens. Not chasing, attacking. He soon discovered several dead chickens laying around. They are"sport attacking".
What does that mean? Well, like it or not, birds are the natural food for dogs. A dog's natural instinct is to attack birds in some form. A pack of dogs, easily falls into natural herd behavior to hang up on birds and attack for the sake of attacking, not for food, but for sport.
It's not the dogs fault, it is their instinct. It is what a dog is. Sure, it's possible to train it out of them, but puppies come with a natural desire to Chase and kill birds. It's just reality.
Today, Hunter succeeded in chasing the dogs off, but damage was done. 3 dogs had already killed 3 chickens, wounded 4 more unrecoverably, and 2 more were simply missing (feathers but no body). These same dogs had killed 2 or 3 more chicken earlier. A total of 12 birds.
Birds and dogs are a challenge, because dogs kill birds unless their training is stronger than their instinct. That's just how it is. But don't get me wrong.. I love dogs. Yet with any animal we must keep in mind that they are animals, driven by instinct that is molded by training. Still, down inside, they are dogs.
What does that mean? Well, like it or not, birds are the natural food for dogs. A dog's natural instinct is to attack birds in some form. A pack of dogs, easily falls into natural herd behavior to hang up on birds and attack for the sake of attacking, not for food, but for sport.
It's not the dogs fault, it is their instinct. It is what a dog is. Sure, it's possible to train it out of them, but puppies come with a natural desire to Chase and kill birds. It's just reality.
Today, Hunter succeeded in chasing the dogs off, but damage was done. 3 dogs had already killed 3 chickens, wounded 4 more unrecoverably, and 2 more were simply missing (feathers but no body). These same dogs had killed 2 or 3 more chicken earlier. A total of 12 birds.
Birds and dogs are a challenge, because dogs kill birds unless their training is stronger than their instinct. That's just how it is. But don't get me wrong.. I love dogs. Yet with any animal we must keep in mind that they are animals, driven by instinct that is molded by training. Still, down inside, they are dogs.
posted from Bloggeroid
Early and unexpected Frost
Farming is a dance with nature, a dance where we are but performers, not choreographers. We might at time think that we write the dance, but no... We don't. This week reminded us of this truth. It is the unpredictable laws of nature and batteries God who is in charge. Our part is to dance within the musical score as it plays out, in harmony with nature, not controlling it but honoring it.
This week reminded us of this truth. A few days ago, first week of October, brought an early deep Frost. Without warning, or summer plants writer and died overnight. Zucchini, Melons, Pumpkins, tomatoes, all reduced to leaves of frozen must on softened stalks. The leftover fruit that survived oddly on display, proudly glistening among the dark plants.
So... First emergency is to gather what is good and store it. Left out unprotected on dead vines, the fruit will disappear to the elements. So we spent a few days collecting it all up, clearing a spot in the garage and safely storing it.
This is important because, the second coming emergency is, we will now run shot in animal feed for the winter. The seasons here is Southern Oregon mean no real growth in the winter. The last month of October is important to allow the summer fruity to gain size and ripen the sugars inside. But that month is gone now for this year. The harvest is likely half what it should be. Definitely not enough to provide free through the winter. That's is the coming emergency... Feed.
This year's dance with nature is a difficult one. Timing issues sand equipment problem prevented is from getting the winter tires crop in the ground as weirdly as we should, and now the loss of much summer fruit means... A tough winter.
Our process of growing feed from produce raised on farm has served us well, providing most of the feed we need for almost free year round. But farming is still a dance to an unpredictable song of nature and sons have highs and lows, passion and sorrow, smiles and tears. This year ends with more of the later than the former.
Bottom line is, we will need to switch to a backup feed, likely the organic barley sprouts. Difficulty there is that we lost the greenhouse in the last storm! Sprouting barley in winter without a greenhouse is possible, but labor intensive!
Oh well.... God is in control and if he calls for extra labor in the winter.. so be it! Here we go!
This week reminded us of this truth. A few days ago, first week of October, brought an early deep Frost. Without warning, or summer plants writer and died overnight. Zucchini, Melons, Pumpkins, tomatoes, all reduced to leaves of frozen must on softened stalks. The leftover fruit that survived oddly on display, proudly glistening among the dark plants.
So... First emergency is to gather what is good and store it. Left out unprotected on dead vines, the fruit will disappear to the elements. So we spent a few days collecting it all up, clearing a spot in the garage and safely storing it.
This is important because, the second coming emergency is, we will now run shot in animal feed for the winter. The seasons here is Southern Oregon mean no real growth in the winter. The last month of October is important to allow the summer fruity to gain size and ripen the sugars inside. But that month is gone now for this year. The harvest is likely half what it should be. Definitely not enough to provide free through the winter. That's is the coming emergency... Feed.
This year's dance with nature is a difficult one. Timing issues sand equipment problem prevented is from getting the winter tires crop in the ground as weirdly as we should, and now the loss of much summer fruit means... A tough winter.
Our process of growing feed from produce raised on farm has served us well, providing most of the feed we need for almost free year round. But farming is still a dance to an unpredictable song of nature and sons have highs and lows, passion and sorrow, smiles and tears. This year ends with more of the later than the former.
Bottom line is, we will need to switch to a backup feed, likely the organic barley sprouts. Difficulty there is that we lost the greenhouse in the last storm! Sprouting barley in winter without a greenhouse is possible, but labor intensive!
Oh well.... God is in control and if he calls for extra labor in the winter.. so be it! Here we go!
posted from Bloggeroid
Sheep coming home
The first of the sheep are home. They spent the summer out at another property with lots of lush green grass. But with summer over, it is time to come home for lambing.
They seemed to remember this pasture. As soon as they exited the trailer, they happily ran to the trees and started grazing on the dried heads of the wild grasses.
We have 2 more loads to bring home as time permits. Then they will all be together again.
It's so good to see the sheep here again. We deeply miss them when they go off on vacation. Sheep are the life of the farm, the steady calm that keeps the storm of life at bay. Their personalities are each unique but similar, they are sheep. They are so like us as humans, their behaviors and natural tendencies so similar to humans, it's amazing. I can spend hours just watching these guys be.
Hopefully the rest of the herd can come home before the weekend.
They seemed to remember this pasture. As soon as they exited the trailer, they happily ran to the trees and started grazing on the dried heads of the wild grasses.
We have 2 more loads to bring home as time permits. Then they will all be together again.
It's so good to see the sheep here again. We deeply miss them when they go off on vacation. Sheep are the life of the farm, the steady calm that keeps the storm of life at bay. Their personalities are each unique but similar, they are sheep. They are so like us as humans, their behaviors and natural tendencies so similar to humans, it's amazing. I can spend hours just watching these guys be.
Hopefully the rest of the herd can come home before the weekend.
posted from Bloggeroid
Sunday, October 1, 2017
Tomatoes!
They are finally ripe!
Remember those 1000 tomato plants that were donated to the farm? Well... They did good. Very good. They have been growing quietly in the back all this time. We got a few ripe. Tomatoes here and there, but finally... The harvest arrived!
What initiated this was sort of.. well... Embarrassing. The pigs discovered that there is no live electric wire around them... And they simply walked out. Pigs in the yard. We put them away and 10 minutes later... Pigs in the yard. Then... I saw a pig in the tomato patch! Yep.. she was enjoying a tomato picnic. Didn't really want to leave either. Her and I went in a few circles through the plants.
After the pig / tomato dance... There were quite a few tomatoes knocked to the ground. We decided it was time to do a major harvest, even the slightly green ones, because the pig had knocked a lot of tomatoes to the ground. Normally we would not have harvested on a Sunday, but it seemed prudent to save the fruit. God blesses us with this huge harvest... Can't let it go to waste!
And wow... What a harvest!
There are plenty more green ones. Not sure if there is enough heat to ripen them, but if they do... We will get this much again. This harvest will produce probably 15 to 20 gallons of sauce/ salsa/ etc.
Nice to end the day with a successful harvest, a bumper crop. Now.... What to do with it all!?
Remember those 1000 tomato plants that were donated to the farm? Well... They did good. Very good. They have been growing quietly in the back all this time. We got a few ripe. Tomatoes here and there, but finally... The harvest arrived!
What initiated this was sort of.. well... Embarrassing. The pigs discovered that there is no live electric wire around them... And they simply walked out. Pigs in the yard. We put them away and 10 minutes later... Pigs in the yard. Then... I saw a pig in the tomato patch! Yep.. she was enjoying a tomato picnic. Didn't really want to leave either. Her and I went in a few circles through the plants.
After the pig / tomato dance... There were quite a few tomatoes knocked to the ground. We decided it was time to do a major harvest, even the slightly green ones, because the pig had knocked a lot of tomatoes to the ground. Normally we would not have harvested on a Sunday, but it seemed prudent to save the fruit. God blesses us with this huge harvest... Can't let it go to waste!
And wow... What a harvest!
There are plenty more green ones. Not sure if there is enough heat to ripen them, but if they do... We will get this much again. This harvest will produce probably 15 to 20 gallons of sauce/ salsa/ etc.
Nice to end the day with a successful harvest, a bumper crop. Now.... What to do with it all!?
posted from Bloggeroid
Wednesday, September 20, 2017
Tough Week
Wow, sometimes life is challenging. I could use this blog to only share the "good stuff" of happy memories, dreams and successes. But, as you know, that is not real life. Real life is made of challenges, failures, heartache, all the stuff that makes the good times even better.
This last week has been such a week of disappointments and challenges.
In the background of severe supplier issues on some items, the hectic fall "harvest" as the weather changes, the usual "dad, this isn't working", the lack of cash flow when you need it, behind all of that is the closing windows of opportunity. In farming, the weather is king. Farmers can not change weather, much as we want. It is what it is. We cant control it, we can only accommodate it. And sometimes, like this week, that doesn't work out.
I am referring to the windows here in Oregon of September planting for a fall/winter garden. Basically, if we do not have seed in the ground, sprouted by the first cold rain, it is pointless. There will not be enough heat left to grow anything before winter. So mid-September is the crunch time. And this year, we missed it.
First there was just so much going on, that could not be put off. That pushed us into the very last minute for planting. But then, when we were racing to get the ground prepared and seeds in... problems arose. I did manage to get the old goat pen tilled, but on the last pass of that area, the tiller "hung". The tines literally stopped and the tiller jumped behind the tractor. Not a good sign. After that, it would work, but only so long as the tines were no more than half an inch deep into the soil.
