An Ohio Urban Farm (Ohio City Garden)

For the Fourth of July my husband and I ventured north to Cleveland,OH to take in some sights and experience fireworks at the mouth of the Cuyahoga River (which caught on fire in the '70s because of the pollution).  Along with our plans to see the fireworks and attend an Indians' game, we also checked out the Cleveland Museum of Art (Faberge Eggs and imaginative medieval weaponry) and went on a quest to find the urban farm I kept hearing about.

Earth Borrower & Husband at Ohio City Farm (Cleveland, OH)

We found the urban farm my family and friends had described in Ohio City, which is a neighborhood in Cleveland sandwiched just Southeast of Lakewood and just west of Downtown Cleveland.  Ohio City is also the home of the Great Lakes Brewery (Burning River Beer is my husband's fav.) and some fabulous little vintage shops. I'd heard about the farm because of I've been telling people about my love for urban gardening-- particularly with veggies and herbs and because of my desire to one day open an urban gardening store of my own.

The farm didn't seem be open for sales even though it was the middle of a week day, but my husband and I wandered into the area through an open gate and briefly talked with some of the workers just to ask if it was OK if we looked around.   What's so amazing about the farm was the amount of space-- 6 acres-- dedicated to it.

Ohio City Farm (Cleveland, OH) with apartments nearby

From the middle of the farm there were high-rise apartments on one side and the skyscrapers on the eastern horizon.  As well, there seemed to be quite the irrigation system and a fence around the entire perimeter of the growing area-- which had a large, wide-open gate (when we wandered in).

The farm included a large walking strip that bisected the rows of crops: lettuce, spinach, cabbage, tomatoes, beets, and then different varieties of Lillies at the end of each row.  I also noticed that there were numerous sections of beds that lay unused, as if something had been pulled up recently or as if the bed were set aside for future use.  One thing that particularly stuck out was the 12 foot poles with strings rigged for a beans.  I was amazed at how tall the poles were and I'm flabbergasted as to why the poles would need to be that tall.  Can bean really grow that tall?  Are they worthwhile fruits if they put so much energy into growing tall rather than just stocky?  I don't know.

Earth Borrower's Husband (6'2") and 12' bean poles

Overall, what sticks with me the most was the feeling of pride.  I wanted to shake every worker's hand and say: "Nice Job!"  I did tell a few of them the it was beautiful and that I was really impressed (which is true).  I had to chuckle at how much I could see their chests swell with pride and I instantly received smiles and nods because they knew that I KNEW how much work a venture like urban farming takes.  I was also filled with pride for Cleveland because of the entrepreneurs willing to put in the time and effort to refuse to let Cleveland become a healthy food desert.  Bravo, Ohio City Farm, Bravo.

Attempting to "Stop the Frack Attack" in Athens, OH

Madelline ffitch (sic.) at the Ladd Ridge Road Injection Well Site photo courtesy of Eco Watch:  http://ecowatch.org/2012/ohio-woman-arrested/

As I was killing some time in Athens, OH recently  between my classes, I picked up the Athens News because of the cover: "Fracking Protester Peacefully Removed From Injection Well Site Southwest of Athens."  The notion of old-school green sit-ins was scintillating.  I just couldn't help myself from reading, particularly because of my similar concerns regarding fracking and because of the protests I recently attended. 

What stuck with me from the article was the response to the woman's protesting.  There were other protesters there to support her, but who had chosen not to fasten themselves to barrels of cement like she had and there was the opposition-- in the form of ODNR (Ohio Department of Natural Resources-- who are the supervisors for all things fracking related in Ohio) and then the local police presence.  The woman seemed to go peacefully [to jail], but only after the police informed her that they'd be using the jackhammer on the cement to get her out if she wouldn't release herself.  She was also fined $7500 for "creating a panic."

Aside from these facts, was the fact that ODNR apparently was trying to figure out if the protesters were organized in any way through a given group and they went as far as to take pictures of all of the protesters' license plates if they were parked nearby.  As well, it sounds like there may have been a bit of an attempt to shield the protester from the public eye (on part of the injection well's company truck drivers) for whatever reason and one of the protesters shouted to the truck driver that they were only hurting their own cause. 

