Home gardening offers ways to trim grocery costs [Survival Today, an on going thread]

Well I’m getting the garden in slowly but surely. It’s raining so often here I can’t till and have to work it by hand, but I’m getting it planted.

The Construction of a Yurt
By Ellisif Fkakkari (Monica Cellio)
[ed note: this article is also available in pdf and postscript and as a Microsoft Word document. ]

The Mongolian yurt, or ger, is a round, nominally portable, self-supporting structure suitable for camping in comfort. It does not rely on ropes or stakes to hold itself up; rather, the walls, rafters, roof ring, and tensioning bands all work against each other, in a marvel of physics and engineering, to keep the structure standing. It is thus an especially appealing structure for camping events where space is at a premium, such as Pennsic, because all of the space it requires provides useful living space — no extended ropes are required as they are for pavillions.

SCA campers have also found other useful features that the Mongols must have designed into the structure. A yurt does not even think about moving or falling down in a storm; consider, for example, the winds out on the steppes. With a pavillion, the structure is provided by the roof canvas and ropes; if any of these gives, the pavillion comes down. With a yurt, the wooden frame provides the structure and is much more stable. The yurt frame also has a lot of redundancy built in; if a single rafter or piece of wall fails, the structure is not affected.

Because the rafters bear the weight of the roof ring, no center pole is necessary unless the yurt is very large. The Mongols would build their cooking fires in the center of their yurts, opening a smoke hole for the purpose. SCA campers faced with fire restrictions rarely have this option.

Yurts are also remarkably comfortable during the summer heat. Once you get up in the morning, you can open the flap over the roof hole and hike up the walls in 3 or 4 places. This sets up a nice convection current, and the yurt stays relatively cool all day. (Of course, this doesn’t work when it’s raining...) There were afternoons at Pennsic XXIV when I was more comfortable sitting in the yurt than under a canvas fly, because the yurt had a vent at the top.

For modern (and historical) convenience, the yurt collapses down into pieces no longer than 8 feet. I transport mine on and in my Mazda 323 hatchback, though I did have to install a roof rack for the purpose (much to the amusement of the auto dealer). A minivan would also suffice if you don’t want to deal with roof racks.

What They Did
The Mongols are said to have built their yurts from saplings laced together with leather thongs. The rafters might have been either painted or plain. Felt was used for the walls and roof. It is not clear to me how they transported the yurt; the folded walls would be quite a burden for a horse.

The Parts of the Yurt
The key parts of the yurt are as follows:

The khana, or walls. The walls look like giant baby gates; they are criss-crossed lattices that open out or fold flat. Most people build two sections of khana and bolt them together as part of setting the yurt up. Because I’m not quite strong enough to lift half the khana onto my roof rack, I break mine into three pieces.

The door frame. The ends of the khana are attached to the door frame in some fashion, usually bolted or tied.

The rafters. Rafters notch into the top of the khana at one end and into the roof ring at the other. (Two rafters are designed to sit on top of the door frame.) Any given rafter bears only a small part of the weight.

The roof ring. This goes in the center and has slots for rafters to fit into. The fit should be tight to prevent the ring from twisting. Once the ring is in place, you do not need any center supports.

The belly bands. Two bands are wrapped around the outside of the khana to prevent the rafters, which are pushing down, from pressing the khana farther open. One band goes around at the top and one midway up the wall.

There are additional pieces, notably the canvas and the rope that holds the cloth walls up, but they are not structural.

This article describes how to build a yurt that is approximately 16 feet in diameter. While in theory this can be scaled up, I do not know for certain how big you can make a yurt without requiring a center support. (I am told that an engineer determined that you could go as large as 30 feet, but I’m not sure I believe that.)

Materials and Tools
To build a yurt, you will need the following materials and tools:

Khana: about 8 8-foot 2x4s of good quality and a table saw, or 70 8-foot lathes, 1/4 inch thick by 1.5 inches wide. About 300 1.25-inch carriage screws, 300 washers, 24 (or 48) wing nuts, and 250 hex nuts. A drill, ideally with a drill press. A hex wrench.

Door frame: 2 10-foot 2x4s or 3 8-foot 2x4s (there’ll be waste). 4 bolts long enough to go through a 2x4 in the wider direction, plus washers and nuts, or leather and nails to make hinges. A saw.

Rafters: 24 to 36 1x3 firring strips, of the best quality you can find. (Firring strips are cheap lumber and you’ll have to pick through the pile to find ones that aren’t completely scrungy.) A jig saw and drill. Sandpaper. Optionally a power sander. (The number depends on how many rafters you want, which in turn depends on how cautious you’re feeling. I used 30 at Pennsic XXIV.)

Roof ring: 1 sheet of 3/4-inch plywood. The grade doesn’t really matter, but if the top isn’t finished you’ll need to sand it to keep it from chewing up your roof canvas. The scraps from your rafters. 2 gross (288) of drywall screws. A power screwdriver or an appropriate drill bit. A saw to cut the plywood. Optionally, some scrap lathes.

Temporary support: 2 8-foot 2x2s or 1 8-foot 2x4 and a table saw. The scraps from your door frame, or other scrap lumber. A few nails.

Belly bands: 2 nylon or other non-stretch, strong straps, 50 feet long by at least 1 inch wide. I got mine at an Army-Navy store.

About 120 feet of 1/4-inch rope (not cotton).

A few dozen S-hooks. (The 2-inch size works well for hanging walls; you may want a few large ones for securing the door curtain.)

4 stakes. (These are to hold the flap that covers the smoke hole.)

Note that all of this lumber will weigh in the vicinity of 100-150 pounds. If you transport it on a roof rack, make sure it’s a real roof rack and not a `ski rack’; the latter will probably buckle under the weight.

I bought my canvas pre-made. The canvas for my yurt comes in the following pieces; there are many other ways to design the roof canvas, but this is the simplest to implement:

Wall: 50 feet long, 6 feet high, with grommets along the length of one side every 2 feet or so. (There are also 3 grommets along each short side.)

Roof: a 20x20 square with a 2x2 square cut out of the center. The edges of the hole are heavily reinforced. There is one grommet in each outside corner.

Roof hole cover: a 4x4 square with grommets in the corners.

Door curtain: 6 feet high by 4 feet wide, with grommets down each side and across the top (every foot or so).

My roof comes down to the ground in the corners and has to be staked down there. Some people have built roofs that are circular and conical, and these do not require staking. Other people run a roughly foot-wide band of cloth around the outside, at the top, over the wall, to hold the descending roof canvas down. I’m not enough of a pattern drafter to be able to tell you how to do a fitted roof, however. (Note, by the way, that my roof is not under any tension.)

The Khana
For the khana, you want to end up with a large number of lathe boards. You can buy them, but where I live they’re outrageously expensive (40 to 60 cents per linear foot). Here, it’s actually cheaper to buy 2x4s and the table saw to cut them down, and then throw the table saw away when you’re done. (I was able to save myself that expense by using a friend’s radial arm saw, which worked almost as well. We didn’t break any blades, but we had to let the saw cool down after every 10-12 cuts.) We managed to get about 9 lathes out of each 2x4 on average (sometimes 10, sometimes only 8). Remember, in planning for this, that the saw blade has thickness, and that all the sawdust has to come from somewhere.
Each lathe needs to be drilled every foot, offset by 3 inches. That is, counting from one end, you have holes at 3’, 15’, 27’, 39’, and so on. (You should have 9 inches of lathe left after the last hole.) If you are cutting your own lathes and you have a drill bit long enough to go through a 2x4 in the 4’ direction, I strongly recommend drilling the 2x4s before cutting them. (A drill press helps a lot for this.) Otherwise, you have to clamp the lathes together, hope nothing slips, and do a lot of extra work to drill the holes.

Once you have a pile of lathe boards, you start bolting them together into a lattice. Make sure that all pieces going in one direction are on top and all pieces in the other direction are on the bottom; you do not want any interlacing or weaving. (This will prevent you from being able to fold the khana.)

To apply a bolt, push the bolt through both pieces of lathe (with all the heads ending up on the same side), put the washer and nut on the other side, use the wrench to pull the head as far in as it will go, and then loosen the nut by half a turn. The last step is very important; you need to be able to move the lattices, but you also need to make sure the head of the screw is firmly seated so it can’t fall out. (An advantage of carriage screws is that they effectively have the washer built in on the head side.) And, of course, you don’t want the nuts to be so loose that they fall off.

You can actually make the khana with 1-inch bolts instead of 1.25-inch ones if you want to; you have just enough room to make everything fit. One of the small benefits of a yurt, though, is that you have 100+ convenient coat hooks; I used the longer bolts so I would be able to hang clothes, my cloak, hats, my drum, towels, my drinking horn, and so on from them.

The ends of the khana that adjoin the door need to be straight. This means that the last few pieces on each end will not be full-length; because you will have this problem on both ends, you can cut down some lathes to make these pieces with very little waste. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1: One end of the khana.

