‘the gifts of the crow,’ with john marzluff

POSSESSING LARGE BRAINS for their body size, a knack for social networking that requires no internet connection, and keen powers [read more…]

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Ammonium Nitrate Fertilizer: How To Use Ammonium Nitrate In Gardens

By Bonnie L. Grant One of the key needs for successful plant growth is nitrogen. This macro-nutrient is responsible for the leafy, green production of a plant and enhances overall health. Nitrogen is derived from the atmosphere, but this form has a strong chemical bond that is difficult for plants to uptake. Easier forms of nitrogen that occur in processed fertilizers include ammonium nitrate. What is ammonium nitrate? This type of fertilizer has been widely used since the 1940’s. It is a fairly simple compound to make and inexpensive, making it a top choice for agricultural professionals. What is Ammonium Nitrate? Nitrogen comes in many forms. This major plant nutrient can be taken in by plants through the roots or from the stoma in the leaves and stems. Additional sources of nitrogen are often added to soil and plants in areas without sufficient natural sources of nitrogen. One of the

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ScadPad in Atlanta

Years ago, while visiting Savannah, I first came across SCAD, the Savannah College of Art and Design. It looked like a bustling and fun little campus in Savannah, with artistic and creative students getting their degrees in areas they love and enjoy. I also remember seeing signs on a building off I-75 near downtown Atlanta that SCAD had indeed arrived in Atlanta and I found out they opened a campus in Atlanta about 10 years ago. It's a much smaller campus, but sounds like a really great program for creatives.

Here's a little about SCAD and all their campuses:

The Savannah College of Art and Design is a private, nonprofit, accredited institution conferring bachelor’s and master’s degrees at distinctive locations and online to prepare talented students for professional careers. SCAD offers degrees in more than 40 majors, as well as minors in more than 60 disciplines, in Savannah and Atlanta, Georgia; in Hong Kong; in Lacoste, France; and online through SCAD eLearning.

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Wild Chives Identification: Are Wild Chives Safe To Eat

By Amy Grant We cultivate our chives in amongst our herb bed, but did you know that wild chives (Allium schoeneprasum) are one of the most common and easy to identify wild growing plants? What are wild chives and are wild chives edible? Read on to find out about wild chive identification and if wild chives are safe to eat. Are Those Wild Chives in My Yard? Wild chives are indeed so common you may have wondered “are those wild chives in my yard?” It is very likely the case. These perennial monocots reside in the onion genus and are the smallest species of onion. They are the only Allium species native to both the Old and New World and can be found throughout Europe, Asia and North America. Chives have been cultivated in Europe since at least the 16th century, but wild chives have been used according to Egyptian

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Small Space Prepper Must Haves

Many of us either live in a small space, or have run out of room in a larger space. These small space prepper must haves each help you fit more into the space you have and improve your preparedness. While none of these will break the bank, they were chosen for quality, not based on which one was cheapest. Cost was, of course, considered, but it was tertiary after quality and size. Any of these should last, and last, and last.

Of course these also make great gifts for any occasion from birthday to graduation, wedding, and more. (But you should probably ask before giving one as an anniversary gift.)

Small Antenna for HAM Radio – Getting reception can be tricky. If you need better reception for your HAM Radio hobby but don’t have a lot of space, this may be just the ticket for you.

Gossamar Gear Backpack – These ultra-light backpacking backpacks are in the same price range as regular backpacks, but take far – FAR – less space to store, and they weigh less. Double win!

Multiport USB Charger – Technically, this may not be a prepper item, but the reality is that most of us have a lot of items that can be charged via a USB port that we won’t want to be without. This reduces the number of charging cubes needed for that.

Chemex Coffee Maker and bleached filters – Chemex coffee makers don’t use any electricity and make really good coffee, once you know how to use it. They are particularly good for cold-brew coffee. (The bleached filters are better than the brown ones in this particular case because the brown ones can leave behind a bit of a brown-paper-bag taste, or so I’m told.) The Chemex actually takes a bit less space than most coffee makers because it is really just the specially designed borosilicate pot.

Compass – Different compasses are useful in different areas. This style is really good to use with paper maps and in areas without a lot of long-distance visibility to keep track of a single landmark, like the woods or a city.

