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Sharing: Your Garden's Other Health Benefit
The instinct to share home grown herbs, flowers and vegetables runs strong in gardeners, so sharing home grown goodies brings heartfelt rewards.
Know When to Plant What: Find Your Average First Fall Frost Date
Learn how to calculate best planting times for fall harvested crops.
The New Gardener's Hollow Leg Junior
Smaller version of the original Gardener's Hollow Leg is perfect for picking dinner!
Harvesting Sweet Potatoes
After a summer of growing sweet potatoes, fall is the long-awaited time to enjoy the fruits of your labors. Properly harvesting sweet potatoes, followed by sound curing and storage methods, will ensure you can enjoy your crop through the winter months.
The Garden of Self-Defense
How my dad defended himself from overly generous gardeners.
Celebrate the Harvest with Cake
Get creative in the kitchen by baking with your harvest. These sweet recipes will change the way you think about baking with fruits and vegetables.
Rainwater Hub Offers Efficient Rainwater Harvesting
The Rainwater Hub is an entirely new answer to the limits of traditional downspout diverters and rain barrel systems. The Rainwater Hub distributes rainwater up to 150 feet through regular garden hoses.
Best Sun Protection for Sun Loving Gardeners
Dog days of summer? Yes, but there is still a lot of the grwoing season left. Protect yourself from the late summer sun with these tried 'n true items ... tested by a gardener who knows more than she'd like to about skin cancer.
Weed & Water Wednesday: A Favorite Desert Garden
Although winter is setting in, that doesn't mean an end to the garden season in desert climates! Get inspired by this beautiful rainwater-harvesting, food-producing desert landscape!
Heirloom Tomatoes and National Seed-Swap Day: Attend a Local Event or Host Your Own!
We're getting revved up for winter seed swaps, and planning our tomato plantings to account for all the great tasting events next summer and fall. Find out how to find your own local events, or host your own!
Prop 37: Heirloom Corns and Other Reasons to Support California's Right to Know
Join us in fighting the threat of GMOs: California's Right to Know (Prop 37) for GMO labeling leads the nation, and the Southern Exposure lawsuit against Monsanto continues to push through the courts. Plus, fall gardening can be easier than summer!
Organic Gardening and Rainwater Harvesting: Sustainable Living by Example
Engineer Venkappa Gani leads by example when it comes to sustainable living. His entire backyard is an organic garden, an edible landscape that borders his rainwater harvesting tank collectors overlooked by solar panels that power his home (and more!). Gani is dedicated to sustainability, a word he lives by everyday at his suburban home in Austin, Texas.
Broad Section of America Attends the MOTHER EARTH NEWS FAIR
I noticed, as I walked the FAIR yesterday, a broad section of America.
Sunny Days Ahead for the Sunset Hill School Garden
Volunteers work to start the Sunset Hill Elementary School Garden in Lawrence, Kan.
Savoring Bean Gleaning Season
In addition to the beans you planted to harvest dry, a good gleaning may yield a surprising harvest of gourmet beans.
Where Have All the Gardens Gone?
Is having too many gardens a detriment to selling a suburban home?
A Creative and Resourceful Grandmother During the Industrial Revolution
A transplanted Choctaw and Southerner, a grandmother shows her strength and creativity during the Industrial Revolution and shows how one can face and adapt to life's challenges.
Gift Ideas for Gardeners
A short list of gift ideas for gardeners.
Joel Salatin Inspires at Heritage Harvest Fest
Monticello's Heritage Harvest Festival inspired us to keep at those challenges that frustrate us on the farm.
Too Many Garden Veggies! What to Do?
YIKES! What to do when you've planted too many veggies? Is your garden producing more than one family can eat? Sure, you can give it away. But wait! Try pickling those garden gems. This way, you'll be able to enjoy them through the winter and beyond!
The Thrill of Gardening
The experience of growing one's first garden is a thrill one will never forget.
Harlem Community Garden Update: Building Garden Beds
The community garden in East Harlem, Chenchita's Garden, is beginning to take shape.
Help Build a Community Garden in Harlem
You can help support a community garden in New York City's East Harlem neighborhood.
Protecting Your Rainwater Tank With Painted Bed Sheets
To prevent algae growth deterioration by sun damage to a plastic rainwater tank, cover it with a painted bed sheet.
Extracting Honey Economically
A small apiary uses a unique system to extract honey from frames.
Continuing Fight for the Right to Grow Food: Orlando's War on Gardens
In a war on gardens, the City of Orlando has taken issue with the rows of beans, greens, and other vegetables occupying Jason and Jennifer Helvenston's front yard garden. The Helvenstons respond to the City's request they remove their "illegal" garden.
Urban Agriculture and Garden Training
Amid mounting concerns over food security and sustainable food systems, the rise of urban gardens and agriculture has been on the rise. Due to a paralleled increase in the numbers of people interested in learning how to garden, programs in urban agriculture at colleges as well as nonprofit urban garden training programs have sprouted up across the country.
Introducing the Gardener's Hollow Leg
The perfect partner for pruning, weeding and harvesting.
Fight for the Right to Grow Food: Orlando Man Cited for Illegal Gardening [Updated]
Jason Helvingston of Orlando, Fla., fights for his right to grow food in his front yard garden after the City of Orlando cited him for illegal gardening, pitting food self-sufficiency against city ordinance.
Celebrate National Public Gardens Day with Free Admission at a Garden Near You
Friday, May 10 is National Public Gardens Day. Find out what special events are happening at a garden near you.
Growing Healthy Lunches With School Gardens
Ditch unhealthy school lunches with a fresh lunch idea for kids: school gardens. Beyond putting fresh, healthy food in schools, cafeteria gardens are a great classroom tool and a big step towards more sustainable schools.
Rainwater Warehouse Launches Rainwater Harvesting E-commerce Website
Rainwater Warehouse introduces a complete line of rainwater harvesting systems and products available for purchase on their new website.
We Still Need To Deal With Drought
Drought has been displaced by winter storms in the headlines, but persistent water shortages are plaguing much of North America, and the past 18 months have seen a global outbreak of water emergencies.
Is It Possible to Use My Own Trees for My Timber Frame House?
Yes, it's possible to harvest trees from your own property to build a timber-frame structure. But here are a few things to consider before you decide to go ahead.
HOMEGROWN Life: Why I Love Reading. And Fall. And Reading About Fall
HOMEGROWN Life blogger and Missouri farmer Bryce Oates shares why he values reading (Eliot Coleman, especially) and how it impacts his fall growing season.
Bidding Farewell to the Bountiful Harvest
A gourmet guide to preserving the last harvest from your garden.
A Time for Thanksgiving: A Successful First Harvest
A young homesteading family experiences their first harvest season and is able to preserve enough produce to last the winter.
Learn to Create Your Own Heirloom Kitchen Garden
Learn to create your own heirloom kitchen garden at this 3-course series in Pennsylvania.
The Lazy Urban Gardener's Safety Net
So, what do you do if you neglected to start your veggies way back in January or February? You had good intentions but there always seemed to be something that stole your attention. Now it's the planting season and you have nothing to plant...
My First Time: A Garden Connection With My Grandpa
My first blog for MOTHER EARTH NEWS takes me back to a time when I didn't know I had a love of gardening. One of my first gardening experiences came during an unlikely encounter with my curmudgeon grandfather.
Questions! Questions!
Your local county extension office can answer questions on gardening, livestock, poultry, crops, garden pests and more.
Weed & Water Wednesday: 10 Green Gifts for Gardeners — All Under $50
Check out this roundup of 10 favorite sustainable gifts for the gardeners on your list — all under $50!
Is It Safe to Plant a Garden in Galvanized Stock Tanks?
A reader wonders whether it is safe to use a galvanized stock tank as a garden planter.
Sharing the Love With Community Gardening
Want to find a new garden plot for next year? Look into community gardens in your area, or start your own!
On Super Bowl Sunday, Say No to Junk Food
Kitchen Gardeners International's 20ate campaign urges Americans to say no to junk food.
Transformation Tuesday: An Abandoned Detroit Lot Becomes a Thriving Community Garden
The Spirit of Hope garden in Detriot offers a safe, nurtuting place for plants and children to grow.
Small Diameter Roundwood Trusses
The roundwood truss system described here enables DIYers to build their own trusses at very low cost. You can gather truckloads of poles from national forests, enough for several small houses, for the cost of one $25 firewood permit.
US Households Grow Home Food Gardens
A recent poll asked you what percentage of people living in the U.S. you would guess grow food gardens. Most respondents underestimated the actual numbers of households with home gardens, a growing trend.
What Did You Do With Your Garden Over the Winter?
Readers share tips and tricks for taking care of winter garden beds.
The Nature of Garden Giving
Can't have a garden of your own, but you want to garden? Urban Garden Share allows you to do exactly that!
A Better Garden Next Year
A good watering system will save you time and money in your garden.
New Garden Seeder Improves Planting Experience
The innovative garden seeder from Simple Seeder increases speed and ease of planting.
The Fabulous Food Garden Contest
Your attractive food garden could win you $500 and a chance to be featured in MOTHER EARTH NEWS.
Ladies in Red Shiny Armour
Who needs a TV drama, when, out the back door, we have our own alfresco drama, complete with territory battles, births, deaths, alien invasions, mystery, beauty and fornication, unfolding daily before our very eyes if we care to look.
The Power of Gardening: Start Your Subversive Plot Today
Roger Doiron, a MOTHER EARTH NEWS contributor and the found of Kitchen Gardeners International, recently spoke at a TEDx conference about the power of gardening.
The Most Sustainably Managed Woodlot in North America
Cam describes why his method of harvesting firewood from his woodlot is the most sustainable way.
Girl out of Water - Blackberry Picking
Blackberry picking only happens at the height of summer, but is well worth the thorn wounds!
Harvesting from an experimental hive
Harvesting honey from an experimental frameless beehive.
Potato Digging
Harvesting our potatoes is another family event where everyone gets their feet and hands a little dirty!
Our Yearly Visit to Monticello
My second visit to the seventh annual Monticello Heritage Harvest Festival.
Editor's Choice: 5 Great Green Gardens
In Arizona, an intrepid desert gardener harvests rainwater to grow his own food. A Missouri garden writer feeds his soil to feed himself. In Texas, a garden wall encourages community. These are a few of my favorite gardens.
10 Tips for a Tiny Balcony
Think your balcony's too tiny to provide food and fun? Check out Apartment Therapy's great tips for making the most of your outdoor space.
Homemade Gardener's Hand Paste
Our hands take a beating. Be kind to them and make this amazing hand scrub with ingredients right from your pantry!
Garlic Time!
A brief thesis on the finer properties of garlic and planting instructions.
Urban Gardens: Green Lifestyle and Design Blog Receives Awards, Launches New Ventures
The success of Urban Gardens is a story about an expansion of one's reach outside of one given discipline.
A Home in the City, a Homestead for Life
Julie Lavigne relates her grandparent's home in the city, a modern homestead for their time, and proves you can live a self-sufficient lifestyle in an urban setting.
Earth Gauge Tip of the Week: Pumpkin Harvest
Facts on the links between weather and pumpkins and what you can do with leftover pumpkins.
Earth Gauge Tip of the Week — Celebrate National Wildflower Week!
Tips on how to celebrate National Wildflower Week, May 6-13!
Earth Gauge Tip of the Week — Bio-What?
Explanation of what bioretention systems are and how they are used to reduce and filter storm water runoff.
7 Benefits of Growing a Victory Garden
From the more practical, money-saving side of things, to controlling your own destiny, the benefits of a victory garden are many.
Sow for Victory: Bringing Back the Victory Garden
Meredith Skyer outlines the history of victory gardens in the United States and why this nation, facing a food crisis, should start to sow for victory once again.
Preparing Soil in Our Community Garden
Garden like the Native Americans by digging up 18-inch-diameter hills on four foot centers. Get your crops started, then worry about working the areas in between the hills.
A Cutting-Edge Rain Garden in Kansas City
Kansas City's 18Broadway project is a superb example of how to capture and store rainwater to grow food in the heart of downtown.
Heritage Harvest Festival and Mother Earth News Fair
Learn about what goes on at the Heritage Harvest Festival in Virginia and the Mother Earth News Fair in Pennsylvania, both held in September.
Our First Chicken Harvest
In preparation for a large chicken harvest later in the season, a few homesteaders perform a trial run to test their chicken harvesting capabilities.
Toward the Future
Where are we headed, vis a vis our food systems? Can we as individuals make a difference in our food? Yes!
Wabi-Sabi Wednesday: 7 Wabi Gardens
In a wabi-sabi garden, plants are chosen because they belong in that garden and in that climate, and they're allowed to strut their stuff if they're considerate of the plants around them. Both plants and guests are encouraged to meander and explore.
Doing a Little Something for Ourselves
We learned a long time ago that we couldn't attract an audience for our magazines unless we gave our readers tools they could use to improve the world personally. A backyard organic garden is the perfect symbol of positive vision and commitment.
How To Measure Moisture Content When Harvesting Honey
How using a refractometer can increase your honey production, how a refractometer works and how to use a refractometer.
Harvesting Ice for the LeDuc Ice House
A historic ice house on the LeDuc-Simmons Estate and a local ice harvest at Lake Rebecca demonstrate how ice and other perishables were kept cold in the hot summer months during the 19th century.