Racing the sundown of the last day, I thought, "ok, I an use the hand tiller to finish the rest of the areas". More work... but doable!
Well... so I thought. It refused to run. Apparently the gas gummed the carb as it sat and it would start up, but then die from lack of gas flow. I began working on it... to see it it would easily fix. But as you may know.. a carb cleaning job without dismantling can require lots of starting, and starting requires lots of pulling on the rope. Pulling on the rope... works well until the rope BREAKS!
Ok, so plan B (with a very tired arm)
Back to the big tiller. I assumed there was a problem in the gear box, so I removed the gearbox cover and drained all the oil. Peeking around, couldn't find anything wrong! Everything seemed perfect! So.. ok.. put that all together and refill with fresh oil. Head out to the garden again.
Same problem, put the tines in the soil and they just stop.
Closer inspection from underneath found something interesting! a half inch pip had somehow become wrapped around the tiller tine shaft. Ok, conceivable that could stop the tines under certain conditions and make the clutch slip. SO half an hour later it was removed.
Head back to the garden.... no difference.
Frustrated, I pulled up the parts diagram for this particular tiller model and found that the gear drive has a key between the gear and the shaft. That key being bad would be the explanation for the failure. The pipe must have taken out the key.
So no tiller, no garden, no winter feed.
Frustrating week.
This last week has been such a week of disappointments and challenges.
In the background of severe supplier issues on some items, the hectic fall "harvest" as the weather changes, the usual "dad, this isn't working", the lack of cash flow when you need it, behind all of that is the closing windows of opportunity. In farming, the weather is king. Farmers can not change weather, much as we want. It is what it is. We cant control it, we can only accommodate it. And sometimes, like this week, that doesn't work out.
I am referring to the windows here in Oregon of September planting for a fall/winter garden. Basically, if we do not have seed in the ground, sprouted by the first cold rain, it is pointless. There will not be enough heat left to grow anything before winter. So mid-September is the crunch time. And this year, we missed it.
First there was just so much going on, that could not be put off. That pushed us into the very last minute for planting. But then, when we were racing to get the ground prepared and seeds in... problems arose. I did manage to get the old goat pen tilled, but on the last pass of that area, the tiller "hung". The tines literally stopped and the tiller jumped behind the tractor. Not a good sign. After that, it would work, but only so long as the tines were no more than half an inch deep into the soil.
Racing the sundown of the last day, I thought, "ok, I an use the hand tiller to finish the rest of the areas". More work... but doable!
Well... so I thought. It refused to run. Apparently the gas gummed the carb as it sat and it would start up, but then die from lack of gas flow. I began working on it... to see it it would easily fix. But as you may know.. a carb cleaning job without dismantling can require lots of starting, and starting requires lots of pulling on the rope. Pulling on the rope... works well until the rope BREAKS!
Ok, so plan B (with a very tired arm)
Back to the big tiller. I assumed there was a problem in the gear box, so I removed the gearbox cover and drained all the oil. Peeking around, couldn't find anything wrong! Everything seemed perfect! So.. ok.. put that all together and refill with fresh oil. Head out to the garden again.
Same problem, put the tines in the soil and they just stop.
Closer inspection from underneath found something interesting! a half inch pip had somehow become wrapped around the tiller tine shaft. Ok, conceivable that could stop the tines under certain conditions and make the clutch slip. SO half an hour later it was removed.
Head back to the garden.... no difference.
Frustrated, I pulled up the parts diagram for this particular tiller model and found that the gear drive has a key between the gear and the shaft. That key being bad would be the explanation for the failure. The pipe must have taken out the key.
So no tiller, no garden, no winter feed.
Frustrating week.
Friday, September 8, 2017
Lamb is Back In Stock! --- Order now for immediate delivery!
Yes! After a long wait... we finally have lamb products back in stock! And some exciting ones at that!
This year we have:
Ground lamb in 1 lb packages
Mildly spicy breakfast links
Mint Cranberry Dinner Links! WOOHOO!
The mint cranberry is our favorite! After much testing and adjusting, we developed this recipe our-self, in our kitchen. It is quite honestly an exquisite blend of tart, sweet, and minty. You have GOT to try this one!
And the best news? All of this lamb is, as always, super nutritious.
Pasture Raised year round on organically grown grass
Heritage Breed
Free of antibiotics, hormones, chemical parasite control, and vaccinations
Humanely treated with love
Naturally bred in communities as in nature
The jacob sheep that we raise is (in our humble yet passionate opinion) the best lamb anywhere. It is milder, yet more flavorful than any other breed we have tried. Often people do not even know that this is lamb! It taste quite similar to grass fed beef.
If you are looking for an alternative to beef that is just as tasty, yet perhaps more nutrient dense, this is it! But hurry, we often sell out quickly and it only becomes available once a year!
Ground lamb in 1 lb packages
Mildly spicy breakfast links
Mint Cranberry Dinner Links! WOOHOO!
The mint cranberry is our favorite! After much testing and adjusting, we developed this recipe our-self, in our kitchen. It is quite honestly an exquisite blend of tart, sweet, and minty. You have GOT to try this one!
And the best news? All of this lamb is, as always, super nutritious.
Pasture Raised year round on organically grown grass
Heritage Breed
Free of antibiotics, hormones, chemical parasite control, and vaccinations
Humanely treated with love
Naturally bred in communities as in nature
The jacob sheep that we raise is (in our humble yet passionate opinion) the best lamb anywhere. It is milder, yet more flavorful than any other breed we have tried. Often people do not even know that this is lamb! It taste quite similar to grass fed beef.
If you are looking for an alternative to beef that is just as tasty, yet perhaps more nutrient dense, this is it! But hurry, we often sell out quickly and it only becomes available once a year!
Thursday, August 24, 2017
The Absolute Worst Bug in the Garden
This year was almost met with catastrophe!
As you probably know by now, we raise our animals on primarily produce grown in our own gardens (instead of buying commercial feeds). It's a lot of work, but the cost / benefit factor is amazing. This concept is the basis of how to make small farms profitable!
But, this year, 2017, we almost lost half the garden, the ever important zucchini and pumpkin, to a bug.
Gardens are full of insects, some good and some bad. Bugs are constant battle gardeners of all sizes fight. But this bug was unlike any other! This bug, one single bug, had the potential of wiping out half our plants in a slow steady death. To make matters worse, this bug is invisible and elusive! Once it rears its head up, it is difficult to track down without very specialized tools.
Not the typical cucumber beetle, not squash bugs, those are mostly controllable with Guinea Fowl and simple soap. No.. this bug is very very different. Immune to all normal methods of containment and riddance. This bug, is a real challenge!
Over the last 2 months we have been fighting this bug on an almost daily basis. The plants were suffering, and stunted from it's effects. The harvest was dramatically less than expected, and some plants even just died. We feared that unless we can get a handle on this, we would loose the remainder of the harvest and end up having to purchase animal feed from off farm! That would be devastating in our present financial position. So last week, I decided it was time to get to the bottom of this situation once and for all.
You see, this bug is not the typical insect, not even an insect at all! This... is a computer bug. Those elusive defects built into anything computerized by a programmer's oversight or failing, that allows things to go astray in some way. What does this have to do with a garden? Water... the blood of the earth. without water in the proper amounts, nothing lives. Our entire watering system is "computerized" meaning, run by a digital timer. Most things digital have inside a computer running a program, and therefore, can have bugs. The difference here is that in a device such as a timer, you cant "debug" the program using normal means. It is hard coded into hardware and is what it is, unchangeable, untraceable.
The timer we prefer is made by Galcon: http://galconc.com/product/6100s/
Such was this bug. Until.. I found it!
Here's what happened. The timer we use (LOVE this timer! best ever, aside from it's now 2 bugs) has two separate modes it can operate in... calendar and cyclic. A calendar mode say "turn on water at 9am on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday for 3 hours". A cyclic mode says "turn on water for 3 hours every 2 days". Very different, with pros and cons to each. We tend to use cyclic for sprouting and growing to ensure frequent short but consistent watering, and switch to calendar for maintenance and harvest. And therein, the switch between the two, is where the bugs is born!
This bug is related to yet another really cool feature of this timer. Water windows! I love water windows! The challenge with sprouting through drip tape on a water timer is the hot southern Oregon summer days. In order to keep the surface soil "moist" to germinate seeds it is necessary to water frequently throughout the sun filled days. But if the water kept going all night, it would flood! So to prevent this, we use cyclic timing with water windows. A water window is quite literally a window of time when and only when the water can turn on. outside the window, watering is restricted. Its a perfect answer!
Well, except for this bug. What happens is... I set the cyclic timing for frequent short watering during the day, and the water windows to disable water at night. But then as the plants reach maturity, I change the program to calendar. Since calendar is a "deterministic" mode where you say definitively when to turn on and off water, the window is not necessary, and the setting of the window removes itself from the programming screen. That's appropriate, right? you don't need windows so it should not be visible in the programming details. BUT, the programmer who wrote this, forgot to disable the FUNCTION of the window along with removing it's CONTROL from the screens. Naturally, we assume if something is not settable, then it is disabled, right? well no, not in this case.
So, when I switched a couple months ago from cyclic to calendar, the water windows dropped off the screen but stayed enforced! any calendar timing I set, would be overridden by the now invisible water window and water would not run! Some zones got full water, some partial, some NONE (or so little it was effectively none). WE tried to manually water, but trying to maintain the right water balance between this unknown semi automatic amount and an added manual amount was impossible, the plants suffered from this "bug".
Once I discovered what was going on (after days of trial and error and deep exploration), the fix was simple. Just switch each zone back to cyclic temporarily, disable the water windows that then showed up on the screen, and switch back to calendar mode. Easy enough! The bug was eradicated within minutes, once I saw it. But, damage is done.
fortunately, the garden has sprung back to life within a week of fixing this. The proper water amount has doubled or tripled the plant size in only days. Well, to be honest, we also applied a good amount of good homemade fertilizer (another post) and sea minerals in an emergency treatment. But ultimately, the water is what did the trick.
