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THE BEST OF MOTHER EARTH NEWS
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Self-Sufficient Living • Do-It-Yourself Projects
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2021
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Photos from the Field
CLOCKWISE
FROM TOP LEFT: JACKIE
TOUW; FRANKLIN AMES PHOTOGRAPHY (2)
Clockwise from above: A hummingbird hovers near a lovely ‘Fiesta’
hibiscus flower. A vibrant Ferris wheel spins in Eger, Hungary.
The Split Rock Lighthouse stands along the north shore of Lake
Superior in Minnesota.
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Table of Contents
Keeping livestock safe
in colder weather may
require a few extra steps.
15
5 Raise Pastured Geese & Ducks
26 Comparing Heritage Chicken Breeds
Don’t be a chicken when it comes to raising all types
of fowl on grass.
Reap the rewards of new research that compares
heritage and commercial chicken breeds, and reveals
how to effectively use heritage breeds for small-scale
meat production.
10 Adventures in Suburban Farming
One couple traded their farmstead dream for a
suburban jewel after realizing the potential their
property already had.
32 City Chickens
Learn how to keep chickens in urban and suburban
spaces — and how keeping a flock can connect you
with humankind.
COVER PHOTOGRAPH: ALAMY.COM/GKSFLORAPICS
15 In from the Cold
Livestock are resilient in winter, but you can ease the
chill with these steps to lessen their stress.
37 Ferment Your Compost
Recycle your organic matter and enrich your
soil through this accessible, low-maintenance
composting method.
18 Climate Farming Practices
The key to reversing climate change could be right
under our feet.
40 Small-Batch Barley
22 Animals on the Farm: A Holistic Approach
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Homebrewers and grain gurus alike will benefit
from planting this low-maintenance crop.
Small farmers across the globe are developing
creative ways of integrating livestock into their
agricultural operations.
10
The Best of MOTHER EARTH NEWS
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44
58
44 Indigenous Corn Cultivars
78 Saving Culturally Significant Seeds
Try your hand at planting these 10 vibrant corn
cultivars with roots in Indigenous cultures, and
save the seeds for future generations.
Preserve traditional practices and foodways by
cultivating crops that carry a legacy.
83 Populate Your Property
49 Grow Your Own Supply of Sponges
with Pomegranates
With one seed packet and a little know-how, you
can easily grow nontoxic, compostable luffa sponges.
This tasty fruit has powerful medicinal qualities
and is easy to grow, whether in home gardens or
market farms.
52 Challenges with Cultivars
86 Lawns to Legumes:
The long-running native plant cultivar debate stems
from concerns about their ecological functionality
and possible environmental consequences.
Protecting Pollinators in Minnesota
A statewide conservation effort is “bee-autifying”
lawns and landscapes to create pollinator-friendly
habitats abuzz with environmental benefits.
58 Grow Up! How to Train Your Tomatoes
Whichever options you choose to lean on, these
tomato supports will ensure your plants stay off the
ground and away from pests and diseases.
92 Unpacking ‘Organic’
Take a closer look at the meaning and implications
behind one of agriculture’s most-hyped words, and
how it affects today’s gardeners.
64 Vermicomposting Basics
Add worms to your composting process to form a
nutrient-rich fertilizer for your garden.
96 Down-to-Earth Pools
This easy-to-learn natural building technique can
produce a budget-friendly pool for your whole
family — and community — to enjoy.
68 Certified Naturally Grown:
A Seal of Approval for Beekeepers
and Mushroom Growers
100 Dirt-Cheap Homes
This national standard of excellence for apiaries
and fungi farms endorses hives and products free
of pesticides and genetic modification.
Earthbags offer a natural, inexpensive way to build
a dwelling that reflects your personality.
73 Grist for Your Mill: Heirloom Wheat
106 Lookin’ Sharp
Growing and grinding your own grain may be the
best thing since sliced bread.
78
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73
Keep your kitchen knives in tiptop shape with this
expert advice for honing, sharpening, and more.
92
106
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129
132
110 Build a Smoker from Odds and Ends
138
138 Pumpkin Cornbread with a French Twist
This inexpensive weekend project will bring savory,
slow-smoked meats straight from your backyard to
your plate.
Squash turns this naturally gluten-free dish into a
light, moist bread worthy of nights around the fire.
142 Historic Food as a Path to the Future
115 Build a Bee Vacuum
Many traditions can provide a road map for updated
food systems that are healthier and more resilient.
This nuc vac makes capturing swarms a simple and
efficient task.
144 Find Your Fermentation System
120 Go with the Flow
From tried-and-true to modern and new,
there’s a countertop fermentation setup for every
style and budget.
Build a rain barrel that cleverly uses gravity to send
water uphill.
124 Weave a Splint Reed Chair Seat
148 How to Make Delicious Poultry Sausage
Write the next chapter in your favorite chair’s story
by restoring the seat using time-honored techniques.
Whatever your favored fowl, use these preparation
and cooking tips to create flavorful, juicy links for
a multitude of meals.
129 Championing Change
in a Fight for Food Access
152 Hydrosols: Where Aromatherapy
and Herbalism Meet
A South Carolina neighborhood overcomes food
apartheid with a local farmers market dedicated to
sovereignty, justice, and community action.
Use homegrown plants and a simple stovetop
method to make steam-distilled aromatic waters that
can be used for cooking, healing, and cleaning.
132 Chili: More American than Apple Pie
156 10 Skin-Soothing Superfoods
This simple, quintessential dish with broad
appeal is also a significant part of Southwestern
culinary history.
Add these nutritious foods to your diet to boost the
health of your body’s largest organ.
136 Sippable Sunshine: Make Dandelion Wine
Though it may take some time and patience to
create, dandelion wine’s delicious results are well
worth the work.
144
156
148
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MOTHER EARTH NEWS DIGITAL
Mother Earth News YouTube Channel
Visit www.YouTube.com/MotherEarthNewsMag to find more sustainable lifestyle videos to
help you on your homesteading journey, and be sure to subscribe to receive updates on
additions to the channel.
THE ORIGINAL GUIDE TO LIVING WISELY
Making Fire Cider
BEST OF MOTHER EARTH NEWS
WINTER 2021
In this episode of Ask an Editor, learn
more about this old-fashioned herbal
remedy in Rosemary Gladstar’s book, Fire
Cider! Christine shares a recipe and the
health benefits of fire cider. Go to www.
MotherEarthNews.com/Fire-Cider to find the
video and go to www.MotherEarthNews.com/
Store to order the book (Item #9868).
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Raising Chickens
Adding chickens to your backyard? Discover
a few simple chicken-raising hacks in
this video from the MOTHER EARTH NEWS
and Friends YouTube channel at www.
MotherEarthNews.com/Chicken-Hacks. In
this episode of Ask an Editor, Christine will
show you how to build a forage box, create a
dust bath, and use buckets for nesting boxes.
Making Whoopie ... Pies!
Let’s make a few whoopie pies! Jess shares
a recipe and shows us how to put all that
deliciousness together to create this timeless
treat that consists of cake-like cookies and
creamy filling. Watch the video at
www.MotherEarthNews.com/Whoopie-Pie,
and find the recipe on our sister publication’s
website at www.Grit.com/Whoopie-Pie.
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MOTHER Online
When a backyard garden isn’t possible,
many people turn to container gardening,
bringing nature into their living areas. In this
video, Jess gives us some tips and items
to consider when creating a thriving green
space in a small space. Learn more at
www.MotherEarthNews.com/
Container-Gardening.
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and 363C
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This article is available
online in audio form at
MotherEarthNews.com
Raise Pastured
Geese & Ducks
Don’t be a chicken when it comes to raising all types of fowl on grass.
Story and photos by Carrie Hardie
S
heep, cattle, and other ruminants may come to mind first
when your goal is to raise stock
on grass, but we find pasturing waterfowl to be a rewarding and frugal
endeavor. And when you see geese
mowing down pesky weeds with gusto,
you’ll wish you’d started them on pasture earlier!
We raise chickens, ducks, and geese
on our small farm. As they can be messy
creatures, raising them safely outdoors
is ideal. While there are differences in
our approach to pasturing chickens
versus waterfowl, both types of poultry benefit from access to fresh greens
found on chemical-free pastures. They
aerate the soil, eat large quantities of
bugs, and fertilize as they go.
The author's Pilgrim
geese prefer grass but
enthusiastically eat most
other pasture plants too.
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Even ducklings (here,
Muscovy) enjoy tucking
into a meal of beetles,
flies, and other insects.
Pasture Perfect
Geese are weed-eating machines, and
mainly herbivorous. Capable of getting most of their daily nutrition from
grass and forbs, geese can, theoretically
at least, be raised almost exclusively
on pasture in its nutritional prime.
(We supplement our pasture with fermented high-protein feed.) Watching
goslings tuck into grass is a pleasure — and we provide chopped-up
grass and chick-sized grit to goslings as
soon as two days after they’ve hatched.
Goslings and geese will tear into chicory, dandelions, burdock, plantain, and
many of the other common pasture
plants. Need a section of fence cleared?
Pasture your geese around it.
Ducks, on the other hand, are omnivorous, and while they’ll enjoy bites
of green now and again, they excel at
clearing bugs from pastures and gardens. Because they relish young lettuce, peas, and other tender greens,
I recommend using them to clear
garden plots that have infestations of
Japanese beetles, slugs, and other pests
only after the plants have reached maturity and can bear some nibbling.
Ducks delight in eating grubs and
similar larvae, so cruciferous plantings with cutworm or cabbageworm
Protect Your Poultry
Chicken wire, or poultry netting, is a commonly used material for chicken runs and tractors. It’s readily available and relatively inexpensive. It’s also more easily torn by predators,
and the openings are large enough for a predator to reach through to grab a bird or chick. In
especially vulnerable places in your coop or run, use hardware cloth or hail screen to reinforce chicken wire or close small openings. You can also use 1-inch-by-1-inch mesh as a reinforcer; even with slightly larger openings, it’s sturdy enough to resist damage by predators.
infestations are prime targets for duck
clearing efforts.
In addition, Muscovy ducks will
consume frogs, voles, and mice. They’ll
work to eradicate a pasture's fly population, and seem to have this drive even
as ducklings. They’re experts in pursuing and catching insects. I haven’t seen
any waterfowl as doggedly dedicated
to chasing and eating bugs as Muscovy.
Housing and Fencing
Generally, we use the same types of
housing and fencing for waterfowl and
chickens while on pasture: low tractors,
hoop tractors, and portable netting.
Tractors are mobile coops; low tractors
are about 2 feet high, while hoop tractors can be tall enough for humans to
walk into. We house our young birds in
low tractors, and then move them into
hoop tractors when they’ve grown and
can be integrated into the main flock
with access to pasture. While ducks and
geese generally won’t jump out of a low
tractor, chickens can and will — and
they can be quite a handful to corral.
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Most ducks accept the restrictions
of poultry netting. Geese, on the other
hand, will fly into the net and become
entangled. If the netting is electrified,
the potential exists for trauma, injury,
or even death for the trapped fowl. This
type of entanglement happened once
on our property; the goose survived the
encounter, but now we only use netting
without an energizer.
Another difference between pastured waterfowl and chickens is that
waterfowl remain alert throughout the
night. Juvenile chickens asleep inside
a low tractor are susceptible to predators; raccoons, for example, can reach
through 1-by-2-inch cage wire and pull
out parts of the birds. Although ducks
and geese are less easily preyed upon, I
recommend using hardware cloth fencing on the bottom 2 feet of any tractors
housing poultry on pasture.
Hardware cloth's small gaps prevent predators from grabbing an Indian Runner duckling for dinner.
Predator Protection
On our property, we deal with threats
from raptors (hawks and owls), canids
(coyotes, foxes, and dogs), and small
predators (opossums and raccoons).
We choose to secure our pastured
waterfowl at night in a predator-proof
enclosure, such as a wire-wrapped tractor that can be locked with a carabiner
to defeat animals with good manual
dexterity. Our area is prone to high
winds, so we stake down the tractors
for the safety of our waterfowl. Two
8-inch stakes in the front and back of
the tractors have proven effective in
even the worst gusts. Although staking
adds a few minutes to tractor moves, it
can make a life-or-death difference if
your area is also prone to high winds.
Another option is to simply herd waterfowl from their pasture location to a
coop in the evening, using long sticks
if you need them.
Geese are rumored to be good protectors of other types of poultry, such
as chickens.
We’ve found that running geese with
ducks does seem to deter aerial predators, and we’ve observed more than one
juvenile hawk change its mind about
swooping down on a duck when a
nearby gander does a full-span wing
Juvenile ducklings and goslings are suited to low tractors, until they've grown enough to join the flock.
Hoop tractors, although taller than low tractors, are still easy to move around on pasture.
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Ganders can deter hawks
and other aerial predators
with a well-timed wing flap.
flap. But I don’t advocate using geese
as guardian animals. While they may
sound the alarm when predators are
around, even adult geese are at risk of
predation by canids.
Geese are, at best, deterrents to small
predators. If you expect them to defend against a fox, you’re likely to find
a pile of feathers — evidence that the
fox won the battle. Without livestock
guardian dogs to keep away coyotes,
foxes, and dogs, we choose to protect
our birds as fully as possible.
www.MotherEarthNews.com
Livestock and Farming Series
RAISING
DUCKS & GEESE
J O H N
V I V I A N
Best Breeds for Pasture
The best way to find the right waterfowl for your situation is to try different breeds.
We’ve hatched and raised Chinese
and Pilgrim geese, and several breeds
of duck, including Indian Runner,
Muscovy, and Pekin. Each has its advantages and drawbacks.
Chinese geese are arguably the most
efficient at clearing weeds, hence the
moniker “weeder geese.” These swanlike creatures are the most affectionate
Learn the Benefits of Raising Ducks and Geese
On water or land, wild or tame, ducks and geese are some of
the best and most feed-economical of all farm fowl to raise for
meat and eggs. This e-book guides you through the steps of raising your own ducks and geese from beginning to end. This title is
available at www.MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by calling 800234-3368. Mention promo code MMEPAMZI. Item #3493.
A Storey Country W
Wisdom Bulletin
geese we’ve raised. Their long necks
can reach into tight areas, and they
ate all the grasses in our pastures.
Although they’re rumored to lay better
than other breeds, we didn’t find that
to be the case with our bloodline. We
decided to try another breed when we
observed our Chinese geese bullying
other poultry on our property.
Pilgrim geese are the next breed
we tried. Our research indicated that
this autosexing breed is generally more
docile and easier on other poultry species than Chinese geese. Our Pilgrims
aren’t as aggressive as we found the
Chinese geese to be, but they do occasionally pick on each other and the
ducks; the ganders are most likely to
be bullies. Our Pilgrims seem to prefer grass, but also enthusiastically eat
clover, chickweed, plantain, and most
other pasture plants. In just a couple
of weeks, four geese can trim a section
of grass down as neatly as a mower.
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Indian Runner ducks are a great
choice for pasture operations. They’re
quick to respond to perceived threats,
easy to herd, and don’t fly. If you use
a coop in conjunction with netting or
fencing on pasture, these intelligent
birds will quickly learn to return to the
coop at dusk, often putting themselves
to bed voluntarily. Pasturing them
with docile geese has helped prevent
aerial predation on our property.
Muscovy ducks are arguably one of
the best pasture breeds. These tireless
foragers enjoy hunting down mosquitoes and flies, and they'll also catch
and eat small amphibians and rodents.
Muscovies can fly well, so you should
either use a tractor setup or be prepared to clip their wings to keep them
within the confines of poultry netting.
Pekin ducks are large, calm, and
easily sourced, making them a good
choice for novices. Their docility can
be a drawback unless your setup prevents both aerial and ground predators. Additionally, our Pekins seemed
predisposed to developing bumblefoot, a foot infection. On the flip
side, Pekins' fast growth makes them
a standout choice as a meat breed.
From top: Muscovy ducks and Pilgrim geese are two waterfowl breeds suited to pasturing.
Indian Runner ducks are
easy to herd and quick to
respond to threats.
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Adventures in
Suburban
Farming
COURTESY
OF
STAN SLAUGHTER
AND
LINDA CHUBBUCK (2)
Stan first met Linda in 2004 at a talk he gave in Salina,
Kansas, through his environmental education work. Linda, a
music educator and singer, felt an instant connection, and they
quickly fell into conversation about compost and the circle of
life. After a year of long-distance dating, they bought a house
in suburban Kansas City — a great place to start their lives
LINDA CHUBBUCK (2)
Farm Dreams
AND
M
any of us foster the dream of owning a small farm
somewhere, the garden bursting with ripe vegetables
and well-fed animals providing milk, eggs, and meat.
The COVID-19 pandemic’s effect on people’s lifestyles may be
cultivating that dream for more and more people. At the end
of 2020, Gallup found in a poll that almost half of Americans
(48 percent) say they would prefer to live in a small town or
rural area, up significantly from 39 percent in 2018.
But no matter how many people carry this dream, the
realities of living in a rural area and taking care of a farm are
just not practical for everyone. So what if you choose to stay in
an urban or suburban area? Is your dream over?
Stan Slaughter and Linda Chubbuck found themselves facing
this dilemma in early 2020. After years of living in the suburbs,
they finally got serious about their plan to buy a plot in the
country, raise a few animals, and plant a huge organic garden.
Then, with the pandemic bearing down, they faced a decision:
either overextend themselves to buy a mostly perfect property,
or stay put on their suburban lot and find a way to flourish on
the land they already called home.
STAN SLAUGHTER
By Jessica Johnson Webb
One couple traded
their farmstead
dream for a suburban
jewel after realizing
the potential their
property already had.
Before their property was bursting with plants, Stan and Linda had to ready their suburban backyard to become a place habitable for a garden.
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COURTESY
OF
STAN SLAUGHTER
AND
LINDA CHUBBUCK (2)
STAN SLAUGHTER
AND
LINDA CHUBBUCK (2)
Many summertime family
visits involve spending
time in a garden.
together, they thought, but always intended as a pit stop on the
way to a farmhouse and several acres.
They settled in and started making improvements. In the
meantime, several of their adult children moved to the Kansas
City metro area, got married, and started families. Soon,
15 years had passed, and Stan and Linda were still cultivating
their corner lot, which was beginning to feel constricting.
Their neighborhood homeowners association (HOA)
prohibits keeping chickens, and they were navigating
neighbors with large shade trees, as well as a limited amount
of growing space. And squirrels. “You can’t trap them fast
enough, can’t bring in coyotes,” Stan says, pointing out that
more natural predators help keep the population under
control in the country.
They weren’t feeling the squeeze from just the surrounding
neighborhood. Linda recalls the heightening tension and
frustration between her and Stan’s gardening techniques. “He
was putting (the baby plants) too close, and I could feel their
stress,” she says. Like the crowded plants, Stan and Linda were
finally ready for more space. In January 2020, they made
improvements to their house to ready it for the market, and
got serious about looking for a farm. Their wish list included
several acres (Linda says their conversations went something
like, “We need 10 acres. Well, 5 acres would do. Well, maybe
even just 1 acre.”), close proximity to Kansas City and their
grandchildren, and a livable house.
With the help of a real estate agent, they found a few
Both Stan and Linda dreamed of owning a farmhouse and several acres.
promising options, but the COVID-19 pandemic was quickly
approaching. On March 17, 2020, the Kansas City metro area
went into lockdown. “That day, we actually made an offer on a
space,” Linda says. It was a little over 3 acres in the Kansas City
limits and closer to their grandkids. But there were some issues.
The property was over their budget, and though the house
had been recently remodeled, it hadn’t been done well. There
were no outbuildings, so constructing some would require
additional money once they moved in. Even their real estate
agent wasn’t excited about the idea. But they put in an offer
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anyway. Forty-eight hours elapsed (an offer typically expires
after 24 hours) while they waited to hear back from the seller.
Finally, he responded with a request for more money. Stan
and Linda decided against a counteroffer. Since the property
had been on the market for over six months, they thought the
owner might accept the original offer anyway, so they spent a
few more days in limbo.
Questions like, “What about our dream?” swirled between
them during the wait. But instead of accepting defeat, they
found themselves looking at things differently. “We made a
list,” Linda says. “Even though keeping our current house
means we can never have this, this, or this, the reasons to stay
became really powerful.”
Deep Roots
STAN SLAUGHTER
AND
LINDA CHUBBUCK (7)
Their farm dream wasn’t easily tossed aside. “I grew up in the
country; lived in the country most of my life,” Linda says. “Stan
grew up on a 100-plus-acre farm. Both of us love the country.”
Stan’s family worked their land east of Lee’s Summit,
Missouri, for generations. “My grandmother was the first
woman to get a degree in agriculture at
the University of Missouri,” he says. The
From left: Stan and Linda’s grandchildren
family raised chickens, hogs, and cattle
enjoy harvesting the berries. Their garden
for meat, and Stan’s mother canned
also includes a host of other fruits and
“hundreds” of quarts of beans and tomavegetables. Initially in the front yard, the
toes for the winter. “Well over half of our
garden had to be moved to a different part of
food came from the garden,” Stan adds.
the yard to get more sunlight.
Linda grew up in north-central Kansas
near Concordia. “When I was a little
girl, I quite literally followed my dad
around in the garden. He didn’t entirely
like that, because I would ask him lots
of questions,” she says with a chuckle.
Aside from a few chickens, they didn’t
have farm animals, but Linda still found
ways to connect with wildlife. She and
her dad rescued baby birds, bunnies, and
more. “I was just completely in love with
toads. They let you catch them,” she says.
“I think the neighbor ladies thought it
was odd for a little girl to be catching and
playing with toads.”
Together, Stan and Linda had imagined
owning acreage to raise their own food,
connect with nature, and teach their
grandchildren the joys and miracles of
working the land. But with life not falling into place the way they’d planned, they
had a lot of hard discussions during the
days they waited for the seller’s response.
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Stan and Linda plan to continue the family tradition of canning, drying, and freezing their excess garden bounty.
STAN SLAUGHTER
AND
LINDA CHUBBUCK (7)
During that time, Stan remembered some years in the 1970s
when he quit his teaching job and moved with his then-wife
to a farmstead in the Ozarks. It wasn’t a particularly happy
time. He put in a lot of backbreaking labor and still wasn’t
able to make the farm successful. “It left a painful memory of
overextending,” he says. “I was still willing to try it on a small
acreage.” However, that experience kept coming up during
their discussions. He pointed out that the garden and yard in
their suburban lot took a lot of their time. How much would
be required to start all over on a new 3-acre plot?
the yard. But it wasn’t a lost cause. “The soil is amazing there,”
Linda says. It’s easy to see the enhanced fertility; they replanted
grass in much of that area, and the lawn there is lush, green,
and healthy, no harmful chemicals involved.
During the 15 years in their home, they’d also replaced the
windows, enhanced the insulation, installed a wood-burning
fireplace insert, and redesigned the HVAC for separate climate
zones. But the house still felt too small for family gatherings;
it didn’t have a guest bedroom or a room large enough to hold
the whole family for a meal.
Instead of focusing on what they couldn’t have, they turned
their attention to what they could do. “(We realized) we could
‘A Really Rich Jewel’
turn what we already had into a really rich jewel instead of
Linda and Stan began to see their ¼-acre suburban lot as
overextending ourselves and constantly being depleted,” Linda
a treasure they’d been taking for granted. “We realized how
says. When the seller of the
much we’d be saying goodbye
property finally responded
to if we left,” Linda says.
with a definitive “no,” she
When they first moved in,
and Stan felt relieved. She
Stan delved deeper into what
adds, “We realized if we could
he already knew about soil
qualify for a loan for a new
enhancement. “I immediately
house, we could qualify for
started making the (garden)
improvements here.” Over
beds and adding compost
the summer of 2020, they
from the local yard waste
built an addition with a highdrop-off,” he says. “Then,
ceilinged great room and a
about 10 years ago, I started
guest bedroom with its own
adding charcoal from the
outside entry.
fireplace.” Similar to biochar,
A year after their decithat charcoal combined with
sion, both are happy with it.
the compost to enhance the
While they acknowledge what
nutrients in their backyard.
they’ve lost by staying in the
They also added gypsum and
suburbs, they focus more on
sand to mitigate the hard clay
what they’ve gained. “We can’t
beneath the builder-grade
have chickens,” Linda says.
backfill.
“That will probably never
“It worked magnificently
change. But we could have
for the first three years,” Linda
rabbits. And we do have worm
says. “Then it began to gel
bins, so we have animals who
back into clay.” At the same
produce manure.”
time, the neighbors’ trees were
Stan says he’s always
creating too much shade, and
wanted fruit trees, but they’ve
the whole garden had to be
had mixed luck with those.
moved to a different part of
Front-yard gardening in a neighborhood comes with some challenges.
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LINDA CHUBBUCK
AND
STAN SLAUGHTER
They nurtured a prolific plum
combined with a larger array of
tree for a few years before it
crops. And, as they have in presuccumbed to Japanese beetles.
vious years, and as their families
They’re trying again this year
did before them, they’ll can,
in a new location.
dry, or freeze most of the excess.
The neighboring shade trees
The rest they’ll give to family,
— normally an asset in the subfriends, and neighbors.
urbs — have also caused some
problems when they’ve tried to
Making Friends
grow sun-loving plants. “We
Over the Garden
just decided to stop fussing
The garden has been a prime
about it and find things that can
source of connection for Stan
be grown in the shade,” Linda
and Linda. A visit from the
says. She’s been trying her hand
family usually includes a garden
at mushrooms, though she
tour, with sun-warmed snacks
hasn’t had much luck yet. But
all summer, and plenty of
they do have luck with plenty of
interesting aromas and critters.
other plants. Most summers inFor years, Stan has built
clude an abundance of heirloom
community through the Lee’s
tomatoes, kale, swiss chard,
To connect with people, Linda offers free irises for passersby.
Summit Farmers Market, buytrombone squash, eggplant, and
ing from local growers, educatmore. The grandkids love to roam the garden, and even the
ing, selling compost, and doing musical performances. “When
2-year-old knows where to look for the best raspberries.
you do that kind of stuff, you get more than you bargained for,”
With the energy they once put toward dreaming about
he says. “You learn about (the other growers’) methods.” He
owning a small farm somewhere, Stan and Linda are now
talks with them about connections he’s made with local comchallenging themselves to better manage the suburban property
munity gardens; small-scale butchering and locker operations;
they have. One current project involves utilizing as much of
community composting and canning groups; and his educathe water that falls on their land as possible. They continue to
tional work at Missouri Organic Recycling, a large Kansas City
enhance their rain barrel system, and this year, Stan is terracing
compost company.
Linda adds that they’ve also formed community closer to
their garden beds. “The idea is to collect the water that comes
home. “Front-yard gardening has limitations, because you
down off the roof in the soil and not lose any of it,” he says.
have to take into account what the neighborhood will tolA second goal this year is improving their garden planning to
erate, but it’s a great way to meet (people),” she says. She
avoid a glut of produce. “We’re trying to diversify our crops so
focuses mainly on flowers, and giving thought to what the
that they’ll produce at various different times,” Stan says. Turns
community children might like. A couple of summers ago,
out, staggering plantings is harder than it sounds, so they’re
a young girl (accompanied by her mother) rang the doorbell
putting energy into developing multiple planting windows
to apologize for picking one of Linda’s
irises. They’ve stayed friends, and Linda
now puts out a bucket of water with
Farming for Everyone
free irises for passersby each time she
Self-sustainability is a valuable skill, no matter where you
picks some for herself.
live. In Urban Farming, 2nd Edition, author Thomas J. Fox
Recently, the city of Lee’s Summit
walks every city and suburban dweller down the path of selfpurchased two houses deemed uninsustainability. He offers practical advice and inspiration for
habitable because of recurring flooding.
gardening and farming, including gardening in a high-rise
The houses were razed, and the lots now
apartment; participating in a community garden; vertical
sit vacant. Linda contacted the HOA
farming; and converting terraces and other small city spaces
and suggested using the space for native
into fruitful, vegetable-filled real estate. This comprehensive
plantings and a community garden. The
guide to urban food-growing will answer every up-andboard members were thrilled; they ofcoming urban farmer’s questions about how, what, where,
fered to help, and invited Linda to join
and why. It’s a green book for dedicated citizens seeking to reduce their carbon footprint
the board.
and grocery bill.
Who knows? Now that she’s on
This title is available at www.MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by calling 800-234-3368.
the HOA board, she might be able
Mention promo code MMEPAMZI. Item #9266.
to do something about that chicken
restriction too.
14 THE BEST OF MOTHER EARTH NEWS
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In from the Cold
Livestock are resilient in winter, but you can
ease the chill with these steps to lessen their stress.
By Callene Rapp
ISTOCK/HANS
SLEGERS
A
s you look out on a cold winter’s
day at a herd of cattle with snow
piled on their backs, you might
be tempted to move them into a nice, airtight barn. Don’t fall for it. Those animals
have adapted to withstand some pretty
extreme weather. However, you can give
them a little help to make the big chill of
winter less harsh.
Although the layer of snow on your animals’ backs looks like it should be freezing them to death, it’s actually a pretty
good indicator that they aren’t losing too
much body heat. Many livestock animals
grow long, sometimes fuzzy coats in win-
keep warm during freezing precipitation,
and a freezing rain will get them shivering
long before a dry snowfall will.
Chow Time
ter. Thanks to piloerection—the ability
of hair follicles to rise up — those coats
trap warm, dry air next to the skin, keeping heat in and cold out. Think of it like
the roof on your house: Snow on the roof
actually means the roof is well-insulated,
with little heat radiating out.
Also, livestock generally have blocky
body types, which also helps them maintain their core temperature. It’s much
harder to lose heat from a square shape
than from a narrow one; this can be a
problem in hot weather, but it’s an advantage in the cold. But beware of wet
cold: A freezing rain will plaster that hair
coat down and remove its insulating
properties. Animals will shiver to try to
Researchers estimate that 37 degrees
Fahrenheit and lower is the point at which
most animals reach their lower critical
temperature (LCT)—the temperature at
which they begin expending energy to
maintain core body temperature. Access
to good-quality forage becomes vitally
important at LCT. For every degree drop
in temperature below the LCT, the energy needs of cattle increase by 2 percent.
Hay that’s moldy, dusty, or has a poor
nutrient value will have a negative impact
on your livestock’s physical condition and
their ability to generate body heat. Horses
are able to increase their consumption
to make up for the lack of good energy
in the hay, and they may be able to eat
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We all know how critical fresh, clean
water is in hot months. But water is also
important during extreme cold weather.
Water is critical for digestion. Without
it, the rumen can’t break down cellulose
efficiently. Animals often won’t attempt
to eat unless they have an adequate water
supply, even if you put food right in front
of them.
Don’t assume that animals can eat
snow to make up for a lack of fresh
water. A cow needs 14 to 20 gallons of
water a day — and that translates to a
tremendous amount of snow. Eating
snow also lowers an animal’s core body
temperature, making it more difficult
for the animal to withstand bad weather.
The body uses six times the amount of
Offer Shelter from the Storm
Your animals don’t need elaborate,
heated barns, shut up tight against winter’s chill. In fact, it’s probably better if
they’re not enclosed in such structures.
All livestock need fresh, clean air as
much as they need fresh, clean water.
A closed barn without good ventilation
will allow ammonia fumes to build up
from the excreted urine and manure.
Those fumes can irritate lungs and na-
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(3)/ ARNE BRAMSEN, STEVE EVERTS, EDD WESTMACOTT
Thaw the Ice
FROM FAR LEFT: ISTOCK
enough to get by—but you’ll go through
your hay supply much faster.
Once a ruminant fills up, though, the
animal is unable to eat more until the
rumination process is finished, so the
amount of feed it ingests stays roughly
the same.
If an animal is consuming poor-quality
hay, it can’t eat more to make up for the
lack of nutrition. And if the hay supply
is bad because of weather conditions or
drought, you’ll probably need to feed
your livestock supplements to keep them
in prime condition and able to withstand
winter. One of the most important things
you can do to prepare for cold weather
and maximize your feed dollar is to send
your animals into winter in the best possible physical condition.
CLOCKWISE
Livestock need fresh, clean air as much as they need fresh, clean water.
energy to melt snow than it does to just
drink fresh water. That’s an energy deficit your animals can’t afford in a harsh
winter environment.
For animals to maximize their intake,
water needs to be at a temperature of 37
to 40 degrees. Colder than that, and your
livestock will be discouraged. Even a thin
skin of ice over the water surface can keep
them from drinking the liquid they need.
A freeze-proof automatic drinker is
a great investment for your animals.
Although the equipment can be expensive to install, the right one for your
environment will run efficiently and
economically. You can install it yourself,
but make sure there’s no stray voltage or
electrical current to shock your animals,
even mildly, because livestock can be
easily discouraged from drinking.
If a freeze-proof drinker isn’t an option,
you’ll need a tank heater. Install the heater so its electrical cord can’t be chewed on,
and a clever critter can’t flip the heater out
of the tank. You can fix this problem by
running the cords through PVC conduit,
and anchoring the conduit.
Because tank heaters can be energyintensive, consider using a timer to run
the heater only during the coldest part
of the night, or set it to run a few hours
on followed by a few hours off. Another
way to minimize expense is to set up a
small aquarium aerator pump to bubble
air and move the warm water around.
Insulating the tank will help as well.
You can build a plywood box around
a tank quite easily. Then, stuff the box
with straw or hay, and place a cover over
the open water (leaving an opening for
drinking). This can help keep water
available to your animals in all but the
coldest and windiest weather.
sal passages, making the animals more
susceptible to respiratory problems,
such as pneumonia.
Livestock are usually fine in open air,
and, if given access to a three-sided shed
facing south or east, they can fend off the
worst that winter has to offer. A tree belt
also can offer adequate protection from
the elements, provided the animals have
enough to eat. Pigs are legendary for
their ability to make nests, and, if given
good bedding material in a shed, they can
make a toasty place to bed down and ride
out the cold.
Even on the coldest nights, you may
see your livestock bedding down out in
the open air, preferring it to a shed, but
they’ll almost always appreciate shelter
during a freezing rain.
If you do keep your livestock in a barn,
make sure the building has adequate
ventilation, either natural through open
windows, louvers, or vents, or mechanical
through an exhaust fan that exchanges
warm, ammonia-laden air for fresh.
Avoid keeping animals in a warm interior and then turning them out into the
freezing cold. The dramatic change can
stress their systems and lead to illness.
They’re better off either one way or the
other most of the time.
Whatever shelter you provide, be sure
to keep the bedding clean. Dirty bedding
is a breeding ground for bacteria and
may harbor viruses, and it’s difficult for
animals to keep warm if their bedding is
damp and cold.
CLOCKWISE
FROM FAR LEFT: ISTOCK
(3)/ ARNE BRAMSEN, STEVE EVERTS, EDD WESTMACOTT
Baby, It’s Cold Outside
You can plan for calving or lambing
season to land after the worst of the winter weather, but Mother Nature usually
surprises us with a spring blizzard or two.
Baby animals are born with a limited ability to thermoregulate— that is,
they’re unable to maintain core body
temperature. Wet newborns are at great
risk unless they’re dried off rapidly. A
good mom of any species takes care of
this by licking her calf or lamb; her attention helps stimulate the baby’s circulation, helping the process along.
If the mother has had a difficult delivery or is disinterested in her baby, you
might have to step in and dry the new-
Animals often won’t attempt to eat unless you provide them with adequate fresh water.
born yourself. Keep some old towels
stocked in a “birthing kit” for this purpose; a handful of dry straw or hay will
also work in a pinch.
If you come upon a newborn that’s already chilled, warm it up as soon as possible. Many lambs have been brought back
from the brink by immersion in a bucket
of warm-but-not-scalding water — keep
their head clear. Once they’re warmed up,
place the little ones under a heat lamp or
in a warm, dry place until they’re able to
get back on their feet.
Calves and lambs are able to maintain
their own body temperature within about
24 hours, if they’ve been properly dried
off at birth and get a hearty meal or two
of colostrum. The energy and fat contained in those first few meals are critical,
because they provide the necessary energy
to fight off cold stress and maintain good
health. Piglets don’t have a thick coat and
take much longer to develop control over
body temperature. Winter farrowing may
require heat lamps for a couple of weeks
unless the nest is snug and tight.
Lambs have a storage supply of “brown
fat” at birth. This fat is metabolized quite
easily and provides an energy boost for
newborns. Brown fat is different from the
white fat animals put on later; for a newborn in a cold environment, brown fat is
a lifesaving energy resource.
With some forethought and preparation, you can help your livestock minimize the hardships of winter. And, unless
you live at the North Pole, you can count
on the chill passing by eventually, and
soon it’ll be time to complain about the
heat again!
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Climate
Farming
Practices
The key to reversing climate change
could be right under our feet.
By Jeff Meyer and Joshua Andersen
Photos by Charles Goodin
and Mikael Maynard
C
onventional methods of
modern agriculture and
gardening can create a host of
environmental hazards. According to
the Environmental Protection Agency,
agricultural activity is responsible for
10 percent of atmospheric carbon
emissions worldwide, and excess nitrogen
runoff from conventional and organic
fertilizers — combined with the poor
contouring of most farmland — upsets
the natural ecosystems in lakes, rivers,
and oceans, suffocating fish and other
plant life.
These practices strip vital nutrients
from topsoil, decreasing both the
availability of farmable land and the
nutritional quality of the food grown
on it. Soil erosion is a progressively
worsening situation that the United
Nations says could reduce worldwide
crop yields by 10 percent over the next
30 years.
Modern agriculture’s single-minded
focus on yield leads most traditional
and organic farmers to plant vast,
single-crop fields, a practice referred to
as “monoculture.” Monoculture farming
requires more importation of nutrients,
further degrades the soil, and can result
in poorer long-term yield.
Organic farming isn’t always easy on
the environment either. Many largescale organic farms do little to control
the leaching of water and plant nutrients
5 Principles of
Climate Farming
1 Integration of animals into growing
operations.
2 Stratified, adjacent planting of
multiple species.
3 Minimal topsoil disturbance.
4 Erosion and water management
techniques, such as earthworks and
appropriate irrigation.
5 Ongoing soil improvement through
cover crops and composting.
In regenerative agriculture, animals can help with crop cultivation.
18 THE BEST OF MOTHER EARTH NEWS
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from their land, and the resulting
runoff can have a negative impact
on nearby ecosystems.
Given the issues with both
traditional and organic farming, we
can’t afford to continue ignoring
the industry’s environmental
impact. It’s time for organic
consumers, farmers, and gardeners
to take on Big Agriculture and go
beyond organic. Climate Farming
is the next step in the organic
farming and climate-conscious
revolutions. The purpose of
Climate Farming is to produce
delicious, nutritious fruits and
vegetables while improving topsoil
health, reducing or eliminating harmful
agricultural runoff, sequestering carbon,
and fixing nitrogen.
The combination of practices that
make up Climate Farming isn’t new.
Rather, it links together proven strategies from regenerative farming, permaculture, and syntropic agroforestry,
many drawing on Indigenous practices,
in a unique way. We put these methodologies into practice every day at the
Johnny Appleseed Organic Village, a
sustainable living development near the
Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge
in southeast Georgia. We’re constantly
observing and fine-tuning the principles
Clockwise from left: Composting, animal
integration, and the stratified, adjacent
planting of varied species are three key
components of Climate Farming.
(see “5 Principles of Climate Farming,”
previous page) with some of the leading experts in permaculture and environmental sciences, and we’re proud to
report that Climate Farming is not only
doable, but it’s also transforming our
land into a carbon-capturing oasis.
Regenerative Agriculture
Regenerative agriculture is an
approach to farm management that
emphasizes rehabilitating damaged soil
or continuing to improve the richness
of soil that’s already high quality.
Preserving the top layer of soil is critical
for plant health, because the vast
majority of nutrients are stored in
these precious few inches — and
agriculture is responsible for an
estimated 41 to 54 percent of total
soil erosion.
Regenerative farms forgo
conventional tilling in favor of
minimal topsoil disturbance
to preserve soil and nutrients.
As a result, the root structures
of har vested crops remain
belowground alongside other
organic material. Combined with
quality compost input, this practice
feeds the soil food web, resulting in a
rich bounty of nutrients for future crops.
The use of cover crops further
improves soil. In addition to providing
more organic matter, these crops
help prevent erosion from harming
the quality of the soil, and they can
encourage the presence of natural
pollinators on the farm.
Regenerative farms also seek to
emulate the dynamics of a natural
ecosystem, harnessing the instincts
of healthy animals to aid in crop
cultivation. Common practices
include plowing with pigs (next page);
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beekeeping; and the use of chickens in
tractors to weed, loosen, and fertilize
the soil. Not only are these practices
comparable to what would likely occur
in nature, but they also help limit the
use of traditional farming tools powered
by fossil fuels.
It’s from regenerative agriculture
that Climate Farming draws the
practices of integrating livestock into
growing operations, composting, and
minimizing soil disturbance.
Permaculture
When the term “permaculture” was
first coined in 1978, it came from a
combination of the words “permanent”
and “agriculture.” Where many
agricultural and cultural traditions
attempt to conquer nature — to
have dominion over the land and
nature — permaculture abandons
this goal in favor of working with the
land, leaning into nature and creating
a sustainable way of living for future
generations. Designing a plot that works
with nature encourages the inherent
evolutionary relationships between
organisms, which produce nutrients
that enhance each other. Organisms
with these symbiotic relationships,
Permaculture works to create a sustainable way of living with the land for future generations.
called “guilds,” are a cornerstone of both
permaculture design and the Climate
Farming toolkit.
It’s from permaculture that Climate
Farming draws its focus on the stratified, adjacent planting of multiple species, and water management through
contoured plantings.
Syntropic Agroforestry
Most farming practices require
resources and nutrients to be imported
from elsewhere, rather than producing
them on-site. The environmental
impacts of this practice range from the
destructive mining of phosphorus and
nitrate, to the resources used to package
Plowing with Pigs
When one thinks of sequestering carbon through soil building, they may be
surprised to learn that animal interactions with the land are key to that endeavor.
Tillage in the conventional sense is more likely to decrease soil carbon and
damage soil structure and microbiota. However, a little plowing can be useful,
particularly where the existing vegetation isn’t desirable, or when there’s a
tangled woody thicket that adds little in the way of productive growth, carbon
capturing, or soil building.
Pigs, when confined and moved in a systematic way, will help clear these
areas while stirring the soil so you can replant the matrix with a mixture that
produces human food directly, or forage for subsequent generations of carboncapturing animals—including pigs! And pigs will do this work for you without
any need to invest in machines and the fuels to run them.
After the fieldwork is complete, move the pigs back to a semipermanent
enclosure, or a thicket needing to be cleared. Take all your compostable
materials and pile them in that pen. The pigs will eat, churn, root, and
eventually leave you with a lot of fiber and manure that’ll compost and make an
amazing soil amendment.
—Oscar H. Will III, editor at large
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Climate Farming draws on syntropic farming’s plant-pruning techniques and its practice of generating and recycling organic matter.
and ship those materials, to the runoff
that pollutes our waterways. Shifting
from synthetic to organic fertilizers is
a step in the right direction, but it fails
to address the problem of extracting
resources from the land without
replacing them. Syntropic farming, or
syntropic agroforestry, works to grow a
consortium of organisms that produce
nutrients precisely where they’ll be used,
eliminating extraction concerns. Its core
values require that farmers create the
energy and resources needed to grow
with the very land on which they’re
growing. This removes participation in
the harmful systems and practices that
degrade soil and waste resources.
It’s from syntropic farming that
Climate Farming draws its judicious
pruning philosophy, as well as the
ongoing generation and recycling of
organic matter through succession
planting and appropriate termination.
Preventing nutrients from leaving the
farm via erosive runoff is also a crucial
component of the practice.
Climate Farming’s Potential
To fully mitigate climate change, scientists agree that we’ll need to scrub
existing atmospheric carbon as well
as limit future emissions. Climate
Farming is a significant departure
from common farming and gardening
practices, but the impact of converting
more farms and gardens to this model
can potentially change the world.
Based on existing research, climate
scientists estimate that 1 acre farmed
this way could sequester as much atmospheric carbon annually as a healthy
forest of the same size. Each passenger car averages annual carbon emissions of 4.6 metric tons, and carbon
sequestration on farmland can hold a
conservative average of 3 tons per acre.
This means that if 1 percent of the total
existing farmland in the U.S. were con-
verted to regenerative practices, those
farms would mitigate the emissions of
about 5.8 million cars. If half of the
existing farmland were converted, it
would eliminate the carbon output
equivalent of all U.S. cars. At the same
time, topsoil quality on those farms
would continue to improve, resulting
in a higher yield of more nutritious,
better-tasting food.
Two more articles in the Climate
Farming series can be found on the
MOTHER EARTH NEWS website, www.
MotherEarthNews.com. Search for
‘Climate Farming.’ — MOTHER
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A dehesa system yields animal products, cork from
oak trees, plants from the understory, and more.
Animals
on the Farm
This article is available
online in audio form at
MotherEarthNews.com
A
round the world, people are
demonstrating how to manage
animals in harmony with land
and culture. Recognizing their innovations and adopting their practices are key
steps toward lessening the problems of
industrial animal agriculture. Whether
you’re a small- or large-scale producer,
you can be inspired by tested production practices that improve animal health
while reducing waste, runoff, erosion,
and emissions. These practices can also
provide income and bolster your business
efficiency.
These farmers don’t isolate animals
from other farm enterprises, but rather
integrate them into many land management activities. Even when corralled, the
22 THE BEST OF MOTHER EARTH NEWS
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LEFT:
By Meredith Leigh
animals aren’t detrimental to the land.
This presents a starkly different mindset
to Western animal agriculture, where animals are removed from the field, forest,
and food source. Industrial practices concentrate animals into one place and truck
in their food, which has to be highly formulated to suit the conditions created by
their confinement. Under this scenario,
any efficiency gained by concentrating
production is counteracted by the human
and fossil-fuel energy required to feed the
animals and deal with the resulting waste,
erosion, and runoff. But animals can
augment and improve managed natural
systems, and examples of this abound, if
only we pay attention.
FROM
Small farmers across the globe are
developing creative ways of integrating
livestock into their agricultural operations.
ADOBE STOCK/JUANFRANCISCO; A GROWING CULTURE
A Holistic Approach
Dehesas in Spain
rk from
more.
Silvopasture has been around since the
Middle Ages in the example of the Spanish
dehesa, a system of grazing animals in pastures with scattered oak trees. Dehesas
mimic a savanna landscape that provides
multiple food and fiber needs. Farmers
benefit not only from meat, milk, and
other animal products, but also from selling cork from the oak trees; hunting rights;
and mushrooms, herbs, and other plantbased products from the herbaceous understory. A modern example can be found
in Sharing Our Roots (www.Sharing-OurRoots.org), a poultry and perennial plant
production system on a 100-acre farm in
Minnesota. This organization is pasturing chickens with elderberry and hazelnut
crops, sunflowers, corn, and other annuals.
The system produces eggs, meat, medicine, and perennial nursery plants, while
improving soil and providing a learning
incubator for farmers of color.
