Big Ideas: Building a Food Desert Oasis

For millions of Americans who find themselves in food deserts, getting their daily apple is tougher than usual. The USDA defines a food desert as an impoverished region of the country where thousands of people can't regularly access healthy, affordable, and organic foods due to lack of grocery stores, farmers' markets, and personal transportation. And the constant availability of fast food restaurants in these food deserts certainly doesn't help America's rampant obesity epidemic.

U.S. cities lacking in fresh fruits and veggies aren't limited to the big city expanses of Los Angeles, Oakland, Detroit, or Chicago; in fact many small towns in the heart of the nation suffer just as much from lack of fresh greens.

Here are some big ideas for providing resources to help food desert dwellers around the nation enjoy the taste and benefits of farm-fresh produce. 

100 Yards of Harvest After having to sack its football program due to low enrollment, Paul Quinn College, a small liberal arts college near Dallas, Texas, transformed their vestigial football field into a huge farm. Today, staff and students (and in collaboration with PepsiCo Inc.) at Paul Quinn cultivate the WE Over ME Farm, growing collard greens, heirloom tomatoes, swiss chard, mustard greens, and more. The cornucopia of food harvested from the farm is then distributed to local charities, grocery stores, community markets in surrounding Dallas, and the college students, who get to enjoy the fruits of their hard work.  

6 Unique Sharing Services to Cut Your Consumption

Some life lessons learned in kindergarten stick: don't eat glue, don't run with scissors, friends don't hit one another. For some of us, the importance of sharing was a hard one to learn — what kid wants to give away half of their cookie? Fortunately, we've warmed up to sharing, and learned to harness the power of lending, borrowing, giving, and renting to care for the environment. We've collected some of the greenest of what the sharing economy has to offer — from rental chickens to leftover Chinese food, here's a small sampling of ways you can depend on the kindness of strangers to reduce your consumption and waste: 

1. To eat: Whether you have too much or too little, when it comes to sharing food, you have options. If you're not afraid to get your hands dirty, start or join a community garden. If you have lots of leftovers or made too much for dinner, services like Eat With Me and LeftoverSwap let you share your bounty with others, instead of tossing it in the trash. 

2. To farm: Interested in learning more about what urban homesteading has to offer your pantry? Give it a test run. A surprising number of groups and individuals throughout the nation rent out egg-laying chickens along with coops, bedding, and feed, at surprisingly affordable prices. Many of these groups hope to help decrease the number of abandoned chickens flooding animal shelters, which some attribute to the ever-increasing popularity of urban farming. If it doesn't work out, simply send the rented chickens back, guilt-free. Do a quick search for chicken rentals in your state, and get farming.

4 Tips for Composting Fall Leaves

A yard of fallen leaves may seem like a mess. But hidden in all that decomposing foliage is the perfect organic matter for a great pile of compost. So this year, instead of putting fall leaves in a garbage bag and sending them to the dump, put them to use.

1. Big or Small? Size Does Matter

The size of a leaf pile can make a big difference in how fast leaves decompose. Keeping each pile around 3 feet by 3 feet by 3 feet will provide enough material for a healthy compost without the pile being too large for its own good or too small to maintain heat. 

The best place to site a pile is in a shaded area with good air flow and decent cover. If you have a lot of leaves to compost, simply make additional piles and add new leaves as they fall. The more compost the better!

2. Enriching Your Pile

Composting leaves in fall is especially easy, as there is a mix of fresh and dying material to balance the nutrient content.

Many composting guides say to add lawn fertilizer to a compost pile to help balance the high amount of carbon present in the decomposing leaves with nitrogen. Instead, you can achieve this balance by simply adding freshly fallen leaves to a pile of older ones in equal layers.

You can also add fresh material like food waste, grass clippings, and branches to supplement the dead leaves as needed. If possible, try to use equal parts fresh and dead material. So, avoid the fertilizer and put old clippings and food waste to use along with the leaves.