These facts are what stood out to me because they're a reminder of how much shielding of facts is being used as a tool to manipulate the public.  I commend Athens News on this because they aren't shying away from making the debate public.  It's also very telling as to how our State government has decided to operate lately. They don't seem to want to really get the facts out to the public about the repercussions of fracking and exactly what fracking fluid in someone's backyard may mean for their property and health. It also told me that they're nervous because they're trying to crack down-- with the heavy fines and with the documentation (i.e. pictures) of the protesters' license plates.  This also tells me that the protesters were doing something right because it not only brought attention to the public, but it slowed down the injection well's capability to operate normally and it created a stir among the authorities. 

It's time that ODNR be reminded that we've done our homework and that Athens is full of students and teachers of Thoreau, Ghandi, King, and Malcolm X so those lessons won't be lost anytime soon. 

Protesting at the Statehouse with Don't Frack OH!

Last weekend my husband and I dug some cardboard out of our recycling bin, slathered on the sunscreen and packed our lunches to join other concerned Ohioans in Columbus for the "Don't Frack OH" protest.  We tried to make our protest signs snarky but informative since we know that the easiest way to grab someone's attention is through humor and great visual aides (being teachers we have lots of experience with this).  We had numerous onlookers chuckle at our signs and lots of "atta-boy" and "atta-girl" comments.

On the Ohio Statehouse Steps

The protest was to draw attention to the recent legislature that passed regarding fracking in Ohio-- SB 315.  Some of the main components of the legislation included disclosing (but not really..?) the chemicals in fracking injection fluid, as well as a gag order for medical doctors regarding issues concerning fracking.  My husband and I have been concerned about fracking since we first found out about it and while most topics become less scary the more someone becomes educated about the topic, I've found the exact opposite with fracking.  I've basically found that the Ohio State Government (i.e. Kasich, numerous representatives & senators) is doing all it can to court the gas industry (and you can check out the political donations from the gas industry and see how this tit-for-tat mentality has been playing out). 

Josh Fox, director of Gasland, speaking at the Don't Frack OH! protest

Josh Fox, the director of Gasland made an appearance at the rally and spoke both before and after the march from Arch Park to the Statehouse.  He was even harrassed by a seemingly disturbed man to the point that the police had to usher the man away from Fox.

Inside the Ohio Statehouse with the Don't Frack OH! protesters

While much of the protesting included chants, walking and listening to testimonies from homeowners living near fracking sites, I felt particularly invigorated in that my husband and I were able to contribute our concerns through a handful of interviews conducted by various media sources.  While I know how important it is to physically be present to voice concerns and protest with the facts in hand; knowing that my concerns were heard made the trip even more worthwhile.

Deadly Nightshade (Lovely Ms. Bell A. Donna)

Because I'm an unruly house guest, I ripped out grasses and "weeds" in my good friends' (Joe & Mary) backyard.  While most people might wait quietly as their hosts prepare dinner, I couldn't help myself to head to the backyard and begin pulling some grasses, thistle, saplings and weeds that had invaded the mulched garden.  (I did ask before beginning to pull the weeds since Mary kept mentioning how much she needed to weed.  And, I have a weeding compulsion!)

After I managed to pull the grasses and handful of dandelions, I tromped inside for dinner and to ask about some vines, that I was pretty sure were Nightshade plants.* Mary wasn't super familiar with Deadly Nightshade (Atropa belladona), but I wanted to make sure that she was aware of the potential danger in her backyard.   Sure enough, upon further inspection, I found that they were based on a a few of the distinct attributes.  While I wasn't sure at first, what did I check to positively ID the plant?  First, I looked for the small dark purple flower with a yellow center.  Many of the plants that were cropping up weren't to the flowering stage yet, but I did find one with this flower.  Secondly, I observed the upright, but vining structure of the plant and the arrow + heart shape of the leaves.  The leaves are similar to that of an ivy, but with longer and more slender leaves and ulterior motives.  Lastly, I found small berries on some of the other plants with the similar leaves and structure.  This sealed the deal.  I didn't even need to see the color of the berries, because they'll changed so many colors until they're finally "ripe" (again, just as deadly as the immature berries).

