A food swap network coming to a town near you!

You've labored  away during garden season, filling the Pantry with numerous delectable's.  Some Jarred. Some Dried. Maybe you have dairy goats and preserve their gift into cheese or yogurt. That perfect Pasta you hand make adding your own Garden herbs as you roll out the dough. Maybe a few dozen extra Duck or chicken eggs you would gladly swap out for some local Honey or a Fruit jam you do not have.

These are just a small array of the items you could bring to and find at a Food swap. 

So what exactly IS a Food Swap ?

It’s an event that brings people together to trade their homemade, homegrown, or even foraged food items with one another. There is a system, which involves something similar to a sign up sheet. Like a Silent Auction. You have time to browse what others have brought as well as possibly sample foods if available. There is a Host/ess which will guide you along throughout it all. Telling you when it's time to head back to your table or head off to find the person with the items you wish to swap out for.  Ultimately you decide if you want to swap with what the others may offer. No need to feel uncomfortable declining. It is well advised before hand during the event, trade for what YOU would eat and like and never feel as though you must accept in fear of coming of rude.

My In Laws were the ones to bring our local event to my attention. An article in the  newspaper highlighting this new form of community interaction. Searching the paper for one near you is unnecessary. There is a master mind hot spot where the mass majority of Food Swaps across the nation register their location & guidelines. Take a visit over to the *Food Swap network* where you can browse for one near you. Do keep in mind, some may limit the attendance to just 15-25 people due to the space they have acquired. Requiring you to sign up & reserve a spot on a first come basis. Read their guidelines and expectations carefully. Not all swaps are the same. Some may have items they do not allow such as home made wine or bake Goods. Some may even limit the amount of items you should bring. Either way, swapping out items within your community is a great way to meet other Gardeners, Bakers & Foodies just like you. Not too mention, you walk out with armfuls of new temptations to enjoy.

I am most excited for the one near me. Being we have plenty of  Honey from our hives, I plan to take a decent amount for Bartering items as well as a few packs of our Wine cap mushrooms I dehydrated/ Vac sealed. Hopefully being the two are not as common as garden produce, they will provide a greater interest and leverage for items we would want.

If you click over to the Food Swap network site *at this link* , you will find a more thorough explanation on what the under 2 hours event will entail.

Not able to find a Food swap near you? Why not host one yourself or gather a group of friends to assist in creating one for your area. The local town hall. The school cafeteria. Even the local park or one very kind Hostess with an Open Barn or Out Building. On the links I have shared highlighted in Watermelon Pink {have you noticed they are the same color as my Roto Hoe Monster?}, you will find them filled with helpful information in how to host, spread the news and invite the locals as well as how to register your event & have others sign up to attend. They even provide the PDF file Swap sheets to go with each variety of food your attendee's bring. They truly make it as easy as possible to organize. 

As for what I hope or would like to walk out with, I have to say I would be over joyed to find a greatly reduced sweetener or sugar free Blackberry jam for my wee Frog. Poor thing barely had enough Blackberries from our patch to sustain her desire until next harvest. I truly am not sure what to expect and in no way wish to set high expectations. But I WILL be sure to share with all of you how the day goes. The sights. The smells. The sounds. Of course plenty of pictures and hopefully giving you a sound urging to get out there and find, or even host, a local Food swap.

Sweetest Dreams,

~Tammie

Garden pallets & a Kitchen Aide

Pallets are once again on my mind. The garden will need a durable tomato support system and the various climbing vegetables will need their support as well. Looking for some inspiration to guide the plans, I found so many wonderful uses for Pallet recycling to use in the garden I simply had to share.

This tutorial from the DIY network is claimed as a cucumber trellis, which in my plans, would be perfect for trellising the 6 ft tall Opalka Tomato plants. Pallet wood would be in place of newly purchased lumber. Cost effective for the amount necessary with our average of 30 tomato plants.

http://www.diynetwork.com/how-to/how-to-make-a-cucumber-trellis/index.html

Being my Bent wood trellis arbor has weakened due to the bare state, I am eyeing this Pallet tunnel as the replacement. Unfortunately, the original source of the photo continues to elude me. It has been Pinned by a woman whom also shared it on her blog but no original source has been shared. So this would not come with tutorial. Eyeing it is easy enough for planning.

