BUILDING RESILIENCE..................

Four barrels of oil consumed for every one discovered....scary when you think about that isn't it?

In the 1930's we were getting 100 units of energy for every one unit of energy we expended extracting oil, now we are only getting 11 units in return.

Of 98 oil producing nations, 65 of those have already admitted to having passed their peak production.

To my mind it doesn't take a rocket scientist to work out that sooner or later our lifestyles will be very different in some or many aspects.

I don't presume to make any predictions or have any answers, but what I do know is that those who survive all manner of things do so because they don't panic, they think logically, seek information and education and where possible they plan ahead.

For our household we have focussed on four key areas:

Food.....we have a good healthy storage of grains and other food items and we grow most of our needs.
Water...We need to install some rainwater tanks at several points around the house and on the garage, a project for this year and the two following.
Skills...both of us are learning some of the old skills, bread making, preserving, carpentry using non electrical tools, soap making from natural plants and a few others.
Community...Building networks of like minded souls and educating others, knowing where local suppliers are and what they can provide etc

The interesting part of this whole lifestyle and mindset is that even if I thought nothing would change, I would still be doing what I am doing...I love the simplicty, the challenges and those like-minded souls we get to meet!

What actions have you taken to build your familys resilience? Are you enjoying the journey?

BIRDS AND MORE BIRDS............

As most of you know, we put a pond in about 4 months ago to encourage the local wildlife. We assisted somewhat with 3 long neck turtles, some water scorpions, yabbies (like a prawn but from fresh water) and a heap of minnows and tadpoles.
Well the tadpoles are now frogs and the minnows have certainly never heard of controlled population growth LOL!

To cut a long story short, this morning whilst having my cuppa on the patio I happened to see something I have never seen before.....a kingfisher hunting......my minnows but hey, thats nature right?  The stunning shimmer of his blue feathers and his precise dives were captivating! I couldn't move to get the camera or he would have vanished, however I will be taking said camera out with me each morning to see if I can get a shot for you:)

There there were so many birds visiting this morning I thought I would do a post on what birds I see in my backyard, and those I see in the town at times, so here goes, those in my backyard are:

Now if you want to hear our infamous Kookaburra laugh, click HERE.

Given we have a river and no ocean we do have some rather strange birdlife here. We get both the black & white swans, both of which breed, albeit rather slowly. We also have seagulls, very interesting because we are 2 hours from any ocean! Now for the birds I see in our area that aren't landing in my backyard....yet LOL:

And that is our local birds. Remembering that we only bought this property 6 months ago and it was a blank canvas, I am tickled pink we have managed to attract so much birdlife in such a short time. I am hoping once the native shrubbery grows we will attract even more!

Hope your week is going well:)

Take care of you and yours........and our planet!

THIS AND THAT.............

Well it is still too hot to do much in the garden. I keep the watering going and pick the ripe fruits and veggies, other than that I am continuing to hibernate!

My gorgeous arrum type lilly flowered. It has a white throat with soft pink edging, simply stunning. The bright gold one has also just opened up. I am going to have to move them though as they start to die down, the sun is burning them quite badly, I dont think they would survive there all year round.

I spent this morning hunting seeds for the year, here's what I have ordered so far:
Lemon Balm       
Watermelon Crimson Sweet       
Tomato Thai Pink Egg   
Tomato Roma SanMarzano
Silverbeet Colour Mix
Radish Watermelon  
Pumpkin Butternut  
Pea-Sugarsnap Climbing
Onion Red Stem Welsh
Melon Ein Dor       
Luffa -Vegetable Sponge  
Lettuce Buttercrunch   
Leek Giant Carentan   
Carrot Little Finger
Capsicum GoldenCalWonder  
Cabbage Wong Bok   
Cabbage SavoyVertus   
Broccoli GreenSprouting Calabrese

My lids also arrived, now I have a ton of preserving jars ready to go...great for those tomatoes outside if they decide to ripen soon! The lids are a must if you are into preserving, you will never throw another jar out to the recyclers....see HERE if you live in Aussie.

This morning about 6am was still cool. I watered and then spread the lettuce and spring onion seeds. I've tried planting in full sun, it does not work well, so until we get the worm wicking beds on the go and shaded this lot went under the trees where they will get dappled shade.