Easy DIY Greenhouse

With winter just around the corner, now is the perfect time to build a greenhouse to extend your growing season. While most greenhouses are expensive, this 4-foot-by-9-foot do-it-yourself version can be made relatively cheaply in just a few hours. It's called a hoop house, and it will change the way you garden.

The concept for this simple hoop house comes from Luke Richman-Zonka, a student at Fairhaven College in Bellingham, Washington, who is studying human ecosystem stewardship. This is his beginner hoop house, and he encourages users to get creative and build frames, doors, vents, and larger versions after they've learned the basics.

The Simple and Sweet Hoop House

Richman-Zonka recommends placing the hoop house on a plot with good drainage and suggests having it face south to maximize the heat it can get from the sun.

Supplies:

• 9 stakes (these can be anything from short pieces of rebar to bamboo)
• 5 pieces of 10-foot-long, 1-inch thick PVC pipe (use thicker pipe if you're building a larger hoop house)
• Roll of bailing twine
• Large roll of greenhouse plastic (measuring at least 16 feet wide and 30 feet long)
• Bag clamps or wire

Instructions:

Seeds To Sow TODAY

Planting in the fall may seem like a dumb idea, but there are plenty of fast growing, hardy, perennial plants to put in the ground right now. The one thing that might hold you back from growing any of these plants is the climate in your area. Consult the USDA's Plant Hardiness Zone Map or ask an experienced grower to determine which of these plants will flourish.

For those living in warmer areas, the climate may allow you to grow all of the plants on our list as well as other hardy winter plants like kale, lettuce, and cauliflower.

Garlic
Spicy little bulbs of garlic do exceptionally well in cool climates, like in the Pacific Northwest, and right now is the time to dig. Make sure to put the hard base of the garlic bulb down a few inches into the ground to yield the largest clusters. Get ready for lots of garlic in spring.




Flower Bulbs
Many varieties of flowering bulbs like tulips can be planted now for beautiful garden in the spring. Make sure to give the bulbs adequate space when planting. 3-4 inches should do. Some bulbs can grow well perennially in areas with cool climates like the Northeast.

Backyard Beekeeping 101

There are a number of reasons Americans are taking up beekeeping — a backyard colony can help your garden produce more fruits and veggies, harvesting your own honey cuts down on your grocery bill, and honey bees continue to be threatened by colony collapse disorder. Take your pick, and join the growing ranks of urban apiarists.

Keepers of rooftop and backyard hives extol the spiritual benefits of beekeeping, as well as the tasty ones.

"It is a joy to have them around and observe their intricate dance with life," says Ruby Blume, a Bay Area beekeeper who teaches courses on the subject at The Institute of Urban Homesteading in Oakland. "When the bees come out in spring there's a huge uplifting feeling in my spirit, and I know it's time to start gardening and engaging with the outside world again." 

A single hive in an urban setting can produce as much as 60 pounds of honey, requires less management than a cat or dog, and has relatively low start-up costs, making it an appealing way for city folk to connect with their country roots. Here are a few things to consider when contemplating a hive of your very own:

You will need to do your research. "The more you know, the better beekeeper you'll be," advises Blume. There is a wealth of resources out there for aspiring beekeepers, from books to classes. Take several classes, says Blume, or find a mentor. Most cities have beekeepers associations full of enthusiasts who would be happy to help. 

But first, investigate your city's laws — you don't want to unintentionally become a fugitive while pursuing your apiarist dreams.

Interview: HGTV Hunk Carter Oosterhouse Talks Green to Us

Photos of former model Carter Oosterhouse plaster the walls of many a dorm room. His pinup looks notwithstanding, Oosterhouse's real talent lies in knowing how to swing a hammer. A carpenter by trade, he caught attention after appearing on TLC's redecorating show Trading Spaces. HGTV then nabbed him to host Red, Hot & Green and Carter Can, both of which emphasize eco-friendly design. He's a regular on Oprah, showing viewers how to gussy up their homes in the greenest of ways. His nonprofit, Carter's Kids, builds parks and playgrounds in low-income areas. Oosterhouse took some time to answer our questions. 

