Liz Vogel

I totally agree. I live off grid and have been washing my own clothing for three years. My son is disabled and incontinent and I have to wash soiled bedding everyday and I am so fast at it now that I can beat a machine. I have two square tubs with a laundry stand I built with a wringer in between. I add cold water with soap or just baking soda to one tub and throw my clothes in. I agitate with my agitator and then let sit while I go do other things. I come back and agitate occasionally. The soaking really helps loosen the dirt. Then I agitate (this gives you beautiful triceps) all around about 90 times. It is kinda fun actually if you let it be. Then I use the wash board to scrub any dirt I see and then put it through the wringer. Then I put it back in the tub and add rinse water and maybe a few drops of essential oil if I want a certain smell then fill it with water and let soak a little longer. Then I agitate a little more and run the clothes through the wringer one more time and hang them dry. In the winter I hang them under cover outside for a day then bring them in and hang them on a line by the wood stove because I live in a wet climate. They drip out this way outside. Oh and I use either a plant based soap like Tru Earth strips of just baking soda or sometimes vinegar. It depends on what I’m washing. Really with lots of soaking and agitating I have found I don’t need soap and if I have fat then I add hot water. My clothes are clean and I don’t smell and I find it a nice and rewarding workout.

Hi, I'm also following the Ruth Stout method and she said that when planting large seeds such as squash, peas, beans, etc. that she just pushes them through the mulch into the ground but for small seeds she pulls aside the mulch and puts in the seed (like carrot and beet) and then covers with a piece of cardboard and checks it each day until the seed sprouts then she removes the cardboard and moves mulch closer to plants as then grow. I have done this this year and it has worked well.