Over the last week I got around to trying some things I have read about and have wanted to try for a while.
1. Homemade solid rocket fuel. Sometimes called rocket candy because of the way it's prepared. Not going to give recipe here. If you really want to know you can google it. The final cooked product looks like a tray of brownies. But once cooled, the "brownies" become rock hard and hae to be broken into small pieces and ground to a powder with mortar and pestle. The resulting powder is ready to be pressed into motor casings for model rockets.
2. Natural insect repellent. The original Florida natives used a native plant called Dog Fennel mixed with bear fat as an insect repellent. I have wanted to try that for years. Neither Wal Mart, Winn Dixie, nor Publix seem to carry bear fat on their shelves. Hog fat is available, however. It's called lard. I purchased a block of lard and collected several dog fennel plants. After heating the lard a bit above water's boiling point, I fed in small pieces of the dog fennel. As each piece was added, the hot lard boiled off the water contained in the leaves, so I had to feed it in slowly to prevent it from boiling over. The oil contained in the dog fennel stays dissolved in the lard. As more fennel is added, the concentration gets stronger. I used a total of two plants. As the plant fragments lost their color in the liquid lard, I used a fork to fish them out and add new.
After making the lard-based repellent, I decided to use some other methods. I repeated the lard process using mineral oil instead of lard. I also decided to try an alcohol based approach by grinding the plant leaves in the mortar and pestle and putting the mash in a partly filled alcohol bottle. I will let these steep for several days.
I tested the mineral oil based version in my yard after dark by rubbing some on my right arm only. Within minutes mosquitoes were all over me except my right arm. Apparently, the original Florida Indians knew what they were doing.
1. Homemade solid rocket fuel. Sometimes called rocket candy because of the way it's prepared. Not going to give recipe here. If you really want to know you can google it. The final cooked product looks like a tray of brownies. But once cooled, the "brownies" become rock hard and hae to be broken into small pieces and ground to a powder with mortar and pestle. The resulting powder is ready to be pressed into motor casings for model rockets.
2. Natural insect repellent. The original Florida natives used a native plant called Dog Fennel mixed with bear fat as an insect repellent. I have wanted to try that for years. Neither Wal Mart, Winn Dixie, nor Publix seem to carry bear fat on their shelves. Hog fat is available, however. It's called lard. I purchased a block of lard and collected several dog fennel plants. After heating the lard a bit above water's boiling point, I fed in small pieces of the dog fennel. As each piece was added, the hot lard boiled off the water contained in the leaves, so I had to feed it in slowly to prevent it from boiling over. The oil contained in the dog fennel stays dissolved in the lard. As more fennel is added, the concentration gets stronger. I used a total of two plants. As the plant fragments lost their color in the liquid lard, I used a fork to fish them out and add new.
After making the lard-based repellent, I decided to use some other methods. I repeated the lard process using mineral oil instead of lard. I also decided to try an alcohol based approach by grinding the plant leaves in the mortar and pestle and putting the mash in a partly filled alcohol bottle. I will let these steep for several days.
I tested the mineral oil based version in my yard after dark by rubbing some on my right arm only. Within minutes mosquitoes were all over me except my right arm. Apparently, the original Florida Indians knew what they were doing.
