Autumn Newsletter

Hello, Friends of Better Farm!
 

Better Farm News - Autumn 2014:

• News: All the Latest Buzz Around the Farm!

• Summer's Cast of Characters

• Better Radio Update

• Upcoming Events

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The Farmer's Almanac recently listed an Upstate New York park as the best spot for witnessing fall foliage, and we can see why. New York State has some of the most unbelievable landscapes and such a variety of trees! We've been enjoying the ever-changing color palette going on all around us as we continue to pull pound after pound of organic produce from the garden, ready the grounds for winter, and take the rare few moments of free time we have to sit on the decks and simply watch the leaves turn.

We have you to thank for another record-setting summer. Read on to get the full rundown! Looking ahead into fall, we've got our radio station to set up and a flurry of seasonal events to ready for.

In other exciting news, my new book is slated for release in June 2015! Better: The Everyday Art of Sustainable Living explores the intersection of sustainability and art, showing how each of us can reinvent our lives as our greatest artistic achievement. I am so excited to share this with all of you. It's got tons of interesting Better Farm history, behind-the-scenes tidbits on my own transition to the North Country, and insights on how we can tackle environmental problems and cultural isolation in new, creative and better ways. For more information on the book or to pre-order a copy, click here. A book tour, signings, and other Better-related events will start popping up in the winter and spring, so stay tuned!

As always, check in at our blog to follow all Better Farm's daily adventures. And moving forward, you can look forward to a shorter, monthly email to keep you updated on all things better.
 

Until next time, better be.

Nicole Caldwell
Executive Director and Co-Founder
Better Farm

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News: All the Buzz Around the Farm!

People from Better Farm and non-profit betterArts have stayed mighty busy this year with community outreach activities, projects around the farm, and new initiatives. Here's a review of all recent things "better":

• Better Farm to be Featured in Ways of Living Documentary—Ways of Living follows a road trip around America in search of alternative and sustainable ways of life. The focus is love, posi vibes, living freely, wide open hearts, harming nothing. The film—due out this winter and produced by filmmakers Jessica Watkins and Harper Cowan—explores alternative technologies and sustainable practices, and features interviews with all sorts of people—artists, musicians, farmers, commune dwellers, earth ship builders and the like! The ladies paid us a visit last month—click here to track their progress!
• Better Farm Takes First Place in Field Days Parade—Torrential downpours couldn't stop the Better Family from showing up en masse at the Redwood Volunteer Fire Department's Firemen's Field Days this year. We made a patriot-themed float for the Field Days Parade, and outfitted the crew in Uncle Sam and Rosie the Riveter costumes. Dancing our way along the parade route in a rainstorm with oldies blasting, we wooed the judges and took home first place. Check out photos from the event here.
• Summer Workshops—betterArts and Better Farm this year offered workshops in weaving, beginner's piano, upcycling, building with recycled materials, poetry, film, and winemaking.
• Summer Festivals—betterArts this summer organized two very successful festivals, Better Festival and Summerfest. Held in June and July, these events showcased local artists and musicians, offered farm tours to the public, and featured farm-fresh food, arts 'n' crafts, and a great time for all. Thanks for helping these events be so successful!
• Better Bees—We've established a "better" beehive at the farm, and now understand the term "busy bee" in new ways. These insects have been unbelievably busy helping to pollinate produce in the garden and creating quite the honey collection. Get ready for Better Honey in Spring 2015!
• Partnership Brings Fresh Produce to Redwood Food Pantry—A new partnership has turned the Redwood Community Greenhouse into a produce operation that will supply fresh greens and veggies to the Redwood Food Pantry. Local organizations Hearts for Youth, Redwood Neighborhood Association, and Better Farm have teamed up to provide volunteer hours that will cultivate fresh, organic produce earmarked specifically for use by the Redwood Food Pantry. To that end, the Community Greenhouse has been relocated to Better Farm in order to receive the round-the-clock attention and watering a summer greenhouse requires; while also taking advantage of the extended growing season a greenhouse can provide. This winter, Better Farm's chickens will heat the greenhouse to allow crops to be grown well into snow season.
• Better Mud Run—Better Farm in July hosted a Better Mud Run that featured more than 20 obstacles and invited the fiercest  athletes and thrill-seekers to the Better Farm campus for agility obstacles, a road run, scaling mountains, and—of course—getting really, really muddy. Special thanks go out to the Redwood Volunteer Fire Department for helping us get the course good and wet!
• Flock Expansion—Better Farm expanded its flock this year in two ways: one, with the rescue of whopping 27 more hens from a nearby egg factory; and with the stork-like arrival of a bunch of just-hatched birds representing breeds Yokohama, Light Brahma, German Spitzhauben, and Buff Orpington. We were able to adopt out several of the rescue chickens, and the remaining sponsored rescues—along with their exotic new roommates—will help to diversify and strengthen the gene pool for a fresh hatching next spring.

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Summer's Cast of Characters

It was a women-centric summer, with the majority of visitors, residents, and students sporting double-X chromosomes. Here's a recap of our artists and students since June:

• Allison Bachner, sustainability student in August who recently graduated St. Lawrence University;
• Kiran Chandra, betterArts resident who created a body of work investigating notions of time, place, communication, and dialogue. She works with paper, water colors, India and colored inks, spoken word, and video. Kiran earned a bachelor's degree from St. Stephen's College at Delhi University in India before moving from Calcutta to Boston to earn a secondary bachelor's in fine art from the Art Institute of Boston. In 2013 she earned an MFA from Hunter College in Manhattan. She now lives in Brooklyn, where she is a teaching artist with various organizations throughout New York City;
• Xuan Du, sustainability student in July and August attending Colby College in Maine;
• Maggie Fishman, graphic novelist and betterArts resident based in Brooklyn who focuses on drawing, painting and graphic poetry. In addition to her work as a professional artist, Fishman has worked in education, activism, anthropology, and writing while exploring how we put beliefs into action, how we connect the personal with political and artistic expression and social change—and how we can nurture and educate the next generation to build the world anew. Her ongoing graphic novel, The End of Oil, is a series of drawings and paintings in ink and watercolor which Fishman is building into a book. The pieces explore how common stories and themes shared by humanity are acted out in a world we are told is near its end. Fishman used her betterArts residency to work on the second section, using her time in a community-based living situation to reflect and clarify the themes and stories in her work. Fishman possesses a PhD with Honors in cultural anthropology from New York University, a BA with honors from Haverford College, and has earned fellowships and scholarships to New York University and the New York Studio School. She has worked as a lead researcher, visiting professor, adjunct instructor, and developer for arts outreach organizations and at colleges; and is co-founder of the River School Project. Her work has been featured in solo and group exhibitions for more than 20 years;
• April Lee, betterArts resident who spent July and August working on pieces for her senior thesis exhibition at Princeton University. A visual arts major, April explored wet media and sculpture during her residency;
• Katie Mollica, full-time staffer who ran our sustainability education program and who also works with wood-burning, woodworking, and is starting her own cupcake business (check her baked goods out here!); and
• Mary Negro, betterArts resident based out of New York City who works with drawings and collage. Mary's work centers around her feelings toward technology, the media, and digital methods of communication. She has degrees from Fordham University's College of Rose Hill and the Fashion Institute of Technology.

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Better Radio Update!

We've spent the last year creating a beginning archive of content for the soon-to-air Better Radio. We've had lots of help—from the public, from students at area high schools, and from artists willing to share their music with us. We have a tentative kick-off air date of June 2015. This weekend we'll be testing our tower to see where we get the the best frequency. We've also appointed a director of content for Better Radio, Allen Briggs. Allen is a board member of betterArts and is excited to help steer this project. If you're interested in volunteering or helping to produce content, get in touch at info@betterarts.org. And let your broadcast friends know they can apply for a residency through betterArts that would focus on New Media!
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Upcoming Events
Here's a quick rundown of upcoming events. For more information, email info@betterfarm.org.

