Keeping your compost pile going during the summer is a cinch; there's lots of natural sunlight and heat to warm up the organic material and keep the microbes going strong. During the winter, however, it takes a little extra effort to keep your compost going. As the temperatures drop, the bacteria that break down your compost material become less active, and the decomposition process slows to a crawl.

The good news is that you compost pile generates a bit of heat on its own, so if you can keep it insulated, the center of the pile will stay warm enough to continue breaking down the material effectively. The outside will likely stop decomposing, but that outer shell will help insulate the inside for now, and as soon as the warm weather comes it will resume actively composting once more.

But how do you keep the center of the pile warm and keep your compost pile from becoming a cold, hard rock in the winter? It's all about keeping your pile insulated, adding the right kind of compost at the right times, and keeping the moisture level just right. Here we'll teach you how to prepare your compost for the coldest parts of the year and keep it going all winter long.

Balance Your Winter Compost Ingredients

Usually during the spring and summer you are supposed to use equal parts “green” and “brown” organic matter in your compost bin. Green matter is the food scraps you save from your kitchen, while brown matter is the yard waste (dead leaves, straw, and other plant debris) that you collect mainly in the fall.

During the winter, you will actually want to put a higher ratio of brown material in your compost pile, which gives you a great use for all those leaves you raked up during the autumn. You can set the leaves aside in a dry spot to add to your compost heap each time you add extra green matter in, to make sure you keep the right brown/green matter ratio all winter.

Cutting up your organic matter into small pieces before adding it to your bin or pile will also help keep the decomposition going through the cold season. The microbes in your compost can digest small pieces more easily, so shredding your compost ingredients can really speed up the process.

Insulate Your Compost Pile Over Winter

If your compost pile gets to cold during the winter, it could stop all the activity of the microbes that are responsible for breaking down the material. You need to keep the pile warm in order to keep the activity going. Often simply moving your compost pile or bin to a warm, sunny area of your yard can be enough to keep it actively composting. Digging a hole for your compost pile can also help insulate it from winter winds and benefit from the shored warmth in the ground.

The simplest way to keep the active part of your compost insulated is to insulate it with brown matter. Simply keep the active, green matter in the center of your compost pile and surround it with brown matter like dry leaves, straw, or even cardboard. Often times this plus a sunny location is enough to keep the center warm and active through the winter. If it needs extra insulation you can build a small insulating shelter around the pile or stacking straw bales around your compost pile or bin.

Shelter Your Compost

Especially when your compost is already struggling to stay active in the cold, it's important to protect it from the rain and snow. If your pile gets too moist (or too dry), microbe activity will slow or stop altogether. This is an issue that mainly affects ground compost piles, and it can be solved by keeping it covered with a tarp to shelter it from rain, sleet, and snow. And if you notice it getting too dry, just add a little water (as long as it's not just going to freeze and cool your compost further!)

If you use a sealed compost bin or tumbler, then your compost is already sheltered from water and you will only have to worry about excess moisture if it is very humid or your compost ingredient ratio is incorrect. In either case, adding extra carbon materials, like dry leaves, can help absorb excess moisture in a compost bin or pile.

Indoor Composting

If you want to skip the hassle of dealing with the seasonal changes and inconvenience that comes with outdoor composting, you could try one of a couple indoor composting methods. You can buy or build an insulated, sealed composter or even a worm composter to use in your garage or indoors.

Visit Cornell Composting to learn more about vermiculture, the art of worm composting.

Check out some these other useful winter composting resources:

• How to keep your compost active during the winter
• Tips for winter composting

Image credit: steaming compost pile by Andrew Dunn

DIY Home Canning: Putting Food By

 

For the final post in our series on putting food by, we're going to teach you how to make your very own homemade canned goods! If you'd like to learn about more food preservation techniques, check out our post on making dried fruits and veggies and our guide for freezing produce.

You've probably noticed that canned food you get from the grocery store is packed with tons of extra salt, sugar, and preservatives. But making your own sauces and canned produce at home gives you complete control over the quality of the ingredients and additives. Canning leftover produce from your garden or local farmer's market is a great way to save money on produce throughout the winter, and it's something anyone can learn to do. Canning can be a lot of work, but there's hardly anything more satisfying than filling up your pantry with homemade sauces, jellies, and canned produce.

This guide will introduce you to the basics of home canning including supplies, canning techniques, and how to ensure your canned goods won't spoil. You will need a few special supplies like canning tongs, but many recipes are simple enough to make at home without any expensive or unusual equipment. The peace of mind that comes with having plenty of nutritious food stocked up for your family is more than worth the time and effort it takes.

Necessary Canning Supplies

The basic supplies you will need for canning are as follows:

• Canning jars, lids, and rings (these usually all come together and you can find them at any major grocery or department store)
• Canning jar tongs (can be purchased online or at most supermarkets)
• Large pot with lid (must be large enough to cover the top of your canning jars by 2-3 inches)

These supplies are optional, but a good idea to have if you are canning a large amount of food:

• Cake stand (to keep the jars from touching the bottom of the pot)
  • As an alternative, you can place a layer of extra canning jar rings on the bottom of the pan to set your jars on
• Bubble tool & magnetic lid wand
  • As an alternative, you can simply use a skewer, rubber spatula, or other long, narrow tool to remove bubbles, and use tongs instead of a lid wand to remove lids from boiling water
• Wide-mouth funnel (to make pouring your food into the jars easier)
• Another large pot (to heat cans prior to filling them)

Most of these supplies are things you probably already have in your kitchen, but one thing you will need to purchase if you don't own one already is a pair of canning tongs. These tongs are specially designed to grip canning jars and you should not substitute them for any other kitchen tongs. Canning requires handling extremely hot, heavy glass jars, full of boiling liquid, so using anything except canning tongs can be dangerous. There's no reason to risk burning yourself or having a dropped jar explode glass and molten food all over your kitchen. Canning is simple enough to learn, but to be safe you need to have the proper tools and use caution when handling hot jars.

