Homestead Cost Benefit Ratio
Over the past thirty years our small acreage has raised nine children, a few steers, sheep, goats, rabbits, one pig, geese, ducks, chickens, trout, and various fruits and vegetables. The children learned how to work and are now doing well. Miriam found that if you hoed off the vegetables instead of the weeds you did not get garden duty.
Our first steer required the neighbor’s tractor to lift the carcass off the ground for skinning. Tanning the hide took forever and aging, cutting and wrapping the meat, though taking slightly less time, was not a fun endeavor. Eight-year-old Ammon’s advice was, “Next time sell the animal and buy our meat in the store.” That advice might have been related to the fact that the heart and liver did not rank as high as hamburger on the plate. That was when Miriam’s law went into effect “If it on your plate and you do not like it, you don’t have to eat it.”
Lambs were more manageable, but one winter of mutton pretty well eliminated the desire to raise sheep. One pig was all we needed to convince us that rabbit was better than pork. Both goats and chickens have been on the farm for years. The chickens went with the place as part of the purchase price. They were Heinz 57 variety and evolved into a strain of all white amerucanas. Silvia also came with the farm, for a small fee. She was a Brown Swiss and had her first calf a few months after we moved in. She was wonderfully gentle and provided far more milk than needed for family, caramels and butter. Thus the one pig to use up the extra milk. My only comment about the pig is, “mistake.” The goats came as four French Alpine kids that son Nathan got at the livestock auction for $12. They have proven the most cost effective and affectionate animals on the farm. Hard to beat Feta for pennies.
An orchard started a year after purchasing the farm now has over one hundred producing apple trees, all from seed. The hundreds of gallons of apple juice over the years were great, but worth far less than the hours spent with children, grandchildren and friends grinding and juicing apples. A dozen plum trees, two peach trees and three raspberry patches round out the fruit supply. Then there are the gardens. At first they were nearly 2 acres, but as children left home, the garden space decreased and is now down to 4 small gardens. Sweet corn is still the favorite.
Eight years ago the first goji plants found their way to our garden (See Wolfberries, Countryside Jan/Feb 2009 p 75). These plants have become our homestead miracle plant. Thanks to two Utah Department of Food and Agriculture, Specialty Crop grants we have been able to identify our plants genetically as Lycium barbarum. We have named the variety Phoenix Tears. The grants were also used to verify their incredible nutrient content. No steer, pig, or even apple orchard can compete as a whole food or super food.
We call our plants wolfberries, not goji. No matter what they are called, they are incredibly easy to care for and grow well in any climate, provided that the soil is not too acidic. Once established, they are drought resistant and may live over one hundred years. A thirty-foot row can provide nearly all the nutrients needed for one person for a year. A little watering, some weeding, and berry and leaf harvest require far less time than needed for any farm animal.
What do you get for your effort? Three ounces (100 grams), which is a small handful, of dried berries contains about eighty percent of a person’s essential daily nutrients, including 18 amino acids. These protein building blocks are found in near prefect balance, and are often missing in some vegetarian diets. Almost makes you want to give up meat, but for the record, I sure hope there is prime rib in heaven.
One of the greatest merits of wolfberry fruit and leaves is their antioxidant activity. Fruit from most wolfberry varieties has a higher antioxidant value than do blueberries or pomegranate. What is more amazing about the Phoenix Tears plants is the antioxidant value of the leaves is over five times that of pomegranate. So we harvest the leaves for vegetables and tea.
The spectrum of vitamins and minerals contained in both the fruit and leaves is probably partly a result of tap roots that go nearly to China (figuratively speaking). Though the fruit contains sugars, they have a low glycemic index. Wolfberry sugars are long chain polysaccharides and are digested differently than simple sugars. A diabetic need not fear a blood sugar spike from wolfberries.
Testing of dried leaves in 2010 revealed the presence of all seven subgroups of catechin. Catechins are the good stuff in green tea. The wolfberry leaves contain no caffeine.
The list of good stuff goes on and on. There are more phenolics in the dried leaves than found in cherries. The fruit is a great source of ellagic acid. Both fruit and leaves contain large amounts of betaine. They are a better source of bioflavonoids, zeaxanthin, lycopene, and lutein that traditional sources of these nutrients such spinach and tomato products.
Ok, I will admit it is hard to beat a good steak for taste, but when it comes to growing your own super food, nothing can beat wolfberries. City dwellers, take out your rose bushes and replace them with wolfberries or plant in a few in tubs. Homesteaders, plant a thirty-foot row for each family member. Such a planting can supply health and nutrition like not other plant or animal on the place. Don’t forget to plant some potatoes and sweet corn for some added calories.
