 Hello, Friend, Issue #013, April 3, 2009. In This Issue...--How to Thrive During Tough Economic Times --You Can Build a Chicken Tractor - the Book Will Soon Be Available! --The Homestead Pig --The Homestead Cow or Steer Lots of great information, so stop worrying about the economy and read on! How to Thrive During Tough Economic TimesThe economy looks grim these days, and there's a chance we may be facing hard times similar to those we had during the thirties. But with a little self discipline and foresight, you can not only survive during these difficult times, but actually thrive. Here are some tips:Budget, Budget, BudgetOnce and for all, stop thinking of a budget as something negative. Rather, look at it as a spending plan, a way to ease stress rather than increase it. It's when we don't know what we're doing that we get into trouble. Be realistic, sit down and figure out all your expenses, list your income and decide the best way to spend your money and reduce debt.
Eat Frugal, Eat WellBelieve it or not, you can cut your grocery bills in half and eat better quality food than you've ever had. The secret is to avoid fast food and look for food that is high in quality, low in calories and low in costs. Here are ways to cut your grocery costs.
Make It YourselfLearn how to make your own soaps and lotions. Not only will you save on costs, but you will also end up with a far superior product. Start by trying this basic handmade soap recipe. It's not fancy, but it gets the job done and can be used for bathing, laundry and cleaning. Then use that soap as a base for your own homemade cleaners. And once you've mastered that basic handmade soap recipe, try this one. It comes courtesy of From Nature With Love:Bubble Gum Soap Recipe Instructions: Mix water and lye together. Let cool to 100 degrees. Blend oils together over a double boiler all except the essential/fragrance oil. Melt and cool to 100 degrees. Blend the lye mixture and oils together slowly and stir till it traces. Add the red sandalwood powder mixed with the fragrance oil so there are no clumps of powder. Pour in mold and wrap in blanket to keep temp at an even 100 degrees then insert thermometer to keep track. When it gets to 80 degrees, it's ready to unmold. Cut and let rest for 2 weeks to cure.
Keep ChickensEven if you live in the suburbs, you can keep chickens in a chicken tractor. Your flock will get fresh grass every day, fertilize your lawn and supply you with eggs.You Can Build Your Own Chicken Tractor – The book is coming! This handy guide will take you step by step through the process of building your very own chicken tractor, with lots of great information, such as the tools you'll need, how to acquire free wood, how to get your chickens and brooder (almost) for free, and lots of tips on how to care for your flock. Both the ebook and the print edition will be available in April, 2009. Click here to learn more.
What's New at Organic Gardening and HomesteadingThe Homestead PigHaving a pig on your acreage will not only improve your soil, but also provide you with an excellent source of low-cost meat. Here's why you need one. The Homestead Cow or Steer
And as always, happy homesteading! Like this issue of Successful Homesteading? Please forward it to a friend! And if a friend did forward this to you and you like what you read, please subscribe here.
Comments? Ideas? Feedback? I'd love to hear from you. Just reply to this zine and tell me what you think! And thanks! You are subscribed to Successful Homesteading. The back issues are at the following URL... http://www.organic-gardening-and-homesteading.com/Successful_Homesteading-backissues.html If you wish to remove yourself from this mailing, please click on the following URL... http://organic-gardening-and-homesteading.com/cgi-bin/mailout/mailmgr.cgi?us=LQ.21104303.21128990.e44fef1f7b4939716802195d7d7eaf58 (If the above URL is not a link, copy-and-paste the URL into your Web browser. That will confirm your removal.) To change your e-mail address, please click on the following URL... http://organic-gardening-and-homesteading.com/cgi-bin/mailout/mailmgr.cgi?ca=LQ.21104303.21128990.e44fef1f7b4939716802195d7d7eaf58 (If the above URL is not a link, copy-and-paste the URL into your Web browser. That will confirm your change.) |
Friday, 3 April 2009
Friend, here are ways to thrive during tough economic times.