• Oct. 18 —Sackets Harbor Fall Festival
• Oct. 23—Indian River Middle School Health Fair 5-7 p.m.
• November Date TBD—Community Thanksgiving Dinner Potluck, 4 p.m. Email info@betterfarm.org or call (315) 482-2536 to sign up!
• Dec. 8—Nicole Caldwell guest lectures at Jefferson Community College to Intro to Business students, 12:20-1 p.m.
• December Date TBD— Hospice of Watertown Christmas party with kids

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Better Farm's Sustainability Education Program

Better Farm’s Sustainability Education Program was created to offer individuals an immersive, introductory crash-course in sustainability initiatives. Those enrolled in the program receive a hands-on education in a myriad of seasonal topics related to sustainability and environmental issues. Instead of a traditional working farm with acres upon acres of one or a few different crops, Better Farm has many gardens demonstrating different styles of small-scale farming and stressing the need for diversity of crops instead of mono cultures. Better Farm equips students with a variety of solutions to real-world agricultural issues, including small spaces, temperamental soils, pests, and climate change. The aquaponics, hydroponics, layered gardens, fruit orchard, and forests on the property are extremely varied so students coming from all over the world will learn real-world tools that can be applied back home. The Sustainability Education Program runs in one- to three-month intervals year-round. Those attending receive daily assignments and chores all related to sustainability initiatives and organic farming, as well as the opportunity to design and implement projects on their own. Upon completion of all units and responsibilities, participants will receive a certificate from Better Farm. College students may additionally receive course credit for completion of Better Farm's Sustainability Education Program. To learn more and to apply, visit www.betterfarm.org/sustainability-internship.

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betterArts Residency Program

betterArts offers a unique opportunity to artists, writers, performers, and musicians with a residency program based out of Better Farm. Residencies are designed to offer artists of every discipline space and time to work on specific projects; whether a series of paintings, a composition, book, set of sculptures, or album. A private room, 24/7 access to a fully stocked communal kitchen, linens and towels, WiFi, parking, and round-the-clock access to the Art Barn are all included in a low stipend required of all residents. betterArts residents are encouraged to interact and participate in the goings-on around the property, and to help out with chores and farm-related responsibilities between three and five hours each week. These responsibilities may include working in the gardens, participating in arts-related community outreach projects, helping with house chores, cooking, or assisting with other odd jobs. At the conclusion of each residency, an artist is required to present his or her work to the public in a gallery show, reading, performance, or via some other appropriate medium. Residencies are for two weeks, three weeks, one month, or two-month periods. Basic facilities at Better Farm will be provided; but betterArts residents are expected  to provide the majority of materials and equipment they would need for the production of their work. For more information about the betterArts Residency Program and to download the application, click here.

Food and pH as Health Care (or Cancer Cause)

Does pH hold the key to preventing cancer? Some say cancer cells can not thrive in an alkaline environment.

While most of us now acknowledge the link between food choice and waistline, there's quite a bit more work to be done to educate the masses about how food can function as health care—or can work against us, even as a link to things like cancer.

A carcinogen is, quite simply, anything that causes cancer. Many carcinogens are not immediately toxic, making them seem less harmful than they are. Common carcinogens include things like cigarette smoke; but your food can carry whopping amounts that can wreak havoc on your health.

Cooking food at high temperatures (i.e. grilling or barbecuing) can create the formation of carcinogens comparable to cigarette smoke.The known animal carcinogen acrylamide is created in fried or overheated carbs (French fries, potato chips).

Here's a list of the top-10 foods that may contain carcinogens that can cause cancer in your body (info gleaned from

Natural Health News And Discoveries

), due to carcinogens and high acidity levels

:

1. Genetically-modified organisms (GMOs). It goes without saying that GMOs have no legitimate place in any cancer-free diet, especially now that both GMOs and the chemicals used to grow them have been shown to cause rapid tumor growth. But GMOs are everywhere, including in most food derivatives made from conventional corn, soybeans, and canola. Avoid them by sticking with certified organic, certified non-GMO verified, and locally grown foods that are produced naturally without biotechnology

2. Processed meats. Most processed meat products, including lunch meats, bacon, sausage, and hot dogs, contain chemical preservatives that make them appear fresh and appealing, but that can also cause cancer. Sodium nitrite and nitrate have been linked to significantly increasing the risk of colon and other forms of cancer. Choose only uncured meat products made without nitrates, and preferably from grass-fed sources.

3. Microwave popcorn. Bags of microwave popcorn are lined with chemicals linked to causing infertility and liver, testicular, and pancreatic cancers. The EPA recognizes the perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) in microwave popcorn bag linings as “likely” carcinogenic, and several independent studies have linked the chemical to causing tumors. Too, the diacetyl chemical used in the popcorn itself is linked to causing lung damage and cancer.

4. Soda pop. Like processed meats, soda pop has been shown to cause cancer. Loaded with sugar, food chemicals and colorings, soda acidifies the body and literally feeds cancer cells. Common soda pop chemicals like caramel color and its derivative 4-methylimidazole (4-MI) have also specifically been linked to causing cancer.

5. ‘Diet’ foods, beverages. Even worse than conventional sugar-sweetened soda pop, though, is “diet” soda pop and various other diet beverages and foods. A recent scientific review issued by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) of more than 20 separate research studies found that aspartame, one of the most common artificial sweeteners, causes a range of illnesses including birth defects and cancer. Sucralose (Splenda), saccharin and various other artificial sweeteners have also been linked to causing cancer

6. Refined ‘white’ flours. Refined flour is a common ingredient in processed foods, but its excess carbohydrate content is a serious cause for concern. A study published in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Mile Markers, and Prevention found that regular consumption of refined carbohydrates was linked to a 220 percent increase in breast cancer among women. High-glycemic foods in general have also been shown to rapidly raise blood sugar levels in the body, which directly feeds cancer cell growth and spread.

7. Refined sugars. The same goes for refined sugars, which tend to rapidly spike insulin levels and feed the growth of cancer cells. Fructose-rich sweeteners like high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) are particularly offensive, ascancer cells have been shown to quickly and easily metabolize them in order to proliferate. And since cookies, cakes, pies, sodas, juices, sauces, cereals, and many other popular, mostly processed, food items are loaded with HFCS and other refined sugars, this helps explain why cancer rates are on the rise these days

8. Conventional apples, grapes, and other ‘dirty’ fruits. Many people think they are eating healthy when they buy apples, grapes or strawberries from the store. But unless these fruits are organic or verified to be pesticide-free, they could be a major cancer risk. The Environmental Working Group (EWG) found that up to 98 percent of all conventional produce, and particularly the type found on its “dirty” fruits list, is contaminated with cancer-causing pesticides

9. Farmed salmon. Farmed salmon is another high-risk cancer food. Farmed salmon not only lacks vitamin D, but it is often contaminated with carcinogenic chemicals, PCBs, flame retardants, pesticides and antibiotics,

10. Hydrogenated oils. They are commonly used to preserve processed foods and keep them shelf-stable. But hydrogenated oils alter the structure and flexibility of cell membranes throughout the body, which can lead to a host of debilitating diseases such as cancer. Some manufacturers are phasing out the use of hydrogenated oils and replacing them with palm oil and other safer alternatives, but trans fats are still widely used in processed foods.

Here's some more food for thought:

Cancer thrives in an acidic environment and cannot survive in an alkaline environment.

Cancer cells make your body even more acidic as they produce lactic acid. So if you have cancer, your pH levels are low and your body is too acidic.

Taking action to make your body more alkaline is vital in the battle against cancer.

Unfortunately, the majority of food and drinks we consume are acidic, such as meat, grains and sugar, with colas and other soft drinks being highly acidic. So unless you have been eating a very healthy diet, full of fresh fruit and vegetables, chances are good your body is too acidic, providing the perfect environment for cancer to grow.

