Orchard planting, corral post tagging and the horse drawn travel blogger

• #Frugal Living
• #Gardening
• #Wildlife
• #Horses Galore
• #The Frugaldom Project

The new apple orchard has now been planted - 25 Galloway Pippins and 2 of them sponsored already! The latest tags have been fitted to the fence posts around the corral and today, Leap Day 29th February, we caught up with Michael, Angus and Bob as they made their way along the country lanes in the direction of Frugaldom.

Michael hitching up Tarateeno, aka Angus. You can read his blog at http://horsedrawntravel.blogspot.co.uk

The weekend was sunny and dry, so we set off for Frugaldom to plant the new orchard and tag a few more posts around the corral, while also taking the time to gather more wood for the next Ecoarts sculpture. Now that the latest horse has been completed, I'm eagerly awaiting news of what the next one could be. As luck would have it, the weather soon returned to miserable, wet and windy, so we decided to call a halt to wood collecting and get back to Thrift Cottage. It was a soggy scene that met us when we were homeward bound.

Seeing the little horse drawn cavalcade, we stopped for some photos and a chat with Michael. We have seen him in previous years while he's been in nearby Port William, so I have given him directions to Frugaldom and am hoping he may still be there when I return with the next lot of tags for the fence posts. Who knows, maybe the hitching post will be ready in time for his next visit to the area.

 

This being the weekend that the latest sculpture was completed - a 'cat' horse  - we have decided to name it 'Angus', after the little cart horse who crossed our path this morning - the black and white cob pulling the colourful bowtop wagon.)

As soon as H completed 'Angus', the sculpture was given a coat of wood preserving treatment, while the sun shone, then we began gathering together what was needed for the caravan and our Frugaldom trip.

This was the first weekend of the season, but I didn't get much time to catch up with many others on site, as it was a case of getting the tree planting done as quickly as possible, as the next packs of trees are scheduled to arrive here next week. As per the events pages, we intend starting to plant the next new hedge weekend of 12th & 13th Match.

Between us, for the new orchard, we dug the 25 holes needed for eight two-year-old and seventeen one-year-old apple trees, all genuine alloway Pippins, a heritage variety believed to have originated in nearby Wigtown. We lived there for a few years after it became Scotland's national book town.

These apple trees had to be bought in specially, so a little bit of an investment was needed to help get this orchard up and running as part of our Galloway heritage project. For this reason, we have offered the trees up for sponsorship at a cost of just £15 each, to help cover initial costs. (See www.frugaldom.com for link to the details.)

The latest tag-a-post engravings have been done, so these have each been fitted to their posts around the corral. With Frugaldom aiming for absolute financial self-sustainability, every sponsorship, membership or tagged post helps cover the costs of setting up the project and then, once we have Frugaldom up and running, it will hopefully become a trading post where the main currency will be whatever we all make, do, mend, grow or harvest. I'm hoping to get back over there to fit the next batch of tags later this week. (Tree sponsors also get an engraved tag on the Frugaldom corral fence.)

After completing the tagging and planting, I had a walk around Frugaldom to check on the previously planted trees and the recently planted willows, then wandered along the river to the pond area. It will eventually make a fantastic location for a wildlife hide or picnic spot, but we are a long way off that stage just yet.

We spotted our first leveret of the year! These tiny hares are born fully furred with their eyes open, so many people can understandably mistake them for deserted baby rabbits. You can see this one looks just like last year's baby, complete with tiny white star on its head.

I think this about sums up my weekend and I am trying to make the most of this extra day in the year by catching up with blogging, baking and planning my next trip to Frugaldom. I should probably be planning the next bit of renovation work in the house and kitchen garden, but my excuse is that it's still cold and wet outside, so nobody will want to travel to work here.  (If you do, please get in contact - we still need a joiner, a plumber, a builder, a plasterer and an electrician.)

Don't forget you can share more of the Frugaldom project news in the forums, on Facebook and on Twitter.

 

Frugaldom’s World War 1 Centenary Woodland

By NYK Media as part of www.frugalblog.co.uk

• #Eco Arts
• #Gardening
• #Foraging
• #Wildlife
• #The Frugaldom Project

World War 1 Centenary Woodland Project

Phase 3 of our planting began this month with the arrival of our next tree pack from the Woodland Trust, after being awarded a place in their World War 1 Centenary Woodland project last year.

Frugaldom was accepting onto this scheme last year, receiving our first tree pack for planting in November 2014. The planting is part of a nationwide project to plant millions of native trees throughout Britain and, thanks to generous funding from lead partners Sainsbury’s, IKEA FAMILY, players of People’s Postcode Lottery and Yorkshire Tea, the Woodland Trust is awarding the free tree packs to all those taking part in the planting. Trees are essential - we need trees!

The woodlands that these new trees create will become living memorials to commemorate all men, women, children and animals who were affected by the outbreak of the First World War. Here at Frugaldom, we hope to plant a new phase of our woodland every year from 2014 to 2019.

After starting our edible hedging last year with the hazels, sloes and elders, we have now filled in many of the gaps with crab apples to form a wild food foraging area near the barn. Pictured here is... read more here

Published by NYK Media

More Than Today: Crab Apples For Eating

Shared post from Lani K’s ‘More Than Today’ blog.

I found this lovely blog post while researching a bit more for ideas to use all the crab apples we have growing at the Frugaldom Project. If anyone would like to join us in our frugal corner of Dumfries and Galloway in southwest Scotland for some crab apple picking, please get in contact as soon as possible.

Crab Apples For Eating

Naturally, I was curious about this.  There is such an abundance of these neglected tiny fruits.  I can't say that I blame people, what a pain in the keester to pick a bushel of marble-sized produce.  However, we pick cherries, and wild plums, and raspberries... really we don't want to bother with the lowly crab apple.