Of course, the plans for our Duck house are first on the list. I discovered this wonderful use of Pallets for a hen house, which inspires my thoughts for transforming into a similar design for the future Welshie's. Not as Tall and no need for the open top ventilation as well as an end door as they have created. It would require the height of small pallets to fit with our plans of a lifting roof access for clean out & egg retrieval. Not a complete tutorial is given. Pictures documenting some of their progress into the finished piece by Helicopter Studios. 

http://helicopterstudios.blogspot.com/2010/05/chicken-coop.html

Here is a "why I didn't I think of that" tutorial for making your own Fruit crates, kindly shared by End of Ordinary  These would make a beautiful handy addition to the garden bounty storage:

http://endofordinary.blogspot.com/2010/05/how-to-make-fruit-crates-from-pallets.html

And while on the subject of storing the bounty, I covet not only the amazing minds of this duo behind the Old World Garden Farms blog, but the Canning pantry they made from pallets! I HIGHLY recommend you check out the Pallet project How to's they generously share as well as the rest of their intriguing site.

http://oldworldgardenfarms.com/2012/07/20/using-pallets-to-build-a-canning-pantry-cupboard/

This is the time of year where I do most of the planning. Days are uneventful for the most part, lending me time to read many books and begin laying out what the warmer weather will entail. I've been on a Semolina Flour experimentation kick of late. Between Pizza dough recipes and pasta making. I am finding plenty of uses for the 50lb sack I ordered through the local Restaurant supply. At 50 cents a pound verses the $2.79 a pound found at the only local source, via an Italian Mom & Pop shop, the Pasta machine is in full swing.

The Kitchen Aide Mixer has been a blessing with all the dough. I received my Kitchen Aide through a Friend of Panda's. They had 2 and being the Mother of this friend wants to learn how to garden, do Canning, learn how to Fish and how to shoot, she offered the mixer. Mostly because she tried to give it to me as a gift which she knew I would kindly and graciously refuse. So The Pink Machine will till up her garden and I will assist her along the way with the skills she so desires as well as teach her how to handle a gun.

Some things never cease to amaze me in the way life works out.

Sweet Dreams,

~Tammie

The desire of Welsh Harlequin

Their name sounds like a romance novel and from everything I read, anyone whom raises the breed, falls in love. Being we must have eggs, and we do enjoy duck eggs, the Muscovy is not known for laying enough to satisfy the need. Plus Muscovy hens can be a bit flighty. The harlequins may flap, but are not fliers. So there will be no mornings walking out to find ducks grubbing in the garden! 

My wandering eye considered the Khaki Campbell which has a high count of laying yet are skittish with humans unless they have a large amount of daily human interaction year round. I hibernate in winter. Other then tending to the flock, I make quick of my time in the pen. It's not something that work well with this Southern Chick in Yankee weather.

As for the Welsh Harlequins, they are said to be clowns and have a high rate of egg laying with dual utility as meat birds. Personally, I find their appearance and eyes to have a Happy look. Their faces giving an almost smiling appearance.  Drakes weigh around 5-5 1/2 pounds and Hen ducks 4 1/2-5 lbs. They originated from a color sport in the Khaki Campbell breed. A layer of white or greenish eggs, developed in 1949, not surprisingly in Wales. They are known to produce 275-350 eggs per year and are calmer than the Campbell's.

They are said to be sex linked when hatched out by color of their bill. Males have the darker bills, whilst females have the more pink. As for accuracy, I found it is not 100%.