(Bittersweet Nighshade photo from http://www.probertencyclopaedia.com/photolib/plants/Woody%20Nightshade.jpg)

So what did I do once Mary and I were sure that she definitely had Nightshade in her back yard?  Well, we didn't throw it a welcome party.  But, we didn't nuke it with weed killer either.  Instead, we broke out the protective gear.  Because Atropa belladona is such a nasty bugger with its ugly effects (nervous system damage, heart arrhythmia, terrifying hallucinations, and then death), I wasn't about to chance it.  I put on my sunglasses (protective eye gear), put on the long sleeves, and pulled on some gloves.  I then carefully pulled each and every vining, arrow-leafed plant and piled the up to dry out in the sun in order to be roast in a lovely bonfire.**  This being said, I have not heard of putting oneself at risk my burning Nightshade and I even checked with my resident expert about this.  I wanted to cover my bases since other plants are known to create problems in this way (i.e. POISON IVY should NEVER be burned-- it can create allergic reactions and nasty rashes from burning it and then coming in contact with the smoke.)

After clearing out the Nightshade and paranoidly looking for rashes and expecting a sudden death figuring that the Nightshade would try to exact some sort of revenge, I washed my hands, arms and face thoroughly with soap and warm water.  Mary thanked me for all of my help and I just smiled knowing that her future babies could be just a bit safer playing in their backyard.    



*After reading more & searching for photos (since I destroyed the only plants I've seen recently), I found that Mary's plant was most likely a "bittersweet nightshade" (Solanum dulcamara), which is also deadly, but is what I found, rather than the true Deadly Nightshade (Atropa belladona). 

**Does anyone have any more info on the effects of burning nightshade and whether or not this could be risky?  (To be even more safe, it could just be thrown in a bag and sent to the landfill.)

Flora-Quest Memories from our hike at Snake Hollow

It's taken me a while to get up some of my Flora-quest photos because I've been busy wrapping up classes for my students.  But, I finally made it happen last night.  I've included a handful of my favorites with a quick run-down of my experience of the weekend. Flora-Quest is a great way to support the local economy and the environment because they try to promote environmental education and eco-tourism, proving the business is directly helped by environmentalism, rather than the old argument that environmentalism hurts business.   Check out the Flora-Quest Facebook page to see more photos and get a better idea what Flora-Quest is all about!

I started off the weekend by helping with registration with the brand new Flora-Quest Fellows.  The Fellows helped make the weekend as smooth as possible and they added some great energy to the group!  After registration, Guy Denny started the weekend off with his presentation on "Ethnobotany", which focused on plants the Native American indigenous to Ohio used and revered.  My husband and I later joined Megan Bihn and Tim Fulz (two of the Fellows) for a campfire, which included their great musical entertainment.

Flora-Quest Fellows: Mike Wang-Bell and Carmen DeLeon

The next morning my husband, Mark, and I grabbed some breakfast and met up with our group.  We were supposed to go canoeing, but because we'd had so much rain the previous night and days leading up to the event, our group decided to play it safe and just hike instead.  Because Raven Rock was obscured with fog, we hiked at Snake Hollow first and then we made the vertical climb up to the summit of Raven Rock in the afternoon hoping it would clear up once the sun was up for a while.

Group 1 at Snake Hollow

At Snake Hollow, we saw some interesting things and heard some great stories from our group leaders, Kevin Bradbury and Martin McAllister.  Martin told us about the local flora as well as the old furnaces in the area and how the logging industry used to function back when logging was done with horses. I particularly got a kick out of one of the other group members who was constantly eating and chewing on whatever edible plants she could get her hands on!  It became a game to find the next edible plant to supply her with.

Snake Hollow was unique in the beautiful gorge it boasts and the large number of pink lady slipper orchids.  What's interesting about lady slippers is the fact that they grow with the help of an underground fungus, so it's not like they can just be uprooted and brought home to enjoy.  They're very picky growers.


I also found an interesting fungus I'd never seen before and I was told it's called Devil's Urn.  I just really liked the distinct shape and striking black color.  As well, there was an abundance of red-spotted purple butterflies hanging around some horse poo and on the nearby elms. My husband was amazed to find out that so many butterflies love to nectar on dead animals and poo.  He said he'd take it as a personal insult if a butterfly came over to land on him (which did happen the next day-- after he'd been out hiking for a while and was nice and sweaty).  

