Country Lore
Charles Long shares how to cultivate wild sunflower sprouts; Vincent Hinck cleans his glass woodstove door with vinegar; Michelle Freshour rubs soap on a lightbulb's threads so it doesn't break upon removal; Amber Greysay uses liquid fabric softener to reduce static electricity; Marcella White applies baby oil to his horses' knees daily to prevent bots; Dennis Divine uses a rubber gasket to seal plastic gas cans; David Griffin shares a couple methods to remove shrubs.
October/November 2002
By the Mother Earth News editors
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Charles Long (2)
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Wild Sunflower Sprouts
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Wild sunflower seeds make delicious sprouts. Harvest the seeds in late fall when the stalks and flower heads are completely dry. Store the seeds in the freezer to help their germination. To sprout, put a layer of potting soil in a shallow container, spread heavily with seeds and cover them with more soil. Keep the soil evenly watered. Harvest by clipping off the sprouts when they are 1 to 3 inches tall. They also can be sprouted in trays without soil but the results aren't as good.
CHARLES LONG
Burlington, Colorado
Sparkling Stove Doors
To clean the inside glass of my woodstove's front door, I wet it with vinegar and rub it down with a paper towel. Any residue is removed with a single-edge razor blade. Easy. It works like a charm.
VINCENT HINCK
Grants Pass, Oregon
A Bright Idea
It seems I am always cringing while trying to remove a burned-out light- bulb from its socket. The thought of the bulb breaking in my hand as I'm trying to un screw it from the socket, which has happened to me on more than one occasion, is not a very pretty picture in my mind. At last, I figured out a solution to my problem. Now, before I put a new light bulb in, I take a dry bar of soap and rub a little on the threads of the bulb. It screws in easily and when it comes time to re place it, it screws out with ease. No more "shattered" thoughts for this homesteader.
MICHELLE FRESHOUR
Elsie, Michigan
Spray-Away Static
This past winter I learned that liquid fabric softener, diluted in a spray bottle, works to reduce the annoying problem of static electricity from dry heat. Just lightly spray the fabric softener on your carpet, especially if you have a computer or other electronic devices, and the static electricity is gone. I do suggest testing the solution on a small spot to make sure it does not stain your carpet or furniture.
AMBER GREYSAY
Keystone, South Dakota
Beat the Bots
The botfly lays its eggs on the inside of a horse's front legs, below the knee and above the hoof. If not removed, the eggs are eventually ingested as the horse nuzzles its legs and can cause problems, even death, if the horse isn't given a wormer that kills bots. There is a special comb made to remove the bot eggs, but combing is time-consuming. Instead, I put either baby oil or petroleum jelly on the eggs, which prevents them from hatching. I noticed a couple of years ago that when I put baby oil on the bot eggs there`would be no new eggs for a day or two. Now during bot season, I put baby oil on my horses daily, from their knees to their hooves. I have found that the botfly will not lay its eggs in the oil. Only a few drops on each leg saves hours of extra grooming time needed to remove the eggs with a comb.
MARCELLA WHITE
Edmonton, Kentucky Great Gaskets
