Chelsea Green

Build Your Own Cold Frame: Get a Jump on the Planting Season

By Chelsea Green / January 14, 2025 / Comments Off on Build Your Own Cold Frame: Get a Jump on the Planting Season

Extend your planting season with a cold frame! Building your own cold frame is a simple way to keep growing plants all winter long. The following is an excerpt from Four-Season Harvest by Eliot Coleman. It has been adapted for the web. What Is A Cold Frame? Gardeners should dedicate a monument to the cold…

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potpie

Winter Root Veggie Potpie: A Seasonal Recipe

By Chelsea Green / January 13, 2025 / Comments Off on Winter Root Veggie Potpie: A Seasonal Recipe

Looking for new ways to use those winter root veggies throughout the season? Put your cooking skills to the test with this Root Veggie Potpie recipe! The following is an excerpt from Black Trumpet by Evan Mallett. It has been adapted for the web. RECIPE: Winter Root Veggie Potpie When I was born, my mother…

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sourdough

How to Make and Maintain Your Own Sourdough Starter

By Chelsea Green / December 26, 2024 / Comments Off on How to Make and Maintain Your Own Sourdough Starter

Sourdough is a simple wild ferment made from nothing but flour and water. You can start a batch today, use it in a few days, and keep it alive and bubbling … well …  forever. If you have the patience, enjoy the flavor of sourdough, and can commit to feeding your quiet new “pet” frequently,…

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mushrooms

Growing Shiitake Mushrooms in a Garage or Yard

By Chelsea Green / October 30, 2024 / Comments Off on Growing Shiitake Mushrooms in a Garage or Yard

Learn how to grow shiitake mushrooms in almost any environment, including your yard and even your garage!

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arugula

The Endless Arugula Bed

By Chelsea Green / October 23, 2024 / Comments Off on The Endless Arugula Bed

What if we told you that there was a way to extend your growing season and save time & money? The answer is all in arugula. With quick hoops and greenhouse film, you’ll be on your way to harvesting sweet & flavorful arugula in no time.  The following excerpt is from The Resilient Farm and…

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pumpkin seeds

Tasty Ways to Use Pumpkin Seeds

By Chelsea Green / October 9, 2024 / Comments Off on Tasty Ways to Use Pumpkin Seeds

Wondering what to do with pumpkin seeds? Instead of roasting them, try these alternative ways to prepare & use seeds! Plus a must-try pumpkin granola recipe.

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mushrooms

Brew Outside the Box: Making Mushroom-Infused Beer

By Chelsea Green / September 24, 2024 / Comments Off on Brew Outside the Box: Making Mushroom-Infused Beer

For the adventurous brewer infusing mushrooms into brews is a great way to combine the medicinal benefits of fungi with one of the world’s most consumed drinks.

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acorn harvesting

Move Over Squirrels, It’s Acorn Harvesting Time!

By Chelsea Green / September 19, 2024 / Comments Off on Move Over Squirrels, It’s Acorn Harvesting Time!

These small fruits are a delicious source of nutrients that you can find almost anywhere. Get started on acorn harvesting with help from these simple tips!

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root cellar

Building Your Own Root Cellar for the Fall Harvest

By Chelsea Green / September 3, 2024 / Comments Off on Building Your Own Root Cellar for the Fall Harvest

Building a root cellar is a great way to keep your harvest fresh through the cold months. With protection from weather and animals, these cellars can be just as good as a regular refrigerator. They can be built into a wall in your basement, dug into the ground, or simply buried.  The following excerpt is…

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pickles in a jar

How To Make Sour Pickles

By Chelsea Green / August 28, 2024 / Comments Off on How To Make Sour Pickles

Sour pickles have a deep, robust taste. They are wonderfully sour and crisp with a flavor that’s guaranteed to make you smile.

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drying prune plums

Drying Prune Plums (Plus Figs, Apricots, Peaches and Nectarines)

By Chelsea Green / August 21, 2024 / Comments Off on Drying Prune Plums (Plus Figs, Apricots, Peaches and Nectarines)

Learn the ropes on drying prune plums! Whether you’re a pro at preserving or you’ve never tried it out before, anyone can make these delicious snacks.

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cows grazing

All About Cows: What has Four Legs, Says “Moo,” and Could Save the Planet?

By Chelsea Green / August 7, 2024 / Comments Off on All About Cows: What has Four Legs, Says “Moo,” and Could Save the Planet?

Cows can help rebuild soil and restore land to its rightful state—improving carbon sequestration, natural water cycles, and soil fertility and nutrient density.

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reduce heat stress

Arid Agriculture: Strategies to Reduce Heat Stress in Crops and Livestock

By Chelsea Green / August 2, 2024 / Comments Off on Arid Agriculture: Strategies to Reduce Heat Stress in Crops and Livestock

Become more resilient when the temperatures are on the rise to reduce heat stress and produce food in even the most arid environments.

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Compost

A Guide to Great Compost From Eliot Coleman

By Chelsea Green / July 30, 2024 / Comments Off on A Guide to Great Compost From Eliot Coleman

Compost is the key to an abundant garden. Learn the basics of making compost from gardening expert Eliot Coleman, and enjoy the joy of growing your own food.