Still, they're generally ripe after the raspberries and before their larger and more noble relatives, the real apples.  There are a few inquisitive and determined souls out there like me that just may be enterprising enough to attempt a crab apple recipe.  I did this with rose hips last year and now it's a favorite!
I haven't tried any of these yet, but I'm excited to begin a new food journey.

Crab Apple Jam
yields 8-9 pints
4 cups apple pulp
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
1-1/2 packages powdered pectin
8 cups sugar
Put apple pulp and lemon juice into a large, nonreactive pot.
Bring to a boil.
Add pectin.
Return to a boil.
Slowly add sugar and stir, bringing to a boil.
Boil for 1 minute, or until jam sheets off the spoon.
Pour into hot, sterilized jars.
Cover and process 5 minutes.

Pickled Crab Apples
yeilds 2 pints
1 2-inch cinnamon stick, broken
1 teaspoon allspice berries
1/2 teaspoon whole cloves
1 1/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup water
1 cup cider vinegar
1 1/2 pound crab apples, stems on
Tie the spices into a cheesecloth bag.
Put into a nonreactive pot with:
sugar
water
vinegar
Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar.
Remove the pot from heat and let syrup cool.
Pierce each crab apple through with a large needle, to keep from bursting.
Put them into the pan of cooled syrup and slowly bring to simmer.
Cook until tender and translucelt, about 15 minutes.
Remove from heat.
Let rest 12 to 18 hours.
With a slotted spoon, remove the crab apples from the syrup.
Pack into hot, strerilized pint jars leaving 1/4-inch head space.
Remove the spice bag.
Boil syrup.
Pour over fruit.
Seal jars.

Crab Apple Liqueur
From Recipe Secrets
4 quarts crabapples, washed, cored and quartered
4 cups sugar
3 cups vodka
Fill 1 (4-quart) mason jar with tight-fitting lid with prepared crabapples.
Add the 4 cups of sugar and three cups of vodka.
Store the jar on its side, turning once every day for 16 days to help the sugar to dissolve.
After 16 days, filter out the fruit bits and bottle.

Cedar Waxwing on the Crab Apple, Sandra Cointreau

Crab Apple Hot Pepper Jelly
From Recipe Secrets
2 lbs crabapples
1 1/2 cups water
red wine vinegar
3 3/4 cups granulated sugar
1 cup sweet green bell peppers
1/3 cup hot peppers (mix and match hot peppers for color and preferred degree of heat)
In a Dutch oven, combine crabapples with water.
Cover and bring slowly to simmer.
Cook until crabapples are very soft.
Pour into a colander lined with a square of dampened cheesecloth and placed over a deep bowl.
Weight down with a saucer and heavy can.
Let stand until dripping stops.
Discard pulp.
Pour collected juice into a liquid measure.
Add enough vinegar to make 3 cups.
Combine in a saucepan with sugar.
Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.
Add peppers, then boil briskly for 8 to 10 minutes or until set.
Stir for 7 minutes to prevent floating peppers.
Pour jelly into hot, sterilized 8-ounce canning jars.
Seal with two-piece canning lids.
Let cool, then refrigerate.
For long-term unrefrigerated storage, process in boiling water bath for 5 minutes immediately after sealing jars.
NOTE: To test for set, remove pan from heat.
Dip a cold metal spoon into the liquid and hold well above the steam.
Turn spoon sideways and let liquid run off.
When it forms two drops that run together and drip from edge of spoon, jelling point has been reached.

Goldfinch in a Crab Apple Tree, Janet Zeh

Crabapple Schnapps
From Danish Schnapps recipes
Use freshly picked and fully ripe crabapples. They are fully ripe when the pits have become dark brown.
You can use almost any species - so start with your favourite one, then try some other species.
However, Siberian Crabapple (Malus baccata)and also Chinese Apple (Malas prunifolia) are two species that are highly recommended.
Direction:

• Wash 10-20 crabapples and cut them in halves. Leave the skin on.
• Put them in a clean glass jar with tight-fitting lid.
• Cover with clear, unflavoured vodka - 40% alcohol content (80 proof).
• Let steep for 8-10 weeks or more - in a dark place at room temperature, 18-20°C (64-68°F).
• Shake lightly and taste it from time to time.
• Strain and filter your infusion into a clean glass bottle or jar with tight-fitting lid.
• Store (age) for a couple of months in a dark place at room temperature before serving.

Note: If for some reason you are not satisfied with your infusion, there are ways to adjust both taste and flavours:

Too strong-flavoured: If your infusion is too strong-flavoured and overwhelming you can just dilute it with the same kind of spirit you used as base.
Allow to settle for a couple of days or more before serving. Taste it to find out.

Too weak-flavoured: If your infusion is too weak-flavoured you can enhance the flavours by adding a little, little bit of sugar.

True Danish flavoured schnapps should not contain more than 10-15 grams sugar per liter. But of course, you can add as much as you want to suit your own taste.
You can add the sugar directly, but because sugar is more soluble in water than in alcohol, it's usually better to make a simple sugar syrup...
...and add it to your infusion little by little.
Allow to settle for a couple of days. Taste it again, it might need some more.
Never use artificial sweeteners - NEVER! You will ruin the taste.
Remember to keep your schnapps bottle tightly closed and in a dark place before and between servings.

