Grow

Are you interested in eating in a way that nourishes you, others, and the planet? If so, the food sovereignty movement is for you. This movement recognizes that food is about more than just physical sustenance; it’s about people, the planet, and nourishing the soul. I recently had the pleasure of talking with food sovereignty champion Mariah Gladstone, who is actively working to restore and advance Native American foodways. Here’s what she had to say about food sovereignty, how you can get involved, and traditional Native American foods. 

If you live in a particularly snowy region of the world you might think that there is very little opportunity for wild foraging. Everything appears asleep and buried during winter. With the right knowledge, however, you will find that there are plenty of plants that are ideal for harvesting in winter.

Don’t let your plants “just be” in the winters. Make sure you stockpile their larder with the best organic fertilizers for winter.

When we combine trees, crops and/or livestock, we create a land-use system called agroforestry, and it’s good for the planet. Trees’ ability to hold carbon reduces the CO2 levels in the atmosphere, which is an important established goal in preventing or slowing global warming and its related stresses and effects on our planet, our species, and the other inhabitants of Earth. And, by integrating trees into agricultural settings, multiple ecological and practical advantages are possible.

Earlier this week, I harvested the last of my vegetables: huge zucchini, dark purple eggplant, shiny red peppers, stalks and stalks of celery, and the remaining cherry tomatoes.

The beginning of autumn is an incredible abundant time of harvest, and many plants are just coming into the height of their fruiting. This includes many plants that would normally be considered “weeds.” Many of these plants, however, are performing important ecosystem services in addition to being beneficial to humans. Get out your wild edibles guidebook and go hunting for these three plants you can find in early fall.

The conventional methods of putting the garden away involve pulling up your hard-grown plants and tilling your soil. While this method works for a few seasons, permaculture has a longer-term view of soil health. Tilling the soil destroys much of the delicate soil structures that allow for high levels of biodiversity. There are little pockets of water and air in the soil where nutrient-carrying mycorrhizal fungi can grow and beneficial insects can reside.

The summer may be coming to an end but that does not mean that your garden has to go to bed quite yet. There are several solutions for extending the season of your garden including small hotboxes, row covers, and selecting fast growing vegetables that you will be able to harvest long before the snow flies.

Helenium is a member of the family Asteraceae or Aster family of the genus Helenium L. commonly known as sneezeweed P. and contains twenty-one species. The plant is native to the eastern United States and is commonly found along roadsides and in parking lots. It blooms from late summer through early autumn and adds to a wildflower landscape.

A weed by definition is a plant that is unwanted and is growing in competition with cultivated plants. However, many "weeds," when taken out of human judgement, are playing vital roles in their ecosystem, be it holding the soil onto a hillside or feeding the bees that pollinate our vegetables. Perhaps unsurprisingly, many plants that are considered weeds are actually very useful and beneficial to humans as well. Here are some special plants coming into season right now that might surprise you with their usefulness.