Sustainable Solutions: Timberland or Healthy Forest?

By Jill Henderson – Show Me Oz –

Throughout the history of mankind, humans have used and manipulated the natural landscape for their own ends.  Here in the Ozarks, we are blessed with an abundance of forests that, at times seem to grow like weeds.  Because of that ill-perceived notion, good quality Ozark woodlands are becoming thinner, rarer, and spaced further and further apart.  Fortunately, many landowners are learning how to properly manage their woodlands for timber, recreation and wildlife. 

Avoid GMO’s – Save Your Own Seed

By Jill Henderson – Show Me Oz -

George Washington once said, “Bad seed is a robbery of the worst kind: for your pocket-book not only suffers by it, but your preparations are lost and a season passes away unimproved.”   Of course, he was speaking of buying seed from someone who didn’t know how to save and store it properly and hence, an entire season of growing had been wasted waiting for a good crop that never came.   Back then (and for thousands of years before the founding of our country) anyone who farmed or grew their own food understood a thing or two about what good seed was. 

America’s Native Bamboo: Identification & Culture

By Jill Henderson – Show Me Oz

In last week’s article, America’s Native Bamboo: History and Ecology, we learned that America was once home to massive colonies of native bamboo, better known as canebrakes. These lush cane forests played a critical role in the ecology of the regions they inhabited by filtering sediments, controlling erosion and providing food and shelter for many native animal and bird species. Cane also played an important role in the lives of the earliest inhabitants who valued it as a nutritional food plant and an important material used to fashion tools, weapons and lodging. In the early days of settlement, America’s native cane fields were first used to fatten cattle and then cleared for farmland. Today, a whopping 98% of America’s once-abundant native bamboo has been extirpated from the landscape. This week, I will discuss the ways in which native bamboos are being used in restoration projects and how we can help return them to their rightful place in nature and beautify the home landscape, all at the same time.

Cultural Sustainability: Bringing Communities Together

By Jill Henderson

In the south central Ozarks lies the town of Alton, Missouri. With a population of around 600 souls, give or take a few depending on the year, Alton’s main attraction is a quaint but thriving downtown square that hems a modest county courthouse.  As is often the case in the Ozarks, most of Oregon County’s rural residents are farmers and modern-day homesteaders.  But for these folks, being rural doesn’t mean they are out of touch with modern ideas and progressive momentum – just the opposite is true.  And with the help of a woman living in the nearby town of Couch, this sleepy little hamlet is about to witness what happens when sustainability and cultural heritage meet face to face.

GMO’s Threaten Seed Savers

By Jill Henderson

There’s a wonderful feeling that comes over me when the garden I have planned and tended and nurtured finally begins to pay off.   Of course, I’m pleased with the success of producing food for my family and I’m excited about the nutritious fruits and veggies that will grace my table for the entire year to come.  But more importantly, I feel secure in knowing that I have the knowledge and skill to save seeds.  Because above all else, the best feeling of all is knowing what is, and isn’t, in the food I eat.  And by this, I’m referring to Genetically Modified Organisms in food crops, better known as GMO’s.

Missouri: Leaders in the Solar Revolution

By Jill Henderson – Show Me Oz -

Missouri is taking the alternative energy revolution head on, thanks to the creative energy of students at Missouri University of Science & Technology in Rolla and comparatively tiny Crowder College in Neosho, Missouri.