Actually, too much acidity is an underlying factor in many degenerative diseases -- diabetes, arthritis, fibromyalgia and more. A basic maxim of natural physicians is: Balance the biological terrain. Do this first, then everything can come back to normal. There is a long history of reversing cancer simply by alkalinizing the body. It is one of the basic strategies in the battle against cancer and for improving your health in general.

In order for our bodies to maintain the best living environment,

the optimal level is close to 7.4

. This is at a slightly alkalizing state. Although, 7.36 to 7.44 is also an acceptable range

Virtually

everyone

with cancer has low pH levels. Low pH causes your body to store more toxins in cells, and reduces oxygen levels, both of which are fundamental to the development of cancer. When cancer cells grow, they produce even more acid, making it very difficult to raise pH levels.

When you take supplementation to increase pH levels, your cells notice the difference and start to dump some of the toxins they are holding back into the bloodstream now that they have a chance to get rid of them. Because the cells are releasing these stored toxins, your pH levels drop again. This detoxification process can take months to get through.

In addition, because cancer cells pump out lactic acid as a byproduct of their energy production, they create even more acidity. It can take a long time to normalize pH because of these factors, but, as you do, you can make your body, in a sense, "cancer proof".

Here's a cheat sheet of foods that increase the alkalinity in your body (list compiled from

Dr. Oz

,

Natural News

and

Health Extremist

):

• Root vegetables—Due to the healing "yang" nature of these foods in traditional Chinese medicine, and their tendency to be more rich in minerals than many other vegetables, it may be safe to say that you can't get enough of them. Look for radishes especially (black, red or white), as well as beets, carrots, turnips, horseradish and rutabaga.

• Olive Oil

• Cruciferous vegetables—broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts

• Leafy greens—kale, Swiss chard, turnip greens and spinach - of which spinach may in fact be the best pick. Known especially for its rich vitamin K and folate content, spinach is also packed with vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals, antioxidants and fiber, helping to improve digestion and even vision.

• Garlic—A true miracle food, garlic appears at the top of innumerable lists of foods that encourage overall health, and alkaline-forming food is no exception. Among its other benefits are its ability to promote cardiovascular and immune health by lowering blood pressure, cleansing the liver and fighting off disease.

• Cayenne peppers (capsicum)—With enzymes essential to endocrine function, cayenne is among the most alkalizing foods. It is known for its antibacterial properties and is a rich supply of vitamin A, making it a helpful agent in fighting off the harmful free radicals that lead to stress and illness.

• Raisins

• Watermelon

• Avocado—These are also at the top of the list of alkalizing foods. Avocados contain high amounts of essential vitamins, fatty acids, and amino acids.

• Red wine

• Celery

• Lemons—Lemons may be the most alkalizing food of all. As a natural disinfectant, it can heal wounds while also providing potent and immediate relief for hyperacidity and virus-related conditions, as well as coughs, colds, flu and heartburn. Lemon also works to energize the liver and promote detoxification.Try starting your day with a warm glass of water and lemon.

• Bananas

Cancer thrives in an

acidic environment

and cannot survive in an alkaline environment. Cancer cells make your body even more acidic as they produce lactic acid. So if you have cancer, your pH levels are low and your body is too acidic.

Taking action to make your body more alkaline is vital in the battle against cancer.

Unfortunately...

The majority of food and drinks we consume are

acidic

, such as meat, grains and sugar, with colas and other soft drinks being highly acidic. So unless you have been eating a very healthy diet, full of fresh fruit and vegetables, chances are good your body is too acidic, providing the perfect environment for cancer to grow.

Actually, too much acidity is an underlying factor in many degenerative diseases -- diabetes, arthritis, fibromyalgia and more. A basic maxim of natural physicians is: Balance the biological terrain. Do this first, then everything can come back to normal.

- See more at: http://www.cancerfightingstrategies.com/ph-and-cancer.html#sthash.qcbH7hSf.dpuf

Call For Art: North Country Arts Council Fall Fine Art Show

The North Country Arts Council is seeking art submissions to its 66th Annual Juried Fine Art Show, the opening reception for which is slated from 5:30-8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 7.

The show will be on display at the Dulles State Office Building from Nov. 7-23, 2014. 

All work submitted must not have been previously exhibited at the NCAC Fall Fine Art Show. Only original work will be juried and judged for awards.

Categories are as follows:

• Painting (H20, Acrylic, Oil, Pastels)  
• Drawing (Pencil, Colored Pencil, Pen and Ink, Charcoal)
• Sculpture (ceramics, wood carving, stone carving, 3D)
• Photography (film, digital)
• Mixed Media (Collage, Fiber Art, Print Making)  
• Digital and Graphic Art 
• Jewelry (Lamp Work, Metal Work, Fused glass, Clay Polymer, Pyrite, Ceramic, Carved Wood, stone sculpting)

Applications are available at www.nnyart.org.

Jury process

Electronic Submissions-

A jpeg image(s) of your original artwork to ncacartshowchair@nnyart.org. Each entry must be accompanied by a completed application form for each piece of artwork or you risk denial of entry. Please label each jpeg image with Artist Name, Medium and Title of Work. Your entry fee may be paid at the website www.nnyart.org. Entry fees are non-refundable.

Mail Submissions, please mail the documents with your payment to: North Country Arts Council, Attention: Fall Art Show, 52 Public Square,

Watertown, NY, 13601 

Deadline for submission is midnight on Oct. 12, 2014.  Notification of acceptance will be on or by Oct. 22, 2014

Juror of Acceptance

Penny Heath- Owner, Photographer at Heath Photography in Redwood, NY. Penny founded Heath Photography in 1989 after completing photographic training in California.

Award Judges

David Crowell- A self-taught painter, he draws inspiration for his watercolors from the natural beauty of the Adirondacks, with a focus on local fish species. David is also inspired by traditional Eastern Art including Japanese wood block prints and Sami-e ink and wash painting. David has been fortunate to study painting in China with a focus on landscapes. David resides in Canton NY, St. Lawrence County.

www.adkpainter.blogspot.com

Margie Hughto- M.F.A., Cranbrook Academy of Art, B.S., SUNY Buffalo Margie is a professor of ceramics at Syracuse University's College of Visual and Performing Arts. She has installed permanent public artworks across the country, including Trade, Treasure, and Travel, a series of ceramic tile murals for the NYC Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA), which were installed in 1998 two levels beneath the World Trade Center at the Cortlandt Street subway station. The tiles miraculously survived the 9/11 terrorist attacks and were re-installed in Sept. 2011. She recently presented her first site-specific museum installation, A Fired Landscape, at Syracuse’s Everson Museum of Art. The piece spanned 50 feet of gallery wall space. www.loveedfinearts.com

Greg Lago- Greg worked as an illustrator for the U.S. Army, later he attended Buffalo State where his studies with Frank C. Eckmair focused his artistic talents on printmaking. In 1988 he established Winged Bull Studio, a print gallery, in Clayton, NY and has been working as a printmaker and illustrator for over 30 years. Additionally Greg works in a variety of mediums and styles, using oils, acrylics and is equally and exceptionally known for his wood sculptures and spirit of the river scenes. www.wingedbull.com

The Dulles State Office Building is located at 317 Washington St. in Watertown, N.Y.

Seed-Saving 101

Organic cantaloupe from Better Farm's garden, chock-full of seeds ready for saving.

Saving seeds has multiple benefits including continuing a plant's genetic line, increasing biodiversity, and keeping you out of the supermarket while saving you money! Here are a few simple ways to save your own seeds from your best-producing fruits and veggies.

An important note before we start: Most supermarkets carry hybrid fruits like cantaloupes (cucumis meo var. cantalupensis) and the seeds are often sterile. Open-pollinated seeds, however, have no problem reproducing. For this same reason, you want to be careful not to plant many different kinds of the same plant as they are likely to fertilize each other! In order to know which seeds are worth saving, consider the following information we gleaned from Mother Earth Living:

GM seeds, or genetically modified seeds, are seeds that have been created under artificial conditions to meet a specific list of criteria, usually resistance to a package of pesticides and herbicides sold with them. The home gardener is not likely to come across this type of seed because at the moment GM seed is mostly confined to large-scale commercial agriculture. GM seeds are also patented, which means you cannot legally reproduce it unless you pay the maker a royalty. Without belaboring the arguments pro or con about GM seeds, you should avoid buying any seeds that are patented. Most seed packets will state very clearly whether they contain patented material. 