You will need to break the khana into at least 2 sections for transport. To do this, pick a point approximately in the middle, remove the nuts and washers, and push the bolts out from the inside layer of wood, leaving them embedded in the outside layer. (When you assemble the yurt, you will probably want to fasten these joints together with wing nuts, which you can tighten with your bare hands.) See Figure 2 for a diagram of how the wall comes apart into sections.

Figure 2: Location of bolts to remove (to separate khana).

Be careful when folding, unfolding, and carrying the khana. Make sure you lift it slightly off the ground before folding or unfolding. While the overall structure is very strong, each individual lathe is fairly weak. (The good news, however, is that the weight is distributed so well that you can even replace a broken lathe while the yurt is standing, and it’s ok to have 3 or 4 broken lathes if they aren’t all next to each other.) It’s generally a good idea to keep a few spare lathes on hand for repairs.

Making the khana is perhaps the most tedius part of constructing a yurt. Don’t be discouraged that it’s taking a long time to insert all the bolts. You only have to do it once, for the most part.

The Door Frame
There are many ways to make a door. I’ve seen frames that are tied to the khana, frames that are bolted to the khana, frames that have slots for the ends of the khana to slide into, and actual doors (not curtains). You may come up with something you like better, but what I’ll describe is the basic tied-in door frame.
You need 2 pieces of 2x4 that are 6 feet long and 2 that are 3 feet long. Cut tabs in the short pieces and notches in the long pieces, as shown in Figure 3. When you put the pieces together, you’ll get a door frame that’s 6x3 (and 4 inches deep).

Figure 3: Notches for door frame.

My door frame has leather hinges. That is, there are sturdy pieces of leather nailed to the outside of the frame, with a `latch’ at one corner. This allows me to unfold the frame while keeping it in one (long) piece; I can then fold this piece and toss it on the roof rack.

You might, instead, prefer a frame that you can take entirely apart. The easiest way to do this is to drill holes through the 4 joints (in the 4-inch direction) and put a bolt in each one. This should also make for a sturdier frame, as leather can loosen over time. (You could use metal hinges instead of leather to solve that problem, I suppose.)

The important thing is that you end up with a sturdy frame. It’s going to be under tension from 3 directions, so you want to make sure it will hold.

The Rafters
The rafters hold up the roof ring. Each rafter hooks over the khana at one end and slides into the ring at the other. The number of rafters you need depends on how cautious you want to be and how many slots you manage to fit into your roof ring (see next section). It’s a good idea to cut a few spare rafters; I’ve found that a couple of mine have bowed when I didn’t have them exactly straight into the roof ring, and it’s nice to be able to replace them easily.
Figure 4 shows what a single rafter looks like.

Figure 4: Rafter layout.

For ease of cutting, I recommend screwing 4-6 1x3s together and cutting them as a group. You can then remove the screws. This is much faster than cutting each rafter individually. A jig saw works well for cutting the rafters. For the notch, you may find it easier to make the two parallel cuts and just use an old screwdriver to break out the pieces.

The holes shown in Figure 4 need to be large enough for a rope to pass through. A 5/16-inch drill bit would probably work, though it would be snug; a 3/8-inch bit should provide plenty of room. You will note that the positions of the holes are not shown precisely; the left one should be within an inch or so of the notch and closer to the bottom edge; the right one should be 1-2 inches from the angled cut and closer to the top edge. Precision is not that important here — but read through all of this article, including the setup instructions, before cutting the rafters so you understand the function of the holes.

The rounded outer edge of the rafter (at the khana end) should be sanded; your roof canvas will be pulled over this, and you don’t want to cause wear on it. If the top edge of the rafter has any rough spots or splinters, you should also sand them. Other sanding may be called for depending on your tolerance for the occasional splinter. Do not sand the sides of the board at the end that will be inserted into the roof ring; it is important not to change the thickness of the board at that point.

For two of your rafters, instead of cutting the khana end as shown in Figure 4, use the cut shown in Figure 5. These rafters will rest on top of your door frame.

Figure 5: The outer end for the door-frame rafters (make a 90-degree angle).

Save the scraps from the rafters to make the roof ring.

The Roof Ring
The roof ring will require some fussing, but it’s worth the time to do it right the first time. (Trust me. We’ve made two.)
The ring consists of two rings of plywood separated by pieces of 1x3. It looks sort of like a large wooden doughnut, 30’ across and 4’ high.

Start by drawing two 30-inch (diameter) circles on the plywood. In the center of each, draw a concentric 26-inch circle. Cut these out. You should now have two rings of plywood, each 4 inches from outside to inside edges.

Take 3 pieces of scrap 1x3. (Two should be 4 inches long; the third can be longer as it’s only a spacer.) Take one of the plywood rings and position the 3 pieces of 1x3 together under it, such that the center piece (the spacer) points straight out. (See Figure 6.) You’ll probably want to use some other 1x3 scraps to hold the ring up so it’s level. Check the 3 pieces to make sure they’re right up against each other (no gaps), and when you are satisfied, apply 2 drywall screws to each of the outer pieces (see Figure 7). Slide the spacer in and out a bit to make sure it can move. You can now remove the spacer.

Figure 6: Positioning the 1x3 pieces and spacer.

Figure 7: Positioning the screws.

You have just created a slot into which one rafter will fit snugly. Now do the same thing on the opposite side of the ring. (That is, create another slot 180 degrees away from the first one — not on the other side of the piece of plywood.)

Now you have two starting points. Pick one and place 2 more pieces plus the spacer as close as you can to the existing slot, while still allowing the spacer to point straight out from the center of the ring. Screw the pieces in, and then proceed to the next position. As you add slots, you will find that the inner ends are generally right up against each other, while there are gaps between the outer edges. (It’s like the spokes of a wheel.) This is normal; do not try to fill in those extra spaces between slots in the front. All rafters must point directly toward the center of the ring. Figure 8 shows a roof ring in progress.

Continue to place slots around the ring until you run out of room. Depending on luck and skill, you should be able to place somewhere between 30 and 36 slots in the ring. (You could get more in by filing down the 1x3 pieces, as shown in Figure 9, but I do not think it’s worth it. 30 rafters will be plenty.)

Figure 8: Adding more slots (longer lines show where rafters go).

Figure 9: Shaving edges to pack in a few more slots (optional!).

Once you have attached all the spacers to one of the plywood rings, turn the ring over (so the plywood is on the bottom), position the other ring on top, and screw it together.

Note: you will find a drill with a screwdriver bit very helpful in construction of the roof ring.

Once you have completed the ring, drill two holes in one side, opposite each other. These are the holes for the center support (used during erection). See Figure 10.

Figure 10: Positioning of support holes (ring viewed from bottom).

Make sure the plywood on the side opposite from where you drilled the holes is smooth. If the surface is rough, sand it to avoid wear on your canvas. You don’t need to sand any of the other surfaces of the ring, though you might want to sand the outside edges (plywood and 1x3s) to make the ring easier to handle.

You might want to cover the inside edge of the ring in some way, to prevent rafters from trying to push through. You can use scrap lathe for this. This is an optional step.

Another optional step depends on how you’re going to be transporting the ring. You will note that when the yurt is set up, you will have a flat spot in the middle of the roof that’s 2.5 feet across, and that is mostly not covered by wood. Rain will tend to collect on the canvas in the center of the ring. So far I haven’t had any problems due to this, but you might want to find some way to create a `dome’ in the center of your ring. One way to do this is to take some scrap lathe and form an `X’ on the inside of the ring (see Figure 11). This will create a dome that prevents water from pooling.

Figure 11: A domed roof ring (optional).

The Temporary Support
The job of the temporary support is to hold up the roof ring until you’ve inserted enough rafters that the configuration is stable. You will need 2 8-foot poles with nails in the ends, two cross- beams that are a little shorter than your roof ring is wide, and the means to attach the latter to the former. You can nail it all together to look like an `H’ with two cross-beams, but this can be a little awkward to pack. Mine has leather hinges that allow the contraption to be folded.
During erection, the nails in the top of the support slide into the 2 holes you drilled in the bottom of the roof ring, and one person stands in the middle of the yurt holding this up while other people insert rafters (see Figure 12).

Figure 12: The center support.

Putting It Together
The first time you put your yurt up, plan to spend a few hours on it. It will get easier once you’ve done it once or twice!
Putting up a yurt works best if you have at least three people, though two can do most of it if they have to. While at least one person I’ve heard of has built `support gear’ to enable him to set his up all by himself, I don’t recommend this at first.

Here are the basic steps to putting up a yurt:

Find a good stretch of ground and spread out the khana. (You’ll need about 50 feet.) You want all the angles to be 90 degrees (so each section of criss-cross is a square and not elongated). Overlap the two sections and bolt them together as described in the section on construction. While you’re doing this, inspect your khana for cracks, and mark any pieces that might need to be replaced. Hairline cracks that haven’t spread very far can be patched by wrapping duct tape around the lathe. (This also serves as a visible marker so you’ll know which ones to replace later.)

Stand the khana up in a straight line. Be careful not to crack the bottoms of the lathes! This is best done with three or four people taking up positions along the length. Go slowly.