Water Bath Canning VS Pressure Canning

There are two different methods for canning: water bath canning and pressure canning. Which method you use depends on the type of food you want to can.

High-acid foods can be canned using a water bath, which is the method we will introduce you to in this blog post. You can use a water bath canner to process most fruits, pickled foods, jams, jellies, and fruit butters. Tomatoes can also be processed in a water bath canner if you make them slightly more acidic by adding extra lemon juice, citric acid, or vinegar.

Low-acid foods must be canned using a pressure canner. You can find these at most kitchen and appliance stores. Pressure canners require some extra knowledge to operate properly and take extra vigilance to keep the pressure constant and ensure that there's no risk of contamination. We recommend using a water bath canner first if you are just a beginner, and then moving on to pressure canning once you get the hang of it. You can learn more about pressure canning vs. water bath canning here. 

Filling Your Canning Jars

Once you have all your supplies, you'll want to wash them all thoroughly with hot, soapy water and set them aside on a clean surface. The most important part of canning is preventing bacteria growth and contamination so the food you can won't spoil, so it's very important to start with clean tools.

For the next step, you'll want to boil a large pot of water to process your cans in. It should be large enough to cover your canning jars with at least 2 inches of water. It should reach a full, rolling boil before you process your canned food.

Since most canning food recipes yield a hot mixture, you will want to warm up the jars before you pour in your mixture in order to remove any risk of them cracking or breaking due to the sudden temperature change. One way to do this is by boiling water in a second pan that's large enough to fit several jars into. You'll simply remove the lids and rings from your jars, place them all in the boiling water, and keep them there until you are ready to fill the jars with your recipe. Another way to do this is to wash your jars and lids in the dishwasher on heated dry and leave the dishwasher door closed so they stay warm until you're ready to use them.

At this point in the process, you should have your recipe or food that you want to can ready to go. If you need some good canning recipes, check out some of the links at the end of this post to find some awesome recipes, tips, and tricks.

When you're finally ready to pour your recipe, remove your jars from the dishwasher or boiling pot of water, pouring out any excess water. Then, using your funnel if you have one, pour your food straight into the jar, leaving up to about an inch of headspace at the top, depending on your recipe. Then put on the lids and rings.

When you're putting on the lids, make sure to take extra care and wipe any spilled food or residue off of the mouth of your jar. The flat, round jar lids have a ring of sealant on the bottom that contacts the jar and you will need to inspect each lid to make sure the sealant is complete and intact before you use it. Take care to line up that sealant with the mouth of the jar when you put it on, then screw the ring onto the top of the jar gently until it is “fingertip-tight,” but not too tight. Once all your jars are ready, it's time to process them in the water bath.

Processing Your Canning Jars

For water bath canning, processing your jars is the easiest part. Just lower your filled and lidded jars gently into your boiling water bath. Place the lid on top of your pot and set your timer for the correct processing time.

• Check out this guide for a list of the correct processing times for different fruits, veggies, and mixtures.
• If you live at a high altitude, you will need to adjust your processing time accordingly according to this chart.

After the processing time is up, carefully remove the jars with your canning tongs and place them on a folded towel (the jars will be very hot, so placing them on towels will prevent the jars from cracking or damaging your table surface). You will want to let them sit for about 24 hours to cool completely, and you should avoid moving them or touching the lids during this time, otherwise you could damage the perfect seal you worked so hard to make.

As the jars are cooling, you will hear popping sounds as the lids seal and “pop” into place. Before putting them away, check all the lids to make sure they formed a tight seal. You can usually tell because the lid gets “sucked in” a bit and will look concave on top of the jars. If any of the lids are not sealed on tight, discard the lid, replace it with a new one, and process it again in the water bath.

Are They Sealed, Sterile, and Safe?

Here's the thing about canning: it can be dangerous if you don't do it right. If you don't properly sterilize your jars and lids, process your jars for too short a time, or use a water bath canner for veggies and soups that require a pressure canner instead, you run the risk of contaminating your canned food with dangerous bacteria. That's why it's so important to pay attention to the details and follow directions carefully when canning.

This guide is meant to introduce you to the basics of canning, but before you take on a large or challenging canning project, you should follow an official canning guide. The Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving is a great one to use, and you can probably find a copy of this or other canning books at your local library. Or you can visit the USDA's Online Complete Guide to Home Canning for thorough instructions on all types of canning.

Here are a few more tips to make sure your home-canned goods are safe and sterile:

• Sanitize everything before using it! I know it was mentioned at the beginning, but this is an important step. Your canning tongs, bubble tool, your jar lids and rings... everything should be washed in hot, soapy water and/or boiled before it comes in contact with food.
• Never use a water bath to can veggies, soups, or other mixtures that require a pressure canner instead. A water bath will not process these low-acid foods at a high enough temperature to properly sanitize them, and they will likely be contaminated and spoil.
• Always inspect your canned food for signs of spoiling, like discoloration, mold, or an unusual smell, before eating it.
• Label your jars with the contents and the processing date so you can keep track of your canned goods and when they expire
• Botulism is a rare, but potentially deadly bacterial infection you can get from eating contaminated or spoiled canned goods. Make sure to take the proper precautions and follow a reputable canning guide to minimize your risk of contamination.

