HOMESTEADucation

HAPPY 2023! 

We will admit, we recorded this right before the holidays and then the holidays happened. :) 
We would like to welcome you to the New Year with a fun recording where we talk all about some of the common myths that circulate the homesteading community. Or just the community in general. 

We both are very excited to bring you incredible content this year, but let's start with something fun! Cheers! 

Angela & Mandi 

@axeandroothomestead
@wildoakfarms

You'll have to listen. This is a good one. 

Mandi asked on social media- "What does being a homesteader mean to you? Are you proud of it? Do you feel like you "fit in?"

The responses were all over the board. Some were terribly sad. Some made sense to us. Some were very extreme. 
We talked about many of them and gave our own thoughts in this episode. 

No matter where you stand. If you are in fact a homesteader or are seeking out a similar lifestyle, you DO fit in. There isn't a box. And you are doing a great job. 

Stand tall and keep going. 

Angela, and Mandi 

Sit down with us as we just have a candid conversation with one another about the difference between functional farming and glamour farming.  Has social media damaged how we look at hard work? Functional work? 

Our thoughts on this hot button topic. Join us. And remember one thing. 
YOU SHOULD BE PROUD OF YOURSELF! :) 

Cheers 

Angela: @axeandroothomestead
Mandi: @wildoakfarms

Season 3: Greenhouse

Greenhouses can come in a variety of forms:

1. Cold Frame
2. Hoop House
3. Mini Greenhouse
4. Greenhouse Kit
5. Attached 3-sided Structure
6. Independent Structure

3 Things Required for Greenhouse

1. Ventilation
2. Heat Source
   1. Thermal mass from other structure
   2. Heater
   3. Water Barrels
3. Sunlight

Things to Consider

1. Flooring
2. Drainage
3. Position of the house relative to sunrise/set
4. Access 
5. Orientation- traditionally greenhouses direct N-S. (Mandi’s does not and we explain why it still works!)

Challenges

1. Contained pests include aphids, scales, mealy bugs, gnats
2. Mold and mildew
3. Heating if necessary

Ways to heat a greenhouse- likely one of the biggest challenges we face. Some folks compost in the greenhouse- you have to have a large enough one and I am not convinced it would work too well. You can double window. Put up sheet insulation- like the kind some folks do on their windows. - may not be rated for humidity though. 

Mandi uses an electric heater. It keeps the greenhouse around 40 degrees- even when it is about 16 outside. 

As you listen to the entire episode, you will hear that we chat about many ways to do the same thing. It sure doesn't have to be fancy, because the end goal is all the same! 

Thank you for listening. 
Angela and Mandi 

​​PLANTING:

Plant in full sun.

Don’t overwater to prevent rotting bulbs. Instead, mulch the area with straw to retain moisture.

Plant cloves in mid October before the freeze. Also know what you’re planting. Grow soft neck varieties for storage and hard neck for larger cloves, and mainly consuming sooner than later. Elephant garlic is awesome and easy to peel. But it doesn’t last super long.

 Buy quality seed. We like

@territorialseedcompany

@seed_savers_exchange

@pvfsgroworganic

@filareegarlicfarm

 A small sprinkle of slow release fertilizer in each hole when planting really helps out cloves as they establish roots. For a more permaculture approach, use biodegradable materials to improve soil quality and replace needed nutrients (i.e. comfrey, compost, etc.).

GROWING:

In addition to full sun and water, fertilize every 2-3 weeks with liquid kelp.

Keep weed free and avoid walking in growing areas to avoid compacting the soil.

When scapes appear on hardneck varieties, cut them before they blossom. This keeps the plant’s energy going towards the bulb and not reproducing via flower pollen.

 HARVEST:

Many sources say to harvest when the foliage of the plant is 2/3 yellow-brown. I don’t as this opens up the possibility of rotting bulbs! I harvest after a week or two of cutting scapes.

After harvesting, shake off excess dirt. Braid and hang softneck varieties in small groups or bundle hardneck varieties and hang. Air flow is key!

 Make sure the bulbs cure for about three weeks in a dry, cool location.

 After 3 weeks, de-stem, remove roots with scissors and store in braids or porous baskets.

 Pro Tip: Garlic is a great companion plant for broccoli, cauliflower and other brassicas. If you plant rows 12” apart, you can leave space to interplant these crops in the spring.