The Crab Apple Fairy, Cicily Mary Barker

Crabapple Butter
From Recipe Secrets
6 cups sieved crabapple pulp
Grated peel and juice of 1 orange
2 cups sugar, optional
1 tsp cinnamon, optional
½ tsp cloves, optional
¼ tsp nutmeg, optional
Combine pulp with orange peel and juice in a Dutch oven.
Place over high heat and bring to a boil, stirring constantly.
Reduce heat to medium and boil gently, stirring frequently to prevent scorching, until mixture thickens to desired consistency.
Stir in sugar and spices, if desired, and return mixture to a boil, stirring constantly.
Ladle into hot sterilized half-pint jars, leaving ¼ inch headspace.
Remove air bubbles with a narrow rubber spatula or plastic knife.
Add additional crabapple butter, if necessary, to maintain headspace.
Wipe jar rims thoroughly with a clean damp cloth.
Seal and process in a boiling water bath. Process for 15 minutes.
Crabapple butter may also be cooled and frozen for up to one year.
Yields 6 half-pint jars.

More Than Today: Crab Apples For Eating

I am sharing this lovely blog post for the benefit of everyone on the Frugal Forums who have found themselves in the fortunate position of having access to these tiny crab apples. If you live within easy reach of Frugaldom then please consider joining us on one of our crab apple picking days this month. If you live further afield, why not book a short break and join us for some holiday foraging? (See www.frugalbreaks.co.uk and ask about our frugalers’ discounts.)

Scotland's Secret South: Galloway Pippin Apples

Adapted and reproduced from a blog by Phillip Bruce

Scotland's Secret South

There is a corner of Scotland that is ignored by the crowds rushing up to Edinburgh, Loch Lomond and the Highlands. Those of us who live in Galloway hope they continue to do so, but there's a warm welcome for the discerning traveller. Galloway is in the Southwest of Scotland and can be found by turning left at Gretna and following the A75 to Stranraer. (Frugaldom is next to Three Lochs Holiday Park, Kirkcowan, where we can now offer Frugal Breaks.)

Galloway's Gorgeous Apples

In 1267 a Dominican Friary was founded in Wigtown by the enormously wealthy Devorgilla, wife of John Balliol, after whom the Oxford college is named.

The monastery was situated near to where the current Church of Scotland church stands, see picture. The monastery was closed during the Reformation and it is thought that some of the stones from its buildings were used in nearby buildings. The friars used to fish in Wigtown Bay and were known for their skills in the orchards where a delicious pippin apple was cultivated.

There are few records of the monastery but the pilgrimage route to the ancient holy place of Whithorn passed close by and it is said that pilgrims were grateful to be given apples by the friars. Could some of the ancient rootstock be still hiding away somewhere around the former abbey's location?

In the middle of the 19th century, apple enthusiasts recorded the discovery of the Galloway Pippin, which is probably the tree that was cultivated at Wigtown. This is said to be an attractive apple and several people in Wigtown have trees flourishing in their gardens.

A good book to read is “Apples in Scotland,” by John Butterworth, Langford Press, ISBN 1-904078-00-1 There is a picture of The Galloway Pippin on page 33 with the caption: “Ancient long-keeping cooker from Wigtown, known locally as 'Croft an Righ' (garden of the King). He writes on page 56: “Galloway Pippin' is a late cooker, eaten by some, which has been associated with the area around Wigtown in Galloway 'since time immemorial.' The local name 'Croft-an-Righ, is the same as the same name given by the Romans to the locality, and means 'garden of the king.' There is still a property in Wigtown with this name, with a tree of the same name! Not surprisingly, there are a number of good reports from this area. My inclined cordon has been excellent, and my young standard made a very promising start to cropping. I attribute the latter's development of canker to the fact that its branches were broken the ground trampled by cattle.”

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At Frugaldom, we have a fruit-growing project that is set to incorporate a small orchard of Galloway Pippins. If you would like to help support this project, you can do so by sponsoring a tree. Further details will be made available in the Frugal Shop and you can follow the progress either in our Frugal Forums or by clicking the ‘like’ buttom on our Frugaldom Facebook page

Published by NYK Media as part of the Frugaldom Project and Frugal Blog

Free Seeds from Grow Wild Scotland

Grow Wild 2015 seed kit registration update: Hello Frugaldom, Thanks again for registering for free Grow Wild Scotland seed kits to share with people in your group/s. We’re delighted to let you know that you will receive a seed kit by late March 2015.

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Ready

You’re joining the UK’s biggest ever wild flower campaign, helping to create over one million square metres of colour in summer 2015 Supported by the Big Lottery Fund and led by Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew; Grow Wild inspires communities, friends, neighbours and individuals across the UK to come together to transform local spaces, by sowing, growing and enjoying native wild flowers.

Steady

While you wait for your seeds, join the 20,000 people across the UK planning a growing space with their group/s.

Please join us too for exclusive tips by signing up for the Grow Wild e-newsletter and social media at growwilduk.com, where you’ll also find an exciting range of free advice, activities and how-to videos. We’ll add more content as the delivery date gets closer.

Sow

Each kit has a getting started guide, five seed packets, site markers and a DIY bee house. There are also Grow Wild prizes to be won for the best photos/videos of your group/s creating and enjoying your Newton Stewart space.

For inspiration and updates follow us on Twitter and Like us on Facebook.

The Grow Wild team

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This is great news, as we need all the help we can get planting up the Frugaldom Project so it grows and flourishes into a wilderness of colour. Along with this news, we have also received notification from Alba Trees to say that our Working Woodland tree pack of 420 young trees from the Woodland Trust has now been despatched. The trees should be with us next week and we hope to get them into the ground as soon as possible, so have a planting expedition planned for next weekend.

www.scottishmultimedia.co.uk

Free Seeds from Grow Wild Scotland

Centenary Woodland Project

420 assorted saplings

The latest batch of trees have arrived for the weekend's planting event - 420 mixed hazel, blackthorn (sloe), crab apple, dog rose and elder.

