078 Mark Lakeman on City Repair

...the community architecture and planning firm Communitecture. He is also an urban place-maker, permaculture designer and community design facilitator. And if you’re on the West Coast of the US, you have a chance to participate in a series of workshops this month. For more information visit marklakeman.net. To find out about events in Los Angeles visit change-making.com. If you want to leave a question for the Root Simple Podcast please call (213) 5...

Read…

Satan’s Easter Basket is Filled with Plastic Easter Grass

...round this morning, especially because Echo Park surrounds a lovely little urban lake full of birds. Read on to find out why. 4 Excellent Reasons to Avoid Plastic Easter Grass and use all of your influence to make sure other people avoid it, too: Domestic cats and dogs eat Easter grass and it can cause intestinal obstruction. Cats are particularly attracted to its stringy texture, but dogs might also gobble it up when they raid a kid’s Easter stas...

Read…

087 Foraging Controversy with Lisa Novick

...isa mentions: Weeds of the West Telling a new story about our urban and suburban landscapes Talking to the neighbors Impact of the drought Design tips from the 2016 Theodore Payne garden tour Theodore Payne plant list Native gardening mistakes Edible California natives California natives in pots Hooker’s Evening Primrose in bloom. Photo: Lisa Novick. If you’d like to leave a question for the Root Simple Podcast please call (213) 537-2591 or send a...

Read…

Saturday Tweets: DIY Kayaks, Maps and Dragon Anatomy

...able, lightweight, foam kayak (23 lbs). Free DIY kayak plans, the hardware store boat https://t.co/0Cr6dIM31s — Root Simple (@rootsimple) August 2, 2016 Having a lot of fun playing with the True Size map of the world. Definitely worth a peek: https://t.co/Zp93jA5jSf — Root Simple (@rootsimple) August 1, 2016 9 building materials made entirely from waste products https://t.co/I9msD5K0M7 — Root Simple (@rootsimple) August 1, 2016 Almost Every Kind o...

Read…

094 The American Woman’s Home

On the podcast this week Kelly and I discuss a 19th century urban homesteading book written by Catherine Beecher and Harriet Beecher Stowe, The American Woman’s Home. The book was written mostly by Catherine, with some contributions from Harriet (author of Uncle Tom’s Cabin). It’s likely that Catherine realized that attaching her famous sister’s name would sell more copies. Published in 1869, The American Woman’s Home covers a great deal of terri...

Read…