The Amaranth is going well, although very slowly. Tomorrow morning when it is cool I am going to put the Chia seeds out, see how they go for cropping:)

The Magnolia tree I put in about 3 weeks or so ago seems to be surviving the heat thank goodness. We also added a couple of Jacaranda trees, the purples and whites should look stunning when fully grown.

My order from DALEYS is due to arrive soon:
The Grumichama, a tropical equivalent of the cherry. The purplish-black fruit 2cm diameter are produced in clusters. Flesh white, melting and tasty. Mostly used for fresh eating, but also highly prized for jams, jellies and pies.

The tree is hardy to most conditions provided you can offer it protection from frosts paricularly when young. It can withstand light frosts once established. While the tree will still retain its highly ornamental qualities during drought periods, the crop quality deteriorates if adequate water is not available during fruit development.

And the Sapodilla: A small brown furry fruit that looks similar to the outside of a Kiwifruit.  The rich brown flesh has a soft melting texture and is very sweet with a taste like caramel or brown sugar. They are best eaten fresh by spooning the chilled flesh from the thin skin. The flesh is delicious mixed with orange juice and topped with cream.

Well that's me for the week-end, hope yours is a good one!

Take care of you and yours.............and our planet:)

CHIA........

My Chia arrived today. In case you aren’t familiar with Chia, here’s the lowdown: Salvia hispanica (Chia) is a plant of the genus Salvia in the family Lamiaceae native to Mexico. 

It was cultivated by the Aztecs in pre-Columbian times, and was so valued that it was given as an annual tribute by the people to the rulers. It is still widely used in Mexico and South America, with the seeds ground for nutritious drinks and as a food source.

Chia seeds are typically small ovals with a diameter of about one millimetre. They are mottle-coloured with brown, gray, black and white. Chia seeds typically contain 20% protein, 34% oil, 25% dietary fibre (mostly soluble with high molecular weight), and significant levels of antioxidants (chlorogenic and caffeic acids, myricetin, quercetin, and kaempferol flavonols). The oil from Chia seeds contains a very high concentration of omega-3 fatty acid — approximately 64%. Chia seeds contain no gluten and trace levels of sodium. The seeds can be eaten raw or added to nearly any food without affecting the flavour. Sprouted seeds can be added to salads or sandwiches in the same way as alfalfa sprouts. Many people enjoy using Chia seeds in their baked goods as a fat replacement as well.

Chia plants and seeds are very hardy. This is not surprising considering that they thrive in low-moisture areas like California, Nevada, Utah and Arizona. In fact, the danger for Chia plants comes with potential over-watering. This is why it is important to grow any Chia shrub away from lawns and other thirsty plants.

Chia seeds are mucilaginous. When they get wet, a slippery, mucus layer begins to form. The seeds then become hard to handle. This can happen in as little as five minutes. For this reason, the seeds must be carefully stored and kept dry.

Planting Chia seeds simply requires scattering them over soil and raking lightly. If starting these plants in flats, they do best in light, porous soil. Later they should be transplanted to an area that gets a lot of sun.

Chia plants are what are known as "fire following plants." Ancient cultivators found that if they burned the plant after harvest, next year's crop was more plentiful. Sprinkle some burned remnants of the shrub over newly planted seed to quicken germination.

In addition, the Chia plant is self sowing because the seeds naturally drop off the plant. If they are not eaten by birds and mice, they should grow into new plants.

In temperate areas such as ours, planting is best done in spring, at the latest early summer. The plants need full sun to grow best. They are not frost tolerant. The Chia plants have small flower clusters which are purple or white with a spike on the end of each stem.

Observe your Chia plants as they flower. The bloom will fade, dry and turn yellow. Choose a time to harvest after the bloom has dried, but before the seeds have fallen on their own.

Pull the entire plant out of the ground. As the Chia is an annual plant, this is the easiest way to harvest the seeds and you will not be ruining further growth of the plant.

Beat the dried flower blooms against the inside edge of a container and the seeds will fall into the container.

This annual herb grows up to three feet tall with leaves that are two or three inches long and up to two inches wide.

CHIA RECIPES:

Lemonada 

1 Tbsp chia seeds 

½ cup water 

4 apples 

½ lemon 

Soak the chia in ½ cup water, whisk to distribute seeds evenly. Juice or blend the apples and lemon. Mix in chia/water. No need for sugar if you enjoy the bite. 

