We've moved to http://www.HOMEGROWN.org

Starting immediately, HOMEGROWN.org is now actually at http://www.HOMEGROWN.org - check out the snazzy new digs!

What kind of HOMEGROWN are you? Chapter 5

You cook as a way to express your love. You marvel at the shape of a fully-formed tomato, and swoon at the smell of a sharp cheddar. You are a philosopher when it comes to planting, growing and eating.
You are:

What is your manifesto?

Click then print. Wear it proudly. We are all HOMEGROWN!

What kind of HOMEGROWN are you? Chapter 6

You tell us!


Click then print. Wear it proudly. We are all HOMEGROWN!

If you're reading this, that means that you are still reading from the old link. HOMEGROWN.org is now actually at http://HOMEGROWN.org - so please redirect your RSS subscriptions so you don't miss out on anything.
Also, check out the snazzy new digs!

What kind of HOMEGROWN are you? Chapter 4

You see your CSA share as an opportunity for kitchen adventure. You relish the aroma left in the air after snipping herbs from your own plants.

You are a:
What would you do with a quarter acre of land?

Click then print. Wear it proudly. We are all HOMEGROWN!

Stay tuned for more...

What kind of HOMEGROWN are you? Chapter 3

Nurturing is what you do. You ask for the recipe and gladly share your own. Children and friends love to eat what you cook – even Brussels sprouts!

You are a:

What is your hope for future generations?

Click then print. Wear it proudly. We are all HOMEGROWN!

Stay tuned for more...

What kind of HOMEGROWN are you? Chapter 2

You know that organic is better. The only thing you grow is mold. You’ve been known to eat only noodles for a week.

You are a:
What would you bring to a potluck?

Click then print. Wear it proudly. We are all HOMEGROWN!

Stay tuned for more...

What kind of HOMEGROWN are you? Chapter 1

Lightbulb in fridge is out

Microwave = best friend

Fast food dollar menu

You are a:

Don't you know any farmers? Click then print. Wear it proudly. We are all HOMEGROWN!

Stay tuned for more...

THUNDER AND LIGHTNING IS EXPECTED!!!

Looks like we'll be packing our rain boots for Bonnaroo. A playlist is being assembled and we need more suggestions for storm-related songs!

Somerville Swap-a-Rama!

This weekend is the super cool Sew What!?! Fashion, art, shopping event in Union Square. Could someone please go and take pictures? We’ll be out of town.
In their own words:
Why Swap
Swap-O-Rama-Rama utilizes the existing surplus of clothing to create new-recycled goods. In d.i.y spirit, through workshops and the collectivizing of ideas, it helps each individual break down the barrier between consumer and creator while inviting all to reclaim the creativity that has been lost to industry.
Through hands-on experience, Swap-O-Rama-Rama invites the discovery that the making of things is not an activity to be avoided in order to attain leisure, but rather a playful and leisurely endeavor unto itself.

If you’re local, check it out here.

Calling all campsite cooks!

So we're getting really excited about the Rock The Grill: A Good Food Cookout we're hosting with Sustainable Table at Bonnaroo, but a bit overwhelmed with ideas for what to cook using a charcoal grill, foil, skewers, sticks and whathaveyou.
Whatcha got?
We will be making a trip to the Franklin Farmers Market on Saturday morning, so fresh HOMEGROWN ingredients will not be a problem. Are there any marinades or dipping sauces you have enjoyed under the stars? One pot dishes of heavenly goodness? Please send your ideas and recipes along - we'll be taking pictures of it all!

We're going to Bonnaroo - woo hoo!

We’ll have our own 10’ x 10’ plot of land in Planet Roo – where a select group of righteous groups will gather to share their good work. Naturally, some of us will be ducking out to see The Black Keys, Mastodon, Ozomatli and the mighty Metallica, but there will always be someone there to talk HOMEGROWN with folks.
If you’re going, stop by the HOMEGROWN booth, get some fun swag and sign up for a chance to be a part of the Bonnaroo Barbe-roo – the cookout that we are co-hosting with Sustainable Table. Our friends from Nashville Urban Harvest will be bringing locally-grown food for us to cook up – can’t wait!
Stay tuned for more news as it develops.

Over the last couple of weeks, I‘ve been sharing my tomato seedlings with my friends who are able to give them good homes. The starter cells are getting crowded with little guys fighting for sun and nutrients, so the call for caring tomato parents goes out!

Today around the Farm Aid kitchen table, Ted, Jen, Glenda and Anna all grabbed a few for their EarthBoxes and back yards. Wendy doesn’t know it yet, but she is the proud mamma of four heirloom (two red, two black) plants, too – come and get ‘em!