Devil's Urn

enviro-politicking

Apologies for the time away.  I've been a busy, busy girl.  First off, I must admit I was out of town for the weekend in order to participate and assist with Flora-quest.  I'll tell more about Flora-quest in a later blog, but today I want to focus on some quick enviro-politics going on. 

I just happened to notice that No Impact Man is planning to run for Congress.  Very cool.  I'm thrilled that someone may actually get in who isn't just looking to line his pockets with interest groups' money.  Instead, he actually cares about (and makes his living from) two things near and dear to me: 1. writing 2. environmental education.

Also, I had the good fortune to have a local Ohio State Legislature Rep. visit my classroom today as well as one student's grandparents and our principal and superintendent.  One of my students and her family went above and beyond in order to invite and welcome the representative and I was thrilled for my seniors to have such a prestigious audience for their presentations. I was particularly proud of my students' courage in their presentations and for talking with and thanking the representative.

Why am I mentioning this visit? Is it just to promote the greatness of my class?  Well... now that you mention it... I mean, NO.  Instead, it should be a reminder that people are listening when we talk and write about our concerns.  Not only that, we DO have voting power and particularly this year with so many crucial elections on the horizon we have more pull that usual.  With this in mind, make your concerns--environmental or whatever-- known to your governmental representatives.  They depend on you for a vote, so make them work for you.   

Early spring roundup- observe, preserve & promote

I've been busy with my fingers in many pies recently, so I haven't been up-to-date with my latest enviro-adventures, but I'll try to atone for this a bit. Here's what's been going on in my enviro-world:

1. I recently flew to Florida with my mother to check out some new wildlife areas, catch up with a few friends, and relax for four short days. This included kayaking the Indian River (Vero Beach) and checking out the first National Wildlife Refuge ever established, Pelican Island NWR (picture on left- my mother and me at Pelican Island NWR).

2. A robin build a nest in our bird feeder and then laid four blue eggs. My husband and I named her Roxy. She's pretty relaxed with us being just on the other side of the patio doors (even with them open), but she attacks any grackles who come to feed at the bird-food dish a few feet from her nest.

3. I collected some trash that was annoying me. It was along the woods/ wild-area near the apartments and some fast food places. I collected three shopping bags full before the sun went down and I decided to return another day. Shortly hereafter, my husband and I thought we saw someone exchanging drugs for money near a drainage pipe near the area I'd cleaned up, but come to find out, he was feeding stray cats. I'll take stray cats over drug-drops any day!

4. I've been keeping busy with some "consulting" for Mohican Advocates and Floraquest. Both of which I'm super excited about. I'm excited about the learning opportunities coming up with Floraquest and the educational advances Mohican Advocates has made. Along the lines of Mohican Advocates-- I recently read an article in the Lancaster Gazette about beginning public fracking meetings and I can't help but wonder if Lancaster has a fracking "resistance group" to help pave the environmental way and to coordinate with other "resistance groups" as seen in Mansfield, OH; Youngstown, OH; and Athens, OH.

5. Lastly, I spent last Saturday at the Shreve Migration Sensation. I attended some of the speakers-- Butterflies, "Bird of the Month," and "Sparrows". I got some great info, saw some water birds new to me (coots and ring-necked ducks). I also talked with numerous people about the opportunities to observe, preserve and promote with Mohican Advocates, Floraquest and the Greater Mohican Audubon Society.

I hope you're getting out to take advantage the unseasonably warm weather as well. There are lots of opportunities to do so in your area-- whether it's by visiting a bike trail, a state park, or if it means taking a walk down your street. Get out and enjoy!

Proactively Approaching the Fracking Debate

I've been swamped lately with "environmental representation" (my mother and I agree that the term "environmental activism" has become negatively associated with wackos) and with mentoring a student teacher at work. As I've been helping my student teacher along, I've found myself in numerous discussions with my colleagues about fracking and educating about fracking. Fracking has been a huge issue in two of my former hometowns (Athens, OH & Mansfield, OH), but it's been an issue across the country. In response to my brain grinding on the issue as I accumulate more info about fracking, I've been writing letters, signing petitions and editing petitions regarding anti-fracking and moratoria on fracking.