*Welsh harlequins owned by BYC user Kansaseq  shared via BYC forum *

* Backyard Poultry Magazine  had this to say with comparison to the raising of chickens vs Ducks:

"Relatively few people in the Americas realize that, on the whole, ducks are more proficient layers than chickens. While poultry researchers in North America have spent the last 100 years and countless millions of dollars on improving the productivity of chickens, ducks—for all practical purposes—have been ignored. Despite all the attention chickens received, it's unusual for a commercial flock of Leghorns to average over 250 to 280 eggs per hen in a year's time. On the other hand, Campbell ducks of good strains often average 300 or more eggs per bird during the course of 12 months"

Yes, you read that right. Compared to chickens, the Campbell breeds outlay chickens.

Of course this brought forth the question on feed ratio. Will they eat more being they lay more? Will they require less or more for housing and weather protection? Well BYC magazine answers that as well:

"It is true that, when raised in confinement, a 3-1/2 to 4-1/2 pound duck will consume 20 to 30 percent more feed than a similarly sized Leghorn. But, due to the larger size and greater number of eggs produced by ducks, trials have shown that with proper management, ducks are still more efficient when the quantity of feed to produce a pound of eggs is calculated. Since ducks are considerably better foragers than chickens, the efficiency of ducks is further enhanced when they are allowed to rustle free foods in bodies of water, pastures or grassy yards.
Ducks are also incredibly resistant to disease and cold and wet weather. The average mortality rate in home flocks is significantly lower with ducks than with chickens. Due to their greater hardiness, ducks require less elaborate housing than chickens—yet another advantage. And, because egg-type ducks are not accomplished high jumpers, they are easily confined with a two- or three-foot high barrier."

I'm pretty sold on the Welsh Harlequin ducks.
**Update & correction~**
 Meyer's Hatchery offers them, which for us,  is a 1 1/2 hour drive. We are planning an order for March or early April.  I will no longer place orders with Meyers being they do not allow you to pick up ducks from their store. So if ordering under 9 ducks, you pay a minimum of $42 for s&h despite their breeder as well as their store being 1 1/2 hrs from us. Their Duck breeder is within a short distance of their location but Meyers refuses to have the ducks dropped off to their store for us to pick up to avoid the ridiculous Shipping and Handling charge they made mandatory.
On top of that, I am questioning their quality of the breed we are after. As of this update, their website lists their egg ability as 150-200 eggs. When questioned, their worker kept repeating they are excellent layers. That's not excellent duck laying amount Lady. You are obviously not knowledgeable enough to answer questions of detail with customers. The whole mess leaves me with a whole new view on this business. That's just my opinion and experience. But they will never receive another from me.
  So Meyer's, you have earned a big thumbs down from The Unusual farm Chick.

I found a wonderful woman local who raises waterfowl. Her Original stock of the Welshie's hailed from Holderead waterfowl. They have the original line from Wales and are known as superior producers in the waterfowl community. So I'll stay even more local with our duck purchase. Her prices are lower and stock is many times better. Plus, I'll spend about $1 in gas round trip to pick them up.***

An order of 1 drake with 3-4 females. They begin laying around 6 months, much later then a chicken. So we will not expect much in their first year.
The big plan is to let them go broody, hatch out as many ducklings as they can their first year. Hopefully, providing enough duck meat for freezer and doubling our main flock.
Of course, we are also adding meat rabbits later in the year. The hutches have yet to be built due to the workshop being overtaken by the winter storage of bikes and Beehive Supers.I plan to place them out by the big Winecap Mushroom bed.
Of course the list just keeps growing and I wonder if I will ever have time for the Vintage camper remodel. Whom ever believes a stay home mom {a Home maker} with all the children in school have too much time on their hands, has never spent a week with me.
Now off to help Panda study for the ACT. Apparently this is the first year they have opened it to all 8th graders. Can you believe she is almost in high school already?!
Let's just say it's a good thing I'm not the one taking the test. jeesh. This stuff makes my head hurt.
Sweetest Dream,
~Tammie

Whats on order for 2013 Garden

My goodness, that was exhausting! I have spent weeks deciphering what we should order for the garden. Not too mention trying to find ALL heirloom varieties where most will mix OP, Heirloom & Hybrid throughout their pages. I have been lazy in the seed saving department the last few years due to not liking what is grown. I feel wasteful but the varieties are just not up to par in my book. So we end up ordering new seed every year. That needs to stop. Back to Basics and no more of this exotic novelty experimentation.