Another type of patented seeds are the F1 hybrids, crosses between different plant species. You cannot save seeds from hybrids because they will not grow true to type. Hybrids are common in seed catalogs everywhere and must be listed as such. After World War II, a few seed companies got the lucrative idea that F1 hybrids were better than traditional seeds and thus began to market them based on perceived benefits, primarily that the cross would have some special trait, such as wilt resistance. More importantly (to the companies marketing them), because you cannot save seeds from F1 hybrids, you have to keep buying new seed. F1 hybrids eventually lose their special traits, and companies must create new ones every few years to adjust for this decline. The seedless watermelon is a good example. It is a patented food because the seeds have been bred out, which is not natural, and the cross is not stable. Indeed, it will produce no viable seed. 

A third type of seed—and the only one you can save—is old-fashioned open-pollinated seed. This means that nature did the pollinating: bees, wind, birds, dew or rain. These seeds are the most “natural,” with no intervention by humans, and can be further divided into heirlooms and nonheirlooms. Heirloom varieties have been around for several generations and have thus proven their worth; they are true hand-me-downs like the tasty and attractive ‘Moon and Stars’ watermelon developed in the 1920s. Nonheirlooms are more recent open-pollinated plants, such as the ‘Green Zebra’ tomato developed in the 1980s, that are heading toward the heirloom category.

How-To

Garden seeds have three camps: annuals produce seeds and die at end of season; biennials (such as beets, carrots and cabbages) bloom and produce seed the following spring as long as you protect them during winter in a frost-free environment; and perennials (i.e. asparagus, horseradish, strawberries and rhubarb) return on their own. We're going to focus on annuals today: specifically, melons, tomatoes, cucumbers and squash.

ANNUALS

Melons  

• Leave at least one melon (watermelon, caneteloupe, etc.) on the vine until it reaches maturity, as fully ripe meolons will have fully developed seeds.
• Cut the melon in half and scoop the seeds from the center with a spoon.
• Rinse the seeds in warm water to separate the juice and pulp from the seeds. Rub the seeds in your hands to help separate the seeds and fruit.
• Place the seeds in a clean pot or bowl, then cover the seeds with water; the good seeds will stay on the bottom of the pot, while bad seeds and fruit debris will float to the surface.
• Pour out the water, debris and bad seeds from the top of the pan. Hold your hand over the pan to catch any good seeds that might slip out as you drain the water.
• Move the seeds to a wire mesh strainer. Run cold water over the seeds, using a sink sprayer hose, to remove any remaining sugar. Turn the seeds frequently to spray all sides.
• Place the seeds on a clean paper towel and blot with a second paper towel to absorb excess moisture or surface moisture from the seeds.
• Spread the seeds out to dry on a flat surface, such as a plate or shallow baking pan.
• Store the seeds in a cool, dry place, such as a basement or refrigerator until ready to plant the following year. Keep the seeds in an air-tight container lined with a paper towel to prevent moisture from getting to the seeds.

 Tomatoes

• Choose your biggest, most lovely, tastiest tomato and save her seeds. Scoop out the seeds and their gelatinous "goo" into a container. 
• Add a few tablespoons of water to the seeds and cover the container with a piece of plastic-wrap.
• Poke holes in the plastic wrap to allow air to enter (this will help foster fermentation).
• Put the container in a warm location such as a sunny windowsill or on top of your fridge for two to three days.
• During this time, remove the plastic wrap each night and stir the mixture before replacing the lid. Fermentation will make the liquid look scummy as the seeds separate, while also killing potential tomato diseases. 
• After two or three days, take off the lid and carefully scrape off the scummy surface with a spoon. Pour the remaining contents through a fine sieve and rince very well.
• Spread seeds out on a coffee filter or waxed paper and leave the seeds for several days to dry. You will know they are dry when they do not stick to anything.
• Store your seeds in paper packets or vacuum seal. Make sure your seeds are completely dry before storing to prevent them from harboring mildew and rot!

 Cucumbers

• Harvest the fruits, then cut them in half lengthwise. 
• Scoop out the seeds from the center of each half. 
• Add about as much water to the bowl as the amount of seeds, and set aside in a warm, sheltered spot to ferment, much as you would if you were saving tomato seeds. Fermentation of cucumber seeds can occur in as little as one to three days; once most of the seeds have sunk to the bottom of the container, they are finished fermenting. 
• Add more water to the bowl at this point to clean your seeds. Debris and bad seeds will float to the top, where you can discard them easily. The good seeds will be at the bottom. 
• Rinse them a few more times
• Strain them out and place them on paper towels or uncoated paper plates to dry. 
• Once they are completely dry, label your seeds and store them in a cool, dry place.

Squash

• Harvest the squash, cut in half lengthwise, and scoop out seeds.
• Wash the seeds to remove any flesh and strings. 
• Lay the seeds out in a single layer on a paper towel to dry. Store them this way in a place that is dry and out of direct sunlight. 
• Once thoroughly dried, in 3 to 7 days, store them in an envelope in a cool dry place with the rest of your seed supply. Dried squash seeds will store up to 6 years if kept in cool, dry conditions.

Energy Globe Awards Seek Sustainability Projects

Previous Energy Globe Award winner, Water Category, K2 Eco Tank by FMD Design Studio. This shower-sink collects and filters graywater after use and pumps said water into the toilet tank to be used for flushing.

The Annual Energy Globe Awards, an international competition that rewards innovative projects related to sustainability, is seeking entries before the Oct. 8 deadline.

The objective of the ENERGY GLOBE Award is to present successful sustainable projects to a global audience and to demonstrate that for many environmental problems feasible solutions already exist. Projects submitted from over 160 countries take part each year in the awards.

Click here to see last year's winners!

For 2015 innovative projects and smart technologies from around the world are invited to take part again. Participation is open to projects with focus on resource conservation, improving air and water quality, energy efficiency and renewable energies. But also projects that focus on the creation of awareness in these areas will be eligible to participate.

Every individual, private or public institution, companies, NGOs, etc. can submit a project. The submission is free. The deadline has been extended from September to Oct. 8, 2014.

Why participate?
The best projects will be honored as part of a ceremony that will be broadcast worldwide as well as featured by the international media. International winning projects for the 5 award categories of Earth, Fire, Water, Air, and Youth will also each receive a 10,000 euro cash award.
In each country the best project is awarded the National Energy Globe Award and presented at the global online platform of Energy Globe.

Are you eligible for participation?
Eligible for participation are projects with a focus on saving resources, improving air, soil, or water quality, increasing energy efficiency, using renewables, as well as anyone making a contribution towards the fight against climate change. No project is too small and none is too big!
Projects can be entered by individuals as well as companies, organizations, and public authorities. Several projects may be entered by a single competitor. Entry is free of charge.

How do I submit my project?

1. Please prepare your project submission by using the checklist as well as the Word document provided by us (DOC, 100 kB).
2. This is where the online submission of your project can be completed:
   Please click here to submit your project

Click here for more information about the Energy Globe Awards.

DIY Soda Can Solar Heater

If you're looking for something to do as the temperatures drop away, why not give this passive solar soda can heater a try? All you'll need is some black spray paint, a bunch of empty aluminum cans, some 2x4s, and a few basic tools.

The solar soda can heater works by bringing in cool air from your home, garage, or shop through an intake hose at the bottom of the unit. Air rises through the system, which is warm from absorbing sunlight. Air comes out the top and back inside through the outtake hose—some bloggers are

reporting at as much as 120 degrees hotter than when it entered

!

