Lina Joana

Inge Leonora-den Ouden wrote:
If the information I got is right, the staple crop growing here, and harvested since prehistory, was a wild parsnip. When potatoes were 'discovered', and came to Europe, everyone changed to potatoes. I don't understand why parsnips now are a 'forgotten vegetable' (starting to come back since a few years, mostly in the organic food stores). They grow easily, at least at my allotment garden. Better than potatoes, which get blight and colorado bugs.

i bet parsnips are an excellent one for certain climates!
The challenge as I see it, is that we are looking for calorie dense foods that stick around without attracting other critters who are also looking for calories. Nuts won’t work because they have a crazy short harvest time before squirrels and such nab them.
    Honestly, I can’t think of many crops in this area that are calorie dense enough to serve as a staple and stable through the winter. Maybe ground nuts? Turnips? Persimmons - I have seen examples of the fruit drying on the tree and being edible long into the winter.
If you include crops with short harvest windows but minimal storage requirements, then hazelnuts, walnuts, and winter squash can be added to the list. And storage fruits like winter apple.

This guy had a fair bit to say about using them in a market garden setting:
https://substack.com/@cattleculture
They seem less common then horses, possibly because they are less charismatic. But if you are keeping cows for milk, another use for them makes sense. My understanding is that they are hardier than horses too. And cheaper.

How about building a quick structure? I built a goat feeder using scrap wood. The roof was thin plywood with aluminum flashing screwed on overlapping. The rolls of flashing cost around $40 for a 50 foot roll, and could be reused if you ever take down the original structure, since it doesn’t rust or wear out that I have seen. You could use solid wood instead of plywood if you were inclined.
Might also consider living options. A thick vine canopy would not be rain proof, but it would block lighter rain, as well as sun and wind. I am thinking grape, wisteria, ivy maybe?

First off, kudos for learning a new skill, and in the most difficult possible way! Don’t give up. Might make you feel better to know that custom mills (where you pay them to turn your will into yarn) will refuse wool with too much vegetable matter. It is hard to deal with.
I learned to spin at about 7. Self taught, as my mother is a knitter but not a spinner.- neighbor cut a circle out of an old countertop, stuck a dowel through the center, sharpened one end, and put a metal hook through the other. He also was not a spinner… but I used it by resting the pointer end on the floor, which actually was easier for learning. My mother got me a nice batch of precarded wool. The yarn was terrible. So was the next batch she got me. It probably took 2-4 lbs before I got decent looking yarn. So really, don’t get discouraged.
A few possibilities to make it easier: first, look up willowing wool. I think there is a good thread and video on this site. It is a way to get rid of some of the vegetable matter and prepare the wool for carding without expensive equipment. You will still have to handpick.
Second, take advantage of the youtube videos others recommended for carding. It won’t magically make your yarn good, but a nice fluffy even roll will certainly help.
Third, for joining the next piece of wool: don’t wait until you have a little tuft. When the previous roll is maybe 3/4 gone - but with a good palmful left - lay the next one on and start feeding iff both. Much easier this way. Take it slow, and don’t give up!

Make sure the coop dimensions allow you to reach all parts of the coop. We have a raised rectangular coop with doors at only one end. Naturally, several chickens have decided to shun the nesting boxes and lay on the far corner, where I have to fish them out with a fruit picker. It was a bought set of plans too, apparently not designed by someone who actually keeps chickens…

This thread inspired me to dig some sunchokes from my family’s home and replant here. I expect they will do great.
As a small kid in Maryland, we had walking onions all over the garden. As an adult, some 30 miles away from where I was born, I have tried planting them 3-4 times, and never had them survive past the first year. Planted them in small swales, raised beds, no luck. I have hardneck garlic and elephant garlic and a random green onion (no bulbs at all, flat leaves) that survive multiple years and spread slowly. Walking onions - zero luck. Drives me nuts…

Thanks for the update! I was just wondering if a good land opportunity had come along for you.
I am curious - I know from some of the podcasts you participated in was the desire for permanent land you could pass down To your kids. Is that an option at WL? My understanding is that you don’t actually purchase land, you buy lifetime use of an acre. Is that use something that can be inherited? Is there some kind of structure (a trust, etc) to ensure that the situation is stable?

Om, so… my family has had sunchokes ever since I can remember. We eat them raw in salads, and I like the flavor.
However, any time we cook them, (baked, mashed, or in soup), they taste watery to me, with a “sharp” flavor that I don’t like at all.
What I am wondering is, is this a varietal thing? I have only ever eaten from the family patch. We nearly always dig them after frost, though we did try early to see if that improved cooking texture.
Had anyone had experience with different strains? Some being good cooked and some less so?