I’ll probably call tomorrow to schedule the meeting. I’m looking at a Monday or Tuesday evening around 6pm. Probably at Bedford library.
Does this sound doable?
Any topics you’d be interested in learning about at the first meeting?
From my site, Heart & Soul Homestead
This article is focused on vegetable and herb gardens - I don’t do flowers except to line my garden with marigolds which supposedly keep wildlife away. I haven’t had too many problems!
If this is your first year of gardening, the best time to plan is during the winter because some varieties of vegetables (like tomatoes and lettuce) must be started early spring. I believe in most areas of the US, if not all, you can garden year-round (different crops for different temperatures - some vegetables must go through a winter before they germinate in the spring, and others fair well in cold temperatures). You’ll need to decide (use a calendar!) what to start when (and if it’ll be started in a container or cold frame or directly into the ground), when to transplant them outside. You can also do succession planting - planting your vegetables several times through the season so that you can harvest more fresh and ripe vegetables through the season rather than more or less all at once. This will require a lot of planning and preparing though, so keep good notes and a well marked calendar so you get everything planted on time.
The first thing I do when I plan my garden is to decide what I want to grow, how much and figure out if I have enough space. You don’t want to overcrowd your garden! My goal is to grow a garden plentiful enough to provide vegetables for my family year round (freeze, dry, or can the excess for the winter). In order to decide how much I need to grow, I take a look at the past months meal planning to decide what we need a lot of. Then I decide if I have enough space or if I need to turn over a new plot.
You also need to consider how tall your garden varieties will grow and plan wisely to prevent some vegetables from shading others out. I made the mistake of growing my sunflowers on the west side of my garden and my tomatoes on the north side of my garden - the sunflowers became so tall and leafy that my tomatoes didn’t get the sun they needed and as a result were very, very slow to produce and ripen. Next year my sunflowers will go on the north end of my garden, then my tomatoes, then the next smallest vegetable, etc.
Also take into consideration if your plants need full sun or partial shade. Study your garden area for a few days to decide what areas get full sun through the day and what other areas become shady and how soon they become shady. Take note and match these spots up with the plants that need ‘em. You learn a lot by trial and error though - my first year I paid no attention to how much sun something needed (until my tomatoes were lacking!). You can also create your garden in a way that provides partial shade for some plants by mid-day and plant these plants next to taller plants that will offer them the shade they need.
Consider how WIDE your vegetables will get. Squash, while not tall, spread all over the place. You either need to contain them with stakes, or plan a plot just for them. I’ll be doing this in 2008 - the squash I’ll grow will NOT be in my main garden!
How will you manage weed control? Weeds were overtaking my garden until I spread mulch over everything - that really helped keep the weeds at bay! There are other options you can try also.
Now it’s time to go shopping! Decide where you want to buy your seeds and order. Typically, one packet of seeds is more than enough for a home garden.
I’ve been talking about it for a while now, and now it’s time to act.
I am going to start a homesteading/homemaking support group. I’m looking at it being at a library.
What days and times work best for those of you who might attend? You can post a comment or e-mail me at sarah@motherhoodnaturally.com I want to be sure to plan it for a day/time that as many people can attend.
If you have experience on something related to homesteading and homemaking and would like to lead a discussion or teach us something please let me know!
The goal of the group will be to promote a back to basics and frugal living style, and I know we ALL have something we can share with others so there will be a chance for lots of discussion where we can talk about any topic related to the theme of the group. I’ll help plan meetings but I am depending on the community to participate, share your skills, and help all of us save some money, become more self reliant, and learn lots of new things.
And please remember - ANYONE is welcome to attend these - not just those living ‘in the country’ or who ‘have a farm’ because I believe ‘homesteading’ can be done in any home, anywhere. It’s a mind set, and there is something we all can do to become more self sufficient and work with what we have.
I’ll post a date and time when I schedule it - but I’ll wait a few days to hear from you to see what days and times work best.