Walk the khana into a circular shape, leaving a gap of two or three feet between the ends, with the ends of the bolts pointing into the circle and the heads on the outside. This is very much a process of successive approximation; get it approximately round/oval first and then walk around it and fix specific areas. Also make sure that your angles continue to be 90 degrees, and that the height is even. (I walk around the inside and spot-check the height of the top bolts against my own height.)

Attach the door frame. My door frame is tied to the khana (using more rope than is probably necessary, but better safe than sorry); some people bolt theirs. See the discussion in the section on constructing the door frame for more comments on this. Whatever you do, make sure the door frame is tightly attached. A door represents an inherent weak spot in the design.

Attach your belly bands. Each band should be tied onto the door frame, walked around the outside of the yurt maintaining an even height, and tied to the other side of the door frame. Use a knot for which you can adjust the tension, as you’re going to fuss with these a lot. One belly band goes around the top (over the heads of the top-most bolts), and the other goes halfway down the wall. The belly bands keep the khana from spreading farther out. See Figure 13.

Verify that your khana is still maintaining an appropriate shape and height. If you have to make any adjustments, tighten the bands again.

Now you’re ready for the roof ring. Take your center support and slide the nails into the holes in the bottom of the ring. Stand the supports up in the approximate center of the yurt. (You’ll have to guess.) The person holding the center support needs to be able to keep it vertical (so the ring remains horizontal) and needs to pay attention to what’s going on because of the occasional falling rafter.

While one person is holding the ring up, other people insert the first 4-6 rafters (see Figure 12), evenly spaced around the yurt. (Start with one, then the one opposite it, then the ones between them, and so on.) The easiest way to insert a rafter is to stand outside the yurt, lift the rafter over the top of the khana at an intersection, push the angled end of the rafter into one of the slots in the roof ring, and then set the end you’re holding onto the khana and push the notch over the top intersection. If you find that some rafters aren’t quite fitting and some are trying to fall out, it means the ring isn’t quite centered and needs to be moved. Be very careful when moving a `loaded’ ring; falling rafters hurt! (When I’m the one holding the ring, I try to keep my head directly under the center of the ring, so I’ll take any falling rafters on the shoulders instead of in the head.)

After you’ve put several rafters in (about 8 in my experience, but it varies), the ring will lift up enough that the center support is no longer needed. At this point walk the support out and put the rest of the rafters in. You don’t need all the rafters, but the more you put in the flatter your canvas will lie (reducing the number of places where rain can pool) and the more secure you’ll feel. At Pennsic XXIV we used 30; we will probably go down to 24 or so next time. I’ve seen yurts that used as few as 11, but I don’t recommend that for a first time.

Now that there’s real downward pressure trying to push the khana farther out, you’ll need to adjust the belly bands again. 11. After all the rafters are in, tie a rope to the top of the door frame on one side, run it through the holes in the ends of the rafters, and tie it off on the other side of the door frame. (If your door curtain has grommets in the top, you’ll want to leave a few extra feet of rope at this point so you’ll be able to thread the curtain.)

For extra security, run a rope through the holes in the rafters next to the roof ring. This prevents any rafter from moving more than an inch or two (depending on how close to the ring you got the holes). It isn’t necessary, but it’s comforting. (You’ll need to stand on a chair to reach the ring.)

Figure 13: Positioning of belly bands on khans.

The structural parts are now done. Now you just need to deal with the canvas:

Attach the wall by unfolding it around the outside of the yurt and attaching it with S-hooks to the rope that’s running through the rafters. If the grommets fall too close to the top intersection of the khana in a few places, don’t worry about it and just skip those grommets. If it happens a lot, adjust the position of the wall by a few inches. You should have enough wall left over to wrap around the door frame and into the yurt on each end. Later you can use some scrap rope to tie off the center and bottom grommets on each end if you like. (Just attach them to a convenient section of khana.) You can attach the inside top corners to the rafter rope with S-hooks.

Pull the roof canvas over the top. (This is easier said than done, because the canvas is heavy.) This works best with 3 people — two on the leading corners and one person inside the yurt with a pole (such as a spare rafter) to guide the center of the leading edge. Go slowly and be careful of the center hole, which can easily catch on the ends of the rafters.

Attach your door curtain. If you have grommets in the top, take the excess rope from the rafters, run the curtain through it, and tie the rope off on the other side of the door frame. If you have some other method of hanging your door curtain, use it. You might want to get a couple of large S-hooks so you can hook the sides of the curtain to the khana during high winds, to keep the curtain from blowing inward and letting in rain. I have a couple of roughly 5-inch (hand-forged) hooks that I use for this purpose; large hooks are easy to manipulate from the outside of the yurt. Someone in Moritu has a door curtain that drags the grouns by a foot or so, and just keeps a piece of 2x4 on hand to hold it down.

Take the smoke-hole cover, tie a 15-foot rope to each corner, and drag it across the top of the yurt (this works best with two people, one to pull each leading rope). Check its position from the inside, and when it’s centered, tie the ropes tightly to stakes. To open the flap, loosen two of the ropes and drag the flap a few feet down one side.

Congratulations, you now have a yurt!

What To Do When Something Goes Wrong
Nothing ever goes perfectly the first time, so here are some hints on how to solve specific problems. (I welcome additional problems, with solutions if you have them.)

The roof ring isn’t horizontal during setup; it’s tilting to one side.
This sometimes happens in putting the yurt up, especially on uneven ground. If you don’t do something about it, the roof ring will corkscrew and all the rafters will fall out. It is important for the person holding the center support to keep it vertical, but the ring can still shift after the center support has dropped out.
There are two ways to approach this, depending on how bad the tilt is, how many rafters are already in, and how brave you’re feeling. You should first try to push up on the lower side of the ring (with a spare rafter or the center support) and see if that causes it to settle into a better position. If that doesn’t work, and you’re feeling brave, you can toss a rope up through the center of the ring and out on the high side, take both ends of the rope, and pull down gently. (There’s nothing quite so scary as standing under a loaded roof ring and pulling it toward you, but this does work.)

Some of the rafters are bowed.
This usually means that you’re trying to force a rafter onto a part of the khana where it doesn’t want to be. Try moving it one position to the left or right. If you’re having this problem a lot, you might need to rotate your ring slightly.

Everything creaks and groans and makes scary noises over the course of the first day.
Relax; that’s normal. It’s sort of like a house settling. Inspect your rafters to make sure nothing is bowing badly, and inspect the khana to make sure a section isn’t being pushed way back at the top (which may mean you need to tighten the top belly band). But if all that looks ok, you should be fine.

Some of the khana is bent outward a lot at the top.
Your top belly band might need to be tightened. Once the yurt is set up, make adjustments to the belly bands only with great care; if you release tension on them or pull too hard too suddenly, everything could come tumbling down. (This is why you want to tie a knot that can be slid to tighten, rather than tying a knot that you’d have to untie to adjust.)

Accessories
Now that you have a yurt, you have a world of possibilities in the area of add-ons. You’ll probably find yourself making additions and changes every year.
One obvious feature is that you have many, many places to hang things. In addition to the pegs provided by the bolts, you can hang clothes (on hangers) by hooking the hanger over any intersection on the khana. You no longer need a clothes rack. (Alternatively, you could experiment with a clothes rack that is anchored on one end at the khana and at the other by a free-standing pole, so your rack is perpendicular to the wall.)

The yurt is large enough that you can curtain off a private section and still have plenty of room in which to entertain guests. Because we aren’t allowed to have open flames (let alone campfires) inside structures at Pennsic, I spread carpets over the floor. (Pillows and cushions are an obvious addition, if you do a lot of entertaining.) If you install a cross beam in your roof ring, you can hang a light from the center of the ceiling.

S-hooks are your friends; they hook over the khana and can hold up all sorts of things.

For Pennsic XXV, I’m thinking of building shelves. The basic idea is that a shelf will be approximately 1.4 feet long (the diagonal of one square on the knana), and the back corners will have hooks that are spaced to go over 2 khana intersections. In the front corners will be cords or light chains with S-hooks on the ends. These hooks are then attached to the khana directly above the intersections holding the shelf back. (See Figure 14.) I wouldn’t recommend putting anything heavy, like books, on such a shelf, but it seems like it could be a great way to store clothing that has to be folded, jewelry, and miscellaneous small items. I’m not sure if a shelf twice as long could be safely used, but I may try one.

Figure 14: A khana-supported shelf.

Packing the Roof Rack
I pack my roof rack in the following order:
First layer: rafters, standing on their edges (so they’re 3 inches high).

Second layer: khana, bolt heads down, one layer per khana section.

Third layer: door frame and center support, to the sides of the khana; carpets on top of the khana. (The carpets help hold the khana down and protect it a little more.)

The canvas and roof ring go inside the car, as does the bag containing the wing nuts, S-hooks, ropes, stakes, wrench, and miscellaneous items like seam-sealer.

Remember when tying stuff onto your roof rack to wrap and tie down the front of the pile. The khana is light enough that the wind produced by driving at even moderate speeds can otherwise cause it to bend up and break. And if you don’t know how to tie a diamond hitch, ask someone to show you. It may seem paranoid, but it would be a real pain to have to re-make the khana because it wiggled loose!

