Original Transplants

The Original Transplants Podcast Episode #48 "Hedges and Hunts" finds Will hedging his bets in the bee yard and chickens hedging their bets in the roadway. The edible landscape offers up homestead firsts hardy kiwiberries and brown turkey figs. Sarah explains her hedging philosophy and shares the food processing mantra, "friends don't let friends can alone." Will updates listeners on his sika hunt plans and shares news on horseshoe crab blood and local fungi taking out invasive spotted lanternfly (nature #ftw).Notes:Popular Mechanics, The Blood of the Crabhttps://www.popularmechanics.com/science/health/a26038/the-blood-of-the-crab/Penn State News, Organic Control of Spotted Lanternfly is Focus of Studyhttps://news.psu.edu/story/584228/2019/08/19/earth-and-environment/organic-control-spotted-lanternfly-focus-study-pennMother Earth News, Reusable Food Wrapshttps://www.motherearthnews.com/diy/home/reusable-food-wraps-zm0z1908zstaMother Earth News, Craft a Quill Pen and Inkhttps://www.mot

The Original Transplants Podcast Episode 47: "Soil and Swollen Feet"The Original Transplants starts with a soil analysis (we swear it's interesting) and goes into various health issues in the beehives and the chicken coop, prognosis good. The edible landscape is thriving Notes:Nature's Garden by Samuel ThayernotNatural Harvest, by Paul PhotenhauerAldo Leopold, The Sand County AlmanacBraiding Sweetgrass, by Robin Wall KimmererPSU Soil Testing, https://extension.psu.edu/soil-testingThe O Jays, Love TrainTAGS#food#farming#agriculture#gardening#gardens#podcast#satoyamahomestead#bees#beekeeping#homesteading#permaculture#beekeeping#honey bees#apiculture#backyardchickens#chickens#chicks#coop#rooster#ediblelandscape#gardening#gardeners#spring#weather#rain#autumn#fall#homestead#plants#communication#seedlings#cleanup

The Original Transplants Podcast Episode 46: "Interdependence Day"Celebrating American Independence Day, Will and Sarah talk about the importance of recognizing interdependence and Will gives a history lesson on what it was like to live in the 18th century in America. They review the bee yard and Will's complaints about his extractor. Sarah talks about drama in the chicken coop and how to care for your hens in the heat. The edible landscape is taking off and the chores are a little less crazy than in May/June. Sarah wraps up with an article about the Kutztown Folk Festival and the importance of agriculture in the American Revolution.Notes:Joe Larkin, The Reshaping of Everyday Life, 1790-1840Jared Diamond, Guns, Germs and SteelThe Strenuous Life, by Teddy RooseveltSubspecies primer on Ask a Biologist: https://askabiologist.asu.edu/questions/human-racesThe Andy Letter, Car Talk, https://www.cartalk.com/radio/letter/andy-letterAldo Leopold, The Sand County AlmanacHow to Get Ketchup out of a Heinz

The Original Transplants Podcast Episode 45: "Walking Stick" 6/9/19Sarah and Will tackle the beginning of summer and discuss plant migration. Yep, you read that right, they talk about plants moving over time. The bees are going along swimmingly and Will's swarm catching and splitting is paying off. Sarah has been having serious problems with their attack rooster but they discuss a few ways they deal with it. The landscape has ignited and many harvests have already come in. The podcast really takes off when a discussion of genetic engineering and skepticism takes off. Sarah rounds out the podcast with an article about renewing the butchering industry.Notes:"Would More Consumers Eat Genetically Modified Food if They Understood the Science?" by University of Rochester, Lancaster Farming, Saturday June 8, 2019"A Cut Above the Rest," by Dick Wanner, Lancaster Farming, Saturday June 8, 2019The Secret Life of Plants, Documentary and book, 1973Career Wardrobe: https://careerwardrobe

The Original Transplants Podcast Episode 44: Return of the Hummer April 28, 2019. After some audio mishaps, Will and Sarah talk about the successes in the apiary, the crazed chicken coop, and the bounties of spring. Sarah details how a gardener must Participate, Not Dominate as a principle of interacting with nature and they discuss the various birds coming back the homestead. Will talks about hunting turkeys. And Sarah goes into homestead news, including a rising need for butchers, hemp plant intellectual property, and spotted lanternflies in Michigan.Notes:Tenth Legion, by Tom KellyLawn People, by Paul RobbinsLancaster Farming, April 27, 2019: "Wanted: More Local Butchers" by Philip Gruber, "USDA Accepting Applications of Seed-Propagated Hemp for Plant Variety Protection", "Michigan Braces for Spotted Lanternfly Invasion", by Carol Thompson, and "Woman Killed When She Falls Into Meat Grinder at Work". TAGS#food#farming#agriculture#gardening#gardens#podcast#satoyamahom