Here's the quick gist if you aren't familiar with what fracking is and what it does:

Fracking is a oil/gas drilling method that drills vertically into the ground and then the drill pieces shift to a horizontal drilling pattern, which enables the drillers to cover more area than the simple verticle plane. With this horizontal drilling, the drillers must then pump a medium into the caverns to force the oil/gas out. The current technique includes pumping water laced with lubricants (i.e. toxic chemicals) into the caverns and then the fracking fluid (water + lubricants) are removed and stored off-site.

I could write lots about how fracking works, as well as the detriments and the small amount of benefits of fracking, but instead, here are a few great resources to read about the topic because I can't begin to compare with their explanations and visuals. As well, simply getting on Google News and searching "fracking" will yield tons of great, legit resources as well.

Gasland Movie & Website dedicated to fracking education & activism.

Great visual explanation of fracking. Use Mozilla to look at this; it seems that Internet Explorer doesn't like it.

Issues of fracking trucks & the damage they create & Ohio's attempts at dealing with this damage.

Fracking's association with Earthquakes.

Other environmental issues associated with fracking.

It makes sense to become educated on the topic, even if you think it may not effect your area, because fracking can influence so many because of the air & water pollution that doesn't stay stationary. As well, the issues of the storage wells & where the fracking water comes from may also effect you and your town even though fracking may not be optimal in your area. So as you gather info, you may find yourself compelled to contact your congresspeople and/or actively campaign to educate those around you of the potential issues associated with fracking. In doing this, be prepared to write and write persuasively. This means KEEPING A LEVEL HEAD. Even though fracking may make you want to shake people to make them see how harmful it is and how greedy the corporations & some politicians may be, obviously this won't make your argument.

Instead, stick to the facts and only the fact that are well-documented and are coming from respectable resources. As well, quit re-iterating the same arguments everyone else has presented. Rather, present the topic with a very specific and visual representation. Pictures are tools of change. (With this, does anyone have ORIGINAL pictures of fracking & fracking effects they'd be willing to let me borrow for the blog? I'd be glad to give credit where it's due!) Tell anecdotes, use direct quotes and overall, be respectful. Nothing loses a battle faster than someone losing his or her cool. As well, make the writing or letter as straight to the point as possible. Offer solutions, even if the solutions aren't perfect, rather than just complaining. No one likes a whiner. Logic always wins, so be logical and find an engineer to review your letter and see if you can persuade her with what you've written. It's better to err on the side of too short rather than too long. With this said, here's a quick example of something I wrote & sent to my local paper recently (feel free to use the resources & reuse the letter as needed as long as it stays true to my sentiments--please just give me credit!).

Fellow Lancaster residents and city officials:

Two of my former homes, Mansfield, OH and Athens, OH are in gridlock over fracking. It made me wonder what Lancaster is doing to proactively protect itself. Mansfield coordinated an informational session that brought some major issues to my attention:

1. Ohio lacks laws to protect citizens from being taken advantage of when signing oil leases. Even if someone DOES have a good lawyer, there’s only so much this lawyer can do and it’s surprising how little it really is. There are some legislators beginning bills to protect towns’ rights and citizens’ rights, but these bills aren’t ready yet. (http://www.athensnews.com/ohio/article-36114-commissioners-call-for-tighter-state-regulations-on-fracking.html)

2. Fracking requires MILLIONS of gallons of water per frack. (http://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/Fracking-and-Water-A-New-Way-To-Profit-from-the-Industrys-Biggest-Problem.html) This means millions of gallons of water will be taken from the water table and our local lakes and streams for private profit. To save water, we encourage children to turn off the water while brushing their teeth, but then it’s ok for private companies to use millions of gallons of water for their own profit….? Why have WE been encouraged to take from the public and give to the private? Who benefits?