Acknowledgements
I am not a carpenter. I am also not an expert on things Mongolian. I learned about yurts from Todric and Bagshi of the Moritu, who were gracious enough to take me on a yurt tour at Pennsic XXII and explain in general terms how they work. I built my yurt from a set of plans by Ino Ogami, who based his plans on ones written by Todric. (My Ogami plans were casualties of the construction process, so I no longer have them to refer to.)
Johan von Traubenburg provided tools, carpentry knowledge, the difficult cuts,. and the realization that it was cheaper to cut our own lathes; he also helped with the first couple setups while we figured out how to debug it. Johan and Dani of the Seven Wells did a large amount of the construction work, which was especially nice because I prefer to remain far away from large power saws.

I would also like to thank Haraldr Bassi, who bravely attempted to build a yurt from a previous, informal instantiation of my description, and got much farther than I would have thought possible without diagrams.

I welcome feedback on this article, especially from people who actually build from it.

About the Author
Ellisif Flakkari is a tenth-century Dane who likes to camp in comfort. Monica Cellio (7634 Westmoreland Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15218, cellio@pobox.com) has far too much crap to fit in a proper Viking A-frame tent for 2 weeks at Pennsic, and wouldn’t be able to transport 15- foot poles anyway.

Copyright
This article is copyright 1995 by Monica Cellio. It may be freely distributed within historical re-creation groups so long as no profit is made, no alterations are made, and this notice remains. For other uses please contact the author (who will quite likely say `sure, go ahead’ but wants to know about it first).

Webbed by Gregory

My garden is not huge, BTW, but the resources around us are good.<<<

That is a plus.

You may want to think about starting a fall and winter garden this year, as this food shortage is not going away.

In fact, as we stock up and grow more careful with our storage food, there will be more food bought, then if they had not talked of a shortage.

Nothing is grown in my area. Or for a hundred miles or more.

Planting a garden does not work as the wind keep all the mulch and compost blown away.

That is the reason that I had the greenhouses, a smallish solar onw attached to the house is a blessing for year around growth.

It is playing the hot and cold game here too.

I like to store nuts and whole grains in canning jars in the freezer. The glass prevents freezer burn and the freezing keeps the quality.<<<

As I do.

I have always used glass when possible for storage of food.

Well I’m getting the garden in slowly but surely. <<<

As long as you get it in.

Think of all that free exercise.

No need to visit the gym.

Grandpa Ira made me a “one eyed mule”.

A plow, welded to the front portion of a bicycle.

Grab the handle bars, push down and forward and plow the field.

I have been known to plow lots of land, when I was mad.

Land that would never be planted, but good exercise and it gets the brain back in gear.

POSSUM LIVING
free EBOOK ~ How to live well with out a job and (almost) no money by DOLLY FREED .... this is a classic and well respected book

http://www.f4.ca/text/possumliving.htm

An excellent book on line, the link goes directly to it, hints, recipes and all kinds of subjects, written by a real person.
granny

Home Remedies

Around here everyone is a “herbalist,” it seems, and is chock full of lore as to what concoction to torture yourself with for any given ailment. Not to be outdone, here’s mine—all tried and true:

* Constipation—roughage; moonshine; run 3 miles

* Gas—moonshine

* Menstrual problems—tell the rotten SOB how rotten he is; moonshine

* Upset stomach—moonshine

[LOL, from the book in my last post.....]

The frame for this ‘Tule house’ would be fantastic for a planting of vines, would give enough shade to rest in, you could pick the grapes or beans or? from inside and outside, it is free branches and LOL, I like it.
granny

http://www.primitiveways.com/Tule%20house7.html

Photo of finished house:

http://www.primitiveways.com/index.html#anchor696518

Also instructions on making everything from scratch, knives, bows, rock hammers, even a Tule boat......things it does not hurt us to know and I always forget...

http://www.primitiveways.com/index.html#anchor696518

http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/4512

Gardening Without Irrigation: or without much, anyway by Steve Solomon

Help — Read online
Bibliographic Record [help] Creator Solomon, Steve
Title Gardening Without Irrigation: or without much, anyway
Language English
LoC Class SB: Agriculture: Plant culture
Subject Vegetable gardening — Northwest, Pacific
EText-No. 4512
Release Date 2003-10-01
Copyright Status Not copyrighted in the United States. If you live elsewhere check the laws of your country before downloading this ebook.
Download this ebook for free

An amazing page about building Solar Hot water heaters, plans, information and photos, also lots of links:

http://www.builditsolar.com/Projects/WaterHeating/water_heating.htm

Commercial page on wind power and other types:

http://www.otherpower.com/

SALSA CANNING RECIPE TOP

This is good, but a little tart due to the vinegar in it. My County Extension home economist says do not alter the recipe, since the time and pressure of processing is dependent on the acidity of the recipe. All in all, I think salsa is better fresh or frozen. Has anybody tried dehydrating all the ingredients, and then preparing a “mix” that can be reconstituted with water? Anyway, here ya go:

5 lb. tomatoes, peeled and chopped

2 lb. green chili, peeled and chopped

1 lb. onion, chopped

3 t. salt

1/2 t. pepper

1 c. vinegar

Combine all ingredients in a large kettle. Bring to a boil and simmer 10 minutes. Fill jars, leaving 1/2 in. headspace. Adjust lids and process in a boiling-water canner - pints 20 minutes, 25 minutes if you live above 6000 ft. altitude.

ODD GRAINS/ MAKE NOODLES

Here is my recipe for Noodles...

4 med eggs 4 half eggshells water

2 tsp. baking powder 1/2 tsp. salt

flour (can be white, wheat, amaranth, spelt, triticale, rice, bean,

etc.)

Mix eggs, water, baking powder and salt thoroughly. Add enough flour to form stiff dough. (I’m not saying how much flour, because different flours have different absorbency and will require different amounts. Just add til it “feels” like a stiff dough.) Roll out thin and cut into strips. Let dry. Drop into boiling chicken, ham, or beef broth. Stir lightly. Then cover and boil, without stirring, until tender (approx.. 10 minutes).

http://www.justpeace.org/nuggets11.htm

GREAT ZUCCHINI SALSA FOR CANNING TOP

Maria’s Zucchini Salsa

10 - 15 cups grated unpeeled zucchini ( about 3 - 5 medium zucchinis )

8 oz. jalapenos ( the first time I used canned jalapenos and it was mild, then I used about 3 jalapenos and it was a little spicier — you can add up to 16 oz. but that’s too spicy for me )

3 - 5 cups chopped onion ( about 4 medium onions )

Mix and refrigerate overnight. Use plastic gloves when handling jalapenos. (I didn’t and suffered — real hot, red hands all night long ) Rinse and drain the next day.

5 - 10 cups chopped tomatoes

5 cloves garlic

2 cups vinegar

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

1 gallon tomato sauce

1 tsp. cumin

1 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes

1 tsp. black pepper

1 tsp. dry mustard

1 TBSP chili powder

1 TBSP corn starch

2 TBSP cilantro ( coriander )

Simmer above ingredients together with the refrigerated mixture for about 1/2 hour. Process pints for 20 minutes or quarts for 45 minutes ( water bath ).Pressure canning, process pints at 10 lbs. for 15 minutes. Makes about 17 pints.

THERMOS COOKING TOP

Did you know you can save lots of energy by cooking many things in a thermos. I have cooked beans, wheat and rice in a thermos very successfully. Some beans require 2 heatings but most things only need the initial heating and more time than usual.

For more information and good instructions go to

http://kurtsaxon.com/foods06.html

SAVING MONEY WITH A THERMOS BOTTLE

Wheat and rice are the staple foods of billions and, if prepared my way, will fill you up, give you boundless energy; and cost next to nothing.

60 pounds of hard red winter wheat, the highest in protein, minerals and vitamins, averages $8.00 (240 breakfasts at 4 cents each). Brown rice, also higher in nutrition than white, costs $14.00 for 25 pounds. Also 200 servings since rice swells twice as large as wheat. These are bought in bulk at any feed and seed store.

I do not mean that wheat and rice, plain, is what I am asking you to live on. When is the last time you have eaten a potato plain? I am simply suggesting you process all your food in inexpensive, energy-saving ways and eat better than you ever have for less than $10.00 per week.

First the thermos. There are three kinds but only one is practical. Forget the cheap, plastic ones lined with Styrofoam. These might cook oatmeal and white rice but do not have the heat holding power you need. Silvered glass thermoses are fine, but a bump will break them. Also, since you are going to do actual cooking and will use a fork to remove the contents, they will not hold up.

The only practical cooking thermos is the Aladdin Stanley. It is lined with stainless steel, is well insulated and will keep steaming hot for up to 24 hours and holds a quart. It is also unbreakable, with a lifetime warranty. It costs $22.00 at Wal-Mart or can be ordered through any sporting goods store. It would save you its price in a few days. If you have a family, get two or three.