SWLing Blog or Baofeng HAM Radio – This is not a hobby that needs to take a lot of space, and the uses of HAM for preppers are many, varied, and impossible to deny. Either of these is a great choice.

External Hard Drive – This is a great way to save all your favorite movies and music in a small space. Copy them all onto here, then store, sell, or otherwise dispose of your collection, which is now easy to pick up and carry with you.

Kindle Paperwhite – I own and use a standard Kindle. My husband has a paperwhite. Only one is easily usable when there is no light, and it’s not mine. Kindles are, hands-down, the best way to store large amounts of reading and visual reference materials in one place. (In case you wondered, I am recommending the regular Kindle over the Fire simply because the battery life is so very long on a Kindle.)

Tesla Coil Lighter – This is a windproof, USB rechargeable, arc lighter. No need to keep extra lighter fluid on hand or as many methods for lighting a fire if you have this lighter.

Mixing tools: Pastry Blender, Whisk, and (possibly) Dutch-Style Dough Mixer – Stand mixers are great, but they can take up a lot of space. I have found that a pastry blender and whisk can do almost everything most people use a stand mixer for in a fraction of the space – and with no electricity required. For anyone who makes a lot of bread or other very heavy doughs, a Dutch-style dough mixer is another hand-powered device that would be a great addition.

Stovehinge: The Collapsible Rocket Stove – This small stove is extremely small, and very heavy. It is most decidedly not a backpacking stove! If you remove it from the case it ships in, you may be able to store it in an even smaller space.

Small Drawer Safe – This model is designed for hand guns but can, of course, be used for any valuables. Because of its small size and weight, it’s easy to bolt into a piece of furniture, such as a dresser drawer, or even into a closet shelf or other part of your home.

Collapsible Solar Oven – The solar oven I have is great, but it definitely takes a lot of space to store. This version is completely collapsible and can store easily behind a piece of furniture.

Sweeper – Instead of a large vacuum cleaner, many small spaces (especially those without plush carpet) can get by with a small sweeper similar to the ones used in restaurants.

Thumb Drive – Everyone should have a reliable thumb drive with copies of their important documents. This particular model includes security, password protection, and a back-up to the Cloud.

Vertical Wall Garden – It is really just like it sounds. This is a way to plant a garden so it will grow along a wall (vertically) instead of on the ground, making it much easier to grow some of your own food even in a small space, like a balcony.

Clothes Washer – This reminds me a lot of a toilet plunger, but it is specifically designed for washing clothing. This is far smaller than most other off-grid options and has great reviews

Sawyer Mini Personal Water Filter – If you only need a water filter for one person, this is a solid choice and takes very little space. (The LifeStraw is another great choice.)

LifeStraw Mission Water Purifier – This is a great choice for small spaces because most of it is flexible. There is a section about the size of a foot long hot dog made of hard plastic, tubing, and a bag to hold the water being purified. All of this fits inside a storage bag and takes about the space of Sunday paper. While this is much larger than some other purifiers, it can provide an average family of five with clean water for up to three years of daily use!

Feature Friday: Yellow Prairie Interiors

Today's Feature Friday is yet another new blogger that I met on Instagram, Janna from Yellow Prairie Interiors. She lives in Oregon with her hubby and 2 children an finally realized her dream of becoming an interior designer and now she designs for others as well as herself. She and her husband built a new home in 2014 and have enjoyed giving it character and charm with their own personal touches.

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Chrysanthemum Bloom Season: Encouraging Flowers On Mums

By Bonnie L. Grant Chrysanthemums, better known as “mums” to their friends, are late season bloomers that really pack a fall punch in the garden. The chrysanthemum bloom season ranges from late summer into early winter depending upon your zone. In rare cases, mums are not flowering when they should be in full bloom. Encouraging flowers on mums starts with a practice called “pinching.” This removes the early season growth but causes the plant to branch and form more stems. This gives more bloom space and, in the end, more flowers to enjoy. When Do Chrysanthemums Bloom? One of the easiest, low maintenance plants is the hardy chrysanthemum. Mums are common nursery and gift plants and produce prodigious amounts of flowers in the later season when few plants are blooming. This attractive trait, along with the myriad of colors and forms of chrysanthemum flowers, enhances the popularity of this readily

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