Hobby Farms Forums / HobbyFarms.com Forum Topics / Going Green

Buzz Off!

HFfriend — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 14:40:20 GMT

As you battle the insects that nosh on your garden plants, you can’t forget about the annoying (and sometimes even dangerous) pests that want to snack on you instead! Share your tips for telling these bad bugs to buzz off!

My off Grid Cabin Homestead

LaMar — Sun, 18 Mar 2012 07:40:43 GMT

Hi folks,

I live in an off grid solar and wind powered cabin and homestead. I garden, fish and hunt and raise chickens and rabbits for most of my food.

You can see my cabin and learn how to use solar and wind power on your homestead on my youtube channel:

http://www.youtube.com/solarcabin

Always happy to answer questions about solar and wind power

LaMar

How many acres of lawn?

Drawbar — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 03:22:11 GMT

I was buying gas the other day and I was chatting to the woman buying lawnmower gas beside me how kind of wasteful it is for us to routinely mow our lawns in the big scheme of things. That was when she proudly said she had reduced her lawn from 5 acres down to 3 when the price of gas went high, but is back up to 5 acres.

Now I mow 2 acres myself and I think that is a waste. I have however given back a half acre to the sheep just so they can graze it. Still this lawn thing is perplexing...did you know more land in the USA is in lawns then is in food production! At the same time lawns consume far more herbicides and fertilizers then agricultural land! That is kind of scary since it is predicted in 2050 we are going to run out of arable land to feed the world.

I am all for property rights of tax payers, but I can't help but look at some of these people who have multiple acre lawns and think what a waste...all that fuel going to mow it, and what for? Do they actually use that area for kids to play on, of a baseball game to take place now and then...or is it just mown to "look good?" With Maine losing 5000 acres a year of ag land to development, I almost wish the Gov would step in and stop the huge lawn madness.

With sheep here now, I would reduce my lawn drastically, but the wife is mad enough as is at me for surrounding the house with pasture. Still I have reduced my lawn somewhat. So what about other Hobby Farm Members...is your lawn getting bigger, or smaller...and why did you make that choice? (aesthetics, use, economics, environmental reasons, etc)

Smoke Less Chimney for Wood Stoves?

MyBackAchers — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 18:26:48 GMT

Has anyone used a wood burner with a jetstove (JetStove.com) chimney? They are supposed to be smoke less and put out twice the heat. I really like the concept of not letting all my heat go up in smoke and out the chimney. I talked to the guy who is making them and he will soon have the chimney available to add on to my present burner. Its in a test stage now and he said it looks promising.

I need to do one chimney on each of my wood burners – three for the house, one for the workshop and one full burner for keeping the water from turning to ice in the barn. I have been using electric de-icers to keep the animal water thawed but our plan is to get off the grid by next spring. Something like this would seem like a good idea.

I love the idea of the rocket mass heater design (rocketstoves.com) but I live up north and when we burn – we burn 24/7 to raise the temperature up by, sometimes, 100 degrees F (when its 20 below) and for those of us who live up north – that can add up to a lot of wood. Last year we burned 5 cords for all the buildings. . .roughly 10 pick up loads. Sure, it only cost us $35 in gas to do it (chain saw, gas to haul and gas for splitter) but it took 22 days at 5 hours a day. If I can reduce that work load by any amount – I would be a happy camper. And I don’t think a rocket mass barrel chimney would work because we’ve used a double barrel kit for the work shop and it really only lasted a season before rust got it. The barrels just don’t take the heat like a heavy metal unit could. . . at least, that’s my thought.

IF these really work as well as I think they would by burning off the smoke and releasing all the heat before it leaves the building, then there might be no end to the things we could do with it – make hot water, make a sauna (!) or even build a year-round greenhouse if we could run the chimney heat underground. That’s if it works as well as I hope….Anyone else familiar with these? I’d be very happy to hear experiences with using them!

Local Highschool: Pass or Fail?

Drawbar — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 03:21:10 GMT

Okay, so I know our local High School colors are green and white, but when they built this new school last year, it had two distinctions:

1. It was the most expensive school ever built in Maine
2. It was the "greenest" ever built

This school is big because it covers a big area, some 11 rural towns and has 1200 students K-12. The farthest kid away has a 26 mile ride to school every day! So it covers a big area.