Most foods cook at 180 degrees or more. We are used to boiling, which is 212 degrees, and foods do cook faster, the higher the temperature. But if time is not important, cooking at a lower temperature is even better as most vitamins are not broken down. Thus, if you cook at a minimum heat, you save nutrition.

A great factor in thermos cooking is the saving in the cost of energy. Whereas it would take about two hours to cook whole-grain wheat or nearly an hour to cook brown rice. Thermos cookery takes only five minutes of actual fuel-burning to cook. So youÆll save as much in energy as you spend on the food. imagine the convenience of thermos cookery in camping, which would save on wood, weight of food carried, and no food odors to alert bears or raccoons.

Thermos cookery is also an advantage to anyone living where he is not allowed to cook. There are no cooking odors to tip off the landlord.

First, you need the thermos. Then you need a heat source. If you are in a non-cooking room, buy a cheap, one burner hot plate from your local Wal-Mart, Target, Sears etc. You will need a one quart saucepan. You will also need a special funnel to quickly pour the pan’s contents into the thermos, plus a spoon or fork to help the last of the food into the funnel.

To make the funnel, cut off the bottom four inches from a gallon plastic milk container. If you do not buy milk or cannot find an empty container, go to your nearest Laundromat. You will find in the trash receptacle, an empty gallon bleach bottle. Use that the same as the milk container but wash it until there is no more bleach odor.

The first step in thermos cookery is to fill the thermos with water up to the point reached by the stopper. Empty the water into the saucepan and make a scratch or other indelible mark at the water’s surface inside the saucepan. This will allow you to put just enough water in the saucepan, as too much will leave food out and too little will give you less cooking water.

Just to test how the cooker works, start with four ounces of wheat. You do not need to buy 60 pounds. You can buy two pounds from your health food store for about $.80 This would give you eight meals at 10 cents each. In the evening, put four ounces in your saucepan, plus a half-teaspoon of salt to prevent flatness, even if you intend to sweeten it. Fill to the mark with water. (If you have hot water, let the tap run until it is hottest. Tests have shown that less energy is used in using hot tap water than in boiling from cold.) Bring the contents to a rolling boil, stirring all the while. This will take from three to five minutes.

Then quickly, but carefully, swirl and pour the contents into the funnel and help any lagging matter from the pan to the funnel and into the thermos. Cap firmly but not tightly, shake and lay the thermos on its side, to keep the contents even.

Next morning open the thermos and pour its contents into the saucepan. With four ounces of dry wheat, you will now have at least 3/4 pound of cooked wheat and about a pint of vitamin and mineral enriched water. It has a pleasant taste. Drink it.

You can now put milk and sweetener on it or margarine, salt and pepper, etc. If you can eat the whole 3/4 of a pound, you will be surprised at how energetic you feel for the next several hours. An added bonus is its high fiber content.

Having tried the four ounce portion, you might next use eight ounces. This will absorb most of the water. It is unlikely that you could eat a pound and a half of cooked whole grain wheat. You can either divide it and eat the other half for supper or if you are a family man, make it the family breakfast food to replace the expensive brand. If you have children, get them into the act by fantasizing they are Rangers on a jungle patrol. For lunch, prepare a few ounces of hamburger or other meat chopped finely, plus chopped potatoes and other vegetables the night before. After breakfast, put these and the right amount of water in the saucepan and prepare as usual. At lunchtime you will have a quart of really delicious stew. Since nothing leaves the thermos in cooking, as contrasted to the flavor leaving stew cooking on the stove, you can understand the better tasting, higher vitamin content of thermos stew.

Lunch and possibly supper should not cost you more than 25 cents if you study the article on the dehydrator. Jerky and dried vegetable stew is good and costs little.

The brown rice dishes could also be either a main course or desert. Brown rice has a much greater swelling factor than wheat so four ounces of rice will pretty much fill the thermos. You can put vegetables and meat in it to cook or try a favorite of mine. It is four ounces of brown rice, 9 cents; one ounce of powdered milk, 10 cents in a large box; two ounces of raisins, 22 cents; one teaspoon of salt; some cinnamon and four saccharine tablets. Cook overnight. This is 46 cents for 1 1/2 pounds of desert.

With some experimenting, you can become an expert in thermos cookery. If you are single and live alone, you could, conceivably, eat nothing except what you cooked in a thermos. But if you are married, and especially if you have children, don’t push it. Even with the economy of this system, it’s not worth alienating your family. If your wife doesn’t like it, challenge her to make the food tastier and think up some thermos recipes. You might also tell her the advantages of thermos cookery.

For one thing, she would spend much less time in the kitchen. What with the expected brownouts, she could do all the cooking in five, ten, fifteen minutes, depending on how many thermos bottles she used. Another important factor is that, especially during the heat waves, the home would not suffer the added heat from the kitchen.

I noticed in I believe the Seventh Generation catalog something similar: it’s actually a slow cooker that works on the same principle. You boil the food.... then put it into the cooker. The cooker is non-electric and will keep the food hot up to 14 hours. I may get one to save on my use of propane for those long stewing things. I’ve also come to appreciate my 6 qt stainless steel pressure cooker for fast cooking....especially beans.

DEHYDRATING COOKED BEANS AND RICE TOP

By cooking and dehydrating beans and rice in advance, you can save time and energy when using them for a meal.

First I cook the rice or beans fully! Then I spread it on cookie sheets and dry it at about 200 degrees for about 4 or 5 hours. To test I put some dehydrated rice in cold water. Cold because I figured if it would rehydrate in cold it would do great with hot. It rehydrated great. So now, in soups, or just a dish, all I have to do is soak it in cold water, and add it to a dish I am warming. Also, if we do have more problems and work than we think it sure will be a lot quicker. And one more thing. It is crunchy and not all bad! My 17 year old son grabs a handful every time he passes the cookie sheet I’ve taken from the oven.

We also presently eat our dehydrated corn (with salt) just as it is. My husband has taken pinches of most everything (spinach, collards, pineapple (I have to hide), etc. and has eaten them dry. He said they are not bad at all and he could tolerate them. So, there you have it.

TOMATO GRAVY TOP

Put 2 tablespoons of oil, then 2 tablespoons of flour, stir in skillet until flour is a pale, pale brown. Gradually add milk, stirring constantly, until it’s the consistence of buttermilk. Stir and cook until gravy is covered in bubbles (boiling), add milk as needed to keep it from becoming too thick. Make SURE mixture is boiling when you slowly add about 4 tablespoons of canned tomatoes. (I like it with more tomatoes than that, myself). Add salt and pepper to taste, dash of sugar. Simmer on very low heat stirring constantly until gravy is thick and bubbly.

Webservant’s note: You can also make this with tomato sauce. I make it as above, only adding one small can tomato sauce in place of the canned tomatoes. It’s great over biscuits, and much less cholesterol then sausage or bacon.

STORING CHEESE WITHOUT REFRIGERATION TOP

Start with a good hard cheese (such as cheddar). Dip it in a salt water solution strong enough to float an egg and set it on a rack to dry in the open air. The next day, rub with salt and turn over and dry on rack. The third day repeat the salt rub again. After three days, you should be able to see the rind developing. If it feels dry and smooth, it is ready to wax. If not, rub the surface with a little salt and dry again. You can also add a little vinegar to the salt water to help retard mold. Before a cheese can be waxed, it must have developed a nice, dry rind. In should not have any cracks. When you are satisfied that the rind is dry and that there are no cracks in the cheese, you are ready to wax it. Melt enough paraffin to cover half the cheese when it is immersed. Use a double boiler and bring the paraffin (or cheese wax that you have obtained from a cheese making supply house) to no higher than 210*F. Use caution as paraffin if highly flammable. Make certain that your hands are clean. Hold the cheese in one hand and dip into the melted paraffin. Hold up to ten seconds. Remove from the paraffin and hold the cheese in your hand for up to two minutes or until the paraffin is firm. Dip the remaining half of the cheese following the same directions. You may also turn the cheese a quarter turn now and repeat the above process. Store in a cool place. As this cheese is stored, it will continue to develop it’s flavor (that’s what cheese does). Store in a cool dark place.

ANTIBIOTIC ALTERNATIVES {TOP}

For things to use as topical antibiotics, (that is, things to put on a cut or scrape), try the old favorites: rubbing alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, or even good old soap-and-water (Ivory soap is something that no bacteria every learned to live through, and the industrial detergents used in Joy dish soap are lethal to ‘em, too). Tincture of Green Soap, and Betadine are available for the truly paranoid.

http://www.justpeace.org/nuggets15.htm

DRIED VEGGIE AND MACARONI CASSEROLE {TOP}

As I think I’ve mentioned before, I’m on a y2k-diet this week, preparing meals without going to the grocery store, and using as little as possible from the refrigerator. Tonight it was macaroni and sauce made with zucchini and carrots that I had dried earlier, and dried onions that I bought at Sam’s.

