Urbanfarming

Bats, Mice, And Rabbits The Rodents of Mezzacello

There is a bat in my house. I am certain there are many bats around my house, but this one is cold and weak and living in the pail that I use to haul water out to the chickens. Really…

I found this poor stranded mouse with wings in my empty compost pail this morning.

The Life Cycle of an Easy Bake Oven

At Mezzacello we use everything we possibly can. Waste is worthless without purpose. This summer one of my Easy Bake Ovens (EBO) broke down and was unrepeatable. I recycled the plastic and pulled the electrical parts out and donated them…

The box from a recently purchased Easy Bake Oven.

You Shall Not Pass: Keep the Gates Closed

The livestock yard or chicken yard is an important ecosystem at Mezzacello. It’s also full of danger. The droppings, the duck water, the occasional mouse. It is a special environment and one I do not want to expand. I am…

Design Challenge: Build a Gate
Sign that reads: Keep Gate Closed. No matter what the chickens say.

Winter Prep: protecting outbuildings

Urban farms require sheds, barns, greenhouses, and other storage options. There simply isn’t any way to contain the mission in a postage stamp of land without getting creative in how you use and store tools and supplies. Enter the out…

This is a second generation greenhouse. The first generation was destroyed in a winter windstorm in 2017.

Winter Prep: restoring the water table

A lot of people hate winter. I am not a fan of the mud and sludge, but winter is NECESSARY for a farm in this latitude. Tough titties. I need the cold to reset the micro flora and fauna, to…

Snow on the various ecosystems around a Mezzacello

Winter Prep: researching and learning

It’s not just the urban garden that’s resting, but our bodies as well. But while the body rests, the mind engages. At Mezzacello the mind is almost always engaged; how else are you going to change the world, right? On…

Planning and researching for the downtime in winter.

The Foodist: Truly Vegetarian Mushroom Bourguignon

This is a delicious vegetarian alternative to beef stew that will make omnivores salivate!

Mushroom Bougingnon made with a NYT Cooking Recipe

Applied STEM, Not a Meth House

When I tried to bronze chain in oil in our oven and discovered Applied STEM, not a meth house.

Rick comes upon my Applied STEM wonderland.

Secret Life of the Farm at Night

Mezzacello is an urban farm. We are surrounded by homes and businesses and cars. There are also a lot of transients in my neighborhood on the near East side of Columbus. It’s a fact of life. It’s still jarring when…

Sunday morning collection of found objects in the farm.

Free Garden Hacks

I normally try to curate my own content. But this is some free gold. So I will save a link here and come back an amend it soon. https://www.naturallivingideas.com/garden-for-free/

Leeks picked one the fall are still growing in the winter.