Now that you know the basics, it's time to get started! Check out these links for more home canning recipes, tips, and guides.

Useful Links:

• Amish Canning Recipes
• Ball's Online Canning Recipe List
• Ball's Water Bath Canning Guide
• Ball's Pressure Canning Guide
   

How to Dry Fruits And Veggies: Putting Food By

Image credit: Esin Ustun (top), Andrew Deacon (bottom left), Andre Karwath (both bottom right photos).

Drying Your Produce to Make it Last

Drying foods is one of the oldest and simplest ways to preserve produce. It's simple enough that almost anyone could do it with minimal cost or supplies, but it does take time, attention, and dedication to do correctly.

There are two main ways to dry foods: in an oven, or in the sun. Which method you use depends on the amount of time you have, supplies on hand, and weather conditions. Whatever way you do it, removing as much moisture as possible from fruits and veggies extends their shelf life by months, and it can be a delicious new way to enjoy local produce all winter long.

The reason drying works to preserve fruits and veggies is because bacteria and other microorganisms that cause produce to rot need a moist environment to grow. When you remove most of the water from the produce, most bacteria cannot grow inside it anymore. Also, the enzymes that cause fruits and veggies to become overripe and spoil become inactive in dry environments. That's why drying is such an easy and effective way to keep ripe fruit from decaying.

One last thing that makes drying great: dried fruits and veggies require significantly less space to store! If you're short on cabinet space or have a lot of extra produce to preserve, then dehydrating is the way to go. Depending on the type and water content of the produce, drying can reduce the weight of many fruits and veggies to 1/8^th of the original!

Preparing Your Fruits and Veggies for Drying

 

When preserving produce, you always want to start with the ripest, freshest, prettiest fruits and veggies you have. It's a common misconception that you start preserving produce that has already passed it's prime, but in reality, the opposite is true. If you don't start with ripe, firm, unblemished produce, then your end product won't last for very long, and probably won't taste very good either.

Chopping

The first step to prepare your food for drying is to cut it into smaller slices. The smaller and thinner the slices, the quicker they will dry.

Blanching

Almost all veggies, and some fruits, should be blanched before dehydrating. Blanching is a simple process where you briefly cook the food, then dunk it in cold water or ice. This heating-then-cooling process is necessary because it inactivates enzymes that cause the food to continue to ripen, which leads to the produce losing nutrients, color, taste, and texture. Blanching your produce before drying it will not only make it look and taste fresher when you take it out of storage, but it will also be more nutritious.

Vegetables to blanch: All of them!

Fruits to blanch: tomato, apples, peaches, pears, and other fruits that brown

Fruits to boil for 30 seconds before drying: berries with waxy coatings, like cranberries and blueberries (boiling them first allows the moisture to escape through their waxy skin when you dry them)

The basic blanching process is simple: First, you boil the chopped fruit or vegetables for a very brief time (exact times vary depending on the veggie). Then, you remove them from the boiling water and dunk them in a bowl of cold water to cool them down quickly. If you want, you can use steam instead of boiling water for some vegetables (this works best for broccoli, cauliflower, pumpkin, and squash).

For specific preparation and blanching instructions for different fruit and vegetable varieties, visit this guide and scroll down to page 14.

Sun-drying Food

 

The benefits of using sunlight to dry your food are many; it can be done with minimal, easily-available supplies, it won't heat up the inside of your home like an oven will, and it is more sustainable as it doesn't require any electricity. However, sun-drying produce can be challenging or impossible if the weather conditions aren't right. It doesn't work well if there is too much humidity, the temperature is too cool, or there's not enough sunlight.

The first step is laying out your cut pieces of fruits and veggies on screens. Make sure you only put them in one layer, with enough space for air to flow in between. The screens and spacing between pieces will allow the most amount of airflow around the produce as possible and speed up the drying process. Then you just need to find a warm, sunny place to dry them, or take them out to your solar desiccator (discussed further down below).

Keep out the Insects

One of the key points of sun-drying is protecting your drying fruits and veggies from insects and other contaminants outside. There are many ways to do this effectively, the most simple being to cover the produce carefully with a fine netting.

The best place to dry your produce outside is probably on a table in your backyard. To keep insects from climbing up onto the table, put each table leg in a can or bowl of water. Cover the table lightly with a screen or cheesecloth to keep flying insects away. You can suspend the screen over your food by placing a tall object in the center of the table, then draping the screen over the top.

If you are worried any insects touched your produce while drying outside, you can put it in the freezer for a few hours after you bring them inside to kill any insects or eggs that might have made it onto the food.

Weather Conditions

If you are not using a solar dehydrator, you also have to pay close attention to the temperature and humidity. To simply air-dry food in the sun, it should be a hot day above 85 degrees Fahrenheit, and the humidity should be below 60 percent.

Use a Solar Dehydrator: Perfect for Cold-Weather Sun-Drying

But what if the weather conditions aren't perfect, or you want a quicker, more efficient way to sun-dry your produce? That's what solar dehydrators are for. Solar dehydrators (or solar desiccators) are relatively simple to build and they make sun-drying large batches of fruits and veggies faster and easier. Even if it's not warm enough outside for basic sun-drying, a solar dehydrator can still get the job done.

