historiful:

American model Evelyn Tripp (1927-1995), photographed by Frances Pellegrini, 1950.

Biochar research is inspired by the properties found in Terra Pretra, ancient dark soils found throughout the world, but most famously in the Amazon. It is very similar to charcoal and is produced by burning some biomass in the absence of air.  The quality of the biochar depends on the quality of the feedstock.

“All organic matter added to soil significantly improves various soil functions, not the least the retention of several nutrients that are essential to plant growth. What is special about biochar is that it is much more effective in retaining most nutrients and keeping them available to plants than other organic matter such as for example common leaf litter, compost or manures. Interestingly, this is also true for phosphorus which is not at all retained by ‘normal’ soil organic matter” (Lehmann, 2007).

Johannes Lehmann and Stephen Joseph of Cornell have done extensive research on it and written a book.

http://www.css.cornell.edu/faculty/lehmann/research/biochar/biocharmain.html

Dan Barber tells the story of a small farm in Spain that has found a humane way to produce foie gras. Raising his geese in a natural environment, farmer Eduardo Sousa embodies the kind of food production Barber believes in. Barber’s philosophy of food focuses on pleasure and thoughtful conservation — on knowing where the food on your plate comes from and the unseen forces that drive what we eat. He’s written on US agricultural policies, asking for a new vision that does not throw the food chain out of balance by subsidizing certain crops at the expense of more appropriate ones.

http://www.ted.com/talks/view/id/406

Interestingly, it was the Jews, not the French who invented Foie Gras.

Yesterday I mentioned a new magazine dedicated to those interested in urban farming.  One such 21st century pioneer of urban homesteading is the Dervaes family in Pasadena, CA who raises over 3 tons of produce on less than a tenth of an acre, a true microfarm (half of their fifth of an acre).

They got so caught up in what they were doing, they even began making their own biodiesel and using other alternative energy sources that they integrated into their “homestead”.

They have a website dedicated to documenting their journey called Path to Freedom, in addition to having made a couple of documentary films, HomeGrown-the 21st Century Family Farm and Homegrown Revolution.

Quite frankly, I’m surprised the FDA or the USDA or some other governmnet  agency hasn’t raided or shut them down. According to Valdmir Lenin, the small farmer is Big Brother’s biggest enemy because he doesn’t need him and can create capital with his work.

Given today’s current events, one has to wonder, if they aren’t onto something.

The Weston A Price Foundation is an organization to which I belong and subscribe to their publication.  That does not mean however I agree with everything they say or with some of the political stances they take.  They critique industrial farming and make valid points about how our food chain is overally centralized.  They also have it in for soy, and point out quite frequently how the American Soybean Organization did a good job of demonizing meat products and fats other than those the government subsidizes in favor of those monoculture producers.  The problem I have is, many of its leaderships could be categorized as food fundamentalists who want nothing less than the same favor from the government that these industrialists get, in addition to having control of what people “should” be allowed to eat.

This blog entry at fitfam.com pretty much hits the nail on the head.

Often times, like their vegan opposites, they seek not truth, but power.

http://fitfam.com/blog/2006/09/25/the-weston-a-price-foundation-food-fundamentalists/comment-page-1/

The truth of the matter is both plant and animal protein serve a purpose in our everyday diets, but how they are grown and/or processed can effect their quality and nutritonal value.  For instance soy that is fermented is much more beneficial than soy that isn’t and animals raised in huge containment facilities are going to lay down fat with a less desireable ratio of omega 6’s to omega 3’s, in addition to requiring more inputs, such as antibiotics,  to control disease, which over time, develop resistance and are ineffective.

You don’t have to have a lot of acerage to grow your own food, but it does take commitment, planning, and efficient utilization of space.  Ironically, it was not uncommon just a few decades ago, for people to do this, including having a few backyard chickens.  Often times, those who want local food support building codes and regulations which prevent those who do want to be an urban farmer from doing so, the reason being some people tend not to be, shall we say, tidy.  However, that pendulum has begun to swing back in favor of those who desire to have an urban farm, and towns and cities are beginning to reverse some of those restrictive regulations.

There is no reason one cannot be an urban farmer and still integrate a little style into their projects.  A new magazine called the Urban Farm Magazine  which promotes the benefits of self sustainability and a good resource to find tools and ideas on how to do it on any size property.  They delve into many aspects on the subject including featuring products that are commercial grade for retail prices in addition to being attractive.

http://www.horizonherbs.com/

A great source of unusual open-pollinated herbs, vegetables, and medicinal plants.

Many seed companies carry only the same types of plants and seeds you can find at Home Depot or Lowes, especially in regard to herbs.  Horizon Herbs has a huge selection of all types of seeds you aren’t going to find many other places.  Of course, you will have to research if particular plants can survive in your geographic area.  What may be a perennial in one area, will have to be treated as an annual somewhere else.

umeshrajani:

It does not take a lot of space to have an herb garden. A few stalks of dill, a root of tarragon, a marjoram clump, some sweet basil, and Italian parsley are some great plants to use for salads and dishes.

