Gail Jardin

Over the past few years I have had a variety of ducks an have finally settled on silver Apple Yards as the ideal dual purpose homesteading breed. Sadly most of the ones from hatcheries are mixes with Rouan or awelsh Harlequin genetics. Pure Apple Yards dress out better than Rouans and lay about 220-240 eggs a year. I have a breeding pair and a broody duck on 18 eggs as well as 12 in the incubator. I hope to replace my other breeds and have only Silver Apple Yards from this fall forward.

No interest in returning to Missouri though? I'm looking for a couple or a family to restore a cabin in the Ozarks. It is on four acres and I own six neighboring acres and rent the four on the other side. This place isn't perfect but most folks in the area care about sustainability and simple living.

I've ordered three straight runs from cackle hatchery this spring. They were indian runner ducks, Rouen ducks and an assortment of geese. Sadly the runner ducks are all drakes! The Rouens are six ducks and five drakes and the geese I haven't gotten good at vent sexing. The geese appear to have a size difference, four larger ones which I'm hoping are ganders and three petite ones. Both the Rouen ducks and the geese are for meat and keeping a trio to breed. I am going to end up keeping the six Rouen ducks just to have some eggs as my few khakis are older birds.
I find it very odd that the straight run of the only egg laying variety I ordered turned out to be all drakes! When I called and spoke with someone I was told basically I was wrong!?!?! They repeatedly said a straight run is a gamble and I can't get ducks to make up for the all drakes. The gal also kept insisting they've never had complaints about their straight runs before. Has anyone else ordered a straight run of an egg laying breed and only gotten drakes? Suggestions on an honest hatchery to order from next spring?

My teenage daughters and I all use cloth pads. There really comfortable aside from the middle of the hot humid summer. Then the extra layer of insulation is really noticable.  I've used the cups before and prefer that when it's sweltering! We've always rinsed in water and used that on plants or into the compost.

I think I've bit off more than I can chew! I am buying a dilapidated but liveable cabin on four acres in the Missouri Ozarks. I live next door in my school bus and between the two properties have a nice little homestead. BUT fixing up the cabin is more than I can handle at seven months pregnant! I could just put it out of sight out of mind until next fall when I'm more able bodied and my baby will be able to be watched while I do work on the building.
I would like to offer the cabin up for someone else to live in if they are willing to make repairs and fix it up. You could have use of the garden area and chicken coop too, but some of the four acres I have perennial plants and other animals on. Perhaps paying in only sweat equity if you make enough progress. Or if little gets done and I pay for all supplies then I'd have to charge some rent. Of course if there are major rehab expenses we would have to split them or I would pay for supplies over time. I can not afford to replace all the walls at once, or do all the plumbing at once etc.
The timber frame is sound, the metal roof is waterproof, there is wiring but no electric, some old solar batteries, there isn't any working plumbing but there is some PEX and PVC under the cabin. The walls and floors are all rotting out plywood and molding insulation. The insulation, walls and floors all need replacing. The roof needs to be extended and it needs gutters so the rain won't keep seeping through the walls and floors.
Right now I'm just throwing the idea out there and am not sure if I'd rather just wait and do it myself next year. Ideally you'd be a small family that aspires to homestead, but not sure of the off grid lifestyle is for all of your family members without giving it a try. There are quite a few kids in the neighborhood and most of the neighbors and I all homeschool, so hopefully you homeschool too. There are very few job opportunities in this rural area, so having a savings to support yourself until you can find work is necessary.

http://onlinelandsales.refr.cc/6F8H9SV

I've gotten a deed for 6.5 acres  and am making payments on four more. The company is legitimate despite the bad reviews some people have.
It's not suburbia or well paved subdivisions. This is raw, teal land for homesteading!
Most folks live in rental cabins or RVs, some camp in tents while building cabins. Most folks are mostly solar but also use generators, we truck in water but some have springs or pay to drill wells (we plan to drill a well in the future now that I've gotten a deed to my land).
Almost everyone homesteads to some degree ranging from just a small garden too having a herd of goats and flicks of birds. There are some folks that just want a peaceful cabin in the woods and are not into permaculture.
Check out the link if your interested in owning your own off grid permaculture paradise!

I'm a cheapskate and can say it was worth every cent! My homestead is truly remote and off grid and most folks buy the five gallons of bottled water to drink and truck in water totes for 'plumbing' and watering animals/gardens. I pump totes of creek water and truck them around then use that water in my Berkey to drink and ain't dead yet. I'd it's after a flood and the water is murkey I'll buy bottles water if I can. We do get flooded in a lot and then I will strain the water through.a milk filter to get sediment out before using the Berkey. The only issues I've had has been one of the plastic nuts that holds the filter in place breaking and then the water dripping through and not filtering, but it was really obvious from the sound it was not filtering.

Right now I switch between Sal's Suds and a zote/borax/soda mix. The mix gets things cleaner but I don't like adding that much borax to our grey water/soil. I have tried soap it's in the past and found it to work about as well as Sal's Suds but costed more. Yes, I plan to use dirty diaper water for grey water, at least to water compost/humanure and probably to water some longer term perennials that won't make food for a few years and some plants for the animals etc. So please don't flame me for wanting to use dirty diaper water and call it grey water instead of black water!
Please share any anecdotal evidence and experience with using Sal's Suds, soap Nuts or zote/borax/soda mix for washing Cloth diapers as well as using those soaps in your grey water. My main concerns are being ecological and economical. I would like to stock up on a laundry solution before my baby is born and not have to do multiple orders or end up with a lot of packaging.

Anne Miller wrote:Pictures might help the forum to troubleshoot what it might need to have done to make it work.

After we bought this property, we bought a wood stove and refurbished it. Unfortunately, our house is just too small to accommodate the pipe to vent the smoke, safely.

It is on our patio, so we can always cook outdoors if we need to.

I'll figure out pics on permits eventually. Please elaborate on why your house is too small? I know my bus is too small but want to make sure the cabin I wind up with can have a wood Cookstove as my summer kitchen plan is hopefully just for the summer!

We have no codes I built my skoolie and installed a regular wood stove in it. I think I can figure out how to do a hearth and chimney once I have a cabin. In the meantime the stove will be in a outdoor summer kitchen.