Urban Land Scouts

Plants and Energy

2012-02-15T11:27:00.001-05:00

Knoxville Land Scout Liz sent me a link to this smart and attractive project by Jihyun Ryou: Saving Food From the Fridge. Her elegant designs address the specific needs of the plants and products we store without depending on an energy-intensive behemoth like a refrigerator. I especially like the looks of the Verticality of Root Vegetables shelf below -- although I'm imagining getting home from

Squirrel Death and Modern Anxiety

2012-02-13T14:31:00.001-05:00

One of the things that led me to create the Urban Land Scouts was thinking about the point where the DIY elements of sustainability push up against and get in the way of our modern desires and habits. The local and sustainable food movements are some of my favorite examples of this tension. As modern consumers we can enjoy a wide range of foods almost any time of year. If we seek to cut out some

Work it to Earn it : field books

2012-02-08T10:16:00.000-05:00

At our last ULS meeting there were three scouts with completed observation books. Yes! Below are examples from two of those observant scouts, Adan and Jennifer Akerman. In addition to being very nice people and enthusiastic scouts, the Akermans have a neat company called Akertoys. I think you can see some of their design sensibilities in these two examples from their field books. Above is

Join the Urban Land Scouts

2012-01-20T12:41:00.003-05:00

From now until May Three Rivers Market will be hosting Urban Land Scout workshops every other Saturday. You can view a complete list of the workshops and activities here. You must pre-register to attend and there is a small fee to cover the cost of materials ($4 for TRM member-owners, $5 for non-members). You can sign up at the store at the Customer Service desk or over the phone (865-525-2069)

Close Encounters of the First Kind

2012-01-17T10:45:00.000-05:00

This past Saturday was the first of ten Urban Land Scout workshops at Three Rivers Market. It was a great group of people: some familiar faces as well as new ones. We bound field journals and went for a brief and brisk walk around the neighborhood next to the co-op. After our walk we returned to work in the books noting some of the things we'd seen. Below is an image from my brother's field

Unexpected

2012-01-09T21:54:00.000-05:00

I love the things that are revealed in winter. And the variety of plants that thrive in it. Like moss and mushrooms. Here's an example of both growing in a Knoxville city park. Every time I see the bright green velvet fuzz of moss in winter I get inspired anew to try to cultivate it for my very own. Two years ago I found many recipes online for "moss graffiti" and tried to whip some up. The

Stewardship and Cooperation

2012-01-03T19:37:00.002-05:00

This month the Urban Land Scouts are beginning a series of ten meetings at Three Rivers Market, a cooperatively-owned natural foods grocery store in Knoxville, TN (and where I work as the Outreach and Marketing Director). We will be meeting every other week for the next five months to work on earning badges for each of the ten Urban Land Scout values. Three Rivers Market (TRM) and the surrounding

Go Forth

2011-12-07T09:08:00.001-05:00

Bright chickweed springs up in early spring and winter. As Urban Land Scouts, we build on a foundation of profound and active observation. All scouts must begin with this practice and we are wise if we return to it seasonally. The shift in temperature and daylight sends most plants into winter dormancy and allows for a new group of plants to appear. If you have not already earned your first

Plan Ahead

2011-11-17T09:00:00.000-05:00

This is an image of some beds I designed and planted for R. She is an experienced gardener and keeps a great variation of perennials in her yard. Although the beds are currently planted with annuals (shown here: mustard greens, broccoli, peas and bok choy), the long term goal is to establish edible and medicinal perennials like rhubarb, comfrey, fig, chives, and herbs. I hope the brick corner in

Done Toured

2011-11-14T22:32:00.001-05:00

We had a nice TOUR de PLANTS last Sunday. Here are some photos from the excursion. Thanks to all who came out.

PeCHAkuCHA

2011-11-07T20:30:00.000-05:00

If you live in the Knoxville area I hope you can join us for PechaKucha Night at Relix Theater (1208 N. Central St.) at 7 pm. The event is a series of super short presentations on a variety of topics. Each presenter is limited to twenty slides, each shown for twenty seconds. Come one, come all.

Let us go forth

2011-10-23T21:36:00.000-04:00

If you live in or near Knoxville, I want to invite you to join us for TOUR de PLANTS, a guided walking tour and introduction to Urban Land Scouts. We'll be meeting up on Sunday, November 6th at 2 pm in front of the Birdhouse, 800 N. 4th Ave. Hope to see you there.

