Mass. Relocalization Conference: McKibben, Lappe, Mel King…

Heads up: October 18 Roxbury, MA Bill McKibben, Frances Moore Lappé and Mel King The major goals of the conference are to educate, inform, and empower Massachusetts residents to take actions in their communities to help build the local infrastructure and institutions needed to provide economic security in a changing world. The conference will help …

Winter Harvest

I bought the book. Nowadays when I want to buy a book I get it from the library first. After a couple of weeks of perusing and handling it, I might think differently about spending $15 on it… Not so with Coleman’s Winter Harvest Handbook. It’s full of hard practical advice and it’s beautifully made …

Independence Day, Week 5 – and Winter Garden

Independence Days was somewhat hindered by a sorry head cold, but here’s what I did before – Ah——tshoo! Rhubarb Plant. Two 1-year-old rhubarb  plants: I know it’s not the season to plant them, but they look very healthy and were cheap so it’s worth experimenting. Seedlings are still patiently waiting for the hoop house. Harvest …

Independence Days, Week 4

Amie draws worms and a little girl watering the grass with the complete and barely-used artists set found at the landfill. Mm, something else seems to have come along from the landfill (click to enlarge) (*) Warning: there’s a lot of “didn’t do” this week – it’s been a bit of a down-week… Plant: Amie …

Independence Days, Week 3

Plant: Still waiting for the “Fall planting” seedlings (lettuce, spinach, chard, etc.) to graduate to planting-out size. “Unplanted” most of the tomato plants (one chilly day and night and they succumbed fully to the blight). Also planted sustainable lawn seed on our erosion-prone slope: curious about the result! Harvest: Finally harvested the first carrots (which …

Riot for Austerity – Month 10

This month there were no shifts in the household: just the three of us, which makes the reckoning much easier. Amie feeds the compost tea some molasses Gasoline: 27% This stayed the same as last month. The school year hasn’t started yet, so DH is spending more time working from home and Amie isn’t daily …

Independence Days, Week 2 {reset}

{Reset} Since I started again last week, I’ll call this week 2. Plant: Transplanted mostly lettuce seedlings in the old potato bed, but I’m afraid they drowned in  last week’s downpours; luckily I didn’t put in all of them, and I have many more waiting on the porch. I did drop a tray with mizuna …

Independence Days – Week… ahum…

So behind, it’s shameful. Forge ahead, anyway! Plant: Fall garden of spinach, kale, broccoli, purslane, various lettuce, chard, mizuna, mustard greens, all as seedlings, and in the ground peas, more green beans, chard and carrots. Harvest: chard, kale, cucumber, potatoes, various tomatoes, beans both green and dry. Preserve: apple* sauce, peaches* in syrup, tomato-apple* chutney, …

Canner and Stove

I can cross two more items off my “Tools/Toys” list in the sidebar. “Lookit” (*) what arrived yesterday, one after the other: My Presto 23 quart high pressure canner, present from DH for my birthday Our new wood stove, present to ourselves for our 8th wedding anniversary That’s two big pillars of self-sufficient living right …