Root Simple Reader Survey Results

May 10, 2016

...al to put out three to six blog posts a week plus a podcast. I have a hard time knowing if we’re putting out too much or too little. There’s a paradoxical problem with a DIY blog. If we’re gardening or in the garage making something we’re not writing and vice versa. It’s been difficult to find the right balance. Looks like you’re all good with where we are. When we first began this blog ten years ago the standard advice was along the lines of, “pe...

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Why I’m Growing Vegetables in a Straw Bale

Mr. Homegrown

May 29, 2019

10 Comments

...ough to feed all the inhabitants of a generously sized cult compound. This time around I’m trying an inorganic approach, substituting the blood meal I used last time for urea. I’m curious to see if I notice any difference other than price (urea is a lot cheaper). Should I try it again, I’m thinking of building some simple wooden boxes to hold the bales and keep them moist in our hot and dry summer season. My previous success with straw bale garden...

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The Blue Bear

Mrs. Homegrown

September 9, 2016

Thoughtstylings

36 Comments

...myself, I suppose–but you know what I mean.) Still, fifty years is a long time, even for polyester fun fur, so Blue Bear is disintegrating. In the end, I suppose, time decides things for us this way. But I made things worse by washing him. His head and one arm came loose, revealing that he’d been stuffed with strange scraps and lumps of polyester wadding of different colors. His body material is so fragile at this point I can’t even consider tryi...

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Take Back Your Time

Mr. Homegrown

October 24, 2007

Thoughtstylings

2 Comments

...Today, October 24th, is Take Back Your Time Day which, according to the website www.timeday.org, is “a major U.S./Canadian initiative to challenge the epidemic of overwork, over-scheduling and time famine that now threatens our health, our families and relationships, our communities and our environment.” So take it easy out there....

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Do Hens Make Noise?

Mr. Homegrown

January 7, 2008

Animals, Chickens

13 Comments

...n wanted wake-up call, but so far nobody has complained. Being naive first time chicken owners, the first time we heard this sound caught us by surprise. We suspected that it’s the result of discomfort from squeezing out an egg, or some wonder of selective breeding, a way to announce to the poultry farmer, “Hey, time to collect an egg!” In fact, research presented by University of Sheffield animal scientists Tommaso Pizzari and Tim R. Birkhead, in...

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