Brevity

2011-10-17T12:08:00.000-04:00

On November 11th some time after 8 pm, I'll be presenting about the Urban Land Scouts for PechaKucha Night at Relix Variety Theatre (on N. Central St). PechaKucha originated in Japan "as an event for young designers to meet, network, and show their work in public" and has caught on in the US. I think of it like a speed-dating format for TED-talk-esque presentations. Each presenter may display 20

State of the Union

2011-10-03T14:30:00.001-04:00

I've been working today to mail a letter to all the donors and other supports who helped make the camps this summer possible. If you'd like to read a copy of the letter you can find it here.

Junior Urban Land Scouts!

2011-09-20T23:06:00.001-04:00

This text comes from the field book of one of the campers this summer. It is fall-ish now: cooler, crisper skies, shriveled leaves, and more rain. It is a fine time to be an Urban Land Scout-- there's still so much ripening and dropping these days. This week also marks the start of Junior Urban Land Scouts at the Boys and Girls Club. I am thrilled to get to work with them and eager to see

Seeds, Glorious Seeds

2011-09-18T17:54:00.000-04:00

Hallelujah, it's cooled off a little. If August is the month when novice gardeners fall off the wagon and let things go to seed, wither, and generally get out of control, let September be our month to creep back, prune, remove, and restore. It's also a good time to save seeds. Since most seeds need three things to grow (water, soil, sunlight/warmth) you'll want to store them in such a way as to

Plants in Portland

2011-09-01T04:00:00.000-04:00

These are photos of plants in a wooded park in Portland, OR. I had the privilege to walk there with an intrepid land scout, Romana Cohen, who introduced me to many new plants. Romana tells me the second and third photo are of Thimble Berry, which has a rich woody taste. Does anyone recognize the other plants shown here?

Kat - Levels 8 & 9

2011-08-17T13:20:00.001-04:00

Congratulations to Kat for earning her level 8 & 9 badges. Shown below are an image from her worm composter (started at one of our workshops at Beardsley Farm). These photos show Kat's perennial, horseradish, growing in two seasons in small raised beds in her yard. Well done Kat. Congratulations.

Urban Land Scout Camp and Mobile Loaves and Fishes

2011-08-09T10:47:00.002-04:00

Last week we wrapped up a four-day run of Urban Land Scout camp at Mobile Loaves and Fishes, a national food justice program with a branch in Nashville, TN. We had a great group of campers and counselors. Highlights included making lunch every day in MLF's beautifully equipped kitchen, starting seeds, and playing many many rounds of WAH!. We were especially grateful to have an air conditioned

Liz - Level 3

2011-07-26T11:34:00.000-04:00

Look what Liz grew from a seed ball in her yard! In the fall, Liz can save some of the seeds from the pumpkin to earn her Level 7 badge. Way to go.

Beardsley Camp Overview

2011-07-25T12:40:00.000-04:00

Urban Land Scout campers working on their books and buttons Hello, hello, Thanks to all our friends and sponsors for your generous support of Urban Land Scout camp. We met and surpassed our fundraising goal. Hooray! Not only were we able to offer camp for free to campers and parents, but we have enough money left over that we’ll be looking into similar fall programming as well. We had

Urban Land Scout Camp - Day 5

2011-07-23T13:59:00.000-04:00

Packaging seeds collected throughout the farm. You can see more images from Urban Land Scout Camp here.

Urban Land Scout Camp - Day 4

2011-07-21T23:14:00.000-04:00

Someone is super excited to add herbs to our lemonade popsicles.

Urban Land Scout Camp - Day 3

2011-07-20T23:12:00.000-04:00

Thanks to Jacob Stanley for introducing this game.

Urban Land Scout Camp - Day 2

2011-07-19T15:53:00.000-04:00

See more photos from Urban Land Scout camp on my flickr stream here.

Urban Land Scout Camp @ BCF - Day 1

2011-07-18T18:15:00.001-04:00

Filling watering cans from the rainwater catchment

Dissemination (or Ash's Food Musings, Level 6)

2011-07-11T09:56:00.001-04:00

At its base level, the Urban Land Scouts are about increasing awareness in the hopes that a change in awareness will lead to a change in behavior. One of the ways we do that is by talking about, writing about, and otherwise disseminating what we learn. In order to earn the Level 6 badge the Scout "shares information freely and teaches others what she knows." Most often this is in the form of a

Ash, Level 9

2011-07-04T22:44:00.000-04:00

Congratulations to Ash for "composting with the help of worms." See below a close-up shot from her vermicompost bin made at one of the CAC Beardsley Community Farm workshops. The shredded newspaper here is the worms' bedding. Keep it moist but not soggy and replace it as needed.

