WELCOME!
I am Cecilia. A New Zealander who farms in Illinois.
My farms are organic and regenerative and full of stories. I have been writing here about environmentally sustainable farming and food and travel since 2011.
Join Us!
LATEST POSTS
-
Cows and Fish in the cold
In the cold we give cows rougher hay. That way their digestive systems take a bit longer to break down the hay generating a bit more energy as heat in their bellies. All the pigs eat hay too as part of their diet but they chew it better before swallowing. Cows have a longer more…
-
Frigid.
Good morning from the frigid freaking cold Midwest. I am sitting in my piggy bed wearing my warm Kathmandu jersey and my brothers wooly hat writing to you because the house is cold! Everything is cold! I will race to a hot shower then put on multiple layers and that’s just for inside! This feels…
-
tea towels below freezing
Even when it is cold. Very cold. We still hang washing on the clothesline to dry. Sometimes the garments freeze solid! But eventually they dry!! If it is snowing we hang the laundry on racks inside. Our clothes last twice as long plus it uses no energy to dry them. This is not a choice.…
-
I am thankful for every day
For all my American friends – have a lovely Day of Thanks. I am thankful for every day I have here on this magic planet. It is cold this morning – as is befitting the season. I have been looking back over some old posts – choosing a few to use for our retrospective posts…
-
Make Chicken or Turkey Stock.
This was originally posted in December of 2016. When we are cooking big feasts for holidays it is fun to cook with an eye to leftovers. Making stock from the carcass of the turkey is the first step towards a fab soup the day after. The main difference between stock and broth is that stock…
-
A Bad Worker Blames His Tools
If I waited until I had the proper gear for each of my ventures I would never get anything done at all. Instead I use what I have lying around. Like this stock trailer. I put a big iron hog house inside this trailer, filled the in-between space between walls of the hog house and…
The Kitchen's Garden
Sustainable. Self Sufficient. Loving the Land. Join Us!
Site Navigation
Letters To My Mother
Want more?
Join me on Substack where I tell stories of growing up in a different time, a simpler time, a time when all those sustainable tips we are relearning now were normal and ordinary.
Join us at The Sustainable Home:
Sign up to our monthly newsletter for tips on managing a sustainable home.
The Kitchen's Garden 