Are You Prepared for Winter?

My brother has inspired me to do more gardening. He has a healthy life style and like a younger brother, I want to follow his example. John is prepared for the winter. He has corn to grind, squash to keep, sweet potatoes to store, Sun Chokes, and fall potatoes.

I used to want to supplement my foods with some home grown delights but now I want it all the time.  I want to become healthy, lose unwanted pounds, and have more joy in eating wholesome foods.

I bought a watermelon the other day for $6.88. What a disappointment. It was rotted and overripe. When you can't get good food, you have to do something yourself and I mean gardening.

     
Look closely at what I had the other night. Corn, squash, carrots, and onions. I now eat two main meals a day. I am losing about four pounds of fat a week. I think I am getting more more energy.

Here is my show-off picture for today. Don't feel bad or mad if your carrots are not that great. You'll have a season where your stuff will far exceed mine. I think I'm going to start showing my worse stuff. It might not grab your attention but it will be reality. You should have seen a tomato I picked today. It was so spotted from stink bugs that it was pitiful. Or the the small cantaloupe that had a bite taken out of it even though it was under my net. Some critter tried to eat it but couldn't finish it due to the net. Or the weeds that came through the cardboard that had been placed in my garden. It is weedville in some parts of my garden and I'm not talking about the town in PA.

I think the only way to smother weeds is by having more hay bales. Everywhere a hay bale rests it makes no home for weeds. This year I don't care about the weeds. My garden area, like I said before, is too dark to produce healthy and strong plants. I need sunlight.

 My daughter finished her pumpkin, I gave her. I need to update my survival story with this picture.

The Hay Bucket Revolution

I'm going to do more bucket gardening. Look at the growth coming from one bucket. It is phenomenal.

I'll give you a hint for better water absorption and root extension. Use big holes on the bottom of your buckets. When you place your bucket on the ground or in water, it will absorb easier than nail sized holes.

Do you wonder about how to keep the soil in the bucket without flowing out through the holes? Read my archives. It's not rocks.

This shows you how I made my holes. 1" galvanized piping.

Word of caution. Once your plant roots through the holes into the ground. Let it be. The bucket becomes portable while the plant is young and easily brought indoors during frost but it remains stationary when it has grown.

Run with this idea. It works. And you thought my watermelon was growing in just a bucket? Think of the benefits? No moles, no gophers, with easy weeding around your buckets. Also you can place your buckets where you want to in the full sun. Place them all over your yard.

What are my buckets called, "Hay Buckets".  "Hey, did you see my hay buckets." People will think you are mad until they see what they produce. Maybe I'll call this process, the new "Hay Bucket Revolution".

I can see it now, "We are at here at (place your name) resident for KOLR news where something unusual is going on. This gardener is having mighty success in growing in nothing but buckets. Sir or Mam, what is your secret at your success? Many have grown in buckets before but your plants have phenomenal growth."

Be careful not to give away all our secrets. Just say, "It must be the plastic." Beware in telling too many people or you will not be able to find free buckets that some bakeries give away. Technique is the key in growing in ordinary buckets and I think we are on our way to buckets of fun and produce.

Stay tuned for beautifying your buckets. You do not have to have ugly buckets. they can become a work of art.

No Light, Poor Growth

Did some weeding today. One thing I learned this year is to get rid of my garden within the fence. My main garden is done for. The trees on both end of the garden is casting too much shade. You cannot grow in shade.

The space near the house is ideal for gardening. It gets more light than any other place. Gardeners who don't have success in gardening could be experiencing this one little unobserved fact: you need full sunlight to grow food.

Scrambled Yellow Squash

Today I decided to mow my yard and do some hand weeding with my shears. I had my green juice made with mint, plantain, alfalfa, watermelon juice, and dandelions before doing some labor.

As I was working I notice that one of my tomato plants are loaded with tomatoes while the other one is barely surviving. I spotted the trouble when I found a mole run that was very close to the plant's roots. I also found that where I planted the tomato plant was filled with rocks. I was going to place a mole trap in the area but couldn't penetrate the ground.

I worked for a while and became faint with hunger.  I decided to make scrambled squash. I had plenty of yellow squash and thought I would try something different.

I took my day's harvest of squash and cut it up in cubes.

I am blessed this year just to have squash. Normally the bugs would have destroyed my plants by now.

I first cooked the squash, onion, and added a little butter and water. I then drained the juice.

Make sure you drink the squash tea. It is great.

I then added some cut up corn tortillas. The tortillas help absorb the moisture from the squash.

Be sure to add some seasoning before serving. I topped mine off with cheese.