Cinder Block Stepping Stones and Carrots
Crossing a creek using cinder block stepping stones one year after installation and using cinder blocks to repair driveway ruts. Shoveling mulch from a Club Car golf cart and a nice image of turkey tail mushrooms popping up from a log of walnut.
Easiest Vegetables to Grow
Ready to start your first garden? To guarantee success with your first garden, stick with Barbara Pleasant's list of easy to grow vegetables. She has advice on when and what to plant for the first time gardener. Good luck on your first garden!
When Is the Best Time to Dig Up New Garden Beds for Next Year?
Digging up places for new garden beds can take a long time. The sooner you start, the better!
With a Packet In My Pocket
To ensure we have a full productive garden, each spring I start a habit of carrying a packet of seeds in my pocket every time I head to the garden!
Bring Garden Planning Into Your Garden With Gardening App
Try using the Grow Planner app to streamline your garden planning and your garden work.
Garden Fresh for the Holidays – Southern Style
The vegetables and herbs that are still available in our Southeast garden make for delicious, festive and surprisingly varied holiday fare.
Using Leaves in the Garden
Using leaves in the garden will boost the soil's organic matter.
CobraHead Tools — Enabling Older Gardeners
A problem for older gardeners is finding tools that make gardening easier as getting up and down becomes harder.
Keeping Moles and Birds Away From Your Produce
Use old CDs and soda cans to keep pests out of your garden.
Seeds: How Many Do You Need?
Know how many seeds you need for your area considering germination rate and extras.
Succession Planting
Keep your garden full all season by planting the next crop as soon as the previous crop is harvested. Tips for deciding what to plant next.
World's Best Gardening Clogs
Try BOGS gardening clogs, a super-comfortable pair of gardening shoes that will stand up to tough wear.
What Gardening Book Would You Recommend for Beginners?
Gardeners suggest gardening books for beginners.
Late October, and the Garden Is Still Going Strong
The Ogden Community Garden winds down, and one gardener marvels at the late October harvest, and on how much the garden has meant to everyone who has helped tend it.
Thinking About Starting a Garden? Jump Right In!
Catch the gardening bug, and start to grow your own food! Once you start, you'll love it. Here are some basic pieces of advice for the budding gardener.
Find Your Average Last Frost Date
Knowing your average last frost date is key to getting your garden off to a good start.
Gardening on a Budget: Seven Tips for Success
Don't let the cost of gardening keep you out of the dirt this year. Cheap gardening can be fun and easy. With these tips for gardening on a budget, you'll save on seeds, make your own fertilizer and impress your friends with your gardening know how.
Putting the Community in a Community Garden
Describes the process of forming a community garden from the physical and energetic standpoints. The power of teamwork, the joy of accomplishment and the building of a feeling of group unity are described.
Urban Oases
My mission was to find like minded 'earth nurturers' in a neighborhood where there seems to be a dearth of us! What I found was humility and kindred spirits, and the makings of a great dinner party!
Earth Gauge Tip of the Week: Be Penny-Wise and Water Smart
Tips on how to conserve water in the fall with weather-based irrigation controllers.
Earth Gauge Tip of the Week: Earth Science Week
Tips on how to control soil erosion and help protect one of Earth's most important natural resources.
Plants Change Wasteland to Wonderland
The healing power of plants can remediate years of soil and water pollution, and create unexpected islands of beauty.
Five Tips for Getting Started With the Vegetable Garden Planner
Contributing Editor Barbara Pleasant provides tips to help users get the most out of the new MOTHER EARTH NEWS Vegetable Garden Planner. This interactive software will help you plan your best garden ever!
Tough Times? Grow Your Own Food!
As more Americans tighten their belts to save a penny or two, many are finding they can save money by growing food-producing gardens.
Green Victory! An Organic Food Garden at the White House
The Obamas plant an organic vegetable garden on the South Lawn of the White House.
Sign Up for MOTHER's Garden Surveys
If you're a veteran gardener, please consider signing up to take out online gardening surveys. The surveys allow us to write articles based on the collective experience of hundreds of gardeners and report the results back to you by region. Sign up here.
The Urban Food Forest: A Groundbreaking Trend in Urban Agriculture
Urban food forests and public gardens provide communities with an edible landscape for everyone to share. These public fruit forests are the new trend in urban agriculture and play an important role as sustainable local food systems in their communities.
HOMEGROWN Life: What We Learned From Our Year Without Groceries
Rachel and her husband committed to a year without groceries, and they made it! She shares her experiences in local food in this post.
Spring Harvest
Harvesting abundance in the early spring.
Basil Harvest
Preserving an abundant basil harvest for the coming winter.
Chicken Harvest: Conscientious Consumption
One locavore takes responsibility for raising and slaughtering her own chickens.
CobraHead Announces New Website
The new website offers the home gardener an expanded product selection of useful garden products.
Disease Prevention for Tomatoes
Tips for keeping your tomato plants healthy.
Potatoes And Voles
Strategies for controlling voles in the potatoes in your garden.
Always Have a Backup Plan
The journey to a self-sufficient life is a bumpy ride. Having a backup plan — or two — can make all the difference in your progress.
Seven Garden Activities to Help Kiss Winter Goodbye
So, you can't wait for the weather to warm up enough to get out and plant a few seeds in the ground? Well here is a list of gardening ideas and activities to keep you occupied and happy right up until the day that spring arrives!
Starting Seeds For Spring
By starting seeds indoors, you get a jump start on spring garden planting.
Learning How to Garden at the FAIR
Our MOTHER EARTH NEWS FAIR last weekend was full of great presentations about all facets sustainable living, including on learning how to garden.
Know When to Plant Each Crop in Your Exact ZIP Code
Use our popular When to Plant app to know when to plant each crop in your area.
Planting a Fall Garden the Easy Way
Our Vegetable Garden Planner assists you in planting your fall garden by giving you planting dates specific to your location, projected harvest dates and more.
Have You Used Painted Pebbles to Keep Birds Away From Your Fruit?
Painted rocks or pebbles can potentially deter birds from pecking at ripening fruit. Tell us how this technique has worked for your, plus check out other readers' tips and responses.
Great News for Southern Gardeners: Organic Tomato Transplants for Fall
To better accommodate the planting schedule of gardeners in the southern United States, California's Natural Gardening Company will make a dozen varieties of tomato transplants available by mid-August.
First Time Gardener in the Office Garden
Summer intern Megan describes her first time gardening at MOTHER EARTH NEWS, planting cucumbers for the first time and watering the office garden.
Find the Best Seeds and Tools for Your Garden
We have developed two customized search engines that make it easier to locate companies that offer specific varieties of seeds and plants, as well as organic garden products and tools.
Pedal Powered Soil Testing
An update on generating electricity with pedal power and which exercise bike we decided on and testing soil for nutrient ratios along with fixing a pair of leaky boots with adhesive and inner tube scrap patch.
Illegal Front Yard Vegetable Gardens: Des Moines Considers Home Garden Ban
Des Moines, Iowa, gardeners may soon find themselves in hot water with their City. A local resident recently took front yard veggie growers to task for what the resident feels to be unsightly lawn growth. Beets and berries, it seems, do not have the same aesthetic appeal as a green, freshly-mowed front lawn.
Keeping Garden Records
Put together a notebook with your complete garden plan. Here's some tips to get you started.
Winners of the Fabulous Food Garden Contest
Winners of the Fabulous Food Garden Contest have been chosen. See who the lucky prize recipients are!
Concerns About Using Recycled Tire Planters
In the long term, using recycled tire planters or rubber mulch in your garden can cause problems. Here's why.
Worm's Way Launches New Website
The set launch of Worm's Way Group's new website promises improved usability, more speed and exclusive web-based promotions.
Next Generation Gardeners
Involving children in planning a garden and growing vegetables can lead to healthier adults and a healthier planet.
Two Low-cost, Supereasy Ways to Protect Your Fall Crops
protect fall crops
EVENT ALERT: Heritage Harvest Festival at Monticello
Attend the Heritage Harvest Festival at Monticello to learn more about heirloom gardening.
Home Garden Laws: Weeding in the Nude and Other No-Nos
Home gardeners and urban farmers can come up against garden laws and regulations that can limit the size, style and components of their garden.
The Aquaponics Source Announces Publication of "Aquaponics Gardening"
"Aquaponics Gardening: A Step-By-Step Guide to Raising Vegetables and Fish Together" offers advice and insight into the world of sustainable gardening
Refugees Find Home on Iowa Farm
Global Greens Farm in West Des Moines, Iowa, helps refugees transition from growing food for their families to operating small businesses that sell produce at farmers markets, local grocery stores and to area restaurants.
Cherry Blossom Tea Sends Hope (and Help) to Japan
Chado-En tea company will donate 100 percent of profits from the sale of its special cherry blossom tea to Japanese relief efforts.
Tomato Preserves Enliven a Dull Winter
In this piece, author Mary Moss-Sprague discusses the simple pleasures of tasty, home-canned tomato preserves.
Looking Ahead
Using cold frames for fall salad greens can extend your season of fresh eating.
Urban Roots: Community Gardens Making a New Detroit
The documentary Urban Roots takes a look at how city farming is transforming the city's vacant lots into community gardens, ultimately changing the community as a whole in the process.
Sustainable Food Lessons From Kenya
In Kenya, even for middle class families, much of what ends up on the dinner table is grown or raised at home. With food prices rising, more and more Americans are looking towards ways of growing some of what ends up on their table at home. Both in terms of personal health, and the environment, this is a very good trend—it's a food source as local as you can get.
Back to the future
A little background on how Ric and Vicki moved from Detroit to a Tennessee homestead, and starting to get up to date on what they've done since.
How Much Wood Ash Should I Apply To My Garden?
A soil fertility expert shares his advice on using wood ashes as garden fertilizer.
Which Is the Best Garden Tractor?
It's time for lawn and garden work. In your opinion, which is the best garden tractor? Which tractor will you be using this year?
Introducing Permaculture
Maddy Harland introduces the three ethics behind permaculture design and explains why permaculture is more than a gardening technique — it's a practical tool for a better, more creative life!
Company-Sponsored Organic Vegetable Gardens Promote Healthy Eating
Minneapolis public relations firm Haberman & Associates wants everyone to enjoy a company-sponsored organic vegetable garden like theirs.
Michelle Obama Campaigns for Local Food
First Lady Michelle Obama's love for local food has the nation wanting to know more about how to eat in-season. Natural Home editor-in-chief Robyn Griggs Lawrence offers a healthy helping of advice on how to eat local.
Who's Been Nibbling in My Garden?
Identify the animal tracks and footprints of the critters who visit your garden and yard.
MOTHER's Publishing Company Starts Garden on Front Lawn
Learn about how some members of the MOTHER EARTH NEWS team joined with others at their publishing company to start "edible landscaping" gardens on their front lawn.
MOTHER's Ultimate Garden Giveaway
Enter to to win MOTHER's garden prize package that is valued at $10,000 and includes 13 items that will complete your garden.
Photo of the Day: Trailer Garden
Photo of the Day blog features a different photo from readers each day. Submit your own photos for a chance to appear on MOTHER's website! What are your favorite facets of simple or down-to-earth living? Share your ideas or show off your land!
Make Your Garden Work More Efficiently
Keeping your garden tools organized can help you be more efficient in your work in the garden.
Garden Planning: It's All About When
Here are some helpful resources to help you determine when to take care of various lawn and garden tasks, such as planting, watering, weeding, fertilizing, mulching and harvesting plants.
Spring Has Sprung and the Ogden Garden is Growing
Thanks to a donation from Mantis, we were able to use our new 2-Cycle Tiller/Cultivator and prep our garden for this year's growing season.
Nutsedge: The Edible Garden Foe
Nutsedge is a particularly invasive weed, but it can also be eaten raw, roasted, boiled and candied.
Is Galvanized Wire a Safe Material to Grow Food Plants on?
Find out the risks of growing food plants on galvanized wire, and what precautions you should take when handling galvanized materials.
What Vegetables Would Grow Best in My Area?
A reader from Pacifica, California wants to know what vegetables will grow best when.
Do You Recommend Peat Moss to Improve Soil?
Peat moss can help improve soil, but it can be expensive and its production can hurt the environment. Find out whether or not you should use it in your garden.
Organic Garden Seeds
Organic seeds have benefits for your garden. Learn what our expert recommends and how to find organic seeds to plant.
Should I Build Raised Beds in My New Garden?
Organic gardening expert advises on whether to build raised beds for a new garden.
Vegetable Garden Planner Gift Cards Now Available!
Gift cards to the MOTHER EARTH NEWS Vegetable Garden Planner are now available for just $25.
Compost: The Other Prize from the Business End of a Chicken
Eggs aren't the only things that come from the business end of a chicken. But with a little time and materials, and even less ingenuity, the rest can set you up with a free and steady supply of valuable organic fertilizer.
Cold Frames, Kim Chee, and Lawns 2 Lettuce 4 Lunch
Progress in the straw bale and wooden cold frames, delicious Kim Chee recipes for winter harvested Chinese cabbage and winter radishes, and an update from the Lawns 2 Lettuce 4 Lunch program in Arlington, VA.