Q: How did you get into carpentry? 

A: It started out as a summer job in the town I grew up in, Traverse City, Michigan. It was just something to do to make some money. My two older brothers taught me, and a neighbor took me as his apprentice. I would have never guessed that what started as a summer job would take me so far.

Q: What made you an environmentalist?

A: I blame my dad. He was always preaching. Whenever we'd have to wash a car or boat, we had to use biodegradable soap. In Michigan we have such big bodies of freshwater—they're among the richest commodities we have—so that's why my dad was so adamant. We didn't realize that it would, but stuff like that got stuck in our heads.

Q: What’s the greenest thing people can do when remodeling a house?

A: Going to a secondhand store and repurposing something. People toss things out without a second thought, and there are so many great items at secondhand stores. It’s easy and fun and helps keep the cycle of life for inanimate objects going. Think about all the objects filling up our landfills—granite, for example. It takes a little more effort to get from a secondhand store, but we would save a ton on landfill consumption by using it secondhand, as well as a good amount of money.  

Q: What do you tell people who say that eco-remodeling is too expensive?

5 Steps to a Bee-Friendly Garden

Bugged by aphids in your garden? Spray them with garlic oil. Overrun by slugs? Eggshells will do the trick. Most experienced gardeners know the ins and outs of pest control, and avoid using conventional insecticides that can be toxic to the wildlife in their gardens. But even the environmentally aware may have been caught off guard by the recent news that supposedly bee-friendly plants purchased at big-name hardware stores can come pre-treated with chemicals believed to be fatal to bees. As more and more research linking colony collapse disorder to pesticides use comes out, it's more important than ever to look out for the bees in our own backyards. Here are some tips for keeping your garden bee-safe:

Know your plants. Choose what to grow based on your local environment and begin to prevent infestation even before you plant. Research which plants fare best in your area and in soil conditions, and carefully monitor plant health so you'll recognize signs of infestation later on.

Buy organic. Begin with untreated seeds or organic plant starts, and plant them in organic soil. Ask around for a trusted neighborhood nursery or seek out suppliers who have demonstrated a commitment to growing organic. Keep an eye out for providers who've signed the Safe Seed Pledge.

Identitree Quiz: How Well Can You Identify Trees?

Are you a tree savant? Prove it! Take our quiz below and see if your true life calling was (or is) to become an arborist. Don't forget to post your score in the comments section and share any neat tree facts you know. And don't even think about using a search engine! 

Tree Identification Quiz

1) Growing roughly 40 ft. tall, this species of tree is deciduous and produces a unique flower known as a catkin. With over 60 species, it is best known for its flaky bark and is found all over the world, from the U.S. to Japan to Ireland. It is the national tree of Finland. 

Am I a...

a) Birch Tree

b) Mahogany

c) Pine Tree

Unusual Ways to Repurpose Your Garbage

Sure, there are certain things that you put aside to recycle or reuse. But let’s face it, there is a lot of useless garbage that seems to belong nowhere but the trash. And landfills aren’t getting any smaller! Here are some troublesome items that you might not realize can be recycled or reused, according to Jeff Yeager, author of Don’t Throw That Away, The Ultimate Cheapskate, and other books about living lighter on the planet.

Used Dryer Sheets
You can't compost dryer sheets because of the chemicals they contain and some dryer sheets, like Bounce, can't be recycled. Check the container to confirm if the sheets are recyclable or not.

Lint Brush: You can roll up some used dryer sheets to fashion a lint brush. This is a useful tool for removing hair and lint from your clothes.
Dust wipes: Whether it’s for your windshield or television screen, these dryer sheets make for great anti-static wipes on all types of surfaces.

Packing Peanuts
Packing Peanuts are that random thing that you receive in mass and may feel guilty tossing in the trash. If you do not wish to receive packing peanuts at all, you can request an eco-friendly or biodegradable option. If not, here are some fun ideas for these packing peanuts.