Incorporating swales and fodder banks
is another way to integrate animal production into the farm landscape. A swale is a
basin or channel that increases water filtration on the land. The plant life around
the swale and on its gently sloping sides
is generally rich and diverse because of its
water-holding capacity. Farmers
can manage this plant community on a swale’s accompanying
berm (the ridge directing water
into the channel) to produce fruit
trees, herbs, and medicine crops.
Farmers often create fodder banks
on berms to grow feed for their
livestock. For example, alder trees
can be grown on berms in a sheep pasture
so their pruned leaves and branches can be
thrown down to the livestock, or carried to
sheltered sheep in harsh weather. Farmers
raising animals in managed forests or silvopasture also produce “tree hay”—harvested and stored tree leaves that pack
intense nutritional benefits. These same
trees may also produce fruit or nuts, timber, shade for mushrooms and other understory crops, or sap products, such as
maple syrup.
Joe Ouko feeds the formulated ration of dried and shredded fodder he developed for dairy goats.
(an acronym for “Locally Formulated
Dairy Goat Meal”). Farmer and retired
teacher Joe Ouko led the project to develop this meal through a social enterprise involving many community members in his
area of southwestern Kenya. Ouko and his
colleagues have improved on the “cut and
carry” approach to feeding corralled dairy
goats in a way that’s environmentally sustainable, culturally suitable, and optimal
for animal nutrition and milk production.
“The innovation came about because of
need: In my area, rainfall is very seldom,”
Ouko says. When drought makes fodder from trees and plants scarce, the “old
Local INNOVAtion”), an international
network that supports farmer innovation, Ouko was able to collaborate with
stakeholders to refine his idea, access support, and leverage funding. “Partners in
Prolinnova-Kenya have invested a lot of
time and energy in what we call farmer-led
joint research,” says Chesha Wettasinha, a
member of Prolinnova’s international support team.
One major advancement was procuring
a chopper-grinder so Ouko could shred
the dried fodder and increase its storage capacity. Ouko has continued to network via
Prolinnova and its partners, and also with
fellow farmers. Now, non-goat
farmers are selling plants in their
districts that can be used in the
goat meal. LOFODA-G-Meal
has evolved to become a formulated ration created from drying
and grinding each natural fodder
material separately, and then combining them to create the right
energy, vitamin, protein, and mineral balance. “Milk from the goats has doubled
because of this formula,” Ouko says.
Ouko and the community continue to
improve the product in ways that amplify
mutual benefit. When fodder from neighboring areas still wasn’t enough to meet demand sustainably, he collaborated with the
International Centre of Insect Physiology
and Ecology, headquartered in Nairobi,
and was connected with farmers who use
high-energy crops to repel insects in their
fields. These plants repel a particular worm
that threatens their crops; when the plants
reach maturity, the farmers can harvest
and provide them to Ouko for inclusion
FROM
LEFT:
ADOBE STOCK/JUANFRANCISCO; A GROWING CULTURE
Animals can improve landscapes
in a properly managed system.
Goat Meal from Fodder in Kenya
Optimizing tree and leaf fodder is exemplified in the story of LOFODA-G-Meal
practice of cutting the branches down to
almost nothing to get the natural fodder
makes re-sprouting difficult.” Increased
drought led to increased competition for
fodder. Ouko says, “I noticed two things:
To cut only the shoots of the trees during the rainy season made re-sprouting
better, and also, the goats were going for
the green, dry leaves.” He began to forage shoots and shade-dry them to produce
fodder for storage.
As he found success stockpiling tree
fodder from the rainy season to sustain
dairy goats through the dry season, Ouko
reached out to advance his project. With
the help of Prolinnova (“PROmoting
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When animals must be confined, infrastructure can be designed to be healthier
for animals and the environment than
industrial agriculture’s concrete pens and
waste lagoons. In rural northern Vietnam,
farmers keep swine in a hog house because
they don’t have the option of pasturing the
animals extensively. However, instead of
Livestock Handling Practices for the Small Farm
In Temple Grandin’s Guide to Working with Farm Animals,
author Temple Grandin explains how to analyze herd behavior and
understand how animals think (describing their senses, fears,
instincts, and memories) to help you handle your livestock more
safely and effectively. Whether you’re managing a herd of 3 pigs
or 100 sheep, this guide is an important resource. This title is
available at www.MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by calling 800234-3368. Mention promo code MMEPAMZI. Item #8402.
cost of that in Hanoi is more expensive
than a concrete floor,” she says. Trang has
honed a specific bedding combination of
rice hulls, biochar, dry soil, and dry leaves,
and has been able to produce the beneficial
microbes on molding rice, instead of having to purchase bedding inoculants.
Trang’s other innovations include designing living roofs and walls in hog houses using local flora and fauna to help with
climate control. “These plants also have
other functions, such as improving food
sufficiency or repelling mosquitoes,” Trang
says. She’s also experimenting with composting a portion of the living bedding for
use on crops. Her hog houses don’t suffer from emissions, effluent, or odors; the
surrounding environment is ecologically
diverse and thriving; and the outputs are
beneficial to other agriculture systems and
to human nutrition. Trang emphasizes
that the use of the living bed technique
“requires a holistic solution, from design
to the feed.” Her ingenious ideas show
that placing animals in dynamic feedback
with an environment’s plants, microbes,
and humans can offer hope in the quest to
sustainably feed people.
As farmers and homesteaders continue
to champion ethical livestock production
in the United States, we should look to
Indigenous people and smallholders from
around the world for clues on adjusting
our mindsets and skillsets toward integrated animal agriculture. For more information, or to support Joe Ouko or Pham
Nhu Trang, see www.Prolinnova.net and A
Growing Culture (www.AGrowingCulture.
org); the latter nonprofit works globally to
advance farmer autonomy and agricultural
innovation.
LEFT:
Living Deep Beds in Vietnam
a concrete floor that can lead to muscle
and bone complications in the animals,
and that requires the collection of waste in
lagoons that become management problems, farmers can use a living deep-bed
system. The mulch floor inside the hog
house is inoculated with beneficial microorganisms, and the manure is composted in place, eliminating toxic odors and
harmful runoff while providing beneficial
microbes for the animals’ digestive tracts.
Pham Nhu Trang grew up farming in
rural Hanoi, and was deeply affected by
animals lost to disease and environmental
issues. She now studies and refines a living bed system for hog rearing that can be
implemented by small farmers with limited financial resources. The basic setup
is a deep layer of biomass inoculated with
beneficial microbes. As the animals produce dung, their bedding is turned to create a perpetual compost of sorts, with a hot
layer underneath and an ambient layer at
the top. Trang has done extensive research
on bedding materials, combining them in
different quantities to test the results. “The
original system calls for 70 centimeters of
sawdust to create the living bed, but the
FROM
in the goat meal. Additionally, women in
Ouko’s area have been innovating with
LOFODA-G-Meal to make products that
enhance human nutrition.
“There’s no limit to sustainable production as long as financial resources are
available to sustain the fodder production, alongside the available permanent
water sources and labor aspects of the
operations,” Ouko says. The project is an
example of combining resources and needs
to produce a holistic and environmentally
conscious feed alternative. Wettasinha
says, “LOFODA-G-Meal represents a
social enterprise that involves many community members, especially women and
youth.” The product sustains jobs, land,
and families in this part of Kenya.
CHESHA WETTASINHA; PHAM NHU TRANG
Left: The development of LOFODA-G-Meal (“Locally Formulated Dairy Goat Meal”) has been a community undertaking in southwestern Kenya. Right:
Manure is composted in place as part of a living deep-bed system.
24 THE BEST OF MOTHER EARTH NEWS
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Photos from the Field
CLOCKWISE
FROM TOP LEFT:
ANN ELLINGTON; RICHARD RIDLEY JR.; “BAREFOOT LEMAN” NORTHWAY
Clockwise from above: A turtle “shelters in place.” Busy bumblebees
and vibrant sunflowers helped brighten this Oklahoma garden during
the pandemic. A late-spring Iowa thunderstorm rolls toward the
photographer, who sought safety after the clouds started to swirl.
SHOW US!
MEN_BOM.indb 25
Share your unique perspective with our community by submitting photos of inviting gardens, nutritious foods, wild animals, and more to the
MOTHER EARTH NEWS Photo Group on Flickr (www.Flickr.com/Groups/MotherEarthNewsPhotos/Pool ). We’ll feature our favorites here and online!
10/5/21 4:07 PM
Comparing Heritage
Chicken Breeds
By Dr. Jacquie Jacob
Heritage breeds, from top: Rhode Island Reds, Black Australorps, and Barred Plymouth Rocks.
The research presented here is part of
a project at the University of Kentucky
to develop alternative production systems for small-scale commercial poultry businesses in the United States.
In this study, we looked at three popular heritage breeds: Black Australorp,
Barred Plymouth Rock, and Rhode
Island Red.
Black Australorps have dark-colored
shanks and black feathers, attractive features in some markets. Barred
26 THE BEST OF MOTHER EARTH NEWS
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OF
STEPHEN PATTON/UNIVERSITY
FROM
Producing Tasty Birds
KENTUCKY; ADOBE STOCK/PANUPONG
S
mall-scale broiler chicken enterprises are often competing with
large commercial companies
for a share of the consumer market.
Many small-scale producers use the
same fast-growing chicken found in
most commercial operations: a hybrid Cornish-Plymouth Rock strain.
Chicks are readily available, and the
birds have a fast growth rate and
high feed efficiency, reaching market
weight at 7 weeks of age. However, the
meat can taste bland. So, small-scale
producers are looking for alternative
options to produce a tastier bird for
niche markets where they can fetch a
premium price.
Some opt to use heritage breeds,
chickens that haven’t been primarily selected for their fast growth rate.
Although heritage breeds grow slower
than commercial meat chickens and
thus require more feed per pound,
they typically have better livability in
alternative production systems, such
as pasture production. In addition,
because of the longer growth period,
their meat typically has more flavor.
LEFT:
Reap the rewards of new research that compares
heritage and commercial chicken breeds, and
reveals how to effectively use heritage breeds for
small-scale meat production.
10/5/21 4:07 PM
Plymouth Rocks and Rhode Island
Reds are dual-purpose breeds, and
both females and males have a considerable amount of meat on them,
though not as much as is found on
commercial hybrids.
FROM
LEFT:
STEPHEN PATTON/UNIVERSITY
OF
KENTUCKY; ADOBE STOCK/PANUPONG
Study Specifics
We compared the three heritage breeds to the commercial-type
Cornish-Plymouth Rock hybrid in a
“four-by-two factorial research study,”
meaning we compared four types of
chicken in two management systems.
Some batches of chickens were raised
strictly in floor pens, while others were
finished in pastured enclosures. We repeated each chicken type and management system combination to generate
enough data for statistical analysis.
We wanted all the breeds to be on
the same pasture and reach market
weight at the same time. Because of
the faster growth rate of the commercial strain of chicks, they were started
seven weeks after the heritage breeds.
This allowed for all the pastured chickens to be finished at the same time.
The heritage chickens were brooded
in floor pens until they were 4 weeks
old. At that time, each group of chicks
was split, with half remaining in the
floor pens and half being placed in
pasture pens.
When the heritage chickens were
7 weeks old, the hybrid chicks were
similarly brooded in floor pens, and
split at 3 weeks of age. All chickens
received the same diet and lived on the
same alfalfa pasture.
Conclusion: Although we started
the hybrids seven weeks after the
heritage breeds, they had considerably
Commercial chicken breeds are readily available and have been bred to reach market weight quickly.
higher final body weights at the end of
the trial. The commercial-strain chickens averaged 5.9 pounds after seven
weeks, while the heritage breeds averaged only 4 pounds after 14 weeks.
In hindsight, we should’ve started the
commercial chicken breeds even later,
to ensure all the chickens had approximately the same market weight.
Comparing Housing
When we compared the hybrid
chickens raised completely in floor
pens with those finished on pasture,
we found that placing 3-week-old
chickens on pasture initially reduced
growth rates. But by the end of the
study, the pasture-raised chickens had
higher body weights (6.3 pounds) than
those raised indoors (5.5 pounds).
Overall, however, hybrid chickens
required 2.14 pounds of feed per
1 pound of growth, regardless of management strategy. The actual feed efficiency achieved by any producer will
depend on the final market weight of
the chickens produced.
The heritage breeds showed no
statistically significant differences in
market weight between chickens finished on pasture and the poultry that
was raised indoors.
Black Australorps averaged 3.53
pounds of feed per pound of growth.
The Barred Plymouth Rocks averaged 4.16 pounds of feed per pound
of growth.
Floor-raised Rhode Island Reds averaged 3.79 pounds of feed per pound
of growth, while pasture-raised birds
averaged 4.6 pounds of feed per pound
of growth.
What Are the Advantages of Using
a Heating Plate for Brooding Chicks?
Brooding plates have become popular with poultry breeders in recent years. Consisting of a heated plate that can be raised and lowered to accommodate chicks as they grow, brooding plates are much safer to use than a traditional heat lamp. Chicks huddle under the plate, making contact with
the warm surface, much like they would under a mama hen. Brooder plates use far less electricity than a 250-watt heat lamp bulb as well, and many
use no more than 15 to 60 watts of electricity. Brooder plates may cost more initially, but will pay for themselves in safety and electricity savings.
WWW.MOTHEREARTHNEWS.COM
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Since the hybrid chicks have a faster growth rate, they were started seven weeks after the heritage
breeds, so that all the breeds could be finished on pasture and reach market weight at the same time.
What Difference
Does Pasture Make?
Small-scale farmers often ask us how
much nutrition chickens can obtain
from a pasture. It’s important to re-
member that chickens aren’t cows.
While they enjoy foraging and eating
plants, they don’t have a rumen, and,
as a result, they’re unable to digest
plant material very efficiently. How
chickens absorb nutrients depends
a lot on the pasture crops, and how
mature those plants are when eaten.
Although we didn’t measure plant
consumption, we observed that the
commercial-type chickens consumed
very little of the alfalfa, preferring instead to sit on it. The heritage chickens, however, ate most of the leaves off
the alfalfa stems.
Most small-scale poultry farmers report that chickens on pasture get protein from the bugs and earthworms
they eat. As a preliminary study, we
collected, sorted, and counted insects
from pastures with different crops.
We found 231 insects and 21 spiders
in legume plots; 123 insects and 47
spiders in grass plots; and 166 insects
and 35 spiders in plots with legumes
and grasses.
We also sampled insects on the alfalfa pasture used in the chicken trial
and a grass pasture nearby. We found
408 insects and 1 spider in the alfalfa
CLOCKWISE
FROM LOWER LEFT:
ADOBE STOCK/BLESSINGS CAPTURED; JACQUIE JACOB (2); STEPHEN PATTON/UNIVERSITY
OF
KENTUCKY
Pasture-raised commercial
chickens weighed more
than those raised indoors.
MEN_BOM.indb 28
10/5/21 4:07 PM
plots, and 610 insects and 44 spiders
in the grass plots. The collections were
repeated on a later day, but considerably fewer total insects were collected.
These observations suggest that different pasture crops will attract different insects on different days; further,
more rigorous study would be needed
to confirm and clarify the results. The
low number of insects and the variability between pasture types, however, suggest that insect populations
aren’t a reliable nutrient source for
pasture poultry.
CLOCKWISE
FROM LOWER LEFT:
ADOBE STOCK/BLESSINGS CAPTURED; JACQUIE JACOB (2); STEPHEN PATTON/UNIVERSITY
OF
KENTUCKY
Comparing Weight
At the end of the growth study, two
male and two female chickens were
randomly selected from each replicate of the eight different type and
management groups. They were processed, allowed to chill, weighed, and
cut up for parts. The carcass weight
was recorded for each fully processed
chicken. Commercially, this is referred to as the “WOG” (without
giblets) weight — giblets being the
heart, liver, and gizzard. This weight
is then expressed as a percentage of
the live weight to determine yield.
Commercial hybrids had the highest
WOG yield, averaging 75.2 percent,
with the yield being higher for those
raised on the floor (76.1 percent) compared with those finished on pasture
(74.4 percent). Chickens of all three
heritage breeds, both indoors and on
pasture, had similar WOG yields, averaging 63.7 percent.
Conclusion: Heritage breeds offer
significantly lower yield than commercial hybrids, regardless of management
technique.
Each group of chicks was split between indoor floor pens and outdoor pasture pens.
percent leg meat and 10.1 percent
wing meat, while heritage breeds
yielded 45.6 percent leg meat and
13.9 percent wing meat. The Barred
Plymouth Rocks finished on pasture
had higher leg yield compared with
those raised entirely indoors (46.1 percent versus 43.7 percent, respectively).
Conclusion: Commercial hybrids
yield about twice the breast meat of
heritage breeds, but heritage breeds
yield more leg and wing meat than
commercial hybrids.
Comparing Nutrients
We sent breast and thigh meat samples to an outside laboratory for nutrient analyses, including fat content and
composition, as published research has
indicated that dietary polyunsaturated
fatty acids are the best fatty acids for
our health.
While the commercial hybrids had
larger breasts, the meat had a significantly lower percentage of protein (21.6
percent) compared with the heritage
breeds (23.4 percent). The four types
of chickens didn’t differ significantly
in total fat or in levels of saturated and
polyunsaturated fatty acids. The levels
of monounsaturated fatty acids, however, were higher in the commercial
strains (0.41 percent) than the heritage
breeds (0.26 percent).
Conclusion: The meat from commercial hybrids contains less protein
and more monounsaturated fat than
that from heritage breeds.
Comparing Breast Meat
The most valuable part of a chicken
carcass is the breast, which we measured as a percentage of live weight.
The commercial hybrids yielded 25.6
percent breast meat on average, thanks
to the Cornish genetics and generations of selection for increased growth
rate and breast yield. Heritage breeds
averaged 12.5 percent breast yield.
Commercial hybrids yielded 40.8
Comparing cross-sections of a Rhode Island Red (left) and a commercial chicken (right).
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Chickens finished on pasture
showed higher protein (23.2 percent)
compared with those raised indoors
(22.6 percent). Finishing on pasture
also resulted in lower saturated (0.17
percent versus 0.41 percent) and polyunsaturated (0.16 percent versus 0.35
percent) fatty acids.
For the thigh meat, protein content
was again lower for the commercial
strain (17.4 percent) compared with
the heritage breeds (18.7 percent).
Commercial chickens had the highest thigh fat content (8.4 percent) and
Rhode Island Reds had the lowest (5.4
percent), with the Black Australorps
(6.5 percent) and Barred Plymouth
Rocks (7.5 percent) ranking between
these two extremes. There was no effect of breed on the levels of the different types of fatty acids. The level
of thigh cholesterol content of the
commercial-type chicken, however,
was higher for those raised on pasture.
Conclusion: Finishing chickens on
pasture results in higher protein and
lower total fat levels. As a result of the
lower total fat content, the levels of
monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids in thigh meat are also
lower in chickens finished on pasture
compared with those raised indoors.
Variations Among
Heritage Breeds
The remaining chickens from the
study were sent to a U.S. Department
of Agriculture-inspected facility for
commercial processing and additional carcass quality tests. We looked
at “cooking loss,” the change in the
weight of cooked meat due to moisture or fat loss, for the breast and thigh
meat from sampled chickens.
Breast cooking loss in commercial
hybrids was 12.3 percent, with no
differences between those raised indoors and those finished on pasture.
Cooking loss in Rhode Island Red
breasts was 13.4 percent, with no
difference between those raised indoors and those finished on pasture.
Barred Plymouth Rocks and Black
Australorps showed lower cooking
loss in the breasts of pastured chickens
(9.9 percent for both) compared with
those raised indoors (11.5 percent and
11.8 percent, respectively).
Cooking loss in the thighs of the
commercial chickens raised on the
floor was 20.6 percent compared with
15.4 percent in those birds finished
on pasture.
Cooking loss in heritage breed
thighs, regardless of management
system, was 12.3 percent in Barred
Plymouth Rocks; 10.6 percent in
PIXABAY/MARY PAHLKE; FLICKR/CSKK
Benefits of
Finishing on Pasture
MEN_BOM.indb 30
FROM
LEFT:
Chickens finished on
pasture have higher
protein and less fat.
10/5/21 4:07 PM
Black Australorps; and 9.9 percent in
Rhode Island Reds.
The cooking loss values obtained for
commercial hybrids’ breast and thigh
meat were considerably lower than
those reported by the USDA in 2012
(28 percent and 31 percent, respectively). This may be due to the injection of commercial chicken products
with marinating liquids, which wasn’t
done in this study.
Conclusion: Cooking loss appears
to depend on breed, management
system, and specific cut; commercial
hybrids show more cooking loss than
heritage breeds.
FROM
LEFT:
PIXABAY/MARY PAHLKE; FLICKR/CSKK
Goals for Small Producers
The goal for many small-scale producers is to develop a better-tasting
chicken. We ran a taste test with the
breast meat samples from the study.
The participants had no prior training and were asked to rate samples’
tenderness, juiciness, chicken flavor,
and acceptability on a 6-point scale
where (1) was low and (6) high. Off
flavors were rated on a 4-point scale
where (1) was undetectable and (4)
was extremely detectable. Therefore,
for tenderness, juiciness, and overall
acceptability, the higher the number,
the better. For off flavor, lower numbers are better. For chicken flavor, the
best intensity will depend on the experience of the participant, since people
who are used to bland chicken may be
averse to intense chicken flavor.
There was no effect of the different
study parameters on the tenderness
reported by the participants. Overall
juiciness ratings ran from 2.97 for the
breast meat from Rhode Island Red
males raised indoors and the commercial broiler males finished outside, to
4.53 for the Black Australorp females
raised indoors. Off flavors were highest for the Australorps, at a rating of
2.28 versus an average of 1.88 for all
the other breeds. Off flavors were also
detected more in chickens finished
on pasture (2.12) than those raised
indoors (1.83). Chicken flavor was
slightly more intense in female chickens (3.66) versus males (3.28). There
Heritage breed chickens yield more flavorful meat than their commercial hybrid counterparts.
was no discernible effect of breed,
management system, or the gender of
the chicken on the acceptability of the
breast meat (average 3.72).
Another factor of poultry meat quality is shelf life. This is typically measured as TBARS (thiobarbituric acid
reactive substances). The higher the
TBARS value, the more rancid the
meat. The results suggested that there
were no differences between the breeds,
but pasture-finished chickens have
lower breast meat peroxidation during
seven days of retail display, which may
transfer to increased shelf life.
Small Birds, Big Flavor
While heritage chickens can provide
small-scale chicken meat producers
with an alternative to commercial hybrids, the possible increased flavor of
the older chickens may not be acceptable to everyone.
As a result of the increased growth
time and reduced feed efficiency
compared with commercial hybrids,
it’s essential that small-scale producers receive a premium price for
their product, so they must target
consumers willing to pay for more
flavorful chicken.
A Guide to Humane, Small-Scale Processing
Butchering Chickens is a photographic guide geared toward
backyard chicken keepers and small-farm operations. It covers the entire slaughtering and butchering process. Step-bystep photos and detailed instructions give poultry raisers the
information they need to make the most of their meat. This
title is available at www.MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by
calling 800-234-3368. Mention promo code MMEPAMZI.
Item #10242.
WWW.MOTHEREARTHNEWS.COM
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City Chickens
Learn how to keep chickens in urban and
suburban spaces — and how keeping a flock
can connect you with humankind.
Story and photos
by Dalia Monterroso
M
y chickens need my attention every day. Each morning, regardless of weather, I
must venture outside to tend to them. I
confess that, even at that early hour, I’m
often already exhausted by the looming responsibilities of my business and
household. With the subtle sounds of
nature in the background, I begin my
chores by rinsing out and refreshing the
flock’s water dishes. Next, I dispense
their feed into a few small bowls, which
I place in various spots about the yard.
(This is helpful for my mixed flock.)
Finally, I open the coop door to release
my birds, and a whirlwind of feathers
rushes past me. It’s not long before I’m
humming a personalized tune for each
chicken, and my attitude softens.
It's a daily surprise how much this
brief morning meditation lifts my
spirits. In a time when respite from
the troubles of our world seems out of
reach, the value of this experience isn’t
lost on me.
I’ve been a backyard chicken educator for many years. Since the beginning, I’ve been fascinated by the
idea that there’s truly no other animal
This article is available
online in audio form at
MotherEarthNews.com
whose relationship with humans spans
as far and wide as that of the chicken.
They’re a part of our common history,
culture, and even spirituality. This is
why I call them “humankind’s most
amazing common denominator,” and
I feel that my bond with them brings
me closer to understanding my fellow humans. In 2017, I expressed this
sentiment in a TEDx Talk at Western
Washington University, called “I
Dream of Chickens.” And it’s true, I
really do! I dream of them bringing us
closer together as people, and I dream
of them helping us take better care of
this planet we share.
But my kinship with chickens didn’t
happen naturally. My mother, the child
of a newly industrialized Guatemala,
remembers her grandparents having
chickens. But when she was a child,
her family left their village and moved
to a tenement in the city, where they
Dalia's early morning
flock chores always lift
her spirits and bring
peace to the day ahead.
MEN_BOM.indb 32
10/5/21 4:07 PM
e is available
udio form at
thNews.com
weren’t allowed animals. In 1965, after
her nation fell into civil war, she and
my dad were forced to leave Guatemala
and emigrate to the United States. By
the time I was born, they had settled
into a home in the suburbs, and they
worked far too much to have time for
a vegetable garden, much less poultry.
That’s how it happened that I grew
up disconnected from my food. Many
different roads can lead to this circumstance; therefore, I’m certain my
experience isn’t unique to my family.
Like many of you just now getting into
raising chickens, I wasn’t introduced to
them until well into adulthood.
Chickens now join me in the conquering of each day. They serve as
quasi-nutritionists and therapists in an
environment where the disconnection
to nature has become ordinary, and my
brief connection with it extraordinary.
Although they live alongside my modernized residence, with its Zoom calls
and quick meals, their needs still arise
from millennia of grazing the Earth
and keeping a small, Jurassic foot on
the wild side of the animal kingdom.
Because of this, I try to make their lives
as close to their natural tendencies as I
can. Attempting this with limited space
brings some unique challenges. That’s
why a big part of my passion is to show
those in urban and suburban areas how
they can best care for their chickens,
despite not having pasture for them to
peck and scratch.
Pasture-Raised in the City
Raising chickens on pasture has
several advantages. One of them is
that the eggs are healthier; another is
that the chickens themselves are often
healthier. Chickens raised on pasture
have access to an endless supply of
vegetation, a diverse collection of
Feed your chickens a balanced and
varied diet of feed, healthy scraps,
sprouts, fodder, and healthy treats.
beneficial microorganisms in the soil,
and a wider space in which to avoid
disease. By contrast, raising chickens
on a smaller lot, where the entirety
of their lives often occupies the
same space, can bring forth parasite
infestation and illness. But I don’t
ever want this to discourage anyone
from enjoying chickens in a non-rural
environment. We can do plenty of
things to mitigate these problems and
gift our chickens — and, in turn, our
families and communities — some of
the benefits that pasture-raised poultry
and their keepers enjoy.
In the absence of nutrient-rich
pasture, it’s especially important that
chickens are fed a diet that meets their
nutritional needs. I’ve often observed
manufactured chicken feed touted as
the only thing a chicken should eat,
while kitchen scraps are shunned, and
have even been made illegal in some
places. Unfortunately, this sentiment
isn’t without warrant. Many modern
breeds, produced to lay an innumerable
amount of eggs, have hefty nutritional
requirements. Because of this, it’s not
unreasonable to say that a chicken’s diet
should be mostly chicken feed. The fact
that laying hens need a certain amount
and type of nutrients to have a healthy
reproductive system can’t be ignored.
But don’t throw out your leftover
broccoli yet! Most chicken feed is processed, which means that some nutrients are lost in the high heat needed for
its production. This is why I still support healthy kitchen scraps as an important part of a flock’s diet, especially
if chickens don’t have access to green
pasture. Rather than getting mired in
exact measurements, imagine a simple
“chicken food pyramid.” Chicken feed
is on the bottom, illustrating the highest need. Healthy scraps (mostly leafy
greens, other vegetables, and low-sugar
Important Incubation Facts
Once the hatching process begins, a broody hen will sit tight on her eggs, not leaving the nest even to eat or drink for a day or two, until all
the eggs have hatched. Eggs are especially vulnerable to temperature and humidity changes during the hatching process, more so than during
incubation. If you’re manually incubating eggs, use a separate incubator or hatcher, when possible, to move the eggs into on Day 19. They’ll no
longer require turning at this stage, and the hatcher can be “locked down,” or kept closed until the hatch is complete.
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fruits), sprouts, and fodder occupy the
middle. At the top, in the smallest level, are the healthy treats. These would
be any treats made specifically for
chickens, plus healthy kitchen scraps
that aren’t of the vegetational variety.
Following these simple guidelines en-
sures that chickens get what they need
from their feed, plus fresh nutrients,
which in turn helps humans manage
waste. The result will be healthier eggs,
happier chickens, and a community
that benefits from an update of an ageold process.
How to Sprout Grain or Seed
1 Fill jar 1⁄3 of the way with seed or grain. Rinse well.
2 Cover seed or grain with water, covering contents
by about 3 inches.
3 Allow covered seed or grain to soak, up to 24 hours.
4 After soaking, drain seed or grain well, and then
cover jar with mesh or cheesecloth.
5 Place jar inverted or on its side in a sunny spot.
Rinse contents twice daily.
6 Substantial green growth usually takes about
3 to 4 days. Store jar in fridge once sprouts reach
2 inches long.
7 Feed contents to chickens at any point after
sprouting.
Sprouts and fodder, which fall into
the second tier of the chicken food
pyramid, are an easy way to get missing
nutrients into a flock.
With a little ingenuity, you can grow
sprouts in a jar (see instructions at
left) and fodder in your chicken yard.
Urbanites and suburbanites can create a system of planters, referred to as
“chicken salad bars,” in which chickens are able to graze vegetation, such
as wheat, barley, flax, or other greens,
without consuming the seeds or destroying the plant before it can grow.
This is achieved by securely covering
any pot, raised bed, or other plant container with hardwire mesh. The result?
Chickens have access to what grows up
through the wire without being able to
peck and scratch at the roots.
Mitigating a City Flock’s
Biggest Adversary
In recent years, modern medicine
has begun to recognize just how
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critical the mind-and-body connection is when it comes to our health.
The relationship between how we feel
emotionally and how our bodies function has become a generally accepted
tenet in our society.
In my opinion, we can simply look
to the chicken yard to observe this
phenomenon. When chickens live in
the type of environment that’s appropriate for them — that is, outdoors
with access to soil and foliage — they
thrive. They also inevitably come into
contact with bacteria, parasites, fungi,
and other microbes that inhabit the
natural world.
There are exceptions, of course,
but most of the time, their immune
systems not only handle this contact,
but also derive resilience from it. So
why do some chickens fall ill, or whole
flocks get infested with internal or external parasites? There are a number
of possible causes, but one big factor
that flock owners can usually control
is stress.
When an urban or suburban flock
owner writes to me that their chickens
are sick or infested with parasites,
I’ll offer some basic supportive care
suggestions and make sure they know
that, at least for any diseases, their best
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course of action would be to consult
a licensed veterinarian. I then invite
them to reevaluate their practices
to make sure there isn’t something
going on that’s causing their flock to
experience stress. Stressed chickens are
vulnerable to illness, and sick chickens
are vulnerable to parasite infestation.
Here are the kinds of questions chicken
keepers should be asking themselves:
• Are my chickens’ nutritional needs
being met?
• Do my chickens have enough
space and enrichment?
• Are my chickens safe from the
threat of predator attacks?
• Are my husbandry practices where
they need to be for a happy,
healthy chicken flock?
Of course, chicken keepers need to
take some specific actions when a flock
has fallen ill with sickness or parasites.
But, especially for chickens with limited space, keen attention to stress is important. Cramped chickens, chickens
that aren’t getting enough nutrients,
or chickens living under the threat of
predation or in a dirty environment are
If your chickens are sick or infested with parasites, assess your practices to make sure there isn't anything that could be causing your chickens stress.
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The tradition of keeping chickens connects humans with food sources, nature, and culture—as well as with each other.
vulnerable to a number of undesirable
conditions. Happy chickens have the best
shot at avoiding issues, and that makes
for happier chicken keepers as well.
What It All Means
If you’re keeping chickens in the
city or suburbs, I want to thank you.
This traditional practice is important,
so much so that I often tell my students that we aren’t just keeping chickens — we’re changing the world. I’m
well aware that this might seem like
a foolish overstatement to some, and
I understand that. But in our curious
state of affairs, there are still a number
of places where it’s illegal to keep chickens. Isn’t it strange that in many areas
where it’s needed the most, it’s against
the law to grow food? That’s why I
want those who can do it, to do it. It
needs to be normalized. Not just for
the practical reasons, but also because
a separation from our food is a separation from who we are and where we
come from. Ultimately, this disconnect
is a roadblock in how we relate to and
understand each other.
The severance of my connection with
nature, and subsequently my culture, is
an experience almost all of us share on
some level. When I think about what
chickens need — fresh air, sunlight,
vegetation — I know that humans need
that too, no matter where they live.
Don’t get me wrong; I love my modern life. But I know it needs to evolve
into something that’s healthier for all
of us. So, when I say I dream of chickens, I mean that I dream of them in
every suburb and every city. I dream of
communities sharing flocks. I dream of
them living safely on the roofs of skyscrapers with access to fresh soil and
foliage and sun. And I dream of the
humans who care for them shedding
the stresses of their day, humming a
tune, and experiencing a sweet nostalgia for our common ancestry. I know
I can’t change the fact that so many of
us have been separated from our roots.
But maybe we can take our shared experience and use it to grow a new and
exciting future. All I’m saying is, chickens seem like a good place to start.
Give the Gift of Chickens
Bring the rewards and joys of
raising chickens to the child in your
life with “Raising Chickens in the
Family: A Kid’s Course.” We recently
added this online video series that’s
specially curated for youth and covers
breed selection, nutrition, handling,
incubation, and more. Watch now at
Online.MotherEarthNewsFair.com.
Dalia likes to say that chickens are humankind's most amazing common denominators.
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Bokashi
composting
enhances your
soil through
fermented
organic waste.
Ferment
Your Compost
ADOBE STOCK/PETER
This article is available
online in audio form at
MotherEarthNews.com
Recycle your organic
matter and enrich
your soil through
this accessible,
low-maintenance
composting method.
By John Wilson
L
ike all well-intentioned gardeners, I believe that it’s my duty to
compost all of the organic waste
produced both in the garden itself and
in my kitchen to build my soil’s health.
However, I’ve always struggled with
the mechanics and biology of a typical compost pile. Although sometimes
I got passable results, I never seemed to
have that enviously crumbly compost
I’d see in magazines and on TV gardening programs.
But now, I get all of the nutrients
from my kitchen waste into my
garden with no fuss at all through
the technique known as bokashi
composting. Bokashi, a word in
Japanese meaning “fermented organic
matter,” refers to a system of nearodorless composting that ferments and
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leaving mostly lignin and cellulose,
which can improve the texture of
the soil but not its microbial and
nutritional value. By fermenting the
kitchen scraps, atmospheric nutrients
will be retained and delivered directly
into the soil — a great way to boost
nitrogen without the use of fertilizer
or cover crops. Once the fermented
compost is introduced into the
soil, which contains oxygen in the
porous spaces, the normal process of
decomposition will take place, and the
vegetable scraps will disappear.
Why Bokashi Works
Although soil-living microbes include many different types of organisms, bacteria is by far the most
abundant group. Like all living organisms, bacteria must be able to harvest
energy from the environment in order
to grow and repair cell components,
transport nutrients, move, and reproduce. Microbes typically digest
carbon-containing compounds to
harvest energy. Two of these digestion
methods are respiration, an aerobic
(with air) metabolic process, and fermentation, an anaerobic (without air)
metabolic process. Respiration end
products are inorganic: carbon dioxide
and water. Fermentation end products
are various organic compounds (acids,
aldehydes, ketones, alcohols) and carbon dioxide.
By introducing fermentation bacteria as early as possible into your kitchen scraps and excluding air from the
compost bucket, you’ll keep aerobic
bacteria from taking hold and prevent the decomposition of the organic
material. If the container were tightly
sealed during the fermentation process, you’d need a release valve to prevent the buildup of carbon dioxide.
But by leaving the compost bucket unsealed and covered, the carbon dioxide
generated will prevent oxygen from
getting into the bucket. The cover allows a small amount of carbon dioxide
to escape.
Usually, in aerobic compost piles,
large amounts of the atmospheric
nutrients (carbon, hydrogen, and
nitrogen) are consumed by respiration
and escape into the atmosphere,
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LEFT:
preserves organic matter until it’s put
directly into the soil.
The fermentation microbes used
in this process are cultured onto dry
substrate, such as rice or wheat hulls
or hemp or kenaf fiber. This technique
is so simple that it can be done in
small gardens and urban gardens, and
in greenhouses and container gardens,
and it could revolutionize the recycling
of organic matter.
FROM
Fermentation excludes air from the compost bucket so your organic waste won’t decompose.
Here’s what you’ll need to begin
your bokashi composting process:
• A small (2- or 3-quart) container
with a lid that’ll fit on your kitchen
counter.
• A microbial inoculant you can
sprinkle onto the kitchen waste to
start the fermentation process.
• A 5-gallon bucket with a lid that
you can empty your kitchen counter
compost container into when it’s full
(unless you produce very little kitchen
waste). This will hold your composted
waste while it ferments until you’re
ready to dig it into your soil.
Note that if you use rice or wheat
hull-based inoculant, your fermented
compost will produce quite a bit of
liquid, and that 5-gallon bucket will
require a spigot at the bottom to allow
you to drain off the excess.
1 Once you’ve accumulated
vegetable scraps; eggshells; small
amounts of meat, egg, or cheese;
prunings from house plants; wilted
flowers; or citrus peels, put them into
the kitchen counter container. Sprinkle
a little bit of the inoculant onto the
scraps each time you fill the kitchen
container (about ⅛ cup inoculant
per 2 cups kitchen scraps). This will
keep the container from developing
an odor, and the inoculant will begin
fermentation. If the container fills
every day, empty it into the 5-gallon
bucket once a day, and sprinkle a
handful of inoculant on top; repeat
this each time you add a new layer.
Keep the lids on the containers; they
ADOBE STOCK (2)/PETER, MYBEARS
How to Compost with Bokashi
FROM
LEFT:
ADOBE STOCK (2)/PETER, MYBEARS
Incorporate your fermented scraps into your soil, and plant right into it, as the waste will be gone by the time the seedlings have developed.
don’t have to be tight. Excess air will
interfere with fermentation and cause
decomposition; competing, nonfermentation organisms will become
established; and the resulting compost
will smell bad and not contain the
soil-enhancing microbes you want.
After about two or three weeks,
the microbes in the inoculant will
have grown into the scraps. This
process is temperature-dependent, so
the microbe growth will take longer
the lower the temperature is in and
around the buckets. The only smell
will be a slight yeasty scent from the
fermentation, not noticeable if the
container lid is on. The scraps will not
look much different.
2 Incorporate the fermented
compost into the soil. In the garden,
dig a trench about 8 to 10 inches
deep and equally wide, spread the
fermented scraps in it, and cover the
scraps with the dirt you dug out.
If you’re composting for your
houseplants and don’t have access to a
garden, you can use a pot or bucket of
topsoil, dig the kitchen bin contents
into it, and then use that inoculated
soil for repotting or to dig in around
the edges of potted plants.
In either case, plant your flowers
and veggies right into the fermented
soil mix. By the time the seeds
germinate or seedlings are established,
most of the inoculated waste will have
disappeared, leaving only the eggshells
and tougher vegetables to break up
over time.
If it’s winter and you can’t dig your
soil, keep your buckets in a relatively
sheltered spot, such as a shed or garage
or under some tarps on the balcony.
As the buckets fill, add more buckets.
If the fermentation compost freezes,
the microbes will just go dormant. You
can dig it in when the soil is easier to
work, and they’ll revive.
Why Ferment Your Compost?
The need for fermentation
composting is pressing. We dispose
of millions of tons of organic matter
into landfills every year. This waste
produces high levels of carbon dioxide
and methane in the form of landfill
gas. According to the Environmental
Protection Agency, “municipal solidwaste landfills are the third largest
source of human-related methane
emissions in the United States,
accounting for approximately 15.1
percent of these emissions in 2019.”
Bokashi can aid in solving this
crisis by capturing carbon in the soil.
Additionally, our soil is notoriously
depleted, thanks to processes of
removing topsoil and treating soil
with harsh chemicals and inorganic
fertilizers. These processes denude our
soil of microbial life, which can lead
to reduced nutrients in produce and
the destruction of the link between
plant roots and mycorrhizal fungi.
Mycorrhizal fungi ingest glucose
produced by plant roots and provide
plant-available nitrogen and other
nutrients. If the plants are fed nitrogen
directly, the mycorrhizal fungi
connection doesn’t develop, and any
nitrogen not absorbed by the plants
can drain into our rivers and oceans.
It’s vital that we feed the soil around
us the richest, most nutrient- and microbial-dense foods we can to aid in
rebuilding the earth around us.
Turn Food Waste into Green Space
This compost system sits below soil level in your
garden bed, providing functional outdoor seating. The
design features holes in the divider panel and external walls, allowing the worms to move between the
chambers and surrounding soil. Plus, being naturally
insulated, fully pest-proof, and odorless means the
system only requires five minutes of maintenance
a week. And with the included worm blankets, your
worms will be comfortable in all types of weather!
This product is available at www.MotherEarthNews.
com/Store or by calling 800-234-3368. Mention
promo code MMEPAMZI. Item #10862.
WWW.MOTHEREARTHNEWS.COM
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KIM STARR (2); ADOBE STOCK/SORU EPOTOK
than barley, and genetically modified
varieties of these crops exist that grow
in cooler climates. As a result, farmers
have switched from growing barley to
growing corn and wheat. Additionally,
climate change is making it more risky
to grow barley in the former southern
edge of the barley regions.
In the past, barley was grown primarily for malting (for the production
of beer and spirits) and animal feed,
with much smaller amounts grown
for human consumption. Malted barley commanded a higher price, and
AND
degrees. Spring barley usually matures
in about 90 days.
In the United Sates, commercial barley is typically grown in regions north
of those where corn and wheat, which
thrive in higher temperatures, are
grown. The most extensive U.S. barley
fields are in Idaho, Montana, North
Dakota, Minnesota, and Washington.
Barley is also grown in Canada, with
Alberta producing the most. Over the
past few decades, barley production
has moved farther north. Corn and
wheat both command higher prices
ADOBE STOCK/TEEN00000; FLICKR/FOREST
B
arley is a cereal grain, in
the same botanical family
(Poaceae) as wheat, maize, rice,
oats, rye, and sorghum. A cool-season
crop that matures relatively quickly,
barley grows best in climates where
highs reach 70 degrees Fahrenheit in
the weeks before harvest. It can be
planted in late fall as winter barley,
in which case it’ll sprout, overwinter, and then mature in early spring.
Barley can also be planted in spring,
if there’s enough time for it to grow
before summer temperatures reach 85
FROM LEFT:
By Chris Colby
Homebrewers and grain gurus
alike will benefit from planting
this low-maintenance crop.
CLOCKWISE
Small-Batch
Barley
most farmers grew malting varieties.
If barley failed to meet the standards
required for brewing, it could be sold
as animal feed on the spot market at a
lower price. There are also cultivars of
barley bred especially for use as animal feed. Today, almost all malting
barley grown in the United States is
under contract with malting companies — the companies that turn barley
into malt for brewing and distilling.
The contracts protect the growers
against crop failures, but lock them
into agreed-upon prices.
Barley can sprout in temperatures as low as 34 degrees Fahrenheit, and will be "bushlike" at first.
CLOCKWISE
FROM LEFT:
ADOBE STOCK/TEEN00000; FLICKR/FOREST
AND
KIM STARR (2); ADOBE STOCK/SORU EPOTOK
Grow Your Own Barley
In the United States, barley can be
grown in Zones 3 through 9. You can
plant it in a garden or on a small-scale
farm. If you live in the northern part
of the country, plant barley in spring.
Elsewhere, plant it in late fall. Barley
can sprout at temperatures as low as 34
degrees. Generally, if the soil is workable, you can plant barley. Contact
your local extension office to get the
optimal planting time for your area.
Barley grows well in average garden
soil. For site preparation, thoroughly
weed the area, and then use a heavy
rake to break up any clumps of dirt
and flatten the ground. Running a tiller over the site first will save you some
work. Then, use a thick-tined rake to
make shallow rows in the soil. Check
the seed packaging for planting-density
requirements, but in a garden, 1 pound
of seed per 500 square feet should be
about right. For a small-scale farm,
choose a seeding rate that yields 120 to
150 plants per square meter.
In a garden, you can hand-broadcast
barley seed. I do this by breaking up
the total amount of seed into thirds. I
then cast the first one-third of the seed
over the entire area, trying to cover the
ground as evenly as possible. I repeat
this with the second one-third, and
then use the final one-third to even
things out as much as possible. Most
of the seed will fall into the furrows left
by the rake. Use the rake to push the
soil over the rows and bury the seed.
Ideally, the seed should be 1 to 11⁄ 2
inches below the soil surface. Birds will
Most barley cultivars will grow to be 2 to 3 feet tall, at which point they'll develop seed heads.
When close to harvest, barley plants will begin to turn from green to yellow as they dry out.
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likely eat any unburied seed, so cover as
much as possible. If planting on a larger
scale, you’ll need to use a seed spreader
that plants the seeds in rows.
Water the barley in, but don’t soak
the soil. Too much water early on will
depress the yield. Keep the soil evenly
watered throughout the growing season, but don’t water heavily — the soil
should be lightly moist at all times,
but never wet.
Barley doesn’t require heavy fertilization. In fact, too much nitrogen
yields more vegetative growth, which
makes barley prone to lodging. (The
stems bend over close to ground level,
making harvest difficult and decreasing yield.) In addition, the percentage
of plump kernels — a measure of barley quality — decreases with increased
nitrogen levels. Increased nitrogen
also causes increased levels of protein,
which isn’t desirable in malting barley. The percentage of nitrogen in the
kernels shouldn’t exceed 12 percent
if grown for malting or human consumption; higher percentages are fine
for barley grown as animal feed. In a
commercial field, the existing weight
of nitrogen in 1 acre of soil plus the
added nitrogen should equal 190 to
210 pounds per acre. Thus, a soil
analysis prior to planting is required
to know how much nitrogen to add.
For typical garden soil, adding about
1 pound of granular fertilizer (40-0-0
or similar) to 500 square feet should
put you in the ballpark — especially if
the garden plot previously held heavy
feeders. In relatively rich garden soil,
less than half this amount may be required. Add the fertilizer around the
time of planting, and don’t add any
more nitrogen fertilizer for the rest of
the growing season.
Malting Barley for Brewing
Steeping. The first step is to steep dried barley seeds in water until
they achieve a moisture content of 45 percent. This is done through a
repeated process of submerging the barley in water and then draining
the water from the seeds, while keeping the seeds wet. The stage during which barely is submerged is called “wet stands,” and the stage
during which the water is drained is called “air rests.” The temperature
needs to be held between 50 and 60 degrees Fahrenheit during these
stages. At home, you can steep barley grains in a bucket. Start by
weighing a sample volume of seed. (One cup is a good volume to start
with, but any volume will do.) Then, steep the barley, alternating between 8-hour wet stands and 8-hour air rests, until you’ve gone through
three cycles. At this point, the grain should weigh 1.3 times more than
it did before, assuming it has 45 percent moisture.
