Innholdsfortegnelse for June/July 2021 i MOTHER EARTH NEWS

Systemic pesticides, such as neonicotinoids (or “neonics”), are absorbed by plants and transferred into their tissues to poison the insects that feed on them. These widespread chemicals have been linked to detrimental sublethal effects on bees and other beneficial insects, and further evidence of unintended impacts is continually emerging. Research published in Scientific Reports in January 2021 shows that neonics disrupt the memory and sleep patterns of bees and butterflies, limiting their ability to forage, pollinate, and reproduce. Treated seeds can also find their way into other creatures’ diets, and recent studies have shown that neonic insecticides can negatively impact mammals, birds, and fish. Because of these extensive impacts, neonics have been restricted in some places — but bans give rise to new formulas that may be no safer. In…

Living without money in today’s society is a challenge, but it’s also satisfying. My dad led me to this lifestyle; he didn’t like that his tax money was going to support wars, so he figured he wouldn’t earn more than $6,500 a year. For the first 20 years of my life, he filed taxes, but he didn’t have to pay, because he earned less than the required amount to file. Somehow, he convinced my mother, and later, us kids to join him in taking this voluntary vow of poverty. To succeed, we needed to eliminate a majority of the expenses that most people have: House and land. We traded housesitting and land-sitting in exchange for a place to stay. Eventually, we bought a house under a contract for deed, and…

Implementing permaculture practices can be overwhelming, but not because of a lack of information, tools, techniques, skills, or prescriptions. Instead, lack of a clearly defined process to design, develop, and manage a permaculture property is what hinders many people. Thankfully, you can significantly reduce the number of options to consider when building a permaculture property if you take time to make a Venn diagram that outlines what you have, what you want, and what is right. The good news is that permaculture already includes most of the tools and ideas that can help us with this process of elimination. These tools and ideas just need to be organized and applied in a different way than they have before. In particular, the quintessential needs and yields analysis of permaculture design —…

Last year, I had the pleasure of touring a local brewery that was only a few blocks away from where I lived. Supporting my community is important to me, and I wanted to see the hard work that goes into crafting the six-packs I regularly grab from the liquor store without a second thought. While this tour inspired me to start my own boozy fermentation, I wasn’t exactly sure where to start or which brewing tools were necessary. I decided to test the Brew Share Enjoy Homebrew Starter Kit with the Block Party Amber Ale recipe from the Mother Earth News Store. As someone without prior brewing experience, I found the instructions easy to follow, and I appreciated that the kit offered multiple ways to reach out to the company…

An astonishing variety of things can be built from bags filled with earth, also known as “earthbags.” One of the most versatile forms of natural building, earthbags can be used in many applications that would be too wet for most conventional and natural building methods. Earthbag pools are a perfect demonstration of this. Before I describe two pool projects I’ve been involved in, let’s discuss some of the advantages of earthbag building. From the Ground Up Earthbag structures are strong, which is why they’ve traditionally been used for military fortifications and flood control projects. The “superadobe” technique produces structures from an unbroken spiraling polypropylene tube with barbed wire between the layers. Other builders prefer “hyperadobe,” or long polyester tubes made of open netting, which allows the fill to blend between…

2021 Calendar IN-PERSON FAIRS SEPT. 17-19 Seven Springs Mountain Resort SEVEN SPRINGS, PENNSYLVANIA OCT. 9-10 Bell County Expo Center BELTON, TEXAS VIRTUAL EVENT JUNE 24-25 MOTHER EARTH NEWS Herbal Living Conference For more information, see page 91! Tickets Available Now! Visit www.MotherEarthNewsFair.com FEATURED Speakers REGISTER Today! www.MotherEarthNewsFair.com Mastering the money-saving art of sustainable living has never been easier! MOTHER EARTH NEWS FAIR ONLINE is a learning platform featuring more than 25 courses with more than 175 workshop videos. Plus, new courses are added monthly. Get access to all courses and prerecorded webinars with an All-Access Subscription for just $35/year! This is similar to the vast amount of workshops hosted at our in-person FAIRs, but with several advantages: • Because the videos can be viewed at your convenience, you can watch…