Most solar dehydrators work by using a wide, flat box painted a dark color to absorb sunlight. This solar heat collector is connected to a box covered by a screen, which is where you place your food to dry. As the sun beats down on the dark inside of the solar-collecting box, it heats up the wood and the air inside, where it rises and heats up the box containing the food. It's a very simple and energy-efficient method that only takes up a small, sunny space in your yard, and they can be disassembled and reassembled for storage.

Build Your Own Solar Dehydrator:

• Here's a guide to making a simple solar dehydrator from cardboard boxes
• Here's a step-by-step tutorial for making a more durable, wooden solar dehydrator

How Long to Sun-Dry

You should leave fruits out in direct sunlight for 3-4 days to remove most of the water. Then move them into the shade to continue drying. They are done when the outsides are leathery and the texture is mostly dry.

Vegetables can be left in the direct sun for one or two days, but any longer than that and they are likely to get scorched. After 1-2 days in the sun, move veggies to the shade to continue drying for a few more days.

Remember to flip your fruits and veggies occasionally, at least once per day, to ensure that they dry evenly and quickly.

Oven Drying Fruits and Veggies

While oven-drying foods uses more energy and produces excess heat (which is not at all pleasant or efficient during the hottest months), it can dry foods faster, more evenly, and without danger of insects or other contaminants.

To oven dry your produce, begin with the same chopping and blanching preparation as you would for sun-drying. Then place your fruits and veggies in a single layer on baking trays. To speed up the process, you can lay them on a grate or drying rack set on top of a baking pan. This allows more airflow around the bottom of the produce, making it dry more quickly and evenly.

Set your oven at the lowest possible temperature, preferable around 150 degrees Fahrenheit. If you don't have small children or pets who could be injured, you can leave the oven door open 2-3 inches to allow even better airflow. Step it up even another notch by setting up a fan to blow across the gap in the oven door.

Let your fruits and vegetables dry in the oven for 4-8 hours until most of the moisture is gone. The exact length of time depends on the water content of the fruits and veggies you choose, and how thick the slices you cut them into are.

Storing Dried Foods

Once your fruits and veggies are fully dehydrated and ready, simply seal them in an airtight container. Ziploc or freezer bags work well, but reusable containers like tupperware or mason jars are best. Seal in your produce with as little air as possible, and they should stay good for about 6-12 months.

Now Go Out and Try It!

Now that you know the basics of drying produce, you should be ready to turn any leftover fruits and veggies that come your way into delicious dehydrated morsels. If you decide to take your food dehydrating to the next level by building a solar desiccator, we would love you to share your experiences (and photos!) on our Facebook Page or in the Voluntary Simplicity Forum.

To finish off, we'll leave you with some more detailed guides for drying certain types of produce, and some recipes for turning your dried fruits and veggies into delicious meals!

More Guides (and Recipes!) for Dehydrated Foods:

• How to Sun-dry and Oven-dry Tomatoes
• This is another detailed guide to oven drying and sun drying produce. It also contains specific instruction for preparing and drying all varieties of fruits and veggies.
• Tips and ideas for eating dried veggies
• A delicious collection of recipes using dried fruit
• Dried Fruit & Nut Granola Recipe 

How to Freeze Fruits and Vegetables: Putting Food By

Raspberries image credit epSos.de on Wikipedia.

No one likes buying fruits and veggies out of season—they're usually ugly, less tasty, and more expensive to boot. It might seem like you have no choice besides what the grocery store has in stock on any given day, but with a little thinking ahead, you can take control and eat quality produce year-round. All you have to do is preserve and store the fresh and healthy fruits and veggies you can get in peak season, in the summer and fall. When you stock up and take some time to preserve fresh and healthy local produce in the fall, you don't have to resort to buying stale, overpriced, and unsustainable produce shipped from the other side of the globe.

One common and effective method of preserving food is freezing. It sounds simple enough, but with a little extra knowledge you can be sure to get the freshest, tastiest frozen fruits and veggies possible every time. Learn these produce-freezing basics and you won't ever have to experience the woe of getting mushy, tasteless vegetables out of the freezer because you didn't know to blanch them before storing them away.

Produce Freezing Basics

For some veggies, all you have to do is clean them, chop them, and stick them in freezer-safe containers, and call it done. But many fruits and veggies require some brief cooking or preparation before storage. The most important thing to remember is that you must start with fresh, ripe, and carefully cleaned fruits and vegetables. If you are preparing foods to store away and want them to last, you don't want to start with under-ripe, over-ripe, or dirty produce.

Most of the time you will want to chop your fruit or vegetables into small pieces before freezing. However, some fruits and veggies do very well frozen whole.

Produce that freezes well whole: berries, bananas, tomatoes, corn, asparagus, beans, and chili peppers.

Produce you should chop before freezing: pineapple, mango, melon, peaches, nectarines, plums, cherries, apples, bell peppers, avocado, cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, peas, summer and winter squash

Lemon Juice

Many fruits and vegetables will turn brown after you cut them, and you don't want your frozen produce coming out discolored. To keep this from happening, you just have to dip them in a mixture of lemon juice and water, which will inactivate the enzymes that would cause them to turn brown.