So, lesson learned, bugs come in all shapes, sizes, and forms. This particular bug, the computer bug, is perhaps the worst of all. But it was conquered and now avoidable!
As you probably know by now, we raise our animals on primarily produce grown in our own gardens (instead of buying commercial feeds). It's a lot of work, but the cost / benefit factor is amazing. This concept is the basis of how to make small farms profitable!
But, this year, 2017, we almost lost half the garden, the ever important zucchini and pumpkin, to a bug.
Gardens are full of insects, some good and some bad. Bugs are constant battle gardeners of all sizes fight. But this bug was unlike any other! This bug, one single bug, had the potential of wiping out half our plants in a slow steady death. To make matters worse, this bug is invisible and elusive! Once it rears its head up, it is difficult to track down without very specialized tools.
Not the typical cucumber beetle, not squash bugs, those are mostly controllable with Guinea Fowl and simple soap. No.. this bug is very very different. Immune to all normal methods of containment and riddance. This bug, is a real challenge!
Over the last 2 months we have been fighting this bug on an almost daily basis. The plants were suffering, and stunted from it's effects. The harvest was dramatically less than expected, and some plants even just died. We feared that unless we can get a handle on this, we would loose the remainder of the harvest and end up having to purchase animal feed from off farm! That would be devastating in our present financial position. So last week, I decided it was time to get to the bottom of this situation once and for all.
You see, this bug is not the typical insect, not even an insect at all! This... is a computer bug. Those elusive defects built into anything computerized by a programmer's oversight or failing, that allows things to go astray in some way. What does this have to do with a garden? Water... the blood of the earth. without water in the proper amounts, nothing lives. Our entire watering system is "computerized" meaning, run by a digital timer. Most things digital have inside a computer running a program, and therefore, can have bugs. The difference here is that in a device such as a timer, you cant "debug" the program using normal means. It is hard coded into hardware and is what it is, unchangeable, untraceable.
The timer we prefer is made by Galcon: http://galconc.com/product/6100s/
 |
| This timer is battery driven, 6 zone, easily programmable, calendar or cyclic, water windows, overload protection, weatherproof, reliable, and has 2 severe bugs in it's programming! |
Such was this bug. Until.. I found it!
Here's what happened. The timer we use (LOVE this timer! best ever, aside from it's now 2 bugs) has two separate modes it can operate in... calendar and cyclic. A calendar mode say "turn on water at 9am on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday for 3 hours". A cyclic mode says "turn on water for 3 hours every 2 days". Very different, with pros and cons to each. We tend to use cyclic for sprouting and growing to ensure frequent short but consistent watering, and switch to calendar for maintenance and harvest. And therein, the switch between the two, is where the bugs is born!
This bug is related to yet another really cool feature of this timer. Water windows! I love water windows! The challenge with sprouting through drip tape on a water timer is the hot southern Oregon summer days. In order to keep the surface soil "moist" to germinate seeds it is necessary to water frequently throughout the sun filled days. But if the water kept going all night, it would flood! So to prevent this, we use cyclic timing with water windows. A water window is quite literally a window of time when and only when the water can turn on. outside the window, watering is restricted. Its a perfect answer!
Well, except for this bug. What happens is... I set the cyclic timing for frequent short watering during the day, and the water windows to disable water at night. But then as the plants reach maturity, I change the program to calendar. Since calendar is a "deterministic" mode where you say definitively when to turn on and off water, the window is not necessary, and the setting of the window removes itself from the programming screen. That's appropriate, right? you don't need windows so it should not be visible in the programming details. BUT, the programmer who wrote this, forgot to disable the FUNCTION of the window along with removing it's CONTROL from the screens. Naturally, we assume if something is not settable, then it is disabled, right? well no, not in this case.
So, when I switched a couple months ago from cyclic to calendar, the water windows dropped off the screen but stayed enforced! any calendar timing I set, would be overridden by the now invisible water window and water would not run! Some zones got full water, some partial, some NONE (or so little it was effectively none). WE tried to manually water, but trying to maintain the right water balance between this unknown semi automatic amount and an added manual amount was impossible, the plants suffered from this "bug".
Once I discovered what was going on (after days of trial and error and deep exploration), the fix was simple. Just switch each zone back to cyclic temporarily, disable the water windows that then showed up on the screen, and switch back to calendar mode. Easy enough! The bug was eradicated within minutes, once I saw it. But, damage is done.
fortunately, the garden has sprung back to life within a week of fixing this. The proper water amount has doubled or tripled the plant size in only days. Well, to be honest, we also applied a good amount of good homemade fertilizer (another post) and sea minerals in an emergency treatment. But ultimately, the water is what did the trick.
So, lesson learned, bugs come in all shapes, sizes, and forms. This particular bug, the computer bug, is perhaps the worst of all. But it was conquered and now avoidable!
Monday, August 14, 2017
6 week nutrition course - sprouts presents
We are pleased to announce that Dave Salch of little sprouts farm has been asked by Siskiyou Vital Medicine to present one session during this upcoming course on nutrition. Dave will be presenting the session on "food quality", explaining the differences in food options and how to identify food that damages, sustains, or heals.
The 6 week course by Siskiyou Vital Medicine covers many aspects of nutrition at a deep and personal level, Bringing understanding to your own nutritional needs and your relationship to food itself. Expect to be challenged, motivated and enlightened!
From the Facebook page of the event:
------
Details
Ron Veitel, BSc and Sonja Halsey, ND of Siskiyou Vital Medicine will be presenting My Nutrition Map, a personal guide to nutrition and wellness. This course is designed to help you transform your nutrition experience, taking you from Ugh to Ahh in six weeks!
The My Nutrition Map 6-week course is FREE to SVM members and $125 for non-members. Space is limited so call to reserve your now, (541) 210-5687.
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We have personally had a long and mutually beneficial relationship with Siskiyou Vital Medicine since they moved into our valley a few years ago. SVM has met a need in healthcare for the rogue valley in a unique way through the introduction of direct primary care plus a holistic and personalized approach to healthcare. We highly recommend SVM to anyone seeking to truly solve health issues at the core, not just cover them with pharmeticucals.
Sign up for the course now, space is limited! You can register on the Facebook page at :
https://www.facebook.com/siskiyouvitalmedicine/
posted from Bloggeroid
The 6 week course by Siskiyou Vital Medicine covers many aspects of nutrition at a deep and personal level, Bringing understanding to your own nutritional needs and your relationship to food itself. Expect to be challenged, motivated and enlightened!
From the Facebook page of the event:
Details
Ron Veitel, BSc and Sonja Halsey, ND of Siskiyou Vital Medicine will be presenting My Nutrition Map, a personal guide to nutrition and wellness. This course is designed to help you transform your nutrition experience, taking you from Ugh to Ahh in six weeks!
The My Nutrition Map 6-week course is FREE to SVM members and $125 for non-members. Space is limited so call to reserve your now, (541) 210-5687.
We have personally had a long and mutually beneficial relationship with Siskiyou Vital Medicine since they moved into our valley a few years ago. SVM has met a need in healthcare for the rogue valley in a unique way through the introduction of direct primary care plus a holistic and personalized approach to healthcare. We highly recommend SVM to anyone seeking to truly solve health issues at the core, not just cover them with pharmeticucals.
Sign up for the course now, space is limited! You can register on the Facebook page at :
https://www.facebook.com/siskiyouvitalmedicine/
posted from Bloggeroid
Thursday, August 10, 2017
Is it real? How to buy real oils
The bottom line here is... Know your farmer. Know how your food is produced, because it's a dangerous world out there.
We previously talked here about the fake honey, with no pollen and no medicinal value. We covered the fake Olive oils that are invisibly cut with other cheaper oils to increase profits. We even talked about eggs, milk, meats, etc. But never have we seen such a difference in a product as this new one... Pumpkin seed oil.
On the left is a local pumpkin seed oil, it is rich and dark green, almost florescent. It tastes like.. well... Pumpkin.
On the right is a "organic non GMO pumpkin seed oil", grown in China, bought from a local health food store. It tastes like.. sesame oil with a hint of pumpkin. It is mostly clear, with a slight green tinge.
Now... Why does this matter? Because studies have shown that pumpkin seed oil is in fact a very effective treatment for prostate issues. But of course it must be real. Does the oil on the right have the same effect as the oil on the left? How can it?
Another thing to consider is those studies... Which product do they use? From where? Is it real? If the product is not true, how can a study be accurate? If a study says that a natural treatment is not effective, did they choose the oil on the right to test? How do you know?
Know your farmer. It matters. Labels are meaningless, even government certifications are meaningless. Remember the shipment of soy beans that left another country as conventional and arrived with certified organic paperwork on it? That was quite an ocean trip!
Know your farmer!
Our goal is to make sure that we offer to you only the things that we have verified ourself and know that it's real. That's our commitment to you.
posted from Bloggeroid
We previously talked here about the fake honey, with no pollen and no medicinal value. We covered the fake Olive oils that are invisibly cut with other cheaper oils to increase profits. We even talked about eggs, milk, meats, etc. But never have we seen such a difference in a product as this new one... Pumpkin seed oil.
On the left is a local pumpkin seed oil, it is rich and dark green, almost florescent. It tastes like.. well... Pumpkin.
On the right is a "organic non GMO pumpkin seed oil", grown in China, bought from a local health food store. It tastes like.. sesame oil with a hint of pumpkin. It is mostly clear, with a slight green tinge.
Now... Why does this matter? Because studies have shown that pumpkin seed oil is in fact a very effective treatment for prostate issues. But of course it must be real. Does the oil on the right have the same effect as the oil on the left? How can it?
Another thing to consider is those studies... Which product do they use? From where? Is it real? If the product is not true, how can a study be accurate? If a study says that a natural treatment is not effective, did they choose the oil on the right to test? How do you know?
Know your farmer. It matters. Labels are meaningless, even government certifications are meaningless. Remember the shipment of soy beans that left another country as conventional and arrived with certified organic paperwork on it? That was quite an ocean trip!
Know your farmer!
Our goal is to make sure that we offer to you only the things that we have verified ourself and know that it's real. That's our commitment to you.
posted from Bloggeroid
Tuesday, August 8, 2017
The brunt of the storm
Nature is not as predictable as we might like. Even things like weather will soften bring surprises. Today was a tragic surprise.