We found a few variations on the design from

Hemmings Daily

,

Fair Companies

and

Instructables

. Here's the basic gist; write to us with your variations and photos on the project! And yes, it works: There's even a Canadian company,

Cansolair, Inc.

, selling the things.

Materials

• 240 aluminum cans

• 3 - 8 ft. 2x4s

• 4 ft. x 8 ft. x 1/2 in. sheet of plywood

• High-temperature silicon

• 4 ft. x 8 ft. sheet of Plexiglas or Lexan

• A can of heat-resistant flat black spray paint.

• Plastic tubing

• Drill Press with wide drill bits

• Screws

• Optional Air Blower (consider a solar-powered unit)

Instructions

1. Construct a wooden frame out the the 2x4s, approx. 4 ft. wide x 8 ft. high x 3 1/2 in. deep. 

2. Cut a piece of plywood this size and nail it to the back of the frame.

3. Drill a hole in the top center of the frame - this is where you'll connect your outlet hose.

4. Drill a hole in the bottom of the frame - this is where your inlet hose will be connected.

5. Drill large holes in the tops and bottoms from all the cans except for 16 which will be on the bottom row.  For those, drill the holes in the tops and sides.  Caution! Aluminum cans are sharp - use heavy work gloves or other means to hold them in place as you cut the holes out.

6. Start placing your cans into the frame.  Create 16 columns of 15 cans each.  Stack them one at at time, sealing them together as you go along.  Make sure the ones with side holes are on the bottom row.  Allow the silicone sealant to cure.

7. Spray the cans and frame with the heat-resistant flat black paint.

8. Cover the frame with the sheet of Plexiglas or Lexan.

9. Cut holes in the side of the building that line up with holes in the top and bottom of the solar panel.  Air will be drawn from the building through the lower hole, which should be just above floor level, and be returned through the upper hole.

10. Mount the completed panel on the exterior wall of the home.  Alternatively, you might mount the panel in a separate frame that will allow it to be tilted more toward the sun for better exposure.

11. Install the blower at either the inlet or outlet.  This is not essential, but will increase the efficiency of your solar heater.

This unit allows air to flow all around the cans as it moves through the panel. A more efficient design will force all the air through the inside of the cans.  This will also avoid exposure of the air to the black paint.

Coming Soon: Adirondack Regional Art Trail

Image from larac.org

Information  gleaned from the Adirondack North Country Association (ANCA) 

A new collaboration of non-profit organizations are working together to create an Adirondack Regional Arts Trail that will connect the North Country's arts organizations, galleries, theaters, artists and craftspeople through an online platform to help foster a unified identity for arts and artisan businesses across Northern New York.

The trail will produce a comprehensive strategy to highlight the many arts resources (such as betterArts!) across the Adirondack North Country region, as well as provide artists and artistic venues a stronger presence and a dedicated online home to engage with residents and visitors.

Adirondack North Country Association (ANCA), BluSeed Studios, Saranac Lake ArtWorks and Traditional Arts in Upstate New York (TAUNY) recently received a grant award to get the project started. The grant, in the amount of $59,200 from the New York State Council on the Arts was part of the North Country Regional Economic Development Council (REDC) awards announced Dec. 11 by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. 

Those interested in developing, being a part of, or learning more about the Adirondack Regional Art Trail are invited to attended a meeting this Sunday, Sept. 21, at Arts on the Square in Watertown. The event is hosted by TAUNY and the North Country Arts Council for this daylong event that features exhibits, professional development workshops, networking and a presentation about how the Adirondack Regional Art Trail can help support artists in their careers.

Here's all the information:

Sunday, September 21

52 Public Square,
Watertown, NY 13601

RSVP to Jill Breit: jill@tauny.org
(315) 386-4289 

Agenda:

•  9 -10 a.m.: Exhibitors set up
• 10 a.m.-12 p.m.: Literary exhibits, product review focus groups meet
• 10:30-10:55 a.m.: Industry/ Craft Talk 1*
• 11-11:25 a.m.: Industry / Craft Talk 2*
• 11:30-11:55 a.m.: Industry / Craft Talk 3*
• 12-1 p.m.:  Lunch on your own and networking time 
• 1-2 p.m:  Presentation on the Adirondack North Country Art Trail— Partners will describe the project, and ask for feedback from the audience about the product being developed
• 2-3 p.m.: How to Succeed in Art by Really Trying: Artists and Writers on 'Making It'—A panel of local artists and writers offer their insight on achieving success in the art and publishing world.  Moderated discussion with subsequent Q&A.
• 3-3:30 p.m.:  Artist exhibit breakdown
• 3:30 - ?   Artist Gathering at the Paddock Club 

The Adirondack Regional Art Trail project is made possible by funding from the New York State Council on the Arts through the REDC process and the project works to strengthen arts entrepreneurship in the 14-county North Country. For more information, click here.

Want to be listed on the Art Trail? Click here to fill out the online form: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ADKarttrail

Ceramics by betterArts Member Kari Zelson Robertson on Display through 10/31

Clay artist and betterArts board member Kari Zelson Robertson has a pottery show on display at the Thousand Islands Arts Center through Oct. 31 in Clayton, N.Y.

"Clay: Fold and Bend, Cut and Paste" is a gallery showing of Robertson's ceramics work, which includes pieces that have been cut and reconnected, repurposed, and otherwise reimagined. 

"It was great to be able to connect the dots between my work from my Penland Craft School residency during Spring 2014 to some pieces from before and after," Kari says. "An especially meaningful highlight for this show was to connect my work to the history of the Arts Center via interplay between my ceramics and Lucille Landis' textiles. Many of her pieces are included in the permanent collection at the arts center, which, for years, was called The Handweaving Museum. Lucille wrote a few books on weaving, but I have not been able to find very much information on her life. I do know that she found a passion, and learned as much as she could about it, and took the time to share with others. Might we all do the same."

Click here to see a video of Kari discussing her work.

Kari's background in clay began in the early 1980s during undergraduate work. "For me, clay is the perfect material," she says. "It is architectural, sensous, technical, useful, playful. By combining wheel throwing and hand-building, I have a toolbox of techniques from which to choose, depending on which will best help to realize the idea." Kari is a former public-school art educator whose studio is attached to her farmhouse in Northern New York. 

See Kari's work at the Thousand Islands Arts Center, located at 314 John Street in Clayton. For more information, call (315) 686-4123. To contact Kari about her work, email kari.zelson.robertson@gmail.com.

Mulch Much? The Benefits of Gardening with Mulch

Written by Karen Lynn

Originally published at Fix.com

One of the easiest ways to ensure success in your garden, especially a vegetable garden, is to incorporate mulching into your garden preparations. This doesn’t have to break the bank, but it will provide you dividends in the abundance of vegetables you will harvest from your garden. Whether you live in the city, country, or suburbia, and whether you have a huge garden, raised beds, or even if you are using pots and containers, mulches are the unsung hero in the garden. 

So Why Mulch?

The most basic benefit of mulch is moisture retention. Yields are directly affected by the amount of water in the soil. And, in dryer climates where rainfall is scarce, gardeners will want their soil to retain as much water as possible. Simply by covering the top of the soil in a thin layer of organic material, you will drastically reduce the level of moisture evaporated from the soil. The graphic below shows just how dramatically mulching can reduce evaporation. Mulching can retain up to 80% of added moisture in your soil. When you keep the top of the soil protected from direct heat, it will lose less water, and thus be a better environment for your plants. Great mulch also has the ability to breathe, and not become a place where mold issues arise, which would be unhealthy for plant life.

Compost is technically not mulch, but rather a soil amendment, an additive used to increase soil nutrition. Compost can also be used as a top dressing. It is a very significant component of a great garden, so it is good to keep it in mind as part of your gardening efforts.

Different Types of Mulches

There are many different types of mulch, and some of these cost little to nothing. Some common mulches are pine straw, grass clippings, leaves, newspapers, and wood chips.

