10 Ways to #optoutside in Your Own Backyard
Do you know about #optoutside? I love this idea of opting out of the post-Thanksgiving consumer craziness. Being intentional about spending time outside with loved ones rather than spending time shopping for stuff. Now, I’m all for good deals. We’ll actually have a special one for you to celebrate our other two November birthdays 🎉 on Monday! For the weekend though, what…
Read MoreOf Well-Worn Paths and Brand New Habits
In a curious juxtaposition, I find myself thinking about habits on a weekend when I’ve stepped out of many of my own. One notable exception? My morning cup of coffee…made even more enjoyable by the warm Florida breeze on the shady front porch where I’m writing.
Read MoreLife and Learning in the Garden: An Interview with Homeschooling Homesteader Kallie Vaughn
“I wonder how we actually thought that we would try to be farmers,” she laughed, thinking back to when it all started. Today, my friend Kallie Vaughn and her husband Matt are resurrecting an old farm on 25 acres in the rolling hills of the North Carolina Piedmont. Matt teaches high school, and Kallie homeschools…
Read MoreGuerrilla Composting: How to Recycle Food Waste without a Compost Bin
The smashed remains of a nectarine, spent coffee grounds, a handful of egg shells, three banana peels…I can’t bring myself to throw this stuff in the trash. Is that weird? I mean, these are raw materials.
Read MoreHow to Make a Bee Waterer
Give your bees, butterflies and other beneficial insects a refreshing drink without inviting mosquitoes into your yard using this simple waterer. Summer’s here and it’s time for water play! Don’t you love that feeling of diving into the lake or wading in a cool creek or just sitting with your feet in the kiddie pool?
Read MoreIs Your Gardening Revolutionary?
The card from my sister has hung on our fridge for nearly a decade. The poem had both Colby and I nodding. Yes! This is how we see our garden—as a way to make the world a bit better. Have you ever thought of your garden as a way to change the world? In many ways, putting on…
Read MoreHealing with Food and Hoping with Seeds: An Interview with Matt Powers
When Matt Powers sees problems like climate change, hunger, and poverty, he also sees hope. Matt and his family have faced some life-changing challenges. Despite the problems of the world, he knows how much promise lies in seeds, soil, and curious human minds.
Read MoreMeet the Giving Gardener: 12-year-old Ian McKenna Grows to Help Others
When he was eight years old, Ian McKenna started fighting. He was fighting hunger with a giving garden. He shared his harvest with a local food bank and has grown ever since. Now 12 years old, Ian cares for three gardens using organic methods. His younger sister helps, too!
Read MoreSheet Mulching Tutorial: How to Start a Garden Without Tilling or Digging
Starting a garden from scratch can be a miserable experience, especially if the ground is hard and the area you want to use is full of grass or weeds. But how can you start a garden without tilling or digging to prepare the area? The answer is sheet mulching, and in this step-by-step tutorial, we’ll show you…
Read MoreSheet Mulching vs Lasanga Gardening
What’s the difference between lasagna gardening and sheet mulching? Here’s a quick look at the similarities and differences.
Read MoreJustin Rhodes on Growing Food and Hard-Working, Problem-Solving Kids
“A happy family growing our own food and living the permaculture homestead dream.” That’s how Justin Rhodes describes life. He and his wife Rebekah grow food and homestead with their four children, ages 1-8, not too far from us in western North Carolina. I had a chance to talk with Justin, aka the “permaculture chicken ninja…
Read MoreRake & Roll! Composting Giveaway
Fall is coming to western NC. The morning air is crisp, and the leaves are hinting of colorful changes ahead. To celebrate fall’s arrival, we’re doing a big composting giveaway here on the blog. The Rake & Roll Composting Giveaway ended Monday, Sept. 19., 2016. Update: The winner has been drawn! Thank you to everyone who entered and shared…
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