Ag Speedlinking: 02.05.08

Women’s land rights and peace in the family

“…sharing of land with women has lead to increased welfare for the family in terms of food security, nutrition of children and a more efficient agriculture and sustainable use of land. The irrefutable facts are that these women spend a greater share of their earnings on family welfare, balance food needs with cash crops and hold the key to conservation of seeds and biomass.”

An interesting piece out of India on a relatively recent amendment allowing daughters and widows to share in ownership and management of ancestral agricultural land.

*****

Pick your ticket: How the presidential candidates view agriculture

“[I]t seems like an eternity since the presidential candidates left Iowa and the cornfields that dictated much of their talk. Since then, candidates have mostly left agriculture off the campaign trail…”

A synapsis of each of the major candidate’s agriculture policy.

*****

‘Fast Food Nation’ author talks agriculture, french fries before visit

“Eric Schlosser says he’s not out to dictate what you eat for dinner.”

*****

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Visitors

A couple of Sunday mornings ago I noticed a vistor in our yard.

I threw on boots and a chore coat over my pajamas and ran out onto the porch with the camera. (Holy crap it was cold out there!) Our visitor joined a friend of hers at the edge of the cornfield.

Before long another gal joined them. This was turning into a regular little party.

And then there were four!

And five! They’re coming out of the wood(work)!

A sixth girlie shows up late to the party.

And flies in to join her friends.

Six pheasant ladies, enjoying a wintery Sunday morning breakfast.

1 year ago:
Sewing

Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments

Ag Speedlinking: 02.04.08

Sorry I didn’t do my usual Weekend Linkity-Link. I was sooo tired last night, and had plans to be up at 5:00 a.m. today to leave by 6:00 a.m. for Iowa City. Olivia had an otolaryngology appointment and hearing test scheduled today – a follow-up on her new eardrum. However Mother Nature slapped us down with a nice mix of snow, sleet and freezing rain. Our school district got all the kids to school, and then sent them all home a half hour later! I guess it counts as a day, so it won’t have to be made up later. But still!

Look for the Weekend Linkity-Link to return next Sunday with double (double!) the links from my favorite blogs. Now on to today’s news!

*****

A New Deal for Food

“With many legislative hiccups along the way, Congress is rapidly deciding the fate of America’s food supply: what’s grown, how it’s produced and by whom, and how that food will affect our health and the planet.”

*****

Organic farming and world hunger

“The question is not whether organic farming can feed the world. Except for the last several anomalous decades, it always has, since the beginning of gardening. The question is ‘How long will it take us to recover from the damages of modern, industrial agriculture?'”

*****

Cut back ethanol cheerleading; welcome discussion of concerns

“Discussions around Iowa reveal many are skeptical about the wisdom of the “all ethanol, all the time” approach we have adopted, but the concerns feel almost unfaithful.”

A piece from the Des Moines Register opinion page. I get as much from reading the comments as from reading the article.

*****

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Meet Carmel

This is Carmel, a 6-year-old Simmental-cross cow. She’s a good cow, never gives us any trouble temperament-wise or calving-wise. Except that she throws calves with horns. We bought her as a bred 2-year-old at the sale barn. One of our better bargains.

A couple of years ago she had the most beautiful calf I’ve ever seen:
Lousia (little)
Louisa (big)

The year before that she had a completely different looking calf:
Fudge

2 years ago:
Friday funny

Posted in Uncategorized | 4 Comments

The other pup

Here’s the other canine at SCF – Ike, our 4-year-old Great Pyrenees. We didn’t buy him for guarding livestock. We’d had a Pyr before (Ivan) and they just have such wonderful personalities and are fantastic with kids. But last year when we had a hawk problem we pressed him into service. I’m looking forward to trying that with him again this year.

If you want a good laugh, watch this video: Madeline & Ike in agility
One of the last obstacles is a barrel/tunnel that the dog is supposed to crawl through. Problem is, Ike’s too big to fit. So Madeline improvised! (My friend Mike took this video.)

Here’s more about Ike:
Big White Dog
Hair hair it’s everywhere
Fair report part 1
A boy and his dog
Weekend dog blogging
Fair update 2
Hawk (5) Ike (4)

4 years ago:
Sugar Creek Farm (Intro)

1 year ago:
Barn door

Posted in Uncategorized | 5 Comments

Pig love

Ava surely loves her pigs. And I mean luuuurves them.

She trots up to the gate to see what they’re up to.

And they come up to greet her.

A little nuzzle…

and a little kiss.

Anybody have good resources to recommend for training GSD’s for herding? She has the desire, but doesn’t know what to do and usually just chases things willy-nilly in a most unhelpful manner. At that point Matt usually threatens to shoot her.

But the other day she followed Matt into the cattle pen, when some of the calves had broken in with the cows and needed sorted back out. Ava herded the bull and cows away from the calves and, just as importantly, stopped when Matt called her off. So now he’s thinking there’s hope for her as a herding dog and wants to work on training her. Email or leave a comment if you have suggestions. Thanks!