Pine straw makes for fabulous mulch, but you have to make sure you place pine straw near acid-loving plants. In some parts of the country pine straw is an abundant free resource, and is very convenient to collect. Many acid-loving fruits and vegetables benefit from pine straw mulch, including blueberries, strawberries, garlic, tomatoes, and potatoes. A drawback to pine straw mulch is that it can be messy, the color fades very quickly, and it’s very flammable.

Grass clippings also make fabulous mulch; the best part being that they are free and accessible. Furthermore, you are re-distributing garden and lawn matter to other areas of your garden, which carries the added benefit of providing a place to dispose of that matter. The grass clippings will add nitrogen and much needed nutrients for beneficial microbes that inhabit the soil, which your plants will love.
A word of caution about removing grass clippings from the side of the road: you must be sure that the grass is not chemically laden with fertilizers and pesticides. The only other issue that could crop up is that if the clippings come from a weedy area you may be transferring weeds or undesirable plants unknowingly.

Leaves are a favorite mulch of many gardeners. There are few to no drawbacks when mulching with leaves, and they can be spread to protect your soil during winter months. Oak and maple leaves in particular are popular mulch material because they are plentiful. Mowing over the leaves turns them into shredded mulch, which helps release some moisture, and also makes them easier to spread. Many times, leaves are free for the taking since most folks won’t mind you raking their lawns for them, and that will happily load you up with your fill of mulch!

Next up is newspaper. Your first thought might be “ugh!” but there is a place in the garden for non-colored and non-magazine-type newsprint. It’s inexpensive, available, and can often be found at your local recycling bin. Newspaper is a very easy and efficient way to keep weeds at bay as well as assisting to keep the soil moist. It is particularly helpful when you have not been able to amend your soil as well as you would like too, or if your garden plot is in an extremely dry location with lots of drainage. You will want to wet your newspaper down when you use it and you will need to place another type of mulch on top, possibly mixed with some amended soil and compost, to help hold the newspaper down.

Composting is basically decomposing your kitchen trash from fresh foods such as vegetable scraps, egg shells, whole grains, any green growing material, chicken, horse, cow, or rabbit manure (but not household pet waste), and any dried matter in the garden. Often, local horse farms will gladly let you come collect their manure right out of the barns or pastures and in many cases you can barter with friends, neighbors, or your local farmer for chicken or rabbit manure. Rabbit manure can be put straight into the garden and is often referred to as “Gardeners Gold.”

Another mulch option is wood chips, shredded wood, or saw dust; however it is important to note that you should not use treated wood as it is loaded with chemicals and not good for you or your garden. There is debate over whether you should place fresh wood chips in your garden, and popular opinion is on both sides of the fence. Some folks say the fresh wood chips rob the soil of much-needed nitrogen and other folks argue that the fresh wood chips may decrease nitrogen initially but then it cycles back to the soil by naturally breaking down and amending the soil. Whatever you decide in the end, wood is nice and heavy and it will keep the soil moist and cool along with keeping weeds away from your beautiful plants.

Reducing the Cost

You may find mulching to be expensive, and it could be, if your garden is large and you don’t have any of the six mulches above at your disposal. But many communities have options for free mulch: some communities have yard debris recycling programs that turn debris into mulch, allowing citizens to gather it for free or a very small cost. Sometimes tree companies give away shredded branches as mulch. Landfills may have some free mulch options as well. Check online forums and hardware store bulletin boards for options in your local area. Mulching is probably not out of your reach.

Storing Mulch

When gathering mulch in the fall or winter when it is more readily available, you need to address storing the mulch for spring and summer use. The most important issue when storing mulch is to keep it dry. If the mulch is completely dry then you could store it in plastic bins, trash bags, or trash cans. If the mulch is not dry then your next best option would be to pile it up in the yard in an out-of-the-way location and turn it frequently until it dries out, then store in bins or bags.

Placing Mulch in the Garden

Placing mulch in the garden should be done very strategically. For example, wait until most of your seedlings sprout through the top soil: this allows time for any volunteers to poke through the ground, for transplanting elsewhere in the garden. It is also a good idea to add more mulch halfway through the gardening season and to spot-check your gardening areas from time to time so you can ensure the soil for your plants is staying moist.

Mulch is an often-free, valuable resource for the success of a garden. It keeps your roots moist, adds beneficial nutrients to the soil, and can really make the difference to an abundant garden. Take the time to experiment with different mulches, keeping note of which mulches work best with your plants. Also, to have your garden soil tested, contact your local agricultural extension office or check out our soil testing article, to make sure you are using the ideal mulch for your garden.
To sum up, it pays to consider the best mulch option for your garden situation and conditions. Consider your soil requirements, your space requirements and your wallet. Your payoff is in abundant plant production. I wish you much success as you add beneficial nutrients and just the right amount of ongoing moisture by using mulch.
Have you mulched much lately?

Karen Lynn is a gardener and beekeeper, who writes for Lil’ Suburban Homestead. She previously wrote for Frugal Families.com, and has been featured on several popular blogs. She is a Homestead Bloggers Network Contributor, as well been featured by Scratch Magazine.

Succession Planting/Second-Season Farming

Broccoli seedlings in planters on the front deck. These babies will be moved to the greenhouse when the weather turns.

Gardeners in the north may not have the climate conditions of our neighbors down south that allow them to essentially harvest vegetables year-round, but we can adopt a method known as “succession planting” to maximize our yield.

Succession planting is the rotation of crops and recycling of space; it allows gardeners to pull out spent vegetables and replant new ones, and it can increase total yields and improve the quality of vegetables.

Hardiness zones, ranging from 1 to 10 (lowest to highest temperatures), designate which plants are capable of thriving in a particular location. According to the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, upstate New York is zones 3 to 6, meaning that plants should be grown that can withstand temperatures of -40 °F to -5 °F. Crops that can grow well under these conditions include arugula, broccoli, cilantro, kale, lettuce, peas, and spinach. Plant them in July or early August and they will be ready for harvest from September to November.

Eliot Coleman, gardening guru and author of The Winter Harvest Handbook, states, “If farmed intensively, a small area of land can be very productive. The key to increased productivity is to make better year-round use of every square foot.”

4 tips for successful succession planting:

• Once plants start to wilt, pull them out and replant them using all of the available space. (Then compost the old plants!)
• It’s important to keep the soil moist. If it dries out, the seeds may die and you will have to start over. As a general rule, seeds planted in the late summer should be sown twice as deep as in the spring. Installing shade nets or using natural trellises and tall plants can shade new plants from the sun.
• Choose plants that thrive in cool temperatures, such as arugula, beets, broccoli, carrots, kale, lettuce, spinach, and all kinds of Asian greens. Pick varieties that are disease-resistant and mature quickly.
• Because cooler temperatures and shorter days slow plant growth, add an extra 14 days to the days-to-maturity figure on the seed packet to find your summer planting date. When cold weather arrives, cover plants with garden fabric or use a cold frame to protect them.

At Better Farm, we've replanted lettuce, spinach, wheat grass, peas, and broccoli; while continuing our indoor aquaponics and hydroponics setups with tomatoes and salad greens. Stay tuned for more photos of our progress!

For a great guide on what to plant and when for your hardiness zone, click here.

Garden Goes Berserk; Bulk Food Orders Now Available!

Sweet potato squash!

Better Farm's gardens are literally bursting forth with delicious, fresh produce—which means we're now taking discounted orders for organic food that's available for delivery, pick-up, or pick-your-own on a one-time, weekly, or daily basis.

Look at all this beauty!

Organic, heirloom tomatoes: perfect for sauces, salads, sandwiches, and more!