Peach/Mango Smoothie 

1 1/2 cups milk of choice 

1 cup peaches or mango (canned or fresh) 

3-5 dates, soaked and drained 

¼ cup orange juice 

½ cup water 

1 Tbsp Chia seeds 

Soak the Chia in ½ cup water, whisk to distribute seeds evenly. Blend fruit, orange juice, and dates and freeze for half an hour. Return to blender with milk until frothy. Mix in Chia/water. 

Chocolate Brittle
• 35 salted or unsalted soda crackers
• 1 cup butter
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 cups semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup milk chocolate chips
• ½ cup chopped pecans
• ½ cup chopped walnuts
• ½ cup Thomson raisins
• ¼ cup shaved coconut
• ¼ cup Superseeds Chia

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Cover cookie sheet with foil. Spray foil with cooking oil spray
2. Place crackers on foil covering the entire cookie sheet
3. Cut butter into and melt at MED heat in saucepan, add brown sugar slowly and stir well until it’s boiled for a few seconds
4. Pour evenly over crackers. Bake 17 - 20 minutes (should bubble but not burn)
5. Sprinkle mixed chocolate chips over crackers/butter mix. Spread after 2 minutes when chips have softened.(try a wet spoon to spread if its sticky)
6. Sprinkle chia, nuts, raisins and coconut evenly over melted chocolate.( press down lightly to secure)
7. Refrigerate 1 hour
8. Break into smaller pieces once cooled and store in fridge or freezer

Pina Colada 

(Make sure you have one of those paper umbrellas for decoration!) 

½ cup water 

1Tbsp Chia 

1 cup any juice 

1 cup pineapple juice

½ cup fresh or canned coconut milk 

Soak the Chia in ½ cup water, whisk to distribute seeds evenly. Blend the rest in blender until smooth. Mix in Chia/water. 

Anti-oxidant Re-energiser

Combine the anti-oxidants from the chia and grapes with pineapple’s natural healing enzyme bromelain, and you have a powerful re-energiser.

½ cup water 

1Tbsp Chia 

2 cups red grapes 

1 cup fresh pineapple slices 

½ lemon 

Soak the Chia in ½ cup water, whisk to distribute seeds evenly. Blend the rest in blender until smooth. Mix in Chia/water. 

Making Chia Gel is Easy

Add 1/3 cup Chia seeds to 2 cups water (filtered). That is, use 2 cups water for every 1/3 cup chia seeds. This makes a 9:1 ratio (water to seed), which is an ideal ratio for a basic Chia gel. You can experiment with using more or less water, depending on your preference, or the consistency of the food item to which you’re adding it.

Put water (slightly warm water will form gel faster) into a container with a tight-fitting lid (e.g., a mason jar). Pour dry seeds into the water. Shake container for 15 seconds. Let stand for 1 minute and shake again. This mixture (Chia Gel) will store in the refrigerator for 2 weeks.

How to Use

Add this mixture up to equal parts by weight to sauces, drinks, yogurt, salad dressings, cream cheese (or cream cheese substitutes), jams, jellies, preserves, salsa, hot/cold cereals, yogurt, dips, puddings, soups, or other liquid or creamy foods. The gel won’t affect flavour, but definitely increases nutritional value.

Tip for Blood Sugar Regulation: For individuals with diabetes or anyone desiring to stabilise blood sugar levels, research suggests taking 3 tablespoons of Chia gel with each meal for an optimal slowing of the conversion of carbohydrates to sugar, as well as providing better absorption of the foods eaten.  
Please check with your doctor before trying this information.

HOT AS HADES!

Good Lord, will summer ever leave LOL! The weather here is dreadful, I dont think we have had a day under 40C for at least the last week....ugh!

I have not done much in the garden in the last week. I get out about 5.30 in the morning and water and do very little else, it is just too hot. I did plant some giant sunflowers from seeds given to me by another blogger (thanks Nat). I also put some apple cucumber seeds in, we love them here and I have other family members that are always happy to see some too.

The pepinos I planted not even 6 months ago are fruiting, the  gold ones anyway, the Indian Cream ones havent flowered yet. A ton of fruit, not bad given they are so young.

We have found hubby is the only one who likes these fruits, with 4 of this variety we may be giving them away by the bagload lol.

L....if you are reading this, the way to test for ripeness other than to note the dark stripes, is to gently squeeze, if you leave an indent they are ready. I generally let them ripen inside for a couple of days after picking so the sugars develop more.

The chooks are not loving the heat anymore than I am, although they are happy enough to get out into the garden to scratch around....a wonderful way to control those slaters and other bugs!