The Urban Land Scouts' Absurdist Challenge

2011-07-02T15:31:00.001-04:00

Dear Land Scouts, I hope you are all getting outdoors often and staying cool. From now until first frost we are issuing an Absurdist Challenge. Should you accept and complete the challenge and send in documentation of your efforts, you will earn the newest addition to the Urban Land Scouts badges: the dark blue one. Below is a schedule collage together by Chatham Monk and Justin Rice (both land

Grundy County

2011-06-27T15:59:00.000-04:00

While it is not especially urban, there are a great many people on the Cumberland Plateau who are clearly jedi-like land scouts. Like this woman, Jess Wilson. I got to go last week with my family and some friends to visit Jess and family at In Town Organics. They are cultivating 3+ acres and running the newly established Cumberland Farmers' Market. The farm is small but dense with green things

Matt, Level 5

2011-06-17T15:54:00.000-04:00

Matt stopped by the Carbon Shredding booth at Bonnaroo and joined our tribe of Urban Land Scouts. He followed up with these nice shots of his garden and claims he "can't wait to get out of the city." Welcome to Land Scouting, Matt.

More Evidence

2011-06-15T22:37:00.000-04:00

Small set of photos from our Bonnaroo adventures is available here.

Post Roo

2011-06-14T23:13:00.001-04:00

We signed up over 70 new Urban Land Scouts at Bonnaroo. We also saw great music, met wonderful people (including our Carbon Shredding booth-mates, the fine folks at Earth Givers), and were able to share ideas, experiences, and plants with some of the Bonnaroo patrons. For example, here's a lovely young scout forming seedbombs to rain down on medians and grass patches around her apartment.

Urban Land Scout Camp open to all Knox County students

2011-06-02T14:16:00.001-04:00

Hello, hello. We've decided to open up our applicant pool for Urban Land Scout Camp to any students living in Knox County who are going into 5th, 6th, or 7th grade. We are also extending our sign-up deadline to June 16th (the same day as the Camp Open House at Beardsley Farm). Please help us spread the word! You can download an application here to give to potential campers. You can also share

Bonnaroo and Beyond

2011-05-20T21:30:00.009-04:00

Oh, Stadri Emblems, what that everyone had your attentive and kind customer service! Wahoooooo y'all! Wahooooooooooooooo! New badges arrived today from Stadri Emblems, who I highly recommend, and I am thrilled to see them. They feel like currency. Looking forward to working with many Bonnaroo patrons and giving out many badges at the festival. Speaking of Bonnaroo, if you're going to be

Level 9 - Composting with the help of worms!

2011-05-18T10:28:00.000-04:00

Join us this Wednesday afternoon, 5-7 pm at CAC Beardsley Community Farm (1719 Reynolds St., behind the Cansler Boys and Girls Club) for our second to last free workshop. This week we'll tackle Level 9: Composting with the help of worms. We'll be joined by accomplished gardener and vermicomposter S. Elliott. She'll lead us all in making a home vermicomposter with a five-gallon bucket. Great!

Urban Land Scouts head to Bonnaroo

2011-05-17T21:24:00.002-04:00

Will we see you in Manchester, TN? Some strapping young Urban Land Scouts will be running the Victory Garden at Bonnaroo and helping out in the Carbon Shredders Booth. If you or folks you know are going to be at Bonnaroo, make a point of stopping by the garden or CS Booth to introduce yourself and earn a badge. Both the Victory Garden and Carbon Shredders can be found in Centeroo near the post

Fundraising for Urban Land Scout Camp!

2011-05-13T15:45:00.000-04:00

If you missed the earlier post on Urban Land Scout Camp, here's the skinny: We hope to host a free Urban Land Scout day camp at Beardsley Community Farm this summer. In order to make the camp free for our campers, we need to raise money now. That's where you come in. We're hosting a fundraiser this Sunday, May 15th, from 6-9 pm at the Birdhouse, 800 N. 4th Ave. We're asking for a suggested

Level 8 Workshop at Beardsley Farm

2011-05-10T07:44:00.000-04:00

This Wednesday we will gather at CAC Beardsley Community Farm to talk about perennial plants. Perennials are plants that return for at least two seasons. More on that later. Hope to see you out: Wednesday, May 11th, 5-7 pm, 1719 Reynolds St. (behind the Laura Cansler Boys and Girls Club). This fine poster by Rival Collective.

