Flipped Out: The End of the American Bungalow

June 24, 2019

Design

...he teens and 1920s gave us a great example of multi-unit housing called the bungalow court. Kelly and I lived in a spectacular one, the Egyptian Court Apartments, while we were in grad school in San Diego. Every morning you woke up, looked out the window and found yourself in a cheesy 1920s King Tut movie. How cool is that? Now the investors who have turned our housing into an investment deem that all apartments must resemble stacked shipping cont...

Read…

Craig Ponsford Bakes Whole Wheat Ciabatta

Mr. Homegrown

November 22, 2013

Bread, Food

29 Comments

...order to handle dough you’ll see Ponsford use water instead. He also wets containers that he puts dough into. It’s a lot neater and less flour gets incorporated in the dough. Whole wheat doughs need to be wet. When he does use flour, as in the end of the video he’s using it strategically–in order to keep the loaf from getting to dark in the oven. Baking bread is actually fairly simple as long as you realize that the devil is in the details. Use a...

Read…

The Homegrown Mailbox: How and Where Do I Get My Soil Tested?

Mr. Homegrown

June 5, 2009

Gardening, Soil

9 Comments

...your soil is contaminated, skip the test, and grow things in raised beds, containers or stick to ornamentals. You could also try bioremediation: each season plant a cover crop, let it grow, and then pull it up and dispose of it. Test the soil until it comes out clean. This works well, but it can take many years to get all the contaminants out. For those of you in Los Angeles, our local Extension Service agent Yvonne Savio kindly sent me the follo...

Read…

Bisphenol-A

Mr. Homegrown

October 29, 2008

Thoughtstylings

5 Comments

...lastic found in all kinds of products including baby bottles, plastic food containers, Nalgene bottles, some wines (from the plastic stoppers and the lining of fermentation tanks) and the lining in metal cans. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration says it’s safe, a viewpoint contradicted by at least 100 studies. The problem: BPA is a endocrine disruptor linked to a host of problems, according to some researchers, including cancer, obesity, childho...

Read…

Pooh Power!

Mr. Homegrown

July 28, 2007

Preparedness

1 Comment

...ble poly bags are environmentally friendly and can be disposed of in trash containers. Can be used with any portable toilet or even in your standard home toilet when water flushing is unavailable. Can be used under or over (to keep sanitary) any toilet seat. After use, simply fold the Wag™ Bag into the zip-close bag and close. Dispose in trash container. An absolute must for your car, camper, boat, or plane (or those unsavory outhouses). Weighs 3...

Read…