The chickens have grown so quickly, and despite the heat we are still getting a great many eggs, so much so that we keep the elderly neighbours next door supplied too.

You may note I have started a "great Suppliers" list to my blog. No, I am not paid to advertise. The list is simply suppliers I am utilising myself and have found both their products and service consistenly above standard.

I hope you enjoy your weekend ahead

Take care of you and yours........and our planet:)

molly

AUSTRALIA BAKES AND FIRES CONTINUE..........

The Bureau of Meteorology says figures showing Australia has experienced its hottest decade since records began in 1910 are clear evidence of climate change. The Bureau's annual report has found the average temperature over the past 10 years was 0.48 degrees Celsius above average. ABC story here.

Climatologist David Jones says each decade since the 1940s has been warmer than the previous one.And he has warned that this year is set to be even hotter, with temperatures likely to be between 0.5 and 1 degrees above average.

"There's no doubt about global warming, the planet's been warming now for most of the last century," he said.

So we are again preparing for more bushfires as temperatures soar and some regions are declared to be catastrophic fire danger.

Our Catastrophic fire warning is back for our region (Central Wheatbelt) and a few other areas. The south west of WA is a tinderbox waiting to explode with the state's fire and emergency services warning the soil is the driest it's been in over a decade and vegetation has built up to its highest level in the same time.

Catastrophic fire conditions are forecast for much of the coastal and central regions where a lot of the states agriculture is located. Residents in areas with catastrophic ratings are being advised to leave their homes and fire fighting teams are on standby across the region.

Meanwhile, fire-fighters continue to fight three separate blazes in the southern half of the state but say all are contained at this stage.

In my near 50 years I have never known such summers. I remember when veggie gardens were grown in the full sun, when we could be at the pool all day and only get slightly pink; when nearly every winter’s day brought rain with it….it seems those days are long gone. Veggies won’t thrive here in full sun, you can feel the heat from the sun the minute you walk out the door, burning within 30 mins and rain in winter seems to have changed considerably in its patterns.

Do I believe climate change is man made? YES!....However I would also qualify that by saying that whilst I do believe we are changing our environment and its climate, I also believe that the changes we are seeing are a part of the natural climactic cycle, only we are exacerbating the outcomes.

I have just called for a quote on our roof, its tile and it is a very dark greyish colour…..perfect for absorbing heat, and let’s face it, after 3 days of 49C here last summer, I want cool!!

Research shows you can lower your indoor temp as much as 5C by having a light colour that reflects the heat. The winters here are easy; just add some warm clothes and a knee rug and you are as warm as toast. The summers…forget it; you could be butt naked and sitting in a pool and still feel the heat LOL!

In addition to the roof being re-painted, hubby is going to build pergolas down both sides of the house, 90% shade cloth on the top and grapevines down the side. Hopefully this will address the heat somewhat, I hate running air-cons when we could be cooling with some good planning instead.

What have you done to keep your house cool in summer?

AZOLLA - WONDER PLANT FOR THE HOME GARDEN......

Earlier I did a post on the Azolla we have in our pond. What I didn’t appreciate at the time was that this marvellous garden mulch/food was also a wonderful chook food!

The Natural Resources Development Project (NARDEP) in India has been working on azolla for the last three to four years, studying its potential as a feed for farm animals and exploring cost effective methods for the mass multiplication of azolla in farmers’ homesteads. 

Azolla is a floating fern and belongs to the family of Azollaceae. Azolla hosts symbiotic blue green algae, Anabaena azollae, which is responsible for the fixation and assimilation of atmospheric nitrogen. Azolla, in turn, provides the carbon source and favourable environment for the growth and development of the algae. It is this unique symbiotic relationship that makes azolla a wonderful plant with high protein content. 

Azolla is easy to cultivate and can be used as an ideal feed for cattle, fish, pigs and poultry, and also is of value as a bio-fertilizer for wetland paddy. It is popular and cultivated widely in other countries like China, Vietnam, and the Philippines. 

Dairy farmers in South Kerala and Kanyakumari have started to take up the low cost production technology and we hope that the azolla technology will be taken up more widely by dairy farmers, in particular those who have too little land for fodder production.

Azolla is very rich in proteins, essential amino acids, vitamins (vitamin A, vitamin B12 and Beta- Carotene), growth promoter intermediaries and minerals like calcium, phosphorous, potassium, ferrous, copper, magnesium etc. On a dry weight basis, it contains 25 - 35 percent protein, 10 - 15 percent minerals and 7 - 10 percent of amino acids, bio-active substances and bio-polymers. 

