A few years ago, I picked up beekeeping as a hobby. To be honest, I’m not a very good beekeeper. Mostly, the bees keep themselves. The honeybees, along with myriad native insects and even a few bird species, are critical partners in helping trees reproduce. In general, the trees produce a ...

I am often asked, “Can I graze cover crops?” The answer is yes, you can. Sometimes a label we give something pigeonholes it for a specific purpose, making it difficult to think about its use in other ways. When cover crops became a hot topic a few years ago, I tried to relabel them as ...

“What’s on your cup?” someone asked me. I showed him the sun safety decal. It featured a cartoon sun wearing a broad-brimmed hat and holding a bottle of sunscreen. I was hoping people would notice its colorful text: “Protect Your Skin.” We’ve been sharing these reminders in honor ...

“There was nothing for me to eat on the breakfast buffet, Julie.” “Remember, I have diabetes,” he added as I sat next to him at one of the tables. I had noticed the buffet was filled with sweet rolls and lacked high-protein options. “It was heavy on carbs,” I agreed. “I was ...

Three people contacted me over the last two weeks and inquired about victory gardens. At my age, I am not very trendy, but this wartime concept seems to be gaining traction in 2026. Victory gardens originated during World War I to encourage homeowners, schoolchildren and others to grow fresh ...

“How long is food OK in the fridge when the fridge goes out?” one of my friends asked me. Then he mentioned throwing away some summer sausage from a friend, along with most of the contents of his fridge. If I told you the source of the meat, his friend might find out he threw it. I will ...