To Heidi WASRe: Jar Weights?

[Guest guest]

>Sorry can't do it here in Kansas as these grains are about the only

>vegetation that survives the bugs, heat and near summer droughts

>here. Even have barley growing this year.Had to laugh though at this;

>this first time I read it!Dennis

You know, that is a very thoughtful message. Has anyone in Kansas

looked at the things they grow in dry, hot parts of Africa? I don't

know anything about farming, and won't pretend I do, but there

have been complaints from other countries that they can't grow

the " Western " style grains because they are too picky.

Kansas is probably pretty close to the climate of Egypt tho,

the way you describe it, which is where wheat farming got

it's start, more or less.

Now our climate in the Northwest is so WET and cold that it's

a challenge to see what works. So far the one thing that I KNOW

will grow here is berries ... all kinds of berries. I'm thinking potatoes

will be pretty good too, and lettuce, so we put some of those in.

Anyway, I love the quote (tho I don't believe I actually *said* it)

but I'm not one to put down any farmer, esp. one who earns

a living doing it, which is hard enough. Once upon a time you mentioned

you might put in some milo though ... I was wondering, did you? How did

it do? I was going to try growing some here, but it looks like it won't

do well here.

-- Heidi Jean

[Guest guest]

At 10:41 PM 5/17/04 -0700, you wrote:

> Anyway, I love the quote (tho I don't believe I actually *said* it)

Well, okay, maybe I paraphrased just a leeeeeetle bit.

MFJ

Put DOWN the wheat, barley and rye! Keep your hands where I can see 'em,

and back away slowly!! ~Helga the Glutenator

[Guest guest]

---don't forget day(light) length.Dennis

In , " Anja " <schnittie01734@y...>

wrote:

> Hey,

> with growing plants around the world not only the temperature and

> moisture counts. A good example is poinsettia (Weihnachtsstern) a

> green plant with red blossom. You can grow them in this region but

it

> will never bloom! That's why you have to buy new ones each year.

They

> just become greenish all over, no more christmassy colour. It's got

> something to do with the sun, though, but not just temperature, but

> that they come from a region that's closer to the equator.

> CU Anja

>

>

> > You know, that is a very thoughtful message. Has anyone in Kansas

> > looked at the things they grow in dry, hot parts of Africa? I

don't

> > know anything about farming, and won't pretend I do, but there

> > have been complaints from other countries that they can't grow

> > the " Western " style grains because they are too picky.

> > Kansas is probably pretty close to the climate of Egypt tho,

> > the way you describe it, which is where wheat farming got

> > it's start, more or less.

> > Now our climate in the Northwest is so WET and cold that it's

> > a challenge to see what works. So far the one thing that I KNOW

> > will grow here is berries ... all kinds of berries. I'm thinking

> potatoes

> > will be pretty good too, and lettuce, so we put some of those in.

> > -- Heidi Jean

[Guest guest]

>> You know, that is a very thoughtful message. Has anyone in Kansas

>> looked at the things they grow in dry, hot parts of Africa?

>

>

>Millet is grown somewhere there.

I think millet is pretty easy to grow? They also have some different

crops, such as tubers. One article talked about a certain tuber crop

that was the staple of a tribe ... they would bury the tubers and

ferment them. In draught years, they lived off the buried ones,

and the longer they were buried, the better they tasted!

I'd like to try growing millet here, but it's probably too wet

and cold here. I'd like to come up with something I can grow fairly

easily and feed the meat chickens.

> > <>><><<>The wheat oats and barley are planted in the off (cool)season

>so to speak where as milo and corn are planted in early spring in

>anticipation of early spring and summer rain. Wheat and barley seed

>is planted in the fall, probably much like eastern Washington state,

>and can lay there until rain falls that autumn or even snow in winter

>will provide adequate moisture. In the winter the bugs are not a

>problem as in the summer. The bugs esp, for organic farming are big

>huge challenge all summer..Makes me wonder what the bugs are like in

>Africa. I saw big bugs in Philippines. I think the big diff in

>farming in Africa would be that a lot more people are farming than

>in America so there is a lot or people power to hand weed and pick

>pests and water too.I'm talking percentages of people.And I think

>more people in home kitchens preparing food too.

I think there is a BIG difference in how they farm too (or used to

farm). I grow stuff here, and I've never used pesticides, and can't

think why I'd need them. Yeah, there are bugs on the berry plants,

and lots of birds eating the berries, but the birds eat the bugs

too and all in all there are still plenty of berries to eat. All I do

is clip the competing plants I don't want (and feed them to the

goats).

Now if I'm just growing plants for my family, and there WAS a big

bug infestation, well, I'd pick off the bugs to feed the chickens.

Or eat the bugs, which is likely what they would do in Africa. And

the kids could do a lot of the work. Since there are LOTS of kinds

of plants all mixed together, if one doesn't do well this year, likely

another one will.

But when you start talking farming for a *living* the whole

situation changes. No market for the bugs, kids can't work

in the fields, the fields are more monoculture so bugs and

disease are bigger problems. Plus there is this huge competition

issue (which really isn't an issue if you are just feeding your

family).

I'm not sure how farms *should* fit into the economy ... it

would be nice if farmers could make a good living. But until

recently, MOST people were farmers, and they weren't in

it so much to sell goods, they were feeding families and selling

a bit extra.

> I raised some white milo and haven't had a chance to do much

>with it. I fed a little to the milk cow the other day when she

>seemed to have ketosis(my diagnosis with help of merck manual).She

>didn't like it much. Before you all start wondering about feeding

>grain sometimes it has to happen. My cow got too rundown on the low

>qualiyt grass she was eating. I got her in a diff pasture now and

>hopefully she's doing much better. Still giving her molasses in her

>drinking water for energy to remedy ketosis. It seems it's

>challenging everywhere nowadays. Chemical farmers raise lots of milo

>and corn here and more if irrigated. But irrigating is becoming a

>thing of the past. Dennis

Interesting about a cow getting ketosis! My goats don't seem to

need grain, but they go nuts for it (they aren't milkers though).

My grandfather always said cows were " too hard to keep, they

were for rich people " ... I've never had a cow, but I'm beginning

to understand about goats. If there is nothing else to eat,

they'll eat bark, or wood even, and they don't eat much. If I

was to feed a family on this property, I'd have a flock of goats

for milkand meat, and we could probably eat pretty well. And

geese and chickens.

I didn't realize how BIG milo is, I'd guess it does need water.

In this neck of the woods we have too much water, too little

sun. None of the grains does well here, they all get moldy.

The Indians in Arizona raised corn, somehow. I think there

are plants and breeds of corn that are very draught tolerant ...

but probably not commercially viable. I think you are right about

irrigation ... it's probably a good time to study what those desert

cultures did. Some of them were very clever. A lot of climates

have very wet seasons alternating with very dry, and they

would store the water in cisterns for later.

-- Heidi Jean