Flowers Add Beauty and Diversity to the Vegetable Garden
There are many logical reasons for adding flowers to your vegetable garden: attracting beneficials, crop diversity, companion-planting, barriers and healthy soil. But perhaps their beauty does not need to be rationalized at all!
Seed Starting Video and Tips
Have you started your tomatoes and peppers yet? 'Tis the season to start seeding long season crops indoors. If you normally buy organic starts from your local nursery, try your hand at seed starting.
Make Gardening Easier: Build Permanent Beds and Paths
MOTHER EARTH NEWS Associate Editor Shelley Stonebrook offers tips for building permanent garden beds and paths. Shelley presented her workshop "10 Great Ways to Make Gardening Easier" at the MOTHER EARTH NEWS FAIR in Puyallup, Wash.
Cold Frames, Fresh Greens and Homegrown Roots
Ira takes us on a winter garden tour of the experimental gardens at Southern Exposure Seed Exchange. She describes the various experimental cold frames for winter gardening and winter starts. Includes a winter recipe for Sweet Potato Leek Soup.
A Hydroponic Gardening Primer
What exactly is hydroponic gardening? Though it may sound complicated, it's really not. The word "hydroponic" comes from the Greek "hydro," meaning water, and "ponic," meaning work. The basic concept is this: growing plants in a nutrient rich water solution rather than in soil.
Succession Planting: Lettuce, Carrots, and More
Want lettuce and carrots all year round? Ira Wallace tells us her simple simple method for keeping track of succession plantings.
Small Space Gardening That's Affordable
Regardless of how little space you have, you can grow some of your own food. Space is just an excuse. By building a self-watering container or soda bottle planter you can maximize the space that you have. You don't have to have a huge garden - growi
Getting Paid for What I Love to Do
This summer Cam became a market gardener and actually got paid for something he loves to do - grow vegetables!
Learning How To Grow Tomatoes
Sue Parker shares her grandmother's secrets to a strong tomato crop.
Survival Gardening in the Deep South
Why "hot and humid" doesn't have to equal "sad and lifeless."
How Has Gardening Brought People Together in Your Life?
One great thing about gardening that goes beyond soil building and crop rotations is its ability to bring people together. As spring is now officially here, it's a great time to revel in all the pleasures the season is sure to bring. Please share your thoughts and stories about how gardening has brought people together in your life.
What Are Your Best Tips for Gardening in the Southwest?
Readers familiar with triple-digit temperatures share their best tips for gardening in the southwest. Get advice about what to plant, when to plant and how to plant if you live in the hottest areas of the country.
Fall and Winter Gardening in Pots
Even if you only have garden pots to work with, you can still container garden in fall and winter to grow vegetables.
Late-Summer Gardening
In July and August, it's time to start thinking about planting crops for fall. But how do you get good seed germination when the soil is so hot?
Preparing Potatoes for Winter Storage
The process of curing potatoes for winter storage.
It Takes A Village ...
A story of life, death and rebirth of a hoop house.
Hoss Garden Seeder Perfect for Home Gardens
The Hoss Seeder's unique features include its all-metal frame and ease of attaching to the wheel hoe.
DR® Power Equipment Introduces BurnCage Incinerator
New burn barrel alternative provides safer, smarter home and garden burning for homeowners.
Show Off Your Permanent Garden Beds
Participate in our reader photo contest by showing off pictures of your permanent raised garden beds.
Reconnect With Your Food and Grow Your Own
When you grow your own food, you not take a step towards self-sufficiency. You also make a move towards better health and whole new relationship with your food.
New Features Added to Garden Planning Tools
We have some exciting additions to announce about our award-winning Vegetable Garden Planner program and our new Grow Planner iPad app, including new seed company catalogs, a filter tool, a favorites button and an app update.
Go-To Garden Supplies for the After-Work Rush to the Garden
I keep a kit of handy garden supplies waiting in my car, so I can head straight to the garden and take advantage of as many sunlight hours as possible right after work.
Earn a Trowel for Your Garden Tips!
Send us your garden tips and you could win a free deluxe, ergonomic garden trowel.
Drinking From Garden Hoses
While garden hoses may leach some chemicals into the water flowing through them, there's little reason to think it's a serious health issue.
Homegrown Food without the Work
New businesses are springing up catering to folks who want their food homegrown, but without the mess of tending to the garden themselves.
Growing Sprouts in My Kitchen Garden
Here's a tip on how to grow sprouts in your kitchen garden for fun and nutritious eating.
Growing the Garden Footprint
This year is the first season I had the whole garden dug and ready and boy, it's easy to plant a garden when the garden is already there.
Help a Small Organic Gardening Company Grow
An interview with the founder of a small organic gardening business that focuses on education and helping gardeners go organic. Learn more about this company and vote for it to win funding from a small business competition.
What Are Your Best Tips for Sustainability in the Garden?
Considerations of sustainability factor into countless supplies, tools and methods present in your garden. What do you do in your own garden to be a sustainable gardener?
MOTHER Wins Eddie Awards for Gardening Content and Garden Planning Tool
MOTHER EARTH NEWS wins two exciting accolades at FOLIO's Eddie Awards, one for their article Organic Pest Control: What Works, What Doesn't and one for their Vegetable Garden Planner tool.
What's the Best Way to Remove Japanese Beetles?
Japanese beetles feed for six to eight weeks, and in that time, they are able to feed on over 300 plant species. Although collecting beetles may seem like an exhausting every day task, you're plants will appreciate it.
What Is the Best, Free Mulch for My Gardens for Weed Control?
Here are some good options for free, weed-free mulches.
Let's Bring Back Victory Gardens
Bringing back Victory Gardens could help ease hunger and dependence as U.S. social aid programs, such as Food Stamps, are drastically cut.
Favorite and Essential Gardening Tools: Part One
After decades of gardening I've come to rely on a few essential gardening tools.
Using Wood Ash in the Garden
Using wood ash in the garden can be beneficial for raising the soil pH of your garden soil. These tips will help you know when to use wood ash in the garden.
Mediterranean Diet Garden
You can grow your own Mediterranean Diet garden in the Midwest. Even a small garden can provide the staples of a Mediterranean kitchen garden.
Learn to Grow Food
These resources will help you learn how to grow food and start a garden.
Permaculture Garden Observation
Showing where we were before our permaculture garden began.
Permaculture Garden: Will It Work for Us
Do you want a permaculture garden? An ongoing blog about our journey using permaculture design ideas, to develop the organic matter in soil and produce a higher yield.
Overwhelmed by My Garden
At this time of year, Cam feels a little overwhelmed by the gardening chores ahead of him.
Fighting Over Food
Michelle discovers a new threat to her basil plants!
Growing the Nerves
But maybe, at the end of the day, I am just a person with weak nerves doing something that depends on so many unknown factors – the weather, the bug population, the quality of seeds and some plain ol' luck.
Seed Bombs: Random Acts to Re-Flower the Earth
Have you heard of "guerrilla gardening," where folks toss flower seeds into vacant lots, or sometimes sneak in at night and plant flowers in unkempt highway medians or strips along city sidewalks? Check it out this year as a fun and fruitful way to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Earth Day.
Earth Gauge Tip of the Week — Spring Gardening
April is National Garden Month! Learn about the benefits of building a garden and tips on how to create one even if you don't have a big backyard.
Landrace Gardening: Food Security Through Biodiversity
Landrace gardening enhances food security by growing genetically diverse crops that are not as prone to crop failure as monoculture fields of near clones.
Are You Growing Any Food Indoors This Winter?
If you're growing food in the house through the cold months, our readers can benefit from your experience. Have you had success at indoor gardening before? What did you grow? Share your tips and tricks!
Gutter-Planted Garden Greens
It was becoming pretty obvious the crowding and lack of light were real limitations to my mini garden. Then, the idea of a trough on the windowsill came to mind, combining a way to water all the plants uniformly and efficiently all at once. Great, now how to make this trough? Wood? Sheet metal? The choices all seemed expensive, clumsy, prone to leaking...then the light bulb went on in my head: gutters!
Landrace Gardening: Naming The New Varieties
Landrace gardening requires different plant naming conventions than those followed by industrialized agriculture.
Landrace Gardening: Don't Worry About Plant Purity
Landrace gardening promotes hybrid vigor and avoids inbreeding depression by encouraging promiscuous pollination.
Landrace Gardening: Survival of the Fittest
A photo essay showing off the stunning success of landrace gardening on my farm. This success was achieved because I changed my growing methods to embrace one of the key elements of landrace growing; "survival of the fittest."
Landrace Gardening: Getting What You Want
Using landrace gardening and promiscuous pollination to get what you want from your garden.
What Are Your Favorite Gurus for Gardening Advice In Your Region?
Readers share regional gardening resources.
Gardening: It's Not All Unceasing Drudgery
Old books can be a hoot to read! Check out these quotes from an 1890 book, How to Make the Garden Pay, by T. Greiner.
How Can I Grow a Good Fall Broccoli Crop?
Growing fall brassicas can be a challenge, but here are some tips on how to prevent them from getting eaten by bugs or withering.
Urban Gardening and Growing Melons
An experiment in urban gardening produces a melon miracle.
Great Gardening Books, Garden Planning, and the Fight Against GMOs Continues
Ira Wallace explores good winter gardening reads, gives advice on how to use the winter lull wisely to plan and prepare, and shares an update in the ongoing court battle to protect family farmers from agri-giant Monsanto.
Chicken Manure Fertilizer: Let Your Chickens Make Mulch
What's your idea of a delicious and wholesome breakfast? A fluffy, organic egg omelet made with fresh vegetables? Perhaps scrambled eggs and roasted garden veggies? No matter what your preference, it may surprise you to learn the link between the
Our Favorite Heirloom Seed Companies
Planting heirloom, non-genetically modified seeds is a great way to help preserve endangered plant varieties--and the planet's very ecosystem.
Power Rake Offers Consumers Multi-Purpose Lawn Tool
Landscapers, gardeners and DIYers have a fast and convenient solution that dethatches, bags, rakes, scalps, mulches and cuts lawns in a single tool.
STIHL Earns Popular Mechanics Breakthrough Award
Popular Mechanics honored STIHL with a 2010 Breakthrough Award for the STIHL HSA 65 hedge trimmer, the first product with 36-volt STIHL Lithium-Ion battery-power technology.
Underneath Bird Feeder
Duncraft introduces a new concept in bird feeding - the patented Underneath Bird Feeder
Money Does Grow On Trees
The 2011 report focuses on the Garden Effect and Payback-if-sold. The Garden Effect is the estimated increase in a property's market value as a result of having beautiful landscaping.
Three New Hand Pruners
Fiskars' new hand pruners combine form and function to make every cut easier.
Summer of Turkeys
Recap of 2010 growing season in Northwest Pennsylvania
Find Farming Internships and Apprenticeships
Looking for a farming internship or apprenticeship? Search the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Center's online directory of farming internships and apprenticeships to find one that interests you.
The Garden Spider
These large, beautiful, long legged creatures of late summer thrill and amaze.
Permaculture in Winter
A rundown of activities you can do in the winter to improve your homestead.
More Free Perennial Onions
Visit our blog by Wednesday at midnight for a chance to win free Egyptian onion top bulbs.
Rainy Day Homesteading
We don't get to sit around inside and listen to the rain on a tin roof in the summer. Instead, we're busy pulling in spring crops, putting out fall crops, and much more.
April To-Dos
Spring tasks around the homestead.
A Tool For the Trade
In praise of the garden fork.
Children in the Garden
Allowing children the space to discover the beauty and wonder of plants through tending to their own garden builds character, teaches responsibility, gives insight into the beauty of nature and fosters their connection with where their food comes from.
My Four Biggest Gardening Mistakes
Over the past year, I have made countless mistakes on my garden. In this post, I share four of my most frustrating gardening mistakes and how to avoid them.
Choose a Dandelion Weeder: Pulling Weeds, Not Your Back
Pick the right dandelion weeder, and ridding your lawn and garden of dandelions becomes more game than chore. Here we hightlight three popular models: the Oswego Grandpa's Weeder, the Fiskars Triple Claw Weeder and the Garden Weasel Weedpopper Step and Twist.
Planting With Preserving in Mind
This blog post discusses growing enough produce for canning.
It's a Miracle!
I separate the fact from the fiction with use of soluble fertilizers.
Springtime Madness: Lovin' It
The peaceful tranquility of farm life is often more or less controlled chaos, especially during the busy spring season!
Natural, Perpetual Garden Pest and Critter Control
Survivalist Gardener Rick Austin offers natural and long-lasting tips for repelling pests and insects in gardens hidden in the forest.
The Summer Garden, Good and Bad - with Pictures
The summer garden is coming to an end. I think most of us can agree it has been a challenging year for our gardens. It is time to regroup and learn from our experiences.
Creative Containers for Transplanting Seedlings
Save containers, save money! No need to buy something you already have!
My Top 5 Favorite Seed Companies
Here are five great companies to buy seeds from.
New Boom for Real Estate: Community Gardens
Real estate and land use demands have many people left on a waiting list by their local community gardens. Never fear: There's still plenty of options to get growing!
Tomato Grafts Create Cool, Two-Headed Plants
Creating tomato grafts may be a great way to grow tomatoes organically. Tomato grafting has emerged as one good way to bring resistance to soilborne diseases to susceptible heirloom varieties.