2014 marked the 100th anniversary of the outbreak of the First World War and, as part of The Woodland Trust World War I centenary woodland project, Frugaldom is taking part in this once-in-a-generation tribute for those who lived and served, by creating a growing legacy that will hopefully stand tall for centuries to come. We hope to have the woodland planting well under way for the 11th of November, Remembrance Day.

These trees will make up the first stage of our new harvest woodland, which should provide a great future foraging area for all concerned. Adjacent to this woodland, is what we plan on having as our wild flower meadow, which includes poppies. If you find yourself with any spare wild flower seeds, we can happily give them a good home. (Details for posting can be found on the 'Contact' page of  www.scottishmultimedia.co.uk website.)

We have issued an open invitation to anyone with an interest in such projects to join us on Saturday  8th November or Sunday 9th November between the hours of 11am and 3.30pm to help plant our tiny trees. We will be meeting on site, where there are no amenities, so please come prepared. There is some parking available at the road end or along the track at the barnyard.

 

If you choose to stay the weekend, adequate camping facilities can be found nearby at Balloch O' Dee campsite or else 3 Lochs Holiday Park, both of which are within about a mile of the Frugaldom site.

The Woodland Trust has provided full instructions, tree protectors and canes for securing the saplings. The Trust is working with lead partner Sainsbury's, along with the Army Cadet Force, Combined Cadet Force and Air Cadets, to create these special Centenary Woods. By providing 3,000,000 free trees for planting on locations throughout Scotland, Northern Ireland, England and Wales, it is hopes we will all have access to these living memorials to the Great War.

Get in contact via www.frugaldom.com if you would like to come along and take part in our event.

Carbon Footprints and Planting Trees

Today I calculated the household's carbon footprint at 3.5 tonnes per year. (This is a big reduction on previous years and is well under half of the national average, but more than the ideal global average.)

I then proceeded to calculate how many trees we need to plant to offset that. Averages suggest one native broadleaf tree per tonne of CO2 per year, so I'm making an effort to catch up over my own lifetime. Are you?

Find out how to calculate your own carbon footprint then if you haven’t space to plant your own trees, we can plant them for you.

Find out more about our Frugaldom wilderness and woodland project HERE

Back on the Trail of the Frugal Microholding (Part I)

Too Small for Smallholding? Try Microholding!

Part 1 of 3

 

It's been two years since we moved into our fixy-up. That's another two years of scrimping and saving, trying to get an eco-renovation done on a very tight budget and trying to create a semblance of normality in the wilderness that was the garden before the property lay empty for a couple of years. I'm pleased to say that we do now have water running from the taps rather than all over the house and through the roof, mains electricity reinstated, a phone line with broadband, a flushing toilet, an electric shower and a stand along multi-fuel stove (although this still needs some work done to complete the installation properly). We have some floors, even managing to uncover and salvage the original stone tiles that make up the hallway, but everything else is taking far more time and money than anticipated. But we can see the path we're taking, so that has to be good.

 

Garden progress is even slower! Weeds grow very fast, almost as fast as the dreaded slugs and snails munch through my plants! And this year's exceptionally long winter with several feet of snow certainly haven't helped matters. Regardless, the 90m x 10m strip of wilderness is slowly taking shape on what little budget we afford it.

 

OK, so it's painstakingly slow, despite trying to get it to a stage that it will produce food for us as quickly as possible. I've been trying my best to do as much as possible with as little as possible, salvaging useable 'stuff' in an effort to try and follow a frugal version of permaculture. As you can see, the Foxgloves are in full agreement with this strategy.

 

The bottom of the garden remains untouched barring what the hens have managed to achieve for us by way of clearing the ground. Moving from the hen run we have the burn, which has flooded once during the severe rains we had last year. Next to this is the wild bird corner, seen above, which is surrounded by Foxgloves and a selection of shrubs donated by friends or traded for through our LETS (Local Exchange Trading Scheme) group.

 

 

It's a very pretty corner of the garden and one where we were happy to see Blue tits nesting this year in the first of the boxes we'd hung in the old plum tree. What with that and the ducks having the run of this part of the garden, it makes for an ideal shady retreat - if the old wooden bench remains with us long enough to enjoy using it. All around the edges, I have planted raspberry canes but these have taken on a life of their own and will need sorting out later this year so we can train them into neat productivity in future years.

 

About halfway down the garden, we dug a pond and linked it to the stream, hoping this would help siphon off any excess surface water during floods. There's another wooden bench beside the pond but you tend to get soaked when sitting there if the ducks decide it's more fun to bathe in the pond than swim in it. They do love their pond but, like everything else about here, the pond project hasn't been completed yet.

 

 

The willow whips have sprouted and had to be cut back this year, the reeds have rooted and are growing well and the little fruit trees that had to be rudely transplanted from the previous garden at a less than suitable time of year seem to be recovering from the upheaval, some even beginning to produce fruit. (Only apples and cherries, the pear and plum trees are much slower) but that's as far as the central garden project - the micro orchard - has reached, so far. But the ducks love it!

 

In true permaculture fashion and in support of several pleas to leave parts of the garden uncut to attract and benefit bees and other insects, I have banned the mowing of the daisies and buttercups that grow among the fruit trees, barring a path through them to get to the bottom of the garden and reach the hens.

 

In this mid section, we also have the duck housing and two compost bins but I have to say they will never produce sufficient compost to sort out the entire garden, so I have had to invest in pre-packed bags for starting off seeds and getting the vegetables going. The hedgerow is slowly becoming edible, as I have all the raspberries, crab apples, blackcurrants and elder. We'll see how things go with those before embarking on any further developments in that department.

 

Apologies if these posts seem to be rather image heavy, but it's the easiest way of recording progress so I may look back this time next year and see what progress has been made.