Fruits and veggies that will turn brown: apples, bananas, peaches, nectarines, avocado, potatoes

Lemon Juice Solution Recipe: 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice per 4 cups water. Simply dunk your produce into a bowl of this mixture after chopping and then allow to dry.

Blanching Vegetables

Almost all veggies, and some fruits for cooking, should be blanched before storing them away in the freezer. Blanching is a simple process where you briefly cook the food, then dunk it in cold water or ice. This heating-then-cooling process works because it inactivates enzymes that cause the food to continue to ripen, which leads to the produce losing nutrients, color, taste, and texture. Blanching your produce before storing it in the freezer will make your produce more nutritious and look and taste fresher when you take it out of storage.

Vegetables to blanch: All veggies except for tomatoes, onions, potatoes, winter squash, and corn

Fruits to blanch: tomatoes, apples, peaches, pears to be used for cooking

The basic blanching process is simple: First, you boil the chopped fruit or vegetables for a very brief time (exact times vary depending on the veggie). Then, you remove them from the boiling water and dunk them in a bowl of cold water to cool them down quickly. If you want, you can use steam instead of boiling water for some vegetables (this works best for broccoli, cauliflower, pumpkin, and squash).

Look at this guide to blanching times for fruits and vegetables from National Center for Home Food Preservation to figure out the exact boiling times for specific fruits and veggies.

Storage

After you blanch your fruits and veggies, all you have to do is pat them dry to remove any excess moisture and then pack them into jars, freezer bags, or any freezer-safe container. We recommend re-usable containers like mason jars or tupperware. If you want to freeze a liquidy mixture like tomato sauce, you can safely freeze it in mason jars as long as you do it correctly. Pour the the sauce into jars leaving 1.5-2 inches of space at the top to allow the liquid to expand. Then loosely screw on the lids, and put them in the freezer. After about 24 hours, go back and screw the lids on tightly.

Fruits and vegetables frozen properly can keep for 6 months up to a year.

Bonus Freezing Tip: To keep the cut fruit and veggie pieces from sticking and freezing together, freeze them on cookie sheets. After blanching, simply spread out the slices on cookie sheets and put them in a freezer for a few hours. Then transfer them to jars or freezer bags, and the pieces will stay nice and separated instead of all freezing together into a difficult-to-handle block.

Final Bits

Now you have all the information you need to confidently freeze all sorts of fruits and vegetables for storage. This should be enough to get you started, but if you want to learn more, we found some more great articles and guides online.

Learn More about Freezing Fruits and Veggies:

• The National Center for Home Food Preservation has a wealth of resources for all kinds of food preservation methods
• 11 Secrets to Properly Freezing Produce
• In-depth Guide to Freezing Vegetables: specifically  tomatoes, green beans, pepper, summer squash, and corn
• More tips for saving energy with your freezer

Soon we will have guides on other ways to preserve and put food by, including sun-drying and canning! For now, we'll leave you with a few tips for saving energy with your freezer, so you can make freezing your food as cheap and sustainable as possible.

Tips for Saving Energy With Your Freezer:

• Pay attention to the temperature setting: Keep the temperature at 0 degrees Fahrenheit, and no cooler. If you don't have an exact temperature setting, you will probably have to adjust your freezer to run cooler during the summer, but don't forget to turn it back up during the winter months.
• Keep your freezer in a cool, temperature-controlled place: It's best to keep your freezer inside, where the temperature will remain relatively cool and stable. If you keep your freezer outside or in the garage, it will have to work a lot harder when it's warm outside.
• Let air circulate behind your freezer: Make sure your freezer isn't pushed up against the wall, and instead leave at least a few inches of space behind it. This allows air to circulate and pull away the hot air venting out of the back of the machine.
• Keep it Sealed: Make sure your freezer door shuts tight and forms a tight seal. Make sure to keep your freezer in good condition and replace the seals or the whole door if it stops sealing properly.
• Keep it Closed: The less you open the freezer door, the safer and more energy-efficient your freezer will be. Try to plan ahead and only open your storage freezer very infrequently. Try taking out the items you need only once per week and place the food you need for the week in the fridge to keep in-between.
• Keep it Full: A full freezer uses less energy than a half-empty one, because a freezer packed to the brim with frozen food insulates itself much better. If you don't have enough food to fill it up to the top, use frozen bottles of water, instead, for the same energy-saving effect!

Eat With the Seasons: How to Find the Best Possible Produce

 

Why eat in-season?

When it comes to buying produce, most people pay attention to what's in-season mainly for reasons like freshness and price. It's true that veggies grown in the optimal season are more tasty and nutritious, and cost much less than they do in off-seasons. What many people don't think about much is why out-of-season veggies cost more, and how the environmental footprint of a fruit or veggie you buy at the supermarket changes drastically from one season to the next.

The amount of resources it takes to grow a plant, such as water, fertilizer, and energy from fossil fuels, changes based on where and when it's grown, and the difference can be very large between plants grown in optimal regions in the ideal season, and plants grown in non-optimal conditions in the off-season. A strawberry in the summer is usually fresh, sourced from somewhere nearby, and grown with minimal resources in peak-season. A strawberry you buy in the winter likely traveled at least half-way across the world before making it into your shopping basket, or otherwise was grown in sub-standard conditions, requiring extra chemicals and energy to produce. Buying what's local and in-season is just as important for living sustainably as it is for eating nutritiously and saving money.