INDOOR/OUTDOOR GRILL This Indoor/Outdoor grill is designed to create less smoke and less mess while you prepare your favorite foods. The grill’s high heat quickly seals in the juices of the foods, enhancing the flavor of dishes both hearty and healthy like steaks, burgers, fish, lean meats and vegetables. Cleanup is easy, since the base and grill plate can be washed in the dishwasher with the power cord removed. #10648 $49.99 Member: $44.99 HOW TO GRILL VEGETABLES Whether you're eating main dishes that highlight vegetables, or you're rounding out the barbecue menu with grilled garden-fresh sides, let author Steven Raichlen show you how to grill them to perfection! #10594 $24.95 Member: $21.21 PICKLED TO PLEASE Intended for new and experienced home canners, this book covers food preservation methods, safety information,…

SHOW US! Share your unique perspective with our community by submitting photos of inviting gardens, nutritious foods, wild animals, and more to the MOTHER EARTH NEWS Photo Group on Flickr (www.Flickr.com/Groups/MotherEarthNewsPhotos/Pool). We’ll feature our favorites here and online!…

In late November, Indian trade unions claim that 250 million people in India joined a 24-hour general strike to support the farmers’ demands, and over the past six months, people throughout India and around the world have held rallies in solidarity. Such widespread and consistent participation makes this the largest ongoing demonstration in the world, and, many sources say, likely the largest in human history. The three bills together, according to the Government of India’s Press Information Bureau, would allow for intra-and interstate trading and online trading; enable farmers and buyers to enter exclusive contractual agreements; and restrict the government’s ability to regulate the production, supply, and distribution of certain commodities. With those restrictions in place, markets and prices for certain commodities would no longer be regulated. In their response…

Bees are well-known pollination agents, but recent research published in Biology Letters in May 2019 points to nocturnal moths also playing an important, though less well-known, role in pollination. These moths are part of what the study calls a “nocturnal pollen transport network,” containing more than 100 moth species that carry pollen to dozens of plant types. According to the study, the moths transfer pollen on the fronts of their bodies rather than with their mouthparts (or “proboscises”), which is why their dissemination might’ve been overlooked, as scientists commonly swab an insect’s proboscis for traces of pollen. The study suggests that these moths’ services are essential for several wild plant families in agricultural landscapes, especially those that aren’t visited by bees, butterflies, and hoverflies during the day. Because of the…

Growing grapes is easy, fun, and rewarding. A friend of mine once said that grapes like to suffer, and I’ve found this to be true. Unlike many plants, grapes aren’t finicky, and they require little more than seasonal pruning, full sunlight, and elevation. A sturdy trellis will facilitate two of these three necessities directly (full sunlight and elevation), and aid substantially in the third (pruning). These instructions are for a simple and effective inclined grape trellis sized to accommodate six grape plants; however, you can modify them to accommodate any number of plants. Trellising your grapes will boost production, and it’s easy to assemble this design in one day. Trellis Considerations My first trellis was made with maple and birch poles from my property. These were a good way to…

MASON JARS SPRAYER CAP, REGULAR Transform your regular mouth mason jars into reusable spray dispensers with this sprayer cap! It features a variable sprayer that goes from high output to mist. Jar not included. 9703 $8.99 MASON JARS PUMP CAP, REGULAR MOUTH Transform your regular mouth Mason jars into multipurpose pump containers! This pump cap turns Mason jars into soap and lotion dispensers. This product is proudly made in the United States of America. Jar not included. #9704 $8.99 BUILD YOUR OWN SHEDS AND OUTDOOR PROJECTS, 5TH EDITION Build Your Own Sheds & Outdoor Projects graphically demonstrates the latest in shed construction techniques and illustrates every step of the construction process in detail. Select from more than 100 expertly prepared plans for building a wide range of outdoor structures, from…

Each year, I’ve felt wasteful when throwing out the leftover drained fruit after making jelly from my raspberry patch. I couldn’t find any syrup recipes for reconstituting juice from a bag of smashed berries, so I developed my own. After collecting the juice for jelly, you’ll be left with a ball of condensed fruit in your cheesecloth bag. If you began with 6 pounds of fresh raspberries, you’ll probably end up with about 3. pounds of fruit pulp. I always freeze raspberries before making jelly, because doing so seems to release more juice than can be gotten from fresh berries. Leave the 3. pounds of drained raspberry pulp in the cheesecloth bag, and set it in a heavy 5-gallon stockpot or any large metal pot. The sides need to be…