First I reconstituted the zucchini, carrots, and onions, adding 1-1/2 cups boiling water to 1-1/2 cups of the dried veggies. Then I went and looked at some email, came back, started the macaroni cooking, and put the veggies in the cast iron skillet, together with garlic powder, chili powder, crushed red peppers, tomato sauce, cheese powder, a little olive oil, bouillon and brown gravy mix (which I am buying in large containers at Sam’s — it’s actually a good tasting brown gravy, and has no fat). By the time the macaroni was done, the sauce was ready, everything was mixed together, and all the carnivores in my household raved about how good it tasted, even though it had no meat (I used 1/4 cup cheese powder, and about 1/8 cup brown gravy mix, plus three bouillon cubes, 1 can tomato sauce, which made enough to sauce the cooked macaroni (I started with 2 cups dry macaroni).

I made garlic toast from Vienna bread I made yesterday, and had cake for dessert, also made yesterday.

++++++++++++++++++

OLIVE OIL/PARMESAN BREAD SPREAD {TOP}

First I mix some grated parmesan cheese, ground cayenne pepper, garlic and onion powder, and mixed Italian herbs. I add enough olive oil so that it clumps together (this is not very much oil). Then I spread it on crackers, bread, or sprinkle it on top of pasta. Most people kind of sniff at it at first, but once they try it, they don’t even want butter. I usually use fat-free parmesan cheese, as I can’t particularly tell the difference between regular parmesan and the fat free (this is the only cheese for which this is true).

GARDENING 101

An extensive discussion of the tools and supplies required to successfully grow all of the food you need.

If you want to eat tomorrow, take care of your garden today.

Seeds, glorious seeds, what a gift of nature. We are trusted with these wonderful packages and if we take good care of them they reward us many times over. It is not enough to just throw the seeds on the ground and hope they will provide you with a bountiful harvest. We first have to tend to their needs before they will tend to ours. Gardening these days is integrated into the modern system. We have rototillers, city water, processed fertilizers (even the steer manure comes in a bag). What happens to our garden should this modern supply line go dry?

What items will you need to sustain your garden that is going to sustain you?

Seeds are your first concern, but what are the best kind to use? Hybrid or F1 and F2 are the fancy modern heavy producer, bug resistant, disease resistant varieties. But these seeds have a fatal flaw. They are sometimes sterile. I would like to quote Marc Rogers who has written a definitive book on the topic of saving seeds.

“What About Hybrids?

Home gardeners are generally advised not to save seeds from hybrid crops. The offspring of hybrid plants, especially corn, are sometimes sterile. When they do bear fertile seed, that seed will produce plants unlike the parent plant. The product of a cross between hybrid plants often reverts to resemble one of its ancestors. Since the reason for growing hybrid seed is usually the exceptional vigor to be found in the first generation after the cross, there would be little to gain from breeding hybrids back in the direction of their parent and grand parent plants. There’s certainly no harm in saving hybrid seed, though. If you like to experiment, go ahead and plant those seeds. Don’t expect great things of this second generation, but keep your eyes open and you might grow something you would enjoy. You shouldn’t depend on seed saved from a hybrid crop though, if you want to be sure of harvesting what you need next year.” Saving Seeds: The gardener’s guide to growing and storing vegetable and flower seeds by Marc Rogers

This is where the over looked open-pollinated seeds come into the picture. These “old-fashioned” seeds have been in planted in garden for hundreds of years. In books dating back to the 1800’s you can find references to these plants. These seeds fed our grandparents and great grandparents. They probably saved seeds from their plants and carefully stored them away for the next growing season. I’ll bet when a youngin’ moved out of the family house they to took some seeds to start their own garden. These open pollinated or non hybrid seeds are the seeds that will feed our families, the seeds we will save for the next growing season. These seeds are our life line. Now, we need to have the supplies and tools necessary to take care of these precious gifts.

In most areas of the county, gardens need some help to continue to produce top quality and large quantities of food. The soil needs nutrients to nourish the plants, the weeds need controlling, the pests need eradicated and the plants need water, and, thank goodness Mother Nature has already provided the sun light. To take care of the basic needs of a garden you will need tools, chemicals; natural or man made, fertilizer; natural or man made, and a strong back. I am an organic grower, the thought of using pesticides on my garden is hard to fathom. Now, if my garden fails me because I didn’t control the bugs, I just run to the store and buy some food. In a situation where I am dependent on my garden to feed my family, I may need some extra help, I will need to decide whether or not to hold to my no pesticide principles or keep the garden producing.

I had a situation pop up this year in my garden. I had a population of Harlequin Bugs (squash bugs) show up in the garden on my pumpkins. They moved to my summer squash and my winter squash. They can give the plant a disease that can kill the plant. It would be slim pickin’s this winter if I lost all of my winter squash and summer squash to this bug. And the bad part is they will winter over in my garden so I will have these bugs again. I went out every evening and looked for eggs but I missed some and my pumpkins started to die. I had 4 vines and lost 3. I finally broke down and got some Malathion and sprayed the bugs. I have never used a pesticide in my garden before and hope I never have to again but if I hadn’t stopped these squash bugs we wouldn’t have any squash to pack away this fall. This left me with a very uneasy feeling down deep in the pit of my stomach. If it had been the year 2000 and I couldn’t buy any pesticides, I may have starved my children. The Harlequin Bug is only one of the pests that can attack the garden. I will keep some pesticides on hand to use if I have to.

I immediately took the infested pumpkin plants out of the garden and burned them. It is really important to keep the garden and surrounding area free from weeds and piles of vegetation. These piles and weeds are a breeding ground for pests. Also clean up the garden as soon as you can in the fall. This will keep some of the pests from wintering over.

If I need to control a pest, I will start with the mildest organic or home-made pesticide but if I need to gain control to keep the garden producing I will use a few pesticides to get control. With the pest population being controlled with pesticides, the absence of pesticide will create a surge in the pest population for a few years. If the big farms are shut down, there may be more pests for a few years until the population of beneficial insects can catch up. Rodent control is going to be another threat to our stored food. Get the supplies you need incase you are inundated with rodents.

Water

There is a chance that you may not have much water for your garden. Water collection and conservation measures may be needed. I would not rely on city water for my garden. If you are on a private well and can get the water to the surface without electricity, you will probably be fine. If not, here are some ways to get and conserve water. First, get several rain barrels to save the water from your roof. Or you can run the water from your roof into a cistern or tank buried in the ground.

Gray water from the house can be used to water the garden. This includes any water from the house except dirty toilet water and sink and washer machine water with harsh soaps. Bath water and dish water with mild soap residue can be used on the garden.

To conserve water in the garden, water in the cool of the morning or evening to minimize evaporation. Also mulch the ground heavily with hay, straw, sawdust or grass clippings to keep the water from evaporating. A good layer of mulch 2 to 3 inches thick can reduce your watering in half. Also the more organic material you have in the garden the better your soil will hold moisture.

Tools: Essential to the garden without power will be hand tools such as a shovel This I think is the most important tool and you should have two. A spare just in case it breaks but most important, for someone else to use to help with the work. Children need to learn gardening skills. Hands on is the best way. They will watch the plants closely if they help plant and care for them they will be immensely proud when their tomato is served for dinner. e

extra shovel handles — Grab a few extra handles just incase one breaks

hoes — A couple of hoes will help you get those weeds that are using up the water and nutrients you plants need. Try to get a regular hoe and a stirrup hoe.

rakes — You should have a leaf rake and a regular rake.

spade, hand held This is a must for planting seedlings.

hoses Have enough to reach the garden and back to the spigot. Some people will be on well water or gravity feed and will still have water if the power fails.

sprayers — Two sprayers one for pesticides and one for herbicides. It is very important not to mix you pesticides (to kill bugs) and herbicides (to kill weeds) in the same sprayer. If the pesticides get on the weeds it doesn’t turn out to bad but if the herbicides end up on your garden, it is probably the end of your garden!

water can — If the water system should fail you will need a water can to carry water to the garden. A 2 to 3 gallon can is plenty big enough if you have to carry it any distance. A one gallon can will cause you to make many trips. Use that wagon you got for the kids many years ago. rain barrel Get a big trash can and place it under the rain spout of your house. This will supply you with water for the garden and you, if you need it. If you are going to drink the water it will need to be boiled.

gloves — A stash of gloves will save you many blisters. Have both leather and cotton gloves. A few extra pairs for the kids will help also. scissors Keep the garden trimmed up. This will keep the pest population down.

pruners — Use for anything to big for the scissors.

pots-plastic, clay and peat — Most of you will want to start some of your garden plants in the house. Tomatoes, cabbage, peppers and related plant families will do great in reusable clay or plastic pots. Two or three inch pots will be the best size for seedlings. If you are going to reuse pots, sterilize them first. Scald in boiling water or use a mild Clorox solution. For plants in the squash, melon and cucumber families, these plants can be started indoors but need a biodegradable pot such as peat or newspaper. They have a root system that doesn’t tolerate being disturbed. For these plants use a 3 or 4 inch pot, plant 3 to 5 seeds in each pot and plant the whole pot (poke a few holes in it with a pencil). This is called a hill.