Anyway yesterday my wife, a teacher who works at another school, went there and was surprised by a few things. The school has cutting edge "green technology" like a biomass boiler, solar gain and solar panels. It burns green wood chips mostly for heat instead of oil or coal which is significant in very cold Maine (10 degrees F right now as I type this). Now as far as heat is concerned, they save over 1/2 what the old school cost!

That is great, but because they use smart boards instead of chalkboards and dry erase boards, the electrical consumption is twice the old one. So I am not sure they gained much. There was talk at one time of them installing a windmill at the school, a 1.5 megawatt mill as this school is located on a ridge and gets slammed with wind, but the cost would have been a million dollars and was not justified.

So what do you guys think...does this new "green school" pass or fail as far as being "green" goes?

Solar Water Heating

kwessel — Mon, 30 May 2011 09:43:06 GMT

We installed a solar water heating system 3 years ago when we built our house. We have now gone through 2 solar powered re-circulators and replaced a panel since the anti freeze cork (not sure the technical name for it) failed and our tubing burst in the panel. We live in Florida so sun is no problem but I know a few months ago we had bad storms and lost power for over a week, but we still had sun the day after the storm and on word but no hot water. Can some one that has a little longer experience with these systems please advise. Is this normal to have all this problems with a system or is this really something that is just part of the solar system, what one may call maintance, or maybe it's the brand we chose. thanks for the help

kim

Hybrid power systems.

BruEmerson — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 01:11:49 GMT

A Hybrid Stand Alone Power Supply is a made up of more than one form of renewable energy sources, usually a Solar Array and a wind generator that feeds a supply through a regulator that controls the input to the battery bank to protect it and increase the life of the battery bank. These systems vary in size according to the load requirements needed. These systems are mainly used in rural areas where the geographical position makes it quite impossible for power to be connected.

These Hybrid Systems also have a reliable backup in the case of either a failure of the system or a period of bad weather and a generator is used to supplement the supply required by the sun and or wind. A solar systems Queensland firm can get one installed for you depending on your requirements.

The most important components to make up a Hybrid Power Supply and that are an inverter. All kinds of renewable energy systems deliver very low DC (Direct Current) voltage normally 12, 24 or 48 volt depending on the size of the system required. The function of the inverter is to change the DC supply from the battery bank to a useable AC supply that can be used to power your appliances and lights etc.

The Inverter is the brain of the whole system; it controls, starts and stops the backup generator when 1 of the two conditions is met. First, when the required load on the system exceeds a predetermined set point and the second when the battery bank voltage drops to a certain level.

Why is the environmental movement a bad thing?

Charlene — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 04:29:58 GMT

I was shocked to see so many opposing views on the environmental movement on this website. I thought for sure farmers would be for the earth and be supportive of green initiatives. I am wondering why conservation and green living practices are offensive to this population? Aren't we all looking for a sustainable lifestyle?

Portable solar generating units

Amy Grisak — Sun, 16 Jan 2011 21:30:33 GMT

Has anyone messed around with the smaller solar generating units that are often advertised as something that can be used at cabins or on RV's.? I was just wondering how they work out for you. What are their limitations?

your own power

walls0stone:*) — Sat, 11 Dec 2010 09:32:00 GMT

ok if you could drill your own well and have your own gas powered gen, and resell the power to the power company, would you?

Ford Focus Farm Truck

Drawbar — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 06:45:03 GMT

Anyone else have one of these for a "farm truck"? (LOL)

I know what many of you are thinking, big ole tough farmer who drives around all the time in a big burly truck but that isn't the case with me at all...I drive a Ford Focus.

I am a firm believer in going green wherever one can, but I strongly feel going green should be economical too. When the price of fuel got high I sold my pick up and opted for A Ford Focus that gets 37 mpg instead of 10 mpg. The sad thing is, I seldom miss my truck. This poor car was never made to move bales of hay, tote sheep or drive up nasty field access roads, but yet it seems to get the job done. Only when there is no other option do I go out and borrow my buddies truck and get stuff that just won't fit in my car or cannot be delivered for a reasonable price.