Tomatoes, onions (red, white, yellow), garlic

White Scallop Squash

We are offering a pick-your-own bag sale, in which you can fill a grocery bag with as much produce as you can pick for $15. Or, place an order now for up to 50-percent off bulk rates of the following organic produce items:

• Apples (heirloom)
• Beets
• Borage (edible flowers, great as garnishes)
• Chives
• Cilantro
• Corn
• Elderberries (frozen)
• Kale 
• Leeks
• Lemon Balm
• Lemon Cucumbers
• Lettuce 
• Mint
• Nasturtium
• Onions
• Oregano (giant red, standard)
• Pumpkins
• Raspberries
• Rhubarb
• Soybeans (Edamame)
• String Beans
• Sweet Potato Squash
• Swiss Chard
• Wheat Grass
• White Scallop Squash

 Place your orders or set up a pick-your-own visit by calling (315) 482-2536 or emailing info@betterfarm.org.

Better Farm to be Featured in 'Ways of Living' Documentary

Jessica Watkins, left, and Harper Cowan, documentary filmmakers for upcoming film Ways of Living.

Better Farm is to be featured in an upcoming documentary, with filming at the farm commencing this Friday.

The documentary, Ways of Living, follows a road trip around America in search of alternative and sustainable ways of life. The focus is love, posi vibes, living freely, wide open hearts, harming nothing. The film—due out this winter and produced by filmmakers Jessica Watkins and Harper Cowan—explores alternative technologies and sustainable practices, and features interviews with all sorts of people—artists, musicians, farmers, commune dwellers, earth ship builders and the like!

The documentary is a part of a larger collaborative project called ANIMA RISING, the scope of which utilizes websites, a blog, and documentary film to produce creative content that raises consciousness, increases awareness, and inspires viewers to think—and live—outside the box.

Next stop for the filmmakers is Better Farm, where we'll treat our visitors on Saturday to a classic Better Farm family dinner party, work in the gardens, tours of the grounds, information on the cultural outreach work of sister organization betterArts, sing-a-longs, storytelling, and the opportunity to meet all of you who make this place great.

Here's the official trailer for the documentary Ways of Living:

Learn more:

• Anima Rising website
• Anima Rising blog
• Official trailer on YouTube

Been touched by Better Farm? Want to be featured this weekend? Email us at info@betterfarm.

Beyond the Garden Gates: Wild Plant Classification Part II

 By Allison Bachner
This is the conclusion of sustainability student Allison Bachner's two-part wild plant classification study. For Part I, click here.


We're continuing today with wild plant classifications as discovered on the Better Farm campus. Putting aside their pesky tendency to pop up in the garden rows, wild plants have value that make them well worth knowing. Here is the second installment of plants I discovered in the wilds of Better Farm.

Cattail

The cattail is one of the most important and common wild foods, with a variety of uses at different times of the year. Whatever you call it, a stand of cattails is as close as you'll get to finding a wild supermarket. In spring, the cattail shoot has an odorless, tender, white, inner core that tastes sweet, mild, and pleasant. None of cattails' look-a-likes grows more than a few feet tall, so by mid-spring, the much larger cattail becomes unmistakable, even for beginners. They grow in marshes, swamps, ditches, and stagnant water—fresh or slightly brackish—worldwide. Finding them is a sure sign of water. Every part of a cattail has a practical use. The plant is easy to harvest, very tasty, and highly nutritious. It was a major staple for Native Americans. "Settlers" missed out when they ignored this great food and destroyed its habitats, instead of cultivating it. Before the flower forms, the shoots— prized as "Cossack's asparagus" in Russia—are fantastic. You can peel and eat them well into the summer; and will quickly discover they taste like a combination of tender zucchini and cucumbers (they're great in salads, soups, stir-fries, and sandwiches). You'll get the best yield just before the flowers begin to develop. A few huge, late-spring stalks provide enough delicious food for a meal. Some stalks grow tall, and become inedibly fibrous with developing flowers by late spring, although just before the summer solstice, you can often gather tender shoots, immature flower heads, and pollen at the same time. You can also clip off and eat the male portions of the immature, green, flower head. Steam or simmer it for ten minutes. It tastes vaguely like its distant relative, corn, and there's even a central cob-like core. Because it's dry, serve it with a topping of sauce, seasoned oil, or butter. When the male flowers ripen, just before the summer solstice, they produce considerable quantities of golden pollen. People pay outrageous prices in health stores for tiny capsules of the bee pollen—a source of minerals, enzymes, protein, and energy. Cattail pollen beats the commercial variety in flavor, energy content, freshness, nutrition, and price. To collect the pollen in its short season, wait for a few calm days, so your harvest isn't scattered by wind. Bend the flower heads into a large paper bag and shake it gently. Keep the bag's opening as narrow as possible, so the pollen won't blow away. Sift out the trash, and use the pollen as golden flour in baking breads, muffins, pancakes, or waffles. It doesn't rise, and it's time-consuming to collect in quantity, so generally mix it with at least three times as much whole-grain flour. You can also eat the pollen raw, sprinkled on yogurt, fruit shakes, oatmeal, and salads. Jelly from between a cattail's young leaves can be applied to wounds, sores, boils, carbuncles, external inflammations, and boils to soothe pain. (From Wild Man Steve Brill .)

New England Aster

Native American tribes on burning the flowers and leaves that is interesting, the smoke being used in Inipi (sweat lodge) Ceremonies, to revive the unconscious, to treat mental illness, nosebleeds, headaches, congestion, for smudging and as an additive to Kinnickkinnick smoking mixtures. The dried blossoms were also snuffed for similar purposes, or the vapor inhaled as a steam. Aster tea was used to treat earache, relieve gas pains, stomach aches and fevers. The flowers and roots were both commonly used.  (From Herb Craft.)

Purple Loosestrife

Purple Loosestrife possesses four principles: resin, resinoid, tannin, and alkaloid; and its properties are alterative, antispasmodic, diuretic, astringent, anti-febrifuge, tonic, and demulcent. Loosestrife is employed chiefly in fevers and hepatic derangements, constipation, diarrhea, dysentery, cholera infantum, cholera morbus, malignant cholera, hemorrhages or bleedings of all kinds, leucorrhosa, old wounds, sores, clouded vision, and so on. The whole plant is used either alone or combined with others of a palliative or soothing character. Purple Loosestrife may justly be considered one of the most valuable of all vegetable astringents yet known to man. It is its astringent effects on the mucous surfaces that renders it a most valuable remedy in fevers, especially typhoid; and in hepatic derangements of the liver and biliary ducts. In constipation it is a most useful herb to remedy that condition, as, by its promoting the secretive powers of the mucous surfaces and its astringent quality strengthening the muscular parts of the intestinal walls, it gives tone and energy to them, and by that means tends to remove constipation. It is also a useful agent in relaxation of the bowels, because of its powers of correcting acid accumulations in the stomach and intestines. These statements with regard to its utility in the treatment of the two opposite conditions—diarrhoea and constipation—may seem erroneous and inconsistent, but they are correct. (From Henriette's Herb.) An ointment may be made with the water 1 OZ. to 2 drachms of May butter without salt, and the same quantity of sugar and wax boiled gently together. It cleanses and heals ulcers and sores, if washed with the water, or covered with the leaves, green or dry according to the season. A warm gargle and drink cures quinsy or a scrofulous throat. (From Botanical)

Joe-Pye Weed

Joe-Pye Weed has been used for ages as a diuretic, stimulant, tonic, astringent and relaxant. This plant offers a terrific remedy for gravel in the gallbladder; and can dissolves stones while healing chronic urinary and kidney disorders. The plant can help with bed-wetting, poor appetite, dropsy, neuralgia and rheumatism. Joe-Pye is also very soothing and will relax the nerves. Combined with uva ursi, marshmallow, blue cohosh and lily root, it can help deter female troubles, bladder and kidney infections, diabetes, and Bright’s disease. The plant has also been used for headache, hysteria, impotence, indigestion, intermittent fever, sciatica, sore throat, urine retention, vomiting, asthma, chronic coughs, colds and typhus fever. Cough syrup can easily be made out of Joe-Pye Weed by steeping and boiling down blossoms and leaves, adding molasses, and boiling the whole mixture into a syrup.

