Blogs & Ecology

With Hallowe'en hysteria building, it's time for a brief ode to the pumpkin. First stop is the legendary Pumpkin Cottage in West Sussex where 87 year old Ralph Upton has been growing pumpkins, squashes and gourds in his six-acre plot for more than 40 years. He plants 15,000 to 20,000 seeds each spring to produce an organic harvest of more than 50 varieties including those with names like Atlantic Giant, Munchkin, Jack-be-Little, Hungarian Mammoth and Turk's Turban.

Compost with a Little Help from our Friends
It seems my composting obsession is far from going away. Having moved my compost when moving house, and then composted my move, my wife and I still find ourselves short on compost for our planned veggie garden. So we hatched a perfect plan to acquire masses of good organic matter, and have fun while doing it. We morphed our house warming party into a compost warming, and boy was it fun. Invites were issued and the...

Photo Via Melinda Shelton

Coffee is grown in two main ways: in the sun or in the shade. But three University of Michigan researchers show that if we want to look forward to a nice hot cup of coffee a few years from now, shade-grown coffee is where its at. ...

Traditional Medicinal's tea facility; photo via Traditional Medicinal

In a very cool continuation of using the sun to create the world's most consumed beverage, Traditional Medicinals took a giant leap forward and has completed an installation that makes it the world's largest solar powered tea factory.

An Excellent Introduction to Mycology
When I wrote about MushroomExpert.com, I was impressed by this comprehensive online resource for anyone wanting to know more about the mushrooms and fungi that we see in the world around us. In fact, I was so impressed with the site’s content and its humorous yet thorough and responsible approach to mycology that I ordered both of site creator Michael Kuo’s books right then and there. Now that I have both titles,

In some circles this is breaking news –– Israeli-US scientists say they have found a cure for honeybee collapse disorder (Colony Collapse Disorder –– CCD), a condition which TreeHugger has been following extensively over the last couple of years. While different theories abound as to why honeybee populations have collapsed, the scientists from Beeologics are wasting no time in finding a solution.

Bike-Powered Compost Tumbler
Ahh, the things you find on YouTube. I’m clearly not the only compost-geek out there – my recent post on how to build a DIY compost tumbler generated some lively comments. However, I’m sure there are folks who consider even turning a compost tumbler a little too much like hard work. And that’s where the intriguingly named “Team Broken S...