I am betting I am not alone on this. Is anyone else "truckless" yet use their car as a truck? What are some of the crazy things you have hauled with it?

living off grid

ihenigman2 — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 08:02:00 GMT

well i sold my cabin that is equipped with a hundred amp electric service and water service to my brother cause i have hopes to build a saltbox style home that will be in the middle of the woods only accessed by an old logging road that only 4x4 trucks, atv's and people on horseback ever go by, but thats seldom. that will put me 1100 feet from the nearest utility pole and also from the water main. when i installed the water main i used 1-1/4 tubing thinking that would be big enough to get back the 1100 feet, which it may be, however i still would have to deal with trenching through a creek and clearing a trail through the woods to take a trencher through.i would love to have a well dug rather than all that. though im sure it would be more expensive and i was told that there may not be a guarentee that they would be successful. i think as far as electric is concearned it will actually be about the same price to go solar as opposed to running more poles or underground from the power pole. ive got alot to consider i suppose i am planning on thinning out about an acre that will be my yard in march then in the spring i can dig footers for my piers and masonry fireplace there is a stone quarry a couple miles down the road. i need info about digging a well or drilling.

Explain this to me

hotrodryder — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 17:46:24 GMT

This is not totally farm related except that my farm house needs some work and the income will partially come from my farm endevors. So, why is it that everyone wants you to recycle and reuse and go with "green" products but the green products cost as much or more than the standard materials. Point in case, I was looking into some new countertops and heard about a product where they take old bottles and other glass and break it up, add an adhesive of some type and make counters out of it that is supposed to be equal in durability to marble. Sounded like a great idea, new counters that would last a long time and be green; it costs MORE than marble!! Who can afford that and why in the world should any product that takes someone's old glass and glues it together cost THAT much?!! If these people who promote green products really cared about the world and the environment VS their personal gain, then they would sell the product at a lower cost to more people and probably make the same money if not more. Personally, I would love to use more recycled items but cannot afford it. I guess it's capitalism at it's finest. Off my soapbox now.

Do you buy green or not green?

Sugar Oak Farms — Sat, 27 Nov 2010 17:22:25 GMT

What are most of the items you buy at the store?

Wind power

Charlene — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 07:18:36 GMT

Just wondering if anyone knows of a small scale wind turbine that may be placed on a roof. Was hoping to generate some power on Main St

Need PRO's for collecting rainwater in the NW.

AdaJane — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 09:48:35 GMT

I live in the rainy NW where it rains about 10 months of the year (obviously not the entire 10 months but at least some rain every month). I want to collect rainwater for use in our gardens but cant seem to come up with some good PRO's to convince my husband. He doesn't see the point since it rains so much here. Plus, we live in the sticks and run on well and septic so it wouldn't be to save money (unless you count not running the well pump for an hour).

Any ideas?

How can we wean ourselves off oil

Drawbar — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 13:48:20 GMT

Just curious what peoples thoughts are on weaning ourselves (the world) off petroleum. We all agree it must be done, but as I bushogged my pasture to "improve it" for the sheep, I could not help but think that I was no better then BP. Its a hard addiction to overcome and even the Amish have not done so.

Nuclear powered tractors perhaps? (LOL)

So what is a carbon footprint?

medowbrook — Thu, 07 May 2009 18:23:08 GMT

What is a carbon footprint??????

I'd like to ask that anyone respond with some real text and not a link. I'm able to just google the question myself.

And if Carbon is an element in the pereodic table..how can it be banned, restricted and taxed?

Local High School: Local Food

Drawbar — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 17:07:28 GMT

My local high school has done it again, the school nutritionist should be handed kudo's because she insists on buying local foods to feed the school kids.

She recently told us (soil and water conservation district) that she knows a lot of other schools feed their children local veggies and stuff, but Mount View High School is the only one she can find that uses locally raised beef. In fact the beef could not be more local, the new school was build on land formerly owned by the farm that the Hereford's come from. Yep they graze right across the road!! They are bought, sent to a State of Maine inspected slaughterhouse, then shipped back to the school. It costs more money, but...

The school has recently got kudos for retaining a local nutritionist, and they got notoriety when their football score board says "Got Milk" instead of Pepsi or Coke, and it was paid by the local dairy farmers who kicked in $2 dollars per cow milked on their farm on 03/20/2010. They got 10,000 dollars from 29 farms for the score board!!

Oh, and this is from an area where 70% of the kids are on free or reduced cost lunch and breakfast programs. The county itself is 18% below the poverty line. If we can go local in our schools, so can others!!