 

Frugaldom

 

www.microholding.co.uk

The Decadence of a Frugaldom Mother's Day

DON'T FORGET MOTHERS' DAY
SUNDAY 3rd APRIL 2011

Today began early - the sun was shining before 7am, the hens and ducks wanted their freedom and I wanted my coffee.

The computer gets switched on as soon as I get up each morning, that way it's booted up and ready to go when I come back indoors from seeing to the feathered friends in the garden (and collect any early eggs).While waiting for the kettle to boil, I check online for work updates from clients and make a start on sifting through the invariable pile of 'spam' in search of anything else work-related. I don't usually get very far in the process before the kettle boils, so that's what takes me up to breakfast time.

This morning was glorious, so breakfast was taken on the back door step, shared with the chickens and ducks, I might add! But it gave me time to get into my woman zone and reflect on the contents of most of the 'newsy' type emails that lay in this morning's in-box. They were mostly reminding me of Mothers' Day, in some way, shape or form. I even posted a 'motherly' response on someone's blog update, reiterating what a paranoid lot we can be when it comes to our offspring. I omitted to add the fact that I was just as paranoid about watching my other 'baby', a horse, go out on the tracks back in the good old days when horses, ponies and racing were my chosen NOT SO FRUGAL frugal hobbies.

So, what do women, mothers in this particular case, really want? I've never been one for cosmetics, perfumes, cut flowers or grand gestures. Most would call me 'down to earth', if a little eccentric (replace with whichever word you prefer), in my outlook and lifestyle, so helpfulness, usefulness and functionality are more appreciated here than fripperies. But then I began the morning's work, updating a few bits and pieces on the web pages that will, one day, prove my worth as a frugal entrepreneur. I was looking at CUT FLOWERS and thinking they looked gorgeous! EEK! Is this a true reflection of how age is catching up with me? It suddenly trips me up, leaving me sprawled in a heap of, dare I say it, 'normality'? I just don't 'do' pink! Or, at least, I didn't! But I have to admit that I do collect 'Posy Points' and I do make the most of free delivery and free chocolates! This is a brilliant site!

Back on the trail of what women want - I'm practical, as well as frugal, but extravagances and treats are appreciated. Contemplating what I do from day to day, I came up with the following list::

1. Look after the poultry
2. Bake - bread, cakes and biscuits
3. Grocery shopping & cook meals
4. Dust & vacuum
5. Do laundry
6. Compute, write, blog, log data, research & earn a meagre income from it
7. Work in the garden
8. See friends, neighbours and family regularly 
9. Find the best ways to spend less money
10. DIY - let's face it, we all need to be able to DIY if we want the frugal house of our dreams, don't we?

I have a good life, I enjoy it, I don't hanker after riches, foreign travel, fine jewellery or designer clothing. I happen to like my green wellies (not Hunter brand) and my waxed jacket (not a Barbour). I like my checked scarf (not Burberry) and I like my secondhand bargains and charity shop treasures. So, when my family asks, 'what would you like for Mother's Day', I have a list of extravagances that could be suitably fitting for my chosen lifestyle...

1. Some hatching eggs from purebreed poultry or, better still, half a dozen point-of-lay hens.
2. A 'homemade' cookie stamp so nobody forgets that they're all home made.
3. Bargain groceries with a delivery service or else a huge voucher for our local Sainsbury's.
4. A 3-minute cupcake maker, so there are cakes to have with the coffee during the break between vacuuming and dusting.
5. The box set of Absolutely Fabulous - so I can watch an episode when waiting for the washing machine to complete the cycle
6. Some more people taking part in our frugal challenges - I can't believe the country is in austerity mode and yet so few homemakers want to share their frugal lifestyle tips - and several new sign-ups for Affiliate Window, so I can earn that last £7 needed to allow me to actually claim a payment.
7. Compost (lots of it), vegetable seeds, fruit bushes or fruit trees to help quickly increase the food growing capacity of the new garden, once we move house next month, plus peanuts for feeding the wild birds.
8. A good, solid garden bench for seating visitors when they visit for a cuppa and a catch-up. It's far nicer being able to sit outside in the garden during good weather.
9. I wish my entire family, all friends, acquaintances, colleagues and, even, passing strangers would consider using a site like Topcashback, so they, too, can claim back a small fortue on almost all of their online shopping. The cyberdosh soon mounts up over the year and then it's up to you what you buy with the resulting cash or Amazon vouchers.
10. A subscription to the Renovate Alerts, so we can watch for a really cheap fixy-up that could become someone's dream home.

I think the above items tie in nicely with my chosen lifestyle of frugality and the quest to create our very own, mortgage free microholding. I can't think of anything else I'd like, unless I renage on my anti-pink and anti-cut flowers deal to opt for the bouquet plus extra chocolates, hand delivered by all the family who would bring dinner with them and then clear up afterwards. Then again, it just can't happen that way, not with five generations in this family!

I guess what I'm trying to say is that family spirit and camaraderie can be lost in commercialism and consumerism. Gifts are all well and good, but it's remembering who and where your family are that counts most.

Let them all know that they mean something to you. Don't leave it until some made up 'celebratory' day in the consumerist-society-driven calendar.

What would YOU really like for Mothers' Day?

Spring Equinox, Gardening and Poultry

Longer days mean more eggs.

As the winter slowly passes, spring will soon be here. The spring equinox having been and gone means that the days will gradually be lengthening and the hens will soon be in full lay. The girls have produced enough eggs to keep the household going through the winter, but there haven't been enough to warrant any regular sales.

We've only got one pair of white ducks remaining with us, for the time being, but I'm already planning on having a couple more as soon as we get settled into the new house - probably Khaki Campbells or some more Indian Runner ducks, as I like both. Our solitary duck, Phoebe, is laying an egg every morning now, but I don't want to incubate/hatch any of these, as there would be no point. We need some nice new ducklings for spring, completely unrelated to Joey, our white Aylesbury X drake.

