Archive for the ‘Ecology’ Category

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Stuff about Gardening

Wednesday, March 21st, 2012

D. Bates Squash Garden in August

by Catherine Haug, March 20, 2012

(photo, right, by Don Bates)

It’s time to get busy preparing your garden for the season. Some of us already have gardens; some are thinking about creating a garden; and others are utilizing their local community garden (such as Bigfork-Ferndale Community Garden at St. Patrick’s).  The seed companies have sent out their seed catalogues for us to drool over. Have you caught the gardening bug?

Mother Earth News has some great articles on garden design, soil health and other gardening topics:

About the articles, and more

(more…)

Posted in Compost, Ecology, Gardening | Comments Closed

Raptor Cam – Red Tail Hawks

Wednesday, March 14th, 2012

Red Tail Hawk at Raptor-Cam

by Catherine Haug, MArch 14, 2012

Many of you may know that I spent my career-life in Portland, Oregon, a very environmentally-conscious city. While there, I joined the local Audubon Society chapter, and I continue to get their newsletters.

Five years ago, the Audubon Society and a local radio station (KGW) installed a raptor cam to spy on a nest in the middle of downtown Portland. What the cam captures is streamed live, online at kgw.com/lifestyle/raptor-cam. You can also follow this on the Raptor-Cam facebook page and on the raptor cam blog.

This cam has captured the pair of hawks and their 13 young hatchlings over the previous five years, and will continue until the nest is no longer used.

Posted in Ecology, Humor | Comments Closed

Locally made cleaning supplies

Sunday, March 11th, 2012

by Catherine Haug, March 11, 2012

Are you concerned about the chemical dangers lurking in your cleaning supplies? Check out WomensVoices.org for their new report: Dirty Secrets (scroll down on that page to download the complete report); see also their article How Top Cleaning Supply Companies Rate. I’m totally disgusted by the deceits practiced by commercial cleaning product companies to hide/disguise their cancer-causing ingredients, and am committed to using locally made, full-disclosure products; how about you?

Last year we had a gathering on homemade soap (see Gathering Summary: Making Soap at Home), and this year we hope to have an event on making your own cleaning supplies. The latest issue of Back Porch View magazine has an article on making your own laundry soap.

And now, there’s a Montana-local laundry detergent (and another version for baby’s laundry) available at Bigfork Harvest Foods and Swan Valley Herbs. It’s called Keligreen (see their Facebook page), and comes in a returnable plastic jug (50¢ credit toward your next jug). I’ve added this product to my earlier post: Soap vs Detergents.

More about Keligreen:

(more…)

Posted in Ecology, Home & Ranch, Recycle | Comments Closed

Back Porch View Magazine, Spring 2012 Issue

Friday, March 2nd, 2012

by Catherine Haug, March 2, 2012

The new quarterly issue of the local Back Porch View Magazine just came out, and is worth a look. And not just because I have a story published in it (The Great Cribbage Tournament of 1958, pages 6-7). There are several articles on sustainability topics, and it has a great local community feel. You can find free copies at various businesses in Bigfork, Somers, Lakeside Kalispell, Columbia Falls and Libby. Or you can subscribe (see their website).

Here are some articles in the Spring 2012 issue, pertinent to ESP’s mission: (more…)

Posted in Community, Energy, Home & Ranch, Recycle, Repurpose, Shop Local, Simplify, Survival; Primitive Living | Comments Closed

Building Materials Reuse-Repurposing Stores in the Flathead

Friday, March 2nd, 2012

by Catherine Haug, March 2, 2012

For a few years now, we’ve been able to buy reuse building materials at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore at 215 W Idaho in Kalispell. Now we have a second option as well. The Flathead Recon Repeat Store will feature used doors, windows, sinks, cabinets, lighting and plumbing fixtures, wood products, collectable antiques and more, for sale.

They are having an after-hours grand opening celebration soon:  (more…)

Posted in Home & Ranch, Recycle, Repurpose | Comments Closed

Child’s potato project – why local & Organic is important

Thursday, March 1st, 2012

by Catherine Haug, March 1, 2012

Fourth-grader Elise is onto something, with her science experiment using sweet potatoes. The YouTube video is only 2.5 minutes long and definitely worth the watch. Do you want your family to eat veggies and fruits sprayed with Bud Nip (Chlorpropham)? It’s not only used on sweet potatoes but also regular potatoes and many other types of non-Organic produce.

Watch: My Potato Project; The Importance of “Organic”

See also Mother Earth News: The Dangers of Bud Nip in a Compact Sweet Potato Project. From this article:

“According to the Pesticide Action Network, the dangers of bud nip include toxicity to amphibians and honeybees, important pollinators of crops we eat every day. Bud nip can be found on potatoes, kale, peaches, broccoli and other common fruits and vegetables.”

Cornell University Extension has more good info on the toxicity of this spray; see Pesticide Information Profile: Chlorpropham

As a chemist, I can tell you that synthetic compounds containing chlorine are almost always toxic – sometimes highly so. And this includes the popular sweetener sucralose (Splenda). Note that common table salt (sodium chloride) is a natural substance that is not toxic at normal levels of consumption.

 

Posted in Agriculture, Ecology, Food-Nutrition-Health, Organics | Comments Closed

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