Weed Watch: How to Kill Nutsedge
Learn how to kill nutsedge, both yellow (Cyperus esculentus) and purple (Cyperus rotundus), and remove it from your garden. Pine bark mulch may be one effective way to kill nutlets from yellow nutsedge.
Is There a Practical, Organic Way to Counteract Excess Nitrogen in My Garden Soil?
If you've added too much nitrogen fertilizer to your garden this expert advice can help you figure out how to correct the mistake.
The less you walk on soil, the better your plants will grow.
This photographic illustration shows how permanent gardens beds are beneficial, and prevent soil compaction.
Use a Simple Compost Test to Avoid Contaminated Materials in Your Garden
Keep your garden safe by testing your organic materials for herbicide residue. A few simple tests can help you avoid harming your plants.
The December Garden
The December garden is still full of life, both in the beds and under cover, providing fresh ingredients for home cooked meals. Winter farmers markets and CSA's are a great way to learn what grows well in your zone.
DIY Garden Lights
These DIY garden lights reuse plastic bottles and provide soft, natural lighting for evenings spent outdoors.
The Two Kinds of People
Non-gardeners and gardeners are very, very different creatures.
One of the Best Gifts for Gardeners!
A Garden Planner subscription is a budget-friendly gift that offers the satisfaction of spending the chillier chunks of the calendar plotting the bounty ahead.
Jazz Up the Christmas Feast With Garden Herbs
Use herbs from the garden in your Christmas dinner. This post shares a complete Christmas meal using garden herbs.
Four Season Garden Explained
If you have wondered what a four season garden is, the definition is simple. It is a garden that you can get produce from all year long through spring, summer, fall and winter.
Winter Challenges in the Country, Part 2
Suggestions for what to have on hand - and handy - when you hear a storm is heading your way.
Nature's Footprint Proudly Launches the UrBin Grower
The UrBin Grower is a unique gardening system that takes place in self-watering containers that can be used on decks, patios, side yards or porches.
Growing A Garden At High Elevation
Some of the difficulties we encounter in gardening at a high elevation
Tips for Small-Space Gardening
Learn three simple tips for making the most of small gardening spaces, including hanging plants and advice for selecting seed varieties.
No Space? No Excuse! Start to Grow Your Own Food
Having little space is not a reason to not be growing your own food. It's just an excuse. I've been apartment gardening since 2009.
Organic Insect Control for Your Container Vegetable Garden
Dealing with insects in your garden is inevitable. It's just a matter of when it happens. Just because you have some critters munching on your food doesn't mean that you have to break out the chemicals.
Tips for Seed-Starting Success
You want to start your urban garden from seed this year, but you're not sure where to start because you've only started from transplants.
Grow a Quick Crop of Lettuce Indoors
Before space beneath your grow light is needed for onions and other early seedlings, fill it with baby lettuce grown in translucent clamshell salad containers.
Six Ideas for Small-Space Gardening
Here are six of my favorite ideas for those of you with small spaces and still want to get your garden on.
Quick Tip: Preparing Your Potted Garden for a Hard Freeze
Give your pots the protection they need when freezing temperatures arrive with a portable greenhouse. You can also bring in pepper plants for the winter and have fresh peppers indoors.
A Composter Anyone Will Ever Need
The Aerobin 400 uses a patented aeration core inside an enclosed bin to promote aerobic break down of organic matter. The Aerobin 400 is easy to use - just open, drop in materials, and close.
Introducing Durable, Collapsible EZ Tomato Cages
EZ Tomato Cages are the brainstorm of two friends, both fed up with purchasing tomato cages that were cheaply fabricated, weak and difficult to store.
Cub Cadet Debuts RZT S ZERO Electric Zero-Turn Riding Mower
The all-new RZT S ZERO is available in select markets and will be headlining the Cub Cadet Test Drive Experience Tour.
My Love Affair With Garlic(2)
Cam shares his love affair with garlic and explains the work involved with growing and processing organically-grown garlic.
Learning How to Grow My Daily Bread
Cam grows a patch of wheat to see how much work is involved. He will never take a loaf of bread for granted again!
Friendly Farmhands from Philadelphia
Cam and Michelle enjoy having their first "HelpX" volunteers to help out in the gardens!
The Dieter's Guide to Weight Loss While Gardening
Cam describes his weight loss program which involves lots and lots of gardening....
Strawberries Are a Bargain At Any Price!
Michelle knows how much work it is to grow strawberries.... and she's happy to be able to buy them at any price!
Learning A Lot from the Happy Wanderers
Cam enjoyed another week with some volunteer helpers!
The Dog Days of Drought
Cam is getting worn out trying to keep up with watering during a drought.
Thank God I'm a (Transplanted) Country Boy
Cam has a great deal of respect for farmers.
Crossing the Gardening Rubicon
Every fall Cam is tired of gardening and vows to make his vegetable garden smaller. Every spring he is excited about getting back in the garden and ends up making it bigger!
The Extreme Sport of Running a CSA
Cam ponders the wisdom of starting a CSA at the ripe old age of 52.
A CSA Update
Cam is exhausted but exhilarated by the early success of his CSA.
I'm Not Crying Over My Onions This Year!
Cam is enjoying a bumper crop of onions this year!
Week #11 of Sunflower Farm CSA
It's Week #11 of our CSA and we can't find boxes big enough to fit all of the great produce!!
Mountain Gardening And The Challenges - Part 2
Thank goodness for good friends who will share their garden harvest with those of us less skilled.
We Are Opening the Doors at the MOTHER EARTH NEWS FAIR!
It's opening day at the MOTHER EARTH NEWS FAIR! We're covering all kinds of cool gardening topics at the Organic Gardening Stage.
The Power of Pinterest
Using Pinterest can help inspire new gardening ideas.
Landrace Gardening: Maintaining a Landrace
Joseph Lofthouse shares how to maintain thriving populations of landrace vegetables in the garden.
Tomato Tastings, Fall Garden Starts, and Getting Ready for Garlic
Come rejoice in the bounty of heirloom tomatoes - experience the flavors and choose your favorites at tomato tastings throughout the Southeast. Plus, it's time to plant fall alliums - garlic and perennial onions - and fall crops for winter storage!
Summer Planting for Fall and Winter Harvest
It may be sweltering hot outside, but we're still busily sowing seeds at the Southern Exposure farms! Learn how to plant your bountiful fall and winter garden, with abundant harvests through Thanksgiving and beyond.
Gardening in Small Spaces: My Topsy Turvy Tomato Planter
I've learned that gardening in small spaces can be challenging, but I've had great success with a Topsy Turvy tomato planter this year. Have you used similar products in your home? How do you handle gardening in small spaces?
A Perfect Ending to the Ultimate Garden Giveaway
Meet Kriste Misiak and her family, the recent winners of the MOTHER EARTH NEWS Ultimate Garden Giveaway.
Photo of the Week: Strong Swiss Chard
See this shot of Swiss chard with strong colors that any gardener can appreciate.
Plant Garlic in the Fall for a Larger, Healthier Crop
Do you know the best time to plant garlic? Try planting in fall instead of spring for healthy, large garlic bulbs.
Growing Hand-Made Wheat and Hand-Made Kids
Steve explains how he and his 11 year old son grew a crop of wheat entirely by hand, and why this is something you should try, too.
HOMEGROWN Life: Let's Talk About Poop
HOMEGROWN Life blogger and Bay Area homesteader Rachel discusses using manure in the garden, including which type of animal waste is best for which crops.
Choosing What to Grow in a Small Yard
With a small space, how do you choose what to grow? You can grow an amazing variety and amount of vegetables and herbs in a very small space, integrate veggies and herbs into your flowers, and maximize the use of pots.
Landrace Gardening: Beautiful Crops
A photo essay showing off the beauty of landrace crops.
Landrace Gardening: Fruit and Nut Trees From Seed
The principles of landrace gardening can be applied at any scale from small annual gardens to multi-generational community wide tree farms.
Landrace Gardening for the Casual Grower
Exploring my hopes and dreams for the landrace seed movement with suggestions about how farmers, merchants, and gardeners could cooperate to create a more robust, secure, and locally adapted food system.
Alpaca Gold Introduces Line of New Organic Fertilizer
Introducing Alpaca-Gold, a new company producing 100% all natural, organic Alpaca fertilizer.
EZ Tomato Cages Provide Support Lacking in Other Brands
EZ Tomato Cages are collapsible and sturdy unlike many currently on the market.
Barebones Welcomes You to the Outdoors
Barebones strives to make the experience of outdoor recreation and hobbies a priority.
Heat-Tolerant Tomato Varieties
Some tomato varieties wilt when temperatures get too hot. Find heat-tolerant tomato varieties that can grow robust tomato plants in hot climates.
Compost: Food Waste Prevention and Potential Fertilizer
I say compost, you think of rotting food, dirt, flies and a horrible smell. For that reason most people wont' even consider composting at home.
Attracting Beneficial Insects to Your Garden
Ira Wallace inspires us to create flowering, native plant habitat in our gardens. Learn how to identify plants that are 'user-friendly' to the bugs that help keep our gardens healthy.
Snow in Virginia, But It's Time to Get Planting All Over the Southeast
A tour of the gardens at Southern Exposure, where we're taking advantage of warm sunny days in February to get our gardens ready for intense planting ahead. But there's still plenty to sow, indoors and out.
American Garden Tool Company
The American Garden Tool Company is an online source for American-made garden tools, products and accessories.
Build a Rain Garden
Gardening can make a difference! Across the country, people are building rain gardens to filter contaminants and ease overburdened stormwater systems. Here's how to build a rain garden in 10 easy steps.
Food Prices Might Be Rising, But You Can Do Something About It
In the United States, we are feeling the effects of the rising food prices as well. When you take a deeper look into the prices, it's not the food that is causing the price to rise. It's everything else that goes into getting the food to your plate t
Three Ways To Reuse Soda Bottles in Your Garden
Growing your own food doesn't have to be an expensive activity. There are plenty of ways to cut back the costs and be earth-friendly as well. You can do this by giving a second life to items that have outgrown their initial purpose.
How To Make a Self-Watering Container
Containers are great for those that are gardening in small spaces. Though there is the fear of not knowing when or how often to water them. This is why I started to make my own self-watering containers.
Three Simple Tips for Taking Care of Your Container Garden
If you are new to growing your own food in containers, these are some simple tips that should help you to get a better yield and results from your containers.
The Spiritual Side of Growing Your Food
A post by Maria Rodale called A Harvest of Healing got me thinking about how gardening and growing your own food is much more than what you harvest.
Garden Fail: Gardening Mistakes That I've Made
Whether you are new to gardening or experienced, you will make some mistakes. Get over it and learn from it. That's the most important thing.
Grow Your Own Food as a Social Statement
Take these into consideration the next time you are making your food purchases.
Two Ways to Use a Shipping Pallet in Your Garden
When you are apartment gardening in a small space, you are forced to be creative due to your space constrictions. Most traditional pots and containers might not work, so you become reliant on reusing objects to better fit your space.
Growing Food as a Family
Parents will often say that they don't have time to grow their own food because they have kids. Don't let kids be the excuse. Instead make them part of the experience too. It's what families have done since the beginning of time. The past 100 yea
The Politics of Gardening
Some people use gardening as an escape from the trials and tribulations of the real world. It's their time to get their hands dirty, connect with the earth and just be in their garden.
Gardening Doesn't Have to Be Expensive
People often dismiss gardening as an expensive hobby that they can't afford. While that can be true, it doesn't have to be. There are way to make gardening cheap.
Food Waste in America
We are taught when we are kids not to waste food, but it doesn't seem as if that lessen has stuck with us.
DIY Seed Starter Pots
It might be the middle of the summer, but you should start thinking about getting your fall garden ready. If you don't have much space, to plant everything outdoors, then you can certainly start your seeds indoors.
4 Recipes for Your Summer Harvest
It's the middle of summer and you are likely enjoying the harvests. There is` so much to do with all that fresh and flavorful produce, but what should you do?
Vertical Gardening and Composter in One
What if I told you that you could grow 50 plants in 4 square feet?
What is an OMRI Listing?
Organic is a phrase that's tossed around and abused a lot by marketers these days. Not all "organic" products should be treated equally.
Urban Farms Bike Tour = Sunday Fun Day Adventure
Kansas City has a thriving city farming scene, and recently hosted an urban farms tour to showcase several of the city's market and community gardens. One of our editors pedaled along with a bike tour group to see what the city farmers have to offer.
Simple Reasons to Start Growing Your Own Food
When people ask why they should grow their own food, the answer that I give is often simple. I tell them, "It's because we are humans."
How Did America Lose Its Connection With Food?
While there are many events that have lead us to where we are today in terms of food, there are some things/events that stand out the most in my mind. Growing your own food is one way to reverse the trend.
Feeding Bees With Real Food - Honey and Pollen
You don't have to depend on nature to feed your bees. Take matters into your own hands and plant enough good food for your bees, so they have good, safe food all year long.
Sun Powers More Than Rice Fields
Lundberg Family Farms announces the opening of a new warehouse that is powered by 100% solar energy. Lundberg Family Farms produces wholesome, healthful rice products while protecting and improving the environment for future generations.
Everyday Families Growing Their Own Vegetables
Everyday families can now provide much of their fresh vegetables using Aquaponics. Aquaponics is the production of edible fish and vegetables growing in a drought proof, no weed, back saving growing system.