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tomato

How to Save Tomato Seeds

By Chelsea Green / July 29, 2024 / Comments Off on How to Save Tomato Seeds

As your favorite variety of home grown tomatoes start ripening on the vine this summer, be sure to save those seeds for next year’s planting. It takes a bit of care to get the seeds out of the gelatinous tomato goo they’re suspended in, but once you’ve done it you can use those seeds to…

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dilly beans

Dilly Beans: Voted The “Best Snack Ever”

By Chelsea Green / July 25, 2024 / Comments Off on Dilly Beans: Voted The “Best Snack Ever”

For those who love fermented foods, we now welcome you into the wonderful world of dilly beans. There’s nothing quite like a dilly bean. Whether they’re next to a plate of cheese and crackers, on a sandwich, or taken straight from the jar in the middle of winter when you’re sick of potatoes and pasta,…

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whole fruit jam

How to Make Whole Fruit Jam

By Chelsea Green / July 23, 2024 / Comments Off on How to Make Whole Fruit Jam

This tried-and-true jam recipe relies on the natural sugars in fruit to provide a balanced flavor and sweetness that can’t be beat.

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chicken

Don’t Bawk: The Wild and Wonderful Chicken Tractor

By Chelsea Green / July 17, 2024 / Comments Off on Don’t Bawk: The Wild and Wonderful Chicken Tractor

Aside from the sheer pleasure of telling your friends, straight-faced, that you maintain your garden using something called a “chicken tractor,” there are a slew of other benefits to working the land with a few of your animal friends. Getting rid of pests without chemicals, for one; letting them do the work of weeding and…

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summer drinks

5 Creative Summer Drinks to Help You Cool Off

By Chelsea Green / July 16, 2024 / Comments Off on 5 Creative Summer Drinks to Help You Cool Off

With the “dog days” of summer underway, the heat can feel a little unrelenting. On hot days, there’s no better way to cool off than with a refreshing, cold beverage. Here’s a list of some perfect cool-down summer drinks made with organic ingredients sourced right from your garden or local wild places.  The following excerpts have…

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sprouts

Perennial Veggies: The Benefits of Perennial Vegetables

By Chelsea Green / July 15, 2024 / Comments Off on Perennial Veggies: The Benefits of Perennial Vegetables

Think about how much work your perennial flower beds take compared to your annual vegetable garden. In a busy year, your perennial garden largely sails through despite neglect. Once your perennials are established, and if they are suited to your climate and site conditions, they can be virtually indestructible. An annual vegetable garden, as we…

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garden tools

Can’t Find the Perfect Garden Tools? Make Your Own

By Chelsea Green / July 8, 2024 / Comments Off on Can’t Find the Perfect Garden Tools? Make Your Own

Is hoeing hurting your back? Is your trowel cramping your wrist? Are the tools at your local hardware store just not cutting it? Gardening can be such laborious work, but what you put into your garden is what you get back. With a few simple do-it-yourself modifications you can find and alter your tools to…

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honey jar

How to Brew Mead at Home: Ginger-Apricot Mead Recipe

By Chelsea Green / June 27, 2024 / Comments Off on How to Brew Mead at Home: Ginger-Apricot Mead Recipe

When Jereme was in North Carolina for the 2016 Mother Earth News Fair in Asheville, he picked up a local honey made from summer wildflowers. Why? He was inspired after visiting Fox Hill and sampling their Special Reserve Mead, which has hints of ginger and a unique blend of buckwheat honey and some lighter varietals.…

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grow mushrooms

Grow Mushrooms on Your Jeans. Seriously.

By Chelsea Green / June 24, 2024 / Comments Off on Grow Mushrooms on Your Jeans. Seriously.

Do you have an old, worn-out pair of jeans in your dresser? Instead of throwing them out, try to grow mushrooms on them. Follow this simple step-by-step outline to start growing mushrooms in the unlikeliest of places…on your pants! The following is an excerpt from Organic Mushroom Farming and Mycoremediation by Tradd Cotter. It has…

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kvass

Kvass: A Nourishing, Fermented Beverage

By Chelsea Green / June 11, 2024 / Comments Off on Kvass: A Nourishing, Fermented Beverage

Looking to add another recipe to your fermenting repertoire? Try your hand at kvass! This nourishing beverage calls for just a few simple ingredients and only takes a couple of days to ferment. Use beets or get creative with various fruit combinations like Blueberry Lemon Mint or Ginger Apple Lime. The following recipes are from The Heal…

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Ducks and Chickens

Are you Team Duck or Team Chicken?

By Chelsea Green / June 7, 2024 / Comments Off on Are you Team Duck or Team Chicken?

Thinking about adding a laying flock to your backyard, but having trouble deciding between ducks and chickens? Agonize no more. Ducks are easy to herd, have routine egg laying hours, and are superior to chickens in terms of pest control. Chickens are more readily available, usually cheaper to purchase, and are a better confinement animal,…

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