March 2023 Q&A
Ask Anything!
What are you working on right now, and how can I help?
March is one of those awkward times where winter doesn’t know if it’s coming or going. Some years, though it’s rare, we can plant cold hardy crops like peas right around St. Patrick’s day…other years, we’re buried under 4 feet of snow until the end of April.
This year we had a “fools spring” after the warmest January and early February on record…but that’s long gone now. We’ve had a foot of slow steady snow this week, and there’s 2 to 6 inches of snow in the forecast every single day as far as the eye can see.
All of a sudden, it’s looking like that groundhog wasn’t kidding.
This time of year, it seems like everyone is in a different place all across the country. Those of you out west and in the south are probably already harvesting strawberries!
(And I know I have quite a few Australian readers who are laughing at this, knowing their winter is just about to begin.)
Wherever you are, how can I help?
What are you working on? What are you learning, doing, and otherwise playing with in your own corner of the world?
Until Next Time,
-Ashley at Practical Self Reliance
Hi Ashley. I have two questions. First, have you ever tried making your own sunflower oil or nut oil? I recently watched a video online where a gentleman used a Oil Press Machine from Vevor to make his own sunflower oil. I understand how the machine works but was wondering if it would be worth it. What could you do with sunflower or nut oil that you couldn't do with Lard, tallow, etc.? And what would the shelf life be for homemade sunflower/nut oil? Could you seal it in a jar like you do with lard?
My second question has to do with Pyrethrum, Dalmatian (Pyrethrum cinerariaefolium. This plant is used in natural insecticides to help with squash beetles. Last year all my squash plants were killed by squash beetles so I reached out to Jackie Clay, from Backwoods Home, and she told me to get a specific all natural insecticide. I did and plan to use it this year but I also bought seeds of the Pyrethrum plant and plan to plant it throughout the space where I plan to grow my squash. Do you think this will work or will the plant need to be ground and possibly made into a liquid for it to be effective. Do you have issues with growing squash and if yes, how have you dealt with it.
If you had to start all over, how would you lay out your garden? How would you plan what to grow, how many plants to grow, and where to put them in the garden? How would you choose how much to grow if you were just starting out verses running a sustainable homestead? I’m just starting my first in ground garden after doing some small raised beds last year and I’m trying to plant enough but not bite off too much.