How to Find In-Season Fruits and Veggies

• Visit the Fruits and Vegetables Harvest Calendar on the Mizzou Agriculture Bulletin site for an easy-to-read chart of general harvest times for all kinds of fruits and veggies.
• Take a look at this guide to in-season fruits and veggies from the US Department of Agriculture for a list separated by season. You can see what's freshest in spring, summer, fall, and winter, and click on any of the fruits or veggies in the list to see recipes, nutritional information, and more.
• Want to buy local? Simplesteps.org has a month-by-month guide, and you can search the local foods available in any state in the US.
• Find a Local Farmer's Market: Here you can find a list of all the farmer's markets in Missouri, as well as a schedule of the days and hours they run. If you visit the Columbia Farmer's Market website, you can see a list of all the vendors and even search for specific products to see what they have to offer.
• Eat Local this Winter: When the weather gets cold, the farmer's market moves indoors, but it's still a great place to buy local produce, meats, and dairy products through the winter. From December 3 through March 11, the Winter Market is held on Saturdays at the Parkade Center. You can see the complete list of dates and locations on their website.

Original photo in feature image from user Dungodung on Wikipedia, modifications made.

Fall Gardening: Keep your Plants Going this Autumn

Original photo by Steve Fareham, modifications made.

Make Your Autumn Garden the Best it Can Be

It's not over yet! Even though we've already felt the first breath of fall, you can keep your garden growing a little longer yet. Certain frost-hardy greens are great for growing in September, and you can use simple, time-honored methods to extend the life and production of many of your plants.

Plant New Seeds

Believe it or not, you may still have a little time to seed some cold-weather veggies. Here's a list of vegetables that you can still seed directly in your garden:

• Arugula
• Collard Greens
• Lettuce
• Mache
• Mustard Greens
• Peas
• Radishes
• Spinach 
• Turnips

 

Keep the Garden Going

There are some veggies you can plant this late in the season with no problem, and some that require a little extra work and care. These are often separated into two categories: hardy vegetable and half-hardy veggies. Hardy veggies can make it through a cold snap or frost relatively unscathed, while half-hardy veggies are more sensitive, and need to be shielded from frost and cold evenings.

Hardy Fall Vegetables (can survive frost): onion, spinach, broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, collard, kale, leek, and kohlrabi

Half-Hardy Fall Vegetables (should not be exposed to more than a touch of frost): winter lettuce, celery, chard, cauliflower, mustard, radishes, chives and endive

Bulbs: Autumn is the time to plant perennial flower bulbs and onions for next spring, although Tulips and some other bulbs are best saved for planting in October.

Extend the Growing Season

Even though the evenings in September tend to be a little too cold for more fragile plants like tomatoes, there are ways to keep them warm and fruiting for several more weeks. There are a couple of simple ways to do this using coverings and greenhouses which you can build yourself from simple materials.

Coverings like cold frames and row covers can raise the temperature around your plants by 5-20 degrees, and are great for shielding plants on cold evenings. A cold frame is a protective box or enclosed area used to warm plants like a greenhouse, and is often made from recycled window frames, fiberglass, or other transparent materials. A low tunnel, used to cover whole garden rows, is basically just a sheet of plastic or garden fabric that you secure over a basic frame to cover the plants. A cloche is a word that just means any kind of transparent cover meant to warm the air and soil around a plant. You can make simple cloches from recycled plastic jugs and bottles (such as empty 2-liters or milk cartons).

Here are some guides for making your own DIY cold tunnels and frames:

• How to make a simple cold frame using hay bales and plastic cover
• Tutorialfor making a low cold tunnel greenhouse using PVC pipes and plastic sheeting
• Guide for making a low tunnel from wire fencing and plastic sheeting

Tips to Keep in Mind:

• Make sure your fall crops are in, so they can make the most of the shorter days and limited sunlight
• You will usually need to vent or remove your cold frames, tunnels, and cloches on warmer, sunny days
• Tunnels and frames trap extra moisture and humidity, so beware of over-watering the soil
• Cloth coverings are best for root vegetables, while plastic is best for greens
• To keep plants your plants going strong on extra-cold nights, you can use jugs of hot water to keep the air under your coverings even warmer. You can do this by leaving old plastic jugs full of water out in the sun during the day (you can even paint them black to make them absorb the the heat better), and then moving them into your greenhouse at night.
• In the words of Shelley Stonebrook from motherearthnews.com, “If a big freeze is coming, harvest like there's no tomorrow.”

 

Low-Tech Ways to Cool Your Home This Summer

Original graphic from the Department of Energy's Cooling Your Home Naturally.

Did you know that 5% of all the energy produced in the US is used up for household air conditioners? When you're suffering through the heat of the summer and desperate for relief, it can be tempting to just crank up the air conditioning and call it a day. But if you're willing to plan ahead and get a little creative, there are alternative ways to shield your home from the summer sun that can have a huge impact. Using a few of these simple, sustainable techniques can help you reduce how much you use and rely on your energy-intensive air conditioner, which can save you money and is better for the earth.

Since A/C units have become a staple of life for most American families, many people have disregarded or forgotten old, low-tech techniques for dealing with the summer heat. But the old wisdom is just as relevant today, and using a few of these simple techniques can significantly cut down on your cooling costs.

Give Your Walls and Windows Some Shade

Shade is a powerful tool for keeping your house cool. Protecting the outside of your house from the direct sunlight is your first line of defense against the summer heat. Once the summer sun has turned your house into an oven, it's very difficult and energy-intensive to get all that hot air out; it's much easier to block the sun from getting to your house in the first place!

