Permaculture Leaf Compost Shredding with Chickens

Posted on Jun 16, 2012

The situation: We have an over-abundance of oak leaves every Fall. We have a shortage of good topsoil on this rocky Ozark hilltop year-round. How to use one problem to solve the other? Why, chickens of course.

Larrapin’s Sausage, Collards & Cornbread Casserole

Posted on Jun 3, 2012

Collards are such lovely greens and so under-appreciated, even in the South. That’s probably because we just think of them cooked traditionally: for a long time, served juicy with some vinegar sauce and a big hunk of cornbread and call it a good day. But they deserve more!

I’m in love with a variety of collards from Southern Exposure Seed Exchange, called “Green Glaze” that are a gorgeous color with a shiny leaf that deters caterpillars a bit better than usual.

I’ve done collard quiche, collard soups and they are wonderful. Now, this traditional pairing with cornbread—but cooked lightly so they are green and flavorful alongside delicious pork sausage from Summer Kitchen Farm…this dish is my new favorite.

Now and then I stumble on a really good recipe. And then sometimes I add a few tweaks of my own and sometimes it’s a winner. This one is a “winner” in our house….barely had time to snap the picture above before it was gone!

Larrapin Sausage, Collards & Cornbread Casserole

Sausage & Collard Filling:

 

1Tbsp Olive Oil

1lb local sausage (ground or cut-up links)

2 med onions, chopped

1 cup bell peppers (red is prettier) de-seeded and diced

1 cup chopped celery (optional) 

4 cloves garlic, pressed or chopped finely

2 large bunches of collards, washed, large stems removed,  chiffonade cut.

1-2 cups cups chicken stock

salt & pepper

1Tbsp cider vinegar

 

Filling Directions: In a large, heavy bottomed pot heat oil over medium heat. Add sausage and heat till browned. While browing sausage, chiffonade collards. (To chiffonade: stack several washed collard leaves at a time — with large stems removed — on each other, roll up, and slice on the diagonal into thin streamers.) 

 

Remove sausage to drain, leave remaining oil in pot.  Put onions, peppers, celery into pot over med heat till softened. Add garlic and cook 1-2 more minutes. Add collards as they will fit in the pot and stir to wilt. Add more till all are in.  Add 1 cup chicken stock to pot to simmer. Keep turning collards in stock till tender (around 5 minutes). Add more stock if needed to moisten. 

 

Add sausage back to pot and add cider vinegar. Stir together and add salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a sprayed 9 x 12ish  casserole pan in a layer 1-2 inches thick (depending on how many collards you had and the size of casserole pan you have.) Make cornbread topping batter below. 

 

 

Cornbread Topping (Madelyn’s Cornbread recipe)

 

1 1/2 cup cornmeal (organic)

6 Tbsp flour

5 tsp baking powder

1 1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp sugar

2 Tbsp oil (canola, vegetable)

2 eggs, beaten

2 cups buttermilk (or plain kefir)

 

Topping Directions: Sift together dry ingredients. Add liquid ingredients and stir till just mixed. Pour/smooth cornbread batter thinly to cover filling in casserole dish. (It’s ok if some shows through.)

 

 

Bake casserole 30 min at 350 or until cornbread is golden brown on top. Get a nice big helping that a farm hand would love.  Good with a simple garden salad on the side. Yum.   ( Adapted from a recipe by Ben Barker at vegetablegardener.com )

—A Larrapin Garden.  Please  subscribe to get the posts in one email on Wednesdays. You can also get bonus links, giveaways and recipes by “liking” the Facebook page or following on Twitter.  And if you are in the Fayetteville, Arkansas area, you can share the garden’s bounty via Green Fork Farmers Market—an online & drop-by market on Wednesdays featuring all naturally-grown products.

First Honey at Larrapin

Posted on May 23, 2012

There are some crops that make you wait a long time. I’m thinking asparagus, fruit trees, and honey. I got the first beehive over a year ago. Sometimes you get honey from a first year hive, but everything has to go perfectly. That first year, things did not. The first batch of bees (a “package” of bees and a queen) absconded. That’s beekeeper talk for they all hit the high-road and didn’t look back despite the lovely home I’d provided. The beekeepers said, “They do that sometimes.”

Then I was given a wild swarm and they settled in and began happy bee homemaking. I also bought a nuc (several frames-full of bees and their comb and their queen)  from a conventional beekeeper in the area.  They were troublesome and had continuing problems.  The beekeepers said, “They do that sometimes. It can be difficult to transition them to organic.”

