The Shampoo Experiment

Last Fall, The Hubs decided that he was going to eliminate his use of chemical laden shampoos and conditioners.

Needless to say, the girls and I were extremely skeptical.  In fact, the girls are still skeptical....you could say they are still rebelling.  To such an extent that their friends feel sorry for them enough to buy them shampoo and conditioner, since The Hubs and I have stopped buying it.

The Hubs started using a mixture of baking soda and water for shampoo and apple cider vinegar and water as a conditioner.  He used it for 6 weeks before I had to admit that it seemed to be working.  His hair was clean looking, shiny, soft and to our amazement his dandruff had disappeared.

Let me repeat....his dandruff...that he has tried to control with every shampoo and elixir out there....was GONE.

That in itself was enough to convince me, even though I have never had a dandruff problem.  Our skin is a very delicately balanced organ and I believe that all the chemical laden lotions, soaps, balms and hair products that we use daily can take their tole.  In addition to all the chemicals that then enter our water and soil.  I will expand on this idea later when I explain about how we make our own lotion, lip balms and deodorant.  My sister uses apple cider vinegar (ACV) for a hair rinse and this has resolved her flaky, itchy scalp issues as well.

So I started using baking soda and vinegar, exclusively, for my shampoo and conditioner in mid-December of 2010.  This is July, seven months later, and I have to say, my hair is fantastic!  It is healthy, shiny, full of body, everything you could want for your hair.  And this method is easy.  And cheap.

Baking Soda/ACV Locks

I use pure aloe vera gel to keep my hair from frizzing...I do not tolerate the frizz.  I had tried every kind of product out there to keep my hairs in check, from the super cheap to the super expensive.  So I was pleasantly surprised that aloe works so marvelously.  It is light and yet gets the job done.  My husband prefers a gel he makes from boiling flax seeds, it provides a bit more hold if you prefer that.  See the recipes below:

Shampoo
2 Tbls. Baking soda
Warm water
Place baking soda in old shampoo bottle (we use a funnel to get it in there), then fill with warm water.  Shake bottle until the baking soda dissolves.
Use:  Squirt 1-2 Tbls. on your head, scrub your entire scalp, then rinse.

Conditioner
Fill bottom of another bottle 2 inches with apple cider vinegar
Fill remainder of bottle with water.
Use:  Squirt all over all your hairs, let soak into scalp for a few minutes, then rinse.  The vinegar is what helps heal the scalp and eliminates the flaky skin.

Note: Your hair will feel "squeeky clean" while it is wet, but will dry to be soft and shiny.


Flax Hair Gel
1 Tbls. flax seed
1 cup water
Boil flax seeds in water for 5 minutes or until water starts to gel, strain out the seeds.  Put gel into any container you wish, the Hubs uses a re-purposed pump bottle from the face wash I used to use.

Now I know some of you may be thinking of choice names to call me right now, that may include "dirty hippy" among others....and although I am fully comfortable with that title, I am telling you this baking soda/ACV thing works.  I spent my 20's using all kinds of expensive and so-called natural shampoo and conditioning products.  Always searching for the next one that would be "IT"....because as you know you have to keep switching it up as that stuff builds up on your hair and scalp, and then stops workings as well.

But knowing now how well this works and how CHEAP it is, I will never go back.

Backyard Farm

I am really excited that my little urban homestead will be featured on Backyard Farming August 2nd!!

You can get this cool sticker at  their site!

Gratuitous bloomer shot

And another!

Urban Wildlife

A few weeks ago, this Great Blue Heron visited us....he continued to come back everyday for over a week.  Our neighbors have a Koi pond, we are not sure if there were any survivors.

Pollo Bathtime

Chickens love a good dust bath.

It actually serves a purpose for them, helps keep parasites such as mites and lice from making a home in their legs and feathers.  In fact if your hens do not have access to a nice loose soil location, you should provide an area for them in your run.  A cat litter box full of loose soil or river sand is perfect for the backyard coop.

I add DE (diatomaceous earth) to their bathing area and also to the hen house and run.  DE is the fossilized remains of single celled algae.  It actually helps to break down the exoskeleton of fleas, mites and lice.  Be sure to get food grade DE, you will be able to find it at your local feed or gardening store.  Use a mask when you sprinkle it around, it is a very fine powder and can be a lung irritant in larger quantities.  I sprinkle it around with an old stocking.

My girls do get to free range most days and mine have destroyed some things in my garden because they think they have found the perfect spot.  Like the potato bags mentioned in my last post.

Here is Red enjoying the potted bamboo:

Their choice of bathing location is not always ideal from my perspective.  Including the place they chose this year.  I had just turned the soil, removed all the weeds (well, to be honest, Neverella did the work) in a nice South facing spot right next to our rain barrel...where I had planned to plant the cucumbers again this year.

Here are Pepper and Zilla enjoying a nice bath in the warm June sun:

If only I could get such a feeling of euphoria from rolling around in the dirt.

Natural Home Cleaning

One of the major things we have changed in our lives, that in fact my husband instigated, was to stop buying all the various bottles of petrochemicals that are marketed to us...each for its own specific cleaning use.


We use vinegar, borax, baking soda and washing soda for cleaning just about everything.  We spent a lot of time scouring the internet to figure out the best combinations and then experimented with a fair amount of trial and error.

All Purpose Cleaner:

Spray bottle

1/2 fill spray bottle with white vinegar

Add 1 Tbsp Borax

Fill remainder of spray bottle with warm water

Shake till Borax dissolves.  We use this to clean glass and laminate surfaces.