Germination. After steeping, spread the grain out on a
flat surface in a layer about 1 inch thick. An extremely
clean cement surface will work, as will a large, shallow
storage container. During this stage, the grain will begin to germinate. As the home maltster, you’ll need to
hold the temperature below 55 degrees, and turn the
grain every four to six hours. You’ll also need to spritz
the grain with water to prevent drying.
Drying and kilning. Once germinated, you’ll see the
acrospire (the beginning of the stem) and the rootlets
extending from the seeds. When most of the acrospires
are between the length of their kernels and 11⁄2 times
the length of their kernels, it's time to dry the malt.
This can be done in a food dehydrator. Dry the grain at
around 120 degrees for 24 hours. Your sample volume
should weigh slightly less than it did initially.
Finally, to make pale barley malt, spread the grain in
a thin layer—one kernel deep—over a cookie pan, and
kiln the grain in an oven at 180 degrees for four hours.
The malt will work best if you employ a decoction
The malting process provides the fermentable carbohydrates necessary to brew beer.
mash, but a single-infusion mash will also work.
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FROM
LEFT:
ADOBE STOCK (2)/KIELAROB,
ID-ART
Barley, like other grains, must be malted before it can be used
for brewing. Malting is a process in which grain seeds are steeped,
sprouted, dried, and kilned. The sprouting process activates the seeds
and leads to the production of enzymes required for early growth of the
barley plant. These enzymes will later be exploited to convert starches
in the grain into simpler sugars. Kilning heats the grain, darkens the
husk, and develops flavor compounds that carry over into the finished
beer. Malting also results in an overall softening of the grain that's due
to modification of the endosperm—the starchy interior of each kernel.
Malt provides both the fermentable carbohydrates required to brew beer
and the “malty” flavor in beer. This malty flavor is sometimes described
as “bready” or “biscuitlike.”
Barley needs much less phosphorous
and potassium — the “P” and “K” in
NPK fertilizer ratings — than it does
nitrogen. If soil phosphorous (P) levels
are below 20 parts per million (ppm),
an application of P2O5 — 30 pounds
per acre at most — will remedy that.
Likewise, add potassium fertilizer if
soil potassium (K) levels are below 75
ppm. In average garden soil, you likely
won't need to add any fertilizer.
Sulfur is the minor nutrient that
barley requires most — around 10
ppm — but you likely won't need to
add any to average garden soil.
Weed the barley patch as needed
when the plants are young. Once they
grow a bit, they’ll shade out weeds on
their own. If you’re growing barley on
a small-scale farm, you may want to
compare your crop with the growth
stages commonly seen in your area. In
barley growing regions, local universities or extension offices will have this
information.
FROM
LEFT:
ADOBE STOCK (2)/KIELAROB,
ID-ART
Growth Stages
and Harvest Methods
You’ll first see the coleoptile of the
barley poke through the soil. Then,
a series of leaves will grow along the
stem. These will appear singly, opposite one another. Most barley cultivars
have nine or more leaves. The plant
will exist as a “bush” initially, with the
leaves close to each other.
After the first several leaves emerge,
tillers, or secondary stems, will begin to
sprout from the ground. Some tillers, as
well as the main stem, will develop seed
heads, while others will wither away.
The more sparsely planted a barley
field, the more tillering will occur.
When the plant has produced most
of its leaves, the stem will elongate,
increasing the space between leaves.
Most barley cultivars grow 2 to 3 feet
tall. Eventually, the seed head will
form. At first, the seed head will be
shielded by the final leaf, called the
“flag leaf.” The kernels in the seed
head will fill with a starchy white liquid, which will solidify as the grain
matures. Then, the plants will turn
from green to yellow. Once the starch
Kilning —part of the malting process — darkens barley and helps it develop flavor compounds.
in the kernels is dried and hardened,
the barley is ready to harvest.
Rainfall or irrigation at harvest
time is undesirable, as it can cause the
grain kernels to sprout on the stalk.
Watch your weather forecast closely
when the grain is almost ready. It’s
better to get the crop in early than to
let it get soaked by a thunderstorm.
Commercially, barley is harvested with
a combine. As a gardener, you can cut
barley plants with a scythe. I use a
large chef ’s knife. Then, bundle the
plants into sheaves and let them dry
in the sun.
Threshing
On commercial farms, threshing is
done with a combine. If growing on a
small scale, you’ll need to find an alternative way to thresh the grain. One way
is to cut the stems fairly close to the seed
head and then place them in a pillowcase. Then, beat the pillowcase with a
baseball bat or a large, soft mallet. Clean
the resulting mix of kernels and other
plant material by pouring the kernels
back and forth between two buckets on
a windy day, or in front of a fan. The
breeze will blow away the chaff while the
kernels drop into the buckets. The grain
will then be ready to use.
Barley is a somewhat unusual garden
choice, but many gardeners — myself
included — enjoy growing something
new each year. For homebrewers, barley
provides an opportunity to expand your
brewing horizons. Also, as a grain grower, I feel a connection to countless generations of those who grew and threshed
their cereal grains every year. So, cheers
to barley growers everywhere!
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with step-by-step instructions and photos, this book also features charts, which allow brewers to get information at a glance
for every major homebrewing method. This title is available
at www.MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by calling 800-2343368. Mention promo code MMEPAMZI. Item #9524
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Indigenous
Corn Cultivars
Try your hand at planting these 10 vibrant corn cultivars with roots
in Indigenous cultures, and save the seeds for future generations.
Story and photos by Amyrose Foll
Many Indigenous corn cultivars have a nutty flavor because they don’t contain the same sugar
content as the commercial hybrids commonly available in grocery stores.
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ILLUSTRATIONS: REGINA LILGEBERG
B
efore heading to your favorite
local spot to pick up the useful,
but not very inspiring, F1 hybrid sweet corn cultivars, consider making some space for something a little
more unexpected in this year’s garden.
Believe it or not, what most people commonly group together as “Indian Corn”
is actually a wonderfully diverse range of
cultivars, and all are edible. We’ve just
developed an amnesia of sorts here in
the United States. To be completely honest, all corn is, in fact, Indian corn. The
simple beauty of corn transformed meals
around the globe with the Columbian
exchange. Sister corn deserves time in
the spotlight for all her contributions to
our nourishment:
Biodiversity. Comprising less than
5 percent of the world’s population,
Indigenous people protect 80 percent
of global biodiversity. With the weather extremes we’re experiencing, many
of these old cultivars that our farming ancestors curated for us may hold
answers to the climate crisis. Some of
these plants have been adapted to need
little water, or to have short life cycles.
They may very well be the answer to
evolving our agriculture to change with
the climate.
Cultural preservation. Our bone
dust and blood have mixed with corn’s
roots, and this land, for a thousand
generations. It’s crucial to preserve
these less-common cultivars that gave
birth to all modern commercial corn.
Each seed represents millennia of
Above: A flint corn from the author’s
collection. Right: ‘Abenaki Rose’ has been
saved through generations of the author’s
family, and it’s been a “change agent” in her
seed-saving pursuits.
growing seasons and favored traits, and
these seeds were carefully selected by
our ancestors as a promise of successful
future harvests to ensure the survival of
subsequent generations. Keep planting
them, continue the cycle from year to
year, and save the diversity of our native corn from being lost.
Climate resilience. A changing climate affects not only plant and animal
life, but also us. We evolved in nature,
and we can’t be separated from it, no
matter how large or populous the conurbation we may reside in. Climate is
the foundation of the food web that
binds us all together, and we must ensure its preservation. Uncommon cultivars may carry traits that will help us
weather new climate patterns.
ILLUSTRATIONS: REGINA LILGEBERG
Nia Skamonikikonal
(My Cornfields)
Let me introduce you to
my top 10 favorite cultivars
of corn. Each one is unique,
and has a special place in that
famous triumvirate of the sacred Three Sisters garden. I’m
neither scholar nor scientist, but
my Creator and ancestors have entrusted me with
the responsibility
to preserve ancestral knowledge for
generations to come.
I’m to hold this knowledge
and gently pass it into the future
so our seeds and their stories may
nourish and strengthen our children
and grandchildren. In these past two
decades of farming, I’ve learned more
from the garden than I ever thought
possible. The garden teaches patience and perseverance, and it allows those who came before us
to live on through our work
in the garden. By saving
seeds from year to year,
we become part of that
story. Without the labor of
our ancestors, these seeds
wouldn’t exist in our hands
today. The seeds are
a gift to future generations. We must
work together to preserve that legacy of wisdom
through biodiversity.
‘Abenaki Rose.’ This is a heritage flint corn that’s close to my
heart, like a special wisdom
passed to me from my ancestors. It has become a change
agent for me in my views of
planting seeds, saving seeds, and
giving seeds freely to feed others.
Flint corn, such as the ‘Abenaki
Rose’ cultivar, would’ve once
been a staple of the Dawnland (New
England, Newfoundland, Quebec, and
the surrounding St. Lawrence Seaway
area). Flint corn dominated Indigenous
diets in the area, and would’ve been a
common item in the pantries of farmhouses through the 1800s. Flint cornmeal is an excellent choice for making
traditional Pequot or Narragansett
hoecakes (or “journey cakes”).
I adore the irregular rose halos
and interesting markings of this
quintessential Abenaki heirloom
corn.
‘Pima White’ or ‘Pima.’
This vital variety is truly
a gift from the Akimel
O’odham and the Tohono
O’odham people, and a testament to their agricultural prowess. This
unassuming flour or flour-flint corn is a
thrifty user of modest amounts of water. Around 60 days, it reaches the green
corn stage (milk stage) a full two weeks
earlier than many other Southwestern
low desert varieties. It’s generally a
short, stocky, fast-growing corn, and it
has excellent drought resistance. When
harvested at the green-corn stage, it’s
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Amyrose Foll has learned perseverance through saving seeds, such as those from ‘Blue Clarage,’ and is shepherding this knowledge into the future.
traditionally roasted over mesquite
coals, sun-dried, and then stored on the
cob. It can then be made into corn pinole and stone-ground meal. Roasting
this corn converts the starches into sugars, giving it an exceptional sweet taste
when made into porridge. It can also
be left to mature and dry on the plant.
This is ideal for making corn flour. I
highly recommend this corn for areas
experiencing hotter, drier summers in
the face of climate change.
This vibrant German hybrid was gifted to the author.
‘Blue Clarage.’ This sapphire beauty
is an ideal corn for making cornmeal. It
boasts a high sugar content compared
with other dent corns, and it can hold
its own as a sweet corn when harvested
during the milk stage. Our gardens at
Virginia Free Farm regularly exhibit
12-foot-high stalks. It thrives in the
mid-Atlantic growing conditions of
Virginia’s Piedmont Region. Our seedstock was originally purchased from
Southern Exposure Seed Exchange.
‘Glass Gem.’ Arguably one of the
most stunning corn cultivars, this flint
corn is like no other heirloom in the
world. It’s gained a cult following in the
past decade, and has likely influenced
many a seed saver and fostered enthusiasm for backyard gardening. It’s fabled
to be a mix of Osage, Cherokee, and
Pawnee corn, and it’s the magnum opus
of Cherokee seedsman Carl Barnes.
‘Supai Red Parch.’ This cultivar is
excellent for parching or dry roasting.
Parching, an ancient treat, is thought
to be one of the earliest ways in which
hunter-gatherers ate grains. Parching
is done by heating dry kernels with-
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Make room in your garden for colorful cultivars! ‘Carl’s Glass Gem’ corn (right) has acquired a cult following in the past decade for its stunning kernels.
out oil at a medium to low heat. Roast
parched corn and add some seasoning,
and you’ll have your own delicious
corn nuts at home that can rival any
commercially available snacks. They
should be pulled from the pantry more
often, and not exist as simply a seldomutilized exotic on the shelf. ‘Supai Red
Parch’ is an excellent choice for growers interested in producing their own
snacks for a hike; it travels well, and it
has an impressive shelf life and a robust
flavor profile.
‘Cherokee Gourdseed.’ Tooth corns,
or gourd seed corns, are part of an old
family of dent corns that has roots in
its ancient Mexican ancestor teosinte.
Teosinte is the primitive cornlike plant
from which all modern corn is descended. These tooth corns hail from
an offshoot of domesticated lines in the
American South that come from the
corn of pre-Columbian Mexico.
‘Kulli’ or ‘Maíz Morado.’ This is a
large subtropical corn that needs a long
season of 120 to 160 days, depending on
your seed stock. It’s one of the darkestcolored corns known, with a delicious
flavor, and it’s believed to have the highest amount of healthy anthocyanins of
any corn. This outstanding beauty can
easily grow up to 15 feet tall, and can be
picked young for sweet corn. In addition
to its uses as flour and fabric dye, this
corn makes for an interesting roasted
corn on the cob, but bring a toothbrush;
you’ll be left with a lovely lilac-colored
tongue after chowing down on this delicious Peruvian heirloom.
Left: ‘Kulli’ is one of the darkest-colored corns available. Above: ‘Montana
Cudu’ kernels each carry a blot of color, some shaped like an eagle.
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Generalized Stages of Corn Growth
Tassel stage. The bottommost branch of the tassel is completely visible, and the silk
hasn’t emerged.
Silking stage. The silks are visible outside the husks.
Blister stage. The kernels appear white on the outside, with clear liquid inside.
Milk stage. This stage, aka the “green corn stage,” is when the corn ends up in your
local market. This stage occurs about 20 days after silking, as kernels develop, and
it can be identified when the kernels are soft and release a sweet milk when pressed.
The stage at which retailers sell what is now commonly referred to as “Indian corn”
occurs much later, when the plant’s kernels are fully mature. This stage is generally
when pozole, grits, corn flour, and parched corn products are created.
Corn in Ceremony
‘Bofo.’ This speckled cultivar is
the multicolored sacred maize of the
Huichol people of Nayarit and the
Cora people of Durango. It has an
elongated elliptical shape and delicately speckled kernels arranged among
the pink, purple, and white. Some
speculate that it’s a relative or source
of Native American speckled maize. It
has a place in ceremony, as well in the
kitchen in the form of cookies, porridge, fermentations, and stews.
‘Montana Cudu.’ Each kernel bears
a tiny blot of color, like a Rorschach
test. Each ear is a love letter to the
farming mothers of Montana. This is
a cultivar adapted in the last 50 to 60
years from more ancient corns found
in northern Montana. Each kernel has
a signature “blue eagle” on top of the
pericarp. I absolutely adore the long,
thin ears and spotted kernels.
‘Bolita Belatove.’ This is possibly
one of the most uncommon varieties
of heirloom corn in Mexico. It bears
brilliant purple and red kernels. It has
a wonderful nutty flavor and can be
worked into a gorgeous mauve-colored
masa. This corn is a local favorite for
making pinkish tortillas to amuse local
children and to provide a nice change
of pace from yellow or blue corn chips.
Corn also has an important role in
ceremony to us (the Abenaki) and
many more tribes throughout Turtle
Island (North America). For us, the
Green Corn Ceremony is a celebration of the year’s harvest being ensured.
It marks the time when we know the
plants have succeeded in producing
the sustenance we’ll need to carry us
through the long, cold days and nights
of winter. Ceremonial fires, cook fires,
dancing, and blessings are carried out
in gratitude. These customs are widespread agricultural rituals common
among many other tribes as well. The
fact that it’s one of the most important
ceremonies to so many cultures across
North America really drives home how
important corn is in the daily lives of
Indigenous people.
Traditional Corn Planting
The traditional ways of planting corn, such as the Abenaki Seven
Sisters, or the more well-known and
widespread Three Sisters, have ecological advantages that one-crop fields
don’t: soil regeneration, varied nutrition, and resistance to plant pests and
disease. Because our traditional ways
of knowing and agroecology were different from Western science, they were
previously relegated to anecdotal evidence, or some experimental corner of
the garden as a curiosity. We have the
stories, but Western science has the
numbers, and, ironically enough, savvy
marketing has labeled it “regenerative”
and bridged the gap between the two.
My only hope is that those who jump
on this trend, which neatly packages
traditional Indigenous land management practices from across the globe to
use at scale, take these practices to heart
so that they’re here to stay.
With the rainbow of color variations,
and a bevy of variation in height, form,
and habit, some of these extraordinarily resilient cultivars might be crucial
for seeing us through climate change
and extreme weather. If nothing else,
they’re rare beauties. I hope you find
some room for them in your garden,
and try your hand at saving and sharing
their seeds.
Preserve Biodiversity
Want to start saving seeds, but aren’t sure where to begin? Then our “Seed Saving
101” course is for you. Bevin Cohen of Small House Farm is your guide in this introduction to the world of saving seeds. Workshop videos produced by Bevin cover such topics
as building community by sharing seeds; the living history of heirloom varieties; understanding the terminology; pollination, seed processing, and storage; and more. Learn
more at Online.MotherEarthNewsFair.com.
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This article is available
online in audio form at
MotherEarthNews.com
Grow Your Own Supply of
Sponges
With one seed
packet and a little
know-how, you can
easily grow nontoxic,
compostable luffa
sponges.
By Hannah Kincaid
Y
ou may recognize luffa sponges (Luffa aegyptiaca,
How to Grow Luffa
synonym L. cylindrica) from health-food stores,
Because luffa gourds are left to mature and dry on the
where they’re sold as exfoliators and displayed next
vine, they need a long growing season (nearly 200 frost-free
to soaps, shampoos, and other bathing supplies. It’s easy to
days in a row). Gardeners north of Zone 8 can achieve this
assume a luffa is a sea sponge, but it’s actually a gourd that
by starting luffa seeds indoors 6 to 8 weeks before their
you can grow in your backyard and process at home.
average last spring frost. You can increase your luffa seed
An annual, subtropical vine in the Cucurbitaceae family,
germination rate by scratching the seeds on sandpaper to
luffa is a lush plant with large leaves, buttery yellow flowers,
weaken the seed coating — this is called “scarification” — or
and fruit that looks like giant cucumbers. The young, edible
by soaking them in water for about 48 hours before plantfruits — which taste like a cross between a cucumber and a
ing. Plant two or three seeds per container, about 1⁄2 to 3⁄4
zucchini — can be harvested when only a few inches long for
inch deep.
use in stir-fries, chutneys, and soups. When left to mature
Luffa seeds are slow to sprout, so practice patience while
and dry on the vine, the fruit becomes quite large, and the
maintaining a moist, well-drained soil medium and providedible flesh transforms into a fibrous woven skeleton with
ing plenty of light.
brown skin and rattling seeds. This textured skeleton is what
After the seeds sprout, thin them to one seedling per
we use as a sponge.
container. Transplant the seedlings to larger containers to
You can enjoy luffa sponges in place
prevent them from becoming rootof washcloths, or use them to scrub
bound. After luffas begin to develop
dishes, scour surfaces, clean your car,
their first set of true leaves, you’ll see
add an exfoliating layer to homemade
that they look almost exactly like cusoaps, make a DIY back scratcher, or
There are a number of different
cumber seedlings. Make sure to label
apply textured patterns to a freshly
spellings for the luffa plant. We use
your seedlings well, or you may conpainted wall. Gardeners can also use
“luffa” throughout this article befuse them with other cucurbits.
luffa fibers in water to hold a rooting
cause it’s the specific genus name
Luffas aren’t at all frost-tolerant, so
plant, or mix them into potting soil as
(Luffa aegyptiaca). If you research
wait until frost is safely behind you bea sustainable peat moss replacement.
luffas online or look for them in seed
fore transplanting the seedlings to your
There are a number of fun and creative
catalogs, you may also encounter
garden. Before transplanting, spend
ways to use luffa, and because it’s such
these spellings: “luffah,” “loofah,”
about a week slowly hardening off your
a productive plant, you’ll have many
“loofa,” and “loufa.”
seedlings. To do this, carry them outsponges left to give as gifts!
side and place them in a shady location
GETTY IMAGES/TEEN00000
Luffa or Loofa?
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NATHAMAG11;
GETTY IMAGES (2)/PSISA,
FAR LEFT:
To Bleach, or Not to Bleach?
FROM
for a few hours daily, gradually working up to more hours
ers should consider growing the beautiful vines on a trellis
every day. Place seedlings in a shady location, or the sun
along one side of a house or near a porch to provide shade.
could scald their sensitive leaves. Choose a sheltered spot
Some resources recommend removing the first flowers of
where a light breeze can tease and strengthen their stems,
the luffa to produce stronger sponges and encourage more
but protect them from any strong blasts of wind that could
vigorous production; I’ve never taken this step, and I’ve still
snap their fragile bases.
always been happy with my yield. Try experimenting from
When all danger of frost has passed, transplant your hardyear to year to see what works best for you.
ened-off luffa seedlings to a well-drained
spot with full sun. Space your seedlings
How to Harvest and
(or seeds, for gardeners in warmer cliProcess Luffa Sponges
mates) about 3 to 4 feet apart, and make
Luffa Seed Sources
In the desert southwest and subtropical
sure they receive an inch or two of water
www.FedcoSeeds.com
growing climates, gardeners should have
per week. I mulch my luffa plants with
www.RareSeeds.com
enough frost-free days to let their luffas
a layer of cardboard topped with 2 to 3
www.StrictlyMedicinalSeeds.com
mature on the vine. The skins will turn
inches of straw, which makes weeding
brown or brownish-yellow, the fruits will
between the vines easier and helps the
lose almost all of their water weight, and
plants retain moisture.
you’ll be able to hear the seeds rattling
Luffa vines can reach more than 20 feet long, so plant
around inside the gourds if you shake them. When your
the seedlings along a trellis or sturdy fence to keep them
luffas reach this stage, it’s time to pick and process them.
under control. In my Zone 6a garden, I grew luffas next to
For gardeners in colder climates, harvest all of your luffa
a 3-foot-tall hog panel, which was near a 5-foot-tall fence,
gourds immediately after your first hard frost, regardless of
on the other side of which 7-foot-tall marshmallow plants
their maturity level. If you leave the fruits on the vine after a
were growing. Before the summer was over, the luffas had
frost, they’ll start to rot rather than continue maturing. Many
climbed over both fences and spread their tendrils all over
of them will still be green and heavy with water — this is OK.
the giant marshmallow, dropping their fruit among the
You’ll simply process them a little differently and let them
marshmallow’s tall stems.
dry a little longer than lufTrellises are particularly
fas that dried on the vine.
important when growing
All the luffa sponges in my
luffa, because they also
household are from green
help ensure straight fruits,
You can soak newly processed luffa sponges in diluted
and immature fruits, and I
which are easier to peel and
bleach to achieve a uniform white color and kill any possible
don’t have any complaints
about their quality.
create more attractive and
bacteria. I skip this step, however, because I don’t want to
Pro c e s s i n g m a t u re ,
uniform sponges. Because
use bleach on a product that I’ll be rubbing on my skin. I’ve
brown luffas: For mature
read that vinegar and four thieves essential oil blends can
luffa vines and flowers are
luffas with brown skin,
help sanitize the sponges instead.
so pretty (but also need
pick them from the vine
a lot of space), garden-
HANNAH KINCAID
Luffa gourds hang down from a trellis, demonstrating how gravity naturally encourages the growth of straight fruits, which are easier to peel.
Learn More About Luffas
FROM
FAR LEFT:
GETTY IMAGES (2)/PSISA,
NATHAMAG11;
HANNAH KINCAID
Take a workshop with Janice Cox, author of Beautiful Luffa
(available below), who will teach you how to start your own
seeds and how to care for your plants. Additionally, she’ll
show you how to make luffa soaps and a sugar scrub. “Natural
Beauty with Luffa” is part of our “Natural Health” course. For
additional details, visit Online.MotherEarthNewsFair.com.
and let them sit in an out-of-the-way, shady location for a
few days to finish drying completely.
Break off the end of the luffa where it was attached to the
vine; this should come off easily, and a number of seeds will
come pouring out. Bravo! You lucky Southern gardeners
won’t have to work as hard as Northern gardeners to remove
the numerous luffa seeds, which can be saved and planted
the following year.
Start banging your gourd against a tabletop, or throw
it on the ground to loosen and crack the hard outer skin.
After the skin is loose, you’ll be able to easily crack open the
gourd and peel off the skin. Luffas have a number of vertical
seams, so if you find one seam and run your thumb along it,
you’ll be able to easily separate the skin from the sponge at
this line. If the skin doesn’t come off easily, soak the entire
mature gourd in water for a few hours. After that, peeling
the luffa should be easier.
Once your sponge is completely peeled, rinse the intact
gourd to remove any remaining seeds (some people spray
them with a power washer), and then cut the gourd into
sponge-sized pieces. You can also cut them into small discs
if you plan to put them into soap molds. Let the cut sponges
dry in a well-ventilated, sunny spot for a week or two, rotating them every few days. Make sure your luffas are completely dry before storing them, otherwise mold and mildew
may develop.
Processing immature, green luffas: In my experience,
it’s best to process immature luffas immediately after harvesting, or the green squash will have more time to develop
mildew and begin to rot. Start by banging your luffa gourds
on a table or by throwing them on the ground to loosen the
skin and separate it from the fruit. Use your thumb to push
into the gourd until the skin cracks and you’re able to start
peeling it away. Luffas have fibrous strings that run vertically
up and down the seams of the fruit; try pulling these cords
to “unzip” the sponge from its skin. If you begin peeling
an immature luffa and the inside looks more like a mushy
banana than a fibrous sponge, toss it into your compost pile;
it’s not mature enough to use.
It’s more difficult to remove the seeds from immature luffas, so be prepared to spend about five minutes per gourd
poking out seeds with a chopstick and rinsing the gourd under water. While rinsing, you’ll notice that the luffa releases
a slimy, soap-like substance. This is sap, and you’ll want
Green luffas require more work to process than those that are left to
dry on the vine, but they still produce perfectly usable sponges.
to rinse as much of it off as possible. Cut the gourd into
sponge-sized pieces (or small discs if you plan to put them
into soap molds), and then lay them in a well-ventilated and
sunny spot to dry thoroughly for 3 to 4 weeks. Rotate them
often, and wait to store them until they’re completely dry.
By growing 5 to 10 luffa plants, you can easily provide
your household with a year’s supply of organic, nontoxic,
compostable sponges. When your friends and family hear
about your latest endeavor, they’ll be sure to request sponges
for themselves too!
How to Grow and Use Sponge Gourds
Luffa can be used for a variety of things,
including clothing, building materials, and
natural filters. In Beautiful Luffa by Janice
Cox, you’ll learn everything you need to
know about planting, growing, harvesting,
and using luffas for bath and body products
as well as for food. This title is available
at www.MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by
calling 800-234-3368. Mention promo code
MMEPAMZI. Item #9958.
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OF
CORINE HOLTMAAT; COURTESY
FROM
LEFT:
Echinacea purpurea
‘Pink Double Delight’
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This article is available
online in audio form at
MotherEarthNews.com
Challenges
with Cultivars
The long-running native plant cultivar debate stems from concern about
their ecological functionality and possible environmental consequences.
By Tom Oder
FROM
LEFT:
CORINE HOLTMAAT; COURTESY
OF
MT. CUBA CENTER
W
into one of the plant world’s hottest
debates: Do cultivars provide the same
benefits to wildlife as the species from
which they’re derived, or are they just
ornamentals with no environmental
value? Even worse, could native plant
cultivars cause environmental harm?
The horticulture community is
hen the native plant movement began in the 1970s,
one of its goals was to educate the public about landscaping and
gardening in an ecologically sustainable way. A half-century later, the buyin has been more than anyone
bargained for.
The growing number of
native plant enthusiasts demanded innovations in native
flora available at local nurseries.
In response, the horticulture
industry provided an increasing
number of cultivated forms
of native plants designed to
enhance desirable traits, such
as attractiveness to pollinators,
aesthetic value, disease
resistance, and consistent
performance. Nursery growers
and breeders in the United
States and abroad, in both the
native plant community and
the ornamental sector, had
cultivated these new plants
from ones selected in the
wild and hybrids created in
laboratories. Unfortunately,
both cultivated wild selections
and hybrids were often lumped
under one generic label: “native
cultivar” or, simply, “cultivar.”
Confusion ensued, controversy
erupted about ecological
Phlox paniculata ‘Jeana’ is a popular selected cultivar.
value, and the topic boiled
divided on the answers, because
opinions differ on taxonomy, botany,
basic terminology (see “ ‘Nativars’,”
Page 54), and more. Luckily, a home
gardener doesn’t need to acquire a deep
knowledge of plant genetics to find
answers to questions about cultivars.
All you have to do is decide the purpose
of your garden.
For the Home Gardener
If you like the latest trends
in ornamental breeding,
then hybrid cultivars will
likely appeal to you. Hybrids
are propagated asexually by
breeders who cross — and, in
some cases, backcross — two or
more species. Hybrid flowers
can be sterile, especially
double-flowered forms, but
this isn’t the case with hybrids
in general. Many Echinacea
and Penstemon hybrids, for
example, produce nectar,
pollen, and seed. But there’s
something else to be aware
of with hybrids: Studies have
shown that anthocyanins that
turn green leaves purple or red
to give them a visual pop add
a bitter taste that discourages
insect foraging.
If your aim is to support
wildlife and the food web,
then selected cultivars are for
you. These are straight species
plants chosen from natural
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with butterflies and bees,” says Steve
Castorani, whose wholesale North
Creek Nurseries in Landenberg,
Pennsylvania, popularized ‘Jeana.’
“I can tell you 100 percent that
if you put this plant in your yard
and it blooms, you will have tiger
swallowtail butterflies. It’s a one-to-one
relationship.”
An additional validation of the
ecological value of ‘Jeana’ is that it was
identified as a star pollinator plant
in the Phlox Sun Trials at Mt. Cuba
Center, a nonprofit botanical garden in
Hockessin, Delaware, that encourages a
‘Nativars’: A New Name for Native Plant Cultivars
The term “nativar,” which refers to cultivars of native plants, seems
to have snuck its way into the horticultural lexicon. No one really
knows when or how it came into use — not even the person who
coined the term, Allan Armitage, professor emeritus of horticulture at
the University of Georgia. “It’s at least five years old, maybe more,”
Armitage says. “I write books and articles. Maybe I just stuck it in
there somewhere. All of a sudden, people were asking me, ‘Why did
you write nativar?’ Well, it seemed to make sense to me.”
Armitage thinks using the term “cultivar” to refer to cultivated forms
of native plants confuses people. “What is a cultivar?” he asks. “It’s
just a cultivated variety. It could be anything. What’s a nativar? Well,
it’s a variety of a North American native plant. When you say ‘nativar,’
people immediately know you are talking about a native plant.”
For the record, he says, the term refers to both propagated selections
of native plants as well as lab-created hybrids. “Whether a cultivar
occurred naturally or somebody created it in the lab or greenhouse, it’s
still a hybrid, and it’s still a cultivar,” he says. “In fact, I would guess
that 95 percent of what is offered today are hybrids.”
Armitage’s belief is that gardening should be simple. If gardening
sounds too complicated, he says, people’s eyes will glaze over and
they’ll lose interest in what should be a fun, relaxing, and enjoyable
hobby. He thinks keeping that levity is especially important during the
coronavirus pandemic. With people staying closer to home, indications
are that many are turning to gardening, perhaps for the first time.
In the meantime, Armitage is just grateful that some people
listened and recognized that “nativar” came from him. “Not that I’m
going to make any money from it,” he says. “But it’s nice to know I
left something for the world.”
Because his lectures have been canceled due to the pandemic,
Armitage is inviting people to walk through his garden with
him on Facebook Live. Join him at www.Facebook.com/Watch/
ArmitageAllan.
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OF
One example of a selected cultivar
is Phlox paniculata ‘Jeana.’ It was
discovered by Jeana Prewitt growing
along the Harpeth River near her home
in Nashville, Tennessee. Named for her,
it was selected for propagation because
its dark-green leaves resist powdery
mildew, which is unusual for the genus.
Plus, its sweetly scented flowers, which
are smaller than the species and bloom
in varying shades of vibrant lavenderpink from midsummer through early
autumn, strongly attract pollinators.
“There are certain plants that have
specific longstanding relationships
COURTESY
populations because they possess
desirable garden characteristics, such as
mildew resistance or a smaller size than
the typical species. The vast majority
of selected cultivars are produced
vegetatively from plant parts, and most
of them retain the ecological benefits
of their wild counterparts. Because
these cultivars are genetic duplicates of
the parent plant, they can never offer
the genetic diversity that ecological
restoration practitioners require to
rebuild plant communities. This,
however, doesn’t diminish their value
in urban or suburban gardens.
MT. CUBA CENTER (4)
From left: Trillium grandiflorum ‘Pamela Copeland’ is a rare natural double flower. Echinacea purpurea is a readily available species.
COURTESY
OF
MT. CUBA CENTER (4)
A member of Mt. Cuba Center’s Pollinator Watch Team collects pollinator data in the Trial Garden.
broader use of native plants to support
wildlife and conducts field experiments
of selected and hybrid cultivars to
evaluate their garden-worthiness.
Dealing with Double Flowers
Mt. Cuba Center recently completed
a trial evaluating 75 different
coneflowers (Echinacea), including
some with double flowers that are
examples of the hybrid cultivars widely
available in the nursery trade. “As part
of the trial, we’ve been evaluating 12
doubles and even dissected some of
them, and found that none of the
double-flower coneflowers in our
current trial produce seeds,” says Jeff
Downing, executive director of Mt.
Cuba. “While it’s biologically plausible
that some double-flower forms may
produce pollen and nectar, it is
uncommon.”
Mt. Cuba is sourcing a doubleflowered coneflower that’s popular with
consumers for trial, Echinacea purpurea
‘Pink Double Delight’ (pictured on Page
52), to determine if it produces pollen
and nectar. This plant was the first
successful commercial introduction of
double flowers, says Angela TreadwellPalmer, founder and co-owner of Plants
Nouveau in Mobile, Alabama. She’s also
the breeder agent for AB-Cultivars in the
Netherlands that developed the plant.
“We have never touted the doubles
as food for wildlife or for genetic
diversity, but simply as decorations for
gardens, as many horticultural perennial
introductions are,” Treadwell-Palmer
says. “The pollinators do visit them,
and, in my horticultural and ecological
opinion, they are much better than turf.
So I would rather see someone begin
with a double coneflower because they
thought it was pretty, fall in love with it,
and then move on to collect others, even
single-petaled selections with enhanced
wildlife benefits.”
A volunteer citizen
scientist collects
pollinator data in
Mt. Cuba’s Trial Garden.
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If you want to dig deeper into Mt.
Cuba Center’s trials on Echinacea
species and cultivars with pollinator
data, you can view its 2018 to
2020 research report at www.
MtCubaCenter.org/Trials/EchinaceaMid-Atlantic-Region.
Of the 6,885 different
plants sold by the ...
nurseries surveyed, only
25 percent were native.
Plant Presence at Nurseries
Gardeners who prefer straight native
species likely believe their only choice
is to buy cultivated forms because that’s
all they see in plant nurseries or catalogs. They can take comfort in knowing
their eyes aren’t deceiving them. Mt.
Cuba conducted and published a survey in April 2017, updated in February
2018, of 14 wholesale nurseries in
Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, and
Pennsylvania. Of the 6,885 different
plants sold by the target nurseries, only
25 percent were native. This percentage includes straight native species and
selected and hybrid cultivars. Of the
natives, just 23 percent were straight
species, meaning 77 percent of native
plants available to consumers were cultivated forms. The survey authors did
note, however, that omitting box store
growers in the survey was a flaw that
could’ve changed the results.
Treadwell-Palmer adds another
perspective about why hybrid
cultivars dominate nursery benches.
“A lot of times, a cultivar is chosen
because it has more vigor, more
flowers, or it just plain propagates or
grows better. … Other times, a plant
is selected because it looks really great
in a 1- or 2-gallon pot on a retail
shelf, and that attracts customers at
retail,” she says.
“The saddest reason plants are
selected is because growers who are
shipping plants to chain stores can fit
more plants on a rack, so they choose
the shortest selections for that reason.
Many cultivars are shorter. Breeders
are convinced Americans have no
gardens or smaller gardens, so they
make everything fit smaller spaces.”
LEFT: COURTESY
OF
MT. CUBA CENTER
Doug Tallamy (right)
guides the capture
and study of insects
at Mt. Cuba Center.
56 MOTHER EARTH NEWS XXXX/XXXX XXXX
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LEFT: COURTESY
OF
MT. CUBA CENTER
Altered Traits
in Hybrid Cultivars
When buying hybrid cultivars,
gardeners should be aware of
traits in the species that have been
altered, says Robert Wyatt, research
professor emeritus at the University
of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
and former professor of botany and
ecology at the University of Georgia.
“Understanding which traits have
been changed provides clues about the
cultivar’s ability to perform the same
ecological role as the species,” he says.
Wyatt says the traits that are most
frequently changed are stamens and
pistils that have been converted into
extra petals or bracts that provide no
nectar, pollen, fruit, or seed to nourish
wildlife; anthocyanins that have been
introduced to turn normally green
leaves purple or red but that reduce
palatability to insects that feed on
them and, sometimes, attractiveness
to pollinators; larger or smaller plant
size; changes in flower colors; altered
plant growth; and earlier or later
flowering times than the native or
straight species.
It’s understandable, Wyatt believes,
that the gardening public might not
understand how some altered traits
could make some hybrid cultivars poor
candidates for supporting wildlife.
“We’re still trying to make inroads
with the largest part of the general
public in terms of understanding
why native plants are better for the
landscape and garden than some
nonnatives, and better than cultivars
in many cases, though certainly not
all,” he says. “One of the best things
people can do to understand why
native plants are so important is to
read Doug Tallamy.”
Tallamy (pictured on Page 56)
is a professor in the department of
entomology and wildlife ecology at
the University of Delaware, and the
inspirational leader of America’s native
plant movement. Many native plant
enthusiasts consider his work Bringing
Nature Home the go-to book for
understanding the critical link between
native plants and native wildlife.
Start Your Seed Saving
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Bevin Cohen of Small House Farm is
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as building community by sharing
seeds, the living history of heirloom varieties, understanding seed-saving terminology, pollination, processing seeds,
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The Debate Continues
Wyatt, whose emphasis has been plant
reproductive ecology, says he greatly
admires the work Tallamy and others
have done in entomology, but adds that
the altered traits in cultivars that concern
him most are ones involving changes to
the flowers. “I am more concerned in
some ways about plants that totally mess
up reproductive systems by converting
flower parts into more petals to make
them more showy, or where they have
changed flower color. That’s where a
study Annie White did at the University
of Vermont is so interesting.”
White, then a student working toward
a doctorate in ecological landscape
design, evaluated 12 native herbaceous
plant species and 14 native cultivars.
She found that only one cultivar with
different-colored flowers than the
species attracted more pollinators than
the species. Because of the proliferation
of hybrid cultivars in the nursery trade
and findings such as White’s, Wyatt
is concerned that “cultivars that don’t
fill the role in the food web that their
ancestors have for millions of years could
wreak havoc on natural ecosystems.”
Not everyone agrees with this view,
including Downing. “In a suburban
pollinator garden, there are vanishingly
few situations I can imagine where the
genetic heritage of your coneflowers
and Coreopsis are likely to threaten the
vitality of a local ecosystem,” he says.
That’s the point Mt. Cuba and the
U.S. Botanic Garden were trying to
make when they convened a panel of
biologists, geneticists, restorationists,
and statisticians in 2017 to begin to
provide some rational guidance for
individuals seeking to feed wildlife and
promote healthy biodiversity by using
native plants. They discovered that
what’s appropriate and necessary in a
restoration project is different from
what’s beneficial and advisable in a
suburban garden.
Downing thinks it’s great that some
home gardeners choose to garden with
seed-grown straight species as opposed
to asexually created cultivated forms of
any kind. But he also agrees with the
panel’s approval of a more nuanced
approach to gardening.
“If you’re a backyard gardener who
just wants to use native plants to attract
and feed bees and butterflies,” he says,
“you can head down to your local garden
center with a little knowledge of how
plants grow; pick up some cultivated
Tiarella, Monarda, and Asters; add color
to your garden throughout the seasons;
and feel at ease that you haven’t just
wrecked nature.”
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Grow Up!
How to Train
Your Tomatoes
For healthy and protected tomato plants, keep the vines aerial and the ground covered.
ACROGAME
ADOBE STOCK (2)/IMARZI,
T
omatoes. Every gardener grows
them, and every gardener has
strong opinions on how “thou
shalt properly grow tomatoes,” especially
on how to keep them controlled. And,
let’s be honest, control wouldn’t even
be an issue if tomato plants weren’t so,
well, out of control. They sprawl across
their neighbors’ beds, hogging space and
muscling in on anything unfortunate
enough to be planted nearby. Not only
that, but they tend to hide their fruit
under leaves and on the ground, where rot,
slugs, and misplaced feet can take their toll
on the harvest.
There’s good news, though. With so
many tomato growers holding so many
opinions on the subject, there’s more
than one way to keep your tomatoes in
their place. Staking, caging, trellising,
and even upside-down planters harness
vertical growth, and this article will help
you decide which way is best for training
your tomatoes.
First, let’s discuss tomato growth patterns. Every tomato shows one of two
growth habits: indeterminate or determinate. Indeterminate tomatoes never stop
growing or producing tomatoes until they
die. Heirloom cultivars and the monster
slicers everyone loves are usually indeterminate. Determinate tomatoes are stockier
and more compact, and they fruit all at
once. Most hybrids and commercial cultivars are determinate. If you’re planning on
making lots of sauce or canned tomatoes,
determinate varieties are for you.
Without some sort of control, your
tomato plant will outgrow its ability to
hold itself up. For some crops, such as
squash or watermelon, that’s no big deal.
For tomatoes, however, sprawl is a major
source of headaches, and it can result in
diseases, pest damage, and even crop loss
during harvest.
Most tomato diseases live in the soil, so
keeping the plants off the ground is crucial.
A lot of the creatures that like eating ripe
tomatoes, such as slugs, snails, and tomato
fruitworms, prefer hanging out at ground
level as well. And who wants to spend
hours rummaging through leaves and
branches to locate ripe tomatoes—only to
stick a thumb into a half-eaten fermented
lump of mush, or to step on a ripe beauty,
or even to snap off an entire branch sporting a dozen green tomatoes?
Providing good airflow and avoiding soil
splash during rain and irrigation go a long
way toward growing healthy, productive
vines. The best solution is to keep the plant
aerial and the ground covered, either with
other plants or with some kind of organic
LEFT:
By Andrew Weidman
Growing Pains
FROM
Whichever options you choose to lean on, these
tomato supports will ensure your plants stay off
the ground and away from pests and diseases.
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FROM
LEFT:
ADOBE STOCK (2)/IMARZI,
ACROGAME
Stake your
determinate cherry
tomato plants to keep
them from sprawling
on the ground.
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ADOBE STOCK/CHRISTOPHE FOUQUIN
mulch, such as hay or leaves. Commercial
growers prefer plastic sheeting, but that
can negatively affect the soil biology, suffocating the soil and leaving it pasty, soggy,
and sour. It’s also a lot easier to hunt for
tomato hornworms that are snacking on
tomato leaves if you don’t have to bend
in half to look under ground-level foliage.
Some pests, such as chipmunks and squirrels, aren’t phased by tomato training. For
controlling them, there’s the family dog.
Craft a Tomato Cage
This wire tomato cage is too small to provide
proper support for the plant’s growth.
You’ve probably seen the welded-wire
cones that show up at hardware and bigbox stores each spring, situated beside
the tomato transplants, with three or
four wire legs on the small end of the
cone. The idea is to position one over
each baby tomato plant and push the
cone’s legs down into the soil to support
the plant as it grows. They actually work
pretty well — for supporting pepper
plants. For tomatoes, they’re woefully
underpowered. Other heavier cages are
available, but even they tend to be too
small for a healthy tomato vine.
You’re better off making your own
cages. An ideal cage is a stiff wire cylinder
that’s 18 to 24 inches in diameter and 3 to
4 feet tall. Mesh size is critical to success;
select wire panels with openings of at least
6 inches square, or you’ll never get those
big, beautiful beefsteak tomatoes out of
the cage. Concrete reinforcing (remesh)
panels, stock panels, and woven-wire
fencing can all be made into effective
cages, as long as they’re flexible enough to
be rolled into a cylinder. Just to make the
math simple, a 6-foot panel will roll into a
cylinder just a little smaller than 2 feet in
diameter. Wire the ends together, center it
over your tomato plant, and anchor it with
a few sharpened “Y” sticks or tent stakes.
Determinate tomatoes respond to
caging better than indeterminate ones do.
Pruning is usually minimal, although stray
branches will escape from time to time
and need to be rerouted inside the cage or
pinched off.
Airflow around caged tomatoes is good,
but still somewhat restricted compared
with other methods, especially if you
have several cages close together. Plan for
comfortable working space around all
sides of the cages. At the end of the season,
pull out the cages, strip out the dead vines,
and open the cylinders up to store flat, or
stack them in an out-of-the-way corner for
the off-season.
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ANDREW WEIDMAN (3);
UPPER RIGHT:
Wooden tomato cages
provide sturdy support.
ANDREW WEIDMAN (3);
UPPER RIGHT:
ADOBE STOCK/CHRISTOPHE FOUQUIN
Stake Your Sprouts
The next tomato-training method is
the traditional stake. The idea is pretty
simple: Drive a 7-foot stake into the
ground at least 1 foot deep, and plant a
tomato at its base. As the tomato grows,
tie the main leader to the stake. Here’s
where it gets controversial: Many gardeners nip off, or “sucker,” side branches
to maintain the single leader, claiming
that suckering produces bigger, better fruit, if fewer of them. Meanwhile,
many other gardeners claim that suckering makes you the sucker, reducing the
solar collection capacity of the plant and
limiting its ability to pump sugars into
its ripening fruit. But one thing is certain. Not suckering the vine leads to an
uncontrolled tangle of side branches at
severe risk of snapping off.
Sucker or not, select good, stout stakes
to support your tomatoes. If they’re
wooden, use stakes that are at least
1 inch thick. Metal fence posts, while
not pretty, offer great support, and, if
they have notches, hooks, or knobs for
attaching electric wire insulators, they
provide great attachment points for tying
off leaders as the plant grows. There are
When tying a tomato vine to a stake, make sure the tie’s material won’t inhibit plant growth.
some pretty fancy tomato stakes on the
market too, from corkscrew patterns to
“tomato ladders.” Avoid bamboo stakes;
they tend to be too flexible and hard to
tie to.
Use soft material for tying the vines,
such as T-shirt material torn into
strips, pieces of old nylon stockings,
or jute twine. Tie the vines loosely
with a looped figure-8 sling to allow
for growth. And proceed with care, as
tomato vines snap easily if manhandled.
Staking works well with indeterminate
vines and provides great airflow. It
also makes finding ripe fruit much
easier. It does require extensive pruning
throughout the season, and it tends to
limit the production of individual vines.
One way to boost production a little is
to allow each lateral branch to produce
one flower cluster before pinching it
back. Those laterals may require extra
support so they don’t snap under the
weight of the ripening fruit.