You have the choice between two kinds- hardneck and softneck. Within both of those there are dozens of different cultivars, but knowing the difference in hard vs soft is very helpful for choosing the right kinds for your zone. Softneck garlic is usually what you are finding at the grocery store. Those varieties tend to have a longer and more stable shelf life. Softneck garlic in my opinion is also less flavorful, or should I less more mild to the taste buds. It's a more "well-rounded" choice when it comes to an all purpose garlic. These do NOT have scapes. Softneck garlic grows best in warmer climates, however we do grow some here and we get some pretty harsh winters.

Then you have hardneck garlic. We grow 80% hardneck here on our homestead. It does better in colder climates like ours. Hardneck garlic is the superior choice for colder climates because it requires prolonged exposure to cold weather of at least 40 days at 40 degrees F (or even less). This process is called vernalization. We also like hardneck garlic better because of the scapes! Those are the curly-q things that come up in the middle of the stalk. Usually a few weeks before the garlic is ready for harvest. It is like a bonus crop.

With all of that being said, play around with it. Garlic is SO easy to grow and once you start you won't stop. You will plant more and more each year. Trust me.

Garlic requires full- sun. That is considered at least 6 hours of sunlight each day. Garlic likes to be planted in a well-draining soil that has a neutral (or even slightly acidic) pH. By doing a soil test in fall, you can learn what and how you should

Season 3: Cover Crops

Cover crops are a form of vegetation that is grown in raised beds, in-ground gardens, and animal grazing paddocks to improve soil fertility and tilth. These crops are not harvested for use but are left within the soil. Most often, cover crops are chopped and dropped before seed-set in order to return nutrients to the soil and prevent unwanted spreading. 

A lot of folks call cover crops the no cash- cash crop. We don’t harvest it so I think it’s widely underused. People forget about soil health once the fall or summer season of growing is done. But when we add things like CC or any organic material to the beds or plots in the fall you are setting yourself up for a better Spring. 

For our raised beds we plant roughly 4 weeks before frost- so that is the first week of october. And then we will mow- weed-whack the cover crops down the first of march before they go to seed. This gives the roots and the rest of the plant material time to decompose and feed the soil before we plant things in early spring. (third ish week of March) 

From Farmer’s Almanac: “Examples include winter rye, hairy vetch, red clover, oats, buckwheat, forage rye, Italian rye grass (sown by October), field beans, and forage pea (sown by November). Cover crops literally make a living “cover” to sustain soil life until spring planting.”

Cover Crop Functions:

1. Hold soil in place and prevent erosion
2. Keep soil covered to prevent solarization
3. Increase organic matter
4. Add nutrients
5. Loosen compacted soil, improving aeration
6. Some suppress weeds
7. In warmer seasons, flowering crops provide a source of pollen/nectar for pollinators

NOTE: Cover crops need at least four weeks of growth before the first frost to fully establish themselves and to “work.”

From Farmer’s Almanac:

“For most home gardeners, there are other things to take into consideration. Mainly, cover crops for home vegetable gardens should be easy to work into the soil in the spring.

• Hairy vetch produces so much top growth that it’s very difficult to turn over without a strong mower. Hairy vetch and winter rye are better for field-scale production.
• Perennial cover crops such as red clover (Trifolium pratense) are slow growing and are best used in orchards and vineyards. 

“For cool-season cover crops (planted in late summer/fall), annuals are the way to go. They die over the winter or naturally complete their life cycle by the next spring. Also, the home gardener should select crops that can be easily incorporated into the garden. Here are some good cool-season cover crops to explore:

• Oats are a wonderful annual cover crop which prevents erosion and loosens tight soil.
• Field peas, mustard, and barley are also good annual cover crops. 
• Berseem clover is a rapid-growing annual legume that will fix nitrogen in the soil.
• Oilseed radish is a rapidly growing annual with large roots that alleviate deep compaction.”

