Check this out in Chicago! I love this idea—easy mobility, utilizing small spaces, and teaching urban youth about urban farming! So GOOD!
“A literal food truck expands the creative arsenal of urban agriculture.”
I usurped my parents' South Minneapolis yard so I could grow organic food. We don't really know what we're doing over here off 60th, but I figure that's probably okay!
I’m really excited to try this tomorrow—it will be cooler, it will give me something to do once we’re done planting herbs, and I will save SO MUCH MONEY!
From the blog The Farmer’s Nest, comes these great, easy-to-follow directions on turning one bar of soap into a gallon of liquid soap! What I love most is that’s it’s something I can do and it allows to get a bulk amount of my favorite hand-soap without resorting to scary brands or breaking the bank!
I’ll let you know how this all works—expect a follow-up post soon!
Merry Monday, homesteaders!
I’m going to try and update this once a week so that we stay up to date on our harvests throughout this growing season! Thus far, obviously we cannot say we’ve harvested that much as we are still planting! In fact, this afternoon I planted more onions, we are digging up a new bed, and plan on planting some spinach, carrots, and beets, and purchasing our herbs and broccoli! We might even put together the new rotating composter! However, we do have rhubarb. Lots, and lots of rhubarb. So let’s take a look at our total:
Rhubarb: 7 lbs 22 oz.
We are well on our way to the 19 lbs from last year—I wonder if we can beat it!
Keep an eye out for some pictures, updates, and all that good stuff! Have a great day and don’t forget to call your mom!
A good friend of mine (who has an awesome blog called MargitMae, where she talks about clean cosmetics and cats), retweeted this the other day and I thought it was quite fitting for where I’m trying to go in my life through this whole urban farm/homestead adventure.
Bringing ourselves back to nature and our roots, connecting with the earth and elements seems like such a novel idea in today’s society. Try as we might, we are not separate from the natural world, instead we are an integral part of it. Separating ourselves only proves to damage us and our surroundings, isolating us and teaching us nothing. That’s why this quote struck me—”…grow in the open air and to eat and sleep with the earth.” We have to remember both our place in the natural world as well as our responsibility to be active participants within it.
In the city, that can be hard to do. Day in and day out, we spend most of our time surrounded by man-made trophies to industrialism and often forget to see the sky above. I am blessed to live in a metropolitan area that is famed for its parks, lakes, rivers, and green spaces. What’s more, I grew up in a family descended from farmers, with a backyard larger than three of my friends’ yards put together. Nature has always surrounded me, but I never really saw my role in that partnership until recently.
I want to make this a lifestyle change and I want it to be successful. The thing is, it’s not easy. It’s not easy to spend more money on food at co-ops than at Target or Cub, or realize that my translucent powder, while clean, took up the bulk of my grocery bill. It’s not easy to remember what to do for each type of plant, to go thin the lettuce, to remember to EAT everything and/or preserve it only to have to remember to eat it later!
I think part of the reason I started this blog was almost as an accountability measure for myself—I need to keep up with this (blog, farming, sustainable living endeavors) because it’s that important to me. I can, we all can be healthier, improve the environment, and inspire others to do the same so long as this is something with which we actually follow through. Sure it’s frustrating. Change almost always is. And when this change impacts the most personal parts of your life—your home and your body, it’s even more difficult. That being said, I am a firm believer that this kind of change is not just necessary, it’s non-negotiable. If you can do something to change the state of your community and your own life, why wouldn’t you? Aren’t we obligated to do so?
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Now I see the secret of making the best person: it is to grow in the open air and to eat and sleep with the earth.—Walt Whitman
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Have you started composting with worms yet? I’ll get a post up detailing how I went about making mine! It’s in the storage unit of my apartment! Collectively my worms are named Melvin. What would you name yours?
From The Backyard Homestead, ed. Carleen Madigan
I just picked up this book at one of my favorite bookstores in Minneapolis. It seems to be great how-to guide for any number of things and makes me want to take on growing grains, brewing beer, and herb vinegars! When I’m done exploring, I’ll add it to the booklist!
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If I was to change this life I leadI’d be Johnny Tomato Seed.
Cause I know what this country needs:
homegrown tomatoes in every yard you see.
-Guy Clark
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NOTE: You may want to click to the original Huffington Post linked below to see the infographic better—tumblr doesn’t allow it get large enough to read everything. (So helpful, right?)
This infographic (originally from this article on Huffington Post, who borrowed it from Greenpeace), takes a really interesting look at the sustainability of our fish market here in the US. Living in Minnesota, we have a rather large selection of fresh water fish to choose from (pollution being a growing concern however, as well as new invasive species), but much of the rest of the fish we consume (like salmon) has to come from somewhere else. I have always tried to purchase wild fish, caught sustainably and not farmed, however this also takes a look at these companies policies towards their environmental impact as well as the transparency of said policies.
Take a look and see where your store stacks up! As for me, I’ll keep to my co-ops as much as I can, not to mention pick up some fish next time I’m up North!
How awesome is this! I am in love with the idea of combining food, farming, and education. At a time when most of the population is now food illiterate—unable to cook with raw food, let alone grow it themselves, combining these three facets of life into one seems incredibly smart. Not only are they teaching these kids some great skills and getting them involved with the earth and growing, but they are also inspiring them to take a more active role in their healthy and the health and well-being of those in their neighborhood! What’s more, it shows that urbanites are not oblivious to the lack of natural produce at their markets and these urban deserts can in fact be turned into lush, green neighborhoods filled with locally grown produce.
We have something similar here in Saint Paul with the Community Design Center of Minnesota. The CDC is an awesome organization, “whose mission is to build vibrant and healthy communities through food, conservation, and youth development.” They do some amazing work here in the Twin Cities with their Garden Corps youth internships and gardening education, their Nutrition Corps youth internships and cooking/nutrition education, and their Conservation Corps youth internship program. These awesome programs help inner city youth to grow as leaders, improve their healthy and their communities, and develop new skills and career opportunities! They even have CSA shares and sell at farmers’ markets!
There are some great things going on in our urban centers surrounding youth, education, and farming! Find a way to get involved and share your passion for locally grown produce with the future leaders of America! Let’s grow this movement and change some lives while we’re at it!
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