#rural-homesteading

#rural-homesteading

More than a third of the nation's local newspapers have folded in the last 20 years, with the Western U.S. being especially hard-hit, including significant losses in Utah and New Mexico.

"We were only allowed to dig in a certain area, an area found from a scan. We've only done 20% of it. We're forever hopeful."

Around a third of UK gardeners use pesticides, and our studies found that house sparrow numbers, for example, were nearly 40% lower in gardens where the pesticide metaldehyde was used. By reducing pesticide use, you can actively encourage birds back into your outdoor spaces, as they rely on invertebrates such as slugs and snails as natural prey.

Starting an edible garden can make it easier for you to eat healthy and avoid rising grocery costs. You have access to fresh, organic fruits and veggies right outside your door.

The Rural Cut places vintage fashion in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley, among vineyards, open fields, and the animals that inhabit the land. As a Beirut-based stylist, I worked with a fully Lebanese team to create a shoot that feels authentic, where each garment and every frame reflects the textures, history, and rhythm of the rural landscape. Photography by Angele Basile / Instagram: @angelebasile Styling by Rinad Saad / Instagram: @rinaaaaddd

Raised beds provide access to fresh food, even organic veggies and fruits if you choose, for a fraction of grocery store prices.

"I saw the announcement that one of America's most enduring publications was set to close," Konrad said, "and it felt wrong to stand by while an irreplaceable piece of our national heritage disappeared."

Last week, I was making my morning coffee-you know, the complicated order I'm too embarrassed to say out loud at coffee shops-when I noticed the pile of used grounds in my filter. For years, I'd been tossing these straight into the trash without a second thought. But then I remembered something my grandmother wrote in one of her letters years ago: "The garden teaches us that nothing is truly waste."

Garden angelica, Angelica archangelica, belongs to the Apiaceae family, the same botanical group as carrots, celery, fennel, and parsley. Like its relatives, it produces a large, distinctively umbrella-shaped inflorescence, or flower cluster, called umbels. In its first year, the plant forms a lower mound of bright green leaves. In the second, a thick, hollow stem shoots upward and unfurls the broad green flower heads that resemble wild carrot or Queen Anne's Lace.

To an unimaginable eye, a seed looks inert. Yet they are packed with genetic information and biological processes poised to unfold. All it takes is the right configuration of signals and stimuli from the environment to let them know it's time to dare to grow.

My older brother has worked with pigs his entire adult life, managing about 70,000 of them across five counties, Faaborg says. But we got to a point where he went from laughing at me to saying: well, I guess maybe I'll quit my job and help you out. Now he's the most dedicated, says Katherine Jernigan, director of the Transfarmation Project at Mercy for Animals, a non-profit that helped the Faaborgs make the switch and set up their new business, 1100 Farm.

When you think of farming, what ingredients do you generally associate with a successful harvest? The basics certainly come to mind: fertile soil, plenty of sunlight and lots of water. But there are other variables that can also mean the difference between a crop of healthy fruits and vegetables and a large heap of organic waste. And it turns out that one of those variables is a very small hawk.

Based on years of post-transition reviews, MNP has identified seven traits common to successful farm families, MacLean says. First, they start early. Early planning allows flexibility and time to work through the tough stuff. Clear, respectful communication is the second trait - and it's essential. Families who talk openly and establish expectations avoid the dangerous territory of unspoken assumptions. Farms that navigate the process well have a shared vision.

Come join a volunteer work party at The School Farm every second Saturday from noon to 4 pm to lend a hand and learn about farm work. All skill levels and abilities are welcome, even for moral support and comic relief. They will provide some water and maybe a snack, and plenty of well worn gloves, but If you'd like, bring some more refreshments to share or your favorite personal protective equipment. For more info, contact sam@eco-sf.org.

People grow asparagus from crowns because it shortens the long wait times for harvesting. From seed, you'll need to wait three years before harvesting asparagus. Some people consider that a waste of time. The tradeoff is that you can keep harvesting every spring for up to 15 years or more. If you plant crowns, you get a one-year jump on things. However, those crowns may have soil-borne diseases you don't know about, so there is a risk involved. Seeds remove that problem.