Gretchen Kruesi
Think about how much work your perennial flower beds take compared to your annual vegetable garden. In a busy year, your perennial garden largely sails through despite neglect. Once your perennials are established, and if they are suited to your climate and site conditions, they can be virtually indestructible. An annual vegetable garden, as we…
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Got some daylilies taking over your garden? Instead of weeding them out, try eating them instead! A common vegetable in China and Japan, the daylily is more than a pretty flower. These wild plants are easy to forage and packed with flavor that will serve as a perfect addition to seasonal recipes. Before trying them,…
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Tending to your garden is fulfilling in its own way, but the real reward is when everything is ready to be harvested! See below for some tips for harvesting and preserving that’ll keep you nourished for months to come. The following is an excerpt from The Regenerative Grower’s Guide to Garden Amendments by Nigel Palmer. It…
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How can we protect ourselves from the pollution, chemicals, and toxins that pervade our environment? Dr. Jenny Goodman connects the health of our planet with our own well-being, addressing the questions that very few doctors ask. Ultimately the goal is to empower you to look after your own health—and that of the planet because “healing…
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Get the most out of your tools and transform your gardening game! Is hoeing hurting your back? Is your trowel cramping your wrist? Are the tools at your local hardware store just not cutting it? Put your tools to work for you!
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Beekeepers are facing tremendous challenges, from pests such as varroa and tracheal mites and from the mysterious but even more devastating phenomenon known as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). Yet in backyards and on rooftops all over the world, bees are being raised successfully, even without antibiotics, miticides, or other chemicals. More and more organically minded…
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Mulberries have a special power of unlocking memories. Catching a whiff of a pie in the oven or taking that first delicious bite will transport you back to not only the first time you had mulberries, but each and every time. These sweet berries very well might be in your own backyard, your neighbor’s yard,…
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Make fresh mozzarella that you’ll be making on repeat! It is super delicious: creamy, salty, all the best things when it comes to cheese. Who else loves making homemade mozzarella?
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Huckleberries are a true prize for fruit foragers. Describing them as “intense, juicy, and addictive,” Sara Bir has the lowdown on where & how to harvest them.
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If you’ve ever wondered what your life is missing, the answer is probably chickens. These feathery friends can help fertilize your soil, mow your lawn, and even lay the eggs you eat for breakfast. What could be better than that? To celebrate our favorite member of the poultry flock, we’ve rounded up some wisdom from…
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For all the beekeepers and future beekeepers out there, this one is for you. The benefits of bees are numerous: honey, beeswax and let’s not forget pollination. Raising honey bees increases pollination of flowering plants and honey bees are the heroes of pollination efforts for modern agriculture. Anyone can master the skills necessary to be…
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The narrative on beef is constantly changing. From paleo to veganism, we are continually told conflicting information about the healthiness of beef and whether or not it should be in our diets. Former vegetarian and environmental lawyer turned rancher, Nicolette Hahn Niman, makes the following case for beef: “I also firmly believe a person should…
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Toward the end of his Big Year, birder Arjan Dwarshuis stopped at Pinnacles National Park in California to hopefully sneak a peek at one of the most elusive and intriguing birds in existence: the California Condor. This large and endangered bird is not only a marvel to look at, it is one of the largest flying…
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Some of the most productive and resilient soils in the world contain significant quantities of “natural” biochar. Like many human discoveries, biochar has likely been invented, lost, and reinvented multiple times. It’s the oldest new soil enhancer that you’ve never heard of! Biochar is a stable solid that is rich in carbon and is made…
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Looking for a new cooking project? Try your hand at rice koji! Follow these steps by two renowned chefs to make delicious rice koji at home. The following is an excerpt from Koji Alchemy by Jeremy Umansky and Rich Shih. It has been adapted for the web. Making Basic Rice Koji the Traditional Way Let’s walk…
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Thinking of growing fruit trees? While it’s no small undertaking, fruit trees are much more forgiving than annual crops once established. Fruits like apples, apricots, cherries, peaches, nectarines, pears, pluots, and plums can easily be grown on trees in your backyard — you just need to know the correct management practices before you get started.…
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According to a column in Agricultural Research from September 1974, “buckwheat has an amino acid composition nutritionally superior to all cereals, including oats,” due to its high content of lysine. Not only that, but hearty buckwheat pancakes are just as tasty, if not tastier, than those made from wheat. So what are you waiting for?…
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In Our Wild Farming Life, Lynn Cassells and Sandra Baer recount their experiences as they create Lynbreck Croft—a regenerative Scottish farm rooted in local food and community. As they build their farm, Cassells and Baer bring new livestock to their land and learn techniques to help them truly understand how they can farm in harmony with…
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Have you ever stumbled across wild strawberries? Growing along the sunny banks and around a forest edge, along roadsides, hillsides or even in your own back yard, wild strawberries are delicious. Wild strawberries are much smaller than those hollow, crunchy, off-season truck farm monstrosities most of us allow to pass for strawberries. Cultivated in-season berries, the…
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Contrary to popular belief, forestry and farming are NOT mutually exclusive. Growing food, medicinals, and other non-timber products like mushrooms and ginseng in the woods helps increase self-sufficiency and allows you to maintain a healthy forest. The following is an excerpt from Farming the Woods by Steve Gabriel and Ken Mudge. It has been adapted for the web.…
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Summer is the perfect time to fire up that grill and enjoy the great outdoors. Check out one of our top 6 grill recipes next time you’re barbecuing and savor the flavor of summer! Grill Greatness: The Best Meat Temperatures Have plans to fire up the grill this summer? Want to impress everyone with your…
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What can we do to reduce our waste? Use less, recycle and reuse packaging materials, and compost your organic waste. And if you’re a gardener, there’s no reason to throw away this beneficial (and cheap!) source of nourishment for your soil. Compost is the key to a flourishing garden. Turn your kitchen scraps and yard…
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One of the best ways to begin brewing is by dipping your toes in the bubbling waters of homemade soda. This recipe for Mountain Raspberry and Blueberry Soda features just a few local ingredients and allows you to get as creative as you’d like. There are no real rules when it comes to this fun…
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The following is an excerpt from Preserving Food Without Freezing or Canning by the Gardeners & Farmers of Terre Vivante. It has been adapted for the web. A few guidelines: Pick plants in the morning, when it is dry and sunny and they are at their peak, depending on the plant and the part that…
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“Your child has cancer.” Every day, forty-three American families hear these words, thrusting them headlong into the terrifying and unfamiliar territory of pediatric oncology. Finding meals that are both enjoyable and good for your child’s health can feel near impossible. Read on for some tips and recipes to inspire and help in one of the…
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