LOcal High School: Definately Passed Green Test

Drawbar — Sat, 19 Jun 2010 16:54:41 GMT

My local high school seems to be cranking its way towards reform. As noted earlier it is brand new and as such, feels a need to reduce its carbon foot print. By using a biomass boiler, it has reduced its heating costs by over half, but due to new electronic devices, has shot its electric bill up by twice of the old school. Still it burning less fossil fuels then it did before so that is good.

Now its food program is now top notch.

The Superintendent has decided to buy local foods even if the cost is higher then government run sources. Since a large scale beef operation is right across the road, guess where the beef for the school is coming from? They have a licensed slaughterhouse pick it up, process the cattle (Herefords) and then put it into its school lunch program of feeding 1100 kids. Now they are looking at doing something similar for the milk they use and the other food commodities.

The local dairy farms, all 29 of them in the district, got together and chipped in $2 per cow they milked on April 15th...the day the money was collected. That put up a 10,000 dollar scoreboard for the school that says "Got Milk" instead of Pepsi or Coke. This has gained some regional attention and their nutrition program, because of all the local food used, has got them an award. Now they are off to the nationals in this category so we keep fingers crossed and enjoy the emphasis this superintended has given local farmers...yes small farms and big farms alike.

Using a woodstove to heat the place, possibly wind power to power itself up, and now locally raised food in its school lunch program...I guess this stuff can go full scale after all. Kind of neat to hear some good news once and awhile coming from the schools.

solar power

covergirl — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 12:34:17 GMT

I have installed solar deck lights around my barn. They are inexpensive. Small and insignificant during the day. But add just enough light at nite that I don't have to cart a flashlight with me, or worry with my light on my hat.
The less I have to keep up with on a cold rainy nite (out feeding late) the better. The best part is that I don't have to turn them off and on.

Going green without using all your green

hotrodryder — Sat, 01 May 2010 18:50:55 GMT

I have looked at some alternative energy items, wind and solar power, but they are both so expensive to convert to that it is not possible for us to convert. Are there any other alternatives or ideas to make this possible? I would much rather go solar but would consider other ideas. Or are there other smaller ideas that would help with the bills and the environment?

Natural Laundry Detergent

Drawbar — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 11:46:20 GMT

My wife recently bought some natural laundry detergent at the Common Ground Fair (organic farming fair) and came across some laundry detergent called O-Natural-L. The first bag she got was lavender scented, but it worked so well that she figured she would try the non-scented with just as much luck.

Usually when you go to using "green" products there is a bit of a trade off, but with this stuff it works better then the commercial stuff you buy. I am not sure about the price, but $7 dollars gives you about 40 wash loads in a top loading washer and 80 in a front loader.

It works good though and we have used it now for a few months...and yes it has been toddler-tested in this house with an active 3 year old! You know some stains were developed with that girl!

Mistakes to keep from repeating

thestartupman — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 16:45:40 GMT

Not having garden tools right next to the garden where they are easy to get to, and put away. Its better to have one shovel in the barn, and one in shed right at garden. Any one else have ideas? Plants not to plant near....? What not to feed animals....? What crop not to plant...? What tool was a waste of money to buy?

More then Blueberries (oh well)

Drawbar — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 05:02:32 GMT

I have been working hard to see if I can convert some rather useless land that has outcrops of ledge into usable land. There is a technique where you use wood mulch to cover ledge rock over, and the transplant low bush blueberries that will eventually take over and grow on the thin soil.

It just so happens that I have a spot, about an acre in size that has very thin soil. Because of that, the trees there are stubby, useless trees that are too limby for even firewood. So I was thinking I could shred these trees as a mulch layer and add blueberries and make the plot productive.

Its one of those things that is good for the farm, and even better for wildlife, but its not something we would do by taking the money out of savings accounts and do. Naturally I want to move forward with the project but I wondered if there was a Government Program that would help do that.

The short answer is...sort of, and I'll add what I found out here in case anyone else would like to do something similar.

The USDA will not subsidize crops of course, but if berry crops for wildlife plots are not present on your farm, or in your area, they will help establish one under the WHIP Program depending on local permissions obviously. The mulching rate is pretty high too, with heavy forest getting a removal rate of around $850 per acre. But here is where it gets tricky. They will not plant just blueberries for wildlife plots, you need to plant a spring food plot, a mid summer food plot, and a fall food plot.