potting soil — Sterile potting soil is critical for some seeds to sprout. Tomatoes and peppers do best in sterile soil. Stock up on some from a nursery, keep it dry to keep the pathogens and diseases out of it. If you have no potting soil you can cook your garden soil to sterilize it. Twenty minutes at 350F will do.

compost — The garden soil will need to be fed. You can use compost or commercial fertilizer. Stock up on one or the other. Compost can be made on your place from scraps, weeds and grass clippings. Rodale press has a great book on composting it is called: The Rodale Guide To Composting, by Jerry Minnich and Marjorie Hunt. With a good compost heap you can sustain your garden forever. (It reminds me of having a sour dough starter to take care of).

fertilizer: — organic or chemical There are organic fertilizers and chemical ones. Most of the chemical fertilizers are elements that are mined out of the ground and refined. This throws them out of the natural fertilizer category. The plants can change natural or chemical fertilizers into plant substances so you can pick either product the plants don’t really care. Chemical is usually cheaper but is dangerous around little kids and pets. The chemicals fertilizers can destroy kidneys if to much is ingested. Read the bags to figure out how much you will need for the size or garden you are growing. If you use a fertilizer with to high of nitrogen you will get big green plants and no fruit. Read the label to be sure the fertilizer is for gardens. When fertilizing tomatoes, get the fertilizer made specially for tomatoes. This will be good for peppers and strawberries too. If you get a fertilizer that is for ornamental flowers only it may have trace elements like Molybdenum that is toxic to us. Be sure the fertilizer is labeled for gardens. I prefer an organic fertilizer, that comes in bags or use compost. I don’t recommend fertilizer straight from the back end of the cow or any other animal until it has been composted. The composting helps to remove the salt that can burn your plants. If you have to use straight fertilizer right out of a critter use one that is pellet shaped, like rabbit or goat, these are not as “hot”. Any manure that goes splat is hotter than the kind that rolls.

Epsom salts — This is the perfect additive for tomato plants. It helps keep the plant blooming and the fruit firm. Use 1/4 cup per tomato plant per season.

pesticides: — chemical, organic and home made Southern gardeners beware. If the system fails and farmers can’t get their usual amount of pest control you might end up with an epidemic proportion of pests for a few years. Have something on hand. I don’t like to use it either but it is better than starving. Check with local growers to see which pests are in your area. The local Ag department can help also. Organic and home made pesticides work wonders and are safer and cheaper. See list of home made pesticides at the end of this report.

plastic — A layer of plastic can extend your growing season and will make any spot under plastic a zone warmer. You need to get the good plastic. Have the local greenhouse get you a greenhouse film with UV inhibitors in it. The UV inhibitors will keep the plastic good for 4 to 5 years. If you have the lumber yard get your plastic, it will more than likely not have UV inhibitors and will last only 1 year. Pay more and get the good stuff.

burlap — I use burlap to cover the plants when we first bring them out of the house and to the garden. I leave it over the plants for 7 to 10 days until they are hardened off and can handle the wind and sun. Local craft stores have burlap by the yard, it is fairly inexpensive.

alcohol Isopropyl — Alcohol is a great pesticide and cleaner. Use for aphids, mealybugs, scale, thrips and whitefly control. Mix ½ cup Isopropyl alcohol (70%) with 1 cup water and spray on leaves and pests. Alcohol can burn the leaves of certain plants. African Violets and apple trees are sensitive to alcohol sprays. Test a few leaves on your plant before you spray the whole plant.

salt — Common table salt can be used for an herbicide, to kill unwanted weeds. Mix 1/4 cup salt with a quart of boiling water and pour over weeds. Don’t use this where you are going to grow plants, the salt content of the soil can get to high. Also you can pickle the weeds. Use 1/4 cup vinegar, 2 t salt and 1 quart of water. Mist onto weeds in the heat of the day.

card board — Earwigs like dark, tight places to hide in during the day. Lay some corrugated cardboard out in the garden where you have had earwig damage. The earwigs will climb into the cardboard to hide during the day. Collect the cardboard and burn it. wire This can be used to make tomato cages and other supports in the garden.

twine — This can be used to tie up your plants, or keep the dog out. tomato cages Most tomato plants need some kind of support to keep the fruit off of the ground.

blankets/ row cover — In cold climates it is important to be able to cover the plants when that last late frost come by in the spring or an early frost in the fall. Plastic is a good cover as long as it doesn’t touch the plants. Fabric is better. Your local nursery will have row covers and frost blankets made for the garden. The one that we sell at our nursery is called N-Sulate and it is made by DeWitt.

shade cloth — This can be used to keep the bugs off of your plants in the summer. Get the type with the least amount of shade. They come in 25%, 33% or 50% shade. The higher the % the more shade it makes. Local nurseries can get shade cloth for you.

tires — I use old tires hold heat in around the plants in the spring. It also stops some of the wind and you can put a board over the top of them at night if it is still freezing.

wall-o-water — This is another great product for keeping the frost off of your plants. I use them in the spring for the tomatoes and peppers. It is a great way to get an early crop. It will protect your plants down to 17F. Local nurseries carry them . Also get a repair kit, they tend to leak after the 1st year. It is best to take them off the plants when the night temperatures stay up around 50F. Store them out of direct sunlight so they will last longer.

rain barrel — If the only water you get for the garden is from rain you will want a barrel at each corner of the house.

wood — Use this to make temporary covers for the plants at night. Also can be used to create shade for the plants when they are first set out. nails For building supports and to feed iron deficient plants.

ammonia — used for pest control.

newspapers — Newspapers are great for mulch in the garden and for making

paper pots for your squash transplants.

mouse traps — To keep down rodent populations and to keep the cat from digging in the garden. Set traps out where you don’t want the cat or dog.

Here are some home made recipes that use house hold items to control the garden pests, and some other great garden tips.

Bees or Wasps in the House — Spray the insect with hair spray. The spray will stiffen their wings and they will plummet to their death.

Black Flies or Gnats — Water soil with a mix of 1 teaspoon of ammonia and 1 quart of water. Do this every 3 days for 3 weeks.

Alcohol Sprays — Use for aphids, mealybugs, scale, thrips and whitefly control. Mix ½ cup Isopropyl alcohol (70%) with 1 cup water and spray on leaves and pests. Alcohol can burn the leaves of certain plants. African Violets and Apple trees are sensitive to alcohol sprays. Test a few leaves on your plant before you spray the whole plant.

Caterpillar Deterrent Citrus Spray — Caterpillars don’t like the taste of citrus, it’s bitter chemicals run the caterpillars off. To make a citrus spray, grind up the rinds and seeds of any citrus fruit. Soak over night in 2 cups of water. Strain out the pulp, add 2 t liquid soap to mix. Spray on plants.

Garlic Oil Spray — Use for control over aphids, cabbage loopers, earwigs, June bugs, leafhoppers, squash bugs, and whiteflies. Mince 1 bulb garlic , soak in 2 t mineral oil for 24 hours, mix 1 pint of water with 1 T liquid soap , add garlic mix to water and soap , Mix throughly . Strain out garlic and place into a jar for storage . Use 1 to 2 T garlic oil mix to 2 cups water. Spray plants covering all leaf surfaces.

Fire Place Ashes — Use wood ashes from your fire place to control any soft bodied bug such as pear slugs and regular slugs. Sprinkle the powder where ever these creatures travel. The powder dehydrates the slugs and they die.

Low-fat milk For Aphids — To control aphids apply nonfat dried milk, mixed according to the box, onto the leaves of your plants. The aphids get stuck in the milky residue and perish.

Slug Terminator — Spray slugs with a mix of 1 part vinegar and 1 part water to terminate your slugs. Mix vinegar and water into a trigger sprayer and spray directly onto the slug. They will die almost immediately. Also spray the ground around your plants and any hidden slugs will come out of the sprayed soil and die.

Drunken Slug — Set a shallow pan of beer (the darker the better) out into the garden where the slugs hang out. They can not resist the taste of beer and crawl in and drown.

Slug trap — Use a plastic pop bottle to catch slugs. Remove the lid, cut the pop bottle just below the curve of the neck all the way around. Invert the neck piece and staple it inside of the main piece. Throw in some slug bait or some beer and set in the garden where the slugs are doing the damage. The slugs can crawl in but don’t crawl out.

Slug Stopper — Sprinkle a ring of moth crystals around the base of your plants to keep the slugs from eating your plants. The slugs as well as cats, dogs and raccoons will stay away from these plants.

Weather Forecasting Crickets— You can tell the outside temperature in Fahrenheit by counting the number of chirps made by a cricket in 14 seconds then add 40 to it.

Earwig Catcher — Earwigs like dark, tight places to hide in during the day. Lay some corrugated cardboard out in the garden where you have had earwig damage. The earwigs will climb into the cardboard to hide during the day. Collect the cardboard and burn it.

Codling Moth Broth — To catch codling moths, use a mixture of 2 parts vinegar and one part molasses. Place this mixture in a tin can and hang it in the apple tree. Clean out the moths and place more mix in the can when needed.