Staked tomatoes
and peppers grow in
a container garden.
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From left: Twirl a tomato vine around the twine
to train it to grow up a trellis. An A-frame
trellis offers rustic charm to the garden.
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This combo pack includes one EZ Step-In Post
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Plant two tomato plants in the row, followed by another stake, allowing 2 feet
between each plant and stake. Repeat this
pattern of one stake between every two
plants until you run out of row or plants,
whichever happens first. Don’t forget to
allow space for a final stake in the row.
Tie twine to the first post, about 6 inches above the ground. Stretch the twine
to the second post, and loop it around
the post at the same 6-inch height.
Continue looping your way to the far
end of the row, and then loop your
way back to the start, on the opposite side. When you’re finished, each
tomato plant will have twine holding it upright at 6 inches high. As the
plants grow throughout the season,
add more twine every 6 inches to create a web or lattice of support. Sisal
baling twine works well; buy a spool
from a farm supply store, or upcycle
twine saved from baled hay or straw.
This method is ideal for fields full
of determinate tomatoes. It’s fast and
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FAR LEFT:
bar and train the additional leaders in the
same fashion. This does reduce airflow,
however, so do your best to prune through
the season.
The Florida Weave is a simple, fast trellising method developed specifically for
commercial field-grown tomatoes, but
there’s no reason you can’t use it in your
own garden. Drive a sturdy 5- or 6-foot
stake into the ground at the end of a row.
FROM
Trellising takes up more space than
staking, but offers less chance of vines
snapping under their own weight. A trellis
can be as simple as two heavy 8-foot posts
driven into the ground with a third post
resting across their tops, or as elaborate
as an A-frame made of 2x4s. Old pipeframe swingsets can be upcycled into
trellises. Heavy sapling A-frames add an
attractive, rustic touch to the garden and
can be sourced for free if you have access
to a woodlot. Sure, a vegetable garden
is utilitarian, but no one said it can’t be
visually pleasing at the same time!
Plant tomatoes directly below the top
bar of the trellis, at 2-foot spacing. Hang
twine tied to the top of the trellis
down to the base of each tomato
plant. Anchor the end of the twine in
the ground beside the plants to create
tension, or, on two-post trellises, tie
it to another piece of twine stretched
horizontally from leg to leg, just
above the ground.
As the tomato plants grow, twirl
the leaders around the twine, and
sucker side branches just beyond
the first flower clusters. If the plants’
growth gets away from you—don’t
worry, it happens to all of us—you
can tie additional twine to the top
ANDREW WEIDMAN (2); ADOBE STOCK/VERUREE
Trellising Tomatoes
Growing tomatoes upside down can work if you’re short on garden space.
convenient, and custom-made for working
in rows. Try growing indeterminate cultivars with this method, but be prepared
for a lot of pruning and weaving branches
back into the row. If you have high production in mind, this is the method for
you. Use disease-resistant hybrids or grafted cultivars for high-density plantings.
FROM
FAR LEFT:
ANDREW WEIDMAN (2); ADOBE STOCK/VERUREE
Which Way’s Up?
The final vertical-growing method is
more of a novelty, although many patiogrowing gardeners swear by it: the upsidedown method. A container of potting mix
is suspended 6 feet above the floor, with a
planting hole cut in its bottom. A tomato
plant is set in the hole, with its roots in the
container and its “top” dangling. The idea
is to confuse pests and to allow gravity to
pull the branches toward the ground and
keep fruit at a comfortable picking height.
In practice, the system has definite flaws.
The trellis or structure supporting the
planter must be strong and robust. Most
commercial systems are much too small
for even the most petite cherry tomato
plant. Plants naturally want to grow up,
not down, so branches will snap easily if
the planter is hung in a high-traffic area, at
risk of getting jostled. Watering becomes a
daily commitment, possibly even twice a
day in the heat of July and August.
If the only spot you have to grow tomatoes is under a pergola or on a patio,
then this may be the method for you. Use
a 2-inch hole saw to cut a hole in the bottom of a clean 5-gallon bucket, along with
five or six ½-inch drainage holes between
the center and the sides. Set the bucket
upright on two sawhorses, and insert the
root ball of a compact or dwarf cherry tomato plant through the hole. Cut a slit in a
piece of paper and slide it around the stem
inside the bucket to support the plant as
you fill the bucket with light potting mix.
Hang the bucket by its handle on a sturdy
support. Water from the top until the excess water runs free. Fertilize weekly with a
liquid organic fertilizer.
Whichever way you train your tomatoes, get ready to actually enjoy the harvest,
without the risk of accidentally crushing
fruit underfoot; snapping branches; grabbing a handful of half-eaten, half-fermented mush; or breaking your back. You’ll be
glad you made them grow up right!
Select and Grow the Best Tomatoes
Craig LeHoullier shares everything a tomato enthusiast
needs to know about growing more than 200 varieties
of tomatoes in Epic Tomatoes, from sowing seeds and
planting to cultivating and collecting seeds at the end
of the season. Also included is a comprehensive guide
to various tomato pests and diseases and explanations
of how best to avoid them. This title is available at www.
MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by calling 800-2343368. Mention promo code MMEPAMZI. Item #7504.
WWW.MOTHEREARTHNEWS.COM
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FROM
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Vermicomposting
Basics
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g
s
lid
Add worms to your
composting process
to form a nutrient-rich
fertilizer for your garden.
inner bin
with holes for
ventilation in
sides and bottom
food scraps,
bedding,
and worms
By Crystal Stevens
V
ermiculture, or worm farming, is the use of worms to
break down organic material.
It’s a simple way of turning table scraps
into compost. The end product is a
nutrient-rich natural fertilizer called
“worm castings.” A vermicompost bin
can maintain the conditions necessary
for hosting an environment for worm
reproduction.
outer bin
(no holes)
spacer bricks
compost
FROM
LEFT:
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Backyard
Vermiculture Benefits
Vermiculture can benefit your backyard garden in the following ways:
• It will enhance your existing composting operation.
• It will use worms to create a highyield nutrient-rich fertilizer.
• Worms, such as red wigglers and
earthworms, will help break down
organic material more rapidly.
• The end product will have a higher
amount of humus than compost,
and humus can improve aeration
and water retention tremendously.
Vermicompost is rich in nitrogen,
phosphorus, and potassium, and contains both macronutrients and micronutrients that benefit plant health
and stimulate plant growth. The
compost contains worm castings; partially decomposed organic materials;
and organic waste with fragments of
plants, food, and other detritus. Most
vermicompost contains plant-growth
hormones, which can increase plant
vitality and yields.
In vermicompost, micronutrients
that may ordinarily be washed away in
heavy rains, such as magnesium and
sulfur, are instead bound and released
slowly in the compost.
The product that vermicomposting
The inner bin holds the scraps and
worms, while the outer bin acts as
a catchment for any excess liquid,
which can also be used as fertilizer.
yields is more than worth the small
investment it takes to get started. You
can begin free of charge if you have a
friend who keeps worms already. Just
set up your system first, and then ask
your friend for about a dozen worms.
Within a month or two, your worm
population will start to increase.
In the retail market, natural fertilizers can be expensive. Finished vermicompost sells for up to $35 for a
20-pound bag. You can make your
own 20-pound bag of castings in your
basement or backyard for just pennies
after you pay your initial costs.
If you’re using reclaimed materials
to build an outdoor bin, you’ll only
have to buy the worms and straw bales
(to be used as occasional bedding and
for insulation during winter months).
You will be able to really keep costs
down as long as you’re creative with
your building resources.
Set Up a Standard Worm Bin
A typical worm bin is made with
two plastic containers — an inner bin
and an outer bin. The inner bin needs
several holes drilled on all four sides
and three dozen holes drilled through
the bottom. A layer of small pebbles,
river rocks, or sand on the bottom
will prevent water buildup in the bedding and promote drainage. The outer
bin, which acts as a catchment for any
liquid, will need several dozen holes
drilled through all four sides, but none
on the bottom.
Add the worm bedding — a mixture
of shredded paper or torn newspaper,
leaf litter, grass clippings, and small
pieces of cardboard, such as toilet paper rolls — and spray with water until
the mixture is wet.
The bedding should sit until it reaches the correct temperature, between 55
and 80 degrees Fahrenheit. It should
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stay below 90 degrees F for at least two
days. After the optimum temperature
has been reached, push aside the bedding, add the worms, and cover with
the bedding. You can then add food
scraps slowly. A rule of thumb among
vermiculturists is that worms can eat
their weight in one day. For example,
1 pound of worms will go through
1 pound of food scraps daily.
After 1 to 2 months, harvest the
bottom layer of vermicompost. Add a
few handfuls of new worm bedding.
Continue adding kitchen scraps, and
the cycle will continue.
What to Add to Your Bin
Some items that can go into a compost bin shouldn’t go into a vermicompost bin. The following items can be
composted in a worm bin:
• All food scraps, except meat, dairy,
and spicy peppers
• Eggshells
• Coffee grounds
• Newspaper (black and white only;
no colorful, glossy pages)
• Cardboard, such as toilet paper and
paper towel rolls
• Leaves
• Grass clippings
• Small twigs
• Plants removed from the garden
after their life cycle is complete
(don’t add if they’re infested with
nonbeneficial insects or diseased)
• Noninvasive weeds before they go
to seed
Don’t compost waste that should go
to the landfill or be recycled, or materials that won’t decompose. Don’t add invasive weeds or diseased plants; instead,
Purchasing Worms
Because there are roughly 1,000 worms per pound, worms are sold by weight rather
than by count. For an indoor worm bin, starting with 50 to 100 worms is fine. For an
outdoor vermicompost bin, we started with 1,000 worms, and they multiplied quickly.
You can mail-order red wriggler worms from the following reputable companies:
Uncle Jim’s Worm Farm: 800-373-0555; www.UncleJimsWormFarm.com
Planet Natural: 888-349-0605; www.PlanetNatural.com
Red Worm Composting: www.RedWormComposting.com
Gardener’s Supply Co.: 800-876-5520; www.Gardeners.com
Windy City Worms: www.WindyCityWorms.com
Local Harvest: www.LocalHarvest.org
FednHappy: 833-469-6767; www.FednHappy.com
burn them away from your garden and
compost bin.
Recycled paper and newspaper both
make excellent bedding for worms.
Borrow or buy a simple paper shredder to shred newspaper, thin cardboard,
and black and white paper waste, and
keep it in a bin with a tight-fitting lid.
Ask friends and family to save newspapers for you. You might also check with
your local newspaper office to see about
getting their leftovers after distribution.
Fall leaves are a great addition to
a vermicompost bin. Leaf blowers
sometimes come with an attachment
that sucks and grinds up leaves and
deposits them into a collection bag.
This works well, because the shredded leaves take less time for the worms
to process, and they won’t compact as
much as whole leaves.
Grass clippings from untreated
lawns are a wonderful addition. Lawn
mowers may have an attachment for
collecting clippings, which can then be
added with leaf litter to your bins. This
should only be done if the lawn isn’t
treated with chemical pesticides.
Sawdust from untreated lumber
can be added to a vermicompost bin.
Lumber mills are often a great resource
for untreated sawdust. You might want
to avoid sawdust from species such as
black walnut (Juglans nigra) and relatives that produce allelopathic chemicals, or any of the aromatic cedars that
might contain oils toxic to worms.
Wood chips make an excellent filler
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RICK WETHERBEE (5)
Drill holes in the inner bin; you can also insert mesh to support the bedding while allowing drainage. Bedding can include shredded paper and newspaper.
RICK WETHERBEE (5)
With a minimal investment, you can set up an out-of-the-way bin in which worms work to turn detritus into garden gold.
material for long-term composting, and
they’re especially helpful for adding a
carbon component to your large pile,
for aging manure, and for adding a base
layer to a long windrow system. (See
notes on tree species selection, above.)
Spent grains are often readily available and can be a good source of food
for microorganisms in a vermicompost bin during winter, when large
volumes of vegetable scraps aren’t as
available. Use caution when employing spent grains for vermicomposting
because of the amount of heat they
generate when decomposing, as well as
how they change the pH of the pile.
To cool them down a bit, you can add
spent brewing grains to a compost pile
first to get them started decomposing.
Another method for aging them is to
use a 5-gallon bucket with several holes
drilled into the bottom for drainage
and airflow. Place about four handfuls of chip mulch at the bottom, add
spent grains, and top with several more
handfuls of chip mulch. This will allow
the spent grains to cool off a bit and
start decomposing after 1 to 2 weeks.
Be sure to add only a few handfuls at
a time in one corner of the bin. Don’t
cover the bin with spent grains, because
you’ll want the worms to be able to retreat if an area of the bin gets too warm
for them.
Coffee grounds are readily available
from most coffee shops. If the shops
don’t separate their grounds from the
garbage, you could offer to provide a
few clean buckets for them to dump
grounds into. You can schedule a weekly
pickup, and drop off clean buckets each
time. This is a great resource, especially
if you’re doing a large vermicompost system or windrow, discussed below.
Animal manure is a great addition to
a vermicompost pile. Pre-composted or
aged manure is best for a vermicompost
bin. Some animal manures are better
than others. Most offer good nutrition for worms, such as cattle, poultry, sheep, goat, hog, rabbit, and horse
manure. Weed seeds in uncomposted
animal manure are often a disadvantage, because the seeds need to reach a
certain temperature to become nonviable, but pre-composted manure can
still be used.
Pile Division
On a larger scale, compost can be
placed into piles or long windrows in-
stead of bins. We like to divide ours
into one-year, two-year, and five-year
piles. The one-year pile has plenty of
worms and microorganisms that are
working hard to transform the organic
matter into a usable growing medium.
It contains only materials that will decompose within a year, such as food
scraps, leaf litter, newspaper, and grass
clippings. It has a 1-to-1 carbon-tonitrogen ratio.
The two-year pile contains everything the one-year pile has, but we add
cardboard and manures from goats,
rabbits, cows, and horses. We also include lots of fallen leaves, straw, and
paper goods to this pile, and we turn
it weekly.
The five-year pile contains everything
the two-year pile has, plus chicken manure. Because chicken manure is high
in nitrogen, we try to balance it by adding more straw.
Harness the Awesome Power of Worms
Worms at Work is a practical guide to fertilizing and
enriching your garden naturally. It discusses the vital
role worms play in boosting soil health, and the reasons
why every gardener should use vermicompost in order to
decrease reliance on toxic synthetic fertilizers. Covering
simple designs for building your own vermicompost bin, this
book will help you put your worms to work, and grow happy,
healthy plants in happy, healthy soil. This title is available
at www.MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by calling 800-2343368. Mention promo code MMEPAMZI. Item #8430.
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Certified
Naturally
Grown
This national standard of excellence for apiaries
and fungi farms endorses hives and products
free of pesticides and genetic modification.
By Suzannah Schneider
S
ince 2002, the Certified Naturally
Grown (CNG) organization has
offered certification for farmers
and beekeepers who use natural methods
to grow food for their local communities.
CNG’s peer-review inspection process is
tailored for direct-market growers who
are dedicated to working in harmony
with nature without relying on synthetic
chemicals to manage pests and diseases.
Today, nearly 800 producers across the
United States and Canada hold CNG
certifications. Of this prestigious, tight-knit
community, a select group holds CNG’s
Apiary or Mushroom certifications, both
of which were created in direct response to
feedback from those seeking an alternative
to other certifications.
Jay Parsons of Dances with Bees apiary
in Cornelia, Georgia, describes the CNG
designation as “a door opener.” He
continues, “It’s similar to having a practical
organic certification, in that it helps people
to know that special efforts were made to
attain specific standards and practices.”
CNG mushroom operations and apiaries
comprise a diverse and devoted bunch,
from backyard enthusiasts to trade show
pros. Here are just a few of them, and the
practices they maintain to meet the CNG
label standards.
A Sweet Alternative
CNG launched its apiary certification
10 years ago in response to feedback
from beekeepers concerned about
colony collapse disorder. These apiarists
understood that keeping synthetic
chemical treatments out of their hives was
important. They wanted to certify these
standards, encourage other beekeepers
to adopt them, and raise awareness
among customers. The CNG Apiary
certification standards focus on the health
of the honeybees and the sustainability of
beekeeping, with a secondary focus on
agricultural products of the hive, including
honey, pollen, and propolis. Additionally,
these standards ensure natural methods
of Varroa mite control, minimal colony
relocation, and beekeeper safety.
Beekeepers can’t control where
honeybees fly and what they encounter
along their way. Because honeybees can
cover a geographic range of more than
8,000 acres, it’s more than likely that they’ll
forage on a crop or landscaped area that’s
been treated with synthetic pesticides.
Christina Neumann of Apoidea Apiary
in Pennsylvania has chosen CNG as the
framework for keeping her 75 to 90 hives
throughout Pittsburgh to make her Good
Food Award-winning honeys. She explains
the conundrum of organic certification
and the CNG solution: “CNG provides
a way for beekeepers to signify they follow
a holistic approach, since it’s virtually
impossible for an apiary in the United
States to obtain organic certification unless
it’s located within many square miles of
organically managed or untreated land.
OPPOSITE: VALHALLA ORGANICS
A Seal of Approval
for Beekeepers and
Mushroom Growers
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OPPOSITE: VALHALLA ORGANICS
Valhalla Organics
in Talent, Oregon, is
currently the only CNG
apiary on the West Coast.
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Oyster mushrooms grow naturally on a log, a CNG-approved non-synthetic, non-GM substrate.
When the CNG team noticed an
increase in the number of mushroom
farmers applying for certification, they
soon realized the existing produce
standards didn’t adequately address most
aspects of mushroom cultivation. Given a
recent increase in consumer demand for
healthy, clean fungi, mushroom growers
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GETTY IMAGES/Z1B; SUZANNAH SCHNEIDER; GOOD JOB, BEES! HONEY HOUSE; WOODLAND JEWEL MUSHROOMS
Kingdom Fungi
FROM BOTTOM LEFT:
Healthy honeybees at Apoidea Apiary in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, make award-winning honeys.
CLOCKWISE
Honeybees at the Good Job, Bees! Honey House in Kamuela, Hawaii, dine on their own supply.
The CNG logo symbolizes the factors
I consider to be most important to my
apiary management: no antibiotics,
no high-fructose corn syrup feed, no
synthetic treatments, humane bee care,
and healthy bee landscapes. All of these
are critically important to a holistic
approach to apiary management.”
The certification standards also
recommend that beekeepers leave enough
honey for the bees to survive winter
without supplemental feeding. Tara
Lynne Groth of Five Acres Honey Farm
in Pittsboro, North Carolina, believes this
practice and others focusing on honeybee
health have led to her success: “The
aspect of my apiary I’m most proud of is
that I’ve never had a hive fail to make it
through the winter, and this is my third
winter keeping bees. I went into my first
winter with one hive, while 50 percent of
other winter hives were lost in my area.
Each winter, I go into the season with one
more hive than the year before—if not
more—given splits and swarms.”
The standards for holistic hive health
were developed with the expertise of
an Apiary Advisory Council, which
includes Jennifer Berry, lab manager
of the University of Georgia Bee Lab;
Pam Fisher, founder of the Beekeepers
Guild of Southeast Virginia; Master
Beekeeper Buddy Marterre; and Master
Beekeeper Jon Zawislak of University of
Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service.
Regardless of your own hives’ certification
status, CNG offers two free digital
publications for natural beekeepers:
Handbook for Natural Beekeeping, now
in its third edition, and Help the Honey
Speak: A Marketing Guide for Beekeepers
with Naturally Managed Apiaries. They’re
available online at www.CNGFarming.
org/Handbook_Info, or can be purchased
as printed booklets for a small fee.
GETTY IMAGES/Z1B; SUZANNAH SCHNEIDER; GOOD JOB, BEES! HONEY HOUSE; WOODLAND JEWEL MUSHROOMS
FROM BOTTOM LEFT:
CLOCKWISE
clearly needed a separate set of rigorous
standards tailored for them.
So, CNG developed standards from
scratch, in close collaboration with the
Mushroom Advisory Council, which
includes Tradd Cotter, the author of
Organic Mushroom Cultivation and
Mycoremediation, and Steve Gabriel,
Cornell Small Farms Program specialist
in mushrooms and agroforestry. CNG’s
Mushroom certification was launched
in 2016, and provides guidance to
the growing numbers of mushroom
producers nationwide. CNG has strict
substrate standards. Many non-CNG
mushroom producers rely on the
byproducts of genetically engineered
crops, such as soy meal and cottonseed
hulls, while CNG certified growers
are required to use substrates of logs,
wood chips, straw, coffee grounds,
and agricultural waste from non-GM
(genetically modified) crops. In addition,
the certification’s standards don’t allow
mushrooms to be treated with synthetic
chemicals during any stage of the growing
process. Pressure-treated wood to elevate
logs or to build racks in mushroom
fruiting rooms is also prohibited, and
water quality is of utmost importance.
One of the newest CNG mushroom
cultivators is Green Box Mushrooms
in Gainesville, Georgia. Owned and
operated by John and Elizabeth Moon,
this indoor operation uses a unique
system adopted from a sister farm in
Korea to produce more than 600 pounds
of mushrooms a day. Using recycled
peanut hulls and wheat from nearby
farms as substrate, the Moons produce
oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus),
lion’s mane (Hericium erinaceus), and
Cordyceps (Ophiocordyceps sinensis).
Green Box Mushrooms’ hallmark is
the durable and reusable plastic bottles
that hold the substrate and the young
mushrooms. “We produce organic and
non-GM mushrooms,” Elizabeth says.
“So joining Certified Naturally Grown
is just an intuitive step to take, and an
affordable option for our farm.”
Woodland Jewel Mushrooms in
Spring City, Pennsylvania, cultivates its
mushrooms more traditionally. Norman
Fetter uses logs, grains, and other CNG-
Woodland Jewel Mushrooms in Spring City, Pennsylvania, primarily grows its mushrooms on logs
and grains.
Button Mushroom Fruiting Kit
Anyone can grow some amazing white
button mushrooms at home with this “just
add water” countertop kit that comes complete with casing soil and easy-to-follow
directions. It only takes a few weeks for the
mushrooms to spring forth and mere days
to mature before you’re harvesting from
your kit and enjoying fresh mushrooms
daily! This product is available at www.
MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by calling 800-234-3368. Mention promo code
MMEPAMZI. Item #8652.
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approved substrates to grow shiitake
(Lentinula edodes), oyster, lion’s mane,
and Pioppino (Cyclocybe aegerita), also
known as black poplar, for local restaurants. “I’m most proud of the friends and
connections that we’ve made through
CNG,” Fetter says. “From the chefs that
turn our fungi into culinary delights, to
our talented local farmers and the consumers that support us all, our community is a beautiful, interconnected system.”
The Power of Peer Review
Lion’s mane and pink oyster mushrooms both provide tasty and health-boosting benefits.
certification process, they have a profile
on the organization’s website (www.
CNGFarming.org). They’re also eligible
to purchase marketing materials, such as
logo stickers, other packaging, laminated
certificates, and signs. CNG also offers
affordable custom design services for
banners, sticker labels, business cards,
and more, so farmers and beekeepers can
benefit from a full suite of customized
marketing supplies. Michael Thompson
of Chicago Honey Co-op in Illinois says,
“Our most successful market, Green
City Market, transitioned to requiring a
third-party certifier for all the vendors.
This is the only market in the city that
requires this, and it’s a key to their
popularity—and consequently, to ours.”
For those beekeepers and mushroom
growers who find that USDA organic
certification doesn’t work for them, a
grassroots alternative can be just as powerful. As for CNG, “People know it’s a
rigorous certification and that you’ve
done your due diligence,” says Peter
O’Donnell of O’Donnell Apiaries in
Bellefonte, Pennsylvania. “You’re working hard to provide the best care of the
bees, and decreasing the risk of chemical exposure. Certified Naturally Grown
means high recognition, high standards,
and high expectations.”
If you’re ready to pursue the holistic
CNG certification, you can learn more,
get certified, and register for updates at
www.CNGFarming.org/Why_Join.
Techniques for Indoor and Outdoor
Mushroom Cultivation
In Organic Mushroom Farming and
Mycoremediation, author Tradd Cotter offers readers
an in-depth exploration of best organic mushroom cultivation practices, shares creative ways to apply cultivation skills, and more. This title is available at www.
MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by calling 800-2343368. Mention promo code MMEPAMZI. Item #7341.
GETTY IMAGES/JUN ZHANG
The CNG network is constantly
evolving through its annual peerinspection process, a distinct feature
of CNG that appeals to farmers of all
stripes. CNG’s annual peer review is
a core requirement for certification. Its
primary goal is to verify high standards,
while also promoting full transparency,
building trust, and boosting the sharing
of knowledge. “I was attracted to the
fact that CNG was not only founded by
farmers, but also that it’s administered by
farmers,” Fetter says.
The peer-review model works
to minimize paperwork, and keep
certification dues affordable through the
requirement that all members conduct
a peer review. Inspections aren’t meant
to be formal or intimidating, but an
educational opportunity. Christina
Fabris of Iris & Callisto’s Apiary in
Avondale, Pennsylvania, says, “This
is how we grow; this is how we learn.
CNG is a great soundboard.” Christina
Neumann of Apoidea Apiary, like many
CNG producers, finds the inspection
experience to be valuable. She says,
“Reviewing the successes and struggles
of the prior year during the inspection
not only solves problems, but creates
camaraderie. Maintaining an apiary
is challenging, so finding like-minded
people can be reassuring.”
CNG offers distinct marketing benefits across many groups of customers.
Members of its Guide to Exceptional
Markets (GEMs) recognize and promote
CNG producers’ high standards, and in
some instances, even prefer or require
that vendors hold a certification such as
CNG, among others.
Once applicants complete the
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Author Charlie Tennessen cut
and bundled this heirloom wheat
with a cradle scythe, and then
stacked it to dry in the sun.
Grist for Your Mill
Heirloom
Wheat
Growing and grinding
your own grain may
be the best thing since
sliced bread.
Story and photos by Charlie Tennessen
W
heat is the most widely
cultivated crop in the
world. Easy to grow, this
grain is sown from the tropics to the
Arctic Circle, and has been an impor-
tant human food source for at least
10,000 years.
Historically, wheat fields often contained multiple varieties. Farmers
would save and trade seeds (also called
“wheat berries”), or grow out a wheat
plant that caught their attention, hoping to develop a new type. A group of
wheat varieties propagated with traditional seed saving in a region over many
years is called a “landrace.” Today, landrace wheats are practically extinct.
Wheat changed significantly in the
20th century. The plant was bred to be
shorter, so the seed heads could grow
larger without causing the stalks to fall
over. Short wheat can tolerate generous quantities of chemical fertilizers,
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From top: This small
backyard wheat
plot will yield 5 to
10 pounds of grain,
and twice as much
straw. Wheat can be
threshed by rubbing
a block of wood over
seed heads laid atop a
screen. Berries need
to be hard and dry at
harvest time.
which bumped up winter wheat yields
in the Midwest region of the U.S.
from 20 to 30 bushels per acre in the
19th century, to 90 to 110 bushels per
acre today.
Modern wheat has a greater starch
content than heirloom wheat, and
the gluten strength has increased by
a factor of three. These modifications
have had tremendous benefits for industrial milling and baking: Modern
flour can be processed quickly, and a
bread-baking facility can make many
loaves per day.
But both anecdotal and scientific evidence suggests that modern wheat has
left us with a crop that’s productive
in the field but unhealthy for human
consumption. The incidence of celiac disease has increased significantly
over the past 50 years. Celiac disease
is triggered by gluten, which is made
of proteins found in wheat and some
other cereal grains. Additionally, more
people than ever before suffer from
wheat sensitivity. Why would a grain
that’s been eaten successfully for thousands of years suddenly be suspected
of causing health problems?
Researchers grapple with the sheer
complexity of wheat, which has six
sets of chromosomes and a whopping
95,000 genes. No smoking gun exists
that indicates a specific harmful compound in modern wheat. However,
scientific studies have shown that the
protein content in modern industrial
wheats is nearly always lower than in
heirloom wheats, and has been replaced by starches.
Clinical studies in which human
subjects have been asked to eat heirloom wheat have consistently shown
increased antioxidants and decreased
inflammation. Setting aside possible
health benefits, heirloom wheat has a
lot going for it, including a great flavor and beauty in the field. Many heirloom wheats have colors ranging from
red to blue and even black, and most
grow twice as tall as modern cultivars.
Growing Wheat at Home
Even if your space is limited, growing heirloom wheat in your backyard
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From left: Haynes Bluestem, a red spring wheat, and Red Clawson, a red winter wheat. Both were common in Wisconsin a century ago.
is practical. A strip 50 feet by 10 feet
will require about 2 pounds of seed
and yield up to 30 pounds of threshed
wheat. The entire process only requires simple tools and a bit of work.
First, choose a wheat that suits your
climate and the time of year you intend to plant. Research the wheats
that interest you. Winter wheats require vernalization, a period of cold
dormancy after the grains have germinated and been established. Ideally,
winter wheats should be planted a
couple of weeks prior to your area’s
average first frost date; however,
A Gallery of Grain
Choosing an heirloom wheat is a matter of taste and availability.
Pasta, bread, cooked wheat berries, pancakes, pizza, and dumplings
will all turn out great when made with heirloom wheat.
Turkey Red is a hard red winter wheat, one of the first to be
revived and marketed as an heirloom. Turkey Red is an American
name given to multiple Crimean wheats grown by Mennonite
immigrants in Kansas in the 1870s. Turkey Red is an excellent
wheat for growing and milling. It’s first-rate for bread, cake, cookies,
and pasta. When grown in dry conditions, it produces high-protein
flour suitable for artisan bread and pizza crust.
Sonora is a semihard white wheat introduced to the Sonoran
Desert region of Mexico in the early 1700s. Planted in spring, this
low-protein wheat grows best in California, Arizona, and other hot,
dry areas. The husk tends to remain attached to the berry after
threshing, so the seeds usually require extra processing. Sonora’s
strong flavor and texture excel in cakes, quick breads, and tortillas.
Red Fife is a hard red spring wheat, but it can be planted in fall
in areas that experience mild winters. Ontario farmer David Fife
selected a single seed head to be propagated from some imported
berries he’d planted in 1842. The wheat quickly developed a
reputation for disease resistance and productivity. During the late
19th century, this was the leading hard red spring wheat in North
America. Red Fife has great aroma without any bitterness, and it’s
ideal for pizza crusts and artisan breads.
From left: Pasta made from Red Fife flour, and a Turkey Red loaf that’s been baked in a backyard brick oven.
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From left: Red Fife and Wisconsin Pedigree No. 2. The seed heads of many heirloom wheats droop when ripe.
earlier or later plantings will usually
grow well. Spring wheats don’t require
vernalization. Plant them as early as
the soil can be worked. If the soil is
wet and cakes up on a shovel or rake,
wait until it dries out.
An old saying from the Kansas
wheat belt is, “Plant into mud, and
you’ll get a dud. Plant into dust, and
your grain bins will bust.”
Many heirloom spring wheats
are robust enough to be planted in
fall, especially in temperate areas. A
good source for learning the best
heirloom wheat for your area is the
U.S. Department of Agriculture’s
“Classification of American Wheat
Varieties” from 1922. (Visit www.ARS.
USDA.gov and search for “Bulletin
1074.”) This publication describes several hundred wheats, including their
growth habits and suitability for milling. The index records all the wheats
grown in each state at that time.
You can purchase heirloom wheat
seed (see “Seed Sources,” Page 77), or
you can use any wheat berries as seed.
Wheat can follow almost any other
crop in rotation, but it’s especially
helpful after potatoes and tomatoes.
Broadcast by hand at a rate of at least
40 seeds per square foot. After broad-
casting, cover up as much seed as possible with a rake. Planting will go faster
with a hand-operated garden seeder.
Use a beet plate and set the depth to 1
inch. Aim for 1 to 2 seeds every inch
in rows about 6 inches apart.
Once wheat is planted, there’s little
to do but watch it grow.
Watering is almost never necessary,
and a good stand of heirloom wheat
will out-compete most weeds. When
the seed heads have matured and the
plant changes color, start thinking
about harvest. Test for ripeness by
removing a seed head and rubbing it
between your hands. Blow away the
Heirloom Wheat in the Kitchen
To purchase heirloom wheat flour, find a stone miller who produces small batches to ensure the flour is as fresh as possible. The
flour should be lightly sifted, or not sifted at all, because intensive
sifting removes fiber and nutrients. White flour is nearly pure starch
and has had its nutrients removed, which is why major milling companies voluntarily add vitamins to “enriched flour.” If you don’t plan
to use the flour right away, put it in a sealed package in the freezer
to preserve freshness.
To fully unlock heirloom wheat’s potential in your kitchen, mill
the berries at home. Since whole-grain milled flour loses flavor
within weeks, the first thing you’ll notice after milling at home is
the wonderful smell — sometimes grassy, other times sweet. Some
varieties exhibit a satisfyingly bitter tang. You’re smelling the oils
that commercial mills work hard to remove from white flour because
they contribute to the product going stale a few weeks after milling.
While white flour is shelf-stable and consistent, and suitable for
food distribution, it’s questionable for taste and human health.
You have many good equipment choices for milling at home.
Hand-cranked mills are the most basic and use either stone or steel
burrs. The grain drops between the rotating burrs and falls out as
flour. It takes considerable effort to grind flour by hand, as well as
a sturdy counter to clamp or bolt down the unit. In 15 hard-working
minutes, you’ll mill about 1 pound of flour, or 3 cups.
Powered mills make the work easier and provide a fresh, wholesome flour. These include stand-alone units or attachments for
stand mixers. Some electric units are burr mills, and others are
hammer mills, whereby high-speed knives break the grain into flour.
Heirloom wheat will work in any recipe calling for wheat flour. You
may have to experiment with the amount of moisture you use, as
most recipes will benefit from additional milk, water, or honey, since
fresh whole-grain flour absorbs more liquid than white flour. For
cookies, you can add more water than you think is necessary, and
then allow the dough to sit in the refrigerator overnight, where it will
absorb the excess moisture and stiffen up.
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Seed Sources
The stalks of Turkey Red heirloom wheat change color when ready to harvest.
chaff and inspect the berries. If they’re
still soft, wait another week or two.
Most of the seeds should be hard at
the time of harvest.
Reaping What You’ve Sown
On harvest day, cut down the
stalks at the base with garden shears,
a kitchen knife, or a sickle. Gather
the stalks into bundles, and put them
somewhere safe to finish drying. The
drier the wheat, the easier it will be
to thresh, and the better it will store.
You can put off threshing for months
if you protect the bundles from rain
and rodents.
You can thresh wheat by spreading the
stalks out on a clean floor and walking
over them while wearing hard shoes, or
by piling the stalks a little deeper and
hitting them with a stick. Threshing can
also be done on a tabletop by rubbing
the seed heads with a piece of wood (see
middle photo, Page 74).
Once most of the seed has fallen out
of the heads, set aside the straw for animal bedding or mulch, and collect the
grain. Next, you’ll have to remove the
dust and chaff. Pour the wheat slowly
from one bucket to another in a good
breeze, or in front of a fan. After two
or three passes, the wheat will be clean
enough for food use.
But first, test the wheat to
ensure it’s fully dry. Bite a single wheat
berry in two. If there’s any hint of softness, lay the grain on a tarp in the sunshine for a few hours until it’s hard
and dry. Store your harvest in a tightly
sealed container until you’re ready to
start milling.
Be sure to set aside enough berries
for next year’s planting to become
part of the continuing story of heirloom wheat: plant, grow, harvest, eat,
repeat.
Sherck Seeds. Based in Bristol,
Indiana, John Sherck sells many
locally adapted winter and spring
wheat varieties in small quantities
only, usually 7-gram packets.
www.SherckSeeds.com;
John@SherckSeeds.com
Great Lakes Staple Seeds. Eleanor
and Scott offer a wide variety of wheats
from Michigan’s past in small quantities only, usually 50 seeds per packet.
www.GreatLakesStapleSeeds.com;
Seeds@GreatLakesStapleSeeds.com
Stephens Land & Cattle. The
Stephens Turkey Red strain may be
the oldest local wheat maintained
continuously in the United States.
Kansan Bryce Stephens offers seed
in large and small quantities. www.
LocalHarvest.org/Stephens-LandCattle-M46995 ;
Deme.Stephens@gmail.com
Barton Springs Mill. Proprietor James
Brown’s stone milling operation specializes in landrace grains purchased
directly from farmers in Texas and the
Great Plains. www.BartonSpringsMill
.com; 512-855-7507
Janie’s Mill. The Wilkenses are fifthgeneration Illinois farmers. A good
source for larger quantities, they sell
seeds for every wheat they mill.
www.JaniesMill.com; 815-953-1073
Anarchy Acres. This is author Charlie
Tennessen’s farm, from which you can
purchase Wisconsin Pedigree No. 2,
Red Fife, and Marquis for planting.
www.AnarchyAcres.com
The Culture, Biodiversity, Resilience, and
Cuisine of Ancient Wheats
Modern industrial wheat has been drastically transformed over
the past century. Restoring Heritage Grains invites readers to discover crops that don’t need biochemical intervention to grow well
and yield bountifully in organic fields. Combining history, advice
on growing heirloom wheat, and recipes, this book offers practical
solutions for feeding the world’s growing population. This title is
available at www.MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by calling 800234-3368. Mention promo code MMEPAMZI. Item #7943.
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This article is available
online in audio form at
MotherEarthNews.com
AMYROSE FOLL (2)
Saving Culturally
Significant Seeds
78 MOTHER EARTH NEWS XXXX/XXXX XXXX
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e is available
udio form at
thNews.com
Preserve traditional practices and foodways
by cultivating crops that carry a legacy.
practical daily life in modernity can be
challenging.
Abenaki ceremony is closely intertwined with our agricultural calendars.
All major observances revolve around
By Amyrose Foll
the binding of food and family. When
fire in a fellow gardener. When we
North America was first colonized, we
save seeds, we’re not only preserving
lanting a seed is a sacred way
weren’t crude savages simply wresting
the past for future generations, we’re
for a hungry soul to walk the
life from the wilderness in constant
also keeping money in our pockets.
path back to their ancestors and
struggle. In fact, we had a sophistiSaving seeds is inexpensive, and if you
reconnect with the Earth. Each seed is
cated agricultural system in place that
locate a seed library or seed swap, you
a gift in our hands, given to us by the
saved the lives of those who came to
can procure additional cultivars while
generations of farmers before us who
this nation as colonizers, settlers, and
also depositing your own seeds into
held the ancestors of that seed. As modreligious refugees. Our verdant food
the collective system.
ern seed keepers, we stand
forest had already been
upon the shoulders of those
carefully stewarded and
farmers, and we must encurated by generations of
sure future generations will
farming mothers, feeding
know these seeds. Our garmillions. Our neighboring
dens are the legacy of those
Haudenosaunee siblings
farmers — their seed song.
were also well-documented
These seeds are our ancesas supreme masters of food
tors’ ecological knowledge
storage and preservation,
that we’re tasked with holdwith years of food and seed
ing at this moment in time.
stores in their cache.
When you begin your
In today’s society, we
journey by saving the seeds
must redefine Indigenous
from plants you’ve grown
gardens, agriculture, and
and planting them again
food sovereignty by our
in subsequent years, you
new standards of moderbecome part of a ritual
nity. In some cases, it may
that’s thousands of years
be necessary to research
old. That ritual gave us
and rediscover traditional
the bounty through which
practices that have been
each and every one of the
absent in our lives, because
world’s unique culinary
they were forcibly taken
traditions was born; and
from many of our ancesit developed all the food
tors through acculturation
we eat, passed down from
practices and policies.
the plants’ wild ancestors.
I’ve met many Native
When we look to the past,
Americans who, woefully,
Seed saving preserves culturally significant crops for future generations.
none of us, from any heriweren’t intimately contage or walk of life, has to
nected with their cultural
N’tongwezid Nebizokikonek
go back many generations to find a
traditions in childhood. I assert that
(‘Welcome to Our Garden’)
farmer in the family and a connection
the garden, and our sacred seeds, can
As a native seed keeper and memto seeds. By saving seeds, you’re livbe a gentle calling back of sorts. Our
ber of the Abenaki tribe, I occupy that
ing your farming ancestors’ legacy of
gardens can be a vehicle for all those beliminal place between the present-day
strength and resilience, and protecting
loved members of the diaspora with any
world and the sedulous care and reverthat sense of place that grows out of
measure of Indigenous blood whom we
ent safeguarding of our ancient foodour shared traditions.
affirm as our family to come home to
ways. Keeping an endangered culture
It’s never too late to begin saving
us, and an adept teacher of cultivating
(or cultivar) alive for future generaa reverent culture of place. Saving seeds
seeds. Starting with something easy,
tions is a great honor that I don’t take
is not simply a hobby for me; it’s somesuch as squash, can be delightful and
lightly. The balance between keepthing I’m passionate about, and I wish
fulfilling. Seeds make a wonderful gift,
ing the old ways relevant and living a
to share it with all those willing to try
and you may just light the seed-saving
AMYROSE FOLL (2)
P
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Corn and beans are among the oldest cultivated crops in the Americas. ‘Abenaki Rose’ corn (left) has been saved by the author’s family for generations.
their hand at it. I’ve begun to see this as
part of my life’s work.
Corn Mother, or First Mother, is the
first woman in the Wabanaki people’s
creation story. The story varies between
Wabanaki tribes, but generally, all
people are born from corn, and Corn
Mother sacrificed herself to
feed them by turning her
body into the first garden.
So, let’s see what’s in our
garden.
is a surety, signaling that there will
be food to carry us through winter.
While each nation is unique, with its
own traditions and customs for the
Green Corn Ceremony, singing, dancing, and feasting are fairly universal.
Green Corn Ceremonies generally
happen at the first harvest,
anywhere from late June to
early August, depending on
the location.
Corn has become a dominating force in the world of
agriculture and food consumption. In the Maritime
Provinces and New England,
where my ancestors are
from, there are remarkable
miniature cultivars, such as
‘Gaspé’ and ‘Koas,’ which
have evolved to need a mere
60 days to mature. This was
an ingenious way to ensure
an early frost wouldn’t interfere with farmers growing
out stores for the harsh, long
winters of the region. Across the continent, other wonderful short-season
cultivars exist as well, such as ‘Pima
White.’ These plants are small in size,
and very water-thrifty. These corn cultivars, which also flourish in dry heat,
may be part of the agricultural adaptation to climate change.
and spiritually, to the people of Turtle
Island (North America).
Arguably, one of the most universal and important agricultural rituals
common among Indigenous communities in North America is the Green
Corn Ceremony. It’s a time to mark
the moment when the harvest of corn
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TOP RIGHT:
The Three Sisters have
attained a holy triumvirate-like status in the typical Indigenous garden, but
let’s dig a little deeper into
what else could be found
in a Wabanaki Confederacy
grower’s cache during the
late woodland period (A.D.
300 to 1000). This isn’t a
comprehensive list, but it
does represent what would’ve been
typical in a family band’s garden prior
to colonization in New England and
the Maritime Provinces of Canada.
Skamon (sister corn). The ancestor of modern-day corn is a wild grass
called “teosinte.” The stalks, leaves,
and tassels are similar to modern corn,
ADOBE STOCK/ALFIRA
“The Great Spirit is in all things;
he is in the air we breathe. The
Great Spirit is our Father, but the
Earth is our Mother. She nourishes
us — that which we put into the
ground, she returns to us.” — Big
Thunder Bedagi, Wabanaki
AMYROSE FOLL (4);
Tbawz Nidoupsoak
(‘Seven Sisters’)
but it produces only a few hard seeds.
Over the course of 10,000 years, corn
has been manipulated and selected by
the original peoples of the Americas
to grow in nearly all elevations and
conditions. It’s unquestionably the
most important crop, both practically
Squash and sunflowers each produce seeds that are easy to harvest and save, making them ideal plants for first-time seed savers.
Adebakwal (sister bean). Their array of wildly different markings makes
beans one of my favorite crops to save
and share. I never tire of prying open
dry pods to reveal the breathtaking
colors of ‘Bear Paw’ or ‘Potawatomi.’
An interesting fact about green
beans — one of North America’s most
common vegetables — is that we
wouldn’t have green bean casserole,
or any other presentation of the crop,
without the contributions of Indigenous
farmers. This simple vegetable has garnered attention in recent years after
being fashionably revived to en vogue
status, often labeled by its French name,
haricots vert. Referring to green beans
as such is somewhat misleading, however, because the crop comes directly
from the ancient fields of Indigenous
farmers in South, Central, and North
America. Green beans were introduced
to Europeans when they arrived on these
shores, after which they became a quint-
essential American food crop known
worldwide. By saving your seeds, not
only are you preserving and improving your crops and adding a measure of
self-sovereignty, you’re also preserving
food culture. Heirloom crops wouldn’t
be here for us to enjoy without the participation of gardeners like you and me.
AMYROSE FOLL (4);
TOP RIGHT:
ADOBE STOCK/ALFIRA
Seed Saving 101
Do you want to save seeds, but
aren’t sure where to begin? If so, our
“Seed Saving 101” course is for you.
Bevin Cohen of Small House Farm
will walk you through this introduction to the world of saving seeds.
The workshop videos produced by
Bevin cover topics such as building
community by sharing seeds, the
living history of heirloom varieties,
seed-saving terminology, pollination,
processing, and storing. Learn more
at Online.MotherEarthNewsFair.com.
Jerusalem artichokes are prolific perennials that produce multiple edible tubers per plant.
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Learn the Best Techniques for Keeping Seeds
In Saving Our Seeds, seed activist Bevin Cohen takes a deep
dive into the “how” and “why” of the modern seed-saving
movement. This book is a great how-to guide, leading readers step-by-step through the process of saving seeds from 43
different crops, including beans and wheat. Seed savers of all
levels will benefit from Bevin’s easy-to-follow explanations on
important techniques, such as hand-pollination, isolation, vernalization, and basic flower structure. This title is available at
www.MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by calling 800-234-3368.
Mention promo code MMEPAMZI. Item #9960.
“potatoes everywhere.” If you’ve ever
grown Jerusalem artichokes, you’ll understand the meaning perfectly.
Jerusalem artichokes are very high
in fiber, including inulin, a fiber that’s
currently being studied for its potential to increase insulin sensitivity — an
effect that might assist in the prevention of Type 2 diabetes.
Kiiadebimen (sister ground
cherry). This unique edible is as useful as it is fascinating to grow.
This past January, I had an experience that drove home why this crop
was such an important part of traditional gardening. I was in the barn
cleaning and organizing to prepare for
the volunteers at Virginia Free Farm.
I knew we would soon be busy planting and prepping. In my cleaning, I
found a dozen or so ground cherries
tucked away in a basket, still in their
lantern-like husks, perfectly adequate
for consumption. In that moment,
I truly understood the value of this
crop to my ancestors, and how useful it would’ve been in the days before
modern refrigeration.
Odamo (sister wild tobacco). This
isn’t one of the commercial tobacco
varieties that are commonly grown for
cigars, pipes, and chew. This wild tobacco has a higher nicotine content
than commercial types. Wild tobacco
is used in ceremony and as a natural
pest control, and it was a staple in our
ancient gardens.