The carbohydrate and fat content of azolla is very low. Its nutrient composition makes it a highly efficient and effective feed for livestock. Livestock easily digest it, owing to its high protein and low lignin content, and they quickly grow accustomed to it. Moreover it is easy and economic to grow.

The trials on dairy animals showed an overall increase of milk yield of about 15 percent when 1.5 - 2 kg of azolla per day was combined with regular feed. The increase in the quantity of the milk produced was higher than could be expected based on the nutrient content of azolla alone. Hence, it is assumed that it is not only the nutrients, but also other components, like carotinoids, bio-polymers, probiotics etc., that contribute to the overall increase in the production of milk. 

Feeding azolla to poultry improves the weight of broiler chickens and increases the egg production of layers.

International Journal of Poultry Science, 2002, Bangladesh Tested different amounts of 'Azolla meal' in the feed - 5%, 10%, 15%. At 5%, the broilers actually grew better than with conventional feed. At 10% and 15%, results were about the same as with conventional feed, a little less body weight. The giblets were a little bigger and the abdominal fat was a little less.

Azolla can also be fed to sheep, goats, pigs and rabbits. In China, cultivation of azolla along with paddy and fish is said to have increased the rice production by 20 percent and fish production by 30 percent.

So if you have a pond or spare large containers, old baths etc around and you have chooks or any other livestock, think about azolla, its free once the initial purchase is made and the rate of reproduction has to be seen to be believed!

If you don’t have livestock I would still suggest it. I have found by spreading around my plants not only does it feed them; it acts like a super sponge, taking in tons of water and holding it there. Around potted plants it also stops the soil being disturbed when watering.

Just another way of  Doing it Naturally  and increasing our resilience:)

Try growing it, you wont regret it.

Hope you are enjoying your week!

Take care of you and yours........and our planet:)

molly

IMITATING NATURE............

I have to admit, I am a lazy gardener!   

I don’t believe in creating work for myself when nature can do it for me.  So, this begs the question….How do I build up our garden soil if I don’t have a compost heap on the go?

I simply layer things straight onto our garden beds. A slightly varied version of the compost heap.

A gardening friend brings me lawn clippings as I need them, I rake the leaves around the yard and throw them on too, pruning’s get mulched and thrown on, I buy locally grown pea straw to mulch up, toss the ashes from the fire onto it and I throw the chook manure straight from the chook pen onto the gardens.

In all these decades I have never had a problem with this method. In fact it has provided me with the most amazing soil over the years.

All the goodies I throw across the beds mulch down in their own time, providing homes for all those microbes, fungi and insects.

One of the benefits of doing it this way (apart from the time saving factor and there being no need to turn or aerate) is that seeds from any left over kitchen scraps thrown to the chooks ends up in the garden beds, we have things sprouting all over the place we never laid a seed to, and they grow beautifully!

I think this method best imitates the forest floor, things just fall and rot……in our case I am the one helping with the “falling” lol.

What do you think?

Do you layer or compost in the traditional way?

THE FINANCIAL YEAR AHEAD...............

How financially resilient are you? Do you have some savings stashed away, credit cards paid off, no debts other than a mortgage?

Australian households are in record levels of debt, and for the first time have surpassed American levels.

Reserve bank figures show household debt - the combination of personal and mortgage debt - is equivalent to Australia's GDP.

That means every adult owes an average of $74,000.

Analysts warn that the financial crisis that rocked Main Street in America could well hit Australian families in 2010.

Economics Professor Steve Keen at the University of Western Sydney says it is a sign that families are under financial stress.
"We now have an enormous proportion of income that has to be devoted to paying back interest payments," he said. 

As many of you know, I firmly believe that now we are on the slow downhill slide from peak everything..... times will become tougher. 

Like many I don't think it will happen overnight, rather a slow insidious decline, and perhaps in some ways that's better than a rapid one, each has its pros and cons. 

We have time this way to prepare, learn new skills from the old ways..build our resilience for the changing times ahead.

If you do have debts, how about using the newly arrived year to pay them down as much as you comfortably can? There are financial counsellors free in all states and a myriad of websites to assist in bassic budgeting.....make hay whilst the sun shines:) 

Take care of you and yours..........and our planet:)
molly