MOTHER EARTH NEWS April-May-2013

Get Growing, Crop by Crop Our new Crops at a Glance Guide walks you through the specifics of growing an array of food garden favorites. Written by organic gardening expert Barbara Pleasant, these one-of-a-kind crop profiles provide the particulars of when and how to plant, how to harvest, how to save seeds, and how to outwit common pests and diseases naturally. You’ll find growing know-how for Asian greens, asparagus, beans, beets, blueberries, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, celery, cucumbers, eggplant, garlic, grapes, Jerusalem artichokes, lettuce, melons, onions, peas, peppers, potatoes, radishes, raspberries, spinach, strawberries, summer squash, sweet corn, Swiss chard, tomatoes, winter grains and winter squash. Ready to get growing? Head to www.MotherEarthNews.com/Crops-At-A-Glance—and don’t forget to bookmark it! You can also access much of this information on your smartphone or tablet with…

Spread the Joys of Modern Homesteading Perhaps the most surprising, consistent thing we’ve discovered about living conscientiously is how happy it makes us! As we experience the satisfaction of finishing a batch of homemade cheese, putting the final touches on a new workbench, plucking buckets of ripe tomatoes in the garden, or putting up dozens of quarts of homegrown fruits and vegetables — we smile in spite of the long hours and sore muscles. “There is nothing more satisfying after an honest day’s work than sitting down to a home-cooked meal prepared with food from your land, a fire in the woodstove and hand-knit socks warming your toes — and knowing you did not have to depend on anyone else to enjoy these comforts,” says one homesteading reader. Physical labor,…

Resolved to Find a Homestead Thank you for everything you do to keep the spirit of self-sufficiency alive and thriving. I am an aspiring homesteader myself, and I can’t count the number of times I’ve referenced a MOTHER EARTH NEWS article while planning my own little paradise. I feel so fortunate to have MOTHER EARTH NEWS to turn to when I’m feeling lost in a world that doesn’t always understand or accept my homesteading passion. Whether on your website’s home page or your Facebook page, the content you feature is either something I’m already interested in and want to learn more about, or it’s something you’ve managed to get me excited about (such as carving my own wooden spoons, a skill I’m now determined to master). Your articles inspire me…

Proof in Her Pocketbook In response to the letter “The Riches of a Garden” in the February/March 2013 issue (Dear MOTHER): If you gave up gardening, your cash flow would definitely not improve. My husband — who has no interest in gardening — loves to tease me about the amount of money he thinks I spend on gardening. So, during the 2012 gardening season, I decided to keep track of every penny I spent on my 15-by-25-foot vegetable garden. I also weighed and measured my harvests. Using the prices of comparable items at the supermarket, I found that my little garden cleared more than $200 in value. We had all the fresh produce we could eat, and I was also able to freeze, pickle, and share with friends and neighbors.…

Wind vs. Fracking I’m a New York state resident living in an area ringed by wind turbines. Many of us opposed the turbines, but the issue was never put to a public vote, so we are living with them. They are monstrosities looming over our hills, blinking at us all night with their red eyes, interrupting our formerly pristine views. But now they don’t look so bad, because we are being faced with a more hideous prospect: high-volume hydrofracking to produce oil and gas. Wind turbines seem benign by comparison. We are now fighting to hold back the poisoning of our water, land and air. If I could choose between the energy sources, I’d choose the turbines. Choose Turbine Sites Wisely Lester R. Brown’s well-written article on renewable energy (“Exciting…

French researchers recently published a study on GMO safety showing that rats exposed to low doses of genetically modified (GM) corn and Roundup herbicide experienced negative health effects. The results, published in the peer-reviewed journal Food and Chemical Toxicity, emphasize the urgent need for more long-term GMO research. More than two decades ago, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted GMOs “generally regarded as safe” status, meaning the industry had no obligation to conduct long-term safety studies. And while GMOs don’t have what scientists call “acute” effects, what about “chronic” effects — those that come on gradually and can’t easily be tied to one cause? The French study — the most comprehensive GMO safety assessment ever conducted — highlights that concern. It involved 200 rats and spanned two years,…