EcoTulips Only U.S. Certified Organic Flower Bulb Company
This certification confirms that the company's import, warehousing, and sales processes meet the standards of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Organic Program.
Plant Edible Ground Cover
You can sneak a few attractive, low maintenance food plants onto your lawn, and your neighbors will never even notice.
My Love Affair With Garlic
Garlic is a very labour-intensive crop to grow but the rewards are worth it!
This Is About Smut
Cam shares what he has learned about corn smut in his organic garden.
The Summer of My Wheat Obsession
The second post (of three) describing an organic gardener's attempt to grow his own wheat.
Morgan the Wonder Dog Can Read My Mind
The right dog can be a very useful member of the family when you are growing corn!
The Results of My Great Wheat Growing Experiment
Cam shares the results of his experiment growing wheat in his vegetable garden.
A Passion For Blueberries
It's always wonderful to meet someone who is passionate about what they do!
My Favorite Family Heirloom - A Shovel!
Cam describes some family heirlooms - especially his favorite one - a shovel!
I Love My 4X4 But...
Cam finds getting around in the country, especially in the winter, so much easier with his 4X4 truck.
Still Playing With Water After All These Years
Cam has always enjoyed playing with water. Now he lets his solar-powered pump do some of the work!
Appreciating Our Four Seasons
Cam appreciates all four of our seasons!
Presenting My Gardening Workshop to the Queen
Cam is hoping that the Queen attends his gardening workshop this weekend at the Royal Botanical Gardens....
Backyard Wild Morels
Finding wild morel mushrooms growing in our urban backyard means plenty of marvelous meals.
The Most Important Four Inches In Your Garden
Cam describes "double digging" as a way of creating a new garden without losing precious topsoil.
Mike & Melissa's Side of the Story
Our HelpXers Mike and Melissa share their experiences as volunteers here at Sunflower Farm.
Cheap, Solar-Powered Haircuts and Eating My Own Masterpieces
Cam has found another way to save money - his wife cuts his hair now! He also describes how even though he isn't artistic he creates and enjoys the masterpieces from his garden.
Can't You Just Spray?
Cam battles with scarabs in his raspberry patch.
Dealing With Drought
It's been a rough summer for gardeners and farmers alike. Here's how we've been dealing with drought and a few tips on watering.
Look Ma! I'm a Market Gardener!
Cam loves growing and selling food!
Working Outside of My Comfort Zone
Cam describes a recent adventure involving round bales, train tracks and a stressful drive home.
Sorting, Classifying and the Heartbreak of Wasting Food
Cam has been busy harvesting and sorting potatoes.
All That Stuff That Comes from the Ground
Cam appreciates the simple things like rotten hay and beautiful vegetables from his garden.
Zen and the Art of Backhoe Operation
Cam was generously offered the loan of a small backhoe and had a whale of a time getting jobs done!
Year-Round Mulching
Mulch, like compost, plays an important role in organic gardening. To maximize the flavor and nutrition of your produce, learn how to use and balance the characteristics of various organic materials when mulching.
A Plant Whose Virtues Remain Undiscovered
The ACTUAL benefits of weeds in your garden. Use and value diversity! Find the benefit!
Homegirl Homesteading
The how's and why's we homestead
Hazelnuts (Filberts) In My Garden
Growing and harvesting hazelnuts (filberts) in your garden.
Getting Started With an Organic Garden
Experiences getting started gardening in the 1970's and suggestions for beginning your own projects in 2012.
Who's That Standing in My Garden?
Cam finds an new old-fashioned way to keep the wildlife out of his garden.
Zombieland Comes to Sunflower Farm
The drought conditions at Sunflower Farm are making Cam rather cranky.
How I Ended Our Drought
Ranting about the drought worked! We got rain here at Sunflower Farm!
Warding Off Vampires at Sunflower (Garlic) Farm
It's an aromatic time of year at Sunflower Farm - time to clean the garlic!
The Great Sunflower Farm Food Experiment
Cam undertakes an experiment to see how much food he can produce on his one acre of garden space.
Market Farmers Share How They Deal With the Heat
If you're a market gardener battling the heat, you'll want to check out these great tips for keeping yourself and your crops cool.
Easy Tips for Starting Your Seeds Indoors
One way to get a jumpstart on the growing season is to start growing your seeds indoors. For most of you it's still cold outside. That doesn't mean that you can't get a headstart on getting your garden started for the new year.
What is Mycorrhizal Fungi?
I asked Heather, the Marketing and Customer Service Specialist over at Thrive, a few questions and here's what she said about mycorrhizal fungi.
Bountiful, First-Season, No-Till Vine Patch
Planting a vine patch for the first time is easy without the need to till up a lot of soil; instead, cut out sod circles and mulch the surrounding area.
Community Container Gardening
Building community through sharing work and food.
Landrace Gardening: Racing the Weeds
By applying the principles of landrace gardening, you can help your plants win the race against weeds.
Landrace Gardening: True Potato Seeds
By growing potatoes from pollinated seeds we can develop locally adapted plants that thrive in our gardens.
Landrace Gardening: Saving Landrace Seeds
Seed saving is an integral part of landrace gardening.
Landrace Gardening: Fertilizing Landraces
Landrace gardening allows us to minimize fertilization by selecting for plants that thrive in the pre-existing soil.
Winter Gardens
Easy, practical, delicious – growing an organic food garden is a skill anyone can learn: that's my main message! It doesn't have to involve a lot of work and certainly doesn't require a big investment in special products or equipment.
Welcome Spring to Your Homestead
Yes, spring is finally here. Time to start farming.
Introducing Forest Gardening - Beautiful, Productive, Edible Gardens
Maddy Harland introduces forest gardening – beautiful, low maintenance and productive gardens that provide for many of our needs – food, fuel, medicines and fibers.
Forest Gardening: Planting Small Shrubs and Soft Fruit
Maddy Harland introduces the shrub layer of a forest garden and gives six useful tips for establishing a low maintenance and healthy garden.
Running on Fumes
Do you feel like the month of June left you gasping for air? You are not alone. I am hoping July will be slower paced and full of summertime fun!
Growing Gluten-Free Grains in the Garden
Registered dietitian, Linda Simon, shares her experiences growing gluten free grains in her garden.
GMO Labeling, Fall Greens, Winter Storage Vegetables, Yacon and Fresh Kimchi
Killing frosts are arriving, but Ira's staying self-sustaining all winter, with winter-hardy greens and plenty in storage, from sweet potatoes to pickled peppers. Get inspired with ideas for kimchi and a fresh twist on winter salads, with yacon.
Landrace Gardening: Growing Popcorn
Joseph Lofthouse shares tips for growing landrace popcorn.
Tomato Tasting Time: Planning a Fun Garden Party
A perfectly ripe heirloom tomato is one of the great joys of summer, here are some tips for organizing your own heirloom tomato party.
Seed Starting Tips
Consult these seed starting tips for easy advice on seed planting, using the best materials, watering, grow lights and more.
Got Leaves? Put 'Em to Work
Use autumn's bounty of fallen leaves to expand your garden, protect your plants and improve your soil.
Plant Garlic this Fall
Plan to plant garlic this fall, and enjoy unique varieties and their incredible health benefits.
What the Best-Dressed Beds Are Wearing This Winter
Garden soil left exposed in winter is easily damaged by compaction, erosion and leaching. Use mulches or cover crops to safeguard and build your soil during the winter months.
Good Reasons to Garden
While there are plenty of great reasons to grow a food garden, we recently polled readers to find out their primary motivation for gardening. Read their interesting results, plus tell us more about your gardening philosophy.
The Gardener As Magus, from 'Beautiful and Abundant'
I was 9 when Mr. Posey "hired" me. Once I was certain he wouldn't chase me off, I started spending nearly every spare moment there. It was my first job, and I loved it.
Imprelis: Another Deadly Herbicide, This Time From DuPont
We've been warning you about aminopyralid-containing killer compost for quite some time. Now there's a new deadly herbicide on the market, Imprelis, and it's wreaking havoc in at least seven states.
Get a Head Start With Chitting Potatoes
To make the best use of potato-growing season, use the technique of greensprouting.
Grow Extra-Early Spinach with This Easy Tip
Get an early spinach crop with this easy gardening tip.
Free, Easy and All-Natural Mulch
It's easy to overlook how useful grass clippings can be, but early fall is a great time to collect this valuable 'yard waste' to use in your garden as mulch.
Landrace Gardening: Sunroots
Sunroots are a typically-cloned crop with great potential as a locally-adapted survival-of-the-fittest landrace
Landrace Gardening: Replanting Hybrids
How to use hybrids in a landrace garden.
Landrace Gardening: Foreign Imports
A photo essay documenting imported landraces that I started incorporating into my existing landraces during the current growing season.
Time to Plant Cover Crops
Cover crops protect your soil over the winter and are beneficial for soil building. Learn more about your cover crop options and the time to plant them.
Four 'Holy Moly I'm Freezing' Keys to Gardening Success
It's freezing out - but that doesn't mean it's time to quit gardening. Learn how fall and winter are the key to next year's gardening success.
Landrace Gardening: Seed Swaps
Grow enough seed for yourself and a little extra for seed swaps and you may never have to pay for seeds again.
Survival Seed Banks, Part 1: What Seeds Are Available?
A market farmer's perspective on survival seed banks, evaluating current offerings.
Attend a Regional Food Workshop on Winter Gardening in Kutztown, Pa.
The Keystone Center, in partnership with the Pennsylvania German Cultural Heritage Center, is hosting a regional food workshop called "The Traditional Winter Garden: Fresh Food From December to March."
Landrace Gardening: Hybrid Squash
A photo essay showing off the beauty of landrace squash.
Free Gardening Guide App From MOTHER EARTH NEWS
The new free Food Gardening Guide iPhone/iPad app from MOTHER EARTH NEWS provides detailed information on growing all major garden crops. Tap on a crop, and find out how to plant, when to plant, how to prevent pests and diseases, types and varieties to try, and more. In addition to crop-specific advice, the app also provides thorough details on general gardening categories, including watering, improving soil, crop rotation, garden fencing, cover crops, vertical gardening and much more.
Gardening: A New Year's Resolution
Gardening is as easy as you want it to be!
Genetic Engineering and Cell Fusion CMS
Cell Fusion genetic engineering is emerging as a hot topic in the Certified Organic seed and food industry. We can expect the resolution of this issue to impact both small-scale and large-scale growers.
Straw-Bale Gardening in the New York Times
Here is a great article on straw bale gardening.
Plan Next Season's Garden Now
Winter down-time from the garden is the best time for planning what vegetables you want to grow in the upcoming season. Having the seeds ready and knowing when to plant them can minimize the chaos in spring and maximize harvests in fall. It's all about getting ready now.
Landrace Gardening: Dealing With Cytoplasmic Male Sterility
A pragmatic approach to eliminating male sterility from a home garden. Includes a diagram and photos about what to look for.
How to Graft Tomatoes
Learning how to graft tomatoes yourself not only saves money but gives you unlimited options for what varieties you choose to graft. With a little practice, you can become skilled at this worthwhile technique.
Landrace Gardening: Promiscuously Pollinated Tomatoes
Creating a landrace of promiscuously pollinated tomatoes. Details about my major plant breeding project for the next few seasons and a plea for help.
Survival Seed Banks, Part 3: Seed Storage Common Problems
A landrace market farmer's perspective on survival seed banks. Part 3: Storing the seeds. With careful forethought, it is possible to store seeds in a manner that will allow them to avoid or survive common seed destroying events.
Permaculture Gardening Part 3
Our first project: building a small keyhole mound.
Can I Use Epsom Salts to Fertilize My Garden, Fruit Trees and Houseplants?
Expert advice on adding single nutrients, such as Epsom salts, to your garden and house plants.
Cut Yard Clean-Up Time In Half With Leaf Loader
Wide-mouth funnel design super-stuffs bags and cans in less than a minute.
New Product from Hoelscher
Hoelscher Commercial Products announces a new product for pulling out trees, posts, shrubs and vines.
New Product from Hoelscher(2)
Hoelscher Commercial Products announces a new product for pulling out trees, posts, shrubs and vines.
ECHO Bear Cat Announces the Addition of NEW 2" ChipperShredder
ECHO Bear Cat is pleased to introduce the 2" SC2170 Chipper/Shredder to its line of outdoor power equipment.
Save Time and Money with Environmentally Responsible Grass Trimmers from STIHL
The new FSA 65 and FSA 85 grass trimmers, the latest products available for the 36-volt STIHL Lithium-Ion battery technology system, deliver fuel savings, time savings and environmental benefits for gasoline-free trimming applications.
Breakthrough Cordless Chainsaw Power: Like Nothing You've Seen Before
Blount, the world's largest manufacturer of saw chain, announces the launch of the new OREGON PowerNow 40V MAX* Cordless Chainsaw.
New KIOTI Snowblowers Enhance Tractor Attachment Line
KIOTI Tractor is pleased to announce the expansion of their popular implement and attachment lines.
TimberTech Earthwood Evolutions™ Goes Natural
Three New Colors Provide More Options for Consumers
Albuquerque Company Turns Landfills into Fields of Beauty
Growstone makes breakthrough, high-performance hydroponic growth mediums and soil aerators from discarded glass.
