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Making Head Cheese
“Once you knock an animal on the head it is only polite to eat the whole animal.” — Fergus Henderson Yes, head cheese is made from the head of an animal. This may sound unappealing to our modern minds,...
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First Autumn Hard Freeze and Making Sauerkraut
Technically, a “hard freeze” is when there are at least 4 consecutive hours of temperatures below 25°F (-4°C). This is important to gardeners, because a hard freeze will kill most annual plants. Autumn...
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Piglets at the Bauernhof
NOTE: As we are actively growing and developing our herd of pigs, we are offering piglets for sale. We do not ship live animals. Please let us know if you are interested. This year we have had our...
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Birding with My Daughter
I officially went birding for the first time with my 5 year-old daughter. I personally love birding (see my previous article on The Benefits of Birding for Permaculturists). I am not naive enough to...
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The Trouble with Facebook Permaculture
Facebook Permaculture. That’s my new term for the day. And it has really been bugging me. The problem is that I’m guilty of it myself. I need to say that at the onset. I don’t want to come across in a...
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How a Newt Matters
It is hard to capture in words the exact feelings I have about an amphibian. We all have something… or maybe we had something, in the past sense. There were certain things or people or places that...
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Dealing with Broomsedge Bluestem (Andropogon virginicus)
Andropogon virginicus, also known as Broomsedge Bluestem (or just Broom Sedge), Yellowsedge Bluestem, and Whiskey Grass is a clumping grass that is native to the southeastern United States, and this...
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Patches of Spring Regeneration
It’s not much yet, but I’m still excited to see these bright, Spring green patches of grass coming up in a pasture that was recently covered with Eastern Red Cedar seedlings (Juniperus virginiana) and...
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Pig Plows and Wildflowers
I don’t own a tractor. There may come a time when I change my mind, but I actually hope to never own one if I can help it. But I still could use some earth turned from time to time. Fortunately I have...
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Grass-Fed Lamb!
So excited to see that the smallest of our lambs still falls within expected weights of conventionally raised Katahdin lambs… and we are producing a healthier, grass-fed animal with no antibiotics,...
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COURSE: Introduction to Permaculture!
Introduction to Permaculture at the Bauernhof Kitsteiner 17 June 2017 (Saturday) 9:00 am – 4:00 pm *Limited to 30 participants. John Kitsteiner will be teaching a 1-day course at their family farm, the...
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Spring Forest Plants!
Spring may be my favorite season. I love walking in our woods and seeing the Earth wake up from its Winter slumber. Here are some photos I took this morning… Cercis canadensis, the Eastern Redbud, is...
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Woodland Edge Plant Identification
A few days ago, I was walking through our pastures getting things ready to move our ewes to a new paddock. We have a clump of Eastern Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana) and American Persimmon (Diospyros...
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Positive Poultry Impact
So amazing to see the positive impact of our chickens on our land! The only difference between the low quality field in the background and the lush area in the foreground (where my daughter is almost...
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Planting Ramps in our Forest
There is something about the Spring forest that brings me a deep sense of joy and contentment. The days are growing longer. The air is warming. The trees are waking from their slumber. The songbirds...
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Pigs, Pride, and Permaculture
The pig paddocks have had too much impact! It was the smell of failure. Insidious. It seemed to creep up so slowly. I was standing at the edge of our pig paddock, and all I could smell was the...
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Holistic Management Beyond the Pasture
I recently wrote an article (Pigs, Pride, & Permaculture) on the recent re-evaluation of our farm endeavors. Basically, we had become overwhelmed by trying to do too much. On top of that, my wife...
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My Breakfast for Today
This is just another reason I love our farm/homestead… this is what I ate for breakfast this morning: Swiss Chard (Verde Da Taglio) Mustard Greens (Southern Giant Curled) Kale (Forage Kale Proteor)...
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American Mountain-Ash Berries
A few weeks ago we traveled to northeastern Vermont to visit family. This was an incredibly relaxing vacation for us. And I had the opportunity to finally try a fruit that I had only previously read...
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Birdhouse Gourds!
Also known as Calabash or Bottle Gourds, Lagenaria siceraria are hardshelled gourds have been used for multiple purposes around the world. Many varieties are edible: edible fruit, edible seeds, edible...
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