Fast forward a few months...I reap the rewards of my generosity. Mmmm...tomatoes...
**An update*** It is not advised that you plant the actual newspaper, as it does take a long time for the paper to biodegrade. Our friends at Homegrown Evolution also say that the newspaper tends to wick precious moisture away from your fledgling veggie plants.**

CSA Roulette

Now that we’re enjoying the first signs of spring after a long winter, the yearning for fresh local veggies is strong. I signed up for my first CSA share this summer with Revision House Urban Farm and I can’t wait!
While I know that the first box will be heavy on just a few ingredients (definitely not a problem), I’m looking forward to June’s more diverse boxes so we can play “CSA Roulette” (our friend Severine’s term) – essentially, make a fabulous and delicious meal out of a random grab from the box. A pretty obvious thing to do with a bunch of vegetables, but using a sexy casino term in concert with fresh vegetables might just get us to dress up for dinner!

DIY - Organic pesticide made from vegetables!

The tomato seeds I harvested from last summer's yummies have sprouted into delicate, yet ambitious, wisps. It won't be long until my nephew plants them in his raised bed garden in the country. In the event that any unwanted visitors shack up on the plants, I want to provide him with a safe pesticide alternative.

Our friends at Instructables have just the recipe - using onions, hot peppers and a little bit of dish soap - brilliant!
link

The Greenhorns

We had a delightful visit from Severine from The Greenhorns yesterday. We dug into a fresh blueberry peach pie while she told us about the many interesting projects she's involved in - including getting The Greenhorns movie produced and distributed. Her passion for getting young farmers hooked up with each other is wonderfully infectious - you go, Severine, we're big fans!
The Greenhorns Trailer:

The bounty of spaces large and small

I just returned from three days in New York City - took in The Whitney Biennial, Scope, Volta and toured dozens of galleries in Chelsea. People in New York sacrifice the convenience of having space in return for other conveniences: 24-hour living has its appeal. Seeing how art is displayed in such a dense urban area got me thinking more about how we use space, and the economy of space.
In the world of HOMEGROWN, space is about connecting to the land and to people using your hands: growing, crafting, cooking and, of course, eating. Since we've started this blog, I've encountered so many people who are thinking about growing - and the space in which they grow - in modern, creative ways. A few examples:

Edible Estates "is an attack on the front lawn and everything it has come to represent!"

It "is an ongoing series of projects to replace the front lawn with edible garden landscapes responsive to culture, climate, context and people!"
Basically, turn your yard into a farm!

Our friend Mark in the Pacific Northwest sent us a link to WebUrbanis -3D City Farms: Sustainable, Ecological and Agricultural Skyscrapers.

Blade Runners as farmers!


























And, again, The New York Times shows us how urbanites are living HOMEGROWN.
A Fruit Tree Grows in Brooklyn

Tell us about YOUR space - how do you choose to use what you've got?

HOMEGROWN Progress

Cows Grazing in the Rumpus Room

An excellent article from The New York Times about how some of us are responding to the "development" and misuse of land. In dirt we trust.

A drag and drop garden planner

Whether you've got a significant amount of earth to till, or a full-shade back porch like me, everyone can appreciate this fun little toy! Simply drop your crops of choice into the grid and see how they grow from March to October.

From the Eat Close To Home blog

Also check out the link to GrowVeg.com , which is a snazzier garden planner that costs about $30.

This weekend, I'll be starting the tomato seeds I saved from some luscious Vermont heirlooms I slurped on last summer, as well as organic cherry tomatoes and summer squash. My city apartment is great for sprouting seeds, just not growing successful vegetable plants, so I'll be looking for good homes for my elfin veggie sprouts soon!

Our favorite Urban Homesteaders' movie

A short film from the Dervaes family

Homegrown hero: We heart Jamie Oliver

UK dollface and chef activist Jamie Oliver is sparking a rash of gasps across the pond with his new FoodTV show. His methods for taking "know your food" to a whole new level are changing the way people think about how they eat... And that makes us love him even more.
In today's New York Times Food section: Looking Dinner In The Eye

Pollan: “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants."

This is how the introduction to Michael Pollan’s “In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto” begins:

“Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants. That, more or less, is the short answer to the supposedly incredibly complicated and confusing question of what we humans should eat in order to be maximally healthy.”


Of course, he goes into exquisite detail about what constitutes real food, versus what Americans find on many grocery shelves today. And, of course, we couldn’t agree more: Eat food. Know where your food comes from and how it is grown.

Read the entire introduction to “In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto” here