Central Beekeepers Alliance
Central Beekeepers Alliance |
| Video: Honey Bees Fighting Varroa Mites and Bee Louse Posted: 02 Apr 2009 05:20 PM PDT This video, Bees fighting varroa and braula coeca, was made by Ivan Brndušic, an electronics technician (from a long line of beekeepers on his mother’s side) who lives, works, and watches honey bees in the town of Bor, Serbia. When you see the bees’ attempts to remove the pests, it makes it very clear why hygienic grooming behaviour is a desireable trait for breeding in honey bees! There’s a great explanation — with annotated photographs — of exactly what we’re seeing in this video as the bees try to fight off both Varroa mites and the very similar-looking but relatively benign-to-bees braula coeca (bee louse) on Brndušic’s website at brnda.com. Post from: Central Beekeepers Alliance   |
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Thursday, 26 March 2009
CATCH THE BUZZ WYman's Gives $50,000
CATCH THE BUZZ
Wyman’s Of Maine donates $50,000 for CCD Research
Wyman’s Wild Blueberries of Maine today presented $50,000 to the Department of Entomology at
Find out what’s new at Mann
Ed Flanagan, Wyman’s President said flat out...no bees, no blueberries, and Wymans’s is taking a stand to help. They testified at a Congressional hearing in support of increased USDA funding last June, and now have made this substantial donation. The company has also issued a call to action for consumers, noting a portion of their wild blueberry purchases will be used to fund that commitment.
Wyman’s of
This message brought to you by Bee Culture, The Magazine Of American Beekeepingwww.BeeCulture.com
Supporter of
CATCH THE BUZZ Comments to EPA on Imidacloprid
CATCH THE BUZZ
These comments, submitted by the National Honey Bee Advisory Board to EPA concerning the registration of imidacloprid, a systemic pesticide produced by Bayer Chemical Company, have been edited here because of length. But the stories have not been changed or altered. The NHBAB consists of beekeepers from both the AHPA and the ABF, and represents most of the nation’s commercial beekeepers. EPA now must act on these and other comments regarding this compound. At the same time, this group of beekeepers and Bayer are meeting to discuss continued research with this compound. Time will tell if increased regulation, or more precise research improve the situation.
Beekeepers from around the
In
Imidacloprid is only one of six product formulations in the broader class of “systemic neonicotinoids.” Although only imidacloprid is currently ‘up’ for public comment, all six of these products in this class are of great concern to beekeepers. Much attention has been given to the seed treatments such as Gaucho, a trade name for a formulation of imidacloprid.
Recent data from
Find out what's new at Mann Lake www.mannlakeltd.com/catchthebuzz/index.html
Farmers, pesticide applicators, and beekeepers all look to EPA to provide guidance on safe and unsafe ways to apply these economic poisons. We will quote the public comment of Roger Haldenby (Plains Cotton Growers, Inc. tracking number 808bfe56, February 23, 2009) on Imidacloprid: “There are reports of imidacloprid toxicity to bees, birds, earthworms, and some fresh water crustaceans. The impact of imidacloprid on these organisms can be mitigated by proper application of the insecticide in accordance with label instructions.”
Systemic pesticides, like imidacloprid, work on a different principal. The chemical is taken up into the plant tissue, and becomes systemic. Active chemical is moved throughout the plant including the nectar and pollen of the treated crop plant, or inadvertently treated weed. Once the chemical is in the nectar and pollen of the plant, no protective means can be employed to protect the pollinator who gathers the poisoned food. There is no “label warning” currently to protect pollinators from imidacloprid tainted nectar and pollen. EPA does not have “safe label” instructions for imidacloprid.
In an advertisement for Premise 200SC, an imidacloprid product for termite control, Bayer states, “Premise 200SC interferes with (the) instinctive social behavior (of termites), contributing to the termites’ demise. Low doses of Premise 200 SC disorientate the termites and cause them to cease their natural grooming behavior. Grooming is important for termites to protect them against pathogenic soil fungi. When termites stop grooming, the naturally occurring fungi in the soil attack and kill termites. Premise 200SC makes fungi 10,000 times more dangerous to termites. Nature assists Premis in giving unsurpassed control.” (Bayer
For a comprehensive listing of beekeeping events around the country and around the globe seewww.my.calendars.net/bee_culture/To send Your Calendar events to us, send to info@BeeCulture.com
Major incidents have been reported by beekeepers linked to imidacloprid. EPA is aware that their incident reporting database of pesticide effects on honeybees is not working. At the December 2, 2008 meeting between US EPA Office of Pesticide Programs and Beekeepers, the beekeepers explained how the incident reporting system, which utilizes state departments of agriculture and chemical manufacturing companies, is not reporting beekeeper field incidents with pesticides. The beekeepers at the meeting presented a wall chart showing all incidents reported to EPA and then detailed how their own personal incidents, as well as incidents of colleagues not there. Providing a mechanism for reporting bee incidents was one of the eight “action items” listed as coming out of that meeting.