Most folks have no idea the boatloads of chemicals used on bees by conventional growers.  Once you know, you  will never buy storebought honey again…. even if you hadn’t already heard that most of the commerical honey, when tested, contains corn syrup as well as chemicals forbidden even by the lax US standards. (China & India ship honey to other countries to then sneak it into the US market which bars it due to the chemical and antibiotic load..) Don’t get me started…

The short answer is: buy local, naturally-grown honey from a beekeeper you trust. You want one who only uses at most “soft treatments” to control the many ills—mites in particular—honeybees are prone to in this modern world. Natural beekeepers are glad to tell you how they manage their bees.   (In Northwest Arkansas, I can highly recommend Crosses Creek Farm, where the beekeeper is my mentor’s mentor and is he is all about natural beekeeping. We were very lucky to get him to bring his honey to the new Green Fork Farmers Market.)

Anyway! The wild swarm who was by then named “East”  was still doing great  and the nuc named “West” was at least holding its own last year when the heat dome hit. Temps above a hundred and no rain for more than a month will dry up every source of nectar and make the bees really, really grumpy besides.  East Hive weathered it, so to speak, but the nuc was toast, though they held on till early winter, may they rest in peace…The beekeepers said, “They do that sometimes. Sorry”

This year has been totally, utterly different. The winter was mild. Ok, it was so mild it barely counts. Spring came early and stayed. Everything bloomed crazy early and just kept blooming. Bee nirvana. East Hive crammed their hive with honey so fast I had to stack more and more supers on top to try to keep up. The beekeepers said, “They do that sometimes! Isn’t it great!”

They were SO prosperous they threw a swarm (that’s the bee version of the birds & the bees – hive reproduction) which was lovely to see except that I couldn’t get to it in the tip top of a tree, and so alas for the beekeeper, but happy for the world that another colony of bees ventured into the forest not so far from where the original swarm was found. You guessed it: They do that sometimes.

There were still loads of bees left in the hive though, lucky for me. While that seems fair this time—to return one swarm since I took one swarm— but next  spring I will try yet more tricks to keep the swarms at home!  Let me emphasize that beekeeping is THE most challenging hobby (ok, obsession) I’ve ever chosen. In hindsight, I’m not sure who chose whom! But I’m hooked, and this spring added two new hives—West II and the SugarBs— plus did a split (split off  a “baby” hive from East, which was supposed to keep them from swarming but didn’t! Named the baby hive “Rose” because so many roses were blooming at time.)  So now there are four.

Even I won’t get as much honey as I would have if East-Hive  hadn’t swarmed, there’s still plenty to get. I suspect I can do a full spring harvest from East next week. This week, I just took one small frame as a sampler and got this lovely jar pictured at top. I had just poured it—those are air bubbles in the honey. It has since settled into the loveliest amber and is light and delicious beyond description. Partly because it’s the nectar of our own land and  bees.  Or perhaps because we are their humans and ruled by the whims of four ruling queens. Either way, it’s golden.

Recipe: Romaine & Feta Salad with Spicy Glazed Walnuts (or Pecans)

Posted on May 20, 2012

INGREDIENTS

• SPICY GLAZED WALNUTS/PECANS
2 tsp. butter
1 tbsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp. water
2/3 c. pecans or walnuts

Melt the butter in a heavy bottomed skillet over medium heat. Add the sugar, black pepper, & water. Cook until the mixture is bubbling. Add the nuts and stir constantly until they are well coated and the sugar has begun to caramelize, about 5 minutes. Spread the nuts on a baking sheet to cool completely.

• VINAIGRETTE & SALAD:

2 tbsp. lemon juice
1 tbsp. red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp. freshly cracked black pepper
1/4 c. light olive oil
2 heads Romaine lettuce
6 oz. Feta or Gorgonzola cheese
Spicy glazed nuts (above)

1. Whisk together the lemon juice, vinegar and pepper. Slowly add the olive oil and whisk until blended.

2. Wash and dry the Romaine leaves and keep refrigerated until ready to use. Tear into bite sized pieces Crumble the Gorgonzola or Feta into small pieces.

3. You can top the salad with the dressing, cheese & spiced nuts or toss and serve, as you prefer. Yum!

Recipe also posted at Green Fork Farmers Market, Fayetteville. Originally Mendy’s mother made this salad for us. This rendition adapted from several recipes much like this one at cooks.com.

