Farmer Boy

As part of our "homesteading in the city" theme, we have been reading books about people living close to the land, pioneering something new, or choosing an alternative way to live. The stories span the last 160 years, and give us a glimpse into our resourcefulness, adaptability, and humanity. Technology changes continually, but we're always faced with the need to feed and clothe ourselves, provide shelter, live in community, and search for meaning. These "homesteading" stories show a wide range of solutions for meeting those needs.

We couldn't read Little House in the Big Woods without reading Farmer Boy, another book in the Little House series. Farmer Boy was also written by Laura Ingalls Wilder and illustrated by Garth Williams (Harper and Row, 1971; first published in 1933). In this book, Ms. Wilder writes about Almanzo Wilder's childhood on his family's prosperous farm in upstate New York. Almanzo and Laura married in 1865 in De Smet, South Dakota.

The story takes place over the course of a year. Almanzo is nine years old, and lives with Mother and Father, brother Royal, and sisters Eliza Jane and Alice. Their 100-acre farm is located close to Burke, New York near the Canadian border. The story begins in the winter with Almanzo going to school (but happy for any excuse to help on the family farm instead)! The family raised cattle, Merino sheep and horses, and grew wheat and vegetables. Mother cooked for the family, made butter to sell, and was kept busy spinning wool, weaving cloth, sewing clothes, and knitting. Everyone had chores to do to keep the farm and household running. They also enjoyed relaxing together on winter evenings, gathering with relatives, celebrating Christmas and Independence day, and attending church services in nearby Malone.

This book is a wonderful family story, full of fascinating information about farming and living in the 1800s. Projects and activities included filling the ice-house; shearing sheep; planting, growing, protecting and harvesting crops; caring for livestock; keeping the house clean; trading rags for tin implements; having shoes made by the traveling cobbler; harvesting and hauling the wood supply; and more. I especially appreciated  reading about Mother's skill in spinning and dyeing wool, and weaving fabric. The children gather roots, nuts, and bark to dye the wool. I plan to learn more about the dye sources they used to produce the colors described in the book [red, brown, chocolate brown, Indigo blue, yellow, maroon (wine-colored), and green]. I definitely recommend this book for anyone interested in history and how to provide for everyday needs with 1800s technology.

Learn More

Some interesting items related to the book:

• Almanzo Wilder (1857- 1949) - Almanzo was born to James and Angeline Wilder in Franklin County, New York. Read a synopsis of his life.
• Malone, New York (County seat for Franklin County) - this was the closest major town for the Wilders, where they attended church services, shopped, celebrated Independence Day, and participated in the County fair.
• Burke, New York - the Wilder farm was located near the village of Burke. Almanzo's uncle owned a potato-starch mill in Burke, and a train station in Burke offered ice-refrigerated train cars and carried butter to market.
• Farmer Boy - Historical Perspective, by Nancy Cleaveland, Janilyn Kocher, and Gina Terrana. This blog includes information about the Franklin Academy in Malone, where Royal, Eliza Jane, and Alice attended boarding school in the fall.
• Poor man's fertilizer - this is what Father called snow. According to the Farmer's Almanac, snow flakes contain nitrogen, which is returned to the soil at a slow even rate as the snow melts. Lightening and rain actually carry more nitrogen, but it is released into the soil at a rapid rate.
• Milk-fed Pumpkin - Almanzo won a first place ribbon at the county fair for his milk-fed pumpkin. Try it yourself, and here's how!
•  Dye Colors - the Wilders raised Merino sheep for the wool, and Mother spun, dyed, and wove it into cloth. In the spring, Alice and Eliza Jane gathered roots and bark in the forest for dyeing. They boiled the roots and bark in big cauldrons over outdoor fires, and then dipped long skeins of wool into the dyes. The cloth and yarn colors mentioned include red, brown, chocolate brown, Indigo blue, yellow, maroon (wine-colored), and green. Mother also spun black wool and white wool together to make gray. Select "Dye Colors" to visit the Pioneer Thinking site, and learn about the plant sources for each of the "Shades of" sections. Learn more about the plants of New York state.
• The World of Little House, by Carolyn Strom Collins and Christina Wyss Eriksson. HarperCollins Children's Books (New York, 1996). See chapter 4, "Farmer Boy". I appreciated seeing the floor plan of the Wilder's farmhouse, and the recipe for Fried Apples 'n' Onions (one of Almanzo's favorite dishes).

Logwood & Weld (Solar + Exhausts 2 & 3)

 At the end of Dye Project: Logwood Exhaust 2 (Alum + Iron), I had a gallon of Exhaust 3 dye left, but thought I wouldn't keep it since there seemed to be so little pigment left. At the last minute though, I decided to combine the Logwood Exhaust 3 dye with some leftover Weld Exhaust 2 dye, and see what happens (sort of the dyer's equivalent of a Hail Mary pass). It's a desperation move that probably won't yield anything, but with nothing to lose, why not? The dye and prepared dish towel are already on hand, so go for it. This follow-up post reports on the results!

Logwood Exhaust 3: instead of tossing, try an experiment

Weld Exhaust 2: add to the logwood

I decided to overdye a dish towel that had previously been dyed with cherry, and I also decided to solar dye with the combined dyes, instead of the customary process of simmering over heat for an hour. Research indicated that the combination of logwood and weld could yield a greenish color. 