I thought I’d share some of our recent and upcoming projects! I know I’ve been pretty pathetic at blogging lately, so here are some projects to keep you busy until my next post 
Make ‘Puffed Rice’ and What you can do with puffed rice
How to make essential oils & Another technique that most of us can use at home
Make Yogurt in a crockpot, Buttermilk, Cottage Cheese, Cream Cheese
Mmmm. Not exactly low in fat! Very mmmm though - and freezes great! I usually eat half of this recipe and freeze the other half - still raw - to use in a future meal. To cook the frozen recipe I stick it in the fridge overnight until thawed, then cook as directed.
8 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 bunches of broccoli
2c grated cheddar cheese
2c grated mozzarella cheese
4 cloves garlic
2-3 tsp. paprika
3-4 tsp. italian seasoning
1-2 tsp. black pepper
Enough breadcrumbs to coat (Do NOT include in above mixture)
Using a sharp knife, slice a hole in one end of the chicken and carefully open the inside of the breast up by sliding the knife around the inside - trying NOT to cut through the edge. The idea is to create a pocket.
Steam the broccoli until tender. Mix above ingredients well except breadcrumbs - I use my fingers to flip the mix around so the broccoli doesn’t get too smooshed.
Stuff those chicken breasts full of the mixture. Roll well in bread crumbs.
Cook in oven at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.
You can also add seasoning to your breadcrumbs. Sometimes I add basil or parsley (or both), a bit of salt and pepper, whatever you like.
I just found this new resource, “You Grow Girl” which is a very informative website on gardening and the things you can do with what you grow. I stumbled upon her post about how to make your own seed starting mix. Judging by how many big bags I have to buy each season, this may turn out to be a better option! I think I’m set this season, but the next time I’m at the right store I’ll try to find and price these materials, and report back
See it here: http://www.yougrowgirl.com/thedirt/2008/02/14/mix-up-your-own-seed-starting-mix/#more-1213
A site I use some recipes from is a really great resource for gift-giving, seasonings, pre-measured stuff, breads and more. So, let me introduce you to www.giftsfromyourkitchen.com
Found from www.giftsfromyourkitchen.com
2 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons oregano
2 tablespoons basil
4 1/4 tablespoons salt
4 1/4 tablespoons black pepper
4 1/4 tablespoons garlic powder
4 1/4 tablespoons paprika
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons celery seed
4 1/4 tablespoons onion powder
2 teaspoons rosemary
Mix all ingredients well in a bowl. Pour into a jar with a tight-fitting lid.
To use: Add 2 to 3 tablespoons per 2 pounds of meat
Cake mixes, seasoning packets, muffin mix, this mix and that mix.
The money you spend on these mix packages and packets are simply this: convienience. Mixes are simply pre-measured ingredients. Can you measure what are typically every day ingredients, herbs and spices? Cut your costs and make your own mixes. They store well in the fridge or pantry, or use a FoodSaver to help them keep even longer! Once you know you have a mix you like the taste of, make up a huge batch so you don’t run out any time soon. I love saving glass jars from storebought items we buy or others have bought and saved the jars for us, and these jars get washed and ready for use storing food just like mixes, or homemade yogurt, flour and more!
What are your favorite mix recipes? Do you have a healthy buttermilk baking mix? How about stew seasoning? Cake mix? Muffin mix?
I’ll post some of mine tonight or tomorrow.
I started some of my seeds last week. As I planned out which would go in what tray, I didn’t take into consideration how long some seeds can take to sprout! So, I bought the trays that include the clear cover to keep over the top until the plants are too tall to keep it on. I have some plants that are several inches long already, and some that haven’t even sprouted at all because they’ll sprout in 14-21 days. if I keep the cover off, they’ll get too cold and won’t sprout well (if at all). Press and seal came to the rescue, as I can seal in their specific little pods on my tray until they’re ready.
Next year i”ll have to remember to take into consideration sprouting times and keep the slow starters together so I don’t have this issue again