Recognizing that EPA is not aware of beekeeper incidents related to pesticides, we would like to provide you with a partial list of our own. Many beekeepers will be reporting their individual incidents independently. The list below by no means should be considered as complete; it only attempts to showcase a few of the most prominent incidents. Many commercial beekeepers have had problems related to the use of imidacloprid.
Subscribe to the Apis Newsletter www.apis.shorturl.com
The largest incident involved seven beekeepers in
Clint Walker relates his experience with imidacloprid and cotton in
By In January of 2007 we began to see a significant portion of our nearly 2000 hives begin to collapse with Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) symptoms. As we searched for an explanation to our losses, a disturbing pattern emerged: All of the collapsing hives had been in
Dave Hackenberg tells his story of CCD on the East coast. In 2004, when our bees were first exposed to imidacloprid, we saw things happen in our bees that we have never seen before. Good colonies of bees run through pollinations and honey crops over the summer that we now know were exposed to Assail in Apple pollination and Admire in pumpkin pollination, by fall when no new food was coming into the hives, began to collapse at a rapid pace, leaving nothing but a queen and a few bees in the boxes. The farmers that I work with are sensitive to using anything that would hurt my bees because they recognize how important good pollination is to the success of their crops. They were told by their chemical suppliers that these ‘new’ pesticides were ‘safer’ for honeybees and they could even apply them during bloom without damage to the bees. We did not see any dead bees in front of our hives while they were in these pollinations. In the fall, it was clear that the bees that had been on honey locations were OK with normal mortality of 10 to 15% loss, while the pollination hives had 75 to 80% loss. The ‘surviving’ pollination hives were not healthy and they failed to build properly in the spring. We saw this same problem with pollination hives in 2005 and 2006. It was in the fall of 2006 that we began to associate these losses with summer pollination exposure. Since then we have communicated to our growers some of our concerns and the losses have gotten better in apple pollination where the grower had ‘options’ to use other products. In pumpkin pollination, the growers have not had such luck since there are few other ‘approved’ products available to them.
Gene Brandi tells his story of watermelon pollination in
Dave Mendes tells his story of orange orchards in
Imidacloprid, a systemic insecticide, moves through the treated plant to the nectar and pollen. The chemical remains persistent in soils for several years, can be taken up by subsequent plantings and weeds, and expressed in their pollen and nectar. No mechanism exists to protect honeybees from this exposure. Due to the vitally important nature of pollinators we recommend that imidacloprid be removed from use in the
The reader may ask how did we find ourselves at the point where an extremely dangerous chemical compound has come into such widespread use, threatening the very existence and viability of the pollination framework of the country. The answer is simple. Deregulation, the same concept which precipitated our financial collapse, has precipitated an environmental collapse no less serious. At the same time that financial institutions were being given a free reign to regulate themselves on the naive assumption that industry knew best, pesticide regulation was being turned over from EPA to industry on the same assumption.
US EPA used to do pesticide screening in honeybees, do pesticide toxicity study themselves, but today industry directs and funds the critical toxicity studies to determine product safety themselves. The studies are shown to EPA for registration purposes, then filed away as “proprietary information” far from the scrutiny of the public eye. Enforcement actions are not taken by EPA; instead these critically important functions are delegated to individual state departments of agriculture, under an arrangement ironically called a “primacy agreement.”
The problems faced by the beekeeping industry are not limited to one single chemical compound. They are in fact linked to a pervasive regulatory failure. When the EPA was first set up, it was in response to environmental challenges of an unprecedented nature. At that time the country was using 200,000,000 pounds of active ingredient chemical pesticides. Today that number is over 5,000,000,000 pounds of active ingredient. Simply put, the country is drowning in chemicals. These very “economic poisons” are doing their job too well, and because of the deregulation process we are faced with a perfect storm today capable of destroying our countries pollinator base which will carry with it agricultural and environmental catastrophe.
The fundamental change which is necessary is to return to a system at EPA which independently tests chemical compounds before they are released for widespread use. Precaution and prevention are words which need to return to environmental protection. Massive field experiments, such as what has occurred with the neonicotinoid class of systemic insecticides is just too high risk of a behavior. Environmental catastrophe such as global warming, and our current pollinator crisis are big flashing warning lights. These warning lights are there to tell us something, they are telling us to take action before it is too late.