3. It’s no wonder that the state has reported few issues with fracking, because they directly benefit. Ohio “technically” has stronger EPA regulations than nearby states and supervises its own EPA rather than the federal government overseeing it. The same state government that openly supports fracking because of the financial benefit to the state by leasing our public lands (http://ohiodnr.com/tabid/23415/default.aspx) also oversees itself. Meanwhile, the Ohio EPA has had huge budget cuts. (http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2011/03/26/epa-to-make-do-with-less-money.html) By essentially castrating the EPA, the state has ensured itself that there won’t be any problems found with fracking because there’s no money to investigate.

It’s time to look at what’s best for our community knowing the state hasn’t protected our interests. It’s time to have a plan rather than be surprised like other cities in Ohio. Are we looking out for one another, or will individuals profit at the behest of the community? When will WE have sessions to publicly investigate fracking?


Sincerely,

Michelle S. Goodman

Low Impact Man discussion in the Earth Borrower household

My husband and I recently watched "No Impact Man" shortly after I had a conversation with my little sister about the movie. She watched it earlier in the day on Netflix, and since my Saturday was fairly open and it was gray and dreary out, it seemed like the perfect thing to do. I'd been wanting to see the movie for a while after my friend Lindsey had told me a bit about it. Lindsey, who's a Master Gardener and general enviro-advocate, lives amongst some of the most "crunchy" or "granola" hippies in (Athens) Ohio, so we love to share ideas for reducing our carbon foot-prints while keeping our engineering-like logic as our compasses. For instance, we're all about composting to reduce waste and have great soil to add to our gardens, but we won't be sacrificing any showers or deodorant any time soon because we're still big fans of being hygienic-- particularly since we're both young professionals who come in contact with lots of people on a daily basis. With that said, I was curious what things I could pick up from "No Impact Man" in order to take another step toward being more green.

My husband watched the movie with me, and I'm sure that he was thinking: "oh no... now she's going to make us go without... (fill in the blank)... or now we're going to have to do.. (fill in the blank)." I was glad he watched it with me because he's always my sounding board. He tells me when I'm getting a little to crazy, but he'll support me if he realizes that there is sound logic behind the action. He's represents anyone reluctant to change, but logical enough to know what's good for him (and not just because I say so). After the movie he and I agreed on a few things:

1. We would not be trying to go without electricity in our apartment. We live in Ohio and while N.I. Man was living in NYC with his wife and child, there were times when the three of them were living without power and it just seemed a bit absurd in that it'd begun to dictate their lives rather than it simply being a mild annoyance. With this, they also took refuge in places then that did have air conditioning or heat. I'm not against being without electricity, but I don't think an apartment is the best living quarters in which to be powerless. Powerless in an apartment means using candles or lamps (i.e. open flame) for light-- which then puts everyone in the building at risk-- so it's not like it's just YOUR house. 2. Apartments don't generally have fireplaces or basements; this means that heating and cooling is pretty much non-existent. When it's 30 degrees or below, it is a health hazard not to have heat (hypothermia, anyone?). Conversely, during the sweltering summer months, basements can be great retreats for anyone dealing with hot weather and no air conditioning (heatstroke, anyone?), which can also be life-threatening.

2. We would like to get solar power to step toward being power-independent. N.I. Man actually bought a solar panel just to help him get enough juice for his laptop-- since he's a writer and was dependent on technology for his profession. I even recently saw small solar panels for sale for less than $100 in the West Marine catalog (meant for boaters, but applicable for anyone).

3. We'll continue our worm bin and even got another warm bin. N.I. Man started a worm bin and also seemed to have success with it. With a worm bin, worms digest any veggie scraps, bread scraps or egg shells. We've had a worm bin for a while and had great success with it, except that we found that we ate so many veggies that our worms couldn't keep up, so we'd have to throw out some of the scraps. Now, we just put our scraps into one of our two bins and cover the scraps with the "dirt", shredded damp newspaper, and then a piece of cardboard. The worms seem happy and I'm only unhappy when I need to dump the putrid worm water. However, the worm water seems to be a hit with the plants. Just don't dump it on any house plants because you'll regret sitting in the same room with the stench.