 Link to Farmer’s Almanac suggested cover crops by region (also includes Canada):

https://www.almanac.com/planting-cover-crops-home-garden

Way to Improve Soil Fertility in Fall Without Cover Crops:

1. Add compost
2. Remove diseased plants and unwanted weeds
3. Leave dead, healthy matter to return nutrients to soil
4. Add any additional amendments if needed after testing the soil
5. Cover with straw, woodchips or mulch to offer protection

In general, Fall is the best time to add any organic material to your garden. It is far wiser to manage, till if you till, add to your

Join us for this episode where we chat with Crystal, the author of the new book "Freeze Fresh" - The ultimate guide to preserving fruits and vegetables. It was such a fun and relatable conversation and one we know you all are going to love! Crystal is such a wealth of knowledge and an asset to the homesteading community! Enjoy!

Find Crystal on Instagram at Wholefedhomestead and you can find her book titled "Freeze Fresh" on Amazon and other book retailers such as Target and Barnes and Noble. 

Cheers! 

Angela: axeandroothomestead
Mandi: wildoakfarms 

This was so much fun! I am sure that if we both could only grow one thing, it would be tomatoes! 

We talked about pruning, trellising, when to harvest, how to store, and more! 

What is your favorite tomato variety? 

Cheers! 

Be sure to come say hi @wildoakfarms and @axeandroothomestead 

What is companion planting?

It's one of the foundations of creating working ecosystems when it comes to permaculture. We can group plants together when planning and planting our growing spaces to help crops deter pests/disease, mine nutrients from the soil, and attract pollinators.

It's a way of creating a symbiotic relationship in your gardens, because the idea is the two plants (or more) that are companions are each providing to the other something that it cannot do. Or cannot do it alone. The plants are working together to benefit one another. Companion planting is also thought to “confuse” pests even when you are unable to cover or manage intensively. 

It helps support plant diversity and actually helps you intensively manage a small space better. The key in fostering diversity is to increase the number of beneficial pests- thus decreasing the harmful ones. 

Why companion plant?

The result is a higher crop yield, less human intervention by way of fertilizing and pest control, and maximizing garden space. These concepts can be applied to small spaces--even container gardens--to large environments like orchards. It's about getting away from mono-culture (planting rows upon rows of corn, for example) and planting many things together, called poly-culture.

For containers, raised beds or in-ground garden systems, here's some helpful companion plant combinations I use.

Tomatoes

Plant lettuce, carrots, radish underneath and around

Broccoli/Cauliflower

Plant broccoli and cauliflower between rows of garlic and/or sage to deter cabbage moths. Crimson clover acts a great living mulch to attract predatory insects to feed on those cabbage moth larvae also.

Cucumbers

Surround with radishes to deter cucumber beetles

Pumpkins/Squash

Sow 2-3 nasturtium seeds around each seedling after sprouting to deter squash bugs/borersMarigolds and Calendula

Use around borders to attract beneficial pollinators and deter rabbits- and they can add another thing to you homestead arsenal- you can make salves from the petals- they both are from the same family and have anti-inflammatory properties and more. 

Roses

Interplant garlic around roses to deter fungal diseases (some folks say it also encourages a stronger fragrance from the rose blossoms!)

Peas

Peas give nitrogen to the soil so are great for heavy-feeding plants like tomatoes, corn, peppers, eggplant, and even potatoes

Strawberries

Interplant with mint to deter pests. Also interplant with borage to attract pollinators and enhance berry sweetness.

Nasturtium

Containing both edible foliage and flowers (and seeds-capers) it fairs well in less fertile soil. Great for pollinators and pest control- so we interplant this easy to grow trailing flower all over the garden. 

Trap crops: the idea of planting crops to “sacrifice”.  This aids in pest reduction for the plants you want to see to harvest. This is ideally done in close proximity to the plants you are trying to succeed with. For us- we do this with brassicas- greens etc. We will cover (with a lightweight summer cloth) the beds we want to protect and then leave a bed nearby uncovered and unkempt. The easiest form of trickery. 

Plants that add nitrogen back into our soil:

It's no secret- your soil is alive. You want it to be its own little ecosystem right under your feet. We can help the soil (because then it turns around and helps us) by planting crops that are rich in nitrogen. Legumes - peas and beans are some of the more common plants homesteaders will grow for a harvest- and they are also helping improve the soil as they grow a

Do you live in an apartment, condo, and/or are you limited on your growing space? 

This episode is for you! We have covered in previous episodes small space gardening and discussed many tricks we have learned in growing over the years. This just takes it to a little bit more of a niche! 

Be sure to check out those other episodes that might also be helpful from the previous seasons! 

Cheers!