It can happen to anyone: You make a great-tasting sweet spread, and later find out it’s developed hard clumps of sugar. Sugar molecules, even when dissolved in liquid, as they are in sweet spreads, like to form into groups — or “crystals.” Consider the following tips to prevent crystallization from ruining your hard work. Temperature and timing are crucial. Add sugar slowly (while stirring) to a mixture that’s warm but not too hot, and especially not boiling. You don’t want to dump a bunch of sugar into a boiling pot. Incorporate the sugar by stirring well, until you can tell that all the sugar granules have dissolved. You can tell they’ve dissolved when you can no longer feel any sugar at the bottom of the pan as you stir it…

For years, Kyle Chandler-Isacksen and his family have lived a life mostly free of fossil fuels and full of farmstead projects. They also developed the nonprofit Be the Change Project, an urban homestead and learning space dedicated to service and sustainability. These hyperlocal actions have inspired his friends to adjust their own lifestyles, and those friends in turn have invited him to participate in their nationally focused organizing. So, in early 2021, Chandler-Isacksen joined a local chapter of Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL), a nonpartisan nonprofit focused on national policies to address climate change. CCL chapters grow support for climate solutions through lobbying Congress, offering trainings on media relations, providing local educational outreach, and building relationships with community leaders. Nationwide, CCL is primarily advocating for a type of carbon tax called…

Tomatoes. Every gardener grows them, and every gardener has strong opinions on how “thou shalt properly grow tomatoes,” especially on how to keep them controlled. And, let’s be honest, control wouldn’t even be an issue if tomato plants weren’t so, well, out of control. They sprawl across their neighbors’ beds, hogging space and muscling in on anything unfortunate enough to be planted nearby. Not only that, but they tend to hide their fruit under leaves and on the ground, where rot, slugs, and misplaced feet can take their toll on the harvest. There’s good news, though. With so many tomato growers holding so many opinions on the subject, there’s more than one way to keep your tomatoes in their place. Staking, caging, trellising, and even upside-down planters harness vertical growth,…

When I stepped into the world of fermentation 20 years ago, I had no desire to slice up 50 heads of cabbage for a 20-gallon batch of sauerkraut. Although that’s how my great-grandmother made sauerkraut in her basement, I set out to find options for creating smaller amounts. Not only did the reasonably sized recipes I found allow me to experiment more, but when it was just me eating the resulting ferments, I wasn’t ‘krauted out. The main goals in vegetable fermentation are to keep the food below the brine (minimizing oxygen contact), and to prevent insects from finding their way into the ferment. After trying many different airlocks and fermentation systems, I’ve discovered what works well for various foods and batch sizes. Here are the methods I’ve tried, and…

ROO APRON The Roo Apron is perfect for helping you harvest vegetables from the garden, pull weeds, or collect anything that needs to be put away! No more using your shirt trying to get vegetables indoors! Simply put on the Roo, fill the pouch, and the cylinder chute allows you to deposit your collection without messy fallout. #9627 Leaf Green #9628 Purple Orchid $32.95 Member: $29.66 HOMESTEAD IRON SMALL TROWEL Homestead Iron’s hand-forged trowel is as functional as it is elegant: It features a sharp, high-carbon steel blade that’s mounted on a forged steel shank. This is one tool you will want to pass down to your grandchildren. All of Homestead Iron’s heirloom-quality tools are fabricated from the best American-made materials the company can find. Measures 12 inches. #8604 $31.00…

Last year, we evacuated from our homestead because of fires raging through northern Colorado. We removed 64 animals and eight humans from our little mountain farm in less than two hours. The smoke was so thick that it was as dark as night in the afternoon. It was stressful and heartbreaking. But as I look back on the evacuation, I’m struck by how smoothly it went, as our family had planned ahead. There’s a high likelihood that every homestead will need to evacuate at some point, so it’s important to have a solid written plan ready to increase your chances of saving as much as possible from the disaster. Writing out a proper plan and making sure everyone in the home understands the plan and their part in it before…

Refinishing your worn-out furniture will not only save you money; it will also save many more resources than buying new. In general, “refinishing” refers to the act of repairing or reapplying a finishing coat on a piece of furniture. With the help of laquer, paint, or wood finishes, you can refinish a variety of materials and surfaces, including metal, plastic, wood, and glass. Here are some options for refinishing furniture in your home. Refinish an old dressing table. Who doesn’t love an antique dressing table? However, the wood used to create the dressing table tends to lose its shine and protective layer over a period of years. To refinish, you can start by scraping off the old paint with a scraper and a heat gun. When you’re done with scraping…