I've been gardening for most of my life and have been a devoted fan of organic gardening the whole time. It just makes so much more sense to work in harmony with Mother Nature than to fight her. Besides which it is better for the planet and better for our bodies. Here you can see what I'm planting and harvesting, with gardening hints and resources thrown in for good measure.
Showing posts with label goat milk lotion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label goat milk lotion. Show all posts
Welcome to Farmer Friday, a recap of the past week here on my little farm. Egg production is still down due to a majority of the flock being senior ladies that quit as soon as it gets hot. Waiting to see how many pick back up when it cools off and who needs to meet some dumplings.
Salting the cheese curd
Some clabber cheese
I made cheese this week, experimenting with clabber. That is the technique of filtering warm raw milk into a clean jar and capping it lightly. You leave it out on the counter to begin to sour or clabber. I started with 8 ounces then the next day poured it into a quart jar and added more warm fresh from the goat milk. The day after I added that to about 2 1/2 gallons of milk, some fresh, some from the fridge. Warmed it up and let it sit about an hour, then warmed it up to 90F and added some rennet. After draining and salting the curd I pressed it in molds overnight. It's very much like some Queso Fresco I've had.
Soap in the freezer makes it easier to unmold
I've made several batches of Goat Milk Soap this week.
Goat Milk Soap with Lavender essential oil
I also finished cutting bars of soap made earlier in the month. My soap is super fatted and can be a little sticky when first unmolded so I let it sit to firm up then begin cutting individual bars. Altogether it has to sit and cure 6-8 weeks after making. That is so the bars harden up and don't melt away when you use them.
Making Goat Milk Lotion with Prickly Pear juice
I made some Goat Milk Lotion with prickly pear cactus juice. Prickly pear is supposed to have healing properties similar to aloe vera.
Sonoran Desert or Colorado River Toad
I have quite a few poisonous toads hanging around. So far Digger has not tried to eat one, just barks at them.
Some peaches from Nida's Peach
I had to pick the peaches, even though they are not soft ripe yet, the birds and squirrels were just too much.
Harvest 8/30
All ready to go to the Globe-Miami Farmers Market
This week's harvest included cucuzzi gourd, tomatoes and Japanese eggplant.
Tithonia aka Mexican Sunflower
A lot of other things went on this week, yard clean up continues, the triplets broke their mineral feeder and I had to fix that.The cucuzzi gourds are taking over the trellis by the house and trying to expand their territory while the pumpkins in the back garden are trying to take over the world. Even more things in the video!
So yesterday was a very busy and pretty productive day. I didn't have to be anywhere else so I was able to stay home and focus on things I needed to get done. There is still a huge long list of things to do but I was able to cross some off yesterday.
I made goat milk soap and lotion. I gave the prickly pear juice a final straining and made some prickly pear lemonade. I set a pot of cheese and just before bed got the curds salted, drained and put into the molds and the press. Oh yea and I fixed the mineral feeder that the triplets broke a couple days ago.
I love the color of fresh prickly pear fruit, although it does fade under light and heat. Here I've cheated and bought a natural brand of lemonade, basically like what I would make from scratch, lemon juice, water, sugar and mixed it 50-50 with the prickly pear juice. Totally delicious.
Prickly pear is supposed to have healing properties similar to aloe vera so I used it to make Goat Milk Soap, Lotion and Sugar Scrub.
This week I realized that the prickly pear near my house were ripe so I picked about 10-12 pounds one day and about that much another day. The second batch is in the freezer waiting to be processed and there are more getting ripe.
processing prickly pear fruit
Since I'm not saving the skins or pulp (just don't have time to deal with extra projects!) I freeze them whole, then let them thaw and mash with a potatoe masher. I strain the juice through layers of cheese cloth at least three times, to get all the little glochids, the tiny hair like thorns, out of the juice.
New Goat Milk Products, lotion and sugar scrub with prickly pear
My research says that prickly pear has healing properties similar to aloe vera
different kinds of eggplant
This week's tomato harvest was negligible but the eggplants are coming on strong.
That is the 4th diamondback this summer
Watch this video and see what Freya Cat does to that snake!
Double rainbow Friday evening
Haven't gotten a lot of rain lately but the sunsets and rainbows have been beautiful
There's more from the week in this video.
Have a great weekend and stay tuned for a Harvest Monday post!!
We have had weeks of high heat at least 105 every day and some days as high as 113. Pretty much anything in a smaller pot has fried to a crisp, I've probably lost a seedling tree that I planted this spring and the figs aren't looking too good since the squirrels tunneled under them and dried them out big time.
But I do have tomatoes! And after all the years of dealing with root knot nematodes I *think* I am finally clear of them. Now I just need some rain and cooler tempertures to get some more things planted. Not much thrives in this heat and dryness. Even the prickly pear cactus are dried out and shriveling up!
Had a lovely time at the Globe-Miami Farmers Market this morning. Sold out of some lotion scents.
The goats cracked me up this afternoon. That’s Digger going to explore the hill pen. Bashful’s pen and Posie’s pen have line of sight to that area and they immediately began “telling” on him!
This afternoon made a batch of lotion and did some laundry and dishes then all the usual chores. And now, again it’s way past my bedtime. Zzzzzzz.
Dreamed all night this little guy didn’t make it. I was almost afraid to touch him when I got up because it looked like he hadn’t moved all night. A little weak but alive. And after 1 1/2 ounces of milk pretty frisky.
Doing the usual morning chores. And there are Midnight’s twins in with Chocolate and Gazelle. I put them back where they belonged.
They did it again so I just put Midnight back in the pen. So far things are good.
Got caught up on processing eggs, just 3 days behind.
Little goat was hungry after his nap.
Made deliveries to Superior. Did chores. Forgot to get a picture of Storm on the milk stand. One side of her udder was getting full and tight. Milked out a pint of colostrum for the bottle baby.
Another pic just because. 😛
Not sure which one has longer ears! This is bottle baby’s brother.
Dark thirty when I got done outside and even then probably forgot to water something. 20% chance of rain tonight. Fingers crossed.