Fly Catcher — To catch flies, place a piece of meat in a jar. Using a quart jar, place a small piece of meat and ½ inch of water into the jar. Punch a few holes big enough for the flies to crawl in, into the lid of the jar. Screw on the lid and set in a good fly location. When the fly crawls in, it can’t get out. Clean out the jar when the smell gets to strong or it gets full of flies.

Yellow Sticky Traps — To catch white flies, gnats and aphids use STP motor oil treatment or honey. Smear motor oil treatment or honey onto bright yellow plastic and place it amongst your plants with bugs. When the plastic gets full of bugs, wipe them off and reapply STP motor oil treatment or honey and set the trap out again.

How to Get the Skunk Smell off of Your Dog — 1 quart 3% Hydrogen Peroxide , 1/4 cup baking soda , 2 teaspoons baby shampoo, Mix up solution. Thoroughly wet dog and shampoo in. Let sit for 5 minutes then rinse. Be sure not to get the solution in the dogs eyes. The percentage of Hydrogen Peroxide is not strong enough to bleach the dogs hair.

Protect Your Grapes from the Birds —,Just before your grapes ripen when the birds start to get into them protect your crop with plastic grocery bags. Punch each bag full of air holes. Slip a bag around each bundle of grapes and staple to hold bag in place.

Spank Your Fruit Trees — For more fruit production, take a rolled up newspaper and spank the day lights out of the trunk of your fruit trees. This action loosens the cambium layer and more sap will flow up to the tree producing more fruit. This is for more fruit the following year.

Mini Greenhouses — When you first place your seedlings out you will want to protect them from to much wind, sun or frost. A gallon milk jug with the bottom cut out and the lid off is the perfect mini green house for setting out your plants. If it is going to frost, just put the lid on for the night. If the jug keep blowing off, cut off the top of the handle. Next run a stick through the handle, this will secure the jug to the stick. Push the stick down into the ground to anchor it. The wind will not pick it up now.

Mini Shade House — When first setting out seedling the can be wind burned or sunburned. To help the acclimate your plants to the great outdoors you can protect them with a mini shade house. Cut out a 18 inch by 24 inch piece of woven fence material, being sure to leave the extra wire that sticks out when you cut it. Bend it into the shape of an arch. Cut a piece of burlap 20 inches by 26 inches. Hook the burlap over the ends of the fence material. Set the whole unit over your transplanted seedlings. Leave this over them for a week to harden off your plants. This is great for working people because you never build up heat under this covering so you don’t have to take it off during the day if the sun shines to hot.

Dress up Your Garden —Use old panty hose for tying up your plants. The panty hose are strong and will not cut into the tender stems. Another use for old panty hose is to place them over the heads of your cabbage. As your cabbage grows the panty hose will stretch.

Canned Corn — To keep birds and squirrels from eating your corn, place aluminum pop or beer cans on your corn ear. Prepare the cans by cutting off the tab end. Next punch air holes all the way around the can. When you see birds or squirrels getting into your corn, slip a can over each ear until it is ripe.

Eggshell Planters —Eggshells make great plant starters. When you crack your egg, just take

off the tip of one end. Rinse out the shell and poke a small drain hole into the bottom of the shell while it is still wet. Fill shell 3/4 full of potting soil and plant seeds. When it is time to plant out just crush the egg shell and plant into the ground. The egg shell adds lime to help feed the soil and plant.

Mildew on Your Peonies — Sprinkle your peonies with cinnamon to stop molds and fungi. Tokyo researchers have found that fungi will not grow in the presence of cinnamon.

Clothespin for Roses — To avoid being stuck when working with roses, use a spring type clothes pin to hold the stem instead of your fingers.

Baking Soda Spray — Use baking soda to control fungal diseases, especially black spot on roses. Dissolve 1 t baking soda in 1 quart of water, add 1 t liquid soap. Spray entire leaf surfaces of plants every 3 days for 21 days. Reapply after every rain.

No Room for a Garden? — If you want to grow a tomato plant or a cucumber plant and you have no room. Get a bale of straw, poke some holes in it and pour compost into the holes. Plant your vegetables right into the bale. Water when needed. The decomposing bale will feed your vegetables all season.

Soak Your Feet or Feed Your Tomatoes — Epsom salt is great for getting your tomato plants to produce large crops of tomatoes. It also helps to prevent blossom end rot. Use 1/4 cup around the base of each tomato plant every year. Sowing of Small Seeds

Season salt or spice shakers are great to use to sow small seeds. — Place your tiny seeds in the shakers with some fine sand and shake away. The sand helps to evenly distribute your seeds so they don’t end up in one pile.

Quick Sprout Carrots — Soak your carrot seeds in a glass of warm water for 24 hours. Drain off water and place carrot seeds evenly on several wet paper towels. About ½ inches apart. Layer the paper towels in a glass baking dish. Place a sheet of plastic wrap between the layers. Cover the whole dish with plastic wrap. Place in a warm location for about a week. When you start to see little white sprout coming out of the end of the carrot seed it is time to plant them. Place the paper towel in the garden row. Cover lightly with soil and water lightly. Your carrots should be up in a few days.

Rid Your Sidewalks of Weeds and Grass — To kill weeds and grass in unwanted places such as the cracks in your side walks, pour boiling salt water directly onto the weeds or grass for an instant kill.

Hammer Those Tough Weeds — For those hard to pull weeds, hook them with the claw end of a hammer and pull.

Pickle Those Weeds — To kill weeds in areas that you don’t plan to plant anything you can use a solution of vinegar and salt. 1/4 cup vinegar , 2 t salt , 1 quart water , Spray weed until soaked. Heat of the day is best.

Fizzy Bubbles — To clean the dirt and stains out of the crevices and cracks of your hands. Drop two denture tables into 2 cups of warm water. Soak your hands for 15 to 20 minutes. It will also remove the dirt from under your nails and will also soften your hands.

I invite you to use this guide as a first step in developing you own garden survival list. Mentally walk through the garden season and list all of the items you use. If any of them are “modern appliances” you will need to think of a man powered replacement or back up system. Contact your local county extension agent and find out what pests lurk in your neck of the woods. Get the supplies you will need to eradicate the pests that will plague your garden. Find a gardener to buddy up with. There should be several experienced gardeners in your area. Go ask them some questions. Find out when they plant, what they plant, what pests they deal with, what kind of fertilizer they use, be sure to take notes. Most gardeners love to talk about their gardens. Go to the library and find some books on gardening. The ones you like have the book store order for you. Fore thought and preparation is the key. It is very possible for us to feed our families from our gardens. Generations before us have done it, so can we!

VIENNA BREAD {TOP}

Vienna bread is an oval loaf, with a chewy crust (plus I sprinkled a lot of sesame seeds on). I found the recipe in the Pillsbury Complete Book of Baking, which I bought in mint condition at a garage sale a few weeks ago for a buck.

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons yeast

1 cup warm water

5-1/2 to 6 cups all purpose flour

3 tablespoons sugar

1 cup milk (I used reconstituted nonfat dried milk)

2 tablespoons oil (I used olive)

2 teaspoons salt (I omitted this and they taste great)

1 egg white, slightly beaten

sesame seeds

I put one of the tablespoons of sugar in the cup of warm water in a large bowl, sprinkle the yeast over the top of the water so the buds moisten and then let this sit for five minutes, so the yeast blooms (bubbles up and gets foamy). Stir in two cups of flour and the rest of the sugar. Cover and let this rise in a warm place for one hour. It rises up and looks a little like a sponge.

In a saucepan, heat the milk and oil until warm (105 to 115 degrees) (note that this is not anywhere near boiling hot). Add the warm liquid to the flour mixture (after it has risen once). Add salt (if desired) and 2-1/2 to 2-3/4 cups flour, a little at a time, stirring it so it mixes, and eventually pulls cleanly away from the sides of the bowl.

Turn this out onto a floured surface, and knead in 1 to 1-1/4 cups flour until the dough is smooth and elastic (8 to 10 minutes, I usually say the Lord’s Prayer and the Hail Mary during this, it really is a nice prayer time, the prayers spoken aloud become a rhythm for the kneading). Place this dough in a greased bowl, cover and let rise in a warm place until double in size, 1 to 1-1/4 hours. Punch down the dough. Cover, let rise a second time (actually, this is the third rising if you count the initial sponge rising) until double in size, another 50 to 60 minutes.

Generously grease a large cookie sheet. Punch down the dough several times so that the air bubbles are gone. Divide the dough into two parts, roll them into balls (as I roll, I usually fold the side under, in a maneuver that is kind of like turning it inside out, it’s kind of hard to describe in words, but you want a nice round ball of dough, however you get it that way). Place the round balls of dough well apart on the greased cookie sheet, and cut five deep slits on the tops of the loaves. Cover, let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 30 to 40 minutes.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Uncover the dough. Lightly brush the tops and sides of the loaves with beaten egg white, sprinkle generously with sesame seed. Bake 40 to 50 minutes or until the loaves sound hollow when lightly tapped. Immediately remove them from the cookie sheet, cool on wire racks. Always let bread cool at least 20 minutes before slicing. Resist the temptation to immediately tear into it, even though it smells wonderful. High altitude instructions: no change.