Urban Land Scout Camp!

2011-05-06T16:03:00.003-04:00

Great news! The Urban Land Scouts are partnering with Schools of Influence Education Foundation to present an exciting new project: Urban Land Scout Camp at CAC Beardsley Community Farm The camp will run Monday through Friday, from 7:30 am - 12:30 pm for three sessions (July 11th - 15th, July 18th - 22nd, and July 25th - 29th) and will be available at no cost to rising 5th, 6th, and 7th

Level 7: Collect and Save Seeds

2011-05-01T11:08:00.000-04:00

This week we will be joined by John Coykendall, gardener and seed saver extraordinaire.

27 April, Level 6 at CAC Beardsley Community Farm

2011-04-26T21:47:00.000-04:00

Come one, come all and join us this Wednesday, April 27th, from 5-7 pm at CAC Beardsley Community Farm for our sixth ULS Workshop: Blogging and Zines. We'll be joined by guest writers and artists, Dale Mackey and Beth Meadows. We will be making and documenting things. This lovely poster by Rival Collective.

Eat Nashville, Land Scouts!

2011-04-24T16:27:00.000-04:00

This map was made by some fine folks in Nashville, TN. If you live in Nashville and have something to add to it, email me and I can pass along your information to Brooke, one of the map's creators. View Larger Map

Secret Garden

2011-04-18T23:39:00.001-04:00

My brother took photos of this great terraced garden in East Knoxville. I'd say this could earn someone a Level Three and Level Five badge. Maybe some others. Onward and upward; work with what you've got.

Level 5 Workshop: cultivating

2011-04-18T00:00:00.001-04:00

This coming Wednesday, April 20th, 5-7 pm at CAC Beardsley Community Farm, 1719 Reynolds St., behind the Cansler Boys and Girls Club. Wear closed toe shoes and dress for the weather. If you have containers for small plant starts, please bring those too.

Find Good Teachers

2011-04-16T12:58:00.001-04:00

Jeff Ross talks plants with the Urban Land Scouts at CAC Beardsley Community Farm. We had a great visitor to last week's workshop, Jeff Ross, the head gardener at Blackberry Farm. Jeff strolled around Beardsley with two dozen eager, note-taking Urban Land Scouts and talked about various edible plants in the landscape, among them: honeysuckle, mahonia (aka: oregon grape holly), dandelions, day

Ash: Level 3

2011-04-16T11:58:00.001-04:00

Congratulations to Ash for earning her Level Three badge. Well done. Ash also gets points for near perfect attendance to the Urban Land Scout workshops at Beardsley.

Level 4

2011-04-09T19:49:00.000-04:00

The Urban Land Scout is fed by the land in which she lives. This Wednesday, April 13th, 5-7 pm, at CAC Beardsley Community Farm we'll work on earning our Level 4 badges. The workshops are free. Beardsley Farm is at 1719 Reynolds St., behind the Cansler Boys and Girls Club. Wear closed toe shoes and dress to be outside, rain or shine.

Seed Bombing - A Video!

2011-04-03T23:46:00.005-04:00

Wahoo. We have here at Urban Land Scout HQ our very first video documentation. Not only did Stephanie and Michael email their evidence in scant days after the HOMEGROWN show at Fluorescent, they shot a video! Wooo. Let's hear it for contemporary media. Well done, young scouts. Go forth rejoicing and gently watering your bombs. Keep us posted on how they do.

Spring Mapping

2011-04-02T11:12:00.000-04:00

At the Level 2 workshop last week we walked around Knoxville College and noted some edible perennials for the Urban Land Scouts map. Mapping is the second step in Urban Land Scout-dom and a natural compliment to the practice of observation. Now is a great time to wander your neighborhood (and hopefully well beyond it) to consider what's growing, what's not, and what could. Many area fruit trees (

Guest Post: Stewardship and Veganism

2011-03-29T21:59:00.002-04:00

Wahoo. The Metropulse's "Fearless Foodie", Rose Kennedy, blogged about the weekly workshops at Beardsley. Thanks Fearless Foodie. I will be pleased if we can get even 1/8th of the folks who read the Metropulse each week to come out for a workshop. In thinking about the expanding coverage of this project I am reminded that at its heart is a question of "what can we do when we are told we must

Level Two: Mapping

2011-03-29T21:01:00.005-04:00

Urban Land Scouts, tomorrow is the second FREE workshop at CAC Beardsley Community Farm and we're going to be...MAPPING! Bring the whole family. Or people you wish were your family. We'll meet rain or shine, 5-7 pm, 1719 Reynolds St. (behind the Cansler Boys and Girls Club). Wear closed toe shoes and dress for the weather. Did I mention yet how much I love these posters by Rival Collective?

