Study: Sustainable Farming Proven to Increase Yield at Zero Cost

ridgedale permaculture farm

In potentially “the most important agricultural study this year,” researchers find that sustainable farming methods can help conventional agriculture “shed much of its chemical use,” according to New York Times writer and food author Mark Bittman. The Marsden Farm study, conducted by a team of government and university researchers, is a large-scale, long-term experiment that…

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Hospital in Pennsylvania Using Organic Produce to Heal Patients

Hospital feeding organic food to patients

“Let food be thy medicine and medicine thy food” is what founder of modern medicine Hippocrates said way back in 431 B.C. Today a Pennsylvania hospital is doing exactly that, healing patients by feeding them organic produce during their stay. Despite the founder of modern medicine urging the use of food as medicine, here we…

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Can Human Urine Replace Chemical Fertilizers?

urine fertilizer

The Rich Earth Institute in Brattleboro, Vermont, is likely the only organization measuring success in gallons of urine. In 2012, Kim Nace, Rich Earth’s administrative director and partner Abe Noe-Hays collected 600 gallons of urine from friends and neighbors. The next year, the organization brought in about 3,000 gallons from 170 human volunteers. Rebecca Rueter,…

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Thinking About Raising Chickens? Start Here.

how to raise chickens

Whether you decide to keep chickens for eggs, meat, show or just companionship, learning to care for them is easy and rewarding, providing that you know some basics. Local laws, such as zoning and other ordinances, may end your chicken enterprise before it takes flight. The best way to avoid conflicts is to check with…

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10 Homemade Organic Pesticides for Your Farm or Garden

Peach fertilizer

For your own health, as well as health of the environment, it’s essential that we move away from the use of chemical pesticides in farming and home gardening.   There are several homemade pesticides that are safe for the environment and they can be equally as effective at fending off pests. Mild soap and water.  One…

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Perennial Garlic – Plant It once and Harvest For 20 years

Perennial garlic

There’s a way to grow garlic without replanting each year, explains a Washington gardener. Joe Capriotti doesn’t plant garlic, but every year he harvests hundreds of pounds from his backyard in Montesano, Wash. His technique goes against the common practice of planting and harvesting garlic each year as if it were an annual plant. Most…

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Aquaponics 101: How to Grow Fish, Vegetables, Eggs, and Prawns

Aquaponics-compressor

Aquaponics is a method of food production which utilizes two sustainable technologies simultaneously to create an abundance of food. Aquaculture – Growing aquatic creatures in water Hydroponics – Growing plants without using soil Whereas conventional food production uses chemical pesticides to fertilize and nourish plant growth, aquaponics uses the wastes from one system to fertilize…

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