It wasn't like scrambled eggs but it wasn't bad. I would suggest eating more scrambled squash until the eggs prices drop.

Heavenly Meal

This is the way my brother John eats in California on his lemon tree farm:

I wonder if he has second helpings. I could eat it up in no time and be crying for more. Can you tell what is on his plate? 

Answer: Stuffed bell pepper with brown rice, tomato, cuke and avocado

DO YOU HAVE TIME FOR A MOVIE?

My brother sent me this link. I'm going to watch all of it when my internet is not sluggish. It looks like it might be interesting.

https://vimeo.com/133834425

Enjoy!

Survival 6: Things Are Looking Up

Zed literally leaped home to tell Marge and Penny the news. He had meticulously jumped from one fallen tree to another until he made it to the clearing. The news that he could not wait to deliver was that help had finally come to their neck of the woods. He had met a road crew sent from Springfield to clear out the highway.

Marge! Penny! "I have news."

What is it Zed? Are you okay?

Zed took Marge in his arms and started swinging her in the air.

"They're coming, Marge, they are coming. I spotted a road crew clearing the main highway from debris. I saw a band of thirty men with horses and hand saws. They are clearing the brush and making it easy to travel once again." 

"Are we finally saved?" Penny exclaimed. "

Zed smiled and said, "They are not only clearing the main highway but I was told that they are hiring at Grocery Mart. I'm going right now to see about getting myself a job. Things are looking up."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Zed easily traveled to Grocery Mart after the road crew had freed up most of the highway. When he made it to the store he couldn't believe his eyes, Grocery Mart looked immaculate. The building had a fresh coat of paint and the parking lot had been resurfaced. When he approached the main doors he had to open them by hand since power had not yet been restored. As he entered the building he was awed by the light that radiated from the elevated windows. Everything was brightly lit and all the counters and displays had been refurbished. 

The first thing he noticed was the huge sign that read: Employment Wanted. We are an equal opportunity employer. Well, that's why I came, Zed thought as he read the sign. He headed towards the first clerk he could find. All the clerks were dressed in red vests, white shirts and black pants.

As Zed approached a clerk at a checkout table he noticed that there were old fashioned scales on top of the tables. It looked more like an old time miner setup that they used in the 1800's to weigh gold dust than a modern checkout line using cash. Instead of dealing with gold, however, they were weighing wheat grain and using it as capital.  

"What can I do for you sir?"

"I'm inquiring about a job, Zed replied."

"All interviews are done in the back of the store."

"Hey, since you are here," spoke the clerk, "Can I interest you in this fine buck knife? It has a few blemishes on the handle but it is only for the price of 8 ounces of wheat."

"I'm sorry, I don't have wheat but I do have some corn flour."

"How much do you have?"

"You tell me?"

Zed reached into his back pack and pulled out a canvas bag and laid it on the table.

"You have three pounds? Wait here, I got to get the manager."

 The manager quickly came over after the clerk motioned to him.

"Hi, I'm John Dean, the manager of Grocery Mart. I was told you have corn meal."

"Actually it is finer like flour but it is corn."

"Can I taste it?"

"Go ahead," answered Zed.

"I'll tell what we'll do. We will give you the buck knife, two potatoes, any clothing item of your choice, and we'll also throw in a blanket."

Zed was readily agreeable. His only thought was for his family and the surprise they would get with all the goodies. If only he had brought the rest of the flour with him then he might have become a rich man for at least a day. 

The manager looked intently at Zed and then asked, "You wouldn't be interested in a job?"

"You won't believe this," Zed replied, "but I came here looking for one,"

"The job I have in mind is an adventure. Have you ever heard of Jim Horton?"

"You mean reverend Jim Horton. I think he was a survivalist that sold food on television."

"That's the guy. What I have in mind is sending a few men to his once thriving compound. If you could search and dig up some survival food that is still intact in their buckets then we could sell them in this store and help the people of our community. The store will even supply the shovels and the picks."

"I would be interested. What about the occupants of the religious compound? They would not act so kindly if we stole their food."

"We are not thieves and I would not be sending you there to loot. What I hear is that the place is deserted. Do you want the job or not?"

Zed answered, "When do I leave?"

Sprouted Wheat Modification (Flat Bread)

Wheat tortillas can be hard on your teeth especially if you overcook them. I prefer a softer bread-like tortilla (flat bread). How do I modify my tortilla recipe? It is easy.

1. Use a little yeast in your dough. I use about 1/2 package of dry yeast and let it brew in warm water with a spoonful of molasses. That's right, molasses.  Molasses is my little secret that activates yeast faster than sugar.

2. Add some unbleached flour to your dough in order to dry it out. Sprouted wheat that is pulverized in a food processor is too wet. It needs some dry flour.