For the longest time I though because of this ruling that I would not be able to plant my wildlife plot...and thus blueberries. But after a little consideration, I am thinking even if I only get 1/3 of an acre of blueberries (and the other 2/3 into something else) then that is better then short stubby trees and soil to thin for arable crops.

I got to try and figure out 2 more food plots for wildlife that grows on thin, acidic and in a very hardy zone. Can you guys think of anything that would fit the bill?

Firewood

cweick — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 14:41:47 GMT

What is the difference in saw vs spliting firwood?

What is the top choice for wood?

What is the poorest choice in wood to use?

What do you look for in a wood stove?

Compost Heat

Wichman — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 07:58:50 GMT

DB,
Here is a link to a Mother Earth News article on heating with compost piles.

http://www.motherearthnews.com/Modern-Homesteading/1980-05-01/Compost-Heat-Experiment.aspx

This may give you some ideas or areas to research.

Living with Ed

covergirl — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 12:51:22 GMT

This show is great for proving you can live green. It is also great for demonstrating how a family deals with the pros and cons of living green.

Ed can toast his bread and exercise at the same time !
Gotta check it out !

Organic Fly Reductions

Drawbar — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 05:02:55 GMT

I'm a conventional farmer but buying insecticides infuriates my cheap-skate mentality, plus I know my forefathers never bought the stuff. Lately, and by accident, I have found two organic, effective solutions to flies.

The first is with my sheep. I have a bunch of penned up, sick sheep and the flies could be bad. After I started using lime to help change the ph in the pen and help kill the bacteria that forms foot rot, I noticed the fly population was non-existent. It was even lower then when I sprayed insecticide every day. So if you want to organically reduce the number of flies around your bedded livestock...try lime. 3 bucks gives you 50 pounds which goes quite a ways...far better then buying expensive insecticide, and it helps with fertilizing your gardens/farms too.

The second is in regards to flies around me as I work. Then I started to try to figure out why bugs never bothered me when I used fresh laundered clothes. Then over time I deduced that it was the dryer sheets my wife used that kept the bugs away. I admit I look stupid, but by stuffing some dyer sheets halfway out of my pockets keeps the bugs away. They do cost money, and I do look silly, but I don't smell as bad as when I am doused with bug spray...if I was actually to do that. I kind of dislike bug spray to be honest with you. Are the dryer sheets cheaper then bug spray??? I don't know, but I think the dryer sheets are more "green" then the bug spray option.

I'm trying some dryer sheets tacked up around my sick sheep pen too, but I need to use lime still for the foot rot so a conclusive test has not been made on whether it works or not.

PS: I ought to start going for SARE grants for some of this stuff I try (LOL)

Compost Heat for Residence?

Drawbar — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 04:00:19 GMT

Is anyone on here using the heat generated by composting to heat their domestic hot water?

As a working farm I have access to some serious crop acreage and woodlot and could easily obtain enough compost (haylage and wood chips) to start a compost pile that generated enough heat to at least bring the water temperature up enough so my current propane-powered water heater would not use so much fuel.

As we all know, silage piles and compost heaps produce quite a bit of heat...too bad I could not get that heat to warm my radiant floors and keep my boiler from running so much.

Clearing Land Ethically with Equipment

Drawbar — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 05:01:35 GMT

My post on using livestock to clear land on the frugal section did not get many replies, so I thought I would make a few pointers on using equipment to clear land. Its not as "green" as using livestock, but there are still ways you can use equipment to do a better job of clearing land and conserving soil. On my farm, that is my most precious commodity and it should be everyone's concern. I have seen some great farmers here mess up big time by simply dozing rocks and stumps into the woods...because with it went their soil.

The best way to clear land is with an excavator and use a big one too. Here I can pay $100 bucks an hour for a Cat digger, or $110 dollars for one that is twice as big. Because the bigger one gets so much more done, going with the biggest equipment possible is the cheaper alternative.

I would not use an excavator that does not have a thumb on it. Its just too productive and doing so without a thumb means you pay for a lot of wasted hours since the stump cannot be gripped and moved as fast or easily.

The reason to use an excavator is its ability to pull stumps. A dozer or excavator can break roots, but what makes stumps hard to pull is the suction of the ground on the stump. Its like a magnet on a refrigerator, once you get air underneath the stump, it comes right out. An excavator lets you grip one side and pry it up rather then trying to push it sideways (no air to get under the stump).