Workshop Schedule

2011-03-26T20:23:00.004-04:00

Below is a listing of the upcoming workshops at CAC Beardsley Community Farm. If you live in the Knoxville area, I hope you'll come out to one. Email passage (at) urbanlandscouts (dot) com with questions. All workshops are on Wednesday from 5-7 pm at CAC Beardsley Community Farm (1719 Reynolds St., behind the Cansler Boys and Girls Club). All workshops are free and will meet no matter what the

Fiona McAnally

2011-03-25T17:22:00.000-04:00

This marks the first in what I hope will be an ongoing series of informal profiles of people whose work closely parallels and compliments the ideas of the Urban Land Scouts. Without further ado I would like to introduce Fiona McAnally. Fiona is currently pursuing her masters in Public Horticulture at the University of Tennessee after working stints with AC Entertainment, the Knoxville Visitors

Urban Land Scouts at Beardsley Community Farm

2011-03-22T17:42:00.005-04:00

This Wednesday, March 23rd, from 5-7 pm, we will begin the first of ten FREE Urban Land Scout workshops at CAC Beardsley Community Farm (1719 Reynolds St. behind the Cansler Boys and Girls Club). If you live in Knoxville, please come join us. If you don't live in Knoxville, you can host your own workshops. Please contact me if you'd like help planning. Otherwise, read up on the levels and tasks

Bran Bombs + Grows

2011-03-21T20:10:00.000-04:00

Beautiful peppers and what looks like purple basil. Bran is a very urban Urban Land Scout. Here are photos of his vegetables and his deposited seed bomb (in the planters in front of the beautiful Medical Arts Building in downtown Knoxville). Congratulations to Bran for earning his Level 3 and 5 badges. Not only does Bran practice good stewardship in town, he's an active part of the arts and

Level 5: Cultivation

2011-03-20T12:16:00.000-04:00

The Raeses (the Matt half of which is show here) are inspiring Urban Land Scouts and radical homemakers. You can read about their canning, cooking, and philosophical musings on their blog Food, Literature, Philosophy. Not only do the Raeses maintain one of the more healthy and engaging vegan diets I've ever witnessed, they grow and preserve a lot of their own food. Kat Raese taught a great series

A Large Worm

2011-03-16T21:16:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I saw one of the largest worms I have ever seen in person. Brave Urban Land Scout that I am, I immediately turned to my friend and said, "You pick it up." She tried and the worm went into spectacularly muscular spasms and wriggled out of her hands. Then it slithered away into the grass. Very quickly. I snapped the photo below with my fingers for scale. It looked bigger in person. Does

Balance?

2011-03-05T12:20:00.002-05:00

Here's a fine (and slightly outdated) infographic showing the way our diets are guided by subsidies.

The Gluttony of Lawns

2011-03-02T21:36:00.008-05:00

Image via MoMa I've posted before about the beautiful didactic propaganda posters of the World Wars, but the language of this one (via MoMA's Counter Space: the new kitchen) speaks to my Urban Land Scout-ness. EVERY available piece of land? Surely not every one? Interstate margins and medians? Too dangerous and hard to access, not to mention the particulate matter generated by tens of thousands

Congratulations Annie and child!

2011-02-24T19:41:00.000-05:00

Annie and her daughter, both accomplished Urban Land Scouts, sent in this photo of a worm Annie thinks might have come from the Urban Land Scouts debut last April. Hooray for fat worms.

Level One Workshop

2011-02-23T23:07:00.000-05:00

Poster for the first of ten upcoming Urban Land Scout workshops at CAC Beardsley Community Farm. Every Wednesday, from 5-7 pm for ten weeks beginning on March 23rd and ending May 25th. Come one, come all. These images thanks to Rival Collective.

Keeping Up

2011-02-18T20:30:00.005-05:00

Behold, a calendar of urban stewardship-related events in Knoxville. Please re-post and email generously to East Tennesseans and others. Email or comment with events, edits, etc. Spring/Early Summer2011 Urban Stewardship Events in Knoxville This document is current as of Feb. 18, 2011 and will be updated as events are published.Want to add or edit an event? Email passage@urbanlandscouts.com.