Other good salad recipes online I like:
Romaine, Apple, and Gorgonzola Salad
Apple-Feta Tossed Salad
English Salad

I’d love to hear some of your favorite salad recipes—please share on the the Facebook page! Have a great week. Leigh

—A Larrapin Garden.  Please  subscribe to get the posts in one email on Wednesdays. You can also get bonus links, giveaways and recipes by “liking” the Facebook page or following on Twitter.  And if you are in the Fayetteville, Arkansas area, you can share the garden’s bounty via Green Fork Farmers Market—an online & drop-by market on Wednesdays featuring all naturally-grown products.

Favorite Plants: Illinois Everbearing Mulberry

Posted on May 16, 2012

Of all the types of trees planted at Larrapin, the Illinois Everbearing Mulberry is one of the favorites. About three autumns back, I ordered two from Starkes Brothers Nursery in Missouri and planted them in the far chicken paddock. It was one of those permaculture “stacking”  ideas: shade in the pasture, snacks for the chickens who *love* the wine-colored berries that fall easily when ripe, valuable food for songbirds and potential distraction from other fruit, possible future pies for the farmers, and the clean-up services of the chickens for the same berries which stain wildly if tracked in the house.  The trees have accomplished all this already—except the pies—and it looks like this year could even be the pie year.

They grew quickly that first year they were planted. But when the garden had to be relocated to the middle paddock to escape the deer invasion, the two bushy trees were in a bad spot to cast too much shade. So against all tree growing wisdom, Mendy and I dug them up the following fall, cut them back drastically, and replanted in the northern chicken paddock where they would provide shade, but to the chickens, not the garden.  Truth be told, I didn’t expect them to live and planned to reorder their replacements that next year. But with faithful and attentive watering to make up for their abrupt relocation, they made it.

This third spring, they are covered far and wide with green berries (above). There is just no comparison with the amount and size of the named mulberry cultivars and the wild ones, though the latter are still important to wildlife. On this tree  a few berries are getting ripe already. I can’t show you those because I ate them. 🙂

Really, I take breaks from gardening, so sit on the folding chair in their shade while leisurely scanning for ripe berries and snack away. Any I drop, or accidentally knock off, are instantly devoured by the hens hanging about for just that possibility. Last summer, in the mornings I’d let out the hen girls and they would jog, chicken-run style and bloomers a-waving, to the trees to eat the berries that fell overnight. Needless to say, there aren’t any left to get tracked in the house…which normally is a major consideration when planning where to plant a mulberry tree. I can’t think of a better tree for a chicken yard.

When many berries get ripe, I hope to use the trick I learned from the blog over at Midwest Permaculture and put out a few clean sheets on the ground under the trees and shake.  (Obviously, the chickens will be locked up during this event or else quite a rodeo would ensue…) Until then, the chickens lounge in the deep shade of the bushy trees—which also keep their water buckets cool…and then I dump the water buckets to give the trees some extra water (more stacking!!), snack on a few more berries and get back to gardening.

What are the favorite trees you have planted or want to plant?  Please share your thoughts on the Facebook page!

—A Larrapin Garden.  Please  subscribe to get the posts by email most Wednesdays. You can also get bonus links, giveaways and recipes by “liking” the Facebook page or following on Twitter.  And if you are in the Fayetteville, Arkansas area, you can share the herb garden’s bounty via Green Fork Farmers Market—an online & drop-by market on Wednesdays featuring all naturally-grown products.

A Larrapin Garden’s Going To Market!

Posted on Apr 28, 2012

You know how there are some things you really, really want to do in life. Having a farmers market booth has always been like that to me. I have some great news, A Larrapin Garden is going to be a part of the newest farmer’s market in Fayetteville. I’m so pleased to share this announcement:

There is a new and unique farmer’s market getting set to start in Fayetteville. Green Fork Farmers Market will open every Wednesday from 4-7pm in the breezeway of Nightbird Books on Dickson Street starting May 9th. You can drop by and select from naturally-grown, handmade and local items. Some of the products that will be available this year include beef, chicken, pork, eggs, honey, microgreens, vegetables, herbs, herbal products, plants, and baked goods.

What makes Green Fork Farmers Market a first in the Fayetteville area is you can also select and reserve your order online for pickup at the market. The other first is the focus on all naturally-grown products.

The online system adds convenience for you if you need to know ahead what’s available and  just drop by to pick up your order on the way home from a long day. On the other hand, you can also drop by to chat with your foodie friends and favorite farmers a bit, see what the growers have available on their tables, stop by Nightbird Books for a good read, and get a cup of coffee, glass of wine, beer, and delectable food from BHKKafe.

The website (link below) tells more about this special market and how it works. Please visit and click the “Sign In” tab at the upper right to register as a customer. That way you’ll get the Saturday evening email that lets you know what is available that week and that online ordering is open. You have till Monday midnight to get your pre-order reserved.