Preparations for moving house are underway. We are digging up everything that we planted; it's a bit like un - gardening! Fruit bushes, apple trees, plum trees, pear trees and cherry trees - the entire mini orchard has to be moved. The crab apples have already been transplanted into large pots, as have most of the gooseberries and tayberries. There's an entire row of raspberries still to be dug, along with the blackcurrants. If the rain stays away, we should get them into pots this weekend.

All of the vegetable beds have been dug over, so the hens and ducks have now been given free access to these areas, in the hope that they'll root out anything we've missed. Our miniature white Silkie hen, however, prefers to dust bath in the damp soil, so she is constantly filthy!

The sleepers that surround the deep vegetable bed are being rehomed. The soil from the original square foot garden will be ideal for filling in holes after the fruit trees have been removed. It will mean raking and rolling the entire area, but I'll get some grass seed spread on it, just as soon as the hens and ducks have all been transported to their new home.

The grape vine seems to be surviving relatively well, as is the Russian Vine. Not a very popular species, I know, especially for anyone with a small garden, but it will be kept well trimmed. I'd not long put an arch across the garden gate and planted honeysuckle either side, so it all needs to be carefully removed and transplanted before the plants fully recover from their winter hibernation.

Bird boxes along the fence should be removed, but I've already seen bluetits flitting in and out of them on a regular basis. I have no intentions of disturbing them and am prepared to forfeit a few bird boxes in order to encourage them to continue breeding here.

My longterm plan of cultivating willow had just been newly implemented when we received notice to quit this house, so I'm hoping that the withies that were planted won't mind too much if we move them again. I'm determined to have a mini willow plantation somewhere, so the next garden should be the place to start again... without fear of any landlord asking us to move.

Most of what is in the greenhouse will be composted. Only the trays of lettuce seedlings will come with us, although I am desparate to get a few more seeds sown. Trouble is, we don't, yet, have an exact date for moving, so the greenhouse needs to be dismantled in readiness, as does the garden shed.

The next step is to sell the surplus quail so we can dismantle their run. Japanese Coturnix Quail are very hardy little game birds! They have lived outside in a corner of our garden all year round and we're still getting a few eggs. I was amazed they survived the -16C temperatures during the hardest part (so far) of this winter. At that point, their eggs were freezing solid before I could get out to collect them in the mornings. It's still dipping below zero here first thing, but a few of the hens have continued to lay throughout winter - not bad going for what is traditionally thought of as a migratory bird.

I'll probably keep about a dozen quail hens and three of the best cockerels to take to the new place, then start incubating / hatching new stock as soon as we're orgaised enough to safely run an incubator and brooder. Pity this variety of quail are known more for their laying ability than their interest in breeding!
There isn't a great deal more we can do to prepare the garden for our next big move. All I can do is hope that it will be our last for many years, and that we can reliably call it home. I'm glad we didn't set down too many roots here and am now looking forward to beginning again - a whole new frugaldom project and the creation of the new microholding.

Rest assured that the entire process will be well photographed and documented, once again. I now have three full years' worth of this project, including two false starts. 2011 needs to be our final startup! Wish me luck!

Time to Start Planning Your Microholding

MICROHOLDING
It's almost mid-January, the ground is still frozen, part of mine is waterlogged and yet more of it is undermined, nae, completely riddled, by moles. Looks like I've lost an apple tree to the little blinders, too!

Time marches on regardless, so I'm dragging out the box of seeds and starting to plan this year's garden for that part of my 2011 frugal challenge. This self-sufficiency lark isn't as easy as many might think, so I guess I'm lucky that I equate earning my money to growing a cash crop. The better the harvest in one area, the less importance or reliance there needs to be on another. So let's start at the beginning, by analysing what it is we NEED from our gardens, or microholdings.

The main Frugaldom lifestyle revolves around a semblance of self-sufficiency in all things, including cash. So, first and foremost, I need to be fully aware of how much cash is needed to keep the household running comfortably, throughout the year.

• Household bills - electricity, insurance, telephone, Internet, TV
• Fuel - coal, logs, firelighters, matches
• Groceries
• Cleaning products and toiletries
• Self-employment costs - National Insurance contributions etc
• Family pets
• Garden poultry
• Transport
• Gifts for family and friends
• Extras - club memberships, savings policies, charitable donations etc

Every household has its own version of the household budget. We now want to build in a plan of action that will both contribute to the income and reduce the expenditure in a way that balances out into a cost-effective, cash-neutral, work in progress. There is absolutely no point in spending £200 on vegetable seedlings and compost when you would normally only spend half of that when buying potatoes, carrots and onions from the supermarket. It is false economy. Instead, think about what you spend your money on and then plan accordingly. Microholding is about holding as few risky investments as possible - they need to break even, at the very least.

This household uses around 4 dozen eggs each week, which amounts to almost £250 per year had we chosen to opt for the very cheapest, supermarket-bought ones. But I want to help support ethical farming and promote cruelty-free egg production. I'd also like to see changes in current legislation governing the definition of the term 'freerange'. All these factors mean that I would probably need to pay up to 34p per egg for truly freerange eggs (~ £850 per year). That is one ENORMOUS difference in price! I value my own garden hen, duck and quail eggs highly. If I average the cost out at 20p per egg, then my annual bill would be around £500. It costs me less than this to keep the hens and I always have extras for selling during summer months, so it is viable. The poultry will pay for themselves on the condition that I sell all the surplus eggs and/or any resulting chicks. If I've shown a profit by the end of the year, I'll be delighted!

We should eat at least 5 portions of fruit and veg per day, according to health specialist, so that's 5,475 portions for this household of three over the year. Let's call it 5,500, because I don't like messy numbers.