Mid afternoon the skies darkened. Thunderstorms were due in the evening, but without warning things went from dark to fury literally within minutes. A stem cell grew out of nowhere and moved almost directly over the farm! We only had maybe 15 minutes warming.
And a storm it was! Two episodes of high winds, drenching rain, and hail moved through. Each way only half an hour long, but they were intense. The weather monitor on farm clocked gusts of up to 50mph. Rain was so thick that we could not see the hills nearby. Miraculously the power stayed on, although the tree by the garage was bent over into the power wires.
There first wave passed with little damage, mostly just loose items thrown around. Nothing major. But the second wave...
As we stood in the kitchen watching the trees blown around and light stuff flying here and there... The greenhouse rolled by! Yes, the entire greenhouse. It had broken of the corner tie downs, jumped the fences, and went rolling across the garden. The path just barely missed the poor bees that were just rebuilding from their loss of comb to the twister a couple weeks ago.
As we watched, I realized that at the rate it was going, and holding mostly together, the entire structure was heading straight for our neighbors home. We had to somehow catch it! Hunter and I "suited up" in foul weather gear and headed into the storm.
While we were getting ready, the greenhouse stopped rolling in the middle of the zucchini patch. Why wasn't clear at first, but when we got out there it was obvious. The water hose had torn of the spigot when the structure lifted of the tie downs, and the house made a long tail speaking in the path. That tail somehow got caught in the third fence and hung tight. It hung in a good spot, next to a tpost near the bottom wrung of wire. That created an anchor that happened the rest of the structure from rolling. The impact was enough to bend the t post to about 45 degrees, but the water hose still held tight.
We decided to leave the hose connected and anchoring the broken structure, and simply broke down the tall lend pieces to make less of a sail. The lightening in close proximity made for quite the experience. The wind was calming by this time so we decided to leave it as is and see what else was damaged.
The new chicken resort suffered tarp damage, but otherwise nothing was serious.
There sad party of this story is that, after sitting unused for a couple years, we had just decided to raise heirloom starts in the greenhouse next year for our use and for sale. But... Alas, that's out now. It does not seem repairable . There might be some sections worth keeping for shelving or something, but it will never be a full greenhouse again.
Nature, the friend that demands respect.
Mid afternoon the skies darkened. Thunderstorms were due in the evening, but without warning things went from dark to fury literally within minutes. A stem cell grew out of nowhere and moved almost directly over the farm! We only had maybe 15 minutes warming.
And a storm it was! Two episodes of high winds, drenching rain, and hail moved through. Each way only half an hour long, but they were intense. The weather monitor on farm clocked gusts of up to 50mph. Rain was so thick that we could not see the hills nearby. Miraculously the power stayed on, although the tree by the garage was bent over into the power wires.
There first wave passed with little damage, mostly just loose items thrown around. Nothing major. But the second wave...
As we stood in the kitchen watching the trees blown around and light stuff flying here and there... The greenhouse rolled by! Yes, the entire greenhouse. It had broken of the corner tie downs, jumped the fences, and went rolling across the garden. The path just barely missed the poor bees that were just rebuilding from their loss of comb to the twister a couple weeks ago.
As we watched, I realized that at the rate it was going, and holding mostly together, the entire structure was heading straight for our neighbors home. We had to somehow catch it! Hunter and I "suited up" in foul weather gear and headed into the storm.
While we were getting ready, the greenhouse stopped rolling in the middle of the zucchini patch. Why wasn't clear at first, but when we got out there it was obvious. The water hose had torn of the spigot when the structure lifted of the tie downs, and the house made a long tail speaking in the path. That tail somehow got caught in the third fence and hung tight. It hung in a good spot, next to a tpost near the bottom wrung of wire. That created an anchor that happened the rest of the structure from rolling. The impact was enough to bend the t post to about 45 degrees, but the water hose still held tight.
We decided to leave the hose connected and anchoring the broken structure, and simply broke down the tall lend pieces to make less of a sail. The lightening in close proximity made for quite the experience. The wind was calming by this time so we decided to leave it as is and see what else was damaged.
The new chicken resort suffered tarp damage, but otherwise nothing was serious.
There sad party of this story is that, after sitting unused for a couple years, we had just decided to raise heirloom starts in the greenhouse next year for our use and for sale. But... Alas, that's out now. It does not seem repairable . There might be some sections worth keeping for shelving or something, but it will never be a full greenhouse again.
Nature, the friend that demands respect.
posted from Bloggeroid
Sunday, August 6, 2017
Plant a garden for... Your pig? That's crazy!
One of the most interesting yet controversial aspects of our farming model is the approach of growing fresh produce to feed the animals that live here. Sure it seems odd for that to be questioned but many people do question the wisdom of growing for Animals instead of for humans. It is definitely different, and warrants an explanation.
It is true that are Gardens are planted and nurtured specifically to grow fresh produce for our animals and only extra Harvest is offered for sale for humans. Why do we do this? Well think about it. If the goal is to raise the healthiest animals to produce the healthiest animal food products for humans, how could we do anything else? Why is there an assumption that animals can be healthy on second grade food when we know that humans require top nutrition from first grade food to remain healthy? Why is there an assumption in the agriculture industry that animal nutrition is secondary to human nutrition? Why is there an assumption that you can create top quality animal products from second quality animal feed?
This Is Why We Do It . it's not so much that we value animals above humans. That misses the point. The foundation is that we value human health and understand that human health depends on the health of the animals and animal food products that humans consume. Think about if you were to grow a chicken to feed your child who suffers from a condition that is helped by top-quality chicken broth, would you not feed that chicken the very best feed that you could find? Of course you would any parent would.
So the question really becomes what is best for animals? What is the source of top-quality nutrition? We answer this by observing the animals in nature. By observing the animals that prosper in a natural environment and duplicating this on the farm, we achieve like results to a healthy animal living the way nature intended.
What this means for us is growing vegetables, produce, insects, some grains that match the balance that animals would have if they were living in the wild successfully. While most animal nutritionist attempt to find the the lowest level of nutrients that keeps the animal"healthy", we look at it from the other end and try to determine how much nutrition we can provide for the animals above and beyond the minimum. It really is the question of do you want to do as little as you can for health or do everything that you can for health?
So yes here at Little Sprouts we grow a lot of produce of various kinds. And yes at Little Sprouts we offer little of this produce for sale to the public. It seems on in today's modern agriculture world to do this. Yet we focus on producing the very best nutrition for our customers in animal products that we possibly can.
There is a reality that we launch this Farm on in that almost anyone can grow good healthy organic vegetables on their own land in their backyard. Yet relatively few people especially in town can actually raise animals of the same high-quality. It is also true that most large farm operations that Supply the grocery stores also cannot raise animals to the same high quality standards. Size of farm and quality of food are directly related the larger the farm the lower the quality.
So next time you come out to visit the farm and see the rows and rows of beautiful watermelons are zucchinis are pumpkins or greens or whatever, think about the source of your bacon that morning. What was that pig fed what was the nutritional principles that went into feeding the pig that produce the bacon that's on your child's plate? When you drop a chicken into a pot to make a healthy meat stock in an attempt to heal a child of digestive issues or even the common cold, what was that chicken fed all of its life what components have gone into the chicken meat that are going to come out in the broth and you're going to feed your child?
This is the questions we Ponder and this is why we do what we do.
It is true that are Gardens are planted and nurtured specifically to grow fresh produce for our animals and only extra Harvest is offered for sale for humans. Why do we do this? Well think about it. If the goal is to raise the healthiest animals to produce the healthiest animal food products for humans, how could we do anything else? Why is there an assumption that animals can be healthy on second grade food when we know that humans require top nutrition from first grade food to remain healthy? Why is there an assumption in the agriculture industry that animal nutrition is secondary to human nutrition? Why is there an assumption that you can create top quality animal products from second quality animal feed?
This Is Why We Do It . it's not so much that we value animals above humans. That misses the point. The foundation is that we value human health and understand that human health depends on the health of the animals and animal food products that humans consume. Think about if you were to grow a chicken to feed your child who suffers from a condition that is helped by top-quality chicken broth, would you not feed that chicken the very best feed that you could find? Of course you would any parent would.
So the question really becomes what is best for animals? What is the source of top-quality nutrition? We answer this by observing the animals in nature. By observing the animals that prosper in a natural environment and duplicating this on the farm, we achieve like results to a healthy animal living the way nature intended.
What this means for us is growing vegetables, produce, insects, some grains that match the balance that animals would have if they were living in the wild successfully. While most animal nutritionist attempt to find the the lowest level of nutrients that keeps the animal"healthy", we look at it from the other end and try to determine how much nutrition we can provide for the animals above and beyond the minimum. It really is the question of do you want to do as little as you can for health or do everything that you can for health?
So yes here at Little Sprouts we grow a lot of produce of various kinds. And yes at Little Sprouts we offer little of this produce for sale to the public. It seems on in today's modern agriculture world to do this. Yet we focus on producing the very best nutrition for our customers in animal products that we possibly can.
There is a reality that we launch this Farm on in that almost anyone can grow good healthy organic vegetables on their own land in their backyard. Yet relatively few people especially in town can actually raise animals of the same high-quality. It is also true that most large farm operations that Supply the grocery stores also cannot raise animals to the same high quality standards. Size of farm and quality of food are directly related the larger the farm the lower the quality.
So next time you come out to visit the farm and see the rows and rows of beautiful watermelons are zucchinis are pumpkins or greens or whatever, think about the source of your bacon that morning. What was that pig fed what was the nutritional principles that went into feeding the pig that produce the bacon that's on your child's plate? When you drop a chicken into a pot to make a healthy meat stock in an attempt to heal a child of digestive issues or even the common cold, what was that chicken fed all of its life what components have gone into the chicken meat that are going to come out in the broth and you're going to feed your child?
This is the questions we Ponder and this is why we do what we do.
posted from Bloggeroid
Saturday, August 5, 2017
Best watermelon of 2017
What is better on these hot summer days than a cold juicy vine ripened watermelon?
Our melon patch is doing really good this year, in fact it seems the healthiest part of the animal garden! If all goes well, those lucky pigs will be enjoying a steady diet of heirloom vine ripened melons soon!
But we had to try one!
Hunter picked it out himself, and he made a great choice! This melon was the sweetest, the juciest, the best tasting melon ever!