LEFT:
control. When planted around the perimeter of a garden, they make great
perches for songbirds that feed on garden pests.
Sunflowers also attract pollinators,
and a strong pollinator population can
noticeably increase garden yields.
Plus, sunflowers produce proteinfilled seeds that make a great snack.
(When the seeds are young and soft,
the seed heads can be roasted and eaten whole.)
Sister Jerusalem artichoke. This
is one of my favorite native plants.
Comically referred to by some as “fartichokes,” Jerusalem artichokes are delicious and easy to grow.
We don’t have a word for them in
Abenaki, but they’ve been jokingly
described by other First Nations
Algonquian language group speakers
as something that roughly translates to
FROM
Wassawa (sister squash). Squash is
a wonderfully versatile vegetable, and I
believe she deserves more credit in our
pantries. Despite the challenges that
come with canning it, squash can easily be dehydrated and stored safely for
a long time — the traditional method
of squash preservation.
In recent years, Indigenous gardeners have been growing traditional
squash cultivars that aren’t commonly
found in supermarkets. These cultivars, which are grown in great quantities in an effort to save them and
revive traditional foodways, include
‘Hopi Pale Gray,’ ‘White Scallop,’ and
‘Candy Roaster.’
Gizos kogan (sister sunflower).
Sunflowers are great for myriad reasons. Not only are they beautiful to
look at and an excellent source of oil,
they’re also a method for natural pest
ADOBE STOCK (2)/RAWPIXEL.COM, STEPHEN ORSILLO
Ground cherries (left) store well in their husks without preservation or refrigeration. Wild tobacco (right) is used in ceremony and for natural pest control.
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Populate Your
Property with
Pomegranates
This tasty fruit has powerful medicinal qualities and
is easy to grow, whether in home gardens or market farms.
By Benjamin Whitacre
ADOBE STOCK/GRAFNATA
T
he best way to appreciate the
berry some cultures call “the
fruit of paradise” is to taste it.
With up to 83 aromatic notes, pomegranate’s flavor profile combines the
syrupy sweetness of Concord grapes,
the refreshing astringency of cranberries, and the cooling quality of lemons.
Each bite pops like tapioca.
Recent studies support historical
claims that pomegranates promote
health as much as they delight taste
buds. For gardeners, the benefits are
easy to harvest. Pomegranates bear early
and suffer from few diseases or pests.
Orchardists seeking a market niche can
choose from among more than 1,000
diverse cultivars, nearly all of which are
unavailable to grocery store customers.
Growing Pomegranates
Pomegranates should be on all lists
of the best fruits for organic gardeners,
because they’re so easy to grow. Animals
and insects leave the fruit alone thanks
to its tough rind. Unlike peaches and
cherries, these tall deciduous shrubs
rarely require spraying in small orchards or home gardens. Pomegranates
can tolerate high temperatures of up
to 118 degrees Fahrenheit, and a few
cultivars can handle exposure to minus
6 degrees without dying back to the
ground. The shrubs prefer good garden
soil, but will produce despite excessive
salinity, calcium, and alkaline soil, and
do well in drought or damp conditions.
For growers in Zone 7 or lower,
though, pomegranates (Punica granatum) are a lesson in microclimates and
cultivar selection. The best strategy is
to buy the most cold-hardy shrub you
can find, and plant it close to a building in a location that receives full sun.
The difference between a plant that
survives winter and one that dies can
come down to its proximity to a stone
or brick wall that absorbs the heat of
the sun during the day and releases that
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Everything You Need to Know for Fruit Foraging
Half the fruit that grows in yards and public spaces is never picked or
eaten. In The Fruit Forager’s Companion, author Sara Bir primes readers
on how to take advantage of those forgotten fruits with foraging basics,
gathering and preservation techniques, and a suite of recipes to make
with foraged fruits. This title is available at www.MotherEarthNews.com/
Store or by calling 800-234-3368. Mention promo code MMEPAMZI.
Item #8926.
A Wonderful Cultivar
The first pomegranates to grow in
American soil were likely seedlings
planted at Spanish missions after
the mid-16th century. These seedlings eventually made their way to
California. But those varieties were
mostly tossed aside for selected hybrids, such as ‘Wonderful,’ during
early attempts to start a pomegranate
industry in California.
One of the most commercially
successful heirlooms grown today,
‘Wonderful’ defines the American
pomegranate industry and holds a virtual monopoly over all other cultivars.
Many of its minor competitors, such
as ‘Early Wonderful’ and ‘Granada’,
are actually its sports.
The precise details of the birth of
‘Wonderful’ remain obscure, but its
first recorded appearance was at the
nursery of fruit hybridizers J.T. and F.E.
Bearss in Porterville, California. The
Bearsses mounted a massive marketing campaign for their promising seedling. In 1894, they sent ‘Wonderful’ to
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ADOBE STOCK/IRENE_REBROVA; IAN SCOTT; FLICKR/YASUAKI KOBAYASHI; JEFF MORSFELDER, USDA-DAVIS; BEN WHITACRE; GUY WANN
seed, but most agree that the seeds can’t
produce true-to-type plants.
Instead, take an 8-to-20-inch-long
cutting at least as thick as a pencil
from a vigorous, healthy plant. You can
even dig out unwanted suckers or cut
branches to open up the canopy of an
existing plant. Mark the base end with
a crayon or pen, or make a flat cut to
indicate the base and an angled cut for
the top; this will ensure that you’ll place
the proper end in the rooting medium.
Use a knife to scrape off ½ inch of
the bark on the base end, keeping at
least one node that you’ll insert fully
into the medium. Then, dip the base
in rooting hormone. Plant it in a 5050 blend of perlite and vermiculite or,
ideally, 100 percent perlite. Avoid using
potting soil enhanced with fertilizer, as
it may burn young roots.
FAR LEFT:
energy at night. Alternatively, you can
grow pomegranates in pots and bring
them inside during winter.
Although pomegranates can survive
less-than-ideal conditions and still produce fruit, they respond best to attentive
growing in an optimal setting. In Zones
8b to 10, they’ll flower and set fruit multiple times a year. Fruit set is affected
by several factors, including the cultivar
and its proportion of female flowers to
male; cross-pollination between different cultivars, which can increase fruit set
20 to 40 percent; irrigation or rainfall;
and fertilizer application. Gardeners can
prune moderately for fruit productivity and to maintain a graceful weeping
form. Otherwise, only dead or awkward
wood need be removed.
Experts disagree on the value of starting a new pomegranate shrub from
FROM
Gardeners in cold climates can try growing pomegranates in containers that can be moved
indoors, or against a south-facing wall to provide a microclimate and reduce wind exposure.
Place the cuttings in indirect sunlight, and set up a mini-greenhouse
(to maintain a moist environment)
by turning a clear container over the
pot. You can also use a misting system. If possible, place the pot on top
of a heating pad that maintains 75 to
80 degrees. Rooting will occur in 1 to
2 months. Transplant the rooted cuttings into quart-sized pots until you’re
ready to plant them outdoors.
Choose a planting site carefully. In
cooler areas, the best fruit yield requires the warmest possible location.
Growers usually plant close to the
south or southeast side of a building,
preferably made of stone or brick, to
reduce winter wind exposure and provide a microclimate.
Dig a planting hole three times
larger than the plant — at least 2 to 3
feet in diameter and 1 to 2 feet deep.
Improve the soil with a bag or two of
manure, and mix it into the hole with
a shovel before planting. Water the
hole well before planting, and again
after you’re finished.
FROM
FAR LEFT:
ADOBE STOCK/IRENE_REBROVA; IAN SCOTT; FLICKR/YASUAKI KOBAYASHI; JEFF MORSFELDER, USDA-DAVIS; BEN WHITACRE; GUY WANN
From left: Pomegranate cultivars include dwarf ‘Nana,’ Japanese double-flowered ‘Toryu Shibori,’ Levin hybrid ‘Salavatski,’ and the ubiquitous ‘Wonderful.’
anyone who agreed to promote it. The
cultivar received endorsements from
the American Pomological Society,
the California Secretary to the State
Board of Horticulture, and the Atlanta
Exposition, which awarded it a gold
medal. The cultivar’s value as a multinational brand name is thanks largely
to the Los Angeles company POM
Wonderful, which adopted the moniker in 2002.
The appeal of ‘Wonderful’ comes
from a group of traits that rarely appear in a single cultivar — vigorous
growth; dependable and heavy production; balanced sweet-tart flavor
and aroma; medium-soft seeds with
a relatively thick layer of flesh; high
fruit-to-pith ratio; high-quality juice;
a rind that resists splitting; and a long
shelf life. Comparative studies also
show it has among the highest seed
weight and antioxidant activity of any
pomegranate.
The main caveat about ‘Wonderful’
is that it requires extra winter care at
Zone 8 or lower. Some trials have also
found that other cultivars are better
for humid areas of the South.
Levin Hybrids
For 40 years, Soviet botanist Gregory
Levin led the creation of the largest
collection of pomegranates in the
world, with 1,117 different types. In
addition to trekking through dangerous deserts and mountains in search of
wild pomegranates, Levin hybridized
the plants.
Among the most prized of his hybrids are ‘Salavatski’ and ‘Parfianka.’
‘Salavatski’ has earned a reputation
on the East Coast for flavor comparable
to ‘Wonderful,’ and a high tolerance
for humidity and cold. The cultivar
can be grown next to a heat-absorbing
wall at least as far north as Allentown,
Pennsylvania (Zone 6a to 6b), and survive aboveground most winters without
any extra protection. ‘Salavatski’ has
also scored well in commercial trials in
Florida and Georgia, and earned a perfect score in Levin’s taste tests.
‘Parfianka’ was Levin’s personal
favorite and received top marks in a
U.S. Department of Agriculture study
on cultivars with commercial potential. Study co-author John Preece believes that many people would prefer
‘Parfianka’ to ‘Wonderful’ because it
has softer seeds and exhibits greater
cold-hardiness.
Japanese Double-Flowered
All pomegranates are ornamental,
but Japanese hybridists have placed a
premium on flower form and color.
Among their achievements are blooms
shaped like roses, peonies, and dianthuses, and variegated forms in white,
pink, red, and orange. Some of the following cultivars are being researched
in California and Florida for use in the
floral industry.
‘Haku Botan’ is the most vaunted,
and bears white flowers as fully double
as an old garden rose. Plus, it also has
commercial potential, because it reliably produces bountiful fruit. Growers
in the Northwest report success with
this cultivar.
‘Ki Zakura’ is a showstopper with
variegated orange flowers shaped like
those of a carnation. The cultivar produces small, edible yellow fruit.
‘Toryu Shibori’ closely resembles a
quartered rose, with apricot-colored
flowers that develop into a large crop
of fruit.
Double-flowered varieties are also
widely grown at North American historical sites, and are a possible link to
an older colonial tradition on the East
Coast.
Dwarf Cultivars
‘Nana’ and other dwarf pomegranates show well in flower borders and
make great bonsai. In cold areas,
they can be treated like other perennials that die back every year — simply prune them back to the ground.
They’ll still flower and, if the season
is long enough, set fruit. In warmer
areas, dwarf pomegranates will make
an excellent hedge.
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A statewide conservation effort is “bee-autifying”
lawns and landscapes to create pollinator-friendly
habitats abuzz with environmental benefits.
By Tom Oder
T
he addition of the rusty patched
bumblebee (Bombus affinis) to
the endangered species list in
2017 did much more than make it the
first bumblebee in the United States and
the first bee of any kind in the continental U.S. to be declared endangered.
The recognition also sparked widespread
concern about other pollinator declines;
raised awareness about the impact of
decreased insect populations on food
production and sensitive ecosystems;
and inspired Minnesota to launch an
innovative statewide pollinator conservation program.
The Minnesota Legislature named the
rusty patched bumblebee its state bee
in 2019, and in the same session, it approved a cost-share pilot program with
the catchy name Lawns to Legumes.
Equipped with the slogan “Your Yard
Can Bee the Change,” the Lawns to
Legumes program encourages residents
statewide to use native plants to transform their lawns and landscapes into
high-quality pollinator-friendly habitats.
The rusty patched bumblebee was
quickly established as the mascot of
the Lawns to Legumes program, which
heightened interest in gathering data on
Minnesota’s 450-plus native bee species,
since bumblebees can be indicator species of the health of other bee populations. The status of these populations is
key to the program’s long-term goal to
decrease the number of at-risk bees and
other pollinators and insects losing habitat to climate change, pesticides, plant
pathogens, and lack of nutrition.
Karen Moon (see photo, opposite) worked with neighbors to design and install a pollinator-friendly garden at her Minnesota home.
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KAREN MOON (3); ALEXEI MOON CASSELLE
FROM
Protecting Pollinators
in Minnesota
FAR LEFT:
Lawns to
Legumes
10/7/21 9:43 AM
FROM
FAR LEFT:
KAREN MOON (3); ALEXEI MOON CASSELLE
‘Bee’ the Change
Lawns to Legumes, administered by
the Minnesota Board of Water and
Soil Resources (BWSR), is achieving its conservation goals by offering
Minnesota residents a combination of
workshops, coaching, planting guides,
and Individual Support grants up to
$350 to help offset the costs of establishing pollinator habitats. The program also includes “Demonstration
Neighborhoods,” which are large-scale
conservation sites run by local governments and nonprofits with support
from BWSR.
The program supports four project types for creating pollinator habitats that allow for planting flexibility
based on site conditions and gardening
experience: native pocket plantings, pollinator lawns, pollinator meadows, and
beneficial trees and shrubs. The program
also helps residents identify projects that
meet community ordinances. In the
program’s first year, 7,500 people in 84
of Minnesota’s 87 counties applied for
Individual Support grants in two application periods; 1,000 applicants received
grants; more than 50 partners and 100
dedicated volunteer coaches joined the
effort; and 33,000 people accessed the
program’s website (www.BWSR.State.
MN.us/L2L). The number of applications received far outpaced available
funding, demonstrating strong public
interest in programs that support pollinator habitat.
“We had a good response from around
the state,” says Dan Shaw, senior ecologist and vegetation specialist at BWSR.
“Talking to residents early on, it was
evident that people are motivated to be
part of the solution for environmental
challenges they hear about, including
pollinator decline. It can be difficult for
the general public to determine what
they can do individually to help solve
some of these problems. This program
provides a way for them to do things
that directly benefit the environment,”
Shaw says.
Individual Support:
Residential Renovations
The residential focus, which Shaw
calls “pretty straightforward,” is one
of two main ways to participate in the
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Not long ago, the rusty patched bumblebee was numerous in the eastern United
States and upper Midwest. Its historic range included 28 states, the District of
Columbia, and two Canadian provinces. Since 2000, the species has been reported in
only 13 states and one Canadian province, primarily because prairies and grasslands in
the upper Midwest have been converted to monoculture farms or replaced by roads and
cities, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Disease, pesticides, and climate
change may have also contributed to its decline. Learn more about the rusty patched
bumblebee at www.FWS.gov/Midwest/Endangered/Insects.
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ADOBE STOCK/HEATHER HOLM; METRO BLOOMS
The Bee That Started It All
gram, and then they distribute funding
through a reimbursement to the residences,” Shaw says.
Individual Support grants are established as cost-share funding, meaning
that recipients are required to match
25 percent of their total reimbursement
request. Funding match can be in the
form of plants and materials purchased,
contractors hired, or time spent planting and maintaining plants.
One of the Lawns to Legumes
Individual Support grants given out in
the program’s first year went to Karen
Moon, an adviser in the College of
Continuing and Professional Studies
at the University of Minnesota. Moon,
a self-described “lifelong gardener
with knowledge gaps,” lives in a duplex in the Seward neighborhood of
Minneapolis, next to retired landscape
architect Laurie McRostie. “Laurie and
I collaborated on a plan for a pollinatorencouraging garden also capable of filtering water that feeds into the nearby
Mississippi River,” Moon says. “She
established parameters and made me
unexpectedly poised to apply for a
Lawns to Legumes cost-share project.”
Moon was approved for first-round
funding in March 2020.
McRostie’s plan involved removing
220 square feet of lawn that had a thick
mat of creeping Charlie interspersed
with clover, dandelions, and plantain.
Using a borrowed conversion ruler and
spray paint, Moon and her spouse, Josh
Borowicz, outlined a kidney-shaped
garden and marked places for plantings. With help from a neighbor and
their Korean hand plows, they cut away
turf, revealing soil so rich that passersby
asked Moon who delivered it. They also
dug up river rocks, including one weighing 75 pounds that they positioned in
a central place in the garden. They
planted a serviceberry tree, chokeberry
and snowberry shrubs, prairie dropseed,
lady ferns, turtlehead, prairie clover, oak
sedge (which rabbits ate repeatedly until
it was replaced with native Liatris and
prairie smoke), and nonnative companions, such as a globe blue spruce
and Ligularia. Then, they introduced a
catch basin beneath a porch downspout
LEFT:
going to make a lot of gain in establishing new habitat,” Shaw says.
Funding for Lawns to Legumes comes
from the Environment and Natural
Resources Trust Fund. The program
is administered by BWSR with the
help of two key contracted partners:
Metro Blooms, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit
organization that creates resilient landscapes and promotes clean watersheds;
and Blue Thumb – Planting for Clean
Water, a public-private partnership that
supports plantings for clean water and
other environmental benefits.
“We contract with Blue Thumb to
help them do workshops for the pro-
FROM
Lawns to Legumes program. “Anybody
in the state can apply for up to $350 in
funding, coaching, and workshops, even
if they’re in an apartment. That was a decision made from an equity standpoint,
because we wanted people who weren’t
necessarily homeowners to be able to do
something if they could work with their
landlord on the property,” Shaw says.
The program isn’t only for seasoned
growers either, and actually strives to attract new or beginning gardeners. “A lot
of people who have more extensive experience know what they’re doing and how
to establish pollinator habitat. But new
gardeners are where we feel like we’re
Individual Support grants
help fund native habitat
in residential lawns.
FROM
LEFT:
ADOBE STOCK/HEATHER HOLM; METRO BLOOMS
to route rainwater through a pipe to the
moisture-loving turtlehead and Ligularia
in the lowest level of the garden.
“Each phase brought new visitors,”
Moon says. “Bees arrived with serviceberry blooms, followed by berry-seeking
robins.” Families walking dogs stopped
to ask about the purpose of the rain garden and admire the overall transformation of the lawn. “I took great pleasure
in this project,” Moon says. “I look forward to seeing the garden as it evolves in
coming years.”
Demonstration
Neighborhoods:
Community Connection
In addition to individual grants,
Lawns to Legumes expands the
single-resident focus to highprofile communitywide plantings — known as Demonstration
Neighborhood projects — in important habitat corridors throughout the state. The goal of these
projects is to benefit at-risk pollinators (with a focus on the rusty patched
bumblebee) and highlight best practices. “We left the definition of ‘neighborhood’ open-ended for applicants to
determine,” Shaw says.
As a result, these neighborhoods range
from urban communities in lowerincome sections of Minneapolis and its
suburbs, to rural settings near Duluth and
the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior
Chippewa, to bluff prairies in southern
Get Involved
Participants in the Lawns to Legumes
program and other people undertaking similar
DIY efforts can map their projects on the Blue
Thumb website, www.BlueThumb.org. Lawns to
Legumes also promotes using data from Bumble
Bee Watch (www.BumbleBeeWatch.org) to
measure bumblebee visits, which are considered
an indicator of overall pollinator visits.
Minnesota along the Mississippi River on
the Wisconsin border.
“Demonstration Neighborhoods are
set up as a grant through a Request for
Proposal (RFP), so cities, counties, watershed districts, conservation districts,
tribes, and nonprofits can apply to lead
a project,” Shaw explains. An RFP in
late 2019 invited eligible organizations
to apply for grants ranging between
$20,000 and $40,000. The RFP led
to 12 neighborhoods around the state
where RFP awardees work with
multiple residents to establish
plantings and plan for the projects’
long-term care.
“These Demonstration
Neighborhoods create a vision
for how communities can work
together in a couple of ways,”
Shaw says. “One is that residents
can help residents and neighbors
can help neighbors, either sharing plants or sharing information. There’s also the aspect that
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the more plantings you can get within
development specialist. Kinara works with
outcomes. In addition to reducing chloa neighborhood, the better the pollinathe city’s 32 large multifamily communiride, all four properties are estimated
tor corridor you create. This is what we
ties to ensure residents are connected with
to annually capture 4 pounds of total
would like to see around the state within
resources to improve their quality of life,
phosphorus, 2,000 pounds of solids,
neighborhoods. And then there’s a social
living conditions, and safety. Additional
and 900,000 gallons of runoff.
side to it as well, because people working
partners — apartments and nearby resitogether to attain similar goals helps build
Expanding Efforts in Phase 2
dents; city and elected officials; staff from
community.”
The Lawns to Legumes pilot phase
Metro Blooms; and volunteers from the
Brooklyn Park, a city with a diverse popwas set up to run through 2023.
profit and nonprofit sectors—eagerly colulation of about 90,000
However, the program
in the northwestern subis expected to move into
urbs of the Twin Cities,
Phase 2 this summer, and
was one of the 12 grant
Shaw expects demand for
“I think people recognize that, through this
recipients. Brooklyn Park
both Individual Support
program, they have an opportunity with their
established rain gardens
grants and Demonstration
and pollinator gardens at
Neighborhoods to increase.
plantings to benefit a federally endangered
four affordable housing
To meet that demand, he
species. Now, lots of people are out there
apartment complexes,
has ambitious ideas to add
some as part of a city ininew features to the protrying to spot the rusty patched bumblebee.
tiative, and some as part
gram, including education,
That’s pretty cool.” — Dan Shaw
of the Lawns to Legumes
food security, and climate
program. The projects
mitigation and adaptation
funded directly by Lawns
components. These compoto Legumes are at Brook
nents will depend on future
Gardens, 60 units of two-story apartments
laborated to install the gardens. All the
funding and legislative action.
and town homes; and Brooks Landing, a
plantings feature pollinator-friendly na“We heard from a lot of people who
seven-story senior community.
tive plants appropriate for the four sites,
thought there would be a big benefit of
Because the project was too extensive
according to Rich Harrison, a landscape
expanding this program into community parks and school landscapes for edufor a single group to fund, Brooklyn Park
architect with Metro Blooms.
cational purposes,” Shaw says. “We have
secured grants of about $350,000 from
“One of our favorites is anise hyssop,”
a state interagency pollinator team that
the city and county governments and
Harrison says. “The bees love it, and it
includes the Department of Education,
six other grant-funding agencies across
blooms with beautiful purple flowers
so we’re making some good connections
the state, according to John T. Kinara,
in late summer.” The projects are exwith groups working not only on polliBrooklyn Park’s housing and economic
pected to produce notable measurable
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METRO BLOOMS (3)
Demonstration Neighborhood projects bring communities together to create and manage large-scale pollinator habitats throughout the state.
METRO BLOOMS (3)
Promoting native habitat
supports bees and other
pollinators in decline.
nator topics, but also education. Getting
native plant habitat onto school landscapes would present great opportunities
to incorporate (Lawns to Legumes) into
school curriculums.”
An Adopt a Pollinator program is also
in the works. “We’ve already started the
process of figuring out which pollinators
will be featured as part of this program,”
Shaw says. “The intent is to have a program in which schools can adopt different pollinator species and (students can)
go out into school plantings and see if
they can find them.”
Shaw added that children can do that
in their home landscapes as well. “I think
another piece of this program as it evolves
will be to take on more of a food component,” Shaw says. “We would like to
start incorporating apple trees, blueberries, and raspberries as part of projects so
there’s more of a food security aspect.”
As much as Lawns to Legumes focuses
on pollinators, Shaw stresses that the
program and its efforts go beyond that
aspect. “These efforts are also about the
overall integrity and health of our landscapes. The plantings increase resiliency
to climate change,” Shaw says. “We’re
pretty excited about the possibility for
climate mitigation and adaptation as
part of these projects, because the plantings are sequestering carbon.”
According to Shaw, the projects also
improve soil health, manage stormwater,
and support overall biodiversity. Beyond
pollinators, other animals can benefit
from the efforts as well. “It isn’t just pollinators that are in decline,” Shaw says.
“Many types of insects that support our
ecosystems are also at risk, as well as
significant declines in bird populations.
Birds that rely on insects as a major part
of their diet have declined the most.”
For many Minnesota residents, Lawns
to Legumes Individual Support grants
provide their first introduction to conservation efforts. Shaw hopes the arrival
of bees, butterflies, birds, and other wildlife in their plantings will inspire people
to continue expanding native habitat
in their landscapes and promote other
conservation efforts. “This is a healing
process that’s therapeutic for people as
well as the land,” Shaw says. “And it’s
something all of us can appreciate.”
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Unpacking
‘Organic’
This article is available
online in audio form at
MotherEarthNews.com
Take a closer look at the meaning and implications behind one of
agriculture’s most-hyped words, and how it affects today’s gardeners.
By Craig LeHoullier
C
Searching for Organic Clarity
If we just look at the word “organic,”
a whole interesting set of definitions pop
up. Organic means “related to or derived
from living matter.” It can also mean a
“form of farming or gardening involved
in production without the use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, or other artificial
ADOBE STOCK/RAWPIXEL.COM (2)
OVID-19 stimulated a huge
uptick in gardening interest,
exhibited by the massive demand for seeds experienced by seed
companies of every type. Many people
are confronting the term “organic” in
a new way, as each of them strives to fit
garden techniques into their worldviews
and philosophies. With the surge in gardening interest, it seems like a good time
to explore the term “organic,” which has
been tagged with so many intents and
variations over the years that its meaning
has become a little murky.
92 MOTHER EARTH NEWS XXXX/XXXX XXXX
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e is available
udio form at
thNews.com
substances.” Or, it can “denote a relation
between elements of something such that
they fit together harmoniously as necessary parts of a whole.” In agricultural
terms, it’s perhaps most often associated
with the USDA organic seal, which indicates that a product meets certification requirements set by the U.S. Department of
Agriculture’s National Organic Program.
(See “ ‘Organic’ Definitions” below for
more information about what goes into
the certification.)
Organic concepts are as old as agriculture itself, though, so it’s not surprising
that the term has meaning deeper than a
label or a generic definition. What is that
meaning, exactly? It probably depends on
who you ask.
My dive to further understand the
term led me to a series of fascinating and
enlightening conversations with three
friends whose careers deeply plumb gardening. Each shared special and varied
insights into what “organic” means to
them and the agricultural world as a
whole. (In full transparency, I don’t consider myself a strictly organic gardener,
yet. I trend in that direction, however,
and I resonate with the phrase “organic intent,” coined by my friend Mike
Dunton of Victory Seeds.)
Leaving Something
Better Than You Found It
My first conversation was with
Emily Rose Haga, a horticulturist, for-
Gardening is an ever-evolving journey that each grower begins from a different starting point.
mer plant breeder at Johnny’s Selected
Seeds, and current executive director of
Seed Savers Exchange.
At the most basic level, from her
many conversations with people involved in all aspects of farming, seed
saving, and gardening, Emily says she
hears one theme repeated when talking about what it means to be organic: Leave something better than you
found it — which is exemplified by
restorative farming, soil regeneration,
and understanding the various interactions in our ecosystem.
Though not an expert in organic certification, Emily is a major supporter.
She notes that from a purist standpoint,
when something is labeled “organic,” it
indicates a guarantee of sorts — that inputs and practices meet a standard set
of guidelines. The flip side, she admits,
is that corporate entities occasionally
jump on the principle, embracing the
financial gains without completely embracing the philosophy.
Emily also talked about the risk of
alienating those who support organic
practices but aren’t strictly organic gardeners yet themselves — a point that
resonates with me personally. Each person who gardens or farms starts from a
different financial and ideological base,
with varying levels of knowledge and
experience. Each new grower is embarking on a journey that evolves with
time and experience.
ADOBE STOCK/RAWPIXEL.COM (2)
‘Organic’ Definitions
Organic food: USDA Certified Organic food is grown and processed
according to federal guidelines addressing soil quality, animal-raising
practices, pest and weed control, and use of additives. Certified producers rely on natural substances and physical-, mechanical-, or biologicalbased farming methods.
Produce must be grown in soil that hasn’t had any prohibited substances applied for at least three years. If a grower wants to use a synthetic substance to achieve a specific purpose, the substance must first
be approved according to criteria that examine its affects on human
health and the environment.
Organic certification: A five-step process that producers and processing facilities must undergo to sell Certified Organic products. The
process involves creating an organic system plan, implementing the
plan and having it reviewed by a certifying agent accredited by the
USDA, undergoing an inspection by a certifying agent, having a certifying agent review the inspection report, and then receiving approval
by the certifier.
Organic farming: Application of a production system that’s managed
to respond to site-specific conditions by integrating cultural, biological, and mechanical practices that foster cycling of resources,
promote ecological balance, and conserve biodiversity. Crop rotation,
biological controls, and the use of animal manures are a few of the
key components.
Organic seeds: Certified Organic seeds are produced by a certified
grower, meaning the seeds weren’t exposed to any chemicals during
growth, harvest, or processing.
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Why Save Seeds?
The practice goes beyond saving
money and producing incredible,
tasty produce. Saving seeds preserves
genetic diversity and builds communities. Please join us in our new online
series “Seed Stories,” which tracks
the unique and culturally rich journeys of heritage seeds that have been
preserved with care for generations by
families across the country. Learn more
at Online.MotherEarthNewsFair.com.
Traditional Methods
in a Modern World
For my next conversation, I spoke
with Heron Breen, plant researcher
and area coordinator at Fedco Seeds in
Maine. For Heron, the topic of “organic” raised three broad areas of thought.
He first discussed the nature of
healthy soil, citing the work of Sir Albert
Howard, a British botanist who’s often
considered the founder of the modern
organic movement. Inspired by his work
with farmers in India, Howard was one
of the first to research modern organic
applications of composting, cover cropping, and the use of manures in building healthy, productive soils. “Organic
today has lost sight of this,” Heron said.
“Many don’t understand the link between healthy food and healthy soil.”
Heron also reminded me that largescale agriculture as practiced today is
a recent phenomenon. The roots of
“organic” are in sustainable small-scale
agriculture, which allowed people to
feed themselves and their communities,
without as much concern for profit as
exists today.
Regardless of what “organic” means to you and how you apply those
better. I believe organic seed production allows gardeners to identify
principles, it’s important to keep an open mind and remain flexible,
selections that are indeed better adapted to grow well in a particular
both in your own garden and when interacting with other gardeners. We
area. It’s not about the genetic material being changed by the environshould strive to grow gardeners, not just gardens—offer to lend a hand,
ment; instead, it’s about the gardener noting that a few plants from a
share gardening advice, and avoid garden-shaming. After all, going 100
large planting of a single variety perform better. Seed saved from those
percent organic doesn’t happen overnight.
plants actually selects to improve the crop.
When developing a garden plan, whatever it might be, here are a few
Pest control. A few years ago, I was fortunate to be speaking at the
techniques to try and points of interest to keep in mind.
same event as Jessica Walliser. Horticulturist, radio personality, and
Soil. Building good soil takes time. Unless a new gardener inherits
self-professed bug lover, she gave a lecture that opened my eyes to a
a site full of rich, well-managed soil,
better form of pest management in
most people don’t have the benefit of
the garden. Her suggestion was to be
decades’ worth of work incorporating
patient, wait to let nature act, and
manure, compost, and yard waste into
time plantings with the attraction of
their soils to naturally build fertility.
beneficial insects in mind.
For gardeners with poor soil, using a
When gardeners see an insect pest
product that’s not strictly organic, such
and reach for a chemical dust or
as a 10-10-10 fertilizer, may allow
spray, they may not realize that such
them to get a better start as they work
a treatment might eliminate the pest,
toward healthier soil.
but will likely eliminate any beneficial
In one of my frequent phone
predators as well. Take, for example,
calls with Rob Johnston, founder
aphids and lady beetles. Depending
of Johnny’s Selected Seeds, we
on weather, aphids can attack and
discussed container and straw bale
develop a stronghold on plants prior to
gardening. These methods are used
Select and save seed based on what does well in your garden.
the arrival of lady beetles, one of their
to grow gardens aboveground, and
major predators. Rather that wiping
may allow for more success in a single-season effort than in-ground
out both with a spray, plant an aphid host plant a bit earlier, and then
gardening. Many gardeners lack the perfect space to place a garden, or
plant your main plant later when the lady beetles arrive, leaving everyhealthy soil to grow in, so containers and bales—as well as hydroponthing in balance and not exposing yourself, your plants, and the enviics, a technique that has sparked long debates on whether it can be
ronment to chemical agents. It’s a method I embraced, and I no longer
organic or not—offer flexibility, which can greatly expand the number
use any sprays on my plants, preferring nature to take its course by
of gardeners in the world.
using plant selection, timing, and location. It does take some research,
Seeds. Organic seeds are an interesting point of some contention
thought, and planning, but it’s very satisfying to see the method work.
among gardeners. Due to the additional steps required for certification,
And it helps make gardening far more than something to be dabbled
organic seed is usually more expensive than conventional seed, but
with a few times a week, turning it instead into a year-long activity that
some growers believe that seed produced organically will perform
energizes, inspires, and consistently amazes.
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CRAIG LEHOULLIER (2)
A Flexible Approach
Heron then discussed the gap between
animal husbandry and agriculture in
terms of successful crop production,
and how the integration of the two elements leads to a true recycling of nutrients. This natural way of building
healthy soil is something the agriculture
industry has moved away from, with the
rise of chemical fertilizers and the stigma
surrounding manure’s health concerns.
In our discussion, Heron also brought
up the need to eliminate the exclusivity that can be associated with organic
products and practices, and the need for
more flexibility in organic certification.
“We need to recognize that a variety
of growing methods is needed. Inner
city isn’t like a rural farm; they have to
find ways to be certified using methods
that are available to them,” Heron said.
“Anyone, any average person, can become involved.”
CRAIG LEHOULLIER (2)
Quality Consumers Can Trust
My last discussion was with Melissa
DeSa, community program director and “seedeo” at Working Food in
Gainesville, Florida — a nonprofit that
works to cultivate a resilient local food
community through collaboration,
economic opportunity, education, and
seed stewardship.
Neither Melissa’s garden nor the
Working Food garden are Certified
Organic, but they’re both grown with
organic intent. For Melissa, the key
to a healthy garden goes beyond what
is or isn’t organic — it’s focusing on
building a system that’s sustainable,
local, and low-impact.
Melissa says she does have a lot of
The author in his straw bale and container setup—techniques that allow for more garden flexibility.
respect for the USDA organic seal
in connoting a set of qualities that
consumers can trust, linking back to
a well-regulated set of growing standards and practices. She did note
that the process can cause confusion,
because public conception is that no
pesticides or chemicals were used on
something carrying the seal; but in
truth, certain substances can be applied if deemed necessary, as long as
the product is labeled correctly. (Visit
www.AMS.USDA.gov to learn more
about the USDA organic labeling categories and to see The National List of
Allowed and Prohibited Substances.)
We also discussed how it’s important
to look beyond the label, and to not
assume that everything with “organic”
stamped on it is automatically better
Learn About the Modern Seed-Saving Movement
Saving Our Seeds is a great guide that leads readers step-by-step
through the process of saving seeds from 43 different crops. Seed
savers of all levels will benefit from author Bevin Cohen’s easyto-follow explanations on important techniques, including handpollination, isolation, and vernalization. Cohen also honors and
shares the voices of the many gardeners, farmers, and seed keepers who’ve dedicated their lives to stewarding heritage seeds. This
title is available at www.MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by calling
800-234-3368. Mention promo code MMEPAMZI. Item #9960.
for your garden. For example, I tried a
bagged compost labeled “organic certified” that turned out to be low-quality.
No Perfect Gardeners,
No Perfect Gardens
The conversations with Emily, Heron,
and Melissa highlighted how each of
us see gardening as a form of meditation — a wonderful place to be transported to for quality time with nature.
Gardening allows us to develop our
skills and form communities with our
efforts as we grow and share produce,
and then save and share seeds.
“Growing food — gardening — is a
journey,” Melissa said. “We all make
mistakes every year, but it’s important
to observe, to watch, to be patient, and
not to be so reactive. We pause, identify the disease, identify the insect, do
some research, then act with the quality
of soil and impact on the environment
in mind. Always build the soil— mulch,
build, and feed.”
No matter what organic practices are
(or aren’t) taking place in your garden,
we all recognize that there are no perfect
gardeners and no perfect gardens.
“You don’t learn to make a great pie
crust overnight,” Heron said. “There are
no simple garden hacks. Success comes
from making mistakes and the experience of time and practice.”
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Down-to-Earth
Pools
Story and photos
by Morgan Caraway
A
n astonishing variety of things
can be built from bags filled
with earth, also known as
“earthbags.” One of the most versatile
forms of natural building, earthbags
can be used in many applications that
would be too wet for most conventional
and natural building methods. Earthbag
pools are a perfect demonstration of this.
Before I describe two pool projects
This easy-to-learn natural building technique
can produce a budget-friendly pool for your
whole family—and community—to enjoy.
I’ve been involved in, let’s discuss some
of the advantages of earthbag building.
From the Ground Up
Earthbag structures are strong, which
is why they’ve traditionally been used for
military fortifications and flood control
projects. The “superadobe” technique
produces structures from an unbroken spiraling polypropylene tube with
barbed wire between the layers. Other
builders prefer “hyperadobe,” or long
polyester tubes made of open netting,
which allows the fill to blend between
the layers, thereby holding them together. To build our earthbag pool, we
filled and stacked 14-by-26-inch polypropylene bags stabilized with rebar.
These rectangular bags produce uniform
walls 10 to 11 inches thick — about
1 foot thick after they’ve been coated
with protective plaster.
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e
Almost any kind of inorganic fill dirt
can fill the bags we use. The polypropylene bags offer mechanical support, so the
mix inside doesn’t need to be a specific
ratio of sand and clay, unlike with superadobe and hyperadobe. Traditional cob
and straw bale construction covers a lot of
straw in wet mud. If the mix isn’t allowed
plenty of time to dry, or if it absorbs too
much humidity from the air, the straw
could rot and mold. This poses a threat
to the air quality and health of those living within the structure. With a standard
earthbag, no such danger exists, because
there’s no organic material. Walls can be
built as fast as a team can construct them;
a large group can put up an entire earthbag structure in one day.
My wife and I built our first earthbag
house in 2009. We’ve worked on many
earthen structures since then, including
our own Earthship-inspired house and an
earthbag tiny house (Page 100), and we
now operate the Sustainable Life School to
teach natural building methods to others.
Spring-Fed Pool
For years, I had an ambition to build
a pool below the natural spring on our
property. I knew that filling the pool
would be easy, because gravity would
move the water. (I try to take advantage
of natural forces in everything I build.
My tiny house also has gravity-fed water,
as well as geothermal refrigeration.) My
dream finally came true in 2018. Here
are the steps my wife, Mary Jane, and I
took to build our spring-fed pool.
Planning. I was thinking we’d build
something small, but Mary Jane wanted
bigger — and she was right! After agreeing on the size of our pool, research
revealed other decisions we needed to
make. I learned that gradual curves
can become slipping points when algae grows on the pond liner. Terraces
are more practical and allow for clearly
demarcated depths for swimmers of
different skill levels. We bought a long
piece of 4-inch PVC for a drainage
pipe, and, knowing we’d need to drain
the pool occasionally, we also bought a
tee and a clean-out plug. We planned
to place the drainage pipe at the lowest point of the excavation to make the
pool easy to drain when it needed to be
cleaned. Mary Jane learned that a bog
with aquatic plants might cut down on
the algae, so we decided to build one
out of rocks and cement-stabilized earth.
Excavation. We needed a liner for our
pool, as our soil is porous. Most of our
pool footprint could be created by excavation, and we hired a local fellow with
a backhoe attachment on his tractor to
dig it. Although I applaud purists who
argue that modern tools and materials
shouldn’t be used in natural building, I
believe the best use for fossil-fuel energy
and synthetic materials is for the cause
of sustainability. Digging a pool-sized
hole by hand would take a long time and
a lot of sweat.
Bagging. We held a combination
workshop and workday for our students
and friends, and divided them into two
groups. One group filled the bags, and
the other placed them. Although the
excavation had created most of the pool
shape, we still had to build up height
with three rows of earthbags in some
areas. For extra support against the
weight of the water within, we hammered short lengths of 1⁄2-inch rebar
through the earthbag wall, making sure
not to leave any metal above the tops
of the bags. Around the big curve, we
added 2-foot lengths of rebar every 2
to 3 feet. Note that backfilling against
a wall will also make it resist pressure
from the water side.
Lining. After making sure there
were no sharp rocks sticking up inside
the excavated area, we placed the liner.
We chose an HDRPE (high-density
reinforced polyethylene) liner because
it’s less expensive and lasts longer than
EPDM (ethylene propylene diene
monomer), and resists rips and tears.
Such liners are generally guaranteed for
40 years. Order extra feet all around to
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From left: The building crew fills bags with inorganic material, and carefully places the pool liner after ensuring no sharp rocks threaten its integrity.
make sure the liner is big enough
for your planned pond. We pushed
down the liner as far as it would
go in our excavation, and then we
delicately and precisely cut the hole
for it to slip over the drainage pipe.
Then, we assembled the rest of the
drain and the overflow pipe. The
height of the overflow pipe will
establish the depth of the water in
your pond, because the water will
flow out of the pipe when it reaches
the lip (see illustration, right).
Our wonderful community mamas covered the outer edge of the
membrane with rocks for extra protection and beautification.
The pool has performed swimmingly,
and has become a community center
during our scorching hot and humid
summers. I usually have to clean the
pool was the $550 liner. We also paid
about $300 for the excavation, and a
small amount for inexpensive PVC
pipe. Our total cost was about $900.
Aboveground Pool
pool weekly at the peak of summer to
prevent excessive algae growth. Luckily,
the HDRPE liner we chose is durable,
and scrubbing doesn’t endanger it.
The most expensive part of our natural
My friends and students Chris and
Lisa Huskey built their own earthbag pool in steamy South Carolina.
Because their pool is aboveground,
the design incorporates earthbag
buttresses to counteract the weight
of water pushing against the wall.
Chris and Lisa measured their pool
radius with a rope tied to a center
post — 9 feet, because they wanted
an 18-foot-diameter pool — and marked
it with a permanent marker on the plastic they’d dropped as a moisture barrier. This easy technique works great for
marking the footprint of any rounded
The author’s earthbag pool
became a community project.
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The walls of this aboveground pool will need
to be plastered to protect the earthbags from
the sun’s damaging ultraviolet rays.
earthbag walls. Just measure to the inner
edge, or whichever side you’ll be placing
bags from, so you can easily see the line
you need to follow.
Next, they built the wall, including
the buttresses. When building the wall,
they knew exactly where to place the
pump inlet and outlet. To remember
such details, I write notes on the first
couple of courses with a permanent
marker to remind me what needs to go
above. That way, the crew won’t forget
anything important.
After they finished bagging, they
placed sheet insulation against the inside wall, and covered the grass in the
bottom of the pool area with dirt to protect the liner and give it plenty of support. (Thousands of gallons of water are
extremely heavy.) They then placed the
liner, which has a rope tensioned around
the top to keep it in place, and hooked
up the pump. Pool party!
Chris and Lisa’s earthbag pool cost
about $1,300, including delivery of fill
dirt and $150 for a liner. Damage caused
by the sun’s ultraviolet rays is one of the
biggest dangers to an earthbag wall, so
be sure to plaster the walls to protect the
bags from UV degradation. Simple earth
plaster isn’t sufficient, because it will be
washed off by rainfall, so the plaster you
use will need to be cement-stabilized or
lime-based.
As you can see, earthbags can be a
cost-effective way to build a pool, and
they’re much stronger than the average
aboveground pool. If you properly protect the earthbags from sun, they can last
indefinitely in almost any environment.
Safety First
We urge you to take safety precautions during and after any earthbag
pool build. Fence the project area as
soon as possible to keep out children.
I know parents who’ve lost unsupervised children to bodies of water. As a
builder, it’s your responsibility to follow
all codes and requirements, and neither
I nor the Sustainable Life School take
any responsibility for the use or misuse
of this information.
Discover the Benefits of Natural Building
Containing more than 75 photos and illustrations,
Essential Earthbag Construction serves as a practical
guide. With step-by-step guidance for bag filling and
installation, details for various home designs, foundation
options, and more, you’ll have all the information you
need to start your first earthbag structure. This title is
available at www.MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by calling 800-234-3368. Mention promo code MMEPAMZI.
Item #9053.
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Dirt-Cheap
Homes
Story and photos
by Morgan Caraway
M
y wife, Mary Jane, and I
built our first earthbag
home in 2009, after being
inspired by the M E N
book Earthbag Building. Our circular
house was 20 feet in diameter and incorporated a bottle wall and reclaimed
French doors. The build took us less
than five months, and the total cost was
under $5,000. The structure went viral
on social media.
Since then, we’ve worked on many
earthbag projects, including an
Earthship-inspired domicile and a
spring-fed aboveground pool featured in
this magazine (“Down-to-Earth Pools,”
Page 96). Along the way, we’ve learned a
lot about how to streamline the process
of building with earthbags.
An earthbag structure is made of
stacked bags filled with earth. In my
experience, this is one of the strongest,
most versatile, and yet least expensive
natural building techniques. The fill
material is readily available almost anywhere, and will be either dirt cheap, or
free! Bags filled with soil can be used in
high-moisture applications that would
be unsuitable for wood, cob, hempcrete,
or straw bales. They’re perfect for aboveand belowground greenhouses, root cellars, storm shelters, benches, cisterns,
and much more. Earthbags are moldproof, fireproof, bug-proof, bulletproof,
and rot-proof. This building medium
is strong and adaptable. Consider how
long sandbags have been used for flood
control and military fortifications.
Building your own home can be
an empowering and life-enriching
experience! Before I share the earthbag building techniques we’ve used for
more than 11 years, note that it’s your
responsibility to become familiar with
local building codes and proper safety
procedures. Use due caution.
Earthbag Tiny House
A tiny house or similar small structure is a good project for beginners.
Start by drawing up plans on graph paper. Our chosen build site for our own
earthbag tiny house had been excavated
years earlier for a root cellar we’d decided we didn’t need, so the footprint
was already established.
Your first major decision for an
earthbag project is the type of foundation. The possibilities include a rubble
trench, concrete slab, or concrete footer.
Foundations incorporating concrete will
be more expensive than other options,
and have much greater embodied energy, but they’re often required by code
Earthbags offer a
natural, inexpensive
way to build a
dwelling that reflects
your personality.
departments. Check the building code
exceptions in your area. In many places,
you can build under a certain square
footage without a permit. I believe most
localities will approve a post-and-beam
structure with earthbag infill on a slab
foundation. For our tiny home, we settled on a bermed floating foundation of
the type used for Earthship homes.
I used galvanized post bases sunk
into reinforced concrete for the footers
of the front posts and beam; even pressure-treated posts will rot in our moist
climate. We cross-braced the posts to
withstand the pressure from the filled
bags, and to resist sideways motion.
