Nelson Mandela – Prisoner, Rooftop Food Gardener

“A garden was one of the few things in prison that one could control. To plant a seed, watch it grow, to tend it and then harvest it, offered a simple but enduring satisfaction. The sense of being the custodian of this small patch of earth offered a taste of freedom..."

Via City Farmer.

How to Raise Chickens Without Buying Grain

I've had chickens for 3 years and have always fed them "chicken" feed, which isn't all that cheap, or practical.

I like the solution in the video but wonder how I could adapt it to my urban setting.

HoshiGaki

I saw this post on Hoshigaki by our friends at Root Simple and knew what I wanted to do when I found persimmons at our local veg market -- I bought 6 and started making it (them?).

The left and right ones in the top row are a little mushy. Not sure if they're going to dry properly.

This Instructable has even more detailed, well, instructions.

Do It Yourself

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Making End of Season Fermented Vegetables

Using basil and tiny eggplants from my rooftop, along with green plum tomatoes and grape leaves from the community garden, I'm trying Sandy Katz's recipe from his book "Wild Fermentation".

Clockwise, starting from the upper left corner: Dill seeds and black pepper, green plum tomatoes and baby Green Thai and Little Fingers eggplant. Garlic, grape leaves, basil and one little hot pepper.

All packed in a plastic container. Not having a glass, or ceramic, crock, Katz's advice was to use a "food grade" plastic container.

The brine poured in and the veggies held under with a plate. I'll check for mold, skimming it off the surface if present, and wait 1-4 weeks for them to cure at room temperature.

"Symphony of the Soil"

Although I have seen a number of very good documentaries on organic farming, “Symphony of the Soil” is the first to ground them (excuse me for the bad pun) in soil chemistry. The first half of the film is a guided tour of various locales by some of the world’s leading soil chemists, ranging from fjords to rain forests, with an emphasis on how soil becomes fertile. Like most people, I suppose, the idea of listening to a scientist explain the differences between different kinds of soil might seem dry as dust (excuse me for another bad pun) but it is almost impossible not to be swept along by their passion. In some ways the film is a throwback to the classic Disney nature films of the 1950s like “The Living Desert”. If you loved those films as a kid, you will find “Symphony of the Soil” impossible to resist. If you have kids, this is the quintessential family film.

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"Today"

TEY-Today Trailer for US release.. from Guetty Felin on Vimeo.
Saul Williams' comeback to cinema is in the form of a beautiful, sensual, humane tale, directed by Alain Gomis.

In a village outside Dakar, the gods – or the stars, or destiny, have spoken: Satché must die by the end of the day. Until nightfall, the film follows him making his goodbyes to those around him – his family, his friends, his lover, his children, his wife. Initially fêted by his community with an enthusiasm tainted by melancholy, Satché, the one chosen to disappear, soon finds himself set apart from those closest to him, in beautiful scenes that seek to show those elements of friendship, desire, sadness, affection and anger that are usually left unsaid.

Also staring Djolof Mbengue, Anisia Uzeyman and Aîsa Maîga