The message brought to you by Bee Culture, The Magazine Of American Beekeeping
Supporter of EAS 2009 www.EasternApiculture.org
Sunday, 22 March 2009
CATCH THE BUZZ BEES AT THE WHITE HOUSE
CATCH THE BUZZ
An Organic Garden and honey bees move to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
From the perspective of probably every beekeeper in the
The chefs at the white house are looking forward to cooking with locally grown fresh vegetables (and sharing what they can’t use with a soup kitchen near the White House), and being able to use honey in some of their recipes. Honey produced right outside their kitchen door.
Mrs Obama readied the garden plot on the first day of spring with the help of a couple dozen local fifth graders. They worked to remove the sod and loosen the soil in preparation of planting of the spring crops. The L-shaped plot will contain year-round vegetables once completely established, with vegetables, berries and other tasty edibles. All will be raised organically.
To complete the garden, two bee hives will be moved in early this week. They will be managed by a White House employee who is a beekeeper and lives nearby. The hives belong to the beekeeper.
We found out that the beekeeper was a subscriber to our magazine, so we had a contact and were fortunate to have a phone conversation late last week. But, of course, there has to be some preparation for all this, so everything we discussed had to remain off the record. He is, however, a three year veteran beekeeper and had a strong desire to keep bees and beekeeping in front of the folks who live where he works, and to keep reminding them of the importance of the pollination efforts their bees will be performing.
Find out what’s new at Mann
Subscribe to the Apis Newsletter www.apis.shorturl.com
The L shaped garden is 40’ tall, 40’ wide at the bottom, and the width at the top of the L is 20’. There are marigolds, nasturtiums and zinnas lining the two walkways through the garden. Several raised beds surround the garden.
An organic garden and beehives at the White House...it doesn’t get much better, does it?
This message brought to you by Bee Culture, The Magazine Of American Beekeeping www.BeeCulture.com. Proud supporter of
Saturday, 21 March 2009
Friend, Spring has sprung. Here are some tips to get ready.
 Happy Spring, Friend! Issue #012, March 21, 2009. In This Issue...--On a Personal Note... --You Can Build a Chicken Tractor - the Book Will Soon Be Available! --Stay on the Homestead Full Time With Niche Selling --Homesteading and Chickens --So You'd Love to Homestead, But... --Gardening Back to Basics Lots of great information, so take a break from planting and read on! Happy Spring!The best season of the year has officially sprung in our neck of the woods, the time for putting in gardens, ordering those baby chicks and dreaming about those summer and fall harvests. So I'm sending you a few extra tips to help you in your plans and dreams. So take a break from all that garden work, fix yourself a lemonade and read on!But On a Personal Note...I've been battling health problems and have not been able to work on this website, as well as other projects as much as I would have liked. I am starting to recover, however, and will soon be back up to full speed.
You Can Build a Chicken Tractor - The Book Will Soon Be Available!This handy guide will take you step by step through the process of building your very own chicken tractor, with lots of great information, such as the tools you'll need, how to acquire free wood, how to get your chickens and brooder (almost) for free, and lots of tips on how to care for your flock.Both the ebook and the print edition will be available in April, 2009. Homesteading and ChickensLike love and marriage, the two go together like a horse and carriage. Here are some reasons why acquiring a small flock should be one of the first things you do when you start homesteading.
So You'd Love to Homestead, But...You don't have that acreage yet, you say? Well, never fear! You can pursue the self-reliant life anywhere, even if you live in an apartment complex. Homesteading is a state of mind just as much as it is a location. Here are some tips to get you started.Gardening Back to BasicsPlants grow best in loose soil that isn't trampled down. Adding raised beds to your garden are an investment that ensure your plants have the best possible growing environment. Here are some tips.Would you like to have a more productive and bountiful harvest? Feeding your plants with the best, possible soil is the most important thing you can do. Here are some tips on composting to give your garden a powerful boost. And finally, mulching your plants will ensure they stay warm and protected from the elements. And as always, happy homesteading! Like this issue of Successful Homesteading? Please forward it to a friend! And if a friend did forward this to you and you like what you read, please subscribe here.
