By The Ready Store

While you’ve been storing up on wheats, one important thing is to find a great, sturdy grain grinder to be able to convert all that wheat into flour. There are a few things that you should look for when considering which grinder to buy.

How much will you grind?
You should probably determine how much wheat you’re going to be grinding. If the grinder isn’t going to be processing a lot of grain, it might be smart to get a more compact grinder.

You might also find that you don’t even need a wheat grinder. If you’re storing barley or other types of dry grains, you might consider purchasing a barley crusher or a dry grain mill.

Remember that freshly milled flour can go bad quickly. It’s important to freeze the unused flour that you have extra.

Electric vs Manual
Melody Buller gives a good recommendation while looking for a wheat grinder:

Mills (or grinders) can be hand-powered or electric. Electric grain mills are fast and efficient and generally allow a person to select the fineness of the flour. Manual grain grinders may only have one setting, which can be rather coarse, but those who prefer heartier baked goods may prefer this texture. Some manual grinders do allow for fineness adjustment.(Read here article here.)

Manual grinders usually last a long time. Electric grinders last several years but may need replacement parts or repair. You’ll want to check your grinder for warranties and how to find replacement parts. Electric grinders can also be very noisy.

It’s also important to find a grinder that doesn’t heat up too much. Some grinders can heat up to the point that it begins to drain the flour of nutrients. A manual grinder usually doesn’t have that problem.

Grinder attachments
You might be able to grind wheat with your existing kitchen appliances. For example, the Kitchen Aid Mixer comes with a separate grain milling attachment. Remember though, grinding wheat requires a powerful motor – at least 325 horsepower.

What can it process?
Some wheat grinders are built to only process certain types of wheat or grains. We’ve made sure that each of our grinders has the ability to grind multiple kinds of grains. For example, the WonderMill can process buckwheat, rye, oats, millet, popcorn kernals, triticale, dried field corn, chick peas, soybeans, dried mung beans, rice, dried pinto beans wheat, sorghum, split peas and dried green beans.

Our hand mixers can process wheat, rice, corn, oats, barley and more. The WonderMill Junior Hand Mill also process wet and oily grains. It has an attachment that allow you to make coffee or even peanut butter!

The issue of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) doesn’t seem to be leaving the United States food industry any time soon. The latest examples include bills in Washington state, court claims against biotechnology companies and national petitions.

The latest example of that persistence is legislation proposed in Washington state that would require genetically engineered foods, or food items that contain genetically engineered foods, to be labeled so consumers can make an informed choice about what they buy.

If approved, for the most part, the labeling requirement as proposed by legislation in Washington state would kick in on July 1, 2014. Fines for not labeling such foods are included in the legislation. (Read the full article at foodsafetynews.com)

GMOs are created by manipulating an organism’s genetic material in a laboratory. These manipulations do not occur naturally in the wild. Usually, GMOs are produced to boost production, improve durability, improve nutritional quality, and to create immunity to certain herbicides. Nearly 80 percent of processed foods contain GMOs in the U.S.

Washington farmers have been so outraged by biotechnology company Monsanto’s announcement to explore genetically modified wheat.

In an unusual pairing, a handful of Washington wheat farmers have joined so-called “foodies” to back the latest bill, fearing exports will be hurt if and when genetically modified wheat gains federal approval. The U.S. exports half of its wheat, and in Washington, the only bigger export is Boeing Co.’s airplanes.

Biotechnology giants Monsanto and Syngenta have announced plans to begin testing genetically modified wheat, though the product is likely a decade or more from being offered commercially.

“If we do nothing, we will be destroyed,” said Tom Stahl, a fourth-generation farmer in the small town of Waterville, Wash., about 100 miles east of Seattle. “We will lose our markets and that will be devastating for the eastern Washington economy.” (Read the full article at washingtonpost.com.)

In a world where the cost of oil is always on your mind & the cost of food is growing as well as having fresh produce, many people are returning to the old ways and growing there own vegetables. A Brigham Young University study showed that for an average garden you would spend about $30 for seeds but harvest vegetables that would be worth more than $600 per year!

Some of you might be intimidated with the fact that you don’t have enough free time in your day to take care of a garden or that you don’t know enough about gardening that you would be overwhelmed.

I’m not asking you to plant a full or half acre of vegetables; you only need to plant just a few plants to understand the simple process of gardening and the best part about it is that you will save money on your grocery bill.  I hope this information will help you with starting your vegetable garden, and the key things you want to take into consideration is the space & the time it takes you to maintain your garden.

Unfortunately, even in a basic garden you will occasionally need to pull weeds, and when you reach for your Ultimate ReadyGarden™ ½ Acre Premium Garden Seeds – #10 Can, inside you will have 8 pages instructions on how to plant your vegetable garden. Topics such as Soil Modifications, Soil Moisture & Planting, Fertilizer, Using Space Wisely and in each plant group it will give you a general time line that you should plant the listed items.

So if you all ready have seeds & you want to start to plant your garden you should create a garden plan. Draw out a simple draft on how you would like your plants set up and document which plants will grow best where. You can always go to your local garden supply store with any questions regarding sunlight, soil drainage and keep a little note book with your results so you will help you plant your garden next season.

Prepare the soil- One thing I always remember is my father would rent a tiller & would turn the soil before planting his garden. If you are going to deal with a small garden plot you can turn the soil with a shovel, and remember to remove old roots and rocks when you turn the soil. Try not to worry about the soil too much, by rotating it circulates the nutrients well, and you can always check the pH level in your soil to chose what vegetables would be suitable for your soil.

Use a good organic fertilizer to add nutrients to soil, help with soil texture, and add organic matter.  You can also help your soil by having a compost pile; Its great for the soils health. Vegetable gardens love compost! If you haven’t gotten a compost pile going yet, buy a soil amendment to mix in the garden bed. If concerned that you don’t have good soil, a raised bed or container gardening would be a great way to start growing vegetables.

If you have children & you want them to stay away from picking all your green tomatoes then what I highly recommend is have a garden area for your child. Chose plants that are fun and easy to grow (cherry tomatoes, herbs, lambs ear, sunflowers, and edible plants), also a great idea to add plants that include various textures, tastes , and smells (like Mint).

I remember having a container garden of my own growing up with simple vegetables (tomatoes, peas, corn, carrots, and lettuce) and its great to get your kids excited when you show them the progress of the plant growing or when you use their vegetables or herbs for dinner.

Preserving the harvest is worth a mention. If you are not succession planting (spacing plantings by a week or two to lengthen harvest time), garden harvests can be overwhelming if there is a lot of produce to eat. Wasting food is not an option.

So, you can freeze, can, dry or pickle the fruits, vegetables, and herbs. See National Center for Home Food Preservation for tons of information on how to preserve the harvest. But freezing vegetables is usually the fastest, easiest way to save them for later.  Even some cookbooks have detailed instructions on freezing or canning fruits and vegetables.