The Original Transplants Podcast Episode 43: Garden Math, 3/31/19Neither of the stewards at Satoyama Homestead are all that math-inclined. Sarah and Will do their best anyway in this 43rd edition of the podcast. Subjects discussed: is that a prime number?; spring honey bee business; chicken crop problems; dealing with a violent rooster; edible food arriving in spring; "garden math" or why you should stop worrying and start calculating your garden; orchard prep; spring cleanup; the Woods in My Backyard series put out by Penn State Extension; and the fox that walked into the wrong chicken coop.Notes:Jurassic Park film, 1993True Grit film, 2010The Vegetable Gardener's Bible, by Edward C Smith, 2000Chester County Food Bank Seed to Supper, https://chestercountyfoodbank.org/programs-education/raised-bed-gardens/seedtosupper/Lancaster Farming, "Now is the Time" Column by Leon ResslerYou Bet Your Garden/Gardens Alive, www.gardensalive.comHow to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psyche

The Original Transplants Podcast Episode 42: Science Fiction, 2/24/19Science fiction becomes reality on this podcast, as Sarah and Will provide speculative ideas on the worst invasive species that could possibly come to their homestead. They discuss some literature that would inform the discussion, including a new variety of agriculture in hemp production, as well as how they'll tackle some invasive species in their own backyard. Next up the regularly scheduled work at the homestead. Bees and chickens are in a holding pattern while the edible landscape is about ready to pop. They talk about how you should be careful of what you plant and how this spring, and Sarah also discusses Liquid Copper Sulfate as a fungicide to help your fruit trees. Notes:On fungi: Paul Stamets of Washington State University is a great resource: https://fungi.com/pages/about-usNever Home Alone, by Rob DunnThe Mote in Gods Eye by Larry Niven and Jerry PournelleLife is a Miracle by Wendell BerryThe Unsettling of America by Wendell

The Original Transplants Podcast Episode 41: Bigfeet, January 5th 2019Fresh on the heels of winter, Will and Sarah discuss the apiary, oxalic acid, and some honey/sugar replacement recipes. In the coop, Kentucky the black hen has a bad molt and requires some R&R, while the chickens shut down production for the winter, though they continue to eat a lot of treats. The edible landscape, while dormant, continues to produce through different preserves. Sarah talks about how one can read a seed catalogue, with all the metatextual analysis you need to make the right decision for your garden. They talk about the giant white oak tree in their yard and the processing wok on their chipper shredder, then quantify the amount of gasoline they’re using each year in these household activities. For fun, they talk about craft projects and a reader question in Backwoodsman Magazine that certainly paints an interesting picture of our national parks.Notes:Frost Dates by Hardiness Zone chart, by Garden Tower Project: https://g

Autumn has arrived and the homestead has rushed to harvest before it all falls off the vine! Sarah and Will discuss treating bees during the fall, molting in the chicken coop, and some of the treats from the homestead this fall, including their first crop of persimmons. They talk about Will's trip to Delmarva to hunt for Sika deer/elk. Finally, they read an article about a spotted lanternfly scare in New Jersey and a courageous Beagle that prevented a pork head from being smuggled into the country.Notes:MENTIONED ITEMS IN THE PODCAST:NJ Allays Lanternfly Christmas Tree Worries - https://www.lancasterfarming.com/news/main_edition/nj-allays-lanternfly-christmas-tree-worries/article_2c88f50d-6f6e-5697-9d6e-0f85a2276db9.htmlCustoms Dog Sniffs Out Pork Head - CBS Miami 4 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVGg7aXbbDISatoyama HomesteadGardening outside the lines.satoyamahs.org | satoyamahs@gmail.com | 484-247-GROW (4769)TAGS#podcast#satoyama homestead#bees#beekeeping#archery#hunting#berries#tomatoes#garlic#rasp