Scavenging

2011-02-12T11:57:00.000-05:00

After seeing Once Upon a Time in Knoxville, a documentary about South Knoxvillian junk-visionary Rollo, my friends and I discussed some of the sweeping statements he made about the state of American culture and the future of the-lifestyles-to-which-we-have-become-accustomed. Rollo is an urban homesteader (on 7 acres in the city...which gives you insight into the kind of urban that we can enjoy in

just ripe

2011-02-09T18:41:00.000-05:00

just ripe is a worker-owned food cooperative that's been selling delicious and seasonal prepared food at the Knoxville Farmers' Market on Market Square for over a year now. They're about to take the big step of moving from charming-but-transient-gypsy-caravan to a brick and mortar store in the Daylight Building in downtown Knoxville. As you might imagine, this is an expensive project. In the

Reminder: Seed Swap tomorrow

2011-02-05T15:53:00.001-05:00

I would like to meet this man.

2011-01-23T20:19:00.002-05:00

This is Gerald Smith. Mr. Smith teaches Rural Religion at the University of the South, Sewanee. He claims not to have "swapped a piece of paper with students for more than ten years" after committing in 1994 to maintain a paperless classroom. He is clearly a fine Urban Land Scout. Let us all send him Valentine's Day cards inviting him to visit Knoxville. UPDATE: I'd originally linked to this

In Praise of House Plants

2011-01-12T22:54:00.007-05:00

It seems that a lot of being successful growing things in the garden has to do with observing the plants often. House plants are good training for that. I like the hardy office varieties that can thrive in low light and survive neglect. I also like anything that blooms in winter (like Paperwhites or the more muscular Amarylis, both of whom are shown here and neither of which are doing well

Winter Blossom

2011-01-10T15:27:00.000-05:00

Coneflower with crown of snow.

Know How

2011-01-08T18:11:00.000-05:00

Above is a scan of my favorite calendar of all time (and a bag of butterfly weed seeds to make sure I'm not reproducing the calendar's information). The calendar is called The Perpetual Garden Guide: What to do each month in the East Tennessee Valley. Author Connie Whitehead of Planted Earth Farms has been using "organic methods since 1985" and lays out in categories like Harvest, Start Indoors,

Gleaning and Resistance

2011-01-02T20:50:00.003-05:00

There is a stout history in the US and in Western Art (more generally) of romanticizing agricultural or "peasant" labor. A prime example is Millet's painting The Gleaners (shown here extra pixelated for your pleasure). The image originally drew French attention to the backbreaking labor of scavenging for agrarian leftovers. Once imported to the United States, it became shorthand for pastoral

New Habits

2010-12-30T21:31:00.000-05:00

Urban Land Scouts! Let us welcome the year 2011. Let's resolve to be better, kinder, faster, smarter, and more efficient-but-still-balanced. Let us embrace the stillness of the winter landscape, take long walks in our neighborhoods, and watch funny videos in the blessed-warm-comfort of our homes. Amen.

Winter Sowing for the Solstice

2010-12-19T17:34:00.001-05:00

In the midst of the cold weather, the not-being-outside-as-much, and the holidays I am eager for small chores that pertain to the garden and the land. This is a good time for Urban Land Scouts to prune trees and shrubs as well as to cut back the dead growth of perennial flowers (like sedum, butterfly bush, any of the rudbeckia/daisy family, and others). Beginning in early spring many people will

Iteration

2010-12-05T10:59:00.000-05:00

About a year ago I received an email regarding a woman, Heather Buechler, who was considering applying to UT for grad school. She had written the school explaining her interest in an interdisciplinary practice that would allow her to combine independent research in the realms of "food and culture studies" with art making. I swooned. The language she used very concisely summed up the things I'd

Lie Fallow

2010-11-26T21:34:00.000-05:00

It's finally cold in East Tennessee. There was small spitting snow flying around today while we uncovered the vegetables at Beardsley. Everything that remains in our garden beds is slowing, withering, fading, and lessening (with the exception of bok choy and cabbage). This time of year inspires me to wear out seed catalogs scheming of things to plant in spring. Despite longing for warm weather

Personal History

2010-11-22T11:25:00.001-05:00

The November 22, 2010 issue of the New Yorker is the food issue and includes a fine essay by Jane Kramer about root vegetables. (You read the abstract here.) Her piece, which the magazine files under "Personal History" is a great example of how our habits are determined by cultural and personal experiences as much as, if not more so than, by the logic of what is good for us.This idea of culture

Local Food and Criticism

2010-11-10T22:08:00.001-05:00

This article addresses and refutes the idea of local food being "elite." As with many articles on the internet today, there is healthy dialogue in the comments extending and arguing the author's points. While I am glad to read a piece that tackles the charge of local food elitism, I question her assertion "that the accusation that local food is elitist is actually a product of the industrial

Observing

2010-11-09T20:48:00.000-05:00

What abundance. Hard to imagine it now that the weather has cooled so much.Image from Urban Land Scout, Shannon.

