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Food Plants

Tuesday Morning Art: Carrot Colour Wheel

Carrots of Many Colors
Carrots of Many Colors from Boris Anthony

“The reason modern Western carrots are orange is because they were bred that way, in the 16th and 17th centuries, in tribute to the Dutch royal House of Orange.”

PNH

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Galleries Get Inspired Products

From Etsy with Love: Showcase of 21 Amazing Etsy Works Inspired by Nature

Data Migration
'Data Migration' by jeremymiranda

It’s not always about doing it yourself…by “it” I mean our hard work at being sustainable and Earth-friendly. From ancient times, humans have been most successful and prosperous when living in healthy communities. We are no exception. But the beauty of modern high-tech world is that we can be connected with an extended community of like-minded individuals available to us, whether they are next door or on another continent. Think Flickr, Facebook, Etsy

You’ve probably already heard of Etsy, but if you haven’t then go, NOW! Etsy is probably one of my favourite things about the 21st century. With thousands of talented artists just a click away, Etsy is the essence of “direct sale” from producer to consumer.

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Get Inspired Organizations Stories Videos

Willie Smits restores a rainforest and speaks on TED

About this talk

By piecing together a complex ecological puzzle, biologist Willie Smits has found a way to re-grow clearcut rainforest in Borneo, saving local orangutans — and creating a thrilling blueprint for restoring fragile ecosystems.

About Willie Smits

Willie Smits has devoted his life to saving the forest habitat of orangutans, the “thinkers of the jungle.” As towns, farms and wars encroach on native forests, Smits works to save what is left.

Source: http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/willie_smits_restores_a_rainforest.html

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Galleries Get Inspired Mushrooms / Fungi

The Lovely Mushroom: 32 Stunning Photographs of Fungi

After watching Paul Stamets’ documentary on the transformational power of fungi, I have a whole new appreciation for this being we call “mushroom”. If you think about, mushrooms have been with us for centuries. Indigenous people have used “magic mushrooms” in their ceremonies and rituals. Today, thousands of people travel to Amsterdam every year to partake in this ancient (and fun!) practice.

But there is more. People stranded in the woods often survive eating mushrooms and berries (if you know what to pick, of course). I myself have childhood memories of mushroom picking in the woods with my parents, and then drying the mushrooms for the winter. And my favourite appetizer has always been…pickled mushrooms!

Wait wait, there is still more! Besides being useful to humans, fungi are an essential part of Earth. Fungi can survive in severely polluted areas. They can clean the soil and prepare it for plants to grow on. It’s not an accident that the “biggest living thing” on Earth is indeed a mushroom, Armillaria ostoyae.

As a tribute to this magnificent organism, I have created a gallery of 32 beautiful and inspiring fungi photographs. Please, learn more about the mushrooms and use them in your Permaculture designs to benefit the Earth and the people.

All of the photographs below are licensed under Creative Commons license.

Fungus on willow

mushroom fungi photograph

The Mushrooms

mushroom fungi photograph

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Films Resources

Colin Beavan is No Impact Man

No Impact Man Poster

Colin Beavan decides to completely eliminate his personal impact on the environment for the next year.

It means eating vegetarian, buying only local food, and turning off the refrigerator. It also means no elevators, no television, no cars, busses, or airplanes, no toxic cleaning products, no electricity, no material consumption, and no garbage.