If there are extras, we will offer a few of these for sale soon through the normal home delivery ordering. Keep watching for it!
Our melon patch is doing really good this year, in fact it seems the healthiest part of the animal garden! If all goes well, those lucky pigs will be enjoying a steady diet of heirloom vine ripened melons soon!
But we had to try one!
Hunter picked it out himself, and he made a great choice! This melon was the sweetest, the juciest, the best tasting melon ever!
If there are extras, we will offer a few of these for sale soon through the normal home delivery ordering. Keep watching for it!
posted from Bloggeroid
Progress on the bug barn
Smoky skies can have benefit! Our skies are filled with the smoke from a fire up at crater lake. Seems this happens every couple years... A major fire just north of us in mid summer. As usual, the bright summer sun is blocked, dropping the daily high from the expected 110 to barely over 90. So we made use of the more manageable day to start on the bug barn project.
The project? Insulation! The bug barn itself is a shipping container, all metal skin. Great longevity and strength but wow is it hot! When that direct sun hits the outside, the walls get so hot you can't hold a hand against it inside. With an air temp of 11p, that makes the bug barn into an oven, quite literally!
We tried insulation on the inside, but that didn't work out. Didn't help much with the radiant heat, and attracted mice. So we are doing something new... Insulting paint!
Insulating paint is a new technology (apparently developed for NASA) that blocks radiant heat quite effectively. For situations such as this metal building, the paint reflects the radiant heat instead of absorbing it and transferring to the inside. Does nothing for conducted heat, only radiant, but that ok for the bugs. If it can just stop the heat gain from direct sun, the bugs will he happy!
There are several brands, all claiming to be the best, most seem to be scams or at least cheap knockoffs. We chose one that seemed most legit.. insuladd. This is an additive to be put into any exterier paint to create insulting paint.
Fortunately, by God's grace, we were given a free contractor grade ( but older) airless paint sprayer to apply this with! It needed some work, and a new tip, but I got it working enough to build pressure with only a small leakage around the old seals. Woohoo! As a test, I painted the top of the brooder a nice avacado green .
Yes, the pain itself was also donated ! We ended up with about 25 gallons of free exterior paint, various colors. Not sure which color the barn will end up, maybe a rainbow!
So back to today... I spent the afternoon pressure washing the outside to knock off as much of the old crumbly paint as possible. Took a while, but ended up nice! Now I just need one more day of moderate sun o apply the paint itself. (Just wait till you see my fancy homemade paint mixer!)
Stay tuned!
The project? Insulation! The bug barn itself is a shipping container, all metal skin. Great longevity and strength but wow is it hot! When that direct sun hits the outside, the walls get so hot you can't hold a hand against it inside. With an air temp of 11p, that makes the bug barn into an oven, quite literally!
We tried insulation on the inside, but that didn't work out. Didn't help much with the radiant heat, and attracted mice. So we are doing something new... Insulting paint!
Insulating paint is a new technology (apparently developed for NASA) that blocks radiant heat quite effectively. For situations such as this metal building, the paint reflects the radiant heat instead of absorbing it and transferring to the inside. Does nothing for conducted heat, only radiant, but that ok for the bugs. If it can just stop the heat gain from direct sun, the bugs will he happy!
There are several brands, all claiming to be the best, most seem to be scams or at least cheap knockoffs. We chose one that seemed most legit.. insuladd. This is an additive to be put into any exterier paint to create insulting paint.
Fortunately, by God's grace, we were given a free contractor grade ( but older) airless paint sprayer to apply this with! It needed some work, and a new tip, but I got it working enough to build pressure with only a small leakage around the old seals. Woohoo! As a test, I painted the top of the brooder a nice avacado green .
Yes, the pain itself was also donated ! We ended up with about 25 gallons of free exterior paint, various colors. Not sure which color the barn will end up, maybe a rainbow!
So back to today... I spent the afternoon pressure washing the outside to knock off as much of the old crumbly paint as possible. Took a while, but ended up nice! Now I just need one more day of moderate sun o apply the paint itself. (Just wait till you see my fancy homemade paint mixer!)
Stay tuned!
posted from Bloggeroid
Thursday, August 3, 2017
Spicy sweet roasted pumpkin seeds
Pumpkin seeds are super nutritious! They are the basis of several herbal remedies and also a major component of our animal feed. But to be honest... Are they tasty?
Yes! With this recipe they are incredible! A bit like spicy sweet candy. Yum!
Tip: Start with heirloom pumpkins. They do taste different, better than hybrids. There seeds of an hybrid are just not the same somehow.
To make:
Preheat the oven to 400. Cover the bottom of a glass baking dish with organic extra virgin coconut oil. Remove the seeds from a pumpkin but do not wash them. In fact, do not even clean the fiberous center of the pumpkin of the seeds, just scoop them out. Place seeds on a mixing bowl and sprinkle with Redmond real salt and organic chili powder to taste. Toss gently then place in the baking dish in the oil.
Roast at 400 degrees until nicely Brown, almost but not quite burnt.
The fibers from the center of the pumpkin will carmelize into a sweet almost sugary coating, and the coconut oil brings out a nutty sweet flavor. Absolutely the best pumpkin seeds ever!
Yes! With this recipe they are incredible! A bit like spicy sweet candy. Yum!
Tip: Start with heirloom pumpkins. They do taste different, better than hybrids. There seeds of an hybrid are just not the same somehow.
To make:
Preheat the oven to 400. Cover the bottom of a glass baking dish with organic extra virgin coconut oil. Remove the seeds from a pumpkin but do not wash them. In fact, do not even clean the fiberous center of the pumpkin of the seeds, just scoop them out. Place seeds on a mixing bowl and sprinkle with Redmond real salt and organic chili powder to taste. Toss gently then place in the baking dish in the oil.
Roast at 400 degrees until nicely Brown, almost but not quite burnt.
The fibers from the center of the pumpkin will carmelize into a sweet almost sugary coating, and the coconut oil brings out a nutty sweet flavor. Absolutely the best pumpkin seeds ever!
posted from Bloggeroid
Sunday, July 30, 2017
Sweet girl rescues baby chick from water trough
Kaelyn found this super cute baby chick soaking wet and cold from having fallen in to the water trough.
She spent an hour carefully blow drying the tiny feathers and warming it gently. Then out into the dark searching for the mom to reunite the to for the night.
Farm life!
She spent an hour carefully blow drying the tiny feathers and warming it gently. Then out into the dark searching for the mom to reunite the to for the night.
Farm life!
posted from Bloggeroid
New Chicken Resortland
Summer is here!
And with summer came... southern oregon heat
And with the southern oregon heat came... stressed chickens
And with stressed chickens you get... NO EGGS!
well, significantly lower production.
So we set about this weekend to design a new "resort" for the girls, a place where they can live comfortable in the shade and soft winds, safe from predators but not confined.
The idea is to create a single "complex" from the four coops, arranged into a square. The center area covered with a tarp tied to each of coops in the corners. This provides a huge open area that is sheltered from predators yet allows for free airflow and solid shade. One of the coops is dedicated to the "watering hole" which will eventually be a shallow "pond" that they can stand in to cool off. The nesting boxes sit at the edges of 3 sides to provide more shelter while giving a cool spot to lay those eggs.
Here is the result!
This will obviously not work once the rains start, but then by that time the need for shade diminishes greatly.
And with summer came... southern oregon heat
And with the southern oregon heat came... stressed chickens
And with stressed chickens you get... NO EGGS!
well, significantly lower production.
So we set about this weekend to design a new "resort" for the girls, a place where they can live comfortable in the shade and soft winds, safe from predators but not confined.
The idea is to create a single "complex" from the four coops, arranged into a square. The center area covered with a tarp tied to each of coops in the corners. This provides a huge open area that is sheltered from predators yet allows for free airflow and solid shade. One of the coops is dedicated to the "watering hole" which will eventually be a shallow "pond" that they can stand in to cool off. The nesting boxes sit at the edges of 3 sides to provide more shelter while giving a cool spot to lay those eggs.
Here is the result!
 |
| South entrance, this is the largest opening, on the downwind side. |
 |
| West end. The coop on the left is the watering pond (right now just a waterer left to overflow with continuous slow water flow.) |
 |
| North end, mostly blocked by a nesting box pointed inward. |
 |
| Inside on the east end. the nesting box to the left is the one blocking the north entrance. The long feeders sit in the middle of the shade. |
 |
| Inside, on the west end. In the very center is the "stand" which is an old sprinkler covered with a greenhouse bucket. This holds the tarp up in the center. |
Easy turkey dinner
Turkey is definitely our favorite poultry, heritage turkey that is... Not the store bought commercial ones that taste like cardboard and look like a mishappen beast from outer space... A real turkey. It is delicious, has texture, aroma, and super healthy.
But isn't cooking a heritage turkey hard?
Nope!
Here is an example:
1 heritage little sprouts turkey
10 organic bay leaves
Tablespoon Redmond realsalt
Water
Just pop the frozen turkey into the roasting pan, fill the bottom 3/4 with cold water, float the bay leaves, sprinkle with salt. Set the oven to 300 and close the roasting pan.
Wait, about 8 hours.
If necessary, refill the water to keep it at least half full.
When done, you can (if you want) remove the top and roast at 400 to brown the top of the meat. To brown more just remove some of the delicious broth first. (But done let it get totally dry!)
For even more flavor, drop a few organic carrots and onions into the water with the frozen turkey.
It really is that easy. You get absolutely delicious turkey broth, and soft yet textured turkey meat.
But isn't cooking a heritage turkey hard?
Nope!
Here is an example:
1 heritage little sprouts turkey
10 organic bay leaves
Tablespoon Redmond realsalt
Water
Just pop the frozen turkey into the roasting pan, fill the bottom 3/4 with cold water, float the bay leaves, sprinkle with salt. Set the oven to 300 and close the roasting pan.
Wait, about 8 hours.
If necessary, refill the water to keep it at least half full.
When done, you can (if you want) remove the top and roast at 400 to brown the top of the meat. To brown more just remove some of the delicious broth first. (But done let it get totally dry!)
For even more flavor, drop a few organic carrots and onions into the water with the frozen turkey.