Has anyone, anywhere, actually calculated the average cost of those 5-a-day? There's no way I could grow all of that in my garden, especially when you take into account that potatoes don't count as one of your 5-a-day. I reckon I can only allocate 10p per portion for this and use that as a starting point. Does that sound about right?

Just as well we don't eat much meat here because that's half the grocery budget accounted for already, unless I'm able to grow plenty in the garden. On a budget of £1 per person per day, 50p per person per day goes on the 5-a-day, leavin 50p per day for everything else? It's not much when you think about it that way, is it? But for every portion of fresh produce that can be grown in the garden, it's 10p saved on the budget. (I have a sneaking suspicion that 10p is nowhere near the amount needed, but if we need account for all those beans and pulses, which DO count, then the averafe price has to come down.

Quick recap
Our microholding needs to produce at least 208 dozen eggs and 5,500 portions of fruit and vegetables. It also needs to generate enough income from surplus egg and poultry sales to cover the cost of feeding and bedding for the livestock. The other alternative is to generate a cash income of £1050 just to buy eggs, fruit and veg.

What I'm aiming for is a happy medium, whereby the cash generated plus the eggs, fruit and veg, all balances out and allows a little left over to show a profit, even if it is by way of trading lemon curd via the LETS group.

Where and when to start
Start now!
We already know that we need £4,000 to keep this household ticking over for a year, so the main aim is to keep within this budget and make adjustments to cover changes. When global markets affect local prices, we need to be prepared to meet any sudden increases or to invest in bulk buying to help reduce costs wherever possible.

Taking part in a frugal challenge is a bit like balancing a plank on a barrel see-saw fashion: the barrel can roll either way but it's up to you to keep things balanced by moving with it. Counteract the shifts. If carrots hate growing in your garden but leeks do really well, concentrate on the leeks and trade the surplus with a friend who grows carrots. You could even sell the extra leeks and go buy carrots. If electricity prices increase, see what can be done to get useage down. (I recommend the 'imeasure' site for this.)  If wheat prices increase, check to make sure you aren't cheaper feeding your hens mash or pellets. It's all just one big balancing act - tending your garden is the exact same.




Square foot garden from  railway sleepers

  Source free seeds now - keep an eye on the Frugaldom forums, as we post about them here. Some folks have already started germinating their first pepper and tomato seeds in pots on windowsills. I've restrained myself. I know there's no point in my attempting anything this early, but that's not to say I don't have salad leaves growing. These are already in plastic tubs under glass and they've survived the sub-zero winter temperatures so far. With luck, the weather will be a little kinder this weekend and allow me out into the mini-makeshift greenhouse to assess any winter damage. Hopefully, it won't be too serious, but the high winds haven't really arrived here, yet.


Plants keep growing, squares keep filling

The pergola we built over the raised patio is looking exceedingly lop-sided but it has, to be fair, succeeded in holding the plastic roof of the greenhouse in place. This corner of Frugaldom will be one of only two growing areas this coming year, the other being the raised beds constructed from four railway sleepers. That area is my favourite, as it's all about square foot gardening, which I love! So much produce from so little space, absolutely amazing! And better still, it just keeps on growing. I still have a square filled with leeks, a few brassicas that are clinging on to dear life after the near-arctic confitions, and a row of early carrots that were sown as seeds in October. Incredibly, these seem to be surviving the winter. On the other hand, the winter cabbages look more like over-cooked spinach spread on the ground than anything resembling green, leafy vegetables that will ever be worth eating! I suspect they'll be getting dug into the soil as soon as the ground thaws enough to turn it.

Here's hoping that the coming days brings us some drier weather, but it's not looking too promising. At worst, I'll get the seeds looked out and plan my square foot garden. What are you doing this weekend?

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Contemplating Self Sufficiency in the 21st Century

Self Sufficiency in 21st Century - Can it be achieved?

How could it possibly be made to work from an ordinary house with an ordinary garden? My answer to this isn't smallholding, it's microholding! We haven't any land for grazing livestock or cultivating orchards but we do have a garden and that's enough to be going on with for now.

Self-sufficiency needn't exclude generating cash, it just means gainful employment and state benefits don't count. Being self employed means we need to earn sufficient money to pay bills, taxes, National Insurance, overheads, running costs and day to day living expenses.  Self sufficiency is simply the term we use to mean personally sufficient in all our needs, bill paying included. The lower the overheads, the less need to worry about how to generate sufficient cash to survive. Understanding the overheads is paramount to success, as is fully comprehending the differences between needs and wants. At this precise moment in time, we are entirely self-sufficient on the financial front but not in the homegrown produce department. The proof that it could be done is something I have always wanted to witness.

The following is a breakdown of the estimated amount we, as a household of two adults, would NEED in order to survive until such times as the microholding was working to its fullest potential. As an ordinary household, rearing livestock is out, but there's still space for poultry.

Groceries £600.00

Toiletries £35.00
Cleaning £10.00
Electricity £450.00 - £1 per day plus standing charge
Coal £115.00 - multifuel stove for hot water, heat, cooking
Logs £200.00 - multifuel stove for hot water, heat, cooking
Internet £216 including phone calles
Mobiles £0.00 - no mobiles
Telephone £144 - line rental
TV Licence £0.00 - no TV, it isn't an essential
Clothing & footwear £40.00
Gifts £0.00 - homemade
Extras £70.00
Travel £180.00
Household Insurance £45.00
Other insurance - £360.00 - 2 lots
Livestock £350.00
National Insurance £250.00 - 2 lots
Council Tax £935.00 - no water rates as no water mains, reservoir fed
TOTAL - £4,000.00

Although a TV is not an essential, the telephone and Internet access are. These are your basic contact networks with the outside world, a source of income, advertising, marketing and PR. Most of all, it's the quickest way of keeping in contact with what's happening in the world of finance - where you can source the best bargains and really work your money. The above scenario assumes that you own your own home outright - no mortgage, no rent. Between two people, it's only £5.47 per person, per day that needs to be earned in order to survive. If you have rent or a mortgage, add that in, too.