Green Fork Farmers Market will have a special sneak-peek market on Thursday, May 3rd at the Walton Art’s Center kickoff of Artosphere before Michael Pollan’s talk that night. (Parking at the WAC parking lot will be free that evening with a donation of nuts or peanut butter.) Visit anytime from 4-7 in front of the Walton Art’s Center. Music from 3 Penny Acre too!

 Sign up — before Saturday at 3 p.m. to get the sneak-peak market email — but sign up soon to be a part of Green Fork Farmers Market:

http://greenforkfarmersmarket.locallygrown.net/welcome

It’s free to sign up and no obligation to purchase. Can’t wait to see you there!

Roses & Springtime

Posted on Apr 18, 2012

Beauty is an ecstasy; it is as simple as hunger. There is really nothing to be said about it. It is like the perfume of a rose: you can smell it and that is all. —W. Somerset Maugham

I think WSM speaks a truth, but forgot a few things too! This rose, for example, is a beauty to both smell and see. The petals feel like silk and make exquisite rose-infused honey. The thorny canes are sheltering a cardinal’s nest with three turquoise-sprinkled-with-chocolate eggs. The rose itself came from Austin, Texas and that springtime trip is a wonderful memory…  The perfume of a rose, can hold a lifetime of memories..and yes, is indeed an ecstasy of beauty!

You know a friend when…

Posted on Apr 14, 2012

..they know you well enough to send a card like this.  Thank you Charity and best of luck with all the goings on at Chicken Moon Farm!

Spot the hammer?

Posted on Apr 7, 2012

The rooster's name is Handsome...

One thing I’ve learned over the years is how handy it is to paint tools I use in the yard BRIGHT colors. That way I don’t lose them in the grass/leaves/woods/garden as often. And if I do leave them lounging around on the ground, well even the chickens can help me find them. Thanks Handsome!

Another great thing about fall planting

Posted on Apr 3, 2012

Larrapin Potager Snapshot: April 1, 2012

In Northwest Arkansas, like many areas of the South, their are really two distinct garden seasons: Spring/Early Summer & Fall. In between there’s a stretch of heat in late July to late August that not a lot is going on except hunkering down and hanging on till cooler weather comes back. This year we’ve had the earliest Spring many folks have ever seen, which can make a farmgirl feel way behind, even though it’s still, technically, a couple weeks before the last frost date. Luckily, the stuff I planted last fall makes the garden feel full and well underway, despite the nagging question of unpredictable Spring weather and how behind schedule I may/may not be.

Spring weather always creates a challenge for me and the super early spring of 2012 adds another layer of guessing. Is it going to stay so warm that it’s way past the best planting times for cool spring crops? Hard to tell. Some springtimes will turn cool and rainy, so things like spinach, kale, beets, and other cool-season crops will go and go. Meanwhile, if you have jumped the gun and put out the heat lovers like tomatoes, beans and squash, they sit there and look cold, miserable and begin to molder, etc. On the other hand, if it stays mostly warm and sunny, then you have the *chance* for amazing early crops. It’s all a kind of gamble. In fact, I think gardening is an excellent cure for those tempted to gamble because every planting you are rolling the dice on about ten different variables. It drives me crazy, but I love it!

One garden gambling technique we call “the landing party.”  If you ever watched the old original Star Trek like I did as a kid, you couldn’t help but notice when the crew was going to ‘beam down’ to a new planet there were always a couple anonymous cast members that accompanied the higher ranking crew. Usually fresh faced and blonde guys. They also usually didn’t come back. Landing party. So around here, I’ll sometimes put out a too-early test run of a crop to see what happens, while holding back transplants on the light table to replace them if they turn out to be…yikes, landing party! Buy hey, Captain Kirk always won out one way or another! 🙂

Flowers on the Larrapin Kale

I’ve found Fall planting is often more reliable than Spring. Fall planted spinach, kale, multiplier onions, garlic have amazed me with their steady-on growth. Especially when we didn’t have much of a winter at all..check out the fall-planted kale—which we ate all winter— flowering like mad! In this case it’s great because that’s a special seed-saving patch and lucky for me the bees are giving it tons of attention. With fall planting you have that wonderful green, full-looking garden…even if you are way behind on getting much early-spring stuff in the ground! I love all that color. And in the event you need more color, you can always use a cute saki bottle on top of bamboo as a little marker for a new grape…a marker that also keeps you from poking your eye out on the bamboo!

Saki bottle as plant marker

How is your garden going?