Search Results for: label/peak oil/page/3/2010/06/the-urban-homestead

494 results

A Declaration of Independence

Mr. Homegrown
Thoughtstylings
1 Comment
“Man was born free, and he is everywhere in chains.” - Jean-Jacques Rousseau, The Social Contract What follows will be a practical guide to urban homesteading. In our troubled times, it would seem prudent to have a “plan B” in the event our modern conveniences should temporarily cease. Besides, by learning to “DIY”, you’ll cease to be part of the fat, pathetic, SUV driving, “American Idol”...

Continue reading…

Novella Carpenter Update

Mr. Homegrown
Thoughtstylings
6 Comments
We posted yesterday about author and urban farmer Novella Carpenter running afoul of the law in Oakland for “agricultural activities”. She has a clarification on her blog and some new, alarming information. She makes clear that she was busted for selling vegetables not growing them. The disturbing news is information she received that the people who reported her may have been animal rights activists upset that she eats her rabbits....

Continue reading…

Los Angeles Announces Parkway Cemetery Program

Mr. Homegrown
Thoughtstylings
12 Comments
Merging interest in “green” burials and urban land remediation, the City of Los Angeles just announced a groundbreaking new program: parkway cemeteries. Like many cities across America, Los Angeles has a huge debt, $350 million to put a number on it. So it comes as no surprise that city officials are seeking innovative ways of enhancing revenue sources.  Most often a tangle of weeds and compacted earth, parkways have seen attenti...

Continue reading…

In Praise of Disorder

Mr. Homegrown
Thoughtstylings
7 Comments
Loose chickens in Houston A neighborhood whose demographics fall somewhere between the extremes of the crack den and the country club presents just the right level of civic inattention to allow the urban homesteader to get away with many of the illegal projects profiled in this blog: greywater, backyard poultry, and front yard vegetable gardening, to mention just a few. Ideally you have a balance between order and disorder–neither gunfir...

Continue reading…

Something for Nothing – Wild Mustard Greens

Mr. Homegrown
Food, Foraging
RLeave a comment
a glycoside (sinigrin) to produce a sulphur compound. The reaction takes 10 – 15 minutes. Mixing with hot water or vinegar, or adding salt, inhibits the enzyme and produces a mild bitter mustard.” And speaking of urban foraging, we’ve been inspired by our visitor from Chicago, Nancy Klehm. Hear an interview with her, “Foraging for Food on the Streets of L.A.“, on Weekend America. Happy foraging . . ....

Continue reading…

Goat Worship: A Halloween Exclusive!

Mrs. Homegrown
Animals, Domesticus, Events, Goats
20 Comments
hich is the fashion statement of choice in these parts. Why keep goats? Why operate a home dairy? Why should you keep goats? Well, for the milk, of course. And the cheese–which is milk’s higher purpose.  In an urban area (at least in this part of the world) it can be nigh near impossible to lay your hands on fresh, organic raw milk. If access to that kind of food is important to you, you almost have to be DIY. Did you know that a...

Continue reading…

Row Cover as an Insect Barrier

Mr. Homegrown
Vegetable Gardening
13 Comments
e in a cooler climate and want to use row cover for frost protection you would use a thicker product such as Agribon-30. Johnny’s Select Seeds carries Agribon row cover in lengths as short as 50 feet–plenty for an urban or suburban garden. I’ve used both PVC pipe and chain link fence tension wire as support. I secure the row cover down with pieces of rebar and bricks to keep out skunks. What cabbage worms become. ItR...

Continue reading…

A Bicyclist’s Bill of Rights Part II

Mr. Homegrown
Bikes
6 Comments
expect that those who endanger, injure or kill cyclists be dealt with to the full extent of the law. 5) Cyclists have the right to routine accommodations in all roadway projects and improvements. 6) Cyclists have the right to urban and roadway planning, development and design that enable and support safe cycling. 7) Cyclists have the right to traffic signals, signage and maintenance standards that enable and support safe cycling. 8) Cyclists have...

Continue reading…

An Echo Park Weed Salad

Mr. Homegrown
Food, Foraging
1 Comment
There’s nothing like a little urban blight to produce an excellent salad. While not impoverished (not unless you consider dilapidated $600,000 bungalows a sign of destitution), our neighborhood ain’t exactly Beverly Hills, meaning that in terms of landscaping it’s a little rough around the edges. And the edges–parkways, cracks in the asphalt, neglected plantings were, on this warm February day, overflowing with weeds. Edi...

Continue reading…

Preparedness Now!

Mr. Homegrown
Preparedness, Reviews
2 Comments
SurviveLA staff attended a fabulous survival salon hosted by the Process Media/Feral House revolutionaries to promote Aton Edwards hip new book Preparedness Now! Aton’s informative and well designed book is a fresh look at a subject that is usually the domain of nutcase libertarians and Mormons. Aton is neither and the book has many useful tips for us urban dwellers with chapters on shelter, transportation, self-defense, and a collection o...

Continue reading…