To draw the inner edge of the back
curve of our planned structure, I hammered a short piece of rebar into the
ground at the center of the back footprint and, using a nylon rope tied to the
rebar at one end and a stick at the other,
I drew the inner edge of the curve. Next,
I leveled the area.
Workshop participants lay the moisture barrier for the author’s earthbag tiny house.
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The author, his wife, and
workshop participants recently
built this earthbag tiny home.
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Ready, Set, Bag It
Barbed wire helps stabilize the courses.
When everything was ready to go
at our tiny home build site, we held
a workshop. This gave participants
valuable hands-on experience before
attempting their own earthbag structures, while also providing us with extra
hands. To begin the build, we spread
a moisture barrier and marked the inner curve of the back wall on top of
the barrier with a permanent marker.
Always protect the moisture barrier
with old sheet plastic, tarps, or staplefree cardboard while you’re working.
We use 14-by-26-inch sandbags for
our earthbag builds. After plastering,
these bags form a wall that’s 1 foot
thick. I usually buy 1,000 or more at
a time online. Look for bags with high
UV protection. You can buy gusseted
bags to ensure the earthbags’ corners
don’t project from the surface of the
built wall, but they’re harder to find
and more expensive. I prefer to diddle
the bags by creating a hand-folded
gusset, while other builders like to sew
the gussets.
Next, fill the bags to about 8 inches
from the top. You don’t need to pack
the fill. I crouch down at the dirt pile
and scoop soil into bags using a shovel
with the handle broken off. You can
also use 32-ounce metal cans. Whatever
you choose to scoop with, consider that
you’ll be repeating this motion many
times, so do it in a way that’s sustainable for your body.
Take extra time laying the first row
of bags, as it will serve as the form for
the rest of the structure. Before laying
a bag, fold the open top down and under, and then butt it up against the last
bag placed. After laying the first couple
of rows, make notes on the inside of
the bags with a permanent marker to
remind you of the height of strip anchors, windows and other forms, and
access pipes in the wall. Tamp each row
after it’s been laid, and then place two
strands of barbed wire on top. We bend
in the wires at the ends. We position
these wires near the inner and outer
edges of the bags to allow for the rebar
that’ll be hammered through the courses later. We usually use cordwood to
weigh down the wire as we’re laying it,
but you can also use long bricks, rocks,
or anything with the right length and
weight. For a homemade barbed wire
stand, we use two large cinder blocks
Lay strip anchors for every foot of wall.
After every course of earthbags has been laid, tamp them, check for level and plumb, and adjust as necessary.
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By installing permanent window and door frames and lintels during the
build, you won’t have to replace removable forms later.
with a 2x2 through the middle of the
roll. A large dowel rod or thick branch
will also work.
Check plumb and level after laying
each course of earthbags. I like to use
a foot-long bubble level, which allows
me to plumb three rows at once, and I
use a long board with the level placed
on top to check level. The bags can be
scooted and shifted, even after they’ve
been tamped. I build and install permanent frames for the window and door
spaces to save the trouble of using removable forms, or hard packing the exposed bag ends. I build the frames from
2x10s so the exposed ends will be even
with the foot-thick wall after plastering. The weight of bags or roofing over
window and door frames means you’ll
need strong lintels, and often a sturdy
sill below. A lintel helps disperse the
weight coming from above that would
otherwise distort or crush the frame,
possibly preventing the proper opening and closing of windows and doors.
My classic lintel is 9½ inches wide (the
width of a dimensional 2x10), with 8
to 10 inches of overhang on both ends,
where it rests on the bags. For windows
up to 30 inches wide, I sandwich four
pieces of 2x4 sideways between ¾-inch
plywood. Wider windows and doors will
need stronger support. After laying every
foot of wall (that is, three rows of bags),
we add strip anchors to connect the
wall to the posts and window and door
frames. Our strip anchors have a ¾-inch
plywood base with a piece of 2x4 on top
(see middle left photo, opposite page).
We hammer galvanized nails through
the plywood into the bag below, and
then screw the 2x4 into the post or
frame. You can also use strip anchors
to attach anything to the inside of the
structure; for example, we placed three
strip anchors in the back wall to attach
a sleeping loft. To avoid losing sight
of the strip anchors when you plaster,
leave a bit showing on the wall. For every 3 feet of wall height, we hammer in
½-inch rebar. (When installing rebar
on the bottom rows, be careful not to
puncture the moisture barrier.) After
it’s installed, mark the height and location of the rebar on the earthbag wall.
When, after another 3 feet of height,
you’re ready to install the next sequence
Create an efficient workspace by clustering filled bags where they’re easy to grab and place.
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of rebar, make sure to punch all the way
through the top bag of the underlying
rebar sequence for extra reinforcement.
The quantity of rebar you use should
depend on how much pressure will be
against the wall’s exterior, and its inherent stability — about 3 feet apart in circular walls (because “round is sound”)
and 2 feet apart in straight walls, which
are weaker.
Topping It Off
We usually build shed roofs on our
earthbag houses, but more complicated
options include gable, gambrel (barn
style), and hip roofs. Earthbag domes in
Secure the roof structure by hammering rebar in an “X” pattern through the wood under the beams.
desert areas usually need no roof other
than cement-stabilized plaster, but I
don’t recommend this for wetter climates, because the entire outer surface
is essentially roof. Ensure that the beams
don’t sit directly on your bags, and have
a strong support underneath to diffuse
the weight. To secure roof structures to
earthbag walls, we hammer rebar in an
“X” pattern through the wood under the
beams or rafters.
I always attempt to overbuild my
earthbag structures. If they aren’t strong
enough, they can be dangerous. Another
hard lesson I’ve learned is not to always
choose the cheapest or easiest option.
Some extra money or effort here and
there can really pay off. The roof structure of our current earthbag tiny house
is three milled 2x10 beams, with milled
2x6 rafters over the top, and a wooden
deck of milled 1x material. Above the
deck is a moisture barrier, 3 inches of
foam board insulation, and purlins and
a Galvalume-coated sheet-steel roof.
After the roof is on, the next priority
is plastering the exterior to prevent the
sun’s rays from degrading the earthbags.
The plastering tools we recommend include a wheelbarrow; a masonry hoe or a
standard garden hoe; stainless steel pool
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Add interior shelves as you lay the courses,
and make construction notes on the bags.
trowels with rounded edges for doing
curves; and plasterer’s hawks or buckets
for carrying plaster. We find a Japanese
trowel with a pointed tip to be helpful
for edge and detail work.
The ideal mix for cob and plaster is
1 part clay to 4 to 6 parts sand. If you’re
lucky, your subsoil will already be close
to this ratio. To this mix, add some sort
of fiber, such as straw (not hay) or cellulose. We also add a bit of borax or
washing soda to the mix to inhibit mold
growth in the fiber. Do a test patch on
your wall to check how well your plaster sticks and holds together. Mixes with
too much clay will crack as they dry;
those with too much sand will break
apart easily. Amend the mix as needed
with either clay or sand. Mix it together
in a wheelbarrow, in a cement mixer, or
on a tarp. Be consistent once you find a
good formula.
I apply plaster by trowel in an upward
motion, making sure to push the plaster
firmly between the bags. Mud can either
be pushed or thrown into cracks first, or
done all at once. Most folks find working with plaster and cob to be a pleasurable experience, and you can get good at
it in just a few days.
With earthbag buildings, it’s easy to
build shelves, cabinets, and other functional items directly into the wall. To
add a shelf, simply place one on top
of a row of tamped bags, and nail it in
as you would a strip anchor; then, lay
barbed wire over the top as you’d normally do with a course of earthbags.
The next row of bags will hold it in
place. To make a cabinet, add two or
more such shelves to the earthbag wall,
one directly above the other; later, close
in the sides and install a door.
Protect the earthbags by plastering the walls with a mix of clay, sand, and fiber.
The author and his wife built their first earthbag tiny house in 2009 for less than $5,000.
Essential Guide to Economical Building
Build durable structures with the techniques laid out in
this book! Earthbag construction is a versatile, easy-to-master,
low-impact, and highly durable form of building, suitable for
structures from houses to root cellars. Containing more than
75 photos and illustrations, Essential Earthbag Construction by
Kelly Hart serves as a practical guide to this affordable method
of building. This indispensable manual is packed with all the
information you need to determine if this type of construction is
the right choice for your project, and, if so, to start building. This
title is available at www.MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by calling
800-234-3368. Mention promo code MMEPAMZI. Item #9053.
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Regularly sharpening
your knives ensures a
safer and more enjoyable
cooking experience.
Start by stocking the right tools. There
are three types of knives I religiously use
in my kitchen, and they’re all I really need.
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OF
Choosing the Right Knives
COURTESY
W
hen I get ready to prepare
delicious food for myself,
my friends, or my family,
nothing kills my spirit more than a dull
knife. In most kitchens I visit, dull knives
are lurking everywhere, posing a safety
hazard and threatening inspired cooking.
It’s much easier to cut yourself with a dull
knife than with a sharp one, because the
edge is susceptible to slipping over the
surface of the food and ending up in your
finger; and as most of us know, an injury
from a blunt object is much harder to bear
than a clean cut from a sharp blade.
This article aims to help home cooks
choose the right knives, adjust handling
for increased tool longevity, and introduce
basic honing and sharpening skills.
Chef ’s knife: A broad-bladed, multipurpose knife for all kinds of prep work,
including slicing, dicing, chopping,
chiffonading, and julienning. I even cut
steaks with it. I recommend a 10-to-12inch blade. We also have a 6-inch chef’s
knife for smaller jobs, or if we want more
than one person at the prep counter.
Boning knife: A slender, often curved,
5-to-6-inch flexible blade for moving
around bones and joints. It’s extremely
useful for fish and poultry. You can
substitute a filet knife if you prefer.
Paring knife: A small, slender, 3-to-4inch blade for peeling, slicing, or smalldice jobs.
As you go, you may choose to add other
sizes and styles. The handling, honing, and
sharpening tips that follow here will apply
to those knives as well.
When you’re shopping for a knife from
each of the previous categories, take into
account the way the knife is built and the
type of metal used. Most home kitchen
knives are going to be stainless steel or
LEFT:
By Meredith Leigh
stainless steel-coated. This prevents the
blade from rusting, and the stainless steel
alloys found in many conventional kitchen
knives are soft enough that you can hone
the knife easily and the blade will be
unlikely to chip or break if it’s dropped.
The downside of softer alloys is they lose
their edge more quickly, so you may find
yourself honing and sharpening more than
you’d like, depending on how zealous a
cook you happen to be. If you seek blades
constructed of harder alloys, you’ll enjoy
a longer-lived sharp edge; however, the
knife will be more fragile (edges can crack
or shatter more easily), and might be more
susceptible to corrosion, particularly in the
case of high-carbon steel alloys.
You’ll have a choice among narrow
tang (or partial tang) knives and full-tang
knives. The former consists of a blade with
a long, narrow (called a “short”) tang on
it, which is inserted into the knife handle.
These blades are often stamped from steel
plate, although some are forged or cut
from plate. A full-tang knife will have the
metal of the blade running continuously
through the center of the handle, and
the handle material will be bonded to
either side of the metal. Full-tang knives,
as a result, are usually better balanced
FROM
Keep your kitchen knives in tiptop shape with this
expert advice for honing, sharpening, and more.
WORK SHARP; MEREDITH LEIGH
Lookin’ Sharp
for higher efficiency and are often more
comfortable to use, leading to better
handling. They can be forged, stamped,
or cut from steel plate.
Generally speaking, spend more money
on a chef’s knife than your other knives,
because you’ll use it more often. A full-tang,
high-carbon chef ’s knife that’s stainless
steel coated will keep you in business
longer than an economy-stamped stainless
steel chef’s knife that saves you a buck at
the get-go. If you’re new to boning knives,
a stamped stainless steel boning knife with
a flexible blade will do fine for starters.
Finally, shoot for a full-tang stainless steel
paring knife. I like the following knife
brands: Victorinox, Dexter-Russell,
Shun, GLOBAL, TOJIRO, and Wüsthof.
Proper Handling
Keeping your knives in proper condition
involves handling them the right way to
avoid damage or rapid dulling. Probably
the most important part of knife care is
choosing the best cutting surface. Endgrain wood cutting boards are the kindest
surface for your knife’s edge, because the
fibers of the wood won’t resist the knife’s
work. Side-grain boards require your knife
to drag or hit the long grain of
the wood (perpendicular to the
wood grain), which will dull
your blade. Plastic boards aren’t
the worst, but not as good as
wood—avoid glass and ceramic.
As far as handling, be sure to
avoid any use of the knife that
doesn’t respect the edge. This
includes banging the blade on
the edge of a pan or pot, using
a hard knife to cleave through
bones or completely frozen foods,
or scraping against hard surfaces with the
sharp edge. Throwing or tossing a knife
is dangerous and can be destructive to its
edge, and dropping a knife can break it.
It can also be tempting to use your knife
to pry something open or off, but there’s
a good chance you’ll chip your blade,
and it’d be bad news if that chip fell into
the food you’re preparing. Finally, there
are two kinds of wear to a knife’s edge:
misalignment and dulling; your handling
of the knife can speed deterioration in
both ways.
Mimic the angle of the blade when honing. For most knives, this will be a 20-degree angle, but
check your knife’s care instructions to be sure.
Honing
Even though you can’t see it, your knife’s
sharp edge is formed with microscopic
teeth. Normal wear and tear will move
these teeth out of alignment when you use
the knife, even when you adopt proper
handling and knife holds. This is why you
need a honing steel.
When you actually sharpen a knife’s
edge, you take metal off the blade, so you’d
grind your knives down if you sharpened
them every time they needed a boost.
tice, but once you’ve got it, you’ll be able
to right your blade quickly and without
thinking about it. The trick is to always
hone in the same direction as the sharp
blade and at the proper angle. Most knives
are beveled off their edges at a 20-degree
angle, so you’ll need to mimic this angle
when honing and sharpening. Keeping the
proper angle, sweep the knife from base
to tip down the steel rod, taking care to
hone both sides of the blade. (If you have
a specialized Asian-style knife that’s only
beveled on one side, you only
need to sharpen and hone on one
side.) You also need to make sure
you hone the entire length of the
edge, several times on each side.
FROM
LEFT:
COURTESY
OF
WORK SHARP; MEREDITH LEIGH
Honing just realigns the edge, so
you’ll get some oomph without
losing any metal. This is why we
hone every time we use our knives.
Honing just realigns the edge, so you’ll
get some oomph without losing any metal.
This is why we hone every time we use our
knives, as well as throughout the cutting
job if we’re working on something tedious,
such as butchery or sustained prep work.
Honing steels are available in several
sizes, and I recommend buying a sturdy,
somewhat heavy steel that’s as long as,
or longer than, your longest knife blade.
Purchase a stainless steel or diamond
honing steel for best results.
Learning to hone can take some prac-
Sharpening
The three hardest parts of
sharpening your own knives are
deciding your preferred sharpening method, mastering the
right technique, and cultivating
patience. My preference is for
stone sharpening by hand. That being
said, many people looking for a quick and
mostly effective way of sharpening knives
are probably going to start with a pullthrough device, so my quick word on that
is just to make sure you get the right angle.
When you buy your knives, you can
usually read in the fine print at what
angle the edge is beveled. If it doesn’t say,
the knife’s angle is probably the standard
20 degrees. From our prior technique
discussion, you know that you want to
match the angle of treatment in honing
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Find Your Edge
One of the biggest challenges when learning to
sharpen is finding and maintaining the proper edge
angle. This skill takes time to learn and master.
Here’s a fast and easy way to create a consistent
angle when sharpening on a stone.
1 Color the cutting edge of your knife with a black
felt-tip marker.
2 Hold the knife at a 90-degree angle to the sharpening stone.
3 Cut that angle in half, down to 45 degrees.
4 Cut that angle in half again, this time down to
22.5 degrees.
5 Now, swipe the blade across the stone, and see if
the marker has been removed from the cutting edge.
If the marker has been removed from the cutting
edge, continue this method to sharpen both sides of
the knife. If not, you can make small adjustments to
ensure the edge is being sharpened.
This helpful tip will provide you with a consistent
baseline for learning how to create and maintain a consistent angle on your knife when sharpening. Have fun,
and keep practicing!
give the same treatment to the other side
of the blade. To sharpen the other side,
flip the blade over and sharpen in the
opposite direction. For example, if you
sharpened the first side of the knife from
the far-right corner of the stone to the
lower-left corner, you’ll sharpen the other
side from the far-left corner of the stone
to the lower-right corner. Depending
on whether you’re left- or right-handed,
you’ll find sharpening one side of the
blade easier to master than the other
side. Take your time, and remember
that this takes a while. Sharpen each
side of the knife until you get a
burr on the edge of the blade—a
roughly raised edge that signifies
the shedding of old metal. Once
you get the burr on one side, flip
to the other side of the blade.
Once you’ve produced a burr on
both sides, switch to a finer-grit
stone. I often sharpen for a while,
and then I walk away and work on
other projects before coming back
to sharpening. Once I’m finished,
I always hone each edge, wash
each knife, and dry everything
thoroughly before use.
The less wear on your knife
between sharpenings, the easier it’ll
be to sharpen each time, and you’ll
find you can start with finer-grit
stones from the get-go. As you skill
up and practice, you’ll find your
own rhythm, discover the character
of your knives, and settle into a
routine. Above all, you’ll have the
tools and know-how to keep your
edges sharp and your food prep less
cumbersome, leading to more fun
in the kitchen.
OF
sharpening on a 400 grit stone, move to
1,000 grit, then 3,000, and then 8,000.
As with honing, the trick to sharpening
is getting the right angle, and making
sure you sharpen the entire length of the
blade using even pressure. To accomplish
this, I spread my fingers across the back
of the spine (the top part of the knife
blade) and start with the base of the knife
edge at one far side of the stone. Then, I
move the edge to the opposite side of the
stone (toward myself in a diagonal) while
also moving toward the tip of the knife
edge. I usually count my passes, so I can
COURTESY
and sharpening to the same angle as
your knife’s bevel. Most pull-through
sharpeners, like most knives, are angled
about 20 degrees. They work by angling
two pieces of tungsten carbide in a
V-shape, which you pull the knife edge
through to shave off metal and create
a new edge. These devices are simple,
safe to use, and pretty effective for quick
sharpening; however, they aren’t the most
precise, and the amount of metal they shave
off is a bit of an overkill. If you’re interested
in a more precise edge and increasing the
longevity of the blade, or if you have a
knife beveled less than the standard
20 degrees, consider taking the extra
time to skill up so you can stone
sharpen by hand.
To sharpen by hand using stones,
choose between an oilstone and a
water stone. A water stone uses
water during sharpening, and an
oilstone uses oil. I have both, but
I prefer my water stone because
it doesn’t get logged with oil like
an oilstone. (That said, you can
pull excess oil from an oilstone
by soaking it in seltzer.) Water
stones also weigh less than oilstones, and you can find water for
sharpening just about anywhere.
Stones come in different grit levels; you’ll start sharpening on
coarser stones and move to finergrit stones as the blade edge gets
sharper. Keep an oilstone well-oiled
with sharpening oil (mineral oil,
essentially). Soak a water stone
until it stops bubbling, and then
keep a bowl of water close by so
you can keep the stone lubricated
with water as you sharpen. I begin
WORK SHARP (3)
From left: Understand what common angles look like in relation to your blade, such as 90, 45, and 22.5 degrees, so you can sharpen at the proper angle.
108 THE BEST OF MOTHER EARTH NEWS
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Photos from the Field
CLOCKWISE
FROM TOP LEFT:
D.
DELANG;
PAT HOLLENACK; RUSSELL ROSEMAN PHOTOGRAPHY
Clockwise from above: A dill seed head bursts in an Ontario
permaculture garden. A great white egret displays its breeding
plumage at a New Jersey rookery. A lone tree bares its branches in
late fall in Cades Cove, Tennessee.
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10/7/21 9:43 AM
Build a Smoker
from Odds and Ends
This inexpensive weekend project will bring savory,
slow-smoked meats straight from your backyard to your plate.
Plywood may seem like a
strange choice of material for
the smoking chamber, since
fire and wood often don’t mix,
‘Remodel’ the Grill
but I’ve found it to be a safe,
Whether purchased new
easy-to-work-with choice. Even
or used, check to make sure
when the inside temperature
the grill — which will serve as
of the box reached 250 degrees
your heat source — is in safe
Fahrenheit, the outside of the
condition. For my smoker, I
box remained only warm to the
used a “retired” Weber kettle
touch.
grill in storage, but you can
Inside the smoking chamber of the “Odds and Ends Smoker.”
You can line the inside of your
often pick up grills like this
box with metal flashing (if it
online or at garage sales for under $25 — or, if you’re lucky,
makes you feel more comfortable) or cedar (for naturalness),
on the curb with a “free” sign on them. Check that the
but plywood worked fine in my case. The plywood should
intake vents on the bottom of the kettle are operable, both
be relatively flat and clean with one smooth surface for the
wire grills (the one for coals and the one for meat) are solid,
best results.
LEN CHURCHILL
Build the
Smoking Chamber
COMPOSITE BY
I
t all began when my son-in-law, Mitch, explained the
mouthwatering virtues of smoking meat, something he
does on a regular basis, particularly during football season.
“You take ribs or a cheap cut
of meat, marinate or put a rub
on it, stick it in the smoker in
the morning, and by evening,
you’ve got a meal that’s out of
this world,” he said. “Plus, you
get to poke around with fire for
an afternoon — you can’t lose.”
That sounded good to me.
The only problem was, I didn’t
have a smoker. What I did have
was an old Weber charcoal grill,
some scraps of ¾-inch plywood,
and a weekend without much on
my agenda. So, I concocted my
own smoker.
Here’s how I made my “Odds
and Ends Smoker” — and how
you can make yours.
and the ash catcher tray below the grill is intact. You can
purchase replacement parts, if needed, online or through
some home centers.
Determine the size of the hole needed for the takeoff
collar to fit in the grill; in my case, it was 4 1⁄ 2 inches.
1 Mark out the circle on
masking tape, which will allow
you to see the lines as you cut.
Use a 1⁄2-inch drill bit to bore a
starter hole along the perimeter.
Then, use a metal-cutting
jigsaw blade to cut out the
circle. 2 Insert the “fingers” of
the takeoff collar into the hole,
and then bend them over to
secure the collar in place. You
can use fireplace caulk to seal
any large or excessive gaps.
RIGHT: ILLUSTRATON
Story and photos by Spike Carlsen
Illustrations by Len Churchill
110 THE BEST OF MOTHER EARTH NEWS
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Tools & Materials
Drill with 1⁄2-inch drill bit
Jigsaw with wood- and metal-cutting blades
Circular saw with straight-cutting guide (or table saw)
Basic hand tools
18-to-26-inch kettle grill
4-inch heat duct takeoff collars (2)
4x4 sheet of 3⁄4-inch plywood, or equivalent material
2-inch all-purpose screws
1⁄2-inch sheet metal screws
Hinges (2)
Handle
Window latch
4-inch flexible metal duct, 8 feet long
4-inch elbow
RIGHT: ILLUSTRATON
COMPOSITE BY
LEN CHURCHILL
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
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1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
Use a circular saw with a straight-cutting jig or table saw
to cut the back, sides, bottom, top, and door to size. (See
Cut List, Page 113.) 3 Use 2-inch all-purpose screws to
secure the two sides to the back; position the plywood’s
smoothest side to face inward. Install the top so there’s a
1⁄2-inch lip overhanging both sides and a 1-inch lip beyond
the front edge. Install the bottom of the box so there’s a
1-inch lip protruding beyond the front edge. Install the top
door crosspiece (F) across the top of the opening, the lower
door crosspiece (G) across the bottom (flush with the front
edges of the sides), and the four tray supports (H) spaced
about 8 inches apart on the interior sides.
4 Use your jigsaw to cut a 4-inch round opening in
the smoker box, positioning the edges of the hole 2 inches
from the bottom and back. Save the circular cutout. Slip
the fingers of the second takeoff collar into the hole, bend
them over, and secure each finger with a 1⁄2-inch sheet metal
screw. Then, cut a 3-inch-diameter vent hole in the top of
the box. 5 Use a ¾-inch screw and small washer to secure
the 4-inch circular cutout over the hole to serve as your
adjustable damper flap.
Lay the box on its back, and set the door over the opening,
making sure there’s a 1⁄8-inch gap on the top and bottom so
the door can swing freely. 6 Install two utility hinges and
a handle. 7 Finally, install the double-hung window latch;
position it so when it’s in “locked” mode, it pulls the door
tightly against the front frame of the box.
Final Setup and ‘Test Drive’
Set up your smoker on a hard surface and away from
combustibles; a driveway or patio is ideal. Position the
smoker box so the metal duct will run slightly uphill from
the grill. Make sure you have a noncombustible surface
to set the grill lid on when you remove it to add fuel.
8 Position the smaller wire grill on top of and perpendicular
to the larger upper grill. 9 Once your setup is arranged
properly, install the elbow to the 4-inch grill takeoff collar,
and then secure the 8-foot length of metal duct to the elbow
and the smoke box takeoff collar using ½-inch sheet metal
screws. 10 You’re ready to go!
There’s a learning curve in determining how to maintain
a steady temperature. You may want to conduct a “meatless”
test run, like I did, to figure out how best to monitor and
adjust the heat.
Temperatures in the smoking chamber will vary depending on the type and quantity of fuel you use, how much
air you allow in through the bottom vents, and how much
exhaust you allow through the top damper vent. The goal
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Cut List
4
½"
(1) A Back, 3⁄4-by-151⁄4-by-24-inch plywood
(2) B Sides, 3⁄4-by-12-by-24-inch plywood
(1) C Bottom, 3⁄4-by-163⁄4-by-13-inch plywood
(1) D Top, 3⁄4-by-173⁄4-by-13-inch plywood
(1) E Door, 3⁄4-by-163⁄4-by-233⁄4-inch plywood
(1) F Top door crosspiece, 3⁄4-by-11⁄2-by-151⁄4-inch plywood
(1) G Lower door crosspiece, 3⁄4-by-3⁄4-by-151⁄4-inch plywood
(4) H Tray supports, 3⁄4-by-11⁄2-by-11-inch plywood
(1) J Vent flap, 3⁄4-by-4-inch circular cutout
8"
24"
3"-diameter
4"-diameter
8"
1"
elbow
8
FRONT VIEW
TOP VIEW
J. vent flap
D. top
A. back
window lock
B. side
12
F. top door
crosspiece
window
lock
E. door
H. tray
supports
handle
flexible
metal duct
heat duct
takeoff
collar
hinge
G. lower door
crosspiece
C. bottom
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10/7/21 9:44 AM
Learn How to Cure Meat
From ancient times to today, people have been putting salt
on meat to preserve bounty, improve texture, and concentrate
flavor. It’s one of the most ingenious and utilitarian traditions
that has endured all over the world. In “The Basics of Curing
Meat,” which is part of our “Food Preservation” online course,
Meredith Leigh explains how meat curing has evolved, and how
to approach it in a way that’ll give you a range of options in the
kitchen. Learn more at Online.MotherEarthNewsFair.com.
is to maintain a temperature between 225 and 250 degrees
inside the smoking chamber.
11 Use a charcoal chimney (or some other method) to get
the hardwood charcoal burning, and layer the coals over the
wire grills. 12 Spread more charcoal over the coals, and then
plunk a few chunks of hardwood (I used hickory) on top of
the pile before replacing the cover.
Use an oven thermometer inside the smoke box (see photo, Page 110) and a meat thermometer stuck through a
⅛-inch drilled hole in the top of the smoke box to monitor
temperatures. The exterior meat thermometer will most
likely register 20 to 30 degrees cooler than the interior oven
thermometer, but it’ll still provide a good way to gauge
the temperature inside without having to frequently open
the smoking chamber door. Once you’re able to attain and
maintain the correct chamber temperature for an hour,
you’re ready to start cooking.
Smokin’ Away with Your New Smoker
With your test launch successful, you’re ready for the genuine article. Commonly smoked meats include beef brisket,
A Go-To Guide for Backyard Grilling Enthusiasts
In Smokehouse Handbook, butcher and charcuterie expert
Jake Levin provides a comprehensive guide to help you produce
mouthwatering results for multiple meats, from the perfect
smoked salmon to a gorgeous smoked brisket. Demystifying the
process of selecting the right combination of meat, temperature,
and wood, detailed step-by-step photos demonstrate various techniques to achieve the
ultimate flavor and texture. To top it off, readers will find a critique of various commercially available smokers; plans and diagrams
for building a multipurpose smokehouse; and
tons of recipes that’ll wow their friends at
their next get-together. This title is available
at www.MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by
calling 800-234-3368. Mention promo code
MMEPAMZI. Item #9360.
Ensure your meat reaches the right internal temperature when smoking.
pork butt or shoulder, and ribs; these are meats where the
fats slowly melt, tenderizing the meat and making it easy to
shred if desired. Other meat is fair game for smoking to enrich the flavor; beef, pork, lamb, fish, sausage, and chicken
can be smoked — and vegetables can be too.
In my test run, I used a standard 15-inch cooling rack to
hold the meat. It took about 8 hours for a 31⁄2-pound pork
shoulder to reach the recommended internal temperature
of 195 degrees. Over the course of those 8 hours, I added
fuel about once an hour, and I burned about 10 pounds of
hardwood charcoal briquettes and 3 pounds of hardwood
hickory chunks. I checked the temperature of the pork
shoulder and smoke box every couple of hours to make sure
temperatures remained steady once that 225-to-250-degree
smoke box temperature was reached.
Gas, electric, or automatic pellet-feeding smokers — ones
that don’t need constant “refueling” — don’t need as much
attention, with temperatures where you can “set it and
forget it.” But I enjoyed fiddling around the garden and
tackling outdoor chores while keeping an eye on my smoker.
You’ll find dozens of other DIY smoker plans out there,
as well as thousands of opinions on the best way to smoke
meat and hundreds of thousands of recipes. But in the end,
the main thing is to build the smoker, cook some meat, and
have fun doing it.
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A
Photos from the Field
CLOCKWISE
FROM TOP LEFT:
ASHLEY L. DUFFUS/A GREAT CAPTURE; ENOLA-GAY WAGNER; KAREN MOLENAAR TERRELL
Clockwise from above: A monarch butterfly pauses on an echinacea
flower in a Toronto botanical garden. An opossum explores an old bird
feeder on a snowy morning in Connecticut. A heron rests in a ditch at
sunset, casting its reflection into the still stream.
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MOTHER EARTH NEWS Photo Group on Flickr (www.Flickr.com/Groups/MotherEarthNewsPhotos/Pool ). We’ll feature our favorites here and online!
10/7/21 9:44 AM
Build a
Bee Vacuum
This nuc vac makes capturing
swarms a simple and efficient task.
Story and photos by Carol J. Alexander
A
few years ago, my son and I purchased our first nuc of
bees for $50. These days, hive nucs can go for $150 or
more. With a rapid increase in the number of beekeepers
in the United States, demand has driven up the cost of this already
pricey hobby—including the bees themselves.
If you’re willing and able to remove swarms, though, bees are free
for the taking. In fact, some folks will pay you to remove bees from
inside their home or on their property. But if the bees have entered
the ceiling joists through a bathroom vent, as had one swarm we
removed, you’ll need a “bee vacuum” to contain the bees before
tearing out the drywall. And a bee vac is another piece of pricey
equipment—unless you build your own.
The following bee vac uses a bucket vacuum we purchased new,
a hive super we already had, and two more boxes I’ll describe how
to build here.
To create the boxes that will turn your hive super into a bee vac,
follow these instructions.
Cut the Parts
• Using a circular or miter saw, cut boards A and B and plywood sheets C, D, and E to length following the “Cut List”
on Page 116.
• For plywood D, bevel both of the 145⁄8-inch ends at a 20-degree angle opposing each other.
Mark the Locations for Screws
• Along the cut edges of the A boards, draw a line 3⁄8 inch in from
the end.
• On this line, mark four or five points, evenly spaced, for screws.
• To avoid splitting the boards, pre-drill holes using a 1⁄8-inch bit
(Photo 1).
Build the Boxes
• You’re going to make two boxes with the A and B boards.*
Arrange two A boards and two B boards on a flat surface, creating a box, with the A boards on the outside.
• Fix with wood glue, and clamp.
• Drive wood screws through the pre-drilled holes to secure.
• Repeat with the other four boards (Photo 1).
• With a pencil, label one box for the top of the vacuum and one
for the bottom.
*You may choose to purchase one 12-foot 1x8, as we did, and
make both boxes the same size. Or, you may purchase one 8-foot
1x8 and one 8-foot 1x4, and make the top box shorter in height.
With a shorter top box, the vacuum will weigh slightly less and
be less awkward to carry. We chose to purchase the 12-foot 1x8
to save money.
Assemble the Top
A nuc vacuum can safely and securely store a swarm of bees until they
can be relocated.
•
•
•
•
Place plywood C on top of the box marked “top.”
Mark corners and center of edges for screws.
Pre-drill with a 1⁄8-inch bit.
Remove the plywood, and run a bead of wood glue along the
edge of the box where you pre-drilled the holes.
• Replace the plywood, align holes, and drive in the wood screws.
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Finish the Top
• Measure in 5 inches from each side of the plywood on your
“top” box, drawing lines to create a rectangle in the center.
• Using a large drill bit, drill holes in three of the corners of the
center rectangle.
• Using a jigsaw, cut out the rectangle by inserting the jigsaw blade
into the pre-drilled holes (Photo 2).
• Apply strips of foam insulation along the edge of the rectangular
opening you just created (Photo 3).
• Turn the box upside down, and apply a bead of caulk to all the
cracks on the inside to close any air gaps.
• Run a thick bead of caulk along the bottom edge of the box.
While still wet, lay the piece of screening over the bottom of the
box. Press it into the wet caulking.
• When dry, fix it with screws or staples, and cover the edges with
strips of foam insulation (Photo 4).
1
Fix the Cover
• Center plywood E over the rectangular cutout in the top.
• Mark a spot in the center of each side for the bolts.
• Using a 1⁄4-inch bit, drill through the plywood E cover and the
top of the box at each mark. Make sure you drill through both
layers of wood, but miss the foam insulation.
• Remove cover E, and enlarge the holes in the cover with a
9⁄32-inch bit to make it easier to remove for ventilation.
Tools and Materials
•
•
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Circular or miter saw
Drill with bits
Jigsaw
12-foot-long pine 1x8
4-by-8 sheet of 1⁄2-inch plywood
16-foot strip of foam window insulation
161⁄4-by-20-inch piece of 1⁄8-inch hardware cloth or metal
window screen
Shop vacuum or bucket vacuum with 5-gallon bucket
15 to 30 feet of 2-inch vacuum hose
Wood glue
Silicone caulking
1-pound box of 15⁄8-inch wood screws
¼-by-2-inch carriage bolts with washers and nuts (6)
10-frame beehive super, with frames and foundation
Ratchet strap
2
Cut List
From the 1x8 pine board cut:
• Four 1-by-8-by-20-inch boards (A)
• Four 1-by-8-by-145⁄8-inch boards (B)
From the plywood cut:
• 161⁄4-by-20-inch sheet for top (C)
• 145⁄8-by-195⁄8-inch sheet for inclined plane (D)
• 11-by-143⁄4-inch sheet for cover (E)
3
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How to Care for Honeybees
Honeybees are managed livestock, and just like other animals
on your homestead or farm, they need to be inspected for health
and wellness. They also need to be managed to prevent swarming.
Learn a great way to check the health of a colony by doing a basic
hive inspection in “Honeybee Colony Management” with Frank
Licata, a workshop that’s part of our “Modern Homesteading”
course. Learn more at Online.MotherEarthNewsFair.com.
• Thread the carriage bolts up from the underside.
• Replace the cover and secure it with wing nuts (Photo 5).
Attach the Vacuum
•
•
•
•
•
4
Assemble the vacuum per the manufacturer’s instructions.
Find the center on the end of the “top” box.
Drill a hole the size of the vacuum hose (Photo 6).
Insert one end of the hose into the hole.
Insert the other end into the vacuum.
Assemble the Bottom
• Place plywood D in the “bottom” box, diagonally from top to
bottom. Wedge it in tightly. Screw it in place (Photo 7).
• Attach strip foam insulation along the edge of the top of the box.
• Mark the center of the end of the box where the interior board
slopes to the bottom, and drill a hole large enough to accommodate the hose connector—just as you did in the “top” box.
• Cut a small rectangle of plywood large enough to screw over the
Hive Removal Supplies
Swarms frequently enter buildings through small openings,
such as dryer vents or cracks in siding, and go unnoticed until
they take up residence and begin building comb and storing
food. Cutting an established colony out of a building is more
complicated than catching a swarm that’s landed in a tree—and
requires different tools. Once all the bees are safe in your vacuum, locate the comb. Comb left in walls will attract pests and
other bees, so you won’t want to leave it there. Cut away combs
of honey and save them for extraction. Cut away any brood
comb, secure it in empty frames using rubber bands, and place
it in a super. At your bee yard, use this super for the bees’ new
home rather than an empty one. In addition to your vacuum,
protective clothing, and normal hive equipment, the following
list includes items you might want when cutting out a hive.
5
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Extension cord
Framing hammer
Flat bar
Bee brush
Duct tape
Tarp
•
•
•
•
Ratchet straps
Containers for extra comb
Rubber bands
Hive super with empty
frames (without foundation)
• Knife for cutting comb
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Choose a Vacuum Hose
We used a 1¼-inch hose on our first vacuum, but when in use,
it clogged where the hose coiled on the floor. So for this project,
we used a 2-inch hose—the size often used on vacuums at car
washes. A larger hose will work, but can be expensive and awkward
to handle.
We purchased a used vacuum hose from a vacuum repair store
in our community. If you find one secondhand, you may need to
buy ends for it too. One end will enable you to insert the hose into
the box, and the other end will enable you to attach a wand for
longer reach. You can purchase a new vacuum hose online, but
that will increase the cost of your project.
For most applications, 15 to 30 feet of hose should be sufficient. You can always add extensions or wands to lengthen it.
hole. Cut a slot in it that will slide around a bolt. Fix this cover
to the box with one bolt. Drill a hole and insert a second bolt
opposite the first (Photo 8).
• Apply a bead of caulk to all the cracks on the inside to close any
air gaps that would prevent a vacuum from forming.
• Attach the long hose.
To use your bee vacuum, place a hive super with frames between
the two boxes and secure the whole thing with a ratchet strap.
The bucket vacuum, attached via its hose, will create the suction
needed to suck the bees through the long hose into the box at the
bottom, along an inclined plane, and into the hive super. The top
box will act as a barrier to keep the bees out of the vacuum motor.
When you’re done vacuuming the bees, remove the top cover to
give them ventilation on the ride home—it’ll get hot inside the
vacuum. If the job takes a long time or you take a break, open the
top then too.
At home, remove the ratchet strap and transfer your new colony.
To do this, set up a bottom board and have a super and lid ready.
Remove the super from the vacuum and place it on the bottom
board. Add the empty super and lid. Leave your vacuum boxes
next to the hive until nightfall to give any stragglers time to find
their new home.
6
7
Raise Your Own Bees!
From building a beehive and gathering a swarm to harvesting
and selling honey, Raise Backyard Bees is full
of advice, tips, and personal experiences from
novice and expert beekeepers. Whether you’re
only thinking about beekeeping or have been
beekeeping for years, this book is packed with
information that will help you take the next
step on your journey! This title is available
at www.MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by
calling 800-234-3368. Mention promo code
MMEPAMZI. Item #9039.
8
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Go with the Flow
Build a rain barrel that cleverly uses gravity to send water uphill.
Story and photos by Frank Hyman
I
frequently refer to the adage
“What goes up, must come
down,” along with other rudimentary principles of physics to make
my life easier on our little homestead.
Gravity is always in play, so there’s no
sense in fighting it. I go with gravitational flow whenever I can.
One of the heaviest things we deal
with when gardening or farming is water. At roughly 8 pounds per gallon, it
adds up. So, when it rains in summer,
I like to store the water in a rain barrel and then let it drain out through
my vegetable beds during dry spells, to
keep me from needing to haul water
around. But what do you do when your
garden beds are slightly higher than
the outlet on your rain barrel? You use
gravity to send it uphill, of course!
Everyday Physics
You can’t fool Mother Nature, but
you can sometimes play tricks on a
hose full of water. To get water from a
rain barrel to go uphill, you just need
to make the water in the garden hose
“think” it’s running downhill in order
to make it, in fact, run uphill. But how
do you do that?
I do it by starting with a stack of
free pallets saved from an undignified
demise in a landfill. There, the wood
would turn into gases that amplify climate disruption. By using sturdy, free
Tools & Materials
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The installed rain barrel, painted brown and fitted with a brass spigot for feeding the garden hose.
Putting scrap lattice on its sides isn’t necessary, but does makes the setup look more attractive.
Stake
Twine
Line level
4-foot level
Pallets
Blocks of 6x6 pressure-treated
wood, cinder blocks, or bricks
Chicken wire
Rubber pond liner, metal roofing, or
rolled roofing
IBC tote
Exterior-grade paint for plastic
Brass spigot
Spade bit that matches inside
diameter of threads of brass spigot
Exterior-grade caulk
Downspout diverter with watertight
connections
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pallets as a base on which to raise a rain
barrel up a few feet, you, too, can “fool”
water into pushing uphill to feed soaker
hoses in your garden beds. Here’s how.
Choose a Proper Rain Barrel
Vegetable beds in summer need roughly 1 gallon of water per square foot per
week. For example, a 4-by-12-foot bed
equals 48 square feet, and in dry conditions, it needs about 48 gallons of water
each week. That means a 50-gallon barrel can water one bed for one week, until
the next rain refills it. You could set up
a whole series of barrels, but that would
multiply the cost of connections and the
time to install them.
I recommend International Beverage
Containers (IBCs) that have held nontoxic liquids. I call them “super rain
barrels.” You can find IBCs advertised
on Craigslist for about $75 to $150
apiece. They’re worth it. I figure, if it
holds more gallons than it costs in dollars, you’re getting a good deal. And
IBCs hold about 300 gallons — six
barrels’ worth, but with a smaller footprint and less connection hardware required. IBCs are nearly a cube (48 by
Freshwater Facts
1 gallon of water = 8 pounds
1 cubic foot = 7.5 gallons of water = 60 pounds
300-gallon container x 8 pounds = 2,400 pounds
A vegetable garden in summer needs roughly 1 gallon water per square foot per week.
48 by 40 inches) of food-grade plastic
stiffened by an aluminum cage screwed
to a pallet. On top is an 8-inch-wide
screw-on lid. At the bottom is a 2-inch
plastic spigot. The ones I’ve bought
still had the faint scent of the almond
oil they originally contained. The plastic is translucent, so to keep algae from
growing inside, I slap on a couple of
coats of dark-brown paint that’s made
for plastic.
Connect to the Downspout
I recommend using the metal downspout diverter sold in the Gardener’s
Supply catalog (www.Gardeners.com). It’s
a box with a hose and connectors, and it
inserts into the downspout after you’ve
cut it open with snips or a metal-cutting
blade. It feeds water into a horizontal
length of hose that connects to your
rain barrel. Install it correctly (meaning,
follow the directions), and you won’t
need to install an overflow hose. That’s
a big timesaver. When the rain barrel is
full (and all valves and the lid are closed),
the rainwater will back up in the hose
and go down the original downspout.
Installing it correctly means the inlet
to the rain barrel is at the same height
as the diverter. If you want to set up
your rain barrel farther from the downspout than the short Gardener’s Supply
hose will allow, you can buy 3⁄4-inch
plastic hose used in standard drip irrigation systems. These are often sold at
big box stores (or some might be lying
around in your shed). Just be sure not
to use clear plastic hose. Algae will grow
inside and clog it up.
This IBC rain barrel (left) is attached to a water-resistant plastic pallet that can be stacked atop the wood-pallet base. With a foundation of
pressure-treated 6x6s and six wood pallets, the bottom of the rain barrel is about 35 inches aboveground.
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Build a Super Base
for Your Super Barrel
Even if your garden is downhill, an
IBC rain barrel will work best if it’s
stacked on enough pallets that you
can set a bucket or watering can under
the barrel’s plastic spigot. You can get
free pallets from feed and seed stores,
garden centers, HVAC contractors, or
big box stores. If the pallets have “HT”
stamped on the side, they’ve been
heat-treated and don’t have chemicals
in them. Most pallets that have been
treated with chemicals have bright
paint on the side and are expensive, so
stores send those back for credit. IBC
containers already come with one pallet
screwed to the cage. Unless that pallet
is plastic or metal (and therefore waterresistant), remove it from the bottom of
the IBC and add it to your pallet stack.
I’ve seen some people with modest
carpentry skills build flimsy bases from
From top: Adjust your foundation so the
pallets are level. The foundation should be
made with block, brick, or pressure-treated
wood to protect the pallets from rotting, and
should have an L-shaped apron of fencing
around its base to keep critters out. Form a
roof over the pallet stack with a UV-resistant
pond liner.
scraps of wood. They must not realize
that 300 gallons of water weighs more
than a ton. That’s why I think a stack
of pallets makes the best base. Not
only are pallets ready-made and free,
but they’re also quick to assemble,
built to support a lot of weight, and
won’t fall apart.
We’ll determine how many pallets
you’ll need to use to send water uphill
in the next section. First, I want to familiarize you with the steps for making a sound base for your rain barrel,
regardless of its height.
Once you have all the pallets you
need, raise the first one off the ground
by putting one cinder block fully under each corner. Bricks or scraps of
pressure-treated lumber will work fine
as a foundation too. The main thing is
to get the pallet wood on a rot-proof
foundation at least 5 inches above the
ground so it won’t decompose. If you’re
building on clay soil that shifts over
time, use a couple of 4-foot lengths of
pressure-treated 6x6s to distribute the
weight more evenly. Level up the foundation, and then start stacking pallets.
Weight and friction will keep the pallets from moving around; no need to
screw them together.
Then, wrap the pallets and foundation with some chicken wire to keep
critters from making a home inside.
Extend the fencing as an apron on the
ground around the foundation to keep
critters from digging their way under
the pallets.
Finally, use something waterproof
and UV-proof to keep the pallets dry:
try scraps of pond liner, rolled roofing,
or scraps of metal roofing. Most tarps
won’t stand up to UV radiation, so
don’t use them.
I used a few pieces of pressure-treated
lattice to cover the sides of my pallet
stack to make it look a little more like a
garden feature, but that’s not necessary.
Once your pallet stack has a foundation, critter-proofing, and a roof,
put the empty rain barrel on top. It
should be light enough for one or two
people to lift it into place. Short of a
tornado, its weight will hold it down. If
you do have tornadoes, don’t screw the
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downspout and diverter
aluminum cage down through the foundation’s roof material; you don’t want
to let water rot out the pallets. Instead,
screw a couple of pressure-treated 2x2s,
vertically and on opposite sides, into the
top of the IBC’s aluminum cage and the
bottom of the pallet stack.
Let Water Flow
Some people remove the 2-inch plastic spigot and use lots of PVC adapters
to dial down the diameter so a brass
spigot can replace it. I tried that once
and found that the adapters seriously
constricted the rate of flow. Not only
that, but I missed having a big spigot
that could fill a 5-gallon bucket or a
2-gallon watering can in a matter of
seconds. So now, I keep the 2-inch plastic spigot in place and make a dry, level
area underneath it with bricks, where I
can set a bucket or watering can and fill
them quickly.