Here are some effective, time-tested ways to shade your home:

Utilize verandas and awnings: Most of the heat that gets into your home in the summer comes from the direct sun beating down on the outside of your house. Verandas and awnings around the edges of your roof block the direct light, protecting your house from baking in the sun all day. They are a very effective way to keep your home cooler in the summer.

Cover windows with blinds or shutters: Windows provide an easy way for direct sunlight to heat up the inside of your house. Using shutters outside and blinds inside will keep the sun from heating up the glass and shining directly inside. The great thing about shutters and blinds is that they give you more control; you can keep the sun out when you want to keep cool, and let it in when you need some warmth.

Plant shade trees: This is a tradition that goes back centuries for a reason; it really works! Planting trees in strategic spots around your home, particularly on the western side of your house, can shade your walls, windows, and roof from the heat of afternoon sun. It's not a quick fix, and requires some planning ahead, but it can be a very cheap and effective way to keep your house much cooler in the summer.

Control the Air Flow in Your Home

Everyone knows the value of “opening a window” to let in the fresh, cool breeze when it's baking hot inside. But did you know that you can take active control of the airflow in your house by strategically opening and closing certain windows?

There's an art to using your windows to strategically funnel hot air out while pulling cooler air in. The technique is most effective during shifts from hot to cooler weather and in the evenings, after it begins to cool outside. This cooling method relies on the concept of convection, which is simply that hot air rises and cool air falls. This means that as the inside of your house warms up, the hottest air floats upward and accumulates in the upper levels of the house and in the attic space. However, simply opening up the windows on the upper floor alone won't flush the hot air out; you have to create a path for air to flow into your house as well as out. Ideally you want to create an air current that sucks cool air (either cool evening air or air from cooler shaded areas outside) in through windows on the lower level, while windows on the upper level and in the attic suck the hot air up and out of the house. 

Air flow through windows in a house. Windows should create a path for air to flow in windows on one side of the house and exit through windows on the opposite side. Image from the Department of Energy.

Finding the right window configuration for your home might take some experimenting and tweaking, but once you find a system that works, it can make a huge difference in the temperature of your home. Every home is different, and deciding which windows to leave open or closed depends on your home's design and geographical location. Luckily, there are a lot of resources online and elsewhere to help you figure out how to control the airflow in your house.

Here is some information to help you fully utilize the air-current-controlling powers of your windows:

• This guide contains a wealth of information on using windows as a passive cooling method. Although it is written for Australians, it contains a lot of in-depth, useful information on how to create cooling air currents in any kind of home or climate. It even contains a guide to different types of windows and how to use them to create an ideal air flow.
• This guide from the Department of Energy gives a more general overview of the principles and techniques of using windows to create cooling air currents, as well as tips for using other passive cooling techniques.

Use Attic Fans to Your Advantage

 

Attic fans create extra suction to pull air up through the house and out the attic, and can help cool your house down in the evenings much more quickly and effectively than windows alone.

To learn more about how an attic fan can help keep your house cool, visit this link from the Department of Energy. And for more information about attic fans versus whole-house fans, including the uses and drawbacks of each, check out this article.

Eliminate Sources of Heat in Your Home

This one might seem like common sense, but many people overlook or underestimate the extra heat that electronics and appliances radiate into their house all summer. Taking simple steps like unplugging electronics and prioritizing meals and food that don't require cooking with heat can help you keep your house cooler and take some of the load off your air conditioner.

All Electronics Give off Heat

Everything that is plugged into your wall, even if it is powered off, still drains electricity from your outlet as long as it's plugged in. If that wasn't enough reason to shut off your power strips and unplug your appliances when you aren't using them, consider that everything that's plugged in to your house right now is also giving off heat. Some are worse than others; a computer left plugged in and idling on its own can increase the temperature of a room by a few degrees!

Even devices that don't give off that much heat are worth paying attention to. Many people leave dozens of small electronics and appliances plugged in 24 hours a day, and that can all add up to a lot of extra, totally unnecessary heat (not to mention a bigger electricity bill!).

(Not) Cooking for the Summer Heat

Using the oven, stove, toaster, or any heated appliance during the summer is guaranteed to heat up your house, so why not take the chance to learn some new oven-free recipes? Spare yourself the discomfort of sweating over the stove in the sweltering heat and instead prioritize cold meals that don't need to be cooked or heated whenever you can. Salads, sandwiches, smoothies, and fresh fruits and veggies are great places to start. If you do need to cook with heat, consider grilling your food outside or using the microwave.

Here are some no-cook recipes from the Food Network to get you started.

When the heat and humidity is at its peak, turning on the A/C can be necessary for comfort. But although it can be tempting to depend solely on your air conditioning unit to cool your home, these low-tech, low-cost cooling methods, when used correctly, can be just as effective at keeping you cool. Reducing how much you rely on your air conditioner can save you energy, save money, and let you take more control over the temperature and climate in your house.

June Veggie Planting

Ideas for Walking More, and Driving Less

It's summertime, the weather is beautiful, and the air is fresh. What better time could there be to start spending more time walking and less time cooped up in the driver's seat? Just like a lot of sustainable living tips, these tips for walking more and driving less can benefit your health and your wallet at the same time as helping the earth. You'll spend less money on gasoline, get exercise and fresh air, and reduce your carbon footprint!

Here are a few ideas of opportunities to look out for where you could replace some of your driving time with walking time. Keep these in mind the next time you go out, and you'll be cutting your driving miles in no time.

