I wanted to name the new donkey - Moonpie, but was swiftly vetoed, on the grounds I think, that any time we called her name we'd be inciting a craving for the old time treat. Anyway. Mom is calling the donkey Baby Burro. It's cute. But I think we can do better.
I've been taking nominations from the folks that follow @hyperlocavore on twitter. They started rolling in. So I thought this is an awesome time for a contest.

Devastating expose of coal - mountain top removal.

Please share this video with any one you know who might be interested in getting yard sharing going in their communities.
I can set you up very quickly! It’s a service your community can have up and running in minutes – for FREE!
What is Yard Sharing?
100 Reasons to Become a Hyperlocavore
What is a Distributed Suburban CSA?
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[diy-greenhouse.pdf]
You may not want or need as much insulation as I used. It’s very cold where I live. It is not a thing of beauty and was build strictly to function as a place to start plants and extend our very short growing season. It hides in our garage.
So far it has been a constant 58 degrees inside the greenhouse. I have started only cold friendly plants. It likely gets a bit chillier when the lights go off.
Materials:
Many times you can find some of what you need for free on freecyle.org, reyooz.com, thinggo.com or trusty craigslist.org. A thrift store is another good place to check for some of these items.

Shelf with 5 shelves $50.00
8 LED grow light panels $240.00
Roll of sheet plastic $12.00
2 Power strips $10.00
2 Timers $14.00
1 Thermometer $ 2.50
Trays $3.00
Total: About 331.50 (plus tax)
Time of useful life. The only element I expect not to last for at least 10 years are the LED panels.

Things I had on hand:
old blanket
cotton cord
zip ties
staple gun
blinder clips
bubble wrap
duct tape
some lattice panel to
keep the barn cats out
Notes:

LEDWholesalers on ebay.com – 2 orders - 900 LED Grow light 4 Red + Blue Hydroponic Lamp Panels. They have a few negative comments but for the most part they get 5 stars.
My shelf was a bargain apparently. I can’t find these very cheap online.
Make sure the timers are the grounded type (three prong.)
The power strips plug into the timers.
The LED panels go into the power strips.

Instructions:
1. Assemble shelf per directions that come with shelf.
2.Test all of your panels. You may need to send them back and it’s easier to do when they are not attached.
3.Attach LED panels to undersides of each shelf. (I used cotton cord and staples because it will be easy to remove panels if they go bad.)
4.Use zip ties to attach power strips to the back braces of the shelf.
5.Set timers for the amount of “daylight” you want. People differ on this. I have mine

There are still a few people out there trying to figure out if they should change their lives based on concerns about climate change.
If you are one of these folks, I’d like to encourage you to watch this video. I promise the guy will not try to scare the pants of you! He just gives you a very handy way to sort through the decision about whether or not to take the claims of those that argue that climate change is a serious problem… and that we can do something about it.

Please share this one with your friends, family and neighbors.
Posted in aha!, the big picture

An increasing, albeit small, number of people are trying edible landscaping: growing fruits and vegetables mixed in with traditional, ornamental flowers, to save money on food, eat healthier and en...

Some folks are taking the yardsharing idea a step further. Meet Kipp Nash of Boulder Colorado, who farms 8 neighbors yards as a Community Supported Agriculture operation.

Posted in DIY Projects, farm nerds, frugal living, gardening, healthy neighborhoods, slow food, the hyperlocavore movement

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