To attach a garden hose, I affix a brass
spigot about 4 inches above the bottom of the barrel. To do this, I use a
spade bit that cuts the same diameter
as the inside diameter of the threads
of the spigot. That way, the outer edge
of the threads will bite into the plastic
as I screw it into place. Just before it’s
screwed all the way in, I apply a bead
of exterior-grade caulk around the
threads, and then screw it into the last
bit. Leave the caulk to cure for 24 hours
before moving or filling the barrel.
If the hose’s inlet is higher than
its outlet, water will flow uphill
through the hose because of
the pressure of gravity.
lid
IBC rain barrel
brass spigot
free pallets
protected
by roofing
garden hose running uphill
foundation blocks/bricks/wood
Send Water Uphill
Here’s the fun part. I had a good site
for my rain barrel, but my garden was up
a gentle slope. Carrying water by hand
was out. Installing a pump and routing
was too expensive. Besides, pumps like
to break down. But I knew water would
run uphill through a hose if the inlet was
higher than the outlet. This is the same
principle that lets a city water tower supply your house. If I stacked the pallets
just a tiny bit higher than the high point
of the garden, gravity would push the
water uphill into the beds. Follow these
steps before building your pallet stack,
and you can do the same:
1 Drive a stake into the high point
of the garden, and wrap twine around
its base at ground level.
2 Pull the twine to where the rain
barrel will be stationed.
3 Hang a pen-sized line level on the
piece of twine.
4 With the twine pulled tight, adjust it until it reads level.
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5 Measure the distance of the twine
that’s above ground level. In my case,
this was about 35 inches.
6 If the brass spigot of your rain
barrel is a couple of inches above
that height, the water in the hose will
“think” it’s going downhill, even if the
hose lying on the ground is actually
running uphill.
Pallets are about 5 inches tall, and I
had some 6x6 scraps for a foundation.
In this case, six pallets plus the foundation put the brass spigot of the barrel
just above the high point of the garden.
Gravity would send the rainwater flowing uphill. I laid a garden hose from the
barrel to the high point. From there,
a soaker hose would carry water back
downhill (a soaker hose running uphill loses most of its water right away).
Whenever I wanted to water the garden, I turned on the brass spigot. Water
flowed uphill through the garden hose,
and then flowed downhill through the
soaker hose to be evenly distributed
across that row.
Rain Barrel Maintenance
Your rain barrel should be mostly
maintenance-free. Close the spigots
when the barrel is empty so it will refill
during rains. Come winter, leave the
big spigot open so water doesn’t freeze
inside. Depending on conditions, you
may have to touch up the paint periodically to keep algae from growing.
Keep an eye out for critters setting up
house in the pallet stack if your fencing
isn’t tight enough.
Keep your rain gutters free of leaves
in fall and oak flowers in spring (hopefully you’re doing that already). And
then, enjoy tons of free water from your
super rain barrel.
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Weave a Splint Reed
Chair Seat
Write the next chapter in
your favorite chair’s story
by restoring the seat using
time-honored techniques.
Story and photos by Brandy Clements
E
very chair has a story. My favorite chair enthusiast,
Benno Forman, said that “chairs are documents, and
caners are historians that preserve centuries of designs
and techniques.” Whether you’re restoring a family heirloom or
rejuvenating a flea market find, chair seat weaving is a meditative process with a fun and functional end result.
Project Overview
Chair-weaving materials and patterns vary widely. For this
project, you’ll use splint reed from the rattan palm — a tropical climbing tree. Reed is the inner pith of the tree that’s been
processed into 1⁄2-inch strips. It’s a common material to replace
wooden splints, which are more cumbersome to use and harder
to source. Splint reed is available in many sizes, as well as raw
and dyed colors.
You’ll be weaving what caners call a herringbone twill pattern
for this project. Splint weaving employs a warp-weft process:
The warp is the reed that’s wrapped around the front and back
rails, which creates the base for weaving, and the weft is the
Tools & Materials
• Plastic tub or bucket, large
enough to soak a reed coil
• Towels
• Scissors
• Clamps
• Wire cutters
• Needle-nose pliers
• Spray bottle filled
with water
• Small hammer
• Flathead screwdriver
• Butter knife or small
putty knife
• Paintbrush
• 2 coils of 1⁄2-inch flat reed
• Small sheet of 1-inch
open-cell upholstery foam
• 23-gauge galvanized
steel wire
• Shellac or polyurethane
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reed that’s woven over and under
the warp strands and wrapped
around the side rails. Because
these terms can be confusing, I’ll
call the warp “the warp” and the
weft “the weaver.”
You’ll need a chair with four
round rails in good condition.
Most side chairs require two coils
of 1⁄2-inch splint reed. The overall
process will take a couple of days.
Plan on weaving the first day,
which will take four to six hours,
and sealing the seat on the second
day, which will take about an hour.
Prepare Your
Workspace and Materials
Remove the soaked reed from
the water, letting excess water
drain off into the tub. Hold up the
ends of the reed bundle. The short
strands will pull away; set these
aside on a damp towel, separating
them from the medium-to-long
strands. Set aside one long strand.
Recoil the remaining strands, and
put them on a damp towel to keep
them from drying out.
Splint reed has a top side and
a bottom side. To determine
which is which, bend the reed in
a U-shape. If fibers pop up, it’s
the bottom side, which should
face inside the seat. The top side
is smooth and should face out. It
can be hard to tell sometimes; if
both sides look furry, get another
strand. Reed is a natural fiber, so
slight color and shape variations
are normal.
I like to work standing, with the
chair on a table so the seat is at
elbow level. Clean up any debris
Bend your reed in a U-shape to determine the top and bottom.
Fibers will pop up on the bottom, and the top will be smooth.
on the floor that might cling to
your materials.
Fill a small tub or bucket with warm tap water. Clip the
strings around one coil of reed, but keep it coiled. Soak the
Warp
reed for 15 to 20 minutes, using a towel to keep it submerged.
You’ll use long reed strands for the warp, and wrap them
While the reed is soaking, place the foam on the table. Turn
around the front and back rails until the back rail is covered.
the chair upside down over the foam. Trace around the inside
(The clamp will be your best friend during this step.) Proper
of the seat, 1⁄2 inch in from the rails. Cut out the foam, and
tension is tricky because the front and back rails are often at difclip all four corners. Check the fit to make sure the foam won’t
ferent heights than the side rails. If the warp is too tight, it will
be visible along the rails and in the corners once the chair is
be hard to weave. If it’s too loose, the warp will bump out along
finished. Set the foam aside. (Foam will distribute the weight
the front rail. For most chairs, 11⁄2 to 2 inches between the top
of the sitter, increasing the longevity of the seat. If your chair
and bottom warp layers is ideal. This will allow you to wiggle
will be exposed to moisture beyond the typical humidity in a
the foam between the two layers when the warp is finished.
house, don’t use foam.)
Start the warp with the chair upright and facing you. Find
Start by splicing the first reed strand onto itself. Continue splicing as you go, using wire ties to hold the spliced strands in place.
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the top side of the long reed strand you set aside.
With the top side up, run the end of the reed
across the top of the front rail, over and around the
back rail, and under the seat about 8 to 10 inches.
Clamp the reed on the back rail to temporarily
hold it in place.
Now, bring the long end of the strand around
and under the front rail to meet the end that’s
under the seat. Sandwich the reed together, and
wrap it with wire so that the strands form a
V-shape at the back of the chair (see left photo
on Page 125). Wrap the wire so it’s snug to the
edges of the reed, with the wire ends lying in the
middle of the reed so they don’t cut you while
you work. Using pliers, gently pinch the wire to
secure the two pieces of reed.
Continue wrapping the reed around and over
the back rail, across the top, and around and under
the front rail until you run out of reed.
Follow an “over three, under three” herringbone pattern while weaving.
To splice a new strand, first clamp the old strand
to the front rail to temporarily hold it in place. Get
a new long strand, and find the top side. It should
face down toward the table, and be joined midway
between the front and back rails. Always splice on
the bottom of the chair. Overlap the new strand
onto the old strand by 6 inches, and secure with
wire. Cut off any excess reed from the old strand,
leaving 3 inches of reed from the wire.
Continue wrapping until you fill the back rail.
If you get to the end and space is a little tight for a
final strand, use a hammer and screwdriver to tap
the reed together to make space, but don’t overlap
the reed.
To finish, splice the last strand to itself midway
between the front and back rails — the same way
you did at the beginning. The V-shape will be near
the front. Clip the excess reed, leaving 3 inches in
case you need to adjust tension.
Slide the foam between the warp layers.
Before you begin weaving, adjust the warp
strands so they’re perpendicular to the front rail.
Unless your chair is rectangular, the front rail will
The first three rows of the herringbone pattern, shown from the bottom.
be wider than the back rail, meaning it will be
until you reach the end of the row. For the second row, you’ll
exposed on the right and left of the warp strands. Don’t worry
weave under two strands before starting the pattern, and then
about that; you’ll use short reed strands to fill in these spaces
you’ll weave under one strand to start the third row. This will
when you’re finished weaving.
create a herringbone “stair step” pattern.
Weave
Always splice weaver strands on the bottom of the chair,
You’ll weave back to front, weaving the top and the bottom
halfway between the side rails. Instead of wire wraps, you can
until you fill up the side rails. As you go, pull the weaver strands
simply overlap new weaver strands with the old strands by
tight against the side rails, and push each row snug against the
about 8 inches, and tuck the ends under the warps, which will
previous row.
hold everything snugly in place. Be careful not to pull the new
An “over three, under three” herringbone pattern is best for
strand out of the weave as you start working with it.
1⁄2-inch reed. To create this pattern, you’ll repeatedly weave
When you’re ready to start weaving, spray the warp with
under three warp strands and then over three warp strands
water. Dunk each new weaver strand in water before using it,
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so the end of the strand is tucked under the last
three warps on the left, and then woven in the
“over three, under three” pattern until you reach
the right-side rail. Push the weaver strand close
to the back rail to secure it. The pattern on the
bottom of the seat will slant slightly, which is OK.
Flip the chair upright. Bring the strand around
the rail on the right side, and then weave it into
the top warp layer, going under three and over
three warp strands to the end of the row. Pull
the strand snug against the side rail, and push it
toward the back rail.
Flip the chair over to weave the second row on
the bottom. This is where the herringbone pattern will begin to take shape. Think of it like a
stair step; for the second row, you’ll “step back”
one warp strand and go under two instead of
under three. Once you’ve gone under two warp
Splice new weaver strands by overlapping the old strand and tucking under the warp.
strands, continue across with the “over three, under three” pattern. Push the second weaver row
snug against the first.
Flip the chair right-side up again to weave the
second row on the top. As on the bottom, you’ll
now go under two strands, and then continue with
the “over three, under three” pattern until you finish the row. Pull the reed tight at the end of the
row. Push the second row up against the first one.
Flip the chair over. For the third row, you’ll go under one strand, and then continue the “over three,
under three” pattern.
Once you’ve woven the third row on both the
top and bottom, you’ll start the fourth row by going over three first, instead of under three, and
then continue with an “under three, over three”
pattern. Similar to before, start the fifth row by
going over two, and start the sixth row by going
over one. After the sixth row, the pattern will restart, and you’ll begin again by going under three.
To see a video of this pattern being woven, search
for Silver River Chairs on YouTube, and watch the
“How to Weave a Chair with Rattan Splint Reed
in a Herringbone Pattern” video.
The finished herringbone pattern, shown from the top, before filling in the front rail.
At some point, it will get difficult to push
and shake it to remove droplets. Remember to determine the
weaver strands through the warps. Use a flat tool — such as a
top and bottom of the reed before you start.
butter knife or a small putty knife — as a “ramp” to help the
Turn the chair upside down. The end of the first weaver
weaver strands glide up from under the warps. This will be
strand should tuck under the last three warp strands on the
especially important as the seat gets tighter, particularly close
left side at the back rail. Count it out before you weave. Use three
to the front rail.
fingers to count the leftmost three warps as “under,” move to
If only short strands remain for the last part of the weaving,
the right and count the next three warps as “over,” and then
soak the second reed coil and use longer strands so you don’t
repeat until you get to the right-side rail. You may end up with
have to splice repeatedly. The last two rows will be tight! Use
only one or two warp strands at the end, which is fine. The
your knife to guide the reed under and over warp strands. It
“Vs” created by splicing the first and last warp strands onto
may help to weave half the row, pull the reed tight, and then
themselves will count as one strand once they overlap.
weave the rest of the row.
Now, use a long strand to weave according to your count,
If the weavers bow toward the front rail, you’ll need to make
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Reed Suppliers
The Country Seat, www.CountrySeat.com
H.H. Perkins, www.HHPerkins.com
Frank's Cane and Rush Supply,
www.FrankSupply.com
FOR DYED REED
Gina’s Baskets, www.GinasBaskets.com
For a full list of suppliers,
visit www.SilverRiverChairs.com.
space before weaving the last rows. Use a
hammer and screwdriver to tap the reed
back along the side rails, starting in the
middle of each side. Then, tap the reed
back on the top of the seat, taking up
micro-spaces between the rows.
Finish on the bottom of the seat.
Tuck the final end under the last warp
strands, as you did at the beginning. If
the pattern ends with the weaver strand
over the warps, back up and tuck the
end under instead. Clip any excess reed
at the corner post.
If you’re weaving a rectangular bar
stool or footstool, you’re finished! If your
chair’s front rails are still showing, you’ll
need to fill them in.
Weave fill-in strands on the top and bottom, following the established herringbone pattern.
Fill In the Front Rail
You’ll fill the front row with short reed
strands, called “fill-ins.” One side may
require more fill-ins than the other.
Start on the left side. You’ll see a triangular area of unwoven weaver strands.
Once the weaving is complete, your chair seat will be ready to seal with shellac or polyurethane.
Spray these strands, and soak some short
pieces of reed.
With the chair upright, weave a short piece of reed from
Finish the Chair
front to back, following the pattern. Tuck in the end of the
Remove any visible wire wraps. (Gently pry them up, snip
fill-in near the back left post, under three weavers, so it’s hidthem in the middle, and then pull them out with pliers.) Clip
den. Bring the long end over the front rail and under the seat
any warp splices that are longer than 1⁄2 inch, and use scissors
to weave later. Fill the rest of the left side following the stair
to clip any noticeable fibers sticking up. (Don’t pull them.) Let
step pattern. You may have to tap the material toward the
the chair dry overnight.
middle with a hammer and screwdriver to make space. You’ll
The following day, seal the seat with a single coat of shellac
need to use your knife — space will be tight! Repeat on the
or polyurethane. (I prefer shellac, because the fumes aren’t as
right side.
harsh.) Start on the bottom, and use a brush to apply a single
Once you’ve finished the top, flip the chair, and weave the
layer of sealant. Keep a rag handy to wipe any splatter on the
fill-ins into the bottom. It will be trickier on the bottom of
rungs or posts. Then, turn the chair over, and wipe any drips
the chair because of the V-shaped warp strands, so it’s OK
along the edges of the seat before you brush a coat on the top.
to deviate from the pattern slightly by overlapping the fill-in
Shellac should dry to the touch in 30 to 45 minutes, but wait
you just finished.
until the next day to sit on the chair, just in case.
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Championing Change in a
Fight for
Food Access
A South Carolina neighborhood overcomes food
apartheid with a local farmers market dedicated
to sovereignty, justice, and community action.
Story and photos by April Jones
A
bout two years ago, I founded
the Pinehurst Farmers Market
in Columbia, South Carolina,
when I saw that both grocery stores
within walking distance of the Pinehurst
neighborhood had closed suddenly. I
realized that a food apartheid situation
had been created in my community, and
I knew something had to change.
Inspired by Leah Penniman of Soul
Fire Farm at a Black Farmers and Urban
Gardeners Conference in Georgia, I chose
to be the change I was looking for in my
community. “If you’re looking for someone to save you, no one is coming. You’ll
have to save yourself,” Penniman said.
Those words were a call to action to
create a solution to the issue of food
access in the Pinehurst neighborhood.
My vision was to form a self-sustaining
system that would create healthy, organic food options for the community,
support the local economy, and give
residents access to food sovereignty. As
a result, I started the Pinehurst Farmers
Market as an equitable, fair space for
farmers and community members. The
Pinehurst Farmers Market is committed to food justice and food sovereignty,
and strives to create a spirit of selfreliance and community action. The
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Farmers at the Pinehurst Farmers Market grow specially cultivated produce for the members of their South Carolina community.
nity to use their organic, regenerative
growing methods and shared cultural
experiences, with shared solidarity, to
create food access for members of the
Pinehurst community and residents
throughout the city.
Farmers of Truly Good Food
My longtime friend Jason Roland
of Organically Roland in Lexington,
South Carolina, was the first farmer to
join the Pinehurst Farmers Market. He
specializes in unique, hard-to-find South
Carolina heirloom seeds that are colorful
and full of flavor.
The market has since grown to four
farmers, including Greg Brown of
Greenleaf Farms in Eastover, South
Carolina, who offers organically grown
produce from heirloom and heritage
seeds. He specializes in unique and colorful produce, such as purple carrots,
purple sweet potatoes, red carrots, red
okra, and blue collards.
Amanda Jones of Doko Farm, located
in Blythewood, South Carolina, offers
heritage pork, chicken, and turkey, all of
which are listed on the Slow Food Ark of
Taste. And Andrea Woods of Fire Barrel
Farm in Gaston, South Carolina, offers
Southern favorites, including shelled
peas, okra, potatoes, onions, and peppers.
These farmers are all situated in the
state of South Carolina, which has abundant farmland; rich, deep, and abiding
foodways; and a long history of boosting
the local food economy through smallscale farmers. Each farmer brings their
specially cultivated and freshly harvested produce and meat to the market to
serve the people in the community, and
they’re committed to growing sustainable, nutrient-dense food. We offer the
highest-quality produce available at reasonable prices, which gives the residents
of the Pinehurst neighborhood access to
truly good food.
During this unusual time, the
Pinehurst Farmers Market is committed
to encouraging our community to get
back to the land and connect with nature. We’re striving to make vibrant, nutritious food available to the community.
The farmers who plant the seeds are the
ones who sell the final product, which
guarantees that the customers receive
the best product possible. That process
ensures that the nutrients, flavor profile,
and vibrant color are all retained within
the food we sell. In addition, customers
are able to learn about the seasonality of
their produce, giving them the opportunity to be excited and thoughtful about
what each harvest brings to their plate.
The seasonality of the market also allows
the customers to learn how to cook with
different produce options.
Heritage and Honor
At the Pinehurst Farmers Market, we
feel it’s important to regularly regenerate our knowledge base in order to increase our yield and bounty for our loyal
customers. Each farmer is eager to learn
new sustainable practices and become
better stewards of the land. In doing so,
our farmers research the histories of the
seeds they select and learn how those
seeds will do in the South Carolina soil.
They receive seed-selection assistance
from David Shields, a distinguished
The Pinehurst market farmers participate in seed sovereignty, and grow locally specific crops that are adapted to the regional growing conditions.
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professor at the University of South
Carolina. Shields has undertaken historical research that enabled the restoration
of many of South Carolina’s heirloom
crops, including ‘Purple Straw’ wheat,
‘Carolina African’ runner peanuts,
‘Purple Ribbon’ sugar cane, ‘Seashore
Black Seed’ rye, rice peas, benne, and
‘Carolina Gold’ rice.
Shields’ knowledge of seed saving and
harvesting allows the farmers to engage
in local seed sovereignty. His expert advice guides them in growing rare, delicious, and locally specific crops that are
adapted to the regional conditions. It
also enables the customers to learn more
about the history of crops they regularly
see, and to more fully understand the
history of South Carolina.
Shields cultivates healthy communities through food education,
allowing the farmers to reclaim the
knowledge and reverence that prior
South Carolinians had for the soil,
history, and legacy of seeds. This deep
knowledge of the food and its heritage
is passed on from the farmers to their
customers in their daily interactions.
The Pinehurst Farmers Market strives
to honor the ancestral land of the local
Natchez Tribe by promoting food sovereignty and food justice. One way we
work toward that goal is by practicing regenerative methods that honor the land.
Robin “Buz” Kloot, professor in the
department of environmental health
sciences at the University of South
Carolina, advises the farmers regarding soil health, crop rotation, and the
use of cover crops. Kloot is an advocate
for and expert in regenerative farming
methods, especially soil conservation
that benefits farmers, the environment,
and public health by utilizing the interconnectedness of nature. His expertise
helps the farmers better understand
food and soil systems, maximizing soil
health and biodiversity.
“If you follow the soil health revolution, you’ll notice that the drivers of
this revolution are farmers,” Kloot says.
Regenerative agriculture that uses polycultures and compost improves the soil
and environment, creating an integrated, reawakened ecosystem that allows
Regenerative agriculture produces plants that are more colorful, flavorful, and nutritious.
each plant to thrive and become nutrient-dense. When we allow biodiversity, our plants contain more nutrients,
flavor, and color.
Members of the market were also able
to attend the Organic Growers School
2020 Spring Conference, where we
learned new sustainable growing skills
and expanded on existing skill sets.
All of these resources help create a
sense of harmony between our farmers
and the community as we declare our
accountability to each other and work
toward mutual success. When the community comes together to support the
farmers, it creates a deeper connection
to the land and to the produce, because
the customers feel like they’re a part of
that success.
Strong Foundations
My family has roots in the South. My
mother’s family is from Georgia, and
my father’s family is from Louisiana. I
have a long legacy of connection to the
land. My maternal grandmother’s garden was always full of fresh produce;
she was organic before it was “hip.” My
grandmother was a frugal woman who
taught me the value of hard work and
dedication to a task, and I draw upon
her legacy with the Pinehurst Farmers
Market and conduct my social justice
work in honor of her memory.
As a toddler living in California, I
remember walking to the neighborhood organic food cooperative and
watching my mother pour dry beans
into paper bags. She would also stop
on the way home from the public park
to say hello to the street vegetable and
fruit seller as she purchased avocados,
limes, and lemons.
I draw on these memories as I create
recipes in my kitchen using the freshest ingredients available to me. I know
that the fresh smell of a lime invigorates
the mind and calms the nervous system.
Plant life begets human energy, and I
strive to utilize the plant kingdom to
keep my family physically and mentally
fit. Being exposed to in-season produce
taught me the benefits and value of the
land, and that there’s a place for every
vegetable, fruit, and season.
I’m indebted to my family heritage for
giving me a head start in unlocking the
wisdom and secrets of the earth, and in
gratitude, I lay a foundation of goodness
in the Pinehurst community for others
to take and spread to the outer regions
of the world.
Part of that foundation has been
working with other passionate people
in the Pinehurst Farmers Market to
transform my neighborhood into a
thriving hub of community engagement. Residents from surrounding areas join the “Pinehurst crew” and enjoy
the fellowship and produce. Our farmers are able to grow specially cultivated
food for their customers, and the community is able to move together toward
greater health.
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“A
s American as apple pie” is an
interesting phrase when you
consider that apples, pie, and
the combination of the two originated
in Central Asia, Egypt, and England,
respectively. And it’s not as if there aren’t
plenty of foods that did originate in the
United States—hot dogs, cheeseburgers,
chocolate chip cookies, lobster rolls,
s’mores, fortune cookies, peanut butter,
and potato chips among them. In
addition, the entire range of Tex-Mex
dishes originated in the U.S., including
fajitas, nachos, chimichangas, and chili
con carne. The final dish on that list,
which means “chili with meat,” is often
shortened to just “chili.” Unlike apple pie,
chili is undeniably American.
10/7/21 2:33 PM
GETTY IMAGES/BHOFACK2; ADOBE STOCK/MILANCHIKOV
By Chris Colby
LEFT:
This simple,
quintessential dish
with broad appeal
is also a significant
part of Southwestern
culinary history.
FROM
Chili
More American
than Apple Pie
FROM
LEFT:
GETTY IMAGES/BHOFACK2; ADOBE STOCK/MILANCHIKOV
Texas Origins
The earliest mention of a chili-type
recipe may be J.C. Clopper’s 1928
description of a beef stew made by
poor families in San Antonio, Texas,
consisting of “a kind of hash with nearly
as many peppers as there are pieces of
meat.” A trail food far predates this
reference, however. In the 1850s, Texas
cowboys would pound a mixture of
dried beef, suet, chile peppers, salt, and
pepper into rectangular “chili bricks”
that would be dried for preservation
and then later boiled in water to make
a spicy beef stew on the cattle trail.
The modern-day American favorite
developed from both variations.
By the 1860s, the dish had become
so popular in San Antonio that the
city was known for its “chili queens.”
Stands selling chili, tamales, and other
Tex-Mex dishes proliferated at the
Military Plaza — and later, the Alamo
and Haymarket Plazas. Families, often
Latino and usually led by matriarchs,
would arrive in the morning, set up
tents, and serve customers from pots
of chili they’d prepared at home. Some
vendors would also feed musicians,
who would then perform in front of
the chili stand to attract customers.
The cheap food and festive atmosphere
drew people from all walks of life. At
dusk, each family would pack up its
stall and take it home, repeating the
process the next day.
Originally, only a few women were
designated chili queens, most notably
Sadie Thornhill and Martha Garcia,
who were particularly well-known chili
vendors from the beginnings of these
outdoor gatherings. Gradually, however,
tourists began to refer to any female
chili vendor as a chili queen, while the
vendors themselves reserved the term for
those who sold the most chili in a night.
In later years, the term came to refer to
the vendors’ often-teenaged daughters
who served the chili. The cheap food
and wandering musicians attracted San
Antonio residents, soldiers stationed in
the area, and tourists alike. The number
of vendors swelled into the hundreds,
while, on a good day, customers
amounted to the thousands.
Chili Goes National
Chili eventually began to attract
national attention. The 1893 World’s
Fair: Columbian Exposition was held
in Chicago to commemorate the 400th
anniversary of Columbus’ arrival in
the Americas. Amid full-sized replicas
of the Niña, the Pinta, and the Santa
Maria; new product introductions; and
performances of every stripe was the San
Antonio Chili Stand set up by the state
of Texas. Americans from all over got a
taste of the spicy dish from Texas, and
not long after, chili parlors popped up in
cities outside the Lone Star State.
Surprisingly, chili didn’t catch on in
Mexico. Although some U.S. citizens still
think of chili as “Mexican food,” residents
of Mexico were, and are, quick to point
out its true origins and to disavow any
connection to the dish. In fact, the 1898
Diccionario de Mejicanismos describes
chili as “a detestable dish sold from
Texas to New York City and erroneously
described as Mexican.”
Chili originators had a staggering variety of chile peppers to use, and they tried most of them.
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politicians of San Antonio. The
city’s health department closed
the chili stands sporadically
throughout the 1930s, and
permanently in the early
1940s, ostensibly for unsanitary
conditions. Some modern
historians speculate that racist
perceptions played a larger
role in the closures than actual
issues of sanitation.
Making Chili: The Basics
You don’t need canned chili or
prepackaged chili powder to make
chili. Here’s a simple recipe: Coarsely
grind or cut some beef into small
pieces. For every pound of meat,
add three to five chile peppers. Use
guajillo, jalapeño, serrano, chile
Absolutely No Squirrel Chili Recipe
This recipe won the 2018 Austin ZEALOTS Chili Cookoff, despite
(or perhaps because of) the total lack of squirrel meat. Yield: 7 servings.
Directions: If you want to reduce the fat in this recipe, lightly brown
the chuck steak (until no longer red on the outside) in a Dutch oven.
Remove the chuck pieces, and then lightly brown the ground round.
Discard however much fat you want. Return browned beef to Dutch
oven, and add tomato sauce, beef broth, lager, and chile peppers. Bring
to a boil and then lightly simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes.
Add half the amount of each remaining spice and seasoning, stir
thoroughly, and lightly simmer, covered, for 30 minutes. Stir every 10
minutes or so. Keep heat low, and check for scorching when you stir.
Add remaining spices and seasoning, stir, and then simmer, covered,
for an additional 30 minutes. If needed, thicken with masa harina.
Serve hot.
Ingredients
• 0 pounds squirrel
• 1 pound chuck steak, cut into small cubes
• 2 pounds ground round (85 percent lean)
• 12 ounces tomato sauce
• 12 ounces low-sodium beef broth
• 12 ounces amber lager
• 11 dried red chile de árbol peppers, torn
into 3 or 4 pieces
• 11 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 tablespoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons Spanish paprika
• 1⁄2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
• 11⁄2 tablespoons granulated onion
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 3⁄4 teaspoon black pepper
• 3 cubes beef bouillon
• 21⁄2 teaspoons sazón seasoning
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The chile peppers and
other spices required to make
chili weren’t readily available
in many northern towns in
the early 1900s. This is still
true today. In 1895, Lyman
Da v i s — a r a n c h e r f ro m
Corsicana, Texas — introduced
his canned Wolf Brand Chili
A postcard commemorating the San Antonio chili stands.
to the nation. In 1908, Willie
owners. Wolf, along with other chili
Gebhardt of New Braunfels, Texas, also
manufacturers, successfully lobbied
began canning chili. Gebhardt’s biggest
the Texas legislature to name chili the
contribution to the dish’s popularity,
official food of Texas in 1977.
however, was in the creation of chili
Chili was big business by the midpowder — a pre-mixed blend of chili
1900s, and several white Americans
spices. Gebhardt Chili Powder is
were cashing in on the dish. At the
still available and highly regarded
same time, descendants of its mostly
by most chili cooks. Wolf ’s chili is
Latino originators were being run
also still available, the brand having
out of business by the mostly white
passed through several corporate
CLOCKWISE FROM LOWER LEFT: GETTY IMAGES/REZ-ART; WIKIMEDIA COMMONS/SMU CENTRAL UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES; ADOBE STOCK/JVEZZANI
de árbol, pequín, or any other pepper
or mix of peppers. Add water to make a
thick stew, and simmer until the meat
is tender, between one and five hours.
Add salt to taste. The end. According
to some chili purists, if you add more,
you’re no longer making chili.
Coarsely ground beef is the best
ingredient for a simple chili. “Regular”
ground beef is usually 30 percent
fat. This makes for a fairly greasy
chili. You can skim some of the fat,
but capsaicin — the molecule that
gives chile peppers their heat — is
fat-soluble, so you’ll lose both fat
and heat if you do. Ground chuck,
ground round, and ground sirloin
are progressively less fatty versions
of ground beef, typically 20, 15, and
10 percent fat, respectively. Chuck
steak is a good choice, being relatively
inexpensive but not terribly tough or
sinewy. If you start your chili from
a big hunk of meat, trim any excess
fat before cutting it into small cubes,
almost as fine as coarsely ground beef.
You don’t have to brown the meat first.
Cooks’ Choice
Of course, most modern chili cooks
use a slightly longer ingredients list.
Three of the most common additions
are tomatoes, onion, and garlic. You
can add up to 5 ounces of tomato
sauce or whole tomatoes, half an
onion, and 1 clove of garlic per pound
of meat. Chop fresh or whole tomatoes,
onion, and garlic finer than the meat
pieces. You can also use onion powder,
or halved onions that you’ll remove
before serving. The “fire” from the chile
peppers (and secondarily from cumin,
if used) should dominate the dish.
Cumin is probably the most common
spice in modern chili; it works well
with peppers and gives the meat a
beef-taco-like taste. You can add up to
2 teaspoons of ground cumin per
pound of meat. Other popular spices
include oregano (especially Mexican
oregano), cilantro, coriander, and
paprika. Add these in small amounts,
and don’t let their flavors dominate.
Chili powder is a pre-made spice
blend that typically consists of — in
decreasing amounts — paprika,
oregano, cumin, garlic powder, cayenne
pepper, and onion powder. Paprika is
ground bell pepper, which is the same
species as hot chiles, but not spicy. It
adds a little pepper flavor and some
red color to the dish. You can adjust
the balance with the individual spices.
I always add more cumin to my chilies,
even if chili powder is an ingredient.
Chili powder loses its kick fairly
quickly. If your chili powder or other
spices are more than 8 months old, get
a fresh jar.
White Chicken Chili Recipe
This is a chili-inspired chicken and bean stew, rather than a
traditional beef-based chili. Yield: 6 servings.
Directions: Combine chicken breast, ground chicken, and beans
in a Dutch oven or large pot. Stir in beer, chicken broth, tomatillos,
and onion. Add water to just cover all ingredients. Add bay leaf, and
bring to a simmer.
Blend chicken bouillon, poultry seasoning, and garlic powder, and
slowly stir small amounts into chili. Continue adding seasoning mix
until you have a savory and slightly salty chicken stew.
Stir in sliced serrano peppers, cumin, and cayenne pepper, and
let simmer for an additional 45 to 60 minutes. Stir frequently to
keep the tomatillos from scorching. Serve hot.
Ingredients
• 1 pound chicken breast, cut into small
cubes or cooked and shredded
• 1 pound ground chicken
• 1 pound pre-soaked navy beans
• 12 ounces beer
• 24 ounces low-sodium chicken broth
• 9 tomatillos, pulsed in food processor
• 1⁄2 yellow onion, finely chopped
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tablespoons granulated chicken bouillon
• 2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
• 1⁄2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 10 serrano peppers, sliced
• 4 tablespoons ground cumin
• 1⁄4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
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Sippable
Sunshine
Make Dandelion Wine
Though it may take some
time and patience to
create, dandelion wine’s
delicious results are well
worth the work.
Story and photos by Ashley Adamant
T
Picking and sorting dandelion petals is a time-intensive task.
welve years ago, my husband and I made
a 5-gallon batch of dandelion wine on
our first date. Creating dandelion wine
requires commitment, you see. While you can
pick enough dandelions for a good-sized batch in
about 20 minutes, it takes hours to separate the
flavorful petals from the bitter leaves and sepals.
We spent those hours in the shade, getting to
know one another, and I wouldn’t trade that
afternoon for anything in the world.
These days, we have two young children at
home, and activities need to come in smaller
packages. My little “helpers” are game for just
about anything, so long as it doesn’t take more
than 15 or 20 minutes of focus. There’s no way
they’d have the patience to quietly sit and separate
dandelions for hours, but that doesn’t mean there
can’t be dandelion wine.
I started by appealing to their own sense of self
interest, and so we first made dandelion toddler
treats: a batch of “healthy” dandelion-and-honey
marshmallows, a few cute dandelion gummy
bears, and simple dandelion shortbreads. (Find
all these recipes at AdamantKitchen.com.) Each
of those recipes only required about ½ to 1 cup
of dandelion petals, and it got my little dandelion
hunters primed and excited to help.
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Micro-Batch
Dandelion Wine
(1-Quart Recipe)
1 Bring 2 cups water
and sugar to boil in a sauceIngredients
pan, and then turn off heat.
• 2 to 3 cups water, plus
Stir to dissolve sugar, and let
more to fill
cool completely.
• 3⁄4 pound sugar (roughly
2 Place dandelion petals
11⁄2 cups)
and citrus juice and zest into a
• 1 cup dandelion petals,
1-quart Mason jar. Add yeast nuyellow parts only
trient and pour lukewarm sugar
• Juice and zest of 1⁄2 orange
water over top, filling to within 1
• Juice and zest of 1⁄2 lemon
inch of the top rim of the jar.
• 1⁄4 teaspoon yeast nutrient
3 Add wine yeast, and
(or about 10 raisins)
cap with a Mason jar fermen• 1 tiny pinch wine yeast
tation kit.
4 Allow wine to ferment for
about 3 weeks, or until visible fermentation stops.
5 Filter out dandelion petals, and carefully pour wine into another
Mason jar, leaving yeast sediment behind in bottom of first jar.
6 Re-cap with a Mason jar fermentation kit, and allow wine to continue fermenting for another 6 to 8 weeks.
7 When fermentation is complete, pour wine into another Mason jar,
again leaving sediment behind. Cap up tightly, and store in the refrigerator for at least 2 weeks (preferably longer) before drinking. It’s best
consumed between 2 and 8 weeks old. Alternatively, bottle in a flip-top
Grolsch bottle or regular corked wine bottle before storing in refrigerator.
Still, my “small batch” 1-gallon dandelion wine recipe requires a
full quart of packed dandelion petals, plucked from roughly 3 to
4 quarts of dandelion flowers. The first time I sat down to pluck
petals with my daughter on a sunny day, we only made it to about
2 cups of fluffy petals (or 1 cup packed). That’s not nearly enough
for a 1-gallon batch, but it’s just right for a micro batch made in a
quart Mason jar.
We’ve been doing a lot of micro-batch brews, using either a silicone water lock or other Mason jar fermentation kit. There are so
many types out there, and they all work pretty well. The goal is to
allow the bubbles from the ferment to escape the jar while keeping
fresh air (and contamination) out. The same one-way valves that
work for sauerkraut are also effective for small-batch wines, and
they fit on any wide-mouth Mason jar.
That means you can easily make small-batch wine in pint, quart,
or 1⁄2-gallon batches. A 1-quart batch is convenient because it
makes almost exactly one bottle of wine—perfect for a test batch
when you’re working with a new recipe. For more details on the
overall process of small-batch winemaking, try my primer at www.
PracticalSelfReliance.com/Small-Batch-Wine.
Landscaping with Crystal Stevens
Transform your yard into a beautiful and vibrant space that
offers a continuous supply of food with the help of Your Edible
Yard. Featuring practical gardening methods and maintenance,
permaculture principals, instructions on preserving and fermenting, and more, this book will prove helpful whether you’re
a beginner or experienced gardener in the city, the suburbs, or
the country. This title is available at
www.MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by
calling 800-234-3368. Mention promo
code MMEPAMZI. Item #10158.
Then, enhance your learning with
author Crystal Stevens as she covers
seed starting, soil health, and plant
diversity in her online workshop,
“Your Edible Yard,” part of our “Food
Independence” course. Learn more at
Online.MotherEarthNewsFair.com.
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Pumpkin
Cornbread
with a French Twist
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Squash turns this naturally gluten-free dish into a
light, moist bread worthy of nights around the fire.
Story and photos by William Rubel
I
f i r s t m a d e t h i s b re a d f o r
Thanksgiving about 40 years ago,
and I’ve been making it for that holiday ever since. This bread captured my
imagination from the first loaf, because
it’s delicious, beautiful, and different.
Lighter and moister than most
cornbreads, this bread has many uses.
The gorgeous yellow color, light open
crumb, and warm flavor blend well
with traditional holiday meals centered
around turkey or ham, and it’s also good
in stuffings.
For breakfast, I recommend it toasted
with cream cheese, or as French toast.
Cornbread with cream cheese is a marriage made in heaven—definitely a good
choice for a special brunch. As French
toast, it will elevate a weekend breakfast.
Soaked in milk and egg, the crumb softens, but retains a lovely texture — soft,
but never soggy. And maple syrup brings
out the bread’s warm tonalities.
On winter afternoons, when sunset
comes too soon, I serve this cornbread
with butter and honey along with strong
tea or coffee in front of a fire in my fireplace. Another dish I enjoy is a slice
spread with Gorgonzola, a soft Italian
blue cheese.
In southern France, where cornbread
was a staple bread for much of the 18th
and 19th centuries, people would sometimes combine their cornmeal with
boiled, mashed pumpkin to subtly improve the bread’s texture.
French breads are lean as a rule, meaning they’re made only with flour, water,
leavening, and salt. The French have a
tradition of fancy breads— pains de luxe.
These yeast breads are enriched with one
or more fatty ingredients, such as egg,
milk, or butter. The cornbread recipe
on Page 140, with its milk, eggs, and
pumpkin ingredients, falls into the luxe
French bread tradition. Leavened with
both yeast and egg whites, this bread has
Cookbook Chronicles
I found the basic recipe for this pumpkin cornbread in The Breads of France, a
1978 cookbook by Bernard Clayton Jr.
He attributes the recipe to the French
Basque Country in the Pyrenees mountain range, but this is probably too
precise. I’ve come to understand it as
part of a class of French pumpkin cornbreads broadly associated with southern
France — not just the Basque region.
While documentation is sparse, it’s clear
this bread is based on an old tradition.
The first known French pumpkin
bread recipe was published in the mid1600s by the influential author Nicolas
de Bonnefons. This was a wheat bread.
Pumpkin and home-ground cornmeal make the texture and crumb of this cornbread distinctive.
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an open crumb, like that of a sandwich
bread, taking the idea of cornbread to a
different level.
To produce this bread in your home
kitchen, you need only part of a pumpkin or winter squash, and a half-dozen
ears of flint corn. Anyone with a patio
can grow a pumpkin; I’ve been growing
pumpkins for this bread for at least 30
years. Even if you have a small yard, you
can easily grow the corn, too, as I did
last summer. Deeply colored yolks from
backyard chickens, combined with the
natural yellow of the cornmeal, will produce an intensely colored bread.
American Origins
Cornmeal is often ground from flint
corn, an extremely hard corn — think
of those colorful ornamental ears sold
Become a Baker!
Enjoy warm, delicious baked bread
all winter long! Discover new recipes
and ideas with our online “Fresh
Breads from Scratch” course. Three
contributors — Jessica Moody, Victoria
Miller, and Reneice Charles — walk you
through sourdough starters, bagels,
no-knead breads, muffins, biscuits,
and more. Register now at Online.
MotherEarthNewsFair.com.
in autumn. Popcorn is a type of flint
corn. I grow ‘Floriani Red Flint,’ a
polenta corn I’ve written about in
M E N (see “Floriani
Red Flint: The Perfect Staple Crop for
Every Homestead,” December 2010/
January 2011). When growing your
own flint corn, be sure to let the husk
dry completely before removing the
kernels and grinding. If you don’t have
a flour mill, or don’t have a friend who
owns one, then you can mill cornmeal
in a food processor, high-speed blender,
or small coffee grinder. You’ll need to
work in small batches and carefully
monitor the grind, making sure to stop
when you’ve achieved a meal, not a fine
powder. I should warn you about these
workarounds: I’ve heard that corn can
scratch plastic containers, such as the
jar of a Vitamix blender. I tested making 2 cups of cornmeal in my coffee
grinder, and also in a small food processor, and I was happy with the results.
Corn and pumpkin are both American
crops. Indigenous people grew them
Pumpkin Cornbread
You can substitute canned pumpkin, or acorn or butternut squash, for fresh
pumpkin in this recipe. To prepare fresh squash, remove the seeds, cut about
11⁄2 cups (about 12 ounces) into small pieces, cover them in water, and boil until
the flesh is soft. Use a spoon to separate the pulp from the skin, and then mash.
Cornbread will mold more quickly than wheat bread in hot or humid climates, so
store accordingly. This bread freezes well. Yield: 6 to 10 servings.
Directions: Warm the milk in a saucepan on the stove, or, alternatively, in a glass
jar in a microwave.
In a mixing bowl, add warmed milk, pumpkin, cornmeal, egg yolks, yeast, salt,
and optional sugar and alcohol, if using. Mix until smooth, and then cover and let
ferment in a warm place until batter has noticeably risen. With yeast, this will take
about 45 minutes at 85 degrees Fahrenheit,
and longer if rising at a lower temperature.
Ingredients
Sourdough starter could take a few hours.
• 1 cup milk
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• 1 cup mashed pumpkin or
Liberally butter the sides of a 6-cup bakother winter squash
ing tin or soufflé mold, and line its bottom
• 2 cups cornmeal (use flint
with parchment paper. When the oven has
corn if grinding your own)
come to temperature, whip the egg whites.
• 3 eggs, separated
Thoroughly whisk the first third of the whites
• 1 packet yeast (7 grams),
into the batter, and then more gently fold in
or 1⁄2 cup mild sourdough
remaining whites, one-third at a time. Pour
starter
into the prepared baking tin, and immedi• 1⁄4 teaspoon salt
ately place in oven.
• Up to 4 tablespoons sugar
Check for doneness in 45 minutes: A
(optional)
knife inserted into the center of the bread
• Up to 1⁄4 cup brandy or
should come out clean.
whiskey (optional)
Remove bread from the tin to cool on a
wire rack. Slice and serve when cooled.
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From left: Fold beaten egg whites into the batter just before baking; mark a plastic measuring cup to see when the dough has risen enough.
together in the same field along with
beans in the Three Sisters system of
companion planting. If you’ve never
grown your corn, pumpkin, and beans
this way, try the planting method next
spring. We can thank the French for
developing this pumpkin cornbread
recipe, but it’s time to bring it back to
North America, and to acknowledge
the Indigenous farmers who made this
bread possible by domesticating pumpkin and corn.
warmth, is to add the alcohol that’s
listed as an optional ingredient here.
French recipes often call for Armagnac,
an expensive brandy from southwest
France. I bought a bottle and tested it
in the recipe, but I don’t think it makes
sense to buy a bottle just for this purpose. Instead, you can use a less expensive brandy or whiskey to make the
recipe more North American.
Lastly, I’ll discuss the leavening. If you
use yeast, the dough will rise about 66
percent when set in a warm place for an
hour. The combination of yeast and egg
whites brings real magic to this bread,
and provides enough leavening power,
even for naturally gluten-free cornmeal,
to produce a crumb that’s more open
than any other cornbread I’ve eaten.
Vegans can use water instead of milk,
and skip the eggs. Spoon the batter into
the prepared tin, set the tin in a warm
place, allow it to rise about 50 percent,
and then bake as directed in the recipe.
Recipe Notes
The French have two words that
roughly translate into English as “pumpkin” — citrouille, or true pumpkin, and
potiron, or winter squash. French squash
cornbreads seem to call for one or the
other interchangeably. The recipe in
Clayton’s cookbook calls for “pumpkin” in the recipe, but “potiron” in the
French title. I suggest using pumpkin
during fall, and then switching to winter squashes, such as acorn or butternut, when pumpkins are out of season.
Winter squashes are less fibrous than
most pumpkins and can be sweeter.
Sugar is an optional addition.
Sweeteners weren’t common in historical cornbread recipes, but modern
French and American recipes reflect the
fact that most of us have a sweet tooth.
I leave out the sugar because I’m diabetic. This recipe is leavened with yeast
or sourdough, so, if you do add sugar,
it will mostly be metabolized by the
yeasts, and the bread will be less sweet
than you might expect.
The best way to add a hint of sweetness, and at the same time an ineffable
Serve a slice slathered with butter and honey on a cold winter’s day.
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Historic Food
as a Path to the Future
Many traditions can provide a
road map for updated food systems
that are healthier and more resilient.
Using Old Stories to Spin New Ones
When seeking inspiration to build more personal and equitable food systems, one of the best places to look is the past.
Many parts of our past food systems, such as the forced labor of enslaved people, should be condemned. However, the
past also holds stories from which to draw inspiration, hope,
and practical guidance. Food historian Michael W. Twitty and
By Julia Skinner
farmer Leah Penniman have written about the importance of
the kitchen garden and regaining sovereignty over our food
or the past 150 years, we’ve experienced paradigmatic
supply, especially for those who face racism, discrimination,
shifts in how and what we eat. New food delivery options,
and limited access to fresh food.
fast-casual concepts, meal kits, and processed foods now
Soul Fire Farm, run in part by Penniman, offers Soul Fire in
appear frequently. For the first time in history, we expect our marthe City, a program to install gardens for residents in need in
kets to carry a dizzying array of foods, from meat to milk to vegAlbany and Troy, New York. According to the program’s website,
gies—even those very much out of season.