Comments? Ideas? Feedback? I'd love to hear from you. Just reply to this zine and tell me what you think! And thanks! You are subscribed to Successful Homesteading. The back issues are at the following URL... http://www.organic-gardening-and-homesteading.com/Successful_Homesteading-backissues.html If you wish to remove yourself from this mailing, please click on the following URL... http://organic-gardening-and-homesteading.com/cgi-bin/mailout/mailmgr.cgi?us=LQ.21103514.21128990.51086fda0f344a4e3222734eec3c54cd (If the above URL is not a link, copy-and-paste the URL into your Web browser. That will confirm your removal.) To change your e-mail address, please click on the following URL... http://organic-gardening-and-homesteading.com/cgi-bin/mailout/mailmgr.cgi?ca=LQ.21103514.21128990.51086fda0f344a4e3222734eec3c54cd (If the above URL is not a link, copy-and-paste the URL into your Web browser. That will confirm your change.) |
Thursday, 19 March 2009
CATCH THE BUZZ USDA Recovery Money
CATCH THE BUZZ
USDA Spends $28 Billion in Stimulus Funds
From American Fruit Grower
Last week, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced USDA will be delivering its first actions implementing the $28 billion provided in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act).
"President Obama responded extraordinarily to a crisis unlike any since the Great Depression and his efforts and that of the USDA will have a significant impact not only in rural communities but in communities across the country struggling with today's tough economic times," said Vilsack. "Implementation of programs in the act will help stimulate local economies, create jobs as well as protect and restore the environment."
Funding will help rebuild and revitalize rural communities as well as help stimulate local economies and create jobs throughout the country. Some of the projects:
- The Farm Service Agency (FSA) will use immediately $145 million of the $173 million provided in the Recovery Act for its Direct Operating Farm Loan Program, which will give 2,042 farmers – almost 50% are beginning farmers and 10% are socially disadvantaged producers - direct loans from the agency.
- USDA Rural Development Agency will initially provide nearly 10,000 rural families with $14.9 million ($1.17 billion in loan guarantees) for homeownership financing, creating or saving more than 5,000 jobs.
- USDA Rural Development will release funding for more than $400 million in pending applications for Water and Waste grants and $140 million in pending applications for Water and Waste Direct Loans. Nearly 13,000 jobs will be created by 400 water and wastewater projects.
- Find out what’s new at Mann
Lake www.mannlakeltd.com/catchthebuzz/index.html
- The Forest Service has released nearly $100 million of the $1.15 billion for hazardous fuels reduction, forest health protection, rehabilitation, and hazard mitigation activities on federal, state and private lands. Over 1,500 jobs will be created through shovel ready projects for urban youth and individuals involved in urban forestry, restoration projects fire prevention, roads, bridges, buildings, and recreation facilities.
- For a Comprehensive listing of beekeeping events around the country, see www.my.calendars.net/bee_culture/
- To send in information to this calendar, send along to Calendar@BeeCulture.com
The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) will release up to $145 million to restore frequently flooded land to its natural state; create jobs in rural communities nationwide when landowners establish these floodplain easements; as well as restore and protect an estimated 60,000 acres of flood-prone lands nationwide through the floodplain easement component of its Emergency Watershed Protection Program.- Plus, NRCS released $80 million to improve fish and wildlife habitat and create or restore wetlands.
- Subscribe to the Apis Newsletter www.apis.shorturl.com
- Additionally, NRCS released $50 million last week for rehabilitating aging watershed structures to protect lives and property and public infrastructure.
- Roughly $80 per family per month for over 31 million people for food assistance each month which will stimulate local economies. It's estimated that for every five dollars spent through SNAP, $9.20 of local economic activity is generated. In addition, ARRA provides nearly $300 million to help states administer SNAP. The first $145 million will be released this month to assist States in responding to increased need.
- An additional $5 million in funding is provided for the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR) for facility improvements and equipment upgrades. This is in addition to the over $114 for food distribution on Indian reservations this year. This program provides a vital service. Reservations and tribal lands are often remote with limited service from grocery stores. It provides commodity foods to low-income households, including the elderly, living on Indian reservations, and to Native American families residing in designated areas near reservations and in the State of
Oklahoma - In addition, the Recovery Act provides additional funding for the Emergency Food Assistance Program. Through this program, USDA provides commodities and administrative funds to states for further distribution to local organizations that assist the needy, including food banks, food pantries, and soup kitchens. The first $25 million to support administrative functions will be distributed this month.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act) was signed into law by President Obama on Feb. 17, 2009. More information about USDA's efforts regarding the Recovery Act is available at www.usda.gov/recovery.
This message sponsored by Bee Culture, The Magazine Of American Beekeeping
and sponsor of EAS 2009. www.Easternapiculture.org.
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