Our first steer required the neighbor’s tractor to lift the carcass off the ground for skinning. Tanning the hide took forever and aging, cutting and wrapping the meat, though taking slightly less time, was not a fun endeavor. Eight-year-old Ammon’s advice was, “Next time sell the animal and buy our meat in the store.” That advice might have been related to the fact that the heart and liver did not rank as high as hamburger on the plate. That was when Miriam’s law went into effect “If it on your plate and you do not like it, you don’t have to eat it.”
Lambs were more manageable, but one winter of mutton pretty well eliminated the desire to raise sheep. One pig was all we needed to convince us that rabbit was better than pork. Both goats and chickens have been on the farm for years. The chickens went with the place as part of the purchase price. They were Heinz 57 variety and evolved into a strain of all white amerucanas. Silvia also came with the farm, for a small fee. She was a Brown Swiss and had her first calf a few months after we moved in. She was wonderfully gentle and provided far more milk than needed for family, caramels and butter. Thus the one pig to use up the extra milk. My only comment about the pig is, “mistake.” The goats came as four French Alpine kids that son Nathan got at the livestock auction for $12. They have proven the most cost effective and affectionate animals on the farm. Hard to beat Feta for pennies.
An orchard started a year after purchasing the farm now has over one hundred producing apple trees, all from seed. The hundreds of gallons of apple juice over the years were great, but worth far less than the hours spent with children, grandchildren and friends grinding and juicing apples. A dozen plum trees, two peach trees and three raspberry patches round out the fruit supply. Then there are the gardens. At first they were nearly 2 acres, but as children left home, the garden space decreased and is now down to 4 small gardens. Sweet corn is still the favorite.
Eight years ago the first goji plants found their way to our garden (See Wolfberries, Countryside Jan/Feb 2009 p 75). These plants have become our homestead miracle plant. Thanks to two Utah Department of Food and Agriculture, Specialty Crop grants we have been able to identify our plants genetically as Lycium barbarum. We have named the variety Phoenix Tears. The grants were also used to verify their incredible nutrient content. No steer, pig, or even apple orchard can compete as a whole food or super food.
We call our plants wolfberries, not goji. No matter what they are called, they are incredibly easy to care for and grow well in any climate, provided that the soil is not too acidic. Once established, they are drought resistant and may live over one hundred years. A thirty-foot row can provide nearly all the nutrients needed for one person for a year. A little watering, some weeding, and berry and leaf harvest require far less time than needed for any farm animal.
What do you get for your effort? Three ounces (100 grams), which is a small handful, of dried berries contains about eighty percent of a person’s essential daily nutrients, including 18 amino acids. These protein building blocks are found in near prefect balance, and are often missing in some vegetarian diets. Almost makes you want to give up meat, but for the record, I sure hope there is prime rib in heaven.
One of the greatest merits of wolfberry fruit and leaves is their antioxidant activity. Fruit from most wolfberry varieties has a higher antioxidant value than do blueberries or pomegranate. What is more amazing about the Phoenix Tears plants is the antioxidant value of the leaves is over five times that of pomegranate. So we harvest the leaves for vegetables and tea.
The spectrum of vitamins and minerals contained in both the fruit and leaves is probably partly a result of tap roots that go nearly to China (figuratively speaking). Though the fruit contains sugars, they have a low glycemic index. Wolfberry sugars are long chain polysaccharides and are digested differently than simple sugars. A diabetic need not fear a blood sugar spike from wolfberries.
Testing of dried leaves in 2010 revealed the presence of all seven subgroups of catechin. Catechins are the good stuff in green tea. The wolfberry leaves contain no caffeine.
The list of good stuff goes on and on. There are more phenolics in the dried leaves than found in cherries. The fruit is a great source of ellagic acid. Both fruit and leaves contain large amounts of betaine. They are a better source of bioflavonoids, zeaxanthin, lycopene, and lutein that traditional sources of these nutrients such spinach and tomato products.
Ok, I will admit it is hard to beat a good steak for taste, but when it comes to growing your own super food, nothing can beat wolfberries. City dwellers, take out your rose bushes and replace them with wolfberries or plant in a few in tubs. Homesteaders, plant a thirty-foot row for each family member. Such a planting can supply health and nutrition like not other plant or animal on the place. Don’t forget to plant some potatoes and sweet corn for some added calories.
