OK, we all know that the biggest reason to garden is for tomatoes. But one of my favorite reasons to garden is for the flowers. I love, LOVE to bring in a nice bouquet of flowers and set them on the kitchen table. These flower bouquets are not at all professional, just a jumble of…

Sometimes it’s hard to get enough vegetables into your family’s diet. You think picky toddlers are difficult? Try stubborn teenagers. One of my favorite ways to hide veggies is using veggie powder. You can put it into soups, casseroles and (my favorite) meat loaf or meat balls. I use it in the place of crackers…

The next goal for January is to choose a room—any room—and de-clutter it. After you have de-cluttered, donate any unwanted but still usable items to charity. Two Reasons There are two good reasons to de-clutter and donate your unwanted items to charity: First, your environment can often influence your emotional and mental outlook. A cluttered…

You’ve probably heard the adage that if you can’t pronounce something, you probably shouldn’t eat it. The same might be said of personal care items–shampoos, lotions and soaps. If you can’t pronounce what’s on the label of your soap or shampoo, you probably shouldn’t be using it. Your skin is filled with pores that allow…

For some, prescription medication is a matter of life or death. If you have a medical condition that requires you to regularly take medication, you should consider having an extra reserve of those essential drugs. Good reasons to have a stockpile of medications During a disaster you may find it hard to refill a prescription.…

Your goal this month is to simplify. That’s it. Just. Simplify. Stuff costs more than money People are beginning to recognize the emotional, spiritual and financial weight of consumerism. That is why there is a surge in blogs, Facebook pages and websites that encourage and extol minimalism and non-consumerism. There are several ways to meet…

Monoculture vs. Biodiversity 100 years ago, farmers fostered biodiversity on their farms. Always at the mercy of the weather, they would plant several varieties of wheat or corn in the hopes that one (or more) would survive whatever Mother Nature dealt out. They would plant cover crops to suppress weeds and increase soil fertility. They…

In the dead of winter, when everything is frozen and bleak, Mother Nature blesses us with a ray of warm sunshine: Citrus fruit. This is the season that citrus fruit is harvested and so there’s plenty. It’s abundance means it’s on sale a lot. And a good thing too–this is when we are most prone…

Garden veggies in April? How would you like to be eating fresh vegetables a full 4-6 weeks before the rest of your fellow gardeners? You can with cold frames. What’s a cold frame? Basically, it’s a mini greenhouse that helps warm the soil and protect plants during the cold transitioning months of early spring and late…

There’s an epidemic sweeping the country. It’s not your typical virus, but rather a highly contagious disease of epidemic over-consumption.  The symptoms include compulsive shopping, high debt, overwork, inability to delay gratification, a sense of entitlement, obsession with externals and “having it all,” wastefulness, and stress. Concern over affluenza is more than dismay at the…

After my  vegetable garden, the thing I am most proud of (and get the most pleasure from) is my herb garden. I love using herbs in cooking and I love herbal tea. But buying fresh herbs can be expensive and the selection is often limited. So I grow a variety of herbs to use in…

It can be a challenge getting herbs to survive our Midwest winters. But it looks like most of my herbs survived the winter OK. I mulched the St. John’s Wort and the Arnica Montana last fall. Both were new plants last year and both are hardy to Zone 5 (we live in Zone 4 and…

Be sure to read Part 1: Preparing for a Quarantine When a quarantine is in place A quarantine will be much less stressful if you have prepared ahead of time, making sure that you have supplies on hand and are knowledgeable about caring for the sick. Here are some things that will help you get…

Why CSAs? A CSA is just the thing for you if you can’t plant a garden. Even if you have a garden but want more vegetables than you can grow in your own little plot, you should look into joining a CSA  (Community Supported Agriculture.) A CSA is one of the best ways for consumers…

I know, I know. Making your own personal care, beauty products or cosmetics is just a little too much, even for an avid do-it-yourselfer. But it really is fun. And it’s pretty easy, too. Here are two books that have really inspired me: The first is Organic Body Care: 175 Homemade Herbal Formulas for Glowing…

As you nurture your plants along from seedling to full-grown plant, your plants may encounter some rough spots or bumps along the road. You can help your plants along and encourage them to grow bigger and stronger with a little foliar feeding. Why foliar feeding? The leaves of plants are amazing things. Their primary function…