Window Cleaner:

Spray bottle

1/2 fill spray bottle with white vinegar

Fill remainder of spray bottle with water

This is a great glass cleaner and does not streak!

Dishwasher Detergent
1 cup washing soda
1 cup borax
1/2 cup salt
1/2 cup citric acid
We use 1-2 tablespoons per load in the dishwasher.  Increase the proportion of soda if you have hard water.
Use white vinegar in the rinse cycle.  The citric acid and salt keep the white film from forming on your glassware...increase the proportion if your water requires it.


Note- if you keep this under your kitchen sink....keep it in a waterproof container.  My first batch turned into a brick from the moisture, now I keep it in a sealed ziplock bag.

Laundry Soap
1 cup natural liquid soap (we use Dr. Bronner's)
1 cup Borax
1/2 cup washing soda
1/2 cup baking soda
12 cups water

Heat 6 cups of water on the stove. Add liquid soap, Borax, washing soda, and baking soda, stirring to dissolve.  Once everything is dissolved add 6 more cups of water.

This makes a concentrated detergent.  I just use an old laundry detergent bucket to hold it after it is cooled.
Use about 3 tablespoons (a little less than 1/4 cup) per load. 
We use white vinegar in the rinse cycle. This helps to remove smells, but also helps to limit static cling.  


We never use dryer sheets.
We just do not spend money on any of those kind of products anymore...and I feel pretty silly for the amount of products we used to buy because we thought we needed them to get anything clean!

I used to have one cleaning product that I loved and did not know if I could find a more sustainable alternative -- powder cleanser.  I really love to have a sparkly clean sink and bathtub!  The other day I came across this cleanser Bon Ami Powder Cleanser.  I found it at a local natural food store...it is pretty inexpensive (about $1.50 for 14 oz.).  We have used it and it works beautifully.  The only ingredients I am unsure about are how the feldspar and limestone are obtained....the company website says the feldspar is a bi-product of quartz mining, so maybe it is somewhat sustainable.  I will have to investigate this more in depth, and will post again with the results.

Do you have a favorite natural cleaning recipe or product?

July Garden

This is our garden today.

This was our garden a month ago.

So much can change in just a few weeks!  The tomato's took off and grew like crazy this month...but really mostly in the last two weeks of 75+ degree days we have had.  

This year we have planted:

• Tomato's, 12 plants (various heirlooms) + a bunch of volunteer husk tomato's (ground cherry)
• All started inside in February, some from seeds I saved last year
• Yellow scallop squash, 4 plants
• Zucchini, 2 plants
• Acorn Squash, 4 plants
• Winter squash, 2 plants
• Volunteer pumpkins growing alongside the tomato's....from our compost (let this be a lesson about what NOT to put in your compost)
• Brussel Sprouts - new for me this year
• Spinach
• Hot Peppers, 3 plants
• Lettuce
• Kale
• Bush beans, 2 varieties
• Pole beans, 2 varieties
• Cucumbers, 3 plants....all that survived.
• Sugar pod peas
• Artichoke - new for me this year

Perennials:

• Asparagus....already harvested
• Rhubarb, harvested twice so far
• Raspberries, just starting the harvest
• Strawberries, about to wrap up production

Root Veg:

• Two varieties of beets
• Two varieties of carrots
• Garlic and shallots - multiple varieties planted last fall
• Leeks planted last fall

Herbs:

• Basil
• Oregano
• Thyme
• Mint
• Calendula
• Borage
• Chamomile

I prefer to plant heirloom and open pollinated seeds.  There are many local sources for this type of seed (Nichols, Territorial) and I also save seeds from my favorite heirloom plants year after year.  I obtained one of my favorite tomato's (Flame, small orange, sweet tomato) from a woman that hosted a seed saving workshop I attended years ago.  I grow them every year from seeds I have saved.  In fact, plants that have adapted to your particular backyard ecosystem are more likely to survive any problems that may occur.

Unfortunately, I did not get the potatoes planted this year as I had planned (the chickens had shortened my harvest last year, and I had not found a good new location).  They thought the burlap bags of nice soil along the patio made good dust bathing.  

Attempt to protect what is left of the potatoes last year from ravenous chooks

Next year plans: build a greenhouse to plant sweet potatoes and melons!

What is in your garden?

Chook Sitters

Having chickens is entertaining and I thoroughly enjoy them, and running an urban farm can be very rewarding...but at some point everyone wants a break, needs to get out of town, even <gasp> take a well-deserved vacation.

This is where being connected with like minded people in the community becomes a requirement.  Here in Portland we are lucky to be an "early adopter" of the idea of keeping backyard chickens.  There are so many resources for us to connect with each other, make new friends and help each other out.

Our recent vacation to the Oregon Coast

I am lucky to have a few resources that I can dip into if we want to get out of town for a few days.  Some are family members, some are old friends, but I am lucky to have found a kindred spirit on our local yahoo group, PDXBackyardChix.  We exchange taking care of the girls when needed...sometimes even at the last minute.  We live within biking distance of each other so it is really easy to check in on our flocks, make sure all is well, give them some treats and tuck them in at night.  Most people also do not mind checking on other furry or feathery family members you may have as well.

There is one business I have heard about specifically for chicken sitting, Just Us Hens.  They have been active members on the yahoo group and seem to have a thriving business.  Another good resource would be our local farm and feed stores:  Naomi's, Urban Farm Store, Wichita Feed and Hardware.  The owners of these small businesses will be able to connect you to the right people.