Satoyama Homestead survived the rainiest July on record and uses the podcast to talk about it. The apiary benefitted from the rain, happening during the traditional flower nectar dearth, and Will discusses how pleased he is with the year's beekeeping efforts. Sarah and Will go over the difficulties in the chicken coop, including the bullying of the broody hen and the difficulties of a small coop. On the edible landscape, they discuss some of the issues with groundhogs and pervasive rain, but also the successes, like starting squashes late and the bounty of pesto. For homestead fun, Will discusses his archery treestand placement and how it takes years to get good at things. Sarah talks a little about the latest in the spotted lanternfly drama in the yard and then reads an interesting article about ladybug introductions for pest control, and all the ecological and economic problems associated with the little red polka dotted bug.Notes:MENTIONED ITEMS IN THE PODCAST:"Let it Rot" by Stu Campbell, 1

Summer has arrived and the homestead is filled with miracles and madness. Sarah and Will respond to a listener letter about scything and sheet composing/lasagna gardening, explaining the ins and outs of their turf management. They next discuss the apiary and their friend Walt who does moonlight beekeeping. A miracle queen was born. A simpler method of beekeeping, the keeping of mason/orchard/leafcutter bees is discussed as well. Next, Will tells a long-winded story about how tough he had it with Sarah away. Chicken madness, snakes living in the house, and sleeping outside to protect their miracle momma Mayapple and her chicks all figure heavily into the drama. Next, Sarah and Will discuss the upper respiratory disease the chickens experienced and how they managed to get the flock through the worst of it.The edible landscape really has started to pay dividends, with berries galore, as well as peas, greens, and other goods for consumption and preservation. On the homestead, Will breaks his bow, they discuss bui

Sarah and Will respond to a listener letter in Episode 37, giving their thoughts and some useful information on wood stoves. They cover the pros and cons of wood stoves in the home, ending up on the pro side, but being realistic about the maintenance and care necessary to have a stove. Other subjects about wood stoves covered: creosote and cleaning, cooking on the stove, and Philadelphia's own Benjamin Franklin, who invented the precursor to the wood stove.They resume the normal podcast proceedings by talking a little about the bees and Ross Round frames. Mayapple is back in the brooder coop and the rooster isn't pleased. The edible landscape has popped off and they are enjoying sorrel and other lettuces from the garden. They discuss asparagus shoots, rubarb harvests, and the new additions to the homestead: two fig trees to replace the devilish pyracantha/firethorn tree that they just cut down (see Episode 36).Sarah and Will finish the podcast with a discussion of an article on plant communication a

Episode 36 begins with Will and Sarah discussing the finer points of swarm trapping, from timing to spacing to construction. Their new bees arrive soon and they also intend to catch some wild swarms using traps in the yard. Next, they discuss a sick chicken and how to quarantine a chicken to help with recovery. They also discuss a home remedy for an injured chicken's comb, in this case, Jumpy the rooster, whose wounds are being picked at by his hens.The difficult spring season is their next subject. They talk about the cold March, the high winds on the day of the podcast (4/15/18), and how they're going to protect their new seedlings from frost. Sarah has worked hard to plant a variety of seedlings and they need their help.Will then talks at length about his run-in with the Firethorn/pyracantha shrub in the yard, from Sarah's first encounter to his allergic reaction that resulted in a visit to the doctor. They end the podcast with an article on the Linnaean-naming convention conspiracy surround

Episode 35 of the Original Transplants Podcast finds Satoyama Homestead stewards Will and Sarah counting down to spring. Will discusses the nucleus hives he ordered to jump start the apiary, and the differences he sees between nucleus hives and packages for starting a new colony. Sarah and Will share observations of chicken behavior, including what to do when a chicken seems out of sorts due to molting, impacted crop or sour crop. We get through the winter months by enjoying preserved fruits of the harvest, including dehydrated fruits and veggies, pickles, jams, chutneys, and other canned goods, and even berry and dandelion wines. Sarah explains how she uses whey, a byproduct of making strained yogurt, in cooking and baking. Will recounts his ordeal emptying the skid tank of gasoline, and we talk about some of the new plants we're excited to try growing from seed, including okra and spilanthes (toothache plant). Will shares some advice on getting hunting permissions from private landowners, relayed

Episode 34 of the Original Transplants Podcast finds Satoyama Homestead stewards Sarah and Will thawing out after the polar vortex. Will delivers the post mortem on the 2017 apiary and makes plans to start anew in spring 2018. The chickens are happy to be back outside, where their coop is particularly fragrant with trimmings from Sarah's freshly pruned potted herb plants. In the edible landscape, Sarah prunes the raspberry canes to restore a path through the bramble, and inventories vegetable seeds for the 2018 season. Will marks the end of whitetail hunting season in PA with plans to go shed hunting and scouting new locations for his bee swarm bait hives. We close the episode with some tips for winter tree identification and share news from enthusiastic urban beekeepers in Miami, FL, sent by Sarah's uncle and homestead benefactor, Andy.Links to Miami Herald articles:Honey Bee City is Bringing Bees Back to Miami Backyards - http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/doral/articl