Kioti Enters Subcompact Tractor Market
The CS2410 subcompact tractor is appropriate for those homeowners with property sizes ranging from just under an acre up to 5 acres, possibly more.
Introducing the New Kubota ZP330 Propane, Zero-Turn Mower
Kubota partners with the Propane Education & Research Council to offer $1,000 purchase incentive on its ZP330, delivering 'green' performance and more 'green' in your pocket.
Grasshopper Receives Award
Investments in lawnmower fabrication processes save more than 310 tons of steel annually.
FarmTek Announces Fall 2012 Photo Contest
Do you love showing off your FarmTek products? Think you're using them in a unique and interesting way? FarmTek would love to see!
What We're Planting Right Now - Spring Garden
It's spring garden planting time! Here are a few things that can be planted while the ground is still cold and there is a nip in the air.
Raspberries At 9,759 Foot Elevation
Growing raspberries and other vegetables at high elevation and the challenges.
Backyard Homesteading Memories: Buttermilk Biscuits and Fig Preserves
Anna remembers her grandmother's tasty buttermilk biscuits with fig preserves and her mother's stories of growing up on a small, in-town homestead in the 60s.
Preparing Your Vegetable Garden for Winter
It pays to spend time preparing your garden for winter. You can improve your soil, increase your harvest, decrease garden pests and make next spring's planting much easier.
Walden Effect joins Mother Earth News
We're gearing up for spring on our southwest Virginia farm, planning the garden, pruning the perennials, and getting ready to raise bees, broilers, and mushrooms.
Composting toilet compromise
The last week of the month has been a busy one with are preparations for the ending of winter and the start of a new growing season. We've got some details on a new cover crop and why we choose and simple composting toilet system compared to others.
Homesteading Book Deal Gets More Real
Talking about the excitement of Anna's new book cover that we got to preview from the publisher this past week and the anxiety of our new born chicks as they go out into the big world. Also have some details on how to make your own cleft graft.
DIY Electric Fence Wire Holder
Talking about how to make a DIY electric fence wire holder and how we got a tailgate transplant for around 150 dollars and some signs of spring.
New Chicken Webcam Goes Live
Announcing our new webcam that will be showing the latest flock of new born chicks in all their cute and feathery glory.
Finding Non-Medicated Chicken Feed
A summary of our quest to find non-medicated chicken feed that has higher quality ingredients than the typical feed store bag of chicken food.
In Praise of Livestock Panels
Using 16-foot livestock panels in many ways on your homestead.
Solar Panels, Garlic Scapes, and Barn Floors
We heard from a variety of experts about the type and number of batteries to use in our DIY solar setup. Meanwhile, we checked in with the garden and bees.
Homegrown Wedding
A wedding using homegrown and local food and no disposable items. Decorations were things already on hand. The ceremony took place in a field and the reception was in a barn...and there was love-lots of it!
Mountain Gardening And The Challenges
The challenges that we encounter trying to grow a garden at high latitude.
LivingOff Grid - Our garden at Elevation 4200'
Success at growing food at the 4200' elevation and some of the challenges.
Sprouting: An Edible Experiment
DIY sprouting experiment to get kids interested in growing and eating sprouts.
Natural Garden Amendments
Here are some ways we use natural materials to improve our garden and orchards.
Ed Stone's Rotational Composting
This passive composting system creates beds of fertile soil through rotational composting.
Sneak Preview of the First CSA Harvest
A first look at the newest vegetable crops in the garden before the CSA harvests begin.
Vintage Postcards: Valentine's Day Vegetable Children
These twelve postcards are from the Garden Patch Series, published by Raphael Tuck & Sons in 1907.
"Grow a Sustainable Diet" — the Book!
"Grow a Sustainable Diet" is an upcoming book (spring, 2014) that helps you plan what to eat and what to grow, feeding you and the Earth while maintaining a small ecological footprint.
Earth Gauge Tip of the Week — Container Gardening for Rain
Rain gardens provide many benefits including filtering out pollutants and keeping runoff out of city storm sewers.
Plan Next Year's Garden Now
Plan fall cover crops to feed back the soil and leave the bed ready for when you need to plant the main crop next year.
It's Time to Start Those Veggie Gardens!
Barbara Pleasant offers a step-by-step plan to starting seeds.
Why Homestead?
Raising and growing your own is more than a lifestyle — it is life.
Help Us Design the Best Apps
MOTHER EARTH NEWS has entered the world of mobile media, and we'd like to have your input as we plan and design future apps. Join our advisory group to help us design the best apps for you and our readers.
Fresh Strawberry Recipes
Sweet, juicy and blissfully bite-sized, homegrown strawberries embody everything we love about eating from the summer garden. Get your fresh red beauties performing deliciously in these dishes both sweet and savory.
Cooking Greens for Greens Haters
The right recipe can convert people who think they don't like cooked greens, or energize cooks in need of fresh ideas. Here we offer a roundup of recipe ideas for garden-fresh greens from arugula to turnips.
This Lawn is Your Lawn: Let's Grow a Food Garden on the White House Lawn
Help grow an organic food garden on the White House lawn. Here are some easy ways you can participate.
Understanding Seed Catalogs: 15 Features to Look For
Reading between the lines of the seed catalog variety descriptions is a science and an art. How not to get carried away by all the positive exclamations and miss some basic fact that would tell you this variety is not for your farm? This post provides tips.
Top 5 Things to Consider Before Moving to the Country
Unprepared for their first foray into country living, Kristy Athens takes what she learned and focuses on 5 areas to be considered before moving to the country: Land, buildings, animals, food and community.
Plant a Medicinal Garden, Part 1: Immune-Boosting Herbs
Learn growing methods, health benefits and preparations for echinacea, elecampane, sweet Annie, spilanthes and astragalus.
Get Started Growing Hops
This blog post shares some of The Thyme Garden's experience with growing hops for over 25 years. It includes history of hops, useful information about hops and how and where to grow them.
March Vegetable Garden Planner
Overview of the activities of a garden in March. How to prepare the soil for spring. What varieties I am planting this March in our Zone 6 garden.
World War II Magazine Emphasizes Frugality
A copy of "Good Housekeeping" magazine from 1944 reminds us how housewives found ways to stretch meals, repair household items and plant gardens to overcome wartime rationing hardships.
Always Getting Ready on the Homestead
Each season brings its own work on a homestead. In the autumn, the garden and animals still require work, but this is also the time to put in a cistern and begin a smoke house.
Winter Challenges in the Country, Part 1
Life on a farm blanketed in snow.
Start the Seeds Already
Dragging my feet to get spring started, afraid to fail and making the decision to jump in an succeed or fail already!
How Much To Grow
If you know much of each food from your garden you consume each year, you can better plan how much to grow.
Weekend Project: Garden Bench Made from an Old Tire Inner Tube
Get your garden ready for spring by making this sturdy, comfortable outdoor bench from recycled-plastic lumber and an old truck tire inner tube.
Growing Potatoes in Containers
Growing potatoes in containers allows you to increase your yield in a small amount of space.
On Permaculture
This is an excerpt from Christopher Nyerges' "Self-Sufficient Home" book (published by Stackpole) where he talks about some of his early gardening experiences and when he learned that the health of the soil is the most important aspect of gardening.
Heirloom Vegetables: Saving Seed
Heirloom vegetables are multi-use crops that have been passed down from gardeners for decades, sometimes centuries. Respected author and gardener, William Woys Weaver, discusses his reasons for using heirloom plants and saving seed.
Organic: What Does It Mean to You?
When you say "organic" most people think of elitists that are buying over priced food because they think that they are better than others. What does the "organic" really mean though?
Growing Tomatoes Without Chemicals
When you ask people if they want chemicals in their garden or on their food, most will say no. They want to limit their exposure to the chemicals and pollutants.
Beautiful Gardens, Heirloom Tomato Sauce, and Greasy Beans
How far along are your tomatoes? Ira Wallace gets inspired by gorgeous gardens in Asheville, North Carolina, and shares a quick, easy recipe for tomato sauce.
From Gardener to Farmdener
I'd like to introduce the words farmden and farmdener into the English language. I wonder if there are any other farmdeners out there. And just what is a farmden? It's more than a garden, less than a farm. That's my definition, but it also could be described as a site with more plants and/or land than one person can care for sanely. A gardener and garden gone wild, out of control.
Homesteading Month Brings Cold Weather Gardening to Washington's Rural Living Today
Rural Living Today founder and advocate, Marie James, told us about a Homesteading Education Month event she and her family hosted in Northeast Washington to teach gardeners how to grow vegetables in cold weather.
Okra Hedges, Sweet Corn all Summer, and Succesions for Warm-Season Crops
Hints for harvests all summer long - don't just sow once! Ira helps you plan summer successions for your garden. Plus, discover culinary secrets of okra you never suspected - okra coffee and okra oil - and a recipe for a simple okra lunch.
Protecting Our Right to Save Seed, Fighting GMOs, and Growing Onions
Ira Wallace covers developments in the lawsuit to protect your right to save seeds and how to take action against GMO contamination of the food supply. Also, choose the right onions for your garden and learn what to sow in January.
Start Early Seedlings, Get Bare Root Fruit Trees Now, Plant a Row for the Hungry
It's mid-February, time to start thinking about spring! Ira Wallace helps us make our garden plan, remember our perennials, and Plant a Row for the Hungry this year.
Terra Madre Day—Slow Foods Celebrates Good Things from the Earth
Southern Exposure celebrates Slow Food's Terra Madre Day with a fresh winter greens salad, featuring yacon, a South American root vegetable that tastes like fresh pear! Plus garden planning to have your own farm fresh food through the winter.
Heritage Grinding Corns for Sustenance, Resilience and Self-Reliance
Ira Wallace talks about heirloom grinding corns that provide resilience and sustenance to gardener interested in self reliance. Includes a recipe for Southern style cornbread muffins.
Be Self Sufficient with Sweet Potatoes; Harden off Your Tomatoes
At the gardens of Southern Exposure Seed Exchange, we're preparing to plant sweet potato slips, hardening off transplants, and enjoying an abundance of spring cabbage. Learn tips and tricks for getting your transplants ready for the great outdoors.
When to Plant Corn, Beans and Squash — Natural Signs for Planting
Ira helps you get started using nature's signs to plan your garden. Don't just rely on planting dates — easy observations of what's blooming, buzzing, and singing in your garden will help you see changing patterns from year to year.
Planting Healthy Hibiscus, Delicious Yacon and Nutritious Sunchokes
Sweet, healthy, root vegetables that love growing through the heat of summer? Learn about adding Jerusalem artichokes, yacon, and sweet potatoes to your gardens. Plus, more on the incredible health benefits of roselle (hibiscus).
Seed Swaps, Seed Saving and Abundant Winter Veggies
Host a community seed swap in honor of "National Seed Swap Day," plan to save your own seeds from the garden this year, and get inspired to cook creatively with winter vegetables.
Food Gardening Guide App: Updated and Expanded!
Check out our newly updated and expanded version of our "Food Gardening Guide" digital resource, a great gardening app available for both Apple and Android devices.
Honey in the Hive, and Hope in the Spring
There's honey in the hive, peaches on the trees, and food on the table, but it's still a long way from self-sufficiency.
Teaching Homesteading--in a Nutshell
Growing Local Food is a new book that encompasses all the needed basics to grow plants, keep heritage breed animals and bees. The author is a homesteader and physician who gives the readers the basic information to grow or find nutritious, local food
Michigan Woman Could Be Jailed for Planting Veggies in Front Yard
In Oak Park, Michigan, a mother of six faces 93 days in jail for planting vegetables in her front yard. People across the country are rallying to her defense.
Coast of Maine Organic Products Releases Video
We produce wonderful, organically approved soil products for the independent garden centers.
Founders Seed Collection Offered by the Living Seed Company
The Living Seed Company is creating a platform to inspire gardeners and gardeners to be.
Land Pride Introduces New Rotary Tillers
The RTA12 & RTR12 Series Rotary Tillers from Land Pride till soil for seedbed and planting preparation with uses and applications in landscaping, gardens, and residential areas.
Barnheart: Yearning to be a Farmer
If you have a constant, overwhelming urge of wanting to be outside breathing in the fresh air and partaking in various farming activities, you may be suffering from barnheart.
The Unstoppable Forest is Taking Over
Mother Nature has a way of filling in the blank spots....
Living on a farm in the city
Don't let your wanderlust for more space hold you back from creating your homestead in the city.
A Hoophouse on the Horizon, Part 4: Learning Curve
Gardening for the first time ever in a hoophouse is a lot like gardening elsewhere. But, it is gardening in a whole different climate!
From Typewriter to iPad in Three Easy Decades
Cam is getting burned out on technology and seeks solace in his "low tech" garden.
The Case for Doing Nothing about Pests
This spring when the pests arrive in your garden try this radical strategy - Do nothing!
HOMEGROWN Life: How to Schedule your Planting by the Moon
How to Schedule your Planting by the Moon
What a Mild Winter Means
The good, the bad and the ugly of a nice mild winter and its effects on the homestead in 2012.
On Growing All Your Own Food
Thoughts on growing all your own food. How much space is required and other things to consider.
Managing Spring Cover Crops Without A Tiller
Tips for managing spring cover crops using only hand tools.
