8:30 a.m. Feb 25 and I was full up on organic oatmeal, organic raisins and organic milk, leaning forward in my seat at the first of two day’s worth of workshops at the Midwest Organic Farming Conference in La Crosse. I was learning about “Soil Building through Cover Cropping and […]
Saturday January 8 was the first indoor Dane County Farmers’ Market of 2011, and more excitingly, the first Taste of the Market Breakfast of the New Year. As per usual, the serving line threatened to spill out into the 20 degree morning air.
Composting is a rich and fertile topic, and there is always something more to learn. I got my most recent lesson at a presentation on Sheet Mulching by Kate Heiber-Cobb, a Permaculture Designer and founder of the Madison Area Permaculture Guild. The beauty of compost! Heiber-Cobb says that sheet mulching […]
It’s been a hot, dry October. Odd to watch the leaves being blown off the trees by such balmy breezes. But fall is fall — and that means crazed squirrel time. Winter is coming, and there are things to do before the ground freezes. With Doug teaching biology at UW-Platteville […]
I like dried fruit. It’s a great way to enjoy fruit all year long with minimal energy expenditure. Doug and I have been hoping that we will be able to grow seedless grapes on our south-facing slope, solar dry them and put some local raisins into our foodshed. Last night […]
You should have noticed the apple in the bottom of the fruit bowl was bruised. Now it’s underside is liquefied. How do you know without digging down to the glop? Jostle the bowl, and a cloud of Drosophila melanogaster will give you the rotting fruit alert. Those of us who […]
This has been a great summer for growing peppers in Wisconsin, and no one knows this better than Dr. David Baumler: by day — a post-doctoral researcher at the Genome Center of Wisconsin, University of Wisconsin-Madison, and by night and weekend — a master pepper gardener. Dr. Baumler spoke on […]
This year’s harvest is in full swing, and it’s always a mixed bag of crops that surpass my wildest expectations and others that are a real bust. I’m hoping to improve my odds next year. I’ve decided to get the jump on New Year’s Resolutions and start planning for next […]
So, here is my most recent publication, the cover story for this week’s Isthmus. Researching this piece turned me into a believer in the benefits of whey, and Tera Johnson has made me believe that her whey is best for both my body and my planet. Check it out: Tera […]
I learned a ton this weekend at the Midwest Renewable Energy Fair on everything from straw bale building to how to make a solar food dryer that works in Wisconsin, but what I want to share today are five tips on how to eat in a way that is healthy […]
Digging in the Driftless 