It really is that easy. You get absolutely delicious turkey broth, and soft yet textured turkey meat.
posted from Bloggeroid
Friday, July 28, 2017
"What do you grow on your farm"?
We are often asked the question "what do you grow" when people learn for the first time that we have a small farm. Our answer has always been the traditional, a rundown of all the animals that we raise here.
But yesterday, while pulling weeds (goat feed) I had an inspiration. We do not raise chickens and goats and pigs and ... , well we do, but that is not what we "raise". What we raise is... healthy children!
But yesterday, while pulling weeds (goat feed) I had an inspiration. We do not raise chickens and goats and pigs and ... , well we do, but that is not what we "raise". What we raise is... healthy children!
Let me explain.
Back in my "big business" days we followed a firm principle. To motivate people, never give them a "job", give them a "mission". The gal that writes code on a computer is not "programming", she is solving a problem, or better yet, enabling a business to solve a person's long term problem. A janitor is not sweeping the floor, he is maintaining a work environment that allows the entire business to function. A receptionist is not "answering the phone", they are providing the face of the company to all newcomers, forming that ever important first impression that makes or breaks a company.
Humans inherently desire, even need, to be part of something bigger than themselves. Making money is not even a good reason to go to work. Doing something that helps mankind, that changes peoples lives, THAT is what motivates people!
So back to the farm.. we do not raise animals. We do not run a farm. We raise children. We help the elderly regain their life. We restore families to the health they always dreamed of. That is our mission. As a farmer, you dont grow food, you feed people. If you specialize on "good food" then you dont even sell food, you sell health!
The majority of our customers are families and individuals that need food that heals broken bodies. Families that understand that food and nutrition is the foundation upon which all of health depends. Families that need to solve health problems, not hide symptoms. This is why we dont play the "price game"... our products are priced according to actual costs, not competition, not profit, but actual cost. Our profit margin is not built to afford vacations and fancy cars, not even retirement.. the profit margin we seek is simply enough to raise our own children and continue doing this year after year after year.. the ultimate in sustainability.
So next time we are asked "so what do you grow?" my answer will be "healthy children!"
and that is why we get up every morning with the sun to milk the goats, why we fight the summer heat and winter mud to blister our hands and tire our backs. Not for money, not for the fun of farming, but to have the chance to help one more child or elderly person or family that needs good healthy food.
The Great Bee Rescue
Tragedies happen, and on a farm they seem to happen more frequently than elsewhere!
We had a tragedy this week. While working outside we watched a good sized "twister" come through (the type that has cost us a couple of coops and a pool in the past). It was an awesome sight, kicking up dust and "things" as far as the eye can see into the sky as it drifted across the ground. Things get re-arranged quite a bit as the raw power of nature is unleashed on a small scale.
But then.. it drifted right by the bee hives! Sure enough, one hive lifted up and was dropped on it's side into the driveway. Bees, comb, wood all spilled out across the driveway. Those bees were ANGRY to saw the least! We decided for everyone's safety it is best to allow them to calm down before acting out a rescue. So we let them be for the rest of the day.
Upon inspection the next morning, half the bees had gathered up into a swarm on the inside edge of the original hive, still on it's side. The other half was bust raiding the honey from the spilled combs. We were able to get a closer look and made the educated guess that the queen was in the mound of bees inside the hive. So now was time to act.
We very carefully picked up the hive, bees and all, and placed it back on the legs, being very careful to avoid all bumps or jars that might upset them again. For the most part they accepted this and kept quiet. Then we pulled what top bars we could one by one and placed them back over the hive to cover the bees. They seemed to accept this also.
Then the tough part. The combs were actually upside down, a mound of wax and honey resting on top of the wooden top bars. Not Optimal at all! It was possible to pull a few out without disturbing the mound, but most actually had comb still attached. For these, we had to twist the bars to break off the comb and then slip them from under the comb. This usually left an half inch or so of dripping honey and damaged comb, which we cut off and placed into a bowl. We were able to recover enough bars this way to cover 3/4 of the hive.
Last step was to replace the wooden hive roof to provide cover and shade. It was damaged but fit ok. Then we placed the bowl of honey on top of the hive so the bees could continue cleaning up the mess and recover their food source.
To prevent the spilled comb from overheating in the direct summer sun, we placed a cardboard box or two with multiple holes over the pile of comb. There is a slim chance that the bees might be able to hatch some of the larva from this odd arrangement. time will tell!
If you come for a visit over the next few days, do NOT stop along the driveway in front of the fence. Keep your windows up. Hopefully everything will be resolved in a week or so.
We had a tragedy this week. While working outside we watched a good sized "twister" come through (the type that has cost us a couple of coops and a pool in the past). It was an awesome sight, kicking up dust and "things" as far as the eye can see into the sky as it drifted across the ground. Things get re-arranged quite a bit as the raw power of nature is unleashed on a small scale.
But then.. it drifted right by the bee hives! Sure enough, one hive lifted up and was dropped on it's side into the driveway. Bees, comb, wood all spilled out across the driveway. Those bees were ANGRY to saw the least! We decided for everyone's safety it is best to allow them to calm down before acting out a rescue. So we let them be for the rest of the day.
 |
| This is how the twister left the hive, surrounded by angry bees! |
Upon inspection the next morning, half the bees had gathered up into a swarm on the inside edge of the original hive, still on it's side. The other half was bust raiding the honey from the spilled combs. We were able to get a closer look and made the educated guess that the queen was in the mound of bees inside the hive. So now was time to act.
 |
| In the closeup you can see the combs mashed into the ground upside down to the left, and a few bees gathered in the corner of the hive. |
Then the tough part. The combs were actually upside down, a mound of wax and honey resting on top of the wooden top bars. Not Optimal at all! It was possible to pull a few out without disturbing the mound, but most actually had comb still attached. For these, we had to twist the bars to break off the comb and then slip them from under the comb. This usually left an half inch or so of dripping honey and damaged comb, which we cut off and placed into a bowl. We were able to recover enough bars this way to cover 3/4 of the hive.
Last step was to replace the wooden hive roof to provide cover and shade. It was damaged but fit ok. Then we placed the bowl of honey on top of the hive so the bees could continue cleaning up the mess and recover their food source.
 |
| Here is the almost finished scene. The box in the driveway was placed over the broken comb to provide shelter. |
To prevent the spilled comb from overheating in the direct summer sun, we placed a cardboard box or two with multiple holes over the pile of comb. There is a slim chance that the bees might be able to hatch some of the larva from this odd arrangement. time will tell!
If you come for a visit over the next few days, do NOT stop along the driveway in front of the fence. Keep your windows up. Hopefully everything will be resolved in a week or so.
Thursday, July 27, 2017
Cold healthy snack on a hot afternoon
Here's a quick and easy, tasty and satisfying, super healthy snack for a hot afternoon... A bowl of dairy kefir made from raw extra creamy goat milk, with a swirl of raw honey
Enjoy!
Enjoy!
posted from Bloggeroid
Tuesday, July 25, 2017
Summertime chicken soup
This may be the world's best tasting chicken soup ever. Not to mention healthy!
It's a tad complex to make, but worth it!
Yum!
Chickens simmering in water
The veggies being sauteed
Ingredients:
2 heritage little sprouts farm chickens
2 TBS organic apple cider vinegar
2 TBS organic balsamic vinegar
1 tsp organic chili powder
1 TBS organic mushroom powder
1 inch organic Ginger root, chopped
2 organic onions, sliced
6 organic carrots, sliced
1 tsp organic oregano
1/2 stick pastured butter
1 can full fat organic coconut milk
1/2 head raw organic garlic, chopped
1/4 cup Organic olive oil
Redmond salt to taste
In a large stock pot, cover the chickens with water and simmer until done.
Meanwhile, place all other ingredients EXCEPT the garlic and olive oil onto a large skillet. Saute everything together until the onions and carrots are tender. Once done, remove from heat and stir in chopped garlic and olive oil.
Meanwhile, debone the chicken and cut into bite sized pieces. (Be sure to keep the bones for bone broth later).
To serve: you now have 3 separate components... Chicken meat, chicken broth, and sauteed vegetables. Just combine the proportion desired of each into serving bowls. Salt if desired. For a spicy twist, add a few drops of organic jalapeno sauce.
Best served with a glass of ice cold raw goat milk.
It's a tad complex to make, but worth it!
Yum!
Chickens simmering in water
The veggies being sauteed
Ingredients:
2 heritage little sprouts farm chickens
2 TBS organic apple cider vinegar
2 TBS organic balsamic vinegar
1 tsp organic chili powder
1 TBS organic mushroom powder
1 inch organic Ginger root, chopped
2 organic onions, sliced
6 organic carrots, sliced
1 tsp organic oregano
1/2 stick pastured butter
1 can full fat organic coconut milk
1/2 head raw organic garlic, chopped
1/4 cup Organic olive oil
Redmond salt to taste
In a large stock pot, cover the chickens with water and simmer until done.
Meanwhile, place all other ingredients EXCEPT the garlic and olive oil onto a large skillet. Saute everything together until the onions and carrots are tender. Once done, remove from heat and stir in chopped garlic and olive oil.
Meanwhile, debone the chicken and cut into bite sized pieces. (Be sure to keep the bones for bone broth later).
To serve: you now have 3 separate components... Chicken meat, chicken broth, and sauteed vegetables. Just combine the proportion desired of each into serving bowls. Salt if desired. For a spicy twist, add a few drops of organic jalapeno sauce.
Best served with a glass of ice cold raw goat milk.
posted from Bloggeroid
Sunday, July 23, 2017
New product - golden milk (tumeric tea)
Exciting news!
We just added a new item under the herdshare... Golden Milk, sometimes known as tumeric tea.
This is not a mix, not a gritty powder, but ready to drink smooth milk drink... made from extra creamy raw goat milk!
Golden milk is a recipe of tumeric, black pepper, and coconut oil (all organic of course) prepared into raw goat milk. You can enjoy it cold or warm, either way this drink is super healthy!
Tumeric is one of the most valuable root spices available. It is anti inflammatory, and pretty much "anti everything bad"! Tumeric should be a part of our daily diet for optimum health. The problem with most tumeric is absorption. Combining this root with coconut oil in a base of high fat raw milk helps significantly with absorption. We add in a tiny amount of black pepper, not enough to taste, to also increase absorption.