The Greenhouse Dream Fulfilled
Cam has been collecting old windows for years and has finally put them together to make a greenhouse!
Trellising Cucumbers
Trying to decide the best way to trellis my cucumbers and learning some new techniques.
And Then There Were Two (Greenhouses)
Cam is trying to extend his growing season with DIY greenhouse structures.
Hoping for Prettier Sweet Potatoes
Cam describes the method he used when planting his sweet potatoes this year with hopes that he'll end up with a prettier finished product!
I'd Better Make it Meaningful
Cam contemplates his place in the universe while weeding his corn patch....
Flowers - Food for the Soul
This garden is practically maintenance free as it produces some of the most beautiful and most beloved flowers. After you have tried it, you will wonder, why didn't I start growing hardy annuals sooner? Don't miss the opportunity to garden in the forgotten seasons.
Hydroponic Vegetable Gardening: Could Soil Go Out of Style?
Recently a trend in farming called hydroponics has resurfaced and gained national attention that has grown in popularity with some, but has left others with mixed feelings.
Feeding Communities With City Farming
A potential solution to rising food prices, food insecurity and the obesity epidemic may call into play raising farms inside the city limits.
Take Our Nationwide Companion Planting Survey
Companion planting can be a great strategy for organic gardeners. Take our nationwide companion planting survey to help us gather useful information about this gardening technique.
Deep Organic Gardening — Good for Your Garden, Good for Your Budget!
If you strive to grow a garden that is beyond-organic, that relies on very few (if any) off-site products, and that saves you both money and work...deep organic gardening is for you!
An Apple Tree Returns to Its Former Glory
A neglected, overgrown, old apple tree does have charm, its gnarled, elbowed branches seemingly ready to reach out for a hug. The fruits, unfortunately, more often than not are too small, too pest-ridden, and too high in the tree. My fear of heights makes the last deficiency most important to me. Large, clean fruits are for nought if I can't bring myself to climb a ladder or the branches for harvest.
Low Tunnel Construction: How to Build a Mini Hoop House
Get a materials list and step-by-step insructions for low tunnel construction for your backyard garden.
Landrace Gardening: Localize Your Garden For a Better Harvest
Joseph Lofthouse, seedsman from Paradise Utah, is now blogging about "Landrace Gardening" on Mother Earth News. The blog is a practical hands-on manual about how to improve crop production by localizing your plants to your unique garden.
Gardening With Children Workshop
Jason Akers, The Self-Sufficient Gardener, taught kids of all ages the basics of gardening on Saturday and Sunday at the Fair.
Crafting a Handmade Garden
I'm a handmade gardening gal – part eco-friendly, non-traditionalist; part crafty creative with more ideas than money, and an abiding aversion to off-the-shelf shopping. My garden is my canvas, my vision, and my voice.
Seven Springs Speaker Spotlight: Jason Akers, Gardener Extraordinaire
Jason Akers, The Self-Sufficient Gardener, will present two workshops on gardening at the Mother Earth News Fair, an annual sustainability festival, September 24-25, 2011 in Seven Springs, Pa.
Seven Springs Speaker Spotlight: Ruth Rogers Clausen, Deer-Proof Gardener
Ruth Rogers Clausen of Timber Press will present a workshop on how to cope with deer when gardening at the Mother Earth News Fair, an annual sustainability festival, September 24-25, 2011 in Seven Springs, Pa.
Seven Springs Speaker Spotlight: Linda Conroy, Herbalist
Linda Conroy of Moonwise Herbs and Brooms will present a workshop on bioregional herbalism at the Mother Earth News Fair, an annual sustainability festival, September 24-25, 2011 in Seven Springs, Pa.
Seven Springs Speaker Spotlight: Elsa Sanchez, Horticulture Specialist
Elsa Sanchez of Penn State University will present two workshops on compost and mulch at the Mother Earth News Fair, an annual sustainability festival, September 24-25, 2011 in Seven Springs, Pa.
The Amazing Cold Frame
If I could only pick one season extending structure, it would be a cold frame. Incredibly versatile, a simple cold frame is the key to taking your garden from a two or three-season plot and turning it into a year round vegetable factory.
Dispelling the Myth: Chickens and Gardens Don't Work Together
When I first got chickens many years ago I had two initial goals: to let my flock roam free range and live as close as possible to how they would naturally, and to build my soil with their manure.
Upgrade a Gravel Pathway
Let's put water back into the soil where it belongs. Permeable or porous surfaces, like a gravel path or patio, allow rainfall and irrigation to percolate into the ground rather than spill into the street.
Supporting Roles in the Garden and Flowering Annual Vines of Summer
Enter attractive easy to assemble garden structures that attractively stake, prop and gently guide plants while never stealing the spotlight from the beautiful garden starlets they support.
Create a Garden That Works for You
When a vegetable garden doesn't look like a vegetable garden, what is it? A polyculture, where gardeners strive to address this simple truth: The most effective way to grow healthy plants is to create gardens that replicate nature.
How to Buy Seeds
Deciding where to buy seeds can be a perplexing challenge. How does a conscientious gardener choose seeds that will grow well, look lovely and taste great, but also support sustainable seed farmers and healthy environments?
Puyallup Speaker Spotlight: David Tracey, Guerrilla Gardening Expert
David Tracey of New Society Publishing will present two workshops on organic gardening at the Mother Earth News Fair, an annual sustainability festival, June 4-5, 2011 in Puyallup, Wash.
Seven Springs Speaker Spotlight: Candy DeBerry, Plant Pollination Expert
Candy DeBerry, Ph.D. of Washington & Jefferson College will present a workshop on pollination at the Mother Earth News Fair, an annual sustainability festival, September 24-25, 2011 in Seven Springs, Pa.
Seven Springs Speaker Spotlight: Tammi Hartung, Herbalist
Tammi Hartung of Desert Canyon Farm will present three workshops on growing and using herbs at the Mother Earth News Fair, an annual sustainability festival. September 24-25, 2011 in Seven Springs, Pa.
Puyallup Speaker Spotlight: Erin Harwood and Eloyce O'Connor, Herb Enthusiasts
Erin Harwood and Eloyce O'Connor of the Garden Delights CSA and Herb Farm will present a workshop on natural remedies at the Mother Earth News Fair, an annual sustainability festival, June 4-5, 2011 in Puyallup, Wash.
Puyallup Speaker Spotlight: Lindsay Lee, Grafting Gardener
Lindsay Lee, nursery owner and Seed Savers Exchange advisor, will present a workshop on grafting fruit trees at the Mother Earth News Fair, an annual sustainability festival, June 4-5, 2011 in Puyallup, Wash.
Puyallup Speaker Spotlight: Jessie Price, Healthy Cook and Linda Gilkeson, Master Gardener
Linda Gilkeson, master gardener, and Jessie Price of EatingWell Magazine will present workshops on gardening and healthy cooking at the Mother Earth News Fair, an annual sustainability festival, June 4-5, 2011 in Puyallup, Wash.
It Feels Like Christmas Morning in the Sweet Potato Patch
Cam enjoyed a very successful sweet potato harvest!
Growing Up Poor on a 1-Acre Farm
Gene GeRue relates the lessons he learned from a childhood of frugal living.
Forest Gardening: Choosing Smaller Trees & Shrubs
The next installment of Maddy Harland's blog series on forest gardening. This week how to choose the lower canopy.
Designing & Planting Your Own Forest Garden: Selecting Trees for the Top Canopy
Maddy Harland describes the canopy layer of a temperate forest garden and shares some useful tips on designing and planting useful and edible tree crops.
5 Signs You Have Cabbage Worms in Your Garden
As you can guess from their name, cabbage worms primarily attack plants in the cabbage family, but are not exclusively cabbage feeders.
How to Rotate Crops in Your Vegetable Garden
Learn how to rotate crops with this helpful crop rotation video.
Compost Awareness Week 2010: Composting Outside the Bin
MOTHER EARTH NEWS contributing editor and compost expert Barbara Pleasant provides some great homestead compost tips in celebration of Compost Awareness Week.
Try This Technique: Grow Lettuce Under Shade
Many gardeners take lettuce off of their summer planting lists, but shade covers can put garden-grown lettuce on your table more than a month sooner this fall.
Garlic Seed Sources
Find garlic seed stock for growing garlic.
Why, How and When to Plant Garlic
Garlic is one of the easiest plants you can grow, and fall is the time for planting. Here are a few resources to help you get started.
Growing Watermelons — Tips From Experts at Willhite Seed
Get tips on growing watermelons from the expert growers at Willhite Seed company, which offers dozens of unique watermelon varieties.
Fedco Seeds: Heirloom Seed Highlights From the 2012 Catalog
Highlights from the catalog of Fedco Seeds, by the editor in chief of MOTHER EARTH NEWS.
Homestead-Based Income Key to Success
There are many more ways than ever to earn income without ever leaving the homestead. As energy prices rise, earning the money you need without traveling is key to success. It just might not come from the place you expect.
The Garden Insects Guide App: Beneficial Insects, Insect Pests and Organic Pest Control, On the Go!
Learn how to identify beneficial insects from the harmful garden insect pests, and the best organic pest control methods, in our "Garden Insects Guide" App, free for smartphones and tablets.
What Keeps Farmers Busy in the Winter?
Wintertime for a farmer is full of projects and planning.
Growing Pine Trees From Seed
Growing pine trees from seed will allow you to produce lots of trees very economically. Follow these instructions to propagate pine trees from seed.
Grow Indoor Winter Crops
It is possible to grow fresh crops through the dark months even without a greenhouse, and even where we live, a thousand miles from the Arctic Circle, where the winter sun brings only brief and meager light.
Better Lettuce Seed Germination
When lettuce is mentioned, many think of the standard iceberg lettuce found in supermarkets and restaurant salads. That is changing with the growth in popularity of the different types of lettuces from Romaine to head and leaf-type lettuces, mainly due to the flavors and colors that they offer from deep red to almost white and noticeably sweet to tangy and slightly bitter.
Aeroponic System Basics
Growing lettuce and other leafy greens indoors with an aeroponic system in a south-facing window seems like a wise move, especially during this long, snowy winter. Here I will explain the basics of growing greens with an aeroponic system, starting off with the initial expenses and moving on to pH and nutrient solution. Then I'll hope the sun provides enough life-giving rays long enough each day to grow some leafy greens.
The New Recharge Mower ULTRALITE
As spring approaches the lawn surrounding your home will certainly begin to grow. With the New Lithium Powered Cordless Recharge Mower ULTRALITE, from Driven By Solar Inc., achieve beautiful manicured results without nasty fumes.
Easy Continuous Batch Composting with New Lifetime Dual Compost Tumbler
Now, when one tumbler is full and ready to start cooking, there is another tumbler ready to take in the raw compost.
Cub Cadet RZT Rated Best Buy Zero-Turn Radius Mower
Cub Cadet is known for providing break-through innovations, a reputation supported by the Best Buy rating.
Building Better Soil Receives Exclusive U.S. Distribution Rights
Soil Life is an all-natural, organic blend of microbes designed to enhance the nutritive value of soil in all growing conditions.
Foolproof Reverse-Cast Stepping Stones
This very simple indirect stepping stone technique allows you to make multiple stepping stones that will be beautiful and long lasting. It is good for individual stones and for large group projects involving all ages.
Seed Catalogs In January
Receiving seed catalogs and dreaming of warmer weather and growing a garden.
Fixing an old barn roof
Finally getting the barn roof repair project started was a big deal for us as well as a few other things that are worth checking out if you are interested in modern homesteading.
Dedicated Roofers Cross Dangerous Creek
Talking about the recent past week where we got several items crossed off the Spring to-do list and managed to have some fun while doing it complete with pictures to illustrate the good times.
Garden Washing Station
Set up a washing station in your garden. Rinse your veggies there, saving the water for the garden and keeping your kitchen clean.
Winter Carrots
Eat carrots from your garden all winter! A little planning goes a long way toward more food with less work. Learn how to start with a winter cover crop of rye, with carrots following next in the rotation, maturing by the time the first frost.
5 Fabulous Porches
Every good home needs a porch. From fireside chats to sleeping--and even hanging laundry--porches can accommodate every aspect of our lives. Here are five inspiring examples to put a fire under your porch-sitting fantasies.
Weekend Project: Make a Vase from Wood Trimmings and an Old Can
Use an old aluminum can and branch trimmings to make a rustic and beautiful vase. This simple project using humble materials costs nearly nothing and looks like a million bucks.
A Good Home Inspires Great Art
Alma Hecht's renovated century-old cottage is artistic and beautiful--and it inspires her to create wonderful watercolor paintings. Her home is both an outlet and a source for her creativity.
Five Tips on Gardening With a Living Safety Net
Tired of pests? Here are five tips for knocking 'em back without resorting to pesticides and toxic chemicals.
New Year's Resolution: Eat More (Homegrown) Vegetables
Make your New Year's Resolution to be healthier fun and family-oriented: Plant a vegetable garden, eat more vegetables and make 2011 The Year of the Vegetable.
Planning For Eating
Begin your garden planning with what,and particularly how much, you want to eat. Take a look at what you are eating now and go from there.
Homesteading Month Features Garden Therapy at In a Good Way Farm
Teddi Irwin sent us this great update on a Homesteading Education Month event held at IN A GOOD WAY, a training farm established to use therapeutic methods of farming to improve the lives of Native American men.