You don't have to drive right up to your destination.

If you're at a strip mall, shopping plaza, or downtown area, there's no need to drive your car right up to each store. Park right outside the area, or near your first stop, then walk from one store to the other. Getting in and out of the car over and over again is a hassle anyway, and why not take the chance to stretch your legs and get some exercise when you can?

Walk the last leg of your journey, and skip the traffic!

When heading to dinner downtown or to a shopping center, find parking on the outskirts, away from the densest areas, and walk the rest of the way to your destination. You'll cut down your driving time, get to take a nice stroll, and you won't have to deal with the stress of the driving in the most congested areas.

It's not worth competing for the best parking spot.

Driving all around the parking lot twice looking for the best spot wastes gas and is likely to to raise your blood pressure. Instead, you can save yourself time and trouble by taking the easy parking in the back of the lot. The walk across the parking lot isn't nearly as bad at it's made out to be!

Take the 2-mile challenge

If you really want to step up your game and really cut down on your driving, you might want to try the two-mile challenge. That's where you commit to walking, instead of driving, to any destination that is less than two miles away. It's quite a challenge, but it's a great way to keep yourself looking for opportunities to walk instead of drive. But any amount that you can cut down is better than nothing!

Eco-Friendly Driving: Save Fuel and Pollute Less

You can save fuel and reduce your environmental impact just by adjusting your driving behaviors and keeping up on maintenance.

For most people, driving is a necessity, even though we all know that our cars cough tons of pollutants into the environment. But you can still reduce your environmental impact just by paying a little more attention to your car and how you drive.

Fuel efficiency and environmental impact go hand in hand, which is awesome because as you drive more efficiently, you'll also be spending less on gasoline. By increasing the efficiency of your car and using less fuel, you'll reduce the amount of CO2 and other pollutants your car emits and save money at the same time.

There are two main ways to reduce your emissions: First, you can service and maintain your car to increase its efficiency and filter toxic fumes. This can range from getting regular oil changes and maintenance checks, to inflating your tires to the correct pressure. Second, you can make adjustments to your driving habits in order to save more fuel. This includes leaving unnecessary weight out of your car and sticking to the most fuel-efficient speeds when you drive.

How to Drive to Use Less Gasoline

Speed Matters! 

Your car is most efficient at 55mph and under, and it gets less and less efficient the faster it goes. For instance, driving at 65 mph uses 13% less fuel than driving 75 mph. Who knew that sticking to the speed limit and resisting the urge to speed and go five over on the highway could actually save you money? And it's better for the environment, too!

Use AC Sparingly

Using the AC can make your car guzzle up to 21% more fuel. That's a lot! Because of this it's a good idea not to blast the AC all the time, and to remember to turn it off when your car reaches a comfortable temperature. Try using the flow-through ventilation for some cool, fresh air (the setting that pulls air from outside without running the heat or AC) without using extra fuel.

Roll Up the Windows

While rolling down the windows might be better than using the AC, it also increases the wind drag on your car and makes it less aerodynamic. This makes your car a little less efficient and have to use more fuel. If it's cool enough, using the flow-through ventilation is a good way to get some cool air circulating without using the AC or having to open the windows.

Keep it Light

Do you regularly keep a trunk or a backseat full of junk you eventually intend to bring inside? The extra weight of the items you store in your car could be costing you money every time you drive! Every extra pound of weight that your car has to carry means it has to use more fuel. Remember to unload things from your car and clean it out regularly, and you'll not only have a nicer space to sit in, but you'll spend less on fuel and emit less toxic fumes.

Idle Less

When you're car is idling, you're getting zero miles per gallon; your car is just eating up gas and not even transporting you anywhere! Sometimes it's necessary to let the car warm up in the winter, but try to time it so you can keep it short.

Calm and Steady Wins the Race
Quick accelerations and hard brakes are not only hard on your car, but they also waste fuel. Studies have shown that cars emit five times the amount of polluting fumes when the driver uses “jackrabbit” starts and hard braking, rather than accelerating and braking slowly and steadily. Using cruise-control on long, straight stretches of highway can also help you keep a steady speed and use less fuel (this won't work well uphill or on hilly roads, though).

Maintenance and Upkeep to Keep your Car Fuel-Efficient

Regular or Premium? 

The difference can make a big deal for your fuel efficiency, so make sure you choose the right kind! And remember, premium doesn't always mean better. Check your owner's manual and only use the fuel grade that your car was made for.

Normal maintenance and upkeep 

Your car owner's manual will tell you often to replace certain parts and get tune-ups. If you keep up with this maintenance, your car will drive better, live longer, and be more fuel-efficient overall. Many people don't realize that small, easily-fixed things, like dirty air filters, dirty oil, and worn-down or deflated tires, can make your car significantly less efficient and use a lot more gas. Make sure you get regular oil changes, replace your air filters, and keep your tires inflated to the right psi and replace them when they lose traction.

Use a Fuel-Efficient Vehicle
Most people don't have the opportunity to go out and get a new hybrid or fuel-efficient vehicle just to be more sustainable, but if and when you do need to shop for a new car, put fuel-efficient vehicles at the top of your list. Even if you can't get a new or hybrid car, just choosing a car with a good miles-per-gallon rate can make a big difference. If you own multiple cars, try to drive the most fuel-efficient one most often, and save your larger, less fuel-efficient vehicles for times when they are necessary.