Seed Bombing

2010-11-08T17:51:00.000-05:00

This lovely image of seed bomb use comes from Shannon, an advanced level scout and urban gardener. She's also very handy with the Adobe Suite.Take note that most of the successful seed bombs were mowed within weeks. The most successful plants will be in areas that are never mowed or that can be protected somehow.Congratulations Shannon.

West Coast Stewards

2010-10-26T20:13:00.000-04:00

Hot damn y'all. Welcome the Southern California chapter of the Urban Land Scouts (also known as designer Gabriel Hargrove...be sure to check out his gorgeous drawings here).You can lust after the long growing season and keep up with our fraternal tribe here: http://ulssocal.blogspot.com/. Below are some Level One observations of the land there:Traveling by bicycle along one of the greenway

Art Works

2010-10-17T17:18:00.000-04:00

This TED talk by Natalie Jeremijenko is an excellent example of using art, specifically art that mimics the authority of preexisting institutions, to re-script cultural behaviors. Jeremijenko describes the environmental crisis as one of agency, and I will be adopting that language to describe what I hope the Urban Land Scouts can do: help create agency. I would like to see one of the

Level One | Molly

2010-10-05T18:58:00.000-04:00

This comes from Molly, the first Urban Land Scout in Chicago, and earns her a shiny new(ish) Level 1 badge.I work on Navy Pier in Chicago every day. There are lots and lots of birds around the pier: Canadian Geese and seagulls of course, but I've also seen barn swallows, red-wing blackbirds, mallards, common sparrows, and a whole bunch of other "sea" birds I can't identify. A few weeks ago,

Raise the Roots

2010-10-04T11:34:00.001-04:00

I am excited to announce "Raise the Roots: A dinner to celebrate and support CAC Beardsley Community Farm." This fundraising dinner will be hosted by the Tomato Head on Market Square, Monday evening, November 22nd, from 6-9 pm. Tickets are $25 and available for purchase here or by clicking the button below. Dinner will be prepared by Tomato Head owner, Mahasti Vafaie, and Maryville Tomato Head

Frame Raising

2010-09-30T18:34:00.000-04:00

Chad and Tracie Hellwinkel could be considered the god parents of Urban Land Scouting. Both are very active in promoting and demonstrating sustainable urban agriculture in Knoxville. Chad started the Knoxville Permaculture Guild (on ning.com) and Tracie publishes The Agrarian Urbanites, a former-newsletter-turned-blog about gardening in the city. The following values are listed on the website for

By Which We Are Fed

2010-09-26T16:19:00.000-04:00

This recipe comes from Kat Raese, Urban Land Scout of many talents, among them vegan baking. You don't have to publish your recipe to earn a Level 4 badge, but you do have to eat some food thing composed of mostly wild sourced ingredients.Vegan Vanilla Bean Cake with Wild Blackberry Filling and Lime "Buttercream" (portions of this recipe adapted from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World).Filling:

Save the Harvest

2010-09-21T22:02:00.000-04:00

Hear ye, hear ye, Urban Land Scouts. Soon the weather will grow cold. Or not soon, but eventually it will. In that cold season we will all miss things like tank tops, sweating all the time for no good reason, mosquitos, and...summer vegetables.While it's true we of the developed world can buy just about any vegetable any time of year, the produce available to us in January does not compare in

Grew His Own

2010-09-12T11:00:00.000-04:00

Congratulations to one of the more active Urban Land Scouts in all of East Tennessee. That's a fine looking eggplant. Hope it tasted good too. We'll be putting Level 5 patches in the mail to him (and his support crew) soon.

Young Scouts

2010-08-29T11:48:00.000-04:00

Congratulations to these young scouts for earning their Level Seven badges for saving and planting seeds and their Level Nine badges for composting with worms. We wish them continued success in becoming good stewards.