3. I also add some oil and salt.

4. Make some balls with your dough. Same as your would in making tortillas.

5. Flatten out your balls into tortillas while using a little olive oil on each one.  Instead of immediately cooking them on a griddle, let them rise a few hours in and on plastic wrap.  You will use a lot of plastic wrap. After use, save the plastic wrap in a zip-lock bag for using it again.

6. After the tortillas or flat bread rises a little, I remove them from the plastic wrap and cook them on a high heat electric griddle. When you start seeing some brown spots on the cooking dough flip it over. Do not over cook your flat bread. If you cannot fold your flat bread without breaking them in half then you have overcooked them. Store in frig in a zip-lock bag.

I eat them everyday. I have lost a pound a day from eating them and not eating white bread or white flour products. For a snack I smother my flat bread with peanut butter and homemade blackberry jelly.

Survival 5: A Gift for Penny

Zed walked to his pumpkin patch not knowing if his plants had survived. To his surprise, he actually found a pumpkin. I can't believe it. It is still August and I see a ripened pumpkin. Zed took out his knife and severed it from the vine. Zed actually had a smile on his face. He was going to have some fun when he got home.

"Penny and Marge, I got something to show you." They turned around and Zed could see the excitement starting to well up inside them.

Marge was first to respond, "Where on God's green earth did you find a pumpkin? Am I dreaming?"

"No honey, I planted it months ago. We have traditions to uphold and this is for Penny's carving skill. Every year she has carved a pumpkin and we will continue the tradition."

Penny reaches out her hand to take the pumpkin while tears of happiness flowed from her eyes. "Dad, Thank you. I love you very much. I'm going to carve a cat's face in the pumpkin."

"Not only that", replied Zed, "We're going to roast some pumpkin seeds. Get out the knives, it is party time tonight."

Net Worth? Minus One Cantaloupe

Wild animals just don't have sense. The critter that tasted this green melon couldn't wait any longer for ripening and had to take a bite. He didn't even finish it. I took action and found my other net. I have about four more melons and I'd have to be hammed (drunk, hammered) if I let those varmints get my other ones.

When I was looking in my shed for the net I came across these frogs. They really blend in with their environments. I would hate to be an insect flying around them.

Look at those markings. They are quite cool.

The squash is now growing out of my ears. Guess what I'll be eating for lunch and dinner?

I went to town yesterday. I ate at Wendy's and had a barbecue salad. I'm trying to stay away from white bread food like buns. When I got home I had to eat more and more food. I'm a growing boy at sixty and need my nutrition.

The other night I ate the best tomato of my life for dinner. It was a beefsteak and it had no blemishes. It was huge and tasted heavenly.

I went to a farmers market the other day and was not impressed. Everything was way over priced and the produce was setting outdoors in the heat. I feel sorry for those who think they can make money on selling their home veggies. They would be better off having a garage sale and selling their veggies on the side.

I also went to a health food store and bought another sprouting jar. I looked at their vegetables while I was there and most of them looked like something you would find in a dumpster. I guess when its organic it is suppose to look like crap.

I don't have all the answers for having great successful garden. There are too many factors involved in having a perfect garden. I'm going to keep on trying different things until I become the master of my own garden in its unusual environment.

I still think that garden plants are great additions to our diet but they are not the solution for health. We need more. I tend to think herbs are the answer for great health. Especially herb juice.

I got a sample of hemp hearts at the food market. It is amazing how nutritious they are suppose to be.

www.hemphearts.com

Will we find our way to health through weeds? I think so but there is more to be done than eating a few of the right kinds of food.  We need to abstain from the real bad ones. The nuttier or more extreme that we become in our  diet the healthier we will be.

We may not always make the right choices for foods due to where we live, time, and the success of our gardens, however, we must do our best. In some cases the condition of our health will stop us from becoming healthier. It takes a well person to become or stay healthy.

A quick thought for the day: You can lose more weight by not eating white floured products than any other way. 

"WHITE BREAD – Anything and everything that is made from white or enriched flour is a food that will more readily turn to fat. This includes pretzels, bagels, breads, pitas, crackers---anything made with white flour. Try to eat 100 % whole wheat and read labels carefully."

http://www.rangerette.com/Content/201112/09_Tryout_Packet_-_Foods_That_Turn_To_Fat.pdf

8/14

Flower garden.

I hate squash that is gigantic. I pick my squash small and young.

Squash that is young is less seedy.

The juice is better than V8 juice.

I like camo skins. What amphibian did this come from?

This is my marigold that I grew in a cardboard bale. You can make bales out of anything.

