How Much Can You Carry on a Bicycle?

July 23, 2013

...g wheel base, in fact, makes them more stable. And I’m always surprised at how easy it is to climb hills even with heavy groceries. One need not be car-free to enjoy a cargo bike. For many years Kelly and I shared a car. The Xtracycle was a big part of making that car-light arrangement work. When people ask if urban homesteading saves money, the first thing I point to is the cargo bike, not the chicken coop. The problem? Cargo bikes are not nearly...

Read…

Cat Litter Compost, Installment #3

Mrs. Homegrown

August 12, 2013

Animals, Cats, Composting, Gardening

29 Comments

...zers, dried alfalfa, fresh grass clippings and other plant material, fresh chicken, horse, or cow manure, and vegetable trimmings.) Other than those caveats, cat litter composting works pretty much like regular composting. Keep the pile moist. Keep an eye on it, fix it as necessary. Let it sit for two years at least before you spread it. And then spread it around non-edible plants, or under fruit trees. The fruit trees won’t uptake anything nasty....

Read…

Maintaining a Worm Bin

Mrs. Homegrown

July 19, 2013

Composting, Miscellaneous, Vermiculture

31 Comments

...ntertain myself by trying to envision some system where I could enlist the chickens to do the job for me. They’d be great at it, of course, and the worms would give them a good protein hit, but they’d toss the castings everywhere in the process, and add their own fertilizer to the mix. Yet, some sort of containment system might work… Daydreaming aside, until I invent that Chicken Powered Terror Dome for Worms, I have to sort the worms myself. Ther...

Read…

Beans 101 (Return of Bean Friday!)

Mrs. Homegrown

March 1, 2013

Bean Fest, Food, How-to

21 Comments

...can use beans to help round out your plate. Beans and sausages. Beans and chicken breast du jour. Pork chops and beans. Last week Erik and I had a rare, fancy meal out and I had a magnificent piece of honey-cured salmon on a mound of white beans. The beans were swimming in the salmon’s sweet cooking juice. I’m still thinking about that dish. A pile of cooked leafy greens, a bowl of beans drizzled with olive oil, and a crusty loaf of bread to shar...

Read…

The Sundiner–A Groovy 1960s Era Solar Cooker

Mr. Homegrown

February 28, 2013

Appropriate Technology, Solar, Water and Power

5 Comments

...e seen, both commercial and homebrew, have shelves with adjustable angles, making it easier to use them as crock pots. Nevertheless, I admire the efficiency of the design–the legs also double as a handle and the panels unfold and snap together in seconds. It’s easy to aim. The instructions are even printed on the back of the panel that covers the reflectors. More info via the April 1963 issue of Desert Magazine: Here’s a new product that suits des...

Read…