In the past, I ended up always buying from the big name in heirlooms, with glossy pages of Garden Porn called a catalog. More and more middle eastern varieties dominate their pages and honestly, leave me with little desire. Something from the land of Sun & sand is NOT going to due as well in the land of Corn, snow & short summers. Very disappointed & frustrated with most I have grown from them. Their novelty has worn off. We are no longer compatible. I wish them well but ultimately  must part gardening ways.

This year, we are going with a different Heirloom company. One I found all that I wanted, for the most part, in one place. I will say I wish they had a tad more variety in actual PIE pumpkins/squash. That is the only area that is of high importance in my book that I mention for purpose of an honest & fair opinion. Prices are fair/reasonable and I have yet to find a negative review on them. In fact, I have only found positive & glowing reviews.

 *Annie Heirloom Seeds * For those whom are new to Annie's, I found an online use code for 5% off your first order. In the coupon code box of your ordering process, write CAT5 for the discount. This was on my catalog as well as on their website, which I thought I would bring to your attention in the case it be overlooked. So hop over there & have a browse. Consider buying your Heirloom seeds from Annie's this year and you will be supporting one of the "little guys" as well as receive, from all I have read, great viability & healthy Heirloom seed for your garden.

'The Vegetable Garden' by Richard Adams

In February, my order will go in for the following new varieties to be added here in 2013:

{A Purple French Pole Bean} 

Cosse Violette ~Harvesting will be so much easier with purple tender pods & have purple flowers gracing the vines. Narrow, stringless, ten inch long, dark purple, well-on-the-way-to-black pods with a fine, eat-on-its-own flavour. Turns green when cooked.

{French filet/Haricot Vert bush bean}

 Masai Bush bean ~ Produces great amounts. Not finicky to grow. Only get 5 inches long & should be picked at 4 inches plus never wider then 1/4 inch thick for the best taste. No need to pick as often as other Haricot verts. said to be great for container gardening as well.

{Purple Brussel Sprouts} 

Falstaff ~ that stay purple even after cooking! Mild & nutty flavor. We love our Brussels.

{Saurkraut Cabbage} 

Filderkraut ~ A core-less, pointed head German heirloom. VERY sweet. Stoked to grow this cabbage.

{Kale}

 Lacinto ~ lots of great taste & crinkles. sometimes referred to as Dinosaur or Black Tuscan Kale. Nothing like some kale mixed in with Orecchiette pasta, sausage/tiny diced tomatoes.

{Green shell peas}

 Little marvel ~Produces high yields of tender sweet peas.

{Red Peppers for my Roasted Pep & Tom Spread}

Corno di Toro Rosso~Long,thin. Rich & Sweet taste. Superior Italian Fryer pepper.

{Paste Tomato}

 Opalka~ Meaty, almost dry. VERY low in seeds. Found raving reviews on taste, disease resistance & production during it's research. 

Black Plum ~ Hails from Russia so should hold, well into mid/late Fall. Great smoky Taste expected from a black tomato. Just 3 inches but packed with great taste & said to make an amazing pasta sauce. This will replace the Black Cherry I have grown for many years which I use in it's green state for chutney.

We have had the Flu sweeping through the house the last few weeks. Of course, we are not the doctor visit & antibiotic type. We let it take it's course which is the healthier route as long as you do not have a weaker immune system as found in the elderly, very young or other compromise of immunity health. I feel all kinds of bruised from the coughing and know it will require a regular visit to gym once I have a bit more pep to ensure I am not falling down in the garden at first sign of the soil warming up. 

I'm off to start wiping down door knobs, handles & appliances. The younger 2 did not catch the flu and I prefer to keep it that way.

