What is a good way to store fats in your food preps? What are good fats to store for long-term stability? What oils work for long-term food storage? This post tackles the tricky issue of incorporating fats into a long(ish)-term food storage plan.
Science
Is It Safe To Sterilize Or Keep Canning Jars Warm In The Oven?
Is it safe to sterilize canning jars in the oven? Can you keep jars warm in the oven before processing? Everything you need to know about the science and safety of warming and sterilizing your jars.
Do You Really Need Whey For Successful Lacto-Fermentation?
When is whey necessary for a successful lacto-ferment? Why do people call something “lacto” fermented if it doesn’t contain any dairy? This article answers your questions about whey, dairy starters, and their relationship to lacto-fermentation.
Why Your Spring Greens Bolt And How To Stop It
Gardeners all over the Northern Hemisphere are rubbing their hands together, just waiting for the moment the soil has warmed enough to get going. And when it comes to early spring plantings, most of us turn to hardy greens – those plants that will germinate in cooler soils, grow happily in partial sun, and reward…
{Giveaway} Lee Reich on Landscaping with Fruit and Uncommon Edibles
There are moments when audacity pays off. For years – years! – I’ve been full-on Fan Girl for garden writer Lee Reich. Lee’s been writing incredibly useful, readable books and magazine articles for decades and I’ve been learning from his expertise for about as long as I’ve been gardening. So when I heard Lee was going…
Understand Thermal Mass To Be A Climate Zone Hacker!
Picture yourself on a beach. It’s late August and you’re sinking your bare feet into the sand. You can feel the warmth of the sand on your toes. It’s not just warm, it’s downright hot. It’s starting to be uncomfortable, so you wiggle your feet a few inches down into the sand where it is…
Forced Molt: Starving Hens For Profit
Lets’s talk about molting. Anyone who has ever kept chickens knows about the molt, that egg-production pause where hens shed old feathers and turn into tiny, ugly dinosaurs for a few weeks. During the molt, a natural response to reduced daylight, egg laying stops. Chicken’s can’t throw energy into making new feathers and eggs at the same…
What Does Climate Change Mean For Gardeners?
A few weeks ago the smartest dude I know got a bit maudlin about how warming waters over the Arctic and methane burping forth from the melting permafrost is likely to increase the speed and effects of climate change. (Read more here and here.) This, in combination with the polar vortex in the midwest and the…
Your Seedlings Hate Your Fancy Window: How Plants See Light
Two months ago, Erica posted comparison photos showing seedlings started in a south-facing window vs seedlings started under full-spectrum grow lights. The results were surprising to many readers (including me!) and at least a few readers invested in grow lights after seeing the difference light makes. There are a few reasons why windowsill started seedlings…