Pumpkin growing from my care-free method. The pumpkin plants need no care during the drought or hot dry seasons. Plant them and let them grow. It is mentioned in one of my survival blogs.

One of my back yard plants: tomatillos.

 The creature with the camo skins has a home under a rock.

The frog is waiting for the drips from the faucet to hit him on his back.

Squash likes a raised hay bale to grow in.

The plant is loaded with squash.

Been eating a lot of squash this year. My oldest plant was infested with squash bugs. I used my dust buster (Dirt Devil) and sucked most of them up. You know what works better than a mini vacuum? It is my propane torch. A quick glance of the torch on any insect will kill them. The torch doesn't even harm the plant. The torch is the best thing I have ever found for most insect control.  As far as I know, I used it first.

 For water intensive plants I use my small potato fork. I can direct the water flow to any place I desire.

The Angelic Tortilla (update 8/14)

I was doing a little more research on bread making the old-fashioned way when I came across some recipes for making bread the Essene way. The Hebrews actually sprouted wheat before making the bread.

http://www.livestrong.com/article/325385-the-benefits-of-essene-bread/

There are a lot of benefits for sprouting grains and using them for making bread.

http://wholegrainscouncil.org/whole-grains-101/health-benefits-of-sprouted-grains

Here is a Essene bread recipe:

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/essene-bread/?mxt=t06dda

There are many variations of making Essene bread. I found one that you dehydrate or cook it in the sun.

http://www.food.com/recipe/essene-bread-raw-sprouted-bread-324437

At my research facility (my kitchen) I am going to make healthy tortillas from using sprouted grains. I like the idea of tortillas. They are thin (not much flour) and no slicing. What better way to use your sprouted grains than by making tortillas.

Keep your sprouting jar at an angle. It helps your grains from molding or rotting in the jar. Good drainage is important for sprouting seeds. Rinse seeds at least two times a day.

Tortillas are easy to make. I used a food processor and made the dough without  the need of using a wheat grinder. I also used a little bit of white flour to help shape the dough. In shaping the tortillas I used a pizza roller on a flat cutting board. I find it is easier than using a tortilla press.

My Net Works

My garden area is getting too much shade. The oak trees have grown and the shade covers my garden most of the day. I tried growing outside my garden but the critters of the night kept stealing my tomatoes.

Just recently I came up with the idea to use a bird net. The kind of net that they use for fruit trees and berries. It was real easy to use. You drape it over the tomato plant and let the excess remain around the plant. I covered two plants with one net.

The time finally came when I had a ripe tomato. I then waited to see if the thieves of the night would make it through the net and steal the tomato. They did not. It was a success.

So what does it mean. It means that we can buy netting when we grow in unprotected places. Some of your best places to grow is close to your dwelling. You can now grow in any sunny location without the need of a garden fence. Or you can do what I do, I grow all over the place.

Another success I had was with blister beetles. The bug light or zapper really controlled their approach into my yard. As you might recall, The light did not zap them but attracted them to a pot that was left underneath the zapper. The blister beetle was unable to climb or fly out of the container.

Another bonus is that the bug light kills moths. The Indian moth likes to come inside and lay eggs in all our unsealed containers. They also mess up our ceilings with their cocoons.

"The Indian mealmoth, alternatively spelled Indianmeal moth, is a pyraloid moth of the family Pyralidae. Alternative common names are weevil moth, and pantry moth; less specifically, it may be referred to as flour moth or grain moth."

My last success for the year was using a torch to kill bag worms. It really works with little or no damage to my trees. Just recently I noticed some webs with worms on my red-bud tree. Usually I would have to mix up some insecticide and try to spray the webs. The poisonous cloud would almost always blow back into my face due to some gust of wind. Not any more. I now touch them and roast them to oblivion. It really doesn't take much heat to kill an insect. Fire is the great purifier.

Best Diet of All Time (Advertisement)

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List of "Do Not Eat Foods"

Dairy Products: "I typically advise most of my patients to avoid dairy products completely." Mark Hyman MD.

http://drhyman.com/blog/2010/06/24/dairy-6-reasons-you-should-avoid-it-at-all-costs-2/

Grain Products: "Grains are a mistake! Added to the human diet in desperation, they now dominate the human food experience. And grains are no longer traditional strains, but Frankengrains created by genetics research and agribusiness."

