A “food desert” is defined as: “… any area in the industrialized world where healthy, affordable food is difficult to obtain. It is prevalent in rural as well as urban areas and is most prevalent in low-socioeconomic minority communities. It is associated with a variety of diet-related health problems.”

If you aren’t familiar with the concept, a good first source for research would be https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Food_desert

This is a link to just some of the radical things that are being done to deal with the food desert that Detroit has become.

Whatcha got going in your city?

I’m guessing that a lot of people who are still ‘hanging on’ financially are also hanging on to their internet connection so as to look for work or at least file for unemployment benefits until they run out. Here in Michigan, lots of people “call Marvin” every two weeks … Marvin is the automated unemployment arrangement. If you can’t keep your internet connection up, the public libraries still offer internet access free. Although, if a recent trip to my local library points to a broader pattern, you may have to be prepared to either wait in line or bring a laptop.

I’ll try to make the wait worthwhile.

I’ll let you know where to find free seeds. I’ll show you what you can forage. I’ll tell you when to plant, when to pick and how to prepare what you’ve grown. And, most importantly, I’ll tell you how to preserve the extra (follow the advice and there WILL be extra) to help you get through the next winter.

If It’s Green, It’s Cash

If you live in Michigan, I’ll show you how to get the exclusive use of a plot of land to grow enough to feed your family – and still have produce left over to sell as a cash crop. Can you say “organic produce”? I thought you could. Go to the market and price the organic stuff. You’ll swear it was grown over a gold mine. Why not grow it, eat and preserve what you need, and sell the rest yourself? The land, leased from the state, will set you back $50 for the year. As the long-term unemployed will tell you, that’s exactly 500 soda bottles or cans for a years worth of food.

I’ll try to hunt similar sources down elsewhere, but would certainly welcome your input. In fact, I’ll need your help; no man is an island and no man is an expert in everything everywhere. As I write this, I am just one person.

A backyard garden can be your own declaration of (food) independence.

My hope is for this blog to become truly worldwide in scope, with articles for the absolute newcomer and articles for the seasoned hand alike. That is; I want it to be neutral as to color, race, creed, nationality, educational level, income level or political affiliation or any of the other dividers that have so long held humankind apart.

Food is neutral (or should be) and so am I.

I’ll need help. Most especially, I am looking for guest authors with niche expertise, such as mycology, UN food policy, organic insect control and others. If you fancy yourself an expert on anything related to growing or marketing food, its sciences, tactics or techniques, please use the contact page on the main menu bar to contact me with a proposed article. I’m all ears.

Can't argue with that logic.

And now, a break from my writing …

Not too long ago, I wrote a longish article about plastic bags. That’s all, just those ubiquitous plastic bags you see snagged on trees, lining gutters or washing downstream. But even that thumbnail sketch took several long posts and a considerable commitment of time to read. (If you think they took a long time to read, just consider how long they took to write! For every word in the final article, at least three were cut from the drafts.)

What does this have to do with gardening?

The way I see things is that we can garden our little faces off but if we don’t also tackle our relationship to our possessions, curb our mindless consumerism, and reconsider our personal values, we undo all the good that our little plot in the backyard might have done. And then some.

The very next time you go to the store and get distracted by the “ooh, shiny” … whether it’s an electronic gadget you absolutely must have or the latest in fashions that shows that you are ‘”au courant”, take a closer look, and imagine that object magnified by a factor of 70. That’s the waste load we needlessly place on the planet when we mindlessly purchase things.

Just look at it and ask yourself if owning it is worth the true price.

If it is, go ahead and buy it.

Those mercury fillings, so recently declared safe, are under review by the FDA again a scant 18 months since their previous ruling that they were safe.

I’ll let CNN tell the rest of the story:

http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/12/15/mercury.dental.fillings/index.html?eref=rss_health&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed: rss/cnn_health (RSS: Health)

I can’t recall any other time when they were convinced to revisit a decision so quickly. Although there is a CYA statement

Committee members noted, however, that the FDA’s decision was solid, based on information available at the time. The committee also stressed that more studies need to be done on amalgam fillings, especially in children.

the mere fact that they are revisiting the topic so soon seems to indicate that there was something substantially wrong with the science (or the politics?) of the first decision.

When I was a kid, ALL fillings were mercury … at least all the ones I ever heard about. There are other, safer, choices out there. Be informed. Be safe.

–Bill

Would $20,000 help you begin organic farming? How about if you are transitioning from chemical means of production to organically certified?

If that sounds good to you, then follow this link and let us know how things turn out.

On Monday, December 20, USDA Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan announced $50 million in available funding for the 2011 sign-up of the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) Organic Initiative. … The program provides up to $20,000 per year per person or legal entity, with a maximum total of $80,000 over six years.

The money is to defray 75-90% of the cost of conservation measures. While it won’t cover 100% of the cost, even the 75% is a big leg up.

Hurry … signup for 2011 ends March 4, 2011.

– Bill