Original Transplants podcast episode 33, Winter Solstice edition, finds homestead stewards Will and Sarah in good spirits on the first day of Winter. Will plans a final winter oxalic acid dribble treatment for varroa mites in the beehives, and starts planning supply and bee package purchases for the spring. Everyone is relieved that Mayapple the broody hen is showing progress on integrating into the flock she raised in May, thanks in large part to supportive behaviors by Jumpy the Rooster. Sarah and Will discuss homestead hacks for keeping off-the-grid chicken coops warm in the winter. Sarah is enjoying propagating plants on her 'tower of power' light rack on wheels, and also in mini-greenhouses from recycled gallon jugs out on the fallow garden plot. The homestead kitchen is serving up cocoa venison chili, peppermint meringues, custards and cookies for the season. We conclude the podcast with a nod to the oldest known hunter in the USA, and Sarah's solstice-inspired parody of A Visit fro

In this special holiday gift guide edition of Original Podcasts Episode 32, Satoyama Homestead stewards Sarah and Will share updates from winterizing the bee yard, attempts to reintegrate the chickens, and celebrate the winter bounty of the edible landscape. Will explains insulating the beehives with tar paper to regulate temperature and humidity during the winter. Sarah describes the flock dynamic since Mayapple has achieved empty nester status (correction: her literary reference should be to the Pyramus and Thisbe myth, not Tristan and Isolde!). We then share recipes for stewing hens and venison, highlight scientifically-proven home remedies for the flu recommended by Consumer Reports, and recommend cross-over gifts for the homesteader or aspiring homesteader on your holiday gift-giving list. We end the show with a fun new feature - dramatic, stylized readings of heirloom plant descriptions from 2018 seed catalogs.Links:'Poultriculture' used in an 1889 Pacific Rural News letter to the editor:

In this special "Drain the Swamp" edition of Satoyama Podcast Episode 31, Sarah interviews Will about his experience bow hunting the whitetail rut on public land in southeastern Pennsylvania. Will tells his buck story, discusses his two-year preparation for a successful bow hunt on public land, talks gear minimalism, shares strategies for overcoming obstacles and near-misses, and wrestles with the ethics of killing. We talk in a broad sense about agency, choice, discipline, natural law, and how to reconcile with externalities you can't control.For more information, Will offers these unsolicited endorsements:PODCASTSThe Meat Eater Podcast - one of my favorite podcasts, this delves primarily into hunting and conservation and has some of the best biologists and researchers in the world as guests.http://www.themeateater.com/podcasts/Wired to Hunt Podcast - Focused entirely on whitetail hunting, this podcast is a great listen for year-round strategies for pursuing whitetails.http://wiredtohunt.com

Episode 30 of the Original Transplants Podcast features Satoyama Homestead stewards Sarah and Will discussing late autumn happenings on the homestead. Will gives tips for winter preparation in the bee yard, including combining colonies for overwintering population, treating, feeding, and hive wrapping. Sarah recounts her experience harvesting their three original laying hens and reflects on the timing of Mayapple's broody and chick rearing cycle, pullets coming into lay, and the slaughter of the older chickens. Sarah and Will explain how they are preserving a surplus of green tomatoes for winter sustenance, recall a visit from Ursinus College's Environmental Studies senior capstone class, and join the fight against the invasive and damaging spotted lanternfly. Learn more at http://spreadcasts.tumblr.com and http://www.satoyamahs.org .

In Episode 29 of the Original Transplants podcast, Satoyama Homestead stewards Sarah and Will return from a long summer's knap to talk bees, chickens, early fall harvests, eclipse totality travels, paw paw festivals, and apple picking in one of America's heritage orchards. Will gives a rundown of the summer beekeeping season, and Sarah comes to terms with harvesting her first generation of dual-purpose breed laying hens. We celebrate the edible landscapes of Horn Farm Center (York, PA), home of the annual paw paw festival, and Hopewell Furnace (Elverson, PA), historic site, national park and home of a heritage variety apple orchard. We close with some promising forecasts for an awesome fall foliage season from Lancaster Farming and Penn State.