4. We're going to continue to eat more veggies and less meat. With this, we'll also buy organic (even if it does initially cost more) whenever possible. No Impact Man discusses the effects of the meat industry on our health and on the environment. It does show how eating locally, sustainably grown meat is much better than the commercial, mega-farms. This just reminded us to locate and support our local farmers if they are raising their meat with minimal antibiotics and without hormones, and by letting them graze pastures rather than simply be "corn fed". (The Monsanto Corn industry is a topic I'll address at another point!)

5. Lastly, we'll continue to keep our driving trips at a minimum and opt for biking, walking, or running whenever safely possible (or for me, even sometimes when risky). We'll continue to adhere to traffic laws, common sense, and using defensive riding/running techniques in order to promote awareness and not let others "keep us down" with lacking bike lanes and sidewalks. While No Impact man had the advantage of great public transportation, side walks and bike trails, many areas such as Lancaster, OH are still very limited in this way. But how do we make it change? We demand it by showing our willingness to run & bike without these lanes and sidewalks. We'll write letters, attend city meetings and run for public offices. We'll carve our a niche and bring awareness by talking to others about it and by slowing down traffic (if need be) to stand our ground and demand we be treated as equals with noisy, polluting cars.

For more ideas, check out No Impact Man's Blog.

For another similarly related blog: The Zero Waste Home

drooling over seed catalogs

I recently received a Gurney's seed catalog toward the beginning of the week and I've found myself drooling over the possibilities for planting. I'm even more excited because I'm NOT planning to wait to plant seeds during the spring. Instead, I'm hoping to plant some seeds and get them started in my seed starters with the help of some grow lamps. The only problem? I've been too lazy and too comfy on the couch to get the grow lamps set up just yet. I'm hoping I'll get it done this weekend since my huge piles of grading have been dealt with.

In the meantime, while I decide which day I'm going to tackle setting up the grow lamp configuration, I need to figure out exactly what I should plan to order since I'm limited on growing space. Basically, I have a12' x6' patio and some indoor floor space/ledge space for my planties. The means I need to think square foot gardening or even vertical gardening. And, I'm a big fan of pragmatic gardening so I'd like to find some plants that I will actually use and will be worth putting effort into in order to get output from. Right now, I'm looking at planting some herbs again since I killed a few of the herbs this fall-- I think because of watering with my city water. Right now, cilantro, mint and basil sound like my best bet. As is, I have rosemary going to town in my garage, even though I only open the garage door on mild days (since it is January and all!), which we've had plenty of lately.

I also have a young blueberry bush and a young plum tree that have seemed to be o.k. hanging out in the garage for the mean time. I moved them inside for fear that the erratic Ohio winter would be too much for them since they're merely in pots and they don't get the full protection that most plants would get from being planted in the ground. Once the weather will be mild consistently, I'm planning to bring them back up to the deck/patio area so I can enjoy looking at them each morning from the living room. For the meantime though, I'm debating if I should add some more trees and/or shrubs to my patio gardening collection. I'm keen on the idea of a few cherry trees or some other fruit trees, assuming whichever I choose won't need mates in order to be fertile. Either way, I love the idea of having potted trees on my patio since I'm not planning on being in an apartment for more than another year.

I'm not sure what kind of flowers I'm going to plant, since I do like to have something useful/edible and I like to have some flowers in order to complement the small flowers usually found on veggy plants. Right now, I'm considering purchasing some Echinacea since they attract beneficial insects and butterflies and it can be used in tea as well as simply having a beautiful dusty purple flower. I'm also thinking growing calendula and nasturtia again for their vibrant orange flowers and I just recently found out that calendula are edible *as are nasturtia*. I'm a little paranoid when it actually comes to eating my flowers, so I like to double check on all of this before I begin taste testing since there are so many poisonous flowers out there. I think these poisonous beauts really just make me realize that there's been lots of trial and error over the course of humanity to figure out what's edible and what's definitely not-- especially when figuring in how different each person's body really is when it comes to allergies and sensitivities to plants.

One other thing that struck me as interesting while voraciously flipping through Gurney's is that many of the plants being promoted are hybrids. This means that many of these plants will be sterile, which saddens me to think that they won't be able to have plant babies or at least would have unpredictable plant offspring... so I'm going to stick with the less tampered-with versions of the plants where possible.

With this in mind, what are some other great plants for a pragmatic gardener who's limited on space and lacking deep soil?