Spinning Honey at Beardsley Farm

2010-08-28T16:57:00.000-04:00

.I've just started a position at Beardsley Community Farm through CAC/Americorp and will be working on there for the next ten months. Knoxville has a great resource in Beardsley. It is a twelve-year-old urban teaching farm on the site of the former Beardsley Junior High in Mechanicsville. Volunteer workers grow fruit, vegetables, herbs, flowers, and help tend six chickens and four bee hives. The

1950s Czechoslovakian Matchboxes

2010-08-03T15:40:00.001-04:00

Zrno kvalitně ošetříme a uskladníme, originally uploaded by davidgeorgepearson.A friend tipped me off to these agriculturally themed matchboxes from Czechoslovakian circa 1950ish. They're a great example of the optimism surrounding the integration of agriculture and industry.You can see more of the matchboxes at graphic designer, David Pearson's flickr stream here.

Propagation and Propaganda

2010-07-29T10:29:00.000-04:00

The tech-savvy folks at UT's Pendergrass Library on the Ag. Campus posted a great article to their twitter feed about a series of World War era food posters currently on display at the National Agricultural Library.You can read about the exhibit here:http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2010/07/world-war-era-food-posters-on-display-at-national-ag-library/and here:http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/food/

Foraging Ahead

2010-07-26T09:39:00.000-04:00

Two friends sent me this article on eating wild edibles.It ends with a recipes for Lambsquarters And Goat Cheese Omelet, Dandelion Greens With Bacon And Sherry Vinegar and Stinging Nettle Ravioli.I've also been enjoying the blog and flickr feed of Sarah Louise Wainwright (AKA skycarrots), a UK citizen and artist with an interest in wild foraging.

Mark Bittman on Meat

2010-07-21T15:46:00.000-04:00

I need to hear this argument about once-a-month to remind me...Just because you can (eat meat) doesn't mean you should. Yes, it is delicious. Yes, it can be a great source of essential nutrients and calories. But can we seriously be complicit in a non-essential system that we know to be destructive, inhuman, and unjust?

Planning Ahead

2010-07-20T09:20:00.000-04:00

The Urban Land Scouts have not received much of my attention since the end of May, but they remain at the top of my thoughts. This season is the time for harvesting tomatoes, squash, eggplant, and corn (if you're lucky). It's also a good time to be planning ahead for fall crops and events.To that end, I would like to know what you Scouts would like to do. Here are some of the events I'm thinking

Blueberries and Freedom

2010-06-29T12:03:00.000-04:00

Sadly, some of the blueberry plants we put in during last November's "Tour de Plants" did not make it through the season. Perhaps they weren't mulched well enough to stand out to the folks who mow at UT.For those of you who have plants bearing fruit-- congratulations. Blueberries to celebrate American Independence. In the spirit of independence...and the various ways in which we interpret that

Great Minds

2010-06-02T15:25:00.000-04:00

The folks at Greenaid are taking seed bombing and distribution to a new and exquisitely designed level. I continue to remain skeptical about the germination rates of seed bombs, but believe in the act as one of poetic and educational importance. Maybe we could get a machine in Knoxville?I am especially impressed with their use of google maps. They've got one noting the location of the machines,

Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Eats

2010-05-14T14:48:00.000-04:00

The Christian Science Monitor has a thorough article about the promises of purchasing carbon-offsets: most significantly, they do not make quantifiable differences and in some cases are causing more harm than good. This seems suspiciously like the Catholic Church's 16th-century sale of indulgences: those who have money to purchase them don't have to suffer mentally as much.The Urban Land Scouts

In the Thick of It

2010-05-04T21:35:00.000-04:00

A friend pointed me to this small tempest over the USDA's "Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food" program. Susan Schneider, the blog's author, does a good job picking apart the language used by Senators in their complaint. For the record, the Senators are: Saxby Chambliss (R-Georgia, Ranking Minority member of the Senate Agriculture Committee), John McCain (R-Arizona) and Pat Roberts (R-Kansas). Their

Earning Patches

2010-05-03T11:27:00.000-04:00

The gallery display of the Urban Land Scouts is now closed, but the project continues in the hands of the fifty or so people who signed up. I remain curious about follow through-- I estimate about 30% of the signees will actually send in documentation to earn their badges. We shall see.One such Scout is Jessie Van der Laan, who blogged about the project and her progress. This earns her the Level

Good Help

2010-04-28T14:15:00.000-04:00

One of the nice things about this project is that it puts me in touch with so many great people. I owe tremendous thanks to Michael Burke, the boss lady at Tomato Head, Zach Stanley and Kent Priestly at Stanley's Greenhouse, Todd Witcher of Parrott Farms, Kat Campbell-Bike, my darling grandmother Julie Webb, my parents Russell and Susie, and my ever patient husband, Stephen. This is not to