HOMEGROWN101: How To Build a Hoop House
How-To Build a Hoop House; a collection of resources for growers.
Wanna Make Planting Easier?
A Precision Garden Seeder can make planting seed crops quick and easy!
An Abundance of Homegrown Garlic
This blog post describes the MOTHER EARTH NEWS staff's afternoon spent harvesting their homegrown garlic.
The Future of Urban Gardening
Learn about the advantages of urban farming from those who are leading the way. The benefits include improved food production, increased revenue sources and reduced energy use.
Chocolate Turkeys and Forest Garden Details
Talking about the new Chocolate Turkeys we saw on Saturday and how to properly plant into a kill mulch without doing much damage to the killing.
Cleaning with Essential Oils
Discover some of the properties of essential oils, along with some tips for cleaning with them.
Weekend Project: Turn Empty Eggshells Into An Indoor Herb Garden
Combine two of this hopeful season's symbols--herbs and eggs--in this simple project that celebrates spring.
Meatless Monday Recipe: Risotto Primavera
Celebrate Meatless Monday with this sweet, tangy spring risotto.
Weekend Project: Simple, Pretty Pot Lights for Your Patio
Turn terra cotta planter pots into candle holders. This super simple project is an inexpensive way to bring a little romance to your garden.
Meatless Monday Recipe: Polenta with Leeks, Wilted Greens and Mushrooms
Sauteed spring greens and mushrooms dress up polenta in this nutritious, satisfying main dish.
Weekend Project: Make Modern Candleholders for Less Than $5
Connect together inexpensive mending plates to make these top-shelf candleholders--perfect for patio and porch dining. This simple project takes minutes and costs next to nothing.
My Sabbath Garden
A great way to get more enjoyment in the garden and less work, is to try the ancient concept of a garden Sabbath. That's one day a week where gardening isn't allowed, but communing with nature is.
Pat Stone: History's First Asset to the Planet
Congratulations to Pat Stone creator and editor of Green Prints Magazine and, now, a recognized Asset to the Planet!
Share the Yard
Simran Sethi teams up with two neighbors to "grow food, not lawns."
Livin' the Dream, Off the Grid and Thriving
An introduction to Cam Mather's off-grid home and lifestyle.
Forest Gardening: Establishing the Ground Layer
Maddy Harland explains how to make light work of establishing the ground layer in a forest garden, create a wildlife habitat and control pests all at the same time.
Carel Struycken: Leaning Towards the Paleolithic
Actor Carel Struycken is famous for his role as Lurch in Addams Family, as well as many other roles. He is also a big proponent of permaculture. Nyerges talks with Struycken at his Pasadena home about permaculture and sustainable farming.
Spring Planning
Starting flats of seedlings begins this year's growing season.
Transplanting Brassicas
Transitioning seedlings from indoor starts to outdoor plants
Panting Like Lizards
We're lucky to be able to live the way we do, even when we feel like we're melting
Piles of Dirt
Taking care of compost is essential to healthy soil and good food.
Composting Toilet Construction and No-Till Gardening Details
talking about building a composting toilet and how well the Seed Swap went on Saturday. Hauling capacity of a golf cart compared to an ATV generated some useful and helpful comments regarding electricity vs internal combustion engines. No till works!
Home and Away
Completing tasks in preparation for a few days away from the homestead
Back to Nature: A Summer Camp Experience for Children
Blogger Crystal Stevens discusses her time working at a nature-based summer camp for kids.
Photo of the Week: Passing on the Knowledge of Self-Sufficiency
If we want future generations to live self-sufficient lives, we have to pass on the knowledge. This week's "Photo of the Week" reflects that point.
A Menu of Organic Fertilizers
Explains the benefits of organic fertilizers such as rock phosphate, kelp, fish meal and greensand, and tells you how to get buy these materials at reasonable prices.
Spring Greens and Other Things from the Early Vegetable Garden
The mild winter has led to an earlier than usual spring growing season and plenty of surprises in the way of plants making it through the winter that normally would never survive the cold season. Here's a peek at what's growing in my spring garden.
Time to Plant Popcorn!
Popcorn is easy to grow and makes an attractive and delicious alternative to sweet corn, especially in a small garden. Kids will love the cute little ears, and adults will treasure the superior flavor of homegrown popcorn. Plant in late spring.
Birdbaths Are Good for the Garden
A birdbath in the garden does much more than a birdfeeder. Attract birds to the garden with water, and they will help with pest control, soil aeration, and much more as they get the water they need for drinking and grooming. Wasps love a drink too.
Saving Stressed Tomatoes
Describes a method of protecting tomatoes from excessive heat using a sunscreen, vermicompost tea, pulling blighted leaves.
Russians Prove Small-Scale Organic Can Feed the World
Using an old-world technique, Russians are growing their own organic crops -- and it's working.
Gardening and Food
Part of gardening is knowing what to do with your veggies after you've grown them. Here, we will examine what to do with those pie pumpkins this upcoming Fall.
Gardening for Climate Change
Climate change is here to stay, with violent and unpredictable weather. This presents challenges to home gardeners, so is there a way to storm proof our gardens?
Seven Springs Speaker Spotlight: Jackie Cleary Dietrich, Small-Scale Farmer and Diane Ott Whealy, Seed Saver
Diane Ott Whealy of Seed Savers Exchange and Jackie Cleary Dietrich of Auburn Meadow Farm will present workshops on gardening and farming at the Mother Earth News Fair, an annual sustainability festival, Sept. 24-25, 2011 in Seven Springs, Pa.
Seven Springs Speaker Spotlight: Sue J. Morris, Gardener and Healer
Sue J. Morris of Sue's Salves will present two workshops on gardening and creating salves at the Mother Earth News Fair, an annual sustainability festival, September 24-25, 2011 in Seven Springs, Pa.
Seven Springs Speaker Spotlight: Ann Adams and Liz Brensinger, Healthy Gardening Experts
Ann Adams and Liz Brensinger of Green Heron Tools will present a workshop on the principles of good body mechanics at the Mother Earth News Fair, an annual sustainability festival, September 24-25, 2011 in Seven Springs, Pa.
Seven Springs Speaker Spotlight: Deborah Niemann, Home Dairy and Homegrown Food Enthusiast
Deborah Niemann of Antiquity Oaks will present two workshops on traditional home dairies and homegrown food at the Mother Earth News Fair, an annual sustainability festival, September 24-25, 2011 in Seven Springs, Pa.
Seven Springs Speaker Spotlight: Jennifer R. Bartley, Kitchen Gardener and Cook
Jennifer R. Bartley of American Potager will present a workshop on cooking with herbs and vegetables from a kitchen garden at the Mother Earth News Fair, an annual sustainability festival, September 24-25, 2011 in Seven Springs, Pa.
Introducing The Principles of Permaculture Design – Using Nature as our Teacher
Maddy Harland writes about principles that underpin our understanding and practical application of permaculture. She relates them to designing a green home and garden but also explains how permaculture can help us to create more sustainable lifestyle
A Modern Homesteader's Shame
How can someone who claims to be a 'modern homesteader' not have planted her garden by the end of June, you ask? Well, let me tell you...
Find Organic Gardening Supplies
These sources can help you locate organic and other natural options for plants, seeds, and weed and pest control products.
Spinach Alternatives: Warm Weather Salad Greens
Is it too hot to grow spinach where you live? Try these fabulous alternatives.
Backyard Vegetable Gardeners: Go Get a Hoop House for Winter!
It is not difficult to set up a backyard hoop house to extend your growing season. The result is abundant, delicious greens and extra months with your hands in the soil. Share information here on backyard hoop house gardening and cuisine.
Re-Greening My Thumb
Simran Sethi starts dreaming of spring gardening, with the goal of renewing her efforts to grow real food.
Counting Blessings
Simran Sethi takes a moment to give thanks.
Survival Seed Banks, Part 2: Types and Qualities of Seeds to Include
A landrace market farmer's perspective on survival seed banks. Part Two – Suggestions about the types and quantities of seeds to include in an emergency seed bank.
Vegetable Gardening In The Southeast
Review of The Timber Press Guide to Vegetable Gardening in the Southeast, a new book written by Ira Wallace.
Guide to Organic Gardening App
No matter your level of gardening expertise, our Guide to Organic Gardening app has the advice and how-to you need to dig in and grow a bountiful organic food garden. With articles on composting, beneficial insects, weed control and more, you'll have a wealth of organic gardening know-how at your fingertips after you download this app onto your Apple or Android smartphone or tablet.
Barbara Pleasant Receives Garden Writers Association Award
Among a slew of other awards for her outstanding writing, Barbara Pleasant has received the 2013 Silver Award of Achievement from the Garden Writers Association for her Gardening Know-How column.
Cold, Colder, Coldest: Which Vegetables Overwinter in the Garden?
Some crops survived the cold temperatures while others died. Which ones are most reliable for winter outdoors and in the hoophouse?
Creating Your Own Micro-Climate
Creating a micro-climate is an essential tool for your survival and homesteading skills. Making the right micro-climate for your plants specific needs will not only help them survive, but thrive as well.
Zoned Out: How Climate Change Will Affect Your Gardening Choices, Part 1
How fast climate change will require you and your descendants to move north in order to keep farming and gardening a serious question you should be asking yourself.
Mulching with Leaves
Leaves are a valuable source of mulch and fertility within the permaculture garden.
Solar Panel Back Up Power for Under 1000 Dollars?
Describing how we are trying to provide a low budget solar panel back up system for under 1000 dollars that will run our laptops and router along with a few other things if the local power grid has any issues.
Flywheel Garlic Bearings
Crushing a truck, harvesting garlic, and fixing a broken flywheel shaft key are just a few of the things that got done over the last week at WaldenEffect.org complete with photos of all the juicy stuff.
Weekend Project: Milk Jug Shade
Cut old milk jugs into the shape of your choice, rough them up with sandpaper and string them together to make surprisingly pretty window shades that offer privacy while letting the sun shine in.
Weekend Project: A Chandelier Made from Salvage
I envision this chandelier—made entirely of items recovered from the recycling bin—hanging over a dining table on the patio. Making it is a pretty big project, though, and I would have to call in a friend with a jigsaw to help. (I don't have the tools—or skills—that former Natural Home & Garden art director Susan Wasinger, who dreamed up this project, does.) Aside from the saw, the materials for this one are simple: used baby-food jars, a few yards of twisted wire, a couple repurposed barrel hoops and a length of rusty chain. And happily, I can make the "lite" version–pretty votive holders—which lets me stop before power tools are needed.
Weekend Project: Bling Your Shower Curtain--Naturally
Pick some pretty leaves, paint them and press their likenesses onto an inexpensive shower curtain liner to make a shower curtain much prettier than anything found in stores.
Weekend Project: Make a Backsplash from Pebbles, Shells or Leftover Hardware
Give your bathroom a little flair--and have fun doing it--by creating a backsplash from pebbles, pennies or whatever's rattling around in the bottom of the toolbox. This fun, simple project is perfect for everyone--whether you're a DIYer or not.
5 Fresh, Funky Houses—Built Green
From a home built into a cliff to a home built out from laundry soap boxes, these homes prove how fun and satisfying it is to push the conventional edge. It's your house. Create whatever you want.
Seed Catalogs: Waiting for Winter to End
Sorting through seed catalogs is one of the most entertaining tasks we have here at MOTHER EARTH NEWS. These garden seed catalogs come in handy when searching for just the right variety of heirloom veggies to grow, and they're fun to look at too!
Creating an Edible Landscape
There are various means for developing an edible landscape.
Fruit for the Future
Looking ahead to spring, we're using these long days to plan a rootstock order of perennial trees, shrubs, and herbs.
Thoughts of Spring Begin to Stir
A winter thaw inspires starting the first seeds of the season - indoors, of course: kale, chard, and spinach to start.
Holiday Hoop House Salad Bar
Potted greens are a good complement to greens in the hoop house soil.
Homegrown Fridays 2012
Eating only homegrown foods on the Fridays in Lent.
What to Plant Now: Leafy Greens
Sow leafy greens in late summer to reap abundant crops in the fall.
Sustainability, One Step At a Time
Once our bodies and our imaginations are engaged, the incremental change begins. Then it gets easier and easier to envision humanity occupying this planet–this beautiful, abundant planet–far into the future.
Homegrown Carrots
Homegrown vegetables are a lesson for kids in where food comes from.
Sauerkraut is an effective and delicious way to store cabbage and add something "fresh" to the winter months
A Weekend at the MOTHER EARTH NEWS FAIR: A Snapshot Tour
Take a visual tour of the events at the MOTHER EARTH NEWS Fair in Puyallup, Washington.
Turkey Traps and Top Bar Hive Modifications
Top bar hive modifications, turkey traps, and gourmet potatoes are just a few of the topics covered in the past week of blogging we've been up to. Homesteading healthcare and a new virtual book club round off the week with several reader comments.
Uses of Diatomaceous Earth on the Homestead
For those of us who hate to use chemicals in our gardens, in our homes, or with our livestock and pets, diatomaceous earth may be a safe and efficient substitute. It may worm your animals, rid them of fleas and lice and even handle indoor pests.
An Unintended Death
The unintended death of a charming little creature raises the realities of life on a farm homestead.