To my large canning jar I added a teaspoon of alum and stirred to mix. Then I added the two dyes and stirred to combine. Finally I added the prepared dish towel, and sealed the lid.

Combined logwood and weld dye bath with alum

I put the jar out on the patio, and left it in the sun for four weeks, agitating the jar daily to distribute the dye evenly. Interestingly, by week 2, no evidence of purple remained. By week 4 the dish towel seemed to be a pink and yellow color. (The overall appearance of the jar reminded us of a specimen preserved in formaldehyde in a zoology lab).

By week two, the purple was gone

By week four, the dish towel looked pinkish yellow 

After four weeks I treated the fabric as usual: rinsing until the water ran clear; hanging to dry; washing with a pH neutral soap after two weeks; and then hanging to dry again.

The dye bath appears brown, inside the house and out of sunlight

Rinsed and squeezed

The resulting color doesn't photograph well, but in certain light the fabric has a pinkish yellow "glow" to it. It definitely did not yield a green shade, but there are multiple variables that could have prevented that, including the age and strength of the exhaust dyes, and using solar dyeing instead of the simmering process.

Logwood Exhaust 3 + Weld Exhaust 2: solar and alum mordant brightener

Color Comparison

For fun, look at the range of shades produced using logwood dye, with simmering and solar techniques, over multiple exhausts, and with alum and iron as mordant brighteners!

Logwood: shades of color produced

Farmers' Market: Summer and Fall Bounty

This is the time of year to purchase the last of the summer fruit here in the Bay Area. If you can't get out to one of those pick-it-yourself farms, a Farmer's Market is the way to go. Here in the Bay Area, we have many Farmers' Markets from which to choose (find one here).

The stone fruits are still available and sweeter than ever. The melons are full of flavor and moisture after many hot, hot days. A variety of berries are plentiful and also flavorful from the intense sun. This is a great time to buy a flat or two of some of your favorites, and preserve, pickle, or dehydrate to enjoy in the winter (similar to Little House in the Big Woods, but with all our modern tools and gadgets)!

Permanent farmstand in San Ramon

Soon, pears of all shapes, colors, and types will be available, as well as apples of all varieties, apple butter, and apple cider. Pumpkins, squash and root vegetables will also appear on the scene (some in the form of pie). Life is good in this time of bounty!

Coreopsis & Marigold (Solar + Iron + Exhausts 2 & 3)

Last year I grew and harvested coreopsis and marigold flowers, and earlier this year I solar dyed some handkerchiefs with the dried flowers and alum. I reported on the vibrant results in Dye Project: Coreopsis & Marigold (Solar + Alum). It was surprising how much color was produced with so few flowers. I loved the bright yellow from the marigold and the deep orange from the coreopsis. At the end of the post I expressed an interest in reusing the dye baths in a second exhaust, using Ferrous sulfate as the mordant. I ended up doing a third exhaust as well. This follow-up post reports on the surprising results!

Exhaust 1 after three weeks

Exhaust 1 - marigold on the left, coreopsis on the right

Exhaust 2

I reused the dye and the plant material from Exhaust 1. To each jar I added a few inches of fresh water and 1/4 teaspoon (26 grams) of Ferrous sulfate, and stirred until well mixed. I added two cotton handkerchiefs and wool yarn in layers with the original plant material. I poured in the reused dye (Exhaust 2) and topped it off with water as needed. I left this batch in the sun for six weeks, agitating the jars daily to distribute the dye evenly.

Salvaging dye and plant material for Exhaust 2

Preparing iron mordant for Exhaust 2

Exhaust 2 dye with iron mordant

The dye bath deepened in color over the course of three weeks (it was surprising how much color remained). After six weeks I treated the fabric as usual: rinsing until the water ran clear; hanging to dry; washing with a pH neutral soap after two weeks; and then hanging to dry again.

Exhaust 2 + iron after six weeks

Exhaust 2 + iron hanging to dry

The resulting color was lighter, as you would expect from a second exhaust, and the color was duller with the iron mordant.

Marigold comparison: Exhaust 1 + alum on left; Exhaust 2 + iron on right

Coreopsis comparison: Exhaust 1 + alum on left; Exhaust 2 + iron on right

Exhaust 3

I decided to see what would happen if I reused the dye and plant material from Exhaust 2. This would be Exhaust 3 of the dye bath, with little hope of results, but I decided "why not"? The coreopsis dye bath had only a remnant of color, and the plant material was basically black with no orange pigment. But the marigold dye bath still had color, and the plant material had quite a bit of color. I repeated the same steps used for Exhaust 2, but this time used cotton fabric instead of handkerchiefs; and left the jars in the sun for eight weeks instead of six, thinking more time might pull out any last remnant of color.

Exhaust 3 + iron after eight weeks (on an overcast day)

Exhaust 3 + iron: the marigold has a surprising amount of color

Exhaust 3 + iron: the coreopsis color is gone, so the iron dyes a grayish color

Exhaust 3 + iron + solar comparison: Marigold on the left; Coreopsis on the right

Color Comparison

For fun, look at the range of shades produced with marigold and coreopsis flowers, solar dyeing over multiple exhausts, and with alum and iron as mordant brighteners!

Marigold and Coreopsis: shades of color produced