About an 8 to 10 minute read | 25th April, 2022
An earth-floor, deep-litter system has big benefits for the health and well-being of chickens, and it's also the easiest way I know to build an ongoing compost creation system in which most of the work is done for you.
This article shares what we've learned about deep-litter composting since we built our new earth floor chicken shed in 2019.
About a 10 to 12 minute read | 13th April, 2022
Ideas and tips for tuning into Nature's cycles to help us re-create the depth of meaning and connection that has been all but lost as the "consumer religion" has swept around the globe.
About a 3 to 4 minute read | 28th March, 2022
A week ago (give or take) was the Equinox - the time of balanced light and dark at the midway point through Autumn (Southern Hemisphere) or Spring.
This is a great time to examine our own lives to see how we're managing the balancing act between doing and resting. This short post shares an uncommon idea for our culture and our times: "It is safe to rest."
About a 4-5 minute read
14th Mar, 2022
It took me a while to begin to appreciate the sheer beauty of the Mexican tarragon in my garden. Then I learned almost by accident what a delicious iced tea it makes, and from there I discovered its huge array of potential uses in the kitchen, the medicine cabinet, and the garden.
I’m so glad I started learning more about Mexican tarragon. Here’s what I’ve discovered so far.
About a 4 minute read
28th Feb, 2022
I'm writing this post as the current lunar cycle ebbs towards its ending. In a few days time the moon will disappear from sight as this cycle ends, and then reappear in another new beginning.
The waning moon and the still, empty, "mid-winter" moment at the dark of the moon have much to teach us if we're paying attention.
About a 10 minute read
21st Feb, 2022
What is "happy meat?"
Is meat-eating inherently destructive, or can we have “happy ecosystems” along with happy meat?
What does meat-eating mean for human health on a more-than physical level? And what about avoiding eating animal products because you care about animals' welfare?
About a 3 minute read
14th Feb, 2022
This super-short post is not an in depth how-to post. It has commentary on home-dairying, a tongue-in-cheek recipe for raw-milk banana milkshake, and something easy and useful to do with your egg whites when you only need the yolks. There are also a few links to related resources that I hope you'll find helpful.
about a 3 minute read, lots of pics
7th Feb, 2022
Pictures and commentary from our garden. Plants that get a particular mention are pawpaws and sweet potatoes, and there are brief references to quite a few other food plants/herbs, most of them with links to further reading if you're interested..
About a 10 minute read
31st January, 2022
What gardeners do is somewhere on a continuum from controlling the life (and death) cycles in the garden, to managing them, to interacting intelligently with them. We tend to default to control because of our culturally ingrained assumption that without control there will be chaos and anarchy.
This has implications far beyond the garden. How do our assumptions about the need for control shape our world?
About a 5 to 6 minute read, lots of pictures
24th January, 2022
The possible uses for bananas--the fruit, the foliage, and the trunks--seem almost endless. In this article I share lots of images and ideas for using banana patches as mulch producers and for an erosion control project.