Sweetest Dreams my Dear,

~Tammie

True story: in Chase of the Moose & a Deer

Ohio has enjoyed a most beautiful abundant of snow. Sleds have seen more use in the last week with squeals of joy then we thought would be possible with the odd warmth had well into November. This year, The Captain purchased a few double inflatable sleds. Thanks in part to a previous Tailbone bruising occurring from our  inner child playing on the hills. We are not as young as we once were... 

The snow has also brought energetic joy to our Moose.  He flips & digs. Rolls and pounces with his 100 pound puppy body, retrieving his football & playing tag with me outback. I remove his leash for our romping and did not think twice the very morning one of our playful jokes became a reality. Moose is young and still learning self control in a few areas. With the mix of breeds in him, the instincts can be a bit over powering.

We had a decent 6 inches of snow on the ground in the more flat areas. Uneven ground seemed to provide more depth of snow banks. Almost topping my snow boots. As usual, I wore my Camo Coveralls, snow gloves and full face mask being the total woos I am in anything under 40 degrees {F}.

I removed his Leash & gentle leader collar, placing it onto a picket of my garden fencing. Moose went to the tree line, which is normal in his anticipation of our football play. But this time it was different. He was zig zagging where the tree's begin, normal to his picking up a scent. I thought rabbit in that few seconds before I saw him dart into the tree line.  Raising my eyes to the movement I saw ahead of him, a beautiful Buck with thick antlers rose & hopped out of the brush just 20 ft away. No need to insert the explicit instantaneous thought which popped into my mind.

The chase was on! I tried calling him back while trying to keep an eye on him & where the Buck was heading. Burdened with the weight of snow wear and the depth of ground coverage, my movements were slow. I quickly made way to the path clearing into the field just in time to see the Buck head up the back hill, towards the deep ravine. Moose was still in the brush, yet hot on his trail. There seemed to be no breaking of the zoned mind set in instinctual hunt.

 Moose has the coloring of White tail deer, complete with white tail underside. To an inexperienced or idiot eye, he very well could be mistaken for a smaller deer. And BOTH buck skins were heading towards the public hunting grounds! Once I made it to the hill & ravine side, I lost sight of the Buck but scanned the trees to see Moose had already made it to the other side. I lifted my fleece face covering, calling out his name, upon which he must have lost the scent track, wagging his tail in response to me, making his way back up to where I stood. Well, Almost that is...

He caught wind of that dang deer when he was close to my outstretched arms. Shooting off again before I could get to the opening in the old livestock fence.

I lost patience in that moment and doubt began to set in. I cried out his name, out of breath and sweating in my coveralls. I lowered the top half and tied the arms at my waist. My boots getting heavier & heavier with every dip & climb. The snow covered grapevines, wildly growing everywhere the eye can see, began to hamper my hunt even more so. Catching the toe of my boots, I stumbled & rolled down hills far more then I wish to recall. Becoming frustrated and full of worry, I began to cry. My face so hot from all the chasing & adrenaline rush, the tears did not even have a chance to feel cold. I could not see or hear him. The deer trails were such a mess, I could not see which split of path he had taken. I truly was at a cross road of decision. What if he chased that buck into the public Archery hunting grounds? His neon orange vest was not on, nor a collar. I joked about his one day chasing a deer through these woods but did not think I would find myself in the midst of winter snow chasing him down.

I continued on, determined to find him. I will NOT give up. I traced back towards the bottom of the ravine. Thinking I should make way towards the field and turn into the hunting grounds where he may double back.  Remembering in that moment, I was so worked up by calling his name, I had yet to whistle our special call. I looked around, positioning myself toward the hunting grounds, just high enough the sound should carry well despite the trees. Calming myself just enough to catch a good breath, I whistled our bird song. I waited. The only thing to hear were creaking of trees. No barks. No stomping. Nothing. With my back turned to the woods, facing to the side of the ravine, I let out one more loud whistling...and before finishing was plowed down by a massive MOOSE coming down a hill to greet his Momma. As my face fell into the snow with a thump of my body, I shot my hands out and grabbed that loose skin hanging from his neck. A trait from his Saint Bernard mother I am ever so thankful for. I rolled with his massive body until I had my back into the snow. Moose panting, licked my face with his excited greeting and looking rather satisfied from his big adventure.