http://www.wheatbellyblog.com/

Vegetables: "Pesticides can be absorbed into fruits and vegetables, and leave trace residues. As Melinda Wenner Moyer reported on for EatingWell Magazine, there are hundreds of pesticides approved for use in the United States and they all present different risks: some are linked with cancer, while others can cause birth defects or harm the nervous system. Some pesticides—including organophosphates commonly used on crops—are what are known as endocrine disruptors, which means that they affect the body’s highly sensitive endocrine (hormone) system. There’s good reason to be concerned about this: the body uses hormones to coordinate just about everything—cell growth, appetite and metabolism, among other things. (Organophosphates, despite the name, are synthetic pesticides linked with neurological problems, among other health conditions.)"

http://www.eatingwell.com/blogs/food_news_blog/do_you_need_to_buy_organic_the_bottom_line_on_how_bad_pesticides_are_for_you

Organic Fruits and Vegetables: "Organic food is not healthier, say Stanford researchers; When it comes to nutrition, organic meats, produce and dairy are no better." 

http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/health/organic-food-not-healthier-stanford-researchers-nutrition-organic-meats-produce-dairy-no-better-article-1.1151470

Meat and Cheese: "That chicken wing you’re eating could be as deadly as a cigarette. In a new study that tracked a large sample of adults for nearly two decades, researchers have found that eating a diet rich in animal proteins during middle age makes you four times more likely to die of cancer than someone with a low-protein diet — a mortality risk factor comparable to smoking."

https://news.usc.edu/59199/meat-and-cheese-may-be-as-bad-for-you-as-smoking/

Begin today on the "No Food" diet plan. This new diet will save you money and will lessen your chances of dying from a horrible disease. It is also guaranteed that you will lose weight. Severe symptoms of starvation begin around 35-40 days so hurry today and get our free book called, "How to Cook Nothing." We at NO FOOD International are not responsible for any side effects due to this new diet. 

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The Bread of Death

Today I listened to a Doctor on PBS talking about wheat. He believes in a no grain diet. He made a lot of sense. Dr William Davis has a great operation going. Since his followers no longer eat grain they must find new ways of cooking and new products to buy. He is available to help those find a new way of eating without consuming grain.

http://www.wheatbellyblog.com/

http://www.iamm.com/gluten.htm

I was almost convinced that wheat was bad to eat until I had the thought that maybe wheat is not the problem but the method they use today in making flour into a fine glue like product. Maybe taking in too much glue-ten (gluten) is causing obesity, diabetes, and other diseases.

http://authoritynutrition.com/6-shocking-reasons-why-gluten-is-bad/

I never heard it said in the olden days that bread was poisonous. In fact a famous prayer says, "Give us our day our daily bread."  What has happened to our bread that  we must now shun it like the plague? Maybe it is not wheat at all but it is the process that wheat goes through that makes it deadly.

Take a look at this site and learn how milling is done today:

http://everydaylife.globalpost.com/additives-flour-22941.html

"Modern milling takes place on a series of high-speed steel rollers. As the grain passes across these rollers and is milled into ever-finer powder, it's heated dramatically by friction. That heat, like any other cooking process, destroys many of the natural nutrients in the flour. For decades, commercial flour mills in the United States have replaced those lost nutrients to produce "enriched" flour. The nutrients include B-vitamins niacin, thiamine and riboflavin, as well as iron and folic acid. Some brands also include calcium."

How was it done in the past?

http://www.angelfire.com/journal/pondlilymill/elton.html

I know everyone want to be modern and do things in a more intellectual way but perhaps our new ways are not the best ways.

http://www.roman-reenactor.com/roman%20military%20bread%20making.html

Before I studied the old ways of bread making I tried my hand in making a more fibrous bread than what you would find today at your local supermarket. 

I used my coffee grinder and grounded some hard winter wheat. My bread looks sort of crude but I am sure it would be more filling than a loaf of white or wheat bread that you can readily buy today.

There was not that much gluten released after the grinding process. I could tell by the way the coarse flour did not bind the dough together. It was more like a coarse cereal than bread dough. I tried grinding the dough some more in my blender and it did help a little by making it more dough like.

I gave my wife a taste of my grainy bread and she nearly spat it out. I, on the other hand liked the chewiness of the bread and will continue evolving the process and eating it.

There is no end to the variations you can have in making your own Roman style bread. You could add almond (nuts) flour, or vegetables like carrot or squash. Instead of vowing never to eat bread again, why not make it the old fashioned way. I know it takes works but so does injecting yourself with insulin after being diagnosed with diabetes.  

"You may want to think twice before eating your next sandwich on white bread. Studies show that alloxan, the chemical that makes white flour look "clean" and "beautiful," destroys the beta cells of the pancreas. That's right; you may be devastating your pancreas and putting yourself at risk for diabetes, all for the sake of eating "beautiful" flour. Is it worth it?"

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/008191.html#ixzz3iYdm4jbK