The best plan is to use an excavator in the spring when the soil is wet and allows the stump and rocks to pull easily. Simply pull the stump and set it aside. DO NOT MOVE the stump out of the field yet. Wait a year and the winter frost will fracture the dirt clinging to the roots and it will also dry out. Now when you shove the stump to the edge of the field it will be half the weight, and the soil will be in the field where it will help grow crops. It cannot do that if its in the woods. Saving soil is in everyone's best interest!

If you cannot wait. Have the excavator operator shake the stump a lot to get as much of the soil out of the roots as possible.

The fastest method we found for removing acres of stumps is teaming an excavator with a payloader. A dozer has more power, but it is slow moving. A wheel loader can zip across the field. It is a lot faster to pull the stump with an excavator, then shove it out of the way with a loader then it is to use an dozer by itself, or a excavator/dozer combination.

This is what I have found to work the best when clearing land and I have a lot of experience in this. Good luck to whatever method you use. Its nice to look out and see acres of fields instead of views of a acres of forest!

Help a Clam Digger...Farm Right!

Drawbar — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 02:29:56 GMT

WOS brought up the issue of farm subsidies which kind of brought up the issue of farm conservation measures as well. It is a very complicated issue, but this year much of the Maine coastline is shut down to clam harvesting because of all the run-off from the excess water we got. Hopefully I can explain this right so that hobby farmers can see that they can make a huge difference on water quality, no matter where they live.

The problem is, with the abundant rainfall (130% for the first half of this year) Maine is having, it is affecting everyone. One of the strongest hit has been the clam diggers who have seen miles and miles of coastline closed to clamming. Typically when the lobster industry is down, the commercial fishermen and whatnot clam to make ends meet, but this year it has been a double-whammy...cheap lobster and no clamming.

Now the algae bloom called red tide located off shore runs it's own course which cannot be dealt with, but what is happening this year certainly can. That is the run off from land upstream from the clam flats. The run-off from farms, fields and lawns all runs south in Maine and you guessed it...it lands on the clam flats that bloom with bacteria making the clam flats off limits to harvesting. At an estimated $2800 in revenue per acre to the community...the collective amount of loss is mind-blowing, I mean we are talking thousands of acres in closures this year.

Well the Maine soil and water conservation districts understand this issue and are committed to it. They are focusing on the hardest hit areas and a group has formed (Time and Tide) that is banded together to help stop this flow of bacteria. Now before we start blaming the farmer on this, you must realize that the vast majority of pollution causing this bacteria bloom is from homeowners. Only 12% comes from farms. We are targeting farms with government conservation programs and its helping, but the other 70% is coming from homeowners, with the remaining from industrialization.

What happens is, for every inch of rain we get, a predicted amount of run-off occurs. With it a known amount of bacteria will also come down river so x amount of acres of clam flats are shut down to keep the food supply intact. Now this occurs no matter where you are. Even in Minnesota the water there eventually hits the coastline so it really affects everyone.

We should all ensure our septic system is properly designed, constructed and maintained. Running gray water out to daylight just does not cut it in 2009...you are hurting your neighbors literally by these practices. So is over fertilizing your lawn. If you feel compelled to fertilize, do about 75% of what the bag says as they over-state the amounts to get you to buy more product. A better approach is to soil test your lawn ($24 bucks) and then only fertilize to that limit. The same goes for gardens. Soil also carries a lot of bacteria, so if you see soil eroding on your driveway and other property...rest assured that it is contributing to clam diggers that cannot work. Stemming erosion is pretty simple, slow it down and it does not carry as much soil with it. There are numerous ways to do this and it is not overly expensive to do, but we need to get involved on the smallest of trickles.

(more)

What do y'all think about this article?

heirloom27 — Fri, 15 May 2009 14:17:28 GMT

Saw this in the New Haven Independent....

It was an unintentional but friendly battle of the lawnmowers, two houses apart on Livingston Street on a sparkling, birdsong-filled spring day.
On one lawn was Dave Taddei, with his helper and his $100,000 worth of equipment — ride-on mowers, trimmers, blowers, rakes.
On the other was Natalie Coe, with her 30-pound non-motorized reel mower and a bag for collecting the sticks — even tiny ones — that can stop a mower like that cold.
The two happened to be mowing lawns in East Rock at the same time Wednesday, with two very different sets of machinery.

http://www.newhavenindependent.org/archives/2009/05/mowing_green.php