Essential System #9 – Hydration

...ust a few hours without it. We’ve got a number of water sources around the homestead, with a few more back-ups in the works. First off it pays to have some plastic water jugs around – figure two liters a day per person minimum. There are stricter standards for tap water in this banana republic we call the USA than for bottled water so don’t go wasting any money on boxes of Evian. The Red Cross recommends changing out the water every six months. Wh...

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June: National Bathroom Reading Month

...thing from showing birds to eating them. This is where we learned how to build the portable run that is in our back yard that we’ll blog about soon. Plans for that run can be seen here. Peaceful Valley Farm & Garden Supply Catalog. A great source for seeds, bare root trees and many other items. We ordered our fig and pomegranate trees, our grape vines and our cover crop seeds from Peaceful Valley and have been happy with all of these items. Of cou...

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The Root Simple 2016 Holiday Gift Guide

...d sailors spend a lot of their time sewing special cat hammocks. Vegetable Seeds Who should you trust with your vegetable varieties? How about our friends the Italians? They know a few things about tasty vegetables. My favorite source for years has been Franchi, a family owned company that dates back to the 18th century. Franchi’s American importer is Seeds From Italy. But wait, what about climate change and drought for those of us in the arid Sou...

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Gardening Resources in Los Angeles County

...2660/What-to-Plant-When-in-Southern-California Our favorite seeds, Franchi Seeds, are available at http://growitalian.com/, http://theheirloomseedstore.com/ and at Sunset Nursery in Silver Lake. Vegetable gardening classes: Grow LA Victory Gardening Initiative. Visit the Huntington Ranch for ideas and inspiration. The Environmental Change Makers offer a number of great classes and publications: How to Get Rid of Bermuda Grass, and How to Make Your...

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The Three Sisters

...and squash. We added a drip irrigation system on a timer (more on that in a later post) which has seemed to keep the plants healthier by preventing watering mishaps due to those flaky hung-over mornings. We planted corn seeds from the Not a Cornfield project, a variety of squash called Cucuzzi, and two beans from seeds we saved from last season (the tasty Borlotto Lingua di Fuoco and attractive but not so tasty scarlet runner bean)....

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