But move on from that for now, we're still preparing the microholding. We need to grow fruit and vegetables as well as have fresh eggs. Cheap Fruit Bushes - Aldi special offer was 3 for £2.49 in February 2010, so that's at least a dozen fruit bushes for under £10. I set aside a tenner.

I was still mulling over the incubator conundrum for quail egg hatching and had decided to sell 2 of the 3 portables and invest in a more substantial one. Promptly listed them on eBid and sold the first one overnight. Result!

The usual chores get done on a daily basis - sorting out the fire, stocking up the kindling (cones and sticks), chopping logs, breadmaking, laundry, seeing to the feathered friends and stopping for coffee whenever a visitor arrives. Rural living doesn't need to mean being anti-social, there are always friends and nearby neighbours who'll visit.

Reducing the overheads pound by pound or penny by penny - whatever it takes - do it. Managed to shave £2 per month off the Internet and got all standard telephone calls included, an overall annual saving of around £115.00 by the time the BT online paperfree billing discount and free calls were taken into consideration.

Dug up a few more potatoes that had survived the winter frosts, food is food, waste not, want not. The garden wasn't looking too productive at the start of the year. The coal bunker was almost empty - we were down to the dross, but the log store was full. By the end of January, there was £3641.19 left of the household budget. £210 of the £358.81 spent had gone into the electricity meter! February arrived with sub-zero temperatures.

Despite the frozen ground, we pushed on at getting the new raised bed completed in the front garden. The railway sleepers allowed for 64 square feet but I wanted 16 of those squares to form a path along the middle, so every square was easy to reach. Filled up both sides with compost and molehill soil. The hens and ducks had a great time helping by scratching and pecking, so they got left to do the job of breaking up the clumps of frozen soil.

Aldi fruit bushes came on special offer. Remained strong, though, and only bought the 4 packs of 3, as planned. Managed to get:

2 x Tayberries
4 x Raspberries
2 x Gooseberries
1 x Redcurrant
3 x Blackcurrant

On the 5th of February, I noticed that the first of the tomato and pepper seeds had germinated and popped their heads through the soil in their pots on the kitchen windowsill! That same day, the postman delivered the 2 free packs of Allinson's baking yeast, so it was a good start to the day. Dry weather meant getting into the garden so preparations were underway for getting the new fruit bushes planted.

Indoor jobs included the making of more marmalade, in order to use up some oranges and limes that I'd traded for via LETS, some kidney bean pate and a game/veg pie.

Bean Pate Recipe
Kidney beans

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

Finely chopped onion

2 cloves garlic. crushed

Teaspoon Chilli - finely chopped or powdered

Teaspoon Paprika

Lightly fry the onion and garlic in the olive oil then blitz everything in a blender. It's so easy to make that you can adapt the recipe to suit your own taste. Seems to keep fine in the fridge for a couple of weeks.

The incubator was ready to set half a dozen Silkie and Pekin eggs. Wasn't 100% sure which were which, so set half a dozen.

I started a rag rug using an old hessian peanut sack and strips of material from a bag of scraps. Was full of great intentions until I got bored with it! I'm not very good at sitting still for any length of time and, apart from that, the weather had taken a peculiar turn - I ended up getting sunburned on 6th February.

We managed to get a much larger growing area dug in the furthest corner plus the fruit bushes got planted - all 21 of them from what was supposed to be 12. Last year's fruit bushes got fenced in to safeguard them from ducks, the new square foot garden got topped up with more compost and we discovered a few more potatoes that had been missed. Got a couple more meals out of them. The following day, the raised bed/square foot garden got fenced and a gate fitted. It's the only way to keep the feathered marauders from demolishing whatever gets planted.

Took some time out to go over the 2007 challenge notes to see if there were any glaring differences and there's an entry about seeing the first bumble bee of the year - in February! There's also a note saying that cigarettes were £4.29 per 20. Same brand now is £5.30 That's a 23.5% increase! If only I'd invested heavily in cigarettes, I could have made a small fortune! Are there sell by dates on them? No!

By the 9th February, we were getting 9 hours of daylight, almost two thirds of the way to the magical 14 hours that the birds need for optimum laying. Still weren't getting many eggs at that point but it was enough to avoid the need for buying them. It was also sufficient to keep the lemon curd production line operational. Soup making was at its peak, to the point that I needed to increase production to keep up with demand. Managed to find a 6 litre slow cooker for under £20 including delivery - excellent!

Despite the continuing sub-zero temperatures, the sun kept shining that week, enough for line drying laundry, which was great. By the 11th, it was -7C This was good for emptying the contents of the freezer to reorganise it, not so good for digging a duck pond! By the 13th, we saw the arrival of the first lamb in the fields adjoining Frugaldom.

13th also brought news of Aldi's fruit tree offer - cue more cheap trees! Keeping control of a strict budget is difficult but fruit trees at under £5 each is fantastic! Perhaps it's safest not to know about these bargains; what the eye doesn't see, the heart doesn't grieve over, and all that. Then again, look to the future and all that extra potential for homegrown apples, pears, plums and cherries.

Still spending £30 a week on electricity while trying to keep the place from freezing, but the budget is being adhered to; if money gets spent on anything outside of the basic household budget, it has to come from residual income - egg related sales, commissions, eBid, winnings and bank interest payments on existing savings. With luck, there would be a few more chicks hatching soon.

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