“In light of the COVID-19 outbreak, it is increasingly essential
However, the growing, packaging, and shipping of food (somethat we grow our own food and medicine towards self-reliance
times called the “food system,” though it’s far more than a single
and community resilience. Soul Fire Farm is offering materials,
seedlings, soil, labor, and ongoing guidance to support folks in
system) involve incredibly complex, interconnected operations
Albany and Troy in establishing
and specific resources to work as
raised-bed gardens outside of their
they do. The COVID-19 panhomes, drawing on community
demic has revealed the cracks in
collaboration and mutual aid. We
our food system’s shiny veneer, as
see this work as a continuation
stores struggled to restock shelves
of that legacy of a long lineage of
while, at the other end of the supBIPOC growers who developed
ply chain, farmers dumped milk
alternative food systems to sustain
and eggs and killed livestock betheir own communities.”
cause they had no alternative.
Harvesting our food, or stockIt’s interesting that in the United
ing up and preserving locally
States, COVID-19-related food
shortages began in March, which
grown foods in-season, has been
food historian Rachel Laudan has
a critical part of our food ecosyscalled “the hungriest of all months
tems throughout much of histoof the year.”
ry. Supermarkets and their galaxy
Historically, late winter and
of interconnected but mysterious
early spring were notoriously
moving parts can often feel sterile
difficult for people living off the
and distant. Recent increases in
land, because food stores had been
seed sales and other sufficiency
depleted and spring growth hadn’t
goods may show our interest in
yet appeared. Even into the 1950s
reforming how we eat. In our
and ’60s, finding eggs or green
new story, we’re eager to return
vegetables in March was a chalto our food roots and transform
lenge in much of the Northern
that lumbering galaxy into a conHemisphere, and canned or frostellation of individual and comPutting up locally grown food for the future is ubiquitous
zen foods weren’t as affordable or
munity actions, done quietly in
across cultures.
available as they are today.
our kitchens or together on farms
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JULIA SKINNER (3); CENTER: ADOBE STOCK/CAVAN
F
From left: Learning food preservation techniques at workshops and demonstrations; helping growers by subscribing to their community-supported
agriculture (CSA) boxes; and saving kitchen scraps for homemade stock are all simple ways to restore healthy historic foodways in our communities today.
or in markets. These actions promise to produce something resilient and, of equal importance, something personal.
Food is one of our most personal, connective experiences, and
fermentation is one of our most ancient preservation methods,
spanning the years between us and our ancestors. By practicing
traditional ways of cooking and preserving food, we have a chance
to have a conversation with the past while we nourish our bodies
today. When we taste traditional foods, their flavor can anchor our
tastebuds and cultural food memories, as we encounter and create
changes in our modern foodways.
JULIA SKINNER (3); CENTER: ADOBE STOCK/CAVAN
Reconnecting with Our Ancestors’ Tables
So, how do we reclaim traditional foods in our own kitchens?
Eat locally and seasonally. We already know that eating food
grown locally and in-season is a great way to reduce the environmental impact of our choices. However, it’s also a great way to
connect to the foods themselves: When you appreciate blackberries
as having a season, rather than being a year-round treat, they taste
all the sweeter when they finally arrive.
Get to know producers. Local farmers around the U.S. continued to feed their communities during pandemic lockdowns,
pivoting their services to meet a rapidly changing crisis. In the
Atlanta metro area, for example, Freewheel Farm and Rodgers
Greens & Roots Organic Farm began offering online ordering and
curbside pickup for those worried about going to a farmers market
or grocery store. Similarly, chef Maricela Vega of 8ARM restaurant skipped the takeout menu and instead built a robust, locally
sourced community-supported agriculture (CSA) program that
supported area farmers and gave consumers quality food. In the
past, our ancestors would’ve interacted with farmers and foragers
(or farmed and foraged themselves), and had a deeper knowledge
of how and by whom their food was grown. By buying direct from
producers, we can recapture that experience today.
Think abundantly. Last year, I built an online class around
shifting from thinking of a food item as a single ingredient, to
perceiving it as having countless creative uses. For example, carrot peels can be made into jam (something I learned from fellow
low-waste enthusiast Jessamine Starr), and carrot tops can be made
into pesto. Our ancestors thought this way out of necessity, and
many foods around the world came about as a result of a lack of
food—oxtail stew, for instance, used a cheaper cut.
If you have a mishmash of veggie scraps, plop them into a pot,
cover them with water, and make a nourishing homemade stock.
You can also store small amounts of scraps in the freezer until
you’ve built up enough for a full pot of stock.
Prepare food together. Big community cooking projects have
historically been one way people spread the labor of putting
up large amounts of food during harvest season. Examples include sauerkraut and winemaking festivals in Europe, and largescale kimchi-making (gimjang) in Korea. Keeping everyone fed
through the winter becomes a point of connection and togetherness in these communities.
So, gather your friends together and make a meal, or hire a
fermentation or canning teacher to show you a new-to-you traditional cooking method. We can flex our creative muscles to
rekindle the spirit of traditional harvest gatherings. Our ingenious,
curious, and inventive ancestors would be proud.
Seed-Gathering Hero
Botanist Nikolay Vavilov championed seed gathering, but he
died of starvation in a Soviet prison in 1943. In the years before
Stalin jailed him as a scapegoat for the country’s famines, Vavilov
had traveled across five continents, collecting
hundreds of thousands of seeds in an effort
to outline the ancient centers of agricultural
diversity and guard against widespread hunger.
In Where Our Food Comes From, Gary Paul
Nabhan retraces Vavilov’s path from Mexico
and the Colombian Amazon to the glaciers of
the Pamirs in Tajikistan. This title is available
at www.MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by
calling 800-234-3368. Mention promo code
MMEPAMZI. Item #6598. While supplies last.
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Find Your
Fermentation
System
From tried-and-true to modern and new, there’s
a countertop fermentation setup for every style and budget.
Story and photos by Amy Grisak
W
hen I stepped into the world of fermentation 20
years ago, I had no desire to slice up 50 heads
of cabbage for a 20-gallon batch of sauerkraut.
Although that’s how my great-grandmother made sauerkraut in her basement, I set out to find options for creating
smaller amounts. Not only did the reasonably sized recipes
I found allow me to experiment more, but when it was just
me eating the resulting ferments, I wasn’t ’krauted out.
The main goals in vegetable fermentation are to keep
the food below the brine (minimizing oxygen contact),
and to prevent insects from finding their way into the ferment. After trying many different airlocks and fermentation
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systems, I’ve discovered what works
well for various foods and batch sizes.
Here are the methods I’ve tried, and
the pros and cons I’ve uncovered with
each system.
Water-Seal Crocks
My great-grandmother used a
crock, making it my first choice during my early days of fermentation.
Sticking with tradition seemed safer.
My big purchase was a Harsch crock,
a European-style crock with stone
weights and a lip that forms a water
airlock. While Harsch crocks aren’t
made anymore, several similar designs
are available from other manufacturers
that function the same way.
Pros. The beautiful ceramic crock is
a nod to tradition. It feels good working with this natural material, and I
like that no plastic touches my food.
The stone weights work well to keep
the vegetables submerged below the
brine. This type of crock is ideal for a
batch of New York-style whole pickles,
and the water airlock is terrific, if you
can resist checking the vegetables.
Cons. Crocks are heavy and can be
difficult to store. Even though my crock
is only 5 liters, it’s not easy to move, especially when filled. (I still have to ferment large batches to make dragging it
out worthwhile.) If you want to open
the lid and check on what’s fermenting,
you’ll disrupt the airlock. Crocks are
pricey; less expensive options do exist,
but it’s common to pay more than $100.
Summary. These European-style
crocks are an excellent option for
Water-seal crocks (top) and Kraut Source units (lower left) both rely on water airlocks to work.
Silicone waterless airlock lids (lower right) and other waterless systems use a one-way valve.
those who wish to make large batches
that don’t need to be checked during
Pros. It’s ideal for small batches; all you need is a widethe fermentation process. If you wish to make larger batches
mouthed jar. The water airlock system keeps oxygen out
and check them more regularly, it’s easy enough, and less excompletely, as long as you don’t peek.
pensive, to use a standard crock and place a plate and weight
Cons. It has multiple pieces, which means more items
on top of the vegetables to submerge them. Be sure to drape
to store and keep track of. I’m likely to toss these types of
a towel over the top to keep out insects.
things into a kitchen jar and lose a piece. With a multipart
Kraut Source
system like this, I have to make sure everything goes back
Because I was already familiar with a water airlock sysin its box.
tem, this small-scale option caught my eye. Instead of stone
Summary. Like the water-seal crocks, this system effecweights, Kraut Source (available on Page 146) uses a staintively keeps oxygen away from vegetables, unless you open
less steel plunger to keep vegetables under the brine. The
the lid, in which case there’s a tendency for mold growth. If
plunger fits perfectly in a wide-mouthed jar, and it prevents
you like the water airlock systems, and you know roughly
vegetable bits from floating to the surface.
how long you need to ferment your recipes, this is a foolWWW.MOTHEREARTHNEWS.COM
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proof option. It’s pricier than some of the
other small-scale options, with one unit
costing about $30.
Silicone Waterless Airlock Lid
A friend introduced me to this method
while showing me how to make her kimchi. The silicone lids (pictured on Page
145) are designed with a bubble on top,
and when air builds up during the fermentation process, it’s released through
a small slit in the bubble. The waterless
airlock (or one-way valve) is designed to
prevent oxygen from getting inside the jar.
Pros. The silicone lids are lightweight,
easy to clean, and nearly indestructible.
You can put the whole jar, including the
lid, in the refrigerator when the fermentation processed is finished, which is nice,
since some ferments will continue to
bubble away.
Cons. You’ll need a weight to hold vegetables under the brine. Glass weights
work best, but you’ll have to purchase
Double jars (left) and spring plungers (right) are both simple and inexpensive options.
them separately. Although these lid valves
are designed to be one-way, you might still have issues with
oxygen reaching bits of floating vegetables, causing mold
to form.
Summary. These lids are easy to use and clean, and they’re
inexpensive. (Prices vary, but options are available for less
than $10.) The most challenging aspect is finding a way
to keep the vegetables below the brine. Before buying glass
weights, I used an onion slice or cabbage leaves, but neither
kept everything in place. Even when using a weight, you’ll
still want to use something to prevent small bits of vegetables from floating past the weight to the surface.
Double Jars
Kraut Source Fermentation Kit
This fermentation kit has everything you need to ferment
sauerkraut, kimchi, pickles, and more, right in your own
home. Whether you’ve been fermenting for years or are just
getting started, this kit makes fermentation easy, with just a
Mason jar and a special gasket tool, all in compostable packaging. This product is available at www.MotherEarthNews.
com/Store or by calling 800-234-3368. Mention promo code
MMEPAMZI. Item #10607.
Sometimes, simple is the best way to go. On the recommendation of a veteran fermenter friend, I experimented
with jars by placing a smaller jar inside of a larger one to
hold down the vegetables. It’s simple and inexpensive, and
it works. You’ll need wide-mouthed quart or pint jars to
hold the vegetables and brine, and regular pint or half-pint
jars filled with water to act as weights. You’ll also want some
sort of covering, either a light towel or cheesecloth, to keep
insects from finding their way into the ferment.
Pros. Most people have jars on hand, making this an
inexpensive option that’s ideal for small batches.
Cons. It’s not as attractive as other methods, and it can
be messy, particularly if the brine bubbles over the top. If
left uncovered, flies and other insects can get into the mix.
Summary. If you want to try countertop fermentation but
you don’t have any equipment, this is a simple and effective
method. It’s not as pretty as some methods, and I’ve found
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that once I fill the jars, I need to leave
them in place. (I tend to spill the brine
if I have to shift them to a new location.)
Plus, you’ll need to cover the jars. While
we joke about flies adding extra protein,
bugs in the brine will ruin the batch.
Spring Plunger with
Waterless Airlock Lid
This is a simple design consisting of a
spring and plunger held down by a vented
lid. All you have to do is add your vegetables to a jar, pour brine over top (if necessary), insert the spring and plunger, and
then screw on the lid.
Pros. This system is simple to use, and
it doesn’t require a weight. The lids and
springs are inexpensive, and you usually
get two or more in a kit. (Ball sells kits for
less than $10. Other options are available
for less than $20.)
Cons. The plunger isn’t solid like it is in
the Kraut Source system, so small pieces of
vegetable can float to the top.
Summary. Unless you’re using this system for larger, chunkier vegetables, it’s
helpful to use a piece of cabbage leaf or a
slice of onion to keep the vegetables under
the brine. When I fermented grated carrots, I had to skim
off the carrot bits that floated to the surface to prevent them
from molding. When I opened up the jar to taste the carrots
a week through the fermentation process, I had to pick out
the floating bits then too, before screwing the lid back on
the jar.
Vacuum Pump with Waterless Airlock Lid
Brillenti Easy Grip Fermenting Lids are the latest addition
to my fermentation arsenal. This system and others like it
come with an oxygen vacuum pump and lids with a one-way
valve. While I typically don’t like extra gadgets, the pump
works great to remove air after testing a ferment. It’s fun to
watch the bubbles rise as it pulls air from the jar. With other
methods, I often saw white mold on top within a few days
of removing the lid to sample the vegetables. This doesn’t
happen with the vacuum pump.
Pros. The ability to pull out oxygen after tasting is a game
changer. The Brillenti lids also include a date tracker that
you can set when you start a ferment, which is handy when
I have a line of fermenting goodies on the countertop.
Cons. The lids can be difficult to unscrew, although running them under warm water helps. You’ll also need a weight
to keep the vegetables below the brine.
Summary. Vacuum pump systems can be a bit pricey
upfront (the Brillenti system sells for $35), although most
come with multiple lids. If you like to check on your
A vacuum pump can pull air out of a jar that’s been
opened mid-fermentation, eliminating the risk of
mold growth on floating vegetable bits.
ferments periodically, a pump will virtually eliminate the
risk of mold.
A System to Suit Your Style
With so many options out there, it can be overwhelming to figure out which fermentation system works best for
you. The good news is that you really can’t go wrong. Some
setups are a little more foolproof than others, but as long as
the vegetables stay below the brine, it’s mostly a matter of
what gear suits your style.
Take Your Fermentation Skills
Beyond the Basics
Learn the ins and outs of fermentation
from the experts at the Noma restaurant!
With more than 500 step-by-step photographs and illustrations, and 100 approachably written and meticulously tested
recipes, this book takes readers far beyond
typical kimchi and sauerkraut to include
koji, shoyus, misos, and more. This title is
available at www.MotherEarthNews.com/
Store or by calling 800-234-3368. Mention
promo code MMEPAMZI. Item #9291.
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How to Make Delicious
Poultry Sausage
Know Your Meat
Darker meat makes great sausage,
so you can approach your recipe in a
few ways. One is to buy several whole
birds, take off the breasts for later use,
and compose your sausage with the
rest of the carcass. Or, if you’re like
me, you’ll just put the whole bird into
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LEFT:
Y
ou’ve braised, grilled, fried,
spatchcocked, and stuffed. Why
not try your hand at poultry
sausage? In the modern kitchen, whole
birds rule the day, giving families
multiple meals from one purchase.
Sausage from chicken, duck, or other
fowl is easy to make, lean yet juicy, and
fun to flavor in creative ways. Here are
some tips and tricks for composing a
delicious poultry sausage that you can
adapt to accommodate any species of
fowl and any flavor combination you
can dream of.
FROM
By Meredith Leigh
MEREDITH LEIGH; ADOBE STOCK/OZERKINA
Whatever your favored fowl, use these preparation and cooking
tips to create flavorful, juicy links for a multitude of meals.
the recipe, favoring a combination of
light and dark meat in your sausages. I
buy only pastured poultry, and prefer
breeds that live longer and move more
before harvest, leading to inherently
darker and more flavorful meat.
Take all the meat off of the bone.
Don’t worry about the skin; you’ll need
that too. The best way to get bones
out of a bird is to cut along the length
of the wing, thigh, or drumstick, and
then “pop” the bone out of the joint.
They remove easily from there. To
remove the breast meat, cut from the
wishbone straight down the keel bone
or breastbone, and, keeping your knife
Use your favorite kind of fowl and seasonings to create personalized poultry sausages.
close to the carcass, lift the breasts off
either side. Don’t forget the oysters on
making chicken sausages, you can just
salt content. To that, add what you
the back of the bird — two on either
like. The recipe I’ve composed (left)
use the chicken skins, as I’ve done in
side of the upper back near the joint
calls for preserved lemons, fresh garlic,
the recipe included below. The result
between the shoulder and the main
is amazing, lean, and moist. You can
sweet smoked paprika, rosemary, and
carcass, and two on either side of the
weigh the skin and the meat sepawhite pepper.
lower spine, about halfway up the
rately, if you’re concerned you might
In general, simpler is better. If you’re
back. Once you’ve removed all the
need to supplement the skin with adjust starting out, I recommend salt,
meat from the bones, cut the meat into
ditional pork fat. In this recipe, I used
black pepper, garlic, fresh herbs, and
2-to-3-inch strips, and lay it
a dash of white wine. There’s
in a single layer on a baking
no hard-and-fast rule for how
sheet. Place it into the freezer
much dry spice or other into chill while you prepare
gredient to add to a sausage
seasonings. Be sure to place
recipe. Consider adding
1⁄3 the amount of pepper than
all the bones and any other
bits from the carcass, such as
you did salt. Add other ingredients as your senses guide
cartilage, into a stockpot, and
• 4 pounds poultry meat and skin (2 whole chickens
you, paying attention to color
cover it with cold water. Set it
de-boned, at 4 to 5 pounds each)
and smell.
on a burner, and let it simmer
• 1 ounce sea salt or kosher salt
Keep in mind that you’re
for several hours. When it’s
• 1⁄4 ounce white pepper
aiming to balance ingredients.
done, you’ll have a rich stock
• 1⁄3 ounce sweet smoked paprika
If something is inherently
to use when cooking grains or
• 1⁄3 ounce dried rosemary, ground
s p i c y, c o n s i d e r a d d i n g
beans, or when making soup.
• 1 ounce fresh garlic, chopped
something sweet. If something
You’ll also be able to cool the
• 31⁄3 ounces preserved lemons (about 2 whole), rinsed
is bitter or astringent, balance
bones and pick any remaining
and chopped
it with something rich. The
meat off of them for another
• A splash of chicken stock (important moisture if you
brightness of the preserved
meal, such as tacos, soup, or
use only skins and no added fat)
lemons in my recipe stands
chicken salad.
out, for sure, but the earthiness
Adding the Fat
of the paprika and rosemary
Sausage needs fat, for both
and the spice from the garlic
moisture and for flavor. If you choose
two chickens and just trusted that the
and pepper round out the flavor.
to add fat, go for duck fat or pork fat
skin on them was enough. The result
at 30 percent. If you do include pork
was less work and a delicious sausage.
Grinding
fat, be sure to use back fat, which has a
You’ll need a way to grind the
firm texture and a high melting point,
Flexible Flavor
meat. For this recipe, I used an LEM
so it’ll hold up well through processSalt is the key ingredient. Calculate
No. 8 Big Bite Grinder, which does
ing and contribute to the perfect tex1.5 percent of the weight of the meat
a fabulous job of making 15 to 20
ture in your finished sausage. When
with the fat or skin, and that’s your
pounds of sausage in one go. You can
FROM
LEFT:
MEREDITH LEIGH; ADOBE STOCK/OZERKINA
Chicken Sausage with
Preserved Lemon
and Smoked Paprika
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149
10/7/21 2:33 PM
From left: Choose how fine you want to grind your meat based on your texture preferences. Myosin helps bind the sausages when they’re formed.
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FLICKR/JANE CHARLESWORTH; ADOBE STOCK (4)/MARYIA, STEVE GADOMSKI,
FROM LOWER LEFT:
Make sure your counters are clean
before you stuff the sausage. The
best machine for the job is a vertical
hand-powered sausage stuffer. For this
recipe, I used an LEM Mighty Bite
5-pound-capacity stuffer and 32-to35-millimeter natural hog
casings. Sausage stuffers
usually come with three to
four interchangeable stuffing tubes. For this recipe,
you’ll use the mediumsized tube, which is meant
for bratwurst-sized links.
Put all the sausage mix
into the canister. Make
sure the press is screwed
onto the auger correctly,
and then begin to turn the
crank and force the press
down into the canister.
This will compress the
meat and begin to evacuate air from the product.
When the meat is just
starting to come out of
the end of the sausage
tube, load all the casings
onto the stuffing tube. Tie
a double overhand knot
into the end of the casing,
and then, keeping your
hand on the sausage tube
to guide the casing, begin
turning the crank. Allow
the meat to fill the casings before releasing more
VENTURA, TELEGINATANIA
Stuffing
CLOCKWISE
also purchase an attachment for a
the refrigerator and clean the grinder.
KitchenAid mixer, if that makes more
Before stuffing the sausage, make a
sense for your home. I recommend the
test patty from the ground meat and
Chef ’sChoice attachment, because it’s
cook it in a little skillet. Let it rest a
stainless steel.
moment and then taste it. If it needs
Put the working parts of your grindanything, adjust as needed.
er into the freezer along with the poultry meat and fat you’ve
prepared. Because poultry
carries the highest bacterial counts of any meat we
consume, it’s important
to keep the process cold
throughout to limit contamination. Keep surfaces
clean using a mixture of
60 percent alcohol and
water. When you’re ready
to grind, mix your seasonings with the meat and
fat, and send it through
the coarsest plate of the
meat grinder. Take half
the mixture and send it
through again. If you want
a finer texture, send a portion of the mix through a
third time. With gloved
hands, mix the sausage
thoroughly for at least a
minute. This will ensure
the buildup of myosin,
a protein that creates the
gluelike substance to bind
the sausage. When you’ve
mixed and the sausage is
sufficiently sticky, place
Make sure your workspace is clean for sausage-making.
the meat mixture into
casing off the sausage tube. You’ll get
a feel for it as you go. The meat will
fill the casing; you’ll simply guide the
amount of casing that’s released from
the sausage tube so you can control
the fullness of the sausages. You’ll
want them to be full and firm, but still
supple. This is so that when you link
them, they’ll have room to compress
into links without bursting. If you do
get a tear, just remove the meat from
the problem spot, and then cut and
tie the casing before you start stuffing again. Any meat lost from burst
casings can be returned to the canister and restuffed, or packed as bulk
sausage for cooking up into patties or
mixing into meatballs.
CLOCKWISE
FROM LOWER LEFT:
FLICKR/JANE CHARLESWORTH; ADOBE STOCK (4)/MARYIA, STEVE GADOMSKI,
VENTURA, TELEGINATANIA
Linking and Drying
Once the sausages are stuffed, decide
how long you want your links to be.
The standard is 5 to 6 inches. Pinch
the place where you want to make a
link between your thumb and forefinger. Then, twist five to six times to
form the link. Go down another 5 to
6 inches, pinch, and twist in the opposite direction.
Continue pinching and twisting, alternating the direction you twist each
time, through the entire coil of sausage. Once the sausages are linked, arrange them on a plate or baking sheet,
and leave them to dry uncovered in
the refrigerator while you clean your
workspace and prepare for cooking.
Cooking
The best way to cook your sausages
is to poach them first, and then grill
them or sear them in a pan. This will
ensure they’re cooked all the way
through without being overcooked on
the outside. Simply fill a stockpot or
Dutch oven with water, and bring it
almost to a boil, but not all the way.
Carefully lower the sausages into the
poaching water, allow them to poach
for roughly six to eight minutes, and
then remove them from the poaching
water. At this stage, keep them in the
refrigerator for up to three days before
searing them off, or sear or grill them
right away. The drier they are before
The typical length for a sausage link is 5 to 6 inches, but you can make them any length you’d like.
you sear them, the better browning
reactions you’ll get on the surface, enhancing both flavor and texture.
For the recipe on Page 149 , I used
pastured chickens and served the sau-
sages with roasted carrots and a wheat
berry and spinach salad. Vary the recipe with other flavors, and you’ll be on
your way to building your own recipe
book of fabulous poultry sausages.
From Sourcing to Butchery
for the Modern Omnivore
The Ethical Meat Handbook challenges us to take a hard
look at our dietary choices, increase self-reliance, and enjoy delicious food that benefits our health and our planet.
You’ll learn how to integrate animals into your garden or
farmstead, the economics and parameters for responsible
meat production, and more. This title is available at www.
MotherEarthNews.com/Store or by calling 800-234-3368.
Mention promo code MMEPAMZI. Item #10041.
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By Hannah Kincaid
H
ydrosols are making a comeback, and for good reason. Safer and more sustainable than essential oils,
more potent than herbal teas, and easy to make at
home, these steam-distilled aromatic waters offer a nearly
unlimited number of benefits and uses. The most common
commercially available hydrosols are rose water and witch
hazel, although store-bought versions are often diluted with
alcohol or other preservatives to extend their shelf life. By
making your own hydrosols — or buying high-quality bottles from artisan distillers — you can experience an incredible array of pure aromatic waters, including chamomile,
lavender, mint, cinnamon, and myrrh. These liquid aromatics can be used as natural room fresheners or perfumes;
incorporated into a vast array of recipes, including pastries,
sorbets, syrups, and cocktails; mixed into homemade bodycare products; poured into baths; added to neti pots and
You can easily make your own hydrosols at home using a small still,
such as the 10-liter copper alembic still pictured at left.
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HAN (2)
MILY
FROM
Use homegrown plants and a
simple stovetop method to make
steam-distilled aromatic waters
that can be used for cooking,
healing, and cleaning.
LEFT:
Where Aromatherapy
and Herbalism Meet
QUEREN KING-OROZCO; ADOBE STOCK/MOEYAN; E
Hydrosols
10/7/21 2:33 PM
FROM
LEFT:
QUEREN KING-OROZCO; ADOBE STOCK/MOEYAN; E
MILY
HAN (2)
sinus steams; and even used in a cleaning regimen to spray
countertops and freshen linens.
What Are Hydrosols?
Hydrosols (called “hydrolats” in Europe) are made by
distilling fresh plant material in water. This is the same general process used to make essential oils; however, industrial
essential oil distillers use much larger stills and much more
fresh plant material than what’s available to home gardeners.
Of equal importance, essential oil distillers perform a hot
and fast distillation and then turn off their stills as soon as
they’ve captured enough product.
Hydrosol distillers, on the other hand, favor a long and
steady distillation so the hydrosol’s top, middle, and low
notes all have a chance to come through the still and merge
into a complex finished product. This is why you shouldn’t
buy hydrosols that are a byproduct of essential oil distillation; they won’t include as wide a variety of notes and
complexities as those hydrosols distilled solely for their own
purpose. When purchasing, favor “steam-distilled” hydrosols
or floral waters sold by companies with a close relationship
to their producers; avoid products labeled as “floral water”
that are only essential oils added to water. (See “Resources”
on Page 155 for a list of reputable hydrosol vendors.)
Therapeutic Uses of Hydrosols
Hydrosols not only smell divine, they also carry a wide
array of physically, mentally, and emotionally healing constituents. I approached hydrosols from an herbalism background and was pleasantly surprised to learn that a plant’s
Make Hydrosols on the Stove
If you’re interested in making your own hydrosols, you can
Ingredients
start with a simple stovetop method. After you fall in love with
• 6 cups fresh rose petals
the ancient alchemical process, you may consider graduating
• About 6 cups water
to a still, which can be made from copper, glass, or stainless
• Large resealable plastic bag
steel, and will result in a more efficient distillation. Copper is
filled with ice cubes, plus
the top choice for many home distillers, because the metal
more ice cubes as needed
binds with sulfur and yeast to form a sweeter hydrosol that
doesn’t need to age before being used.
For this recipe, use a 12-quart lidded saucepan and a convex lid (a glass lid is ideal, so you can see what’s going on inside the pot). You’ll also need 2 small,
sturdy, heat-safe bowls, such as ramekins or ceramic or glass cereal bowls—if you only have a single
bowl, a heat-safe glass measuring cup will work well for the second bowl. You can use this method to
create hydrosols from a wide variety of fresh flowers or herbs, such as orange blossom or lavender.
1 Gently shake the flowers to remove any dirt or insects.
2 Place 1 heat-safe bowl upside down in the center of the saucepan.
3 Arrange the rose petals around the sides of the bowl.
4 Pour just enough water into the pan to cover the rose petals; the water level should remain below
the top of the bowl.
5 Balance another bowl (right side up) on top of the first bowl; this is what will catch your rose water.
6 Cover the pot with the lid flipped upside down.
7 Bring the water to a simmer over medium heat. After it starts to simmer, put the bag of ice on the
center of the inverted lid.
8 Adjust the heat if necessary to maintain a gentle simmer.
9 When the ice cubes in the bag melt, pour out the water, and add new ice cubes before replacing
the bag on the saucepan lid. As the steam rises inside the pot, it will condense on the underside of
the cold lid and drip into the open bowl.
10 Peek inside the pot occasionally; when you have about 1 cup rose water in the bowl (which will
take approximately 11⁄2 hours), turn off the heat. Let cool.
11 Uncover the pot, and carefully lift out the bowl of rose water.
12 Using a funnel, transfer the rose water to a sterilized bottle. Use immediately or store in the refrigerator for up to 6 months.
These instructions are excerpted from Wild Drinks and Cocktails by Emily Han. Courtesy of Fair
Winds Press, an imprint of The Quarto Group.
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Stay Healthy with Herbal Remedies
profiles focus on plants that garbenefits are similar in hydrosol
Learn natural, healthier ways to cure comdeners in the United States and
form to what they would be in
mon ailments or take preventative measures
Canada can grow at home and
a tea, tincture, or compress. For
in our seven-part “Natural Health” course.
process themselves using either the
example, plantain poultices work
Topics include growing and using lavender,
stovetop method (detailed on Page
wonders on bug bites and stings,
making herbal tinctures, and creating an anti153) or a small still.
and spraying a plantain hydrosol
inflammatory diet. Find out more at
Cucumber (Cucumis sativus).
on a bug bite provides similar reOnline.MotherEarthNewsFair.com.
That’s right, hydrosols can be made
lief. Chamomile tea is a relaxing
from fruits, including cucumbers,
nervine that makes a soothing
lemons, and limes! Cucumber hybedtime drink; diluting a few teadrosols have a refreshing, cooling aroma that makes a lovely
spoons of chamomile hydrosol in a cup of warm water or
and crisp natural perfume. Use cucumber hydrosol as an afterherbal tea (or adding a few ounces to your bath water) lets
sun spray, or as a cooling mist during menopausal hot flashes.
the plant’s relaxing properties wash over you.
Try soaking a few cotton pads in cucumber hydrosol and then
Unlike essential oils, most hydrosols are safe to ingest,
placing them over your eyes for a luxurious home spa. In the
if diluted. They’re also safe to use with and around young
kitchen, mix a few tablespoons with a few cups of sparkling
children. When changing a baby’s diaper, for example, you
water for a refreshing summer drink. You could also spritz it on
can dip cleansing wipes in a 50-50 solution of hydrosol and
a garden-fresh salad to add a crisp and refreshing bite.
water. Alternatively, you can spray a few mists of hydrosol
Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia). Lavender hydroon a baby’s bum between diaper changes. During bath time,
sols are calming and soothing, which is why many people
add 1 to 3 teaspoons of chamomile hydrosol to an infant’s
spray them on bedding or add them to bath water to help
bath water to help encourage restful sleep.
Dozens of hydrosols are available, and all of them lend
unwind after a long day. Lavender helps soothe headaches
and insomnia, and the hydrosol can be used topically to ease
unique properties and benefits. The following hydrosol
This is my favorite way to incorporate hydrosols into homemade body-care products. This
cream, developed by herbalist and author Rosemary Gladstar, is decadent in its own right,
and the hydrosols take it to the next level. Rose hydrosol works well in this recipe, as would
lavender, rose geranium, calendula, or even cucumber.
1 Combine the waters in a glass measuring cup. (You can use tap water instead of hydrosol or distilled water, but it will sometimes introduce bacteria and encourage the growth of
mold.) Set aside.
2 In a double boiler over low heat, combine the oils. Heat them just enough so they melt.
3 Pour the oils into a blender and let them cool to room temperature. The mixture
should become thick, creamy, semisolid, and cream-colored. This cooling
process can be hastened in the refrigerator, but keep an eye on it so it
doesn’t become too hard.
4 After the mixture has cooled, turn the blender to its highest speed.
In a slow, thin drizzle, pour the water mixture into the center vortex of the
whirling oil.
5 After you’ve added about 3⁄4 of the waters to the oils, listen to the
blender and watch the cream. When the blender coughs and chokes
and the cream looks thick and white, like buttercream frosting, turn off
the blender. You can slowly add more water, beating it in by hand with a
spoon, but don’t over-beat! The cream will thicken as it sets.
6 Pour into cream or lotion jars. Store in a cool location.
Waters
• 2⁄3 cup rose hydrosol (or another hydrosol
of your choice, or distilled water)
• 1⁄3 cup aloe vera gel
• 1 or 2 drops essential oil of choice
• Vitamins A and E, as desired
Oils
• 3⁄4 cup apricot, almond, or grapeseed oil
• 1⁄3 cup coconut oil or cocoa butter
• 1⁄4 teaspoon lanolin
• 1⁄2 to 1 ounce grated beeswax
ADOBE STOCK (2)/VESNA CVOROVIC, MAYA KRUCHANKOVA
Rosemary’s Perfect
Homemade Face Cream
FROM
LEFT:
Excerpted from Rosemary Gladstar’s Herbal Recipes for Vibrant Health
(Storey Publishing).
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itchy bug bites or painful burns. In the
kitchen, lavender hydrosol goes well
with fruit salads and desserts, includSTEAM-DISTILLED HYDROSOLS
ing sorbet and flan.
Aromatics International, www.Aromatics.com
Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis).
Böswellness, www.Boswellness.com
Lemon balm hydrosols help calm the
Nature’s Gift, www.NaturesGift.com
nervous system to ease symptoms of
Pompeii Street, www.PompeiiStreet.com
depression, anxiety, and insomnia. It
Stillpoint Aromatics, www.StillpointAromatics.com
also aids digestion and helps relieve
Wildroot Botanicals, www.Etsy.com/Shop/Wildroot
both cramps and flatulence. Because
it’s an antiviral, you can apply lemon
DISTILLING EQUIPMENT
balm hydrosol to mouth sores related
www.CopperStills.com
to the herpes virus. Lemon balm’s genwww.OlympicDistillers.com
tle anti-inflammatory properties make
www.Copper-Alembic.com
it a versatile topical spray for skin irritations, ranging from bug bites to
WEBSITES
razor burn to cradle cap. Lemon balm
Aromatic Wisdom Institute,
hydrosol has a slight citronella-like
www.AromaticWisdomInstitute.com
scent that works well when used as the
The School for Aromatic Studies,
base for homemade bug sprays.
www.AromaticStudies.com
Pine (Pinus spp.). Which pine speThe Circle H Institute, www.CircleHInstitute.com
cies are available will depend on where
you live, but no matter which species
you use, this evergreen is available to
distill year-round. Energizing and uplifting, pine hydrosol is
properties. Yarrow is a particularly effective wound healer that
an excellent expectorant and decongestant that can help ease
can be sprayed on cuts and bruises, varicose veins, eczema, and
coughs, asthma, and bronchitis. Try adding pine hydrosol
hemorrhoids. Mentally, yarrow hydrosol is stimulating and
to a sinus steam or neti pot. It can also help ease muscle
energizing; it’s considered a protective hydrosol that you can
pain and stimulate circulation, making it a great addition to
use in a similar manner to sage or cedar smoke cleansing sticks.
warm bath water or topical compresses. Pine doesn’t grow
Rather than burning sage to cleanse a space (especially as some
in the wild near my home, so instead I distill Eastern red
species are at risk), try spraying yarrow hydrosol.
cedar (Juniperus virginiana) foliage and use the hydrosol
These descriptions barely scratch the surface of hydrosols.
externally. You can distill a number of conifers, but research
Home gardeners who are interested in making their own
their safety before diving in.
can also experiment with basil, holy basil, clary sage, pepRose (Rosa spp.). Spritzing rose hydrosol directly on your
permint, thyme, rosemary, oregano, calendula, comfrey,
face may be one of the greatest joys in life. This floral water
elderflower, and rose geranium.
smells like a fresh rose, and its uplifting, joyful, and heartwarming scent makes it an ideal ally for those dealing with
depression and grief. After you taste a true, steam-distilled
Farmed and Foraged
rose hydrosol, you’ll question why you ever dealt with the
Herbal Remedies and Recipes
low-quality and artificially flavored rose waters available in
When you’re a homesteader, you face many challenges, from
most stores. Rose hydrosol is a hormone balancer recoma simple cold to an earache in your
mended for all ages; I dilute a few teaspoons in water to help
child, fleas on the dog, or worms
ease cramps and other symptoms of premenstrual syndrome
in your goat. Medicines and treat(PMS). Topically, rose hydrosol is ideal for dry, mature,
ments are never cheap, and are often
and sensitive skin (see “Rosemary’s Perfect Homemade Face
vague. With the help of The Herbal
Cream” recipe, Page 154). Add it to clay face masks, or use
Handbook for Homesteaders by Abby
it to replace your store-bought toner. Rose water has a long
Artemisia, you can learn how to grow,
history of culinary use and is divine when stirred into dairy
forage, and create natural remedies
products, spritzed on fruit, or mixed into desserts and pasall on your own! This title is availtries, such as baklava.
able at www.MotherEarthNews.com/
Yarrow (Achillea millefolium). You can also use hydrosols
Store or by calling 800-234-3368.
made from nonaromatic plants, including yarrow, plantain,
Mention promo code MMEPAMZI.
and nettle. Although they lack the scent profile associated with
other plants, they still carry physically and emotionally healing
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10 Skin-Soothing
Superfoods
Add these nutritious foods to your diet to
boost the health of your body’s largest organ.
By Michelle Schoffro Cook
G
reat skin is an inside job. All
the moisturizers and serums
in the world won’t compensate
for a poor diet. The foods you eat, and
their nutrient content, determine just
how healthy your skin is. While many
great foods can boost skin health and
prevent skin conditions, here are some
of the best skin-soothing superfoods.
Avocados
Many people know that avocados
provide healthful fats for great skin,
but few know that one of the main
reasons avocados boost skin health is
that they boost the body’s absorption
of carotenoids, which are a type of
antioxidant and essential for healthy
skin. By eating avocados alongside
foods with carotenoids, you can increase the amount of those nutrients
you absorb. That means extra skin
health benefits for adding avocado to
your leafy green salad or those sweet
potatoes you’re eating.
Avocados are delicious in guacamole, but don’t let your avocado
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Almonds
Almonds contain high amounts of vitamin E, which may prevent skin damage, and ease UV-induced skin issues.
Fortunately, just 1 ounce of almonds
contains 37 percent of the recommended daily intake of vitamin E. Almonds
also help reduce skin-damaging free
radicals. In a study of 60 male smokers
who ate 3 ounces of almonds daily, researchers found that the subjects had a
23 to 34 percent reduction in oxidative
stress biomarkers (markers of cellular
damage) after only four weeks.
It’s easy to reap the skin health benefits
of almonds. Snack on a handful of raw,
unsalted almonds throughout the day;
chop them up to add to salads; or use
them as a topping for curries and stirfries. Alternatively, add whole almonds
to stir-fries as you cook. Grind almonds
or purchase them preground to use as a
gluten-free flour substitute in your baking. Place slivered almonds atop vegetables while roasting or baking them,
such as green beans with almonds.
For maximum skin support, combine several superfoods, such as avocado and flaxseeds, in one
great-tasting dish.
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Ginger
Flaxseeds and flaxseed oil are among
the richest sources of omega-3 fatty
acids, especially one called alphalinolenic acid (ALA). These oils can
improve skin health. According to
research published in many scientific
Wellness Through Food
People often don’t realize the old adage “you are what you eat” has literal significance
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by adjusting your diet. Discover the relationship between stress and digestion, and which
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mind, and spirit. Join by visiting Online.MotherEarthNewsFair.com.
Green Tea
Green tea is popular for its antiaging and other health-building properties, but now there’s one more reason
to love the beverage: Exciting research
in the medical journal Pharmaceutical
Development and Technology found that
drinking green tea can protect your
skin from UV damage.
Green tea really is a skin superfood
extraordinaire, largely due to a potent
plant nutrient called epigallocatechin
gallate, or EGCG, which helps destroy
skin-damaging free radicals. Free radicals react with healthy cells in the body,
causing damage, so lessening their
numbers can help reduce skin wrinkling and other damage.
Green tea isn’t everyone’s, well, cup of
tea. If you’re not wild about the flavor,
try a few different kinds. Try it iced or
hot. Try it with the addition of mint. If
you want a sweeter drink, add stevia.
Add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and
a few drops of stevia and serve over ice,
et voila: green tea lemonade. Most experts recommend 3 cups daily to reap
green tea’s many health benefits.
Pomegranates
Pomegranates may be another delicious defense against skin cancer.
Research published in the medical
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Flaxseeds
journals, including Nutrients, flaxseeds are natural anti-inflammatories,
which makes them ideal for reducing
skin inflammation and conditions
such as eczema, hives, and rashes. In
another study published in the journal Evidence-Based Complementary
and Alternative Medicine, researchers
found that ingesting flaxseed oil on a
daily basis helped treat the symptoms
of atopic dermatitis, a type of eczema.
Because flaxseeds are sensitive to
heat and light, both the seeds and the
oil are best left uncooked and stored
in the refrigerator. Add flaxseeds to
cooked oatmeal or other breakfast
cereals, or supplement your favorite
smoothies. Flaxseed oil is delicious
drizzled over baked, steamed, or
roasted vegetables and potatoes; over
organic popcorn; or into smoothies.
Simply add a teaspoon or two at a
time, a few times daily, for best results.
LEFT:
recipe repertoire stop there. Add
avocado to your smoothies, salads,
dips, sandwiches, and wraps, and top
thick soups with avocado slices. And,
of course, there’s the classic favorite:
avocado toast. Blend avocado with
cocoa and a sweetener of your choice
for a delicious and healthy chocolate
mousse. Avocados can also be added
to other desserts as a cake ingredient
(replacing some of the oil or butter in
a recipe), or a frosting for cakes, cookies, or cupcakes (simply blend avocado, some icing sugar, and cocoa or
other flavoring).
FROM
Drop grated ginger into a cup of green tea for a double dose of skin protection.
If your goal is to prevent serious skin
conditions, such as cancer, consider
turning to ginger, which has anticancer and tumor-destroying properties. According to researchers, ginger’s
anti-cancer potency is due to several
of its natural compounds — gingerol,
paradol, shogaol, and zerumbone.
Research in the International Journal
of Preventive Medicine found that ginger may help treat skin cancers, as
well as other cancers, including breast,
colorectal, gastric, liver, and prostate.
Enjoy a cup of ginger tea with a
touch of honey or a little of the naturally sweet herb stevia. Additionally,
add freshly grated ginger to soups,
stir-fries, vegetables, and other dishes
to pack extra skin-healing compounds
into your meals.
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Pumpkin is a powerful
antioxidant, and its seeds
are packed with vitamin E.
journal Anti-Cancer Agents in Medicinal
Chemistry explored the anti-cancer effects of pomegranate and pomegranate juice. The scientists found that the
fruit’s rich polyphenol content demonstrated an ability to inhibit skin cancer,
as well as lung, colon, breast, and prostate cancers, and leukemia.
Enjoy pomegranate seeds fresh from
the fruit by cutting it in half and
pulling the seeds from the off-white
flesh of the fruit. The seeds, known as
“arils,” are delicious on their own or
added to your favorite brown rice or
quinoa dish for an explosion of taste.
They’re also excellent on top of Greek
yogurt. Many grocery or health food
stores now offer pomegranate juice,
which is great on its own or mixed
with orange juice and sparkling water
for a spritzer.
Mixing pomegranate juice with
stevia-sweetened ginger ale or carbonated water makes a delicious nonalcoholic cocktail.
Pumpkin and Pumpkin Seeds
Pumpkin is a rich source of beta
carotene, which is essential for healthy
skin, protects against sun damage,
and is a potent antioxidant that may
help protect against skin cancer. Plus,
don’t throw out those pumpkin seeds.
While some foods are higher in vitamin E than pumpkin seeds, few foods
contain as many types of vitamin E
as these seeds do, including: alphatocopherol, gamma-tocopherol, deltatocopherol, alpha-tocomonoenol, and
gamma-tocomonoenol. These many
forms of vitamin E work together to
promote healthy skin.
Pumpkin is versatile and can be used
in a wide variety of dishes.
Cut small pumpkins in half, scoop
out the seeds and set them aside,
brush the flesh with a small amount
of olive oil, and bake at 350 degrees
Fahrenheit until soft (usually 1 hour,
depending on the size of the pumpkins you use).
Purée the flesh to use in coffee beverages, smoothies, cookies, cakes, and
other baked goods. I also add puréed
pumpkin to sweet potatoes for a delicious vegetable side dish.
Add chopped pumpkin to soups,
curries, or stews for a nutrient boost.
For a delicious, skin-healing snack,
place pumpkin seeds on a baking
sheet, sprinkle with a pinch of sea salt,
and bake at 300 degrees for 5 to 10
minutes, or until golden.
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Sweet Potatoes
Sweet potatoes are a good source
of vitamin C, which is necessary for
wound healing and the production
of collagen to keep skin healthy and
youthful. They’re also one of the best
sources of beta carotene, which is a
precursor to vitamin A, and necessary
for healthy skin and to guard against
skin cancer.
Sweet potatoes are readily available,
although stores often confuse sweet
potatoes and yams and mislabel the
two. Almost all the “yams” found in
grocery stores and markets are actually
sweet potatoes.
Sweet potatoes can have red, orange,
yellow, or even purple skin. They can
also have orange, white, or purple
flesh, adding to the confusion between
these two distinct tubers. Enjoy them
in soups, stews, curries, and sauces;
baked and added to salads; or eaten all
on their own.
People rarely give walnuts much
consideration, favoring exotic superfoods from around the globe. Before
you turn to foods with a massive environmental footprint that have traveled
many miles to get to your local store,
consider walnuts.
Walnuts are rich in anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids, which reduce skin inflammation. Just 1 ounce
(about 14 walnut halves) contains
2,570 milligrams of omega-3s, making walnuts one of the richest sources
of this natural, skin-friendly nutrient.
If you typically can’t stand walnuts,
give the fresh walnuts in the refrigerator section of your health food store
a chance. They lack the bitterness of
packaged walnuts, and they have a
sweet flavor and buttery texture.
Fresh, raw walnuts make a great addition to salads, yogurt, and bowls of
fruit. They can be chopped and added
to quinoa or rice salads, or to previously cooked vegetable dishes. Add
some to smoothies, snack on a handful on their own, toss them with a little walnut oil and spices, or eat them
alongside dried fruit.
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Walnuts
Top sweet potatoes with walnuts for a meal that delivers vitamin C and omega-3s.
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