Salish Seeds .....Local Community Seed Project

The Salish Seed Guild has started a remarkable project toward local food security. We are collectively growing out useful seed for home gardeners that are selected for and adapting to Whatcom County.  We knew at the beginning of the pandemic that it was well time to take our community's sustainability seriously. While we had been organizing Bellingham's community seed swap for years, much of the seed shared was last year's left overs from…

An Interview with Larry Korn, Author of One-Straw Revolutionary

May 4th 2016

By: David Pike

Since The One-Straw Revolution was published in 1978 it has been translated into more than 25 languages and sold over one million copies worldwide. In “One-Straw” as the book has been dubbed, Mr. Masanobu Fukuoka presented an entirely new approach to agriculture which he called “natural farming.” After 25 years of research and trials he demonstrated he could achieve yields…

Succession came to pass on July 1^st, ten weeks ago. A-1 Builders, Inc. is now A-1 Builders, A Design/Build, Worker-Owned Cooperative!  My former employees are now my bosses! For the time being I’m helping the new team deal with marketing on a part time basis; my hours worked per week since July 1^st has been on the order of working 1/4 hour a week!  Can’t really call this ‘part time’; I think I’ll call it ‘microscopic time’.

Perhaps in other…

I live in an all-electric home and when the power grid is out we have nothing. No water, no sewer, lights, cooking or anything else. I will have a generator to run sparingly to keep the freezer and the refrigerator going. Our home is a passive solar home with great insulation.

If the Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake happens, the grid could be out for a year. During that time, with the well pump not working, we will need a source of clean fresh water.

A slow sand filter, made…

All too often I’ll run into another hiker and the following conversation ensues:

“How many nights are you staying out?”

“None… I hope. We’re on a day hike.”

“Then why are you carrying so large a pack?

Allow me to unpack my answer… an answer that addresses situations well beyond wilderness travel. An answer that extends into my settled, civilized life as well.  Why, at home, are Cindi and I prepared for a major natural or…