This golden milk is prepared by actually warming the tumeric slightly in the coconut oil to soften and hydrate it, so that there is no gritty specs left once it is mixed into the milk. Never heated enough to alter the goodness, just enough to make it "melt" into the milk. The result is a yummy milk drink. You can even add some honey if you prefer it a little sweeter, but it's fine just as is!
Golden milk is now added to the list of things you can choose to turn your milk into under the herdshare. For a small fee you can convert milk into golden milk by the quart, on any delivery. This is just like yogurt and kefir. The only requirement is to have enough herdshare quantity to produce the products, as the milk used to produce yogurt, kefir, or golden milk is your herdshare milk and reduces the amount of fluid milk you will receive.
If you do not have a herdshare yet, hurray and but you're, the shares are selling out fast. Just contact us for the details.
We just added a new item under the herdshare... Golden Milk, sometimes known as tumeric tea.
This is not a mix, not a gritty powder, but ready to drink smooth milk drink... made from extra creamy raw goat milk!
Golden milk is a recipe of tumeric, black pepper, and coconut oil (all organic of course) prepared into raw goat milk. You can enjoy it cold or warm, either way this drink is super healthy!
Tumeric is one of the most valuable root spices available. It is anti inflammatory, and pretty much "anti everything bad"! Tumeric should be a part of our daily diet for optimum health. The problem with most tumeric is absorption. Combining this root with coconut oil in a base of high fat raw milk helps significantly with absorption. We add in a tiny amount of black pepper, not enough to taste, to also increase absorption.
This golden milk is prepared by actually warming the tumeric slightly in the coconut oil to soften and hydrate it, so that there is no gritty specs left once it is mixed into the milk. Never heated enough to alter the goodness, just enough to make it "melt" into the milk. The result is a yummy milk drink. You can even add some honey if you prefer it a little sweeter, but it's fine just as is!
Golden milk is now added to the list of things you can choose to turn your milk into under the herdshare. For a small fee you can convert milk into golden milk by the quart, on any delivery. This is just like yogurt and kefir. The only requirement is to have enough herdshare quantity to produce the products, as the milk used to produce yogurt, kefir, or golden milk is your herdshare milk and reduces the amount of fluid milk you will receive.
If you do not have a herdshare yet, hurray and but you're, the shares are selling out fast. Just contact us for the details.
posted from Bloggeroid
Saturday, July 22, 2017
Bacon flavored salami and eggs
Here's a fairly quick lunch recipe using salami bacon grease eggs cauliflower and some spices.
One head organic cauliflower
Two dozen Little Sprouts Farm eggs
Four tablespoons bacon grease from Little Sprouts bacon
One tablespoon grass-fed butter
Two tablespoons organic mushroom powder
One teaspoon organic celery seed
One tablespoon organic onion powder
Two Little Sprouts Farm salami either spicy or regular
Redmond salt and organic Black pepper
Here how to make this:
Warm the bacon grease and butter in a large cast iron pan.
Chop the cauliflower as much as you like, and add to the grease once it's melted.
Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Cut the salami into 1/8 inch slices, then cut slices in half
Once cauliflower is soft, add salami slices and sprinkle with mushroom powder
Cook over medium high heat until starting to brown.
Crack eggs into a large bowl, add celery seed, salt and pepper. Scramble with a fork.
Once salami is cooked through and Browning, add the eggs
Reduce heat and stir constantly as the eggs cook.
Remove from heat as soon as eggs are set.
Can be topped with grated grass fed cheese for an extra treat.
Serve with a side of ferment organic heirloom carrot sticks!
Enjoy!
One head organic cauliflower
Two dozen Little Sprouts Farm eggs
Four tablespoons bacon grease from Little Sprouts bacon
One tablespoon grass-fed butter
Two tablespoons organic mushroom powder
One teaspoon organic celery seed
One tablespoon organic onion powder
Two Little Sprouts Farm salami either spicy or regular
Redmond salt and organic Black pepper
Here how to make this:
Warm the bacon grease and butter in a large cast iron pan.
Chop the cauliflower as much as you like, and add to the grease once it's melted.
Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Cut the salami into 1/8 inch slices, then cut slices in half
Once cauliflower is soft, add salami slices and sprinkle with mushroom powder
Cook over medium high heat until starting to brown.
Crack eggs into a large bowl, add celery seed, salt and pepper. Scramble with a fork.
Once salami is cooked through and Browning, add the eggs
Reduce heat and stir constantly as the eggs cook.
Remove from heat as soon as eggs are set.
Can be topped with grated grass fed cheese for an extra treat.
Serve with a side of ferment organic heirloom carrot sticks!
Enjoy!
posted from Bloggeroid
Thursday, July 20, 2017
More chicken and turkey parts in the store!
We spent the afternoon processing some more chickens and turkeys. The first batch is already just about sold out! But don't worry... If you missed ordering, there should be enough now to last the 2 weeks for the next order.
Customers in Medford, Jacksonville, Central point, eagle point areas can still order for delivery tomorrow!
What is available? Here is a quick rundown:
Heritage chickens and turkeys -these are not at all like the store bought chicken like products, and not even like the "meat chickens" raised by most farms. These are just plain ole chickens like Grandma's day. They are small ( average 3 to 4 lbs each) but the meat is so flavorful and nutritious, plus the bones make the best bone broth possible. This is especially true of the turkeys. Our favorite is to roast a turkey low and slow on a smoker or oven, pull off the meat, then cook the bones for the best turkey bone broth you ever tasted!
Heads and feet - primarily used for stocks. Just boil a head or two with a few feet, maybe add some onion and black pepper cons, a little salt... Strain and yum! It makes a very light but highly nutritious stock that you can't buy on the store. The flavor is amazingly smooth and subtle, but it packs a mighty punch of nutrition!
Gizzards and heart - organ meats..
Super nutrition! These are best simmered for several hours with a little onion and bay leaf, then strain the liquid for chicken stock and chop the meat up small. You can then add the nutrition of organ meats to almost any meat dish and no one knows it is there!
Necks-. These are the magical component of plain ole chicken stock. Just boil the necks in a little water for a few hours (don't boil dry!) And strain. Sometimes it is possible to pull some meat off, but either way this is drinkable chicken broth.
As usual, all of these products are :
Soy free
Heritage breed
Pasture raised
Organically and nongmo fed
Humanely treated and processed
Head into the online store now to reserve your selection!
https://csa.farmigo.com/store/littlesproutsfarm
Customers in Medford, Jacksonville, Central point, eagle point areas can still order for delivery tomorrow!
What is available? Here is a quick rundown:
Heritage chickens and turkeys -these are not at all like the store bought chicken like products, and not even like the "meat chickens" raised by most farms. These are just plain ole chickens like Grandma's day. They are small ( average 3 to 4 lbs each) but the meat is so flavorful and nutritious, plus the bones make the best bone broth possible. This is especially true of the turkeys. Our favorite is to roast a turkey low and slow on a smoker or oven, pull off the meat, then cook the bones for the best turkey bone broth you ever tasted!
Heads and feet - primarily used for stocks. Just boil a head or two with a few feet, maybe add some onion and black pepper cons, a little salt... Strain and yum! It makes a very light but highly nutritious stock that you can't buy on the store. The flavor is amazingly smooth and subtle, but it packs a mighty punch of nutrition!
Gizzards and heart - organ meats..
Super nutrition! These are best simmered for several hours with a little onion and bay leaf, then strain the liquid for chicken stock and chop the meat up small. You can then add the nutrition of organ meats to almost any meat dish and no one knows it is there!
Necks-. These are the magical component of plain ole chicken stock. Just boil the necks in a little water for a few hours (don't boil dry!) And strain. Sometimes it is possible to pull some meat off, but either way this is drinkable chicken broth.
As usual, all of these products are :
Soy free
Heritage breed
Pasture raised
Organically and nongmo fed
Humanely treated and processed
Head into the online store now to reserve your selection!
https://csa.farmigo.com/store/littlesproutsfarm
posted from Bloggeroid
Tuesday, July 18, 2017
Heirloom fermented carrot sticks
Our own family recipe for carrot sticks. Kids love these!
Heirloom organic carrots - cut to sticks
8 garlic organic cloves
1 TBS organic Dill seed
1 TBS organic mustard seed
Brine 6TBS Redmond realsalt per half gallon water
Let sit a minimum of three days, best at 5 days.
Heirloom organic carrots - cut to sticks
8 garlic organic cloves
1 TBS organic Dill seed
1 TBS organic mustard seed
Brine 6TBS Redmond realsalt per half gallon water
Let sit a minimum of three days, best at 5 days.
posted from Bloggeroid
Tree minerals for the goats, natural style
The goats are enjoying the season of the tree trimming. Here is party of today's load.
Trees are bursting with minerals compared to grass and weeds, so we make sure they have a good variety of tree branches to nibble on. The eat the greens, twigs, and even bark. Then , when only dry sticks are left, we run then through the chipper to create poultry bedding.
Yum?!
posted from Bloggeroid
Bacon and cauliflower
A quick dinner... This is what we consider fast food.
3 lbs little sprouts uncured bacon
1 head organic cauliflower
4 tablespoons little sprouts lard with cracklings
Organic Black pepper
Redmond salt
1 Teaspoon Organic celery seeds
1 entire head of organic garlic
Defrost the bacon, cut in half and place all 3 lbs in a large deep cast iron skillet. Start with the skillet cold, add medium heat and stir frequently. As the bacon heats up the lard will render out and this become a not so deep fryer. Let the bacon fry, stirring frequently until almost but not quite crisp throughout. Sprinkle with black pepper.
In another deep skillet, place chopped cauliflower and the lard with cracklings. Medium heat until the cauliflower starts to soften, then add in the celery seed, salt and pepper to taste. Continue hearing and stirring occasionally until cook through, then remove from heat and add the peeled and chopped garlic.
Serve the bacon over a bed of cauliflower.
Enjoy!
3 lbs little sprouts uncured bacon
1 head organic cauliflower
4 tablespoons little sprouts lard with cracklings
Organic Black pepper
Redmond salt
1 Teaspoon Organic celery seeds
1 entire head of organic garlic
Defrost the bacon, cut in half and place all 3 lbs in a large deep cast iron skillet. Start with the skillet cold, add medium heat and stir frequently. As the bacon heats up the lard will render out and this become a not so deep fryer. Let the bacon fry, stirring frequently until almost but not quite crisp throughout. Sprinkle with black pepper.
