tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-419744765122775541.post3100051554694577519..comments2024-02-12T07:17:29.808-05:00Comments on <center><big>Agrarian Nation</big></center>: —1849—Hogs Fattened on Sweet ApplesHerrick Kimballhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17116051416696885647noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-419744765122775541.post-13999099194939832132011-05-11T10:01:09.948-04:002011-05-11T10:01:09.948-04:00It is interesting when they try to claim that most...It is interesting when they try to claim that most of these new techniques are being discovered. I grow my tomatoes, cabbages and lettuce in straw covered beds for less tillage and weeding and to hold in moisture like all the magazines and publications tell me to. When talking about how my garden is doing to my 86 year old aunt, she exclaimed that I had made a "lazy bed". She said that my grandfather was doing that back in the 1920s before she was born. When I told her that I had double dug the bed, my father added, "You finally figured that out? How do you think we did it before they came out with tillers?" They make out on TV and in the gardening magazines like this is some new thing, but it really isn't. There really is nothing new under the sun, is there?Ag Adventurerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15189405313763993221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-419744765122775541.post-61680389725740199162011-04-11T19:50:11.091-04:002011-04-11T19:50:11.091-04:00Diana—
That is great. I love it.
Matt—
What a gre...Diana—<br />That is great. I love it.<br /><br />Matt—<br />What a great article! For those who may not follow the link, here is how the article ends....<br /><br />"Then Koan remembered how his grandfather would drive his pigs into his orchard so they could feed on fallen apples.<br /><br />So Koan obtained some Berkshire pigs, with the idea of breeding them not only so they would eat the fallen apples and kill the beetle larvae but also for slaughter as organically raised meat. He bought a boar and three sows, and now has 27 pigs.<br /><br />When the infested apples fell in June, the pigs were released into three one-acre sections of the orchard. The researchers compared those three plots with three other one-acre plots where the swine didn't go, and found that the pigs did even better than expected.<br /><br />Left in the orchard for three days, the pigs gobbled down 98 percent of the fallen apples. Tests showed virtually all the larvae were digested.<br /><br />"The little guys moved through like a pack of Hoover vacuums," Epstein said.<br /><br />The researchers found that in the plots where no pigs were allowed, five times as many plum curculios were counted.<br /><br />Epstein got a one-year grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to study the effect of the pigs on the orchard last year and has applied for a four-year grant.<br /><br />Koan, 60, took over the farm in Clayton Township, near Flint, from his parents. In the past 15 years or so, while trying to diversify his business, he has moved into organic production, phasing out most chemicals to fight off the pests, weeds and diseases that could harm his fruit.<br /><br />"I think if my granddad was alive today and he saw how excited I am about doing this and this information that we're gaining on this," said Koan, "he would just look at me and say, 'Jeez, you're stupid. You didn't know that?'"<br /><br />======<br /><br />Methinks the university people need to read Agrarian Nation. Then they can get grant money to research and rediscover the old ways. :-)Herrick Kimballhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17116051416696885647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-419744765122775541.post-2102127077499373482011-04-11T14:40:07.686-04:002011-04-11T14:40:07.686-04:00Funny, this apple orchard method was rediscovered ...Funny, this apple orchard method was rediscovered by university researchers a few years back. Maybe our agricultural ancestors weren't so backwards and primitive. I look forward to other lost technologies and knowledge you mine up from the farmers almanac.<br /><br />www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-03-05-2348980728_x.htmMatthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03197800190493685994noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-419744765122775541.post-4506405637021161962011-04-09T13:15:51.335-04:002011-04-09T13:15:51.335-04:00We have an small orchard of about 30 trees but no ...We have an small orchard of about 30 trees but no hogs....we raise a steer every year and wait to butcher until late fall 'cause we feed all the cull/fallen apples/pears to our steer. It is the most delicious beef ever.Diana R.Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06361387947343352544noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-419744765122775541.post-78460094180904478842011-04-08T18:58:02.794-04:002011-04-08T18:58:02.794-04:00Hi Jim,
Well, you're just like the old-timers...Hi Jim,<br /><br />Well, you're just like the old-timers. They were believers in the concept of delayed gratification and they often planned with the long term perspective in mind. :-)<br /><br />Calina,<br /><br />It's always nice to hear from a New York "neighbor." Two acres is a nice bit of land to work with. I have only 1.5 acres and most of it is woods. Stay tuned.......Herrick Kimballhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17116051416696885647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-419744765122775541.post-58448257305915569022011-04-08T16:05:12.636-04:002011-04-08T16:05:12.636-04:00I just discovered this blog through Michael Bunker...I just discovered this blog through Michael Bunker's blog. I am almost done with his book, and am telling everyone I know about it. My husband and I are also in the Fingerlakes region of NYS, and are excited to see that there are other like-minded people in our area. Your blog is fantastic-we have just under 2 acres here, and I am looking forward to reading your post on what can be done on an acre. Keep up the good work!Calinahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08638972754461220750noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-419744765122775541.post-25009589933257835002011-04-08T14:53:30.633-04:002011-04-08T14:53:30.633-04:00I planted 5 apple trees and 5 peach trees this win...I planted 5 apple trees and 5 peach trees this winter. Maybe in 5 years or so I'll get me a hog to keep under my trees.Jim Janknegthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02971229049336038270noreply@blogger.com