2 years ago:
Bawk bawk

1 year ago:
Winter pigs

Posted in Uncategorized | 8 Comments

Ag Speedlinking: 01.31.08

Conversation with…Ahron Lerman

“In his talk, “Tu B’Shevat through the Eyes of a New World Traveler,” Lerman talked about his experiences with organic farming, sustainable agriculture and animal husbandly in connection to Jewish tradition, ecology and social justice.”

*****

New Jersey farmers wrestle with ‘cheap food mentality’

“Addressing a standing-room-only crowd, Joseph explained how cheap isn’t just about price, but is about the quality and the costs — hidden, unaccounted and inadvertent — of America’s obsession with low food prices.”

*****

Exhibit shows how Carver was ahead of his time

“George Washington Carver remains one of the better-known and least understood names in American history.”

*****

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How to Cook : Kahula Pork (+ bonus)


The bonus dish, not the kahula pork. Read on.

I wasn’t going to post this recipe.

Monday I was lacking inspiration, flipping through my recipe collection, and came across this recipe for kahula pork. I’d made it before, quite a while ago, and I didn’t remember it being anything special. But on an uninspired Monday it looked…easy. Not tasty. Not delicious. Just something I could do quick and be done with my cooking duties for the day. Like I said, I wasn’t going to post it. So I didn’t take any pictures.

Come suppertime I served the uninspired kahula pork. I took a bite. My eyebrows raised, and I glanced around the table looking for a reaction from the fam. “Wow,” came the mumbled verdict through a mouth full of pork. “This is good.” Applause erupted.

No, really. My husband and kids actually applaud when I cook something they like. Nice, huh?

I still wasn’t going to post the recipe. Equal parts lack-of-pictures and laziness prompted me to blog about weather and cows instead.

We ate on the pork for a couple of days and today I decided it was time to transform the leftover leftovers into something else, sort of a grand finale for this particular pork roast. I was ready for its demise, ready to move on to something not pork. But what to make for this pork’s last supper, so to speak? Matt suggested lo mein.

Sounded as good as any option to me. Yet again it sounded…easy. Not tasty. Not delicious. Just something I could do quick and be done with my cooking duties for the day. Yet again I tentatively took a first bite and glanced around the table for reactions. Yet again applause erupted.

No, really. Well, Rafe doesn’t actually clap. He pounds his fist on the table like some sort of barbarian. But I’ll take it.

This time I was going to have a picture, by golly! I grabbed the serving bowl and the camera, snapped one quick picture, and went back to shoveling savory noodles and bits of crispy browned pork into my piehole.

I used a 4.5 pound pork roast in this recipe. If you’re using a smaller roast just cut the marinade accordingly.

Kahula Pork
4.5# pork roast
1 T. liquid smoke
3 T. garlic powder
6 T. soy sauce
1 T. kosher salt

Mix marinade ingredients together and rub over all sides of the pork roast. Place pork in crockpot, cover and cook on low 8 hours.

That’s it. No, really. I serve it with rice. You can take the juices from the crockpot and use them to flavor the rice, if you like. Another option is to chop up some cabbage and stir fry it in a tablespoon of oil and 1/2 cup liquid from the crockpot. It makes a tasty accompaniment to the pork.

Bonus Recipe: Pork Lo Mein
leftover Kahula Pork, cut into bits
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
6 T. oyster sauce
2 T. soy sauce
1 t. sugar
oil for stir frying
1 pound spaghetti, cooked

Mix oyster sauce, soy sauce and sugar. Set aside. Stir fry onion and garlic in oil. Remove from wok. Add more oil and stir fry pork. Add onions, garlic and cooked spaghetti back to wok. Add marinade and toss/stir fry everything until heated through.

Now there’s enough leftover lo mein for Matt and I to eat on the next couple of days for lunch. And I’ll be sorry when it’s gone.

Posted in How to Cook | 12 Comments

Ag Speedlinking: 01.30.08

But it makes my pee smell funny

“…it had never occurred to me that part of my wife’s objection to asparagus might be because of the fact that she’s never really had good, fresh asparagus.”

*****

Red Dog Farm

“Williams’ energy and expertise has attracted another new type of financial support: an equipment loan from a local couple who recognized the opportunity to support a young farmer while earning a return on their money. ‘We aren’t wealthy people,’ said the woman. ‘This loan is significant for us, but we have utmost confidence in Karyn and her goal.'”

*****

Green gardening: Once you’ve gone bio-intensive…”

“Bio-intensive yields often are four to six times larger than usual, despite using less water, energy and other resources. To test the system, try a 3-by-3-foot plot and compare its results with the rest of your garden.”

If you’re in the northwest, click through the link to see the schedule for several lectures by John Jeavons, author of How to Grow More Vegetables: (And Fruits, Nuts, Berries, Grains,).

*****

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In training

Like father, like son.

My up-and-coming little number cruncher. I just need to teach him how to use a spreadsheet.

2 years ago:

Not that impressive

1 year ago:

Winter toys

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