 I found him! Or rather, HE found me. Holding onto his neck skin,we hit the field clearing and stumbled in a ground hog hole, hidden beneath the snow. I lost grip and fell again. Face first into the snow. I was beginning to feel a pattern here.Thankfully, Moose stayed close when I raised my head, completly exhausted and becoming a tad ticked off. I told him to get back to the house, NOW! regretting it after considering I should just letting him drag me through the field like a rag doll.

 And so my Moose did follow command, running his butt to the Garden yard. I found him paiently waiting by his ball, looking as though he were intent on some football romping. Not today Buddy. I think you've had enough fun for the both of us. I slipped his leash back on & he calmly walked backed to the house where everyone had no clue to what adventure we had just been on and laughed as I shared the story of our Moose chasing a Deer while I stumbled along in his trail.

Sweet snowy dreaming my Dears,

~Tammie

'Scovy duck loving

I've yet to mention we sold off the chicken coop & it's tenants. As much as I enjoyed the look of the coop, it had quirks which were not ignorable. The Captain stands 6'3 and at the highest V pitch inside, the coop was just 6 foot. The nest box setup needed improvement and became a pain due to the system already in place. There were a few other little things that were making it a pain for the Captain to help me with cleaning and  egg collecting. So we took a break from poultry while I worked at the Big Farm and have decided this Spring we will raise Muscovy ducks once again. It was The Captain's suggestion and I fully agree. He prefers the ducks over chickens. Has been asking to get more since we moved here 2 1/2 yrs ago.

Remember back in 2007,when we brought home our first batch?

 Frog was just a babe. So enchanted by our little basket of fluff.

Now we are browsing for the right kind of shelter, with all lessons learned from our experience in Muscovy ducks as well as the Blue coop purchased in 2011. It will be more of a long house design of just 4 ft tall. A 6 1/2 ft tall "tower" addition on one end will be done due to the desire of owning  just a few chickens in the bunch. This will be set up against the wall of the workshop/Garage within the large run. The dirt will need leveling so as to prevent the buggers from nesting under any elevations before set in place.

 This Tarpaulin contraption,a durable "tarp" for ease in cleaning the Duck house, is a wonderful idea.

* {click here for a description}

I am rather fond of the metal curve roof seen here. An appealing gypsy caravan touch:

I feel it would be lovely on the Chicken tower end. It will be a mere 4 ft deep, but the appearance will be charming. I even love the green paint! The tower will have their entry door. Much like the one seen above. A mini door for the poultry within the large size door for human entry. As for the Long house portion, being just 4 ft tall, the "roof" will open for cleaning of the interior. This is where the Tarpaulin would come in handy.

As for their pond, Mr. M put in an outlet when we moved in for the poultry heat lamps. I am placing just a small pond system within the run and found this nice tutorial on using a submersible dirty water pump and homemade filter system. Over on Backyard Chickens by user OldGuy43. I will use a larger pool or find a larger pond hardliner on sale for this purpose.

Tutorial: * http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/716298/duck-pond-filter-shower-with-lots-of-pictures *

They will be raised for meat & eggs but will be butchered here at home. As for those pin feathers, we have decided to just skin them instead of plucking. I fear we will need another deep freezer by this time next year. Between the garden, our groceries and the foods for Moose, I will soon run out of freezer room.

MUST share before I dive back into my pile of catalogs and sketch books, this inspiring and now a must make solar lamp is in the plans for our exterior duck house night light. If I can stumble upon more old warming light shades,  I'd like to put one on my garden shed as well as hanging from the twig arbor. A wonderful tutorial has been shared by The Shabby Creek Cottage:

* http://www.theshabbycreekcottage.com/2012/06/upcycled-outdoor-light-fixture.html *

Now off to sketch out the 2013 garden plans and find The Captains requested "Ghost peppers".

Wishing you all,

Sunny Dreams,

~Tammie