Join the Mid-America Homesteading Conference at Joliet Junior College for Saturday, September 1. There are sessions on gardening, canning, raising all sorts of livestock, and making money on your homestead, whether it is in the city or country. Check out the web page for more info: http://www.homesteadingconference.com/
Archive for the ‘Local food’ Category
12 Apr
Palatine, IL, Wants Chickens
A Palatine couple seeks the right to keep chickens. For more information and a link to their Facebook page, read this article.
“Consider being a part of this group to support green living in the Palatine area by allowing backyard hens!” the Facebook page states.
20 Mar
Support Chickens at March 23, 2012: Arlington Heights CSA Expo
Mary Green, the coordinator of this event will be collecting names of people in Arlington Heights who are interested in chicken keeping.
Home to Roost will be on hand with informational fliers and to answer questions at around 8 PM.
If you are interested in backyard hens, plan to attend or contact Mary Green at marysgreen@hotmail.com or 847-230-0544 for more information.
19 Mar
March 23, 2012: Arlington Heights CSA Expo
Come out and show your support for CHICKENS in Arlington Heights at
the 2nd Annual CSA* Expo Friday March 23rd, 6:30-9pm
Arlington Heights Library
500 N. Dunton Avenue, 60004
Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is a popular way for consumers to buy local, seasonal food directly from a farmer. Interested consumers purchase a share (aka a “membership” or a “subscription”) and in return receive a box (bag, basket) of seasonal produce each week throughout the farming season.
Meet local farmers, taste samples, and find out about CSA options in the Northwest Suburbs!
also featuring a screening of the documentary
King Corn
Two recent college grads discover where America’s food comes from when they plant a single acre of corn and follow it from the seed to the dinner plate. With the help of government subsidies, genetically modified seeds and powerful herbicides, America’s most subsidized crop becomes the staple of its cheapest—and most troubling—foods.
Contact Mary Green at marysgreen@hotmail.com or 847-230-0544 for more information
or visit http://chapters.westonaprice.org/nwcookcounty/
*Community Supported Agriculture
14 Mar
March 27, 2012 Green Home Experts Offers Chicken-Keeping Class
City Folks Learn to Raise Chickens at Green Home Experts
Birds of a feather flock to Green Home Experts’ Chicken Keeping Class presented by Midwest’s leading chicken consultant, Jennifer Murtoff.
Lest you missed the start of a major lifestyle movement, urban homesteading is here to stay. Chicken keeping is a growing interest for urban dwellers seeking to localize food sources and ecologically live in the city. Oak Park-based, Green Home Experts recognized the increasing curiosity among its customers who wanted to know more about how to raise chickens. To respond to customer interest, Green Home Experts will host a Chicken Keeping Class on Tuesday, March 27, 2012. http://www.ghexperts.com.
Presented by the Midwest’s only chicken consultant, Jennifer Murtoff, attendees will learn about urban homesteading, get answers to questions about raising chickens, caring for adult birds, and find out how to keep their chickens and their neighbors happy.
Commenting on the upcoming class, Green Home Experts owner, Maria Onesto Moran said, “We’re thrilled to have Jennifer share her extensive knowledge with our customers. She’s built a strong reputation as the Midwest’s ‘go-to’ chicken expert. If you have an interest in raising chickens, or want to take your chicken keeping to the next level, you don’t want to miss this class.”
CLASS REGISTRATION: The Chicken Keeping Class will be held on March 27th, 6:15 to 7:45 p.m. at Green Home Experts, 811 South Boulevard in Oak Park. Attendance is by reservation only. To reserve a space for the class, contact Green Home Experts by March 24th at (708)660-1443. Cost for the class is $20 per person. As a special bonus for all attendees, Green Home Experts will be offering discounted chicken care packages.
About Jennifer Murtoff — The Midwest’s only chicken consultant, Jennifer Murtoff provides compassionate, homespun consulting and emergency care for backyard chickens in the Chicagoland area. A farmer’s granddaughter, Jennifer’s passion for fowl developed as she acquired a number of kinds of birds in south central Pennsylvania. Her flock included chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, quail, peafowl, pigeons, and golden pheasants. She offers information and resources on chicken care from chick to adult, and, while she is not a veterinarian, can provide emergency advice and troubleshooting. Jennifer leads workshops on backyard chickens; does presentations for garden groups, schools, and other interested parties; and assists families with their own flocks. See Home to Roost athttp://www.urbanchickenconsultant.wordpress.com, or call (708)524-5038 for more information.
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An Oak Park, Illinois-based specialty retailer in sustainable building materials, green lifestyle goods, and eco-gardening. Green Home Experts offers green alternatives to almost anything customers use in and around their homes.
12 Mar
Local Foods Conference in Rockford, March 17
Join the University of Illinois Extension for the Openfields conference, 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Saturday, March 17 at the Atwood Center in Rockford. Home to Roost will provide the keynote address.
For more information on this event, click here.
29 Feb
From the Mouth of Babes: Birke Baehr on Organic Farming
Check out this TEDTalk from an 11-year-old aspiring farmer!
This is very similar to the food ethics talk I give, but his talk is a little more brief!
16 Feb
Mother Earth News Features Modern Homesteading
A recent article in Mother Earth News featured Q&A with several modern homesteaders. The interviews featured Harvey Ussery, author of a great book on chicken raising, and Deborah Niemann-Boehle (http://www.homegrown.org/), author of the new title Homegrown and Handmade: A Practical Guide to More Self-Reliant Living.
Some great points from the article:
- There are various reasons for homesteading (“our desperate search for a decent tomato”)
- Homesteading is not an all-or-nothing enterprise.
- Having a self-reliant community is important.
- Learn from mistakes
- Work with nature.
- Observation is important.
- Much practical knowledge has been lost in the last century; question modern notions of agriculture.
- Learn to accept death.
Happy reading! It’s a great article!
13 Feb
17 March, 2012: Join Home to Roost at the Rockford Openfields Local Foods Conference
The Openfields Local Foods Conference is designed to help interested community members gain knowledge and develop a greater understanding of local foods, from the farm to the table.
This year’s conference is geared towards individuals interested in learning more about growing their own food and/or growing food for the local foods market.
Event Date: Saturday, March 17, 2012 from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
Event Location: Atwood Center, 2685 New Milford School Rd, Rockford, IL
Event Fee: $20 per person ~ $25 at the door
Registration fee includes keynote presentation, Backyard Chickens by Jennifer Murtoff of Home to Roost Services, one session each on beekeeping, gourmet mushrooms and fruit production, handout materials, and a delicious lunch featuring local foods.
To register, go to https://webs.extension.uiuc.edu/registration/?RegistrationID=6410.
7 Feb
Canadian Right to Food Trial
Piggybacking on my 1/26/2012 post, there is a legal argument over the right to local food in Calgary, which was sparked by backyard hens. Chickens are no longer a pivot point in the argument; it has now encompassed larger issues that involve municipalities determining what their residents consume. Read more here.
Home to Roost 