In another deep skillet, place chopped cauliflower and the lard with cracklings. Medium heat until the cauliflower starts to soften, then add in the celery seed, salt and pepper to taste. Continue hearing and stirring occasionally until cook through, then remove from heat and add the peeled and chopped garlic.
Serve the bacon over a bed of cauliflower.
Enjoy!
posted from Bloggeroid
Lunch - hot zucchini dogs
Creative fast lunch...
One package of little sprouts pork hot dogs
4 medium heirloom zucchini
One bottle organic pasta sauce
One teaspoon organic dry mustard
One tablespoon organic oregano
One tablespoon Redmond salt
One teaspoon organic ground black pepper
One half teaspoon organic celery seed
Four tablespoons bacon lard from little sprouts bacon
One entire head of organic garlic
Easy to make!
Just wash and slice zucchini, cook till slightly soft in the lard. Cut the hot dogs and add. Add all the spices except the garlic. Keep on high heat until most of the liquid is boiled out. Then add the pasta sauce and heat to boiling. Remove from heat and add freshly chopped garlic.
Enjoy!
One package of little sprouts pork hot dogs
4 medium heirloom zucchini
One bottle organic pasta sauce
One teaspoon organic dry mustard
One tablespoon organic oregano
One tablespoon Redmond salt
One teaspoon organic ground black pepper
One half teaspoon organic celery seed
Four tablespoons bacon lard from little sprouts bacon
One entire head of organic garlic
Easy to make!
Just wash and slice zucchini, cook till slightly soft in the lard. Cut the hot dogs and add. Add all the spices except the garlic. Keep on high heat until most of the liquid is boiled out. Then add the pasta sauce and heat to boiling. Remove from heat and add freshly chopped garlic.
Enjoy!
posted from Bloggeroid
Monday, July 17, 2017
Heritage chicken in a pot
A crock pot that is.... Here is tonight dinner, two heritage chicken slow cooked all day with salt, pepper, and bay leaves. Simple and delicious.
And that broth... Mmmm!
posted from Bloggeroid
Milk Prices... Is this real?
Sometimes the math just doesnt add up, and that should always make us suspicious... The price of milk and dairy products is an example. Let me explain...
Milk in the grocery store can run form $2 to $4 per gallon. Seem reasonable, right? But... consider the price of yogurt made from that milk. A tub of good quality yogurt made from that milk runs about $10 to $15 per quart, or $40 to $60 per gallon! a HUGE increase in price. But why? Yogurt is a simple process of adding a starter, letting the milk sit overnight, and packaging it for retail. That's it! Where producing that first gallon of milk is a long drawn out process of raising cows or goats, feeding, housing, milking, cooling, transporting the milk... not to mention health requirements for the cows and calfs and facilities for all of this. The workload, cost, and investment in producing milk is absolutely HUGE compared to the workload of changing that milk into yogurt. Something is wrong with this math! How can yogurt sell for 10x the cost of milk it is made from, if the vast majority of production cost is to produce the milk itself?
One answer can be found in the gory details of "milk production". Producing milk is not "milking a bunch of cows"... no. Big dairies run according to thew "government process" that dictates the fat and solid content of the milk. To meet these requirements, the dairy processing plant must first dismantle the milk into raw components! Yes.. the fat is removed from the milk and sometimes the solids are also removed. Then the processing plant reassembles the milk to government standards. The resulting "whole milk" is nothing of the sort! Even "whole milk" is a creation in the plant by recombining parts of the original product in desired rations. None of this is "natural" by any definition.
Interestingly, the amount of fat required by law for "whole milk" is below the actual fat content of "milk". So ... if they dont add all the fat back, where does the extra fat go? What about extra solids ? I think that therein is part of the answer to the cost being so off. The "extras" are sold off as other products that cost way more than the original milk! In other words.... the milk is the "waste product" left over from extracting the valuable stuff that produces the profit.
Strong words.. but think about what is happening.. the milk is "torn apart" into raw components, some extracted and sold as other products, some reassembled and sold "at cost". The milk, is the leftovers!
At Little Sprouts, we have reversed this. We manage goats under a "hard share" arrangement where our farm members own the goats, we mange and milk them and provide the milk produced in raw form, just as nature intended. We do not break apart the beautiful liquid gold to recombining it according to some government established ratios. We let nature dictate the components and rations and nutritional qualities of the milk. Then, we offer a service of converting the owner's milk into yogurt or kefir for them. The cost for managing the herd is by far the largest portion of this process, and the cost to the members reflect this. The milk "seems" much more expensive by comparison, perhaps prohibitively so. But then.. converting that milk into yogurt cost very little (becasue it is so easy by comparison) and the resulting price paid to acquire a quart of yogurt is BELOW the grocery store price!
yes.. consider this.. the milk costs 10x more than grocery store milk, but the yogurt and kefir ends up CHEAPER than grocery store yogurt or kefir. We base our prices on actual costs to produce, and that's how the real math works out.
So next time you are buying milk at the store.. check the yogurt prices.. convert it all to a per gallon price, and question how this can be. Raising animals and milking is much much much more involved than turning milk into yogurt. Something is wrong...
Milk is a golden product, a mainstay of a healthy diet, IF it is produced right and in it's raw form unchanged by man. Especially goat milk, which is much more nutritious and digestible as well as less problematic for humans. I encourage you to consider the milk sold in the stores, how it got there, what you paid for those "leftovers" and then find a local farm that raises "real milk".
Milk in the grocery store can run form $2 to $4 per gallon. Seem reasonable, right? But... consider the price of yogurt made from that milk. A tub of good quality yogurt made from that milk runs about $10 to $15 per quart, or $40 to $60 per gallon! a HUGE increase in price. But why? Yogurt is a simple process of adding a starter, letting the milk sit overnight, and packaging it for retail. That's it! Where producing that first gallon of milk is a long drawn out process of raising cows or goats, feeding, housing, milking, cooling, transporting the milk... not to mention health requirements for the cows and calfs and facilities for all of this. The workload, cost, and investment in producing milk is absolutely HUGE compared to the workload of changing that milk into yogurt. Something is wrong with this math! How can yogurt sell for 10x the cost of milk it is made from, if the vast majority of production cost is to produce the milk itself?
One answer can be found in the gory details of "milk production". Producing milk is not "milking a bunch of cows"... no. Big dairies run according to thew "government process" that dictates the fat and solid content of the milk. To meet these requirements, the dairy processing plant must first dismantle the milk into raw components! Yes.. the fat is removed from the milk and sometimes the solids are also removed. Then the processing plant reassembles the milk to government standards. The resulting "whole milk" is nothing of the sort! Even "whole milk" is a creation in the plant by recombining parts of the original product in desired rations. None of this is "natural" by any definition.
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| Example of a milk processing disassembly - reassembly line |
Interestingly, the amount of fat required by law for "whole milk" is below the actual fat content of "milk". So ... if they dont add all the fat back, where does the extra fat go? What about extra solids ? I think that therein is part of the answer to the cost being so off. The "extras" are sold off as other products that cost way more than the original milk! In other words.... the milk is the "waste product" left over from extracting the valuable stuff that produces the profit.
Strong words.. but think about what is happening.. the milk is "torn apart" into raw components, some extracted and sold as other products, some reassembled and sold "at cost". The milk, is the leftovers!
At Little Sprouts, we have reversed this. We manage goats under a "hard share" arrangement where our farm members own the goats, we mange and milk them and provide the milk produced in raw form, just as nature intended. We do not break apart the beautiful liquid gold to recombining it according to some government established ratios. We let nature dictate the components and rations and nutritional qualities of the milk. Then, we offer a service of converting the owner's milk into yogurt or kefir for them. The cost for managing the herd is by far the largest portion of this process, and the cost to the members reflect this. The milk "seems" much more expensive by comparison, perhaps prohibitively so. But then.. converting that milk into yogurt cost very little (becasue it is so easy by comparison) and the resulting price paid to acquire a quart of yogurt is BELOW the grocery store price!
yes.. consider this.. the milk costs 10x more than grocery store milk, but the yogurt and kefir ends up CHEAPER than grocery store yogurt or kefir. We base our prices on actual costs to produce, and that's how the real math works out.
So next time you are buying milk at the store.. check the yogurt prices.. convert it all to a per gallon price, and question how this can be. Raising animals and milking is much much much more involved than turning milk into yogurt. Something is wrong...
Milk is a golden product, a mainstay of a healthy diet, IF it is produced right and in it's raw form unchanged by man. Especially goat milk, which is much more nutritious and digestible as well as less problematic for humans. I encourage you to consider the milk sold in the stores, how it got there, what you paid for those "leftovers" and then find a local farm that raises "real milk".
Saturday, July 15, 2017
Chickens and turkey available now!
We finally have both whole chicken and whole turkey in the online store ready for ordering just in time for this coming delivery. And not just whole chicken and turkey, but also all the extras like necks (for the best stock in the world) gizzards, liver, hearts, heads, and feet. Brose through the online store to pick out what you would like for this week.
What to use everything for?
Head and feet make very healthy stock... Just boil, maybe a few onions, garlic and peppercorns.
Gizzards and hearts are great for inclusion in any dish to add super healthy organ meats without overwhelming flavor. I like these in dressing!
Liver.... The most popular organ we offer. Chicken and turkey liver often disappears as fast as we can get it into the store.
The chickens are sold by the bird and weigh in about 2.5 to 3.5 lbs. Heritage chickens are slimmer, tastier, and healthier than conventional ( highly breed for profit) birds. The meat is an equal balance of white and dark and actually has texture like meat should. The bones make excellent bone broth.
The turkeys are sold by the nearest half pound. These weigh in between 6 and 9 lbs. Just like the chickens, equal light and dark meat, excellent flavor and texture. If you have not tried heritage turkey, you have a pleasant surprise waiting! These birds are a totally unique culinary experience.
And as always, all these products are fed organic, soy free, nongmo feeds, plus pasture raised, naturally bred, humanely treated, and heritage breed.
Products will be in the online store by Sunday night and stay listed until sold out. And as usual.. any subscriptions will he filled first.
Enjoy!
posted from Bloggeroid
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