After the holidays are over, those of us addicted to gardening will be looking forward to getting our new seed catalogs and turning our thoughts and energy towards our gardens.  According to the National Gardening Society, over 7 million NEW gardens were planted last year.

Many new gardeners are unfamiliar with the difference between heirloom and hybrid seed and have misconceptions about what they are.   For instance, an heirloom does not necessarily mean it was derived using “organic” methods.  Both heirlooms and hybrids could have been harvested using either conventional or organic methods. 

Although it is true that large agricultural enterprises incorporate hybrid seed, not heirlooms, as the largest part of their business model, it is not true that hybridization does not occur in nature, it does.  The difference shows up, when you plant the two different kinds of seeds.  An heirloom will strongly resemble the parent plant from which it was harvested, although there will be varying sizes and shapes, whereas seeds planted from a hybrid will not resemble the parent much at all, most likely, but the fruit harvested will be more uniform in color and size.   Moreover, heirlooms allow you to gather your own seed and get back the same thing, whereas hybrids do not.  However, many heirlooms are not very disease resistant, whereas many hybrids are. 

 Heirloom seeds have increased in popularity over the last ten years, particularly in the United States and Europe.    The reasons and motivation for those interested in this trend vary from historical curiosity to searching for unique tastes to saving seed in order to conserve the gene pool (a good thing in my mind, especially since so very few varieties of food and seed are being cultivated on a global scale).  There are points of disagreement about how many years a particular plant should have been propagated to be considered an heirloom, but the one point of agreement is that the seeds are obtained through open-pollination, as opposed to closed-pollination (cleistogamy).    Both kinds of pollination occur in nature.

A plant that self-pollinates does so within non-opening flowers which restricts gene flow between different plant populations of the same species.  In open-pollination the flowers are open and the plants can be fertilized from pollen carried by the wind, animals, birds, and insects from other plants nearby or far away, thereby increasing the gene flow between plants of the same species which in turn increases biodiversity.  That provides more insurance against extinction of a species because it decreases the probability of lethal allele combination and increases the ability to adapt should environmental factors change. (An allele is simply a variant form of the same gene.).

The best things about heirloom plants in my mind, is they tell a story rich in history, just like any heirloom. Passed down from generation to generation, they have stood the test of time. They offer an adventure in flavors and varieties that our modern palettes are totally ignorant.  Produce chosen for commercial distribution has traits chosen for ease of shipping, preservation, economy and uniform size, not variety or best flavor.

Heirlooms and hybrids both have a place in the garden, the former adding excitement, the latter a little more short-term security.  When collecting seeds from heirlooms, you should choose to collect the seeds only from the strongest most viable plants that have the characteristics you want.

Whether you grow heirlooms or hybrids, either is going to beat hands down, anything you buy at the grocery store that most likely traveled thousands of miles before making it into your kitchen.  If you want a successful garden, plant both hybrids and heirlooms, and enjoy not only the bounty, but the adventure.

A good resource to learn about heirlooms, in addition to having a great catalog,  is the Seed Savers Exchange. 

http://www.seedsavers.org/

They use organic methods to harvest their seed and specifically concern themselves with only heirlooms, not hybrids.  By becoming a member of the Seed Savers Exchange you may choose from thousands of heirloom vegetables. You will have access to twice as many vegetable varieties as are available from any of the mail-order seed catalogs

 Another resource, Seeds of Change, started out as a very small enterprise in New Mexico that has grown into quite a sophisticated business.  They offer organic seed for both hybrid and heirloom plants.

http://www.seedsofchange.com/garden_center/browse_category.aspx?id=1

Although, I don’t watch a lot of television, I am a fan of Antony Bourdain who has a show on The Travel Channel entitled No Reservations and his own blog.  If you aren’t familar with Mr. Bourdain, he is a celebrity chef, with a somewhat crass, cynical attitude, a fabulous writer and politically incorrect, a lot of the time.

His show travels to different countries throughout the world featuring the local fare made in locally owned eating establishments or prepared by someone in the local population, which more often than not, involves “peasant food”. 

In July of last year he made a blog entry which succinctly summarizes how the history of the world can be told, just by looking at the food on your plate.  Even though that story more often than not involves deprivation, starvation, colonialism, slavery, greed, and warfare, there is no need to get depressed about all that.  More often than not, at least as far as food is concerned, the culinary outcome has been good.  He also has a problem with Hollywood celebrities putting guilt trips on the average Joe who has to worry about the price of milk.

Read his thoughts here.

http://anthony-bourdain-blog.travelchannel.com/read/politics-and-the-dinner-table

I don’t really think I can add anything.