Chelsea Green Blog
Farming & Homesteading
Getting Started Raising Pigs: Raising Piglets and Piglet Management
Groups of piglets running around a farm or homestead seems like a dream come true. When it comes to making sure each one is healthy and growing properly, it can get chaotic trying to figure out which pig is which. Using identification strategies to keep them organized is not only in your best interest but…
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Hybrid Hazelnuts – A New Resilient Crop for a Changing Climate
In the face of global threats like climate instability, food insecurity, and water pollution, scientists are looking to how we use our agricultural land for solutions. One such group of scientist-farmers in Minnesota have collectively spent nearly three decades developing what could be the new ecological crop of the future: hybrid hazelnuts. The following is an…
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Plants & Pests: Will Bonsall’s Advice on “Wee Beasties”
In his book, Bonsall maintains that to achieve real wealth we first need to understand the economy of the land, to realize that things that might make sense economically don’t always make sense ecologically, and vice versa. The marketplace distorts our values, and our modern dependence on petroleum in particular presents a serious barrier…
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Your Starting Place as a Farmer
We don’t often think about how, long ago, the towering and strong trees we see around us in communities and the rows of Christmas trees on farms began as tiny seeds. Much less often, do we think about the people who dedicate their lives to planting and caring for these tress. The first important step…
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The Miracle of Farming: Toward a Bio-Abundant Future
Farmers have a close relationship with nature, seeing life cycles happen right in front of their eyes marvel in what the earth can produce. We wouldn’t survive without their help. Appreciating farming in the natural world, giving what it needs in order to flourish and providing the essentials to survive is an important process. There’s…
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The Epic Saga of the American Chestnut
The American chestnut may well be the greatest and most useful forest tree to ever grow on this Earth. Its decline is considered by many ecologists to be one of the greatest ecological disasters to strike the US since European contact. But how did it happen? And are we on track to bring back this…
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African Farming Traditions: Learning the Power of Tradition
Far before the release of her book Farming While Black, Leah Penniman had been helping countless Black and Brown farmers reclaim their right to the land. For years, Leah has been educating, inspiring, and working alongside so many individuals to make sure they truly understand the customs and traditions of their African farming ancestors and help…
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An Edible Urban Oasis
More than 80 percent of the US population now resides in urban areas. This number is projected to rise in the next few decades. Finding ways to maximize use of existing open space is imperative, and increasing access to food through sustainable management of edible landscaping is one important approach among many that are underway.…
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Starting Farming: How to Find Success as a New Farmer
As the average age of America’s farmers continues to rise, we face serious questions about what farming will look like in the near future, and who will be growing our food. Many younger people are interested in going into agriculture, especially organic farming, but cannot find affordable land, or lack the conceptual framework and practical…
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Sustain Your Land: Subsistence Strategies for the Long Haul
Peasants, indigenous agriculturalists, and old-time American farming families farmed first and foremost to feed their own families and those in need in their communities—only secondarily, if at all, for a market. They may have practiced shifting agriculture or were settled permanently in villages; they may have been members of free, “primitive” or “tribal” societies, or…
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New Age Farm Partnerships: Finding and Keeping One
Anything involving farming almost always requires the help of another person, whether you’re feeding the animals or trying to decide if you want to expand the barn. Partnerships not only help with your personal life but the success of your business in the long run as well. Having someone to share the work and ease the…
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Composting with Animals: Common Applications
When you think of a typical farm, you probably think of going out to feed the animals with a bucket of scraps. This has been one of the most common ways to recycle food for many years and helps reduce your waste footprint. However, composting with the help of animals is another technique used on…
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Young Farmers: Back to the Land and Down to Business
If you haven’t been working on a farm since childhood or weren’t lucky enough to inherit one from your family, it can be difficult to build one from the ground up. Farming takes more planning and thinking than meets the eye, but it’s not impossible. We’ve got aspiring young farmers covered with how to proceed…
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Permaculture Advice For Beginners
Trying something for the first time can be intimidating, especially when it’s something as big as learning how to live off your land. But like with any new adventure you shouldn’t bite off too much at once. Instead, it’s better to take the time to properly plan and educate yourself on what it will take…
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Why Farm Infrastructure is Important: A Farm is More Than Land
The basis for a good farm isn’t just about finding a piece of land with great soil. No, to truly succeed on the farm you need a well-planned and implemented infrastructure coupled with hard work, dedication, and will-power. As farming practices continue to change, it’s important for the next generation to remember that insight and…
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Farmers Aren’t Created Equal: The “American Farmer” Fallacy
For those who aren’t in the know, it may seem like all farmers are created equal, but that’s simply not the case. In fact, there is such a wide variety of farmers that it’s nearly impossible to put a label on them. But that doesn’t stop organizations from trying. The following is an excerpt from…
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Black Rural Land: Black Land Matters
As a young black girl, Leah Penniman struggled to understand who she was and where she fit in with the world. There was one thing she did know— when she was connected to the land and earth she felt at home. But what did that mean? Was the land trying to tell her something about…
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Composting: Breaking Down the Core Principles
Composting is about more than just flinging your food scraps into a heap in your backyard. It’s about figuring out a way to give your unwanted food a new purpose while also helping the environment. And the best part is, the fundamental building blocks of composting systems are the same regardless of scale. The following…
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Hydroponic Versus Soil Growing: Which Should You Choose
You probably learned when you were young that plants need soil to get the essential nutrients needed to grow. However, there is another way you can give your plants what they need to flourish. A hydroponic system uses water-based fertilizer as opposed to soil fertilizer. This practice is relatively new to farmers, though it is…
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Types of Tomatoes: Deciphering the Many Varieties
If you love tomatoes, you probably already know just how many varieties of these delicious summertime staples there are. But do you know what makes each one unique? Or how to cultivate them depending on your growing environment? No? Well then sit back and enjoy the read! The following is an excerpt from The Greenhouse…
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How to Use Climate Maps to Navigate the Winter Harvest
Continuing to grow your crops and harvest them well into the winter months seems like an impossible task. How can they grow when weather conditions are far from warm sunny days? It’s all about adapting to what the season gives you. With the proper techniques and studying the patterns of your area’s climate, growing and…
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Four Books for Growing Food in Winter
Don’t let cold weather stop you from enjoying and growing food! For many, the coming of winter simply means cultivation moves indoors or under cover. Small farmers, homesteaders, home gardeners, and commercial growers can extend the growing season by following just a few of the techniques outlined in the books below. And, there’s no need…
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In Remembrance: Matthew Stein
It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Matthew Stein, author, environmentalist, MIT-educated engineer, green builder, and beloved member of the Chelsea Green family. Matthew died on December 19, 2018, while out in nature pursuing one of his many passions, rock climbing. In 2000 Matthew published his first book with Chelsea Green,…
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Healthy Culture, Society and Mother Earth: Agri-Culture
In Call of the Reed Warbler, Charles Massy’s stunning observations of interaction between nature, culture, and society is nothing short of eye opening. “By arrogantly having placed ourselves outside the functional operating parameters of Earth’s systems, we now see nature and the Earth as separate from us and so just available for use – while all the…
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Build Your Own Cold Frame, Part 2: Get a Jump on the Planting Season
The design of the cold box is the most important thing to keep in mind if you want it to be an effective tool for growing crops in the winter. Though it may seem like a complex task making a structure to shield against the winter chill, it’s a lot easier than you think. You…
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