Thistle

All parts of a thistle plant can be used for culinary and medicinal purposes, including the root, leaves, flowery tops and seeds. According to the beliefs of many Native Americans, any object that sticks or pricks an individual will also alleviate the hurt when an ointment prepared with the same substance is applied on the affected area. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, different types of thistles are used to prepare decoctions to alleviate inflammation. In addition, an infusion prepared with the leaves and roots of common thistle is believed to heal stiff neck, seizures and nervous disorders. Common thistle roots have been employed as a poultice and a decoction prepared using the plant too is used as a poultice to treat aching jaws. A hot infusion prepared with the whole common thistle plant has been traditionally used to treat rheumatic joint pains and bleeding piles. The inner bark of common thistle yields a fiber sometimes used in paper manufacture. High-quality oil can be obtained by extracting the seeds of different species of thistles. The thistle down is excellent as firewood which can be lit without difficulty even by a spark from a stone. In addition, the Cherokee, a Native American tribe, used the down of the plant for the tail on blow guns. Tender leaves of the plant can be soaked overnight in saline water and cooked for consumption. Leaves of common thistle may also be added to salads after thorns are removed. Even the roots of common thistle are cooked and they have a flavour akin to Jerusalem artichoke. In addition to consuming the roots fresh, they may also be dried and stored for use when necessary. Some people also cook and use the young flower stems of common thistle as a vegetable. Even the flower buds of the plant are brought to culinary use. These flower buds are used akin to round artichokes, but they are comparatively small and even more difficult to prepare. The dehydrated thistle flowers are used as a rennet alternative to curdle plant milks. At times, even the seeds of thistle are roasted and consumed by some people. (From Herbs 2000.)

Goldenrod

The species Solidago canadensis and S. odora are considered the most medicinal (and the tastiest) of goldenrod, but all species of goldenrod are safe and beneficial and can be used to help the immune system get ready for winter. Goldenrod tonics are easy to make. Harvest any goldenrod by cutting the top third of the plant in full flower on a sunny fall day. Or, respectfully pull the entire plant, roots and all, in the late autumn or early winter. Then follow these simple directions. Note: You can use any size jar when making a vinegar or a tincture, so long as you fill it full. To dry flowering goldenrod: Bundle 2-3 stalks together and hang upside down in a cool, shady room until thoroughly dry. When the stalks snap crisply, store the dried herb in brown paper bags. One or two large handfuls of crushed leaves and flowers, steeped in a quart of boiling water for thirty minutes makes a tea that can be used hot, with honey, to counter allergies (especially pollen allergies), fevers, sore throats, coughs, colds and the flu; or taken cold to relieve colic in babies, and gas in adults. Dried mint and/or yarrow are tasty, and useful, additions when making goldenrod flower tea. To dry goldenrod roots: Rinse dirt off the roots, then cut away all the stalks, leaves and dead flowers. If possible, hang your roots over a woodstove to dry; if not, place them on racks and put them in a warm place to dry until brittle. Store in glass jars. Depending on the difficulty you are addressing, goldenrod root tea may be made with large or small amounts of the roots brewed or decocted in boiling water. Or the roots may be powdered, alone or mixed with flowers, and applied to hard-to-heal wounds and sore joints. To make a goldenrod vinegar: Chop the goldenrod coarsely, filling a jar with chopped flowers, leaves, stalks (and roots if you have them); then fill the jar to the top with room-temperature, pasteurized, apple cider vinegar. Cap it tightly with a plastic lid. (Metal lids will be eroded by the action of the vinegar. If you must use one, protect it with several layers of plastic between it and the vinegar.) Be sure to label your vinegar with the date and contents. Your goldenrod vinegar will be ready to use in six weeks to improve mineral balance, help prevent kidney stones, eliminate flatulence, and improve immune functioning. To make a goldenrod tincture: Chop the goldenrod coarsely, filling a jar with chopped flowers, leaves, stalks (and roots if you have them); then add 100 proof vodka, filling the jar to the very top. Cap tightly and label. Your goldenrod tincture will be ready to use in six weeks, by the dropperful, as an anti-inflammatory, a sweat-inducing cold cure, and an astringent digestive aid. Medical herbalists use large doses (up to 4 dropperfuls at a time) of goldenrod tincture several times daily to treat kidney problems -- including nephritis, hemorrhage, kidney stones, and inability to void -- and prostate problems, including frequent urination. The colonists called goldenrod tea "Liberty Tea," for they drank it instead of black tea after the Boston Tea Party. In fact, Liberty Tea proved so popular, it was exported to China! Let goldenrod liberate you, too. Herbal medicine is people's medicine, a gift from Mama Earth to us. (From Susun Weed.)

Queen Anne's Lace

Also called wild carrot, Queen Anne's Lace has many medicinal properties. The wild carrot is an aromatic herb that acts as a diuretic, soothes the digestive tract and stimulates the uterus. A wonderfully cleansing medicine, it supports the liver, stimulates the flow of urine and the removal of waste by the kidneys. An infusion is used in the treatment of various complaints including digestive disorders, kidney and bladder diseases and in the treatment of dropsy. An infusion of the leaves has been used to counter cystitis and kidney stone formation, and to diminish stones that have already formed. Carrot leaves contain significant amounts of porphyrins, which stimulate the pituitary gland and lead to the release of increased levels of sex hormones. The plant is harvested in July and dried for later use. A warm water infusion of the flowers has been used in the treatment of diabetes. The grated raw root, especially of the cultivated forms, is used as a remedy for threadworms. The root is also used to encourage delayed menstruation. The root of the wild plant can induce uterine contractions and so should not be used by pregnant women. A tea made from the roots is diuretic and has been used in the treatment of urinary stones. An infusion is used in the treatment of oedema, flatulent indigestion and menstrual problems. The seed is a traditional 'morning after' contraceptive and there is some evidence to uphold this belief. It requires further investigation. Carrot seeds can be abortifacient and so should not be used by pregnant women. Ancient folk lore said that to cure epileptic seizures you should eat the dark coloured middle flower of Queen Anne's Lace. The flower is also used in ancient rituals an spells, for women to increase fertility and for men to increase potency and sexual desire! (From The Carrot Museum.)

Motherwort

Motherwort earned its nam from its traditional use in relieving trauma and tension during pregnancy, childbirth as well as motherhood. In addition to be a useful remedy for the reproductive system disorders among women, motherwort also possesses properties that invigorate as well as strengthen the cardiac system. Hence, it is also popular as a remedy that is beneficial for the heart. It has already been established that motherwort plays a vital role in the intensification of the heart, particularly during pregnancy and child birth when more pressure is forced on the heart. Many herbal practitioners recommend the use of motherwort to treat anomalies like arrhythmia and heart palpatations—both of which are closely related to nervousness and stress. On the other hand, the bitter glycosides present in motherwort have been found to possess temporary capabilities to reduce blood pressure. (From Herbs 2000.)

Lady's Thumb

Anglo-Saxons used lady's thumb as a remedy for sore eyes and ears. The leaves are edible and some members of the smartweed family possess a "peppery" flavor. Native Americans used the leaves in treatments of stomach pains and poison ivy. They also rubbed the plant on their horses as an insect repellent. (From Brandeis.)

Red Clover

Red clover is used for cancer prevention, indigestion, high cholesterol, whooping cough, cough, asthma, bronchitis, and sexually transmitted diseases. Some women use red clover for symptoms of menopause such as hot flashes; for breast pain or tenderness, and for premenstrual syndrome. Red clover is applied to the skin for skin cancer, skin sores, burns, and chronic skin diseases including eczema and psoriasis. In foods and beverages, the solid extract of red clover is used as a flavoring ingredient. Red clover contains hormone-like chemicals called isoflavones that seem to cause reproductive problems in certain animals. Experts think a diet high in isoflavones may have been responsible for reports of reproductive failure and liver disease in cheetahs living in zoos. In large quantities, red clover can cause sterility in livestock. Red clover contains “isoflavones” which are changed in the body to “phytoestrogens” that are similar to the hormone estrogen.