Page 15 - Home & Garden

The dog days of summer have set in and it's time to update the status of my straw bale garden. You can read about my first attempt here. I've successfully killed half of what I planted and learned some really good lessons along the way. Here's a quick break down of the good, the bad and the ugly. The Ugly of the Straw Bale Garden Although my bales were old, not all of them were fully conditioned. This means the straw wasn't broken down enough. When I started to add water to them, they got really hot. Why did they get hot? Decomposition. In a nutshell your straw bale is carbon, the goal is to break that carbon by "conditioning" it. Conditioning is adding nutrients and water to kick start the decomposition process (microbes eating the straw and changing it's cellular structure) that essentially turns the straw into soil over time. Some of...

With tons of fun and cool craft ideas circling the web today, we decided to try our hand in the crafting world. We already had tons of fun with our Recycled Rope Wreaths, so we once again looked close to home when coming up with a new project. Want to check out our Rope Wreath Project? Read all about it here As spring was coming up this year, there were two things that people were getting excited about: chickens and gardening. So- we figured, why not try to combine the two? This led to the Chicken Feeder Herb Project. Looking for more unique gardening techniques? What not try straw bales? What we did was grab a couple of metal chicken feeders (which we spray painted North 40 blue, of course), some herbs and some potting soil and set to work. After packing in the herbs and some extra soil, we were excited by the success and couldn't wai...

What is N40 Coops 2.0? In case you aren't in the know--N40 Coops is an annual event where we showcase the most amazing chicken coops we can find, and introduce you to the passionate people raising those chickens. We have entries from all over, and we hear some of the coolest chicken stories you can image. To help with this effort we, North 40 Outfitters, partnered up with Nutrena and together, we're on a mission to find fantastic chicken coops and their equally incredible owners. Why Are We Doing This? Last year was our first ever N40 Coops season, and needless to say, we not only received hundreds of amazing coop entries, but more importantly, we learned the stories behind each of the coops and found out why every coop is truly special and unique. We also want to encourage people to start chicken farming by showing them the fun it ...

Ask a beekeeper about splitting hives and you'll probably, if you're lucky and it isn't bee season, get a whole host of techniques and strategies for the best "splits" of the season. When Drew and I sat down with Jason Waite, co-founder of Harvest Lane Honey and 15 year beekeeping veteran, we wanted to get a little deeper into the bee-splitting game. So rather than asking a simple "how-to," we went in for the more personal side of things and asked him to tell us his favorite bee-splitting tactic. Introductions to the Walk-Away Split Last year, when we began stocking Harvest Lane Honey products, we started our own apiary for the company. This included everything that comes with breaking into the "beek" world: intro into antibiotics and varroa mites, brood patties and pollen patties- we got in and got dirty, and it paid off. We were able t...

If you've been hunting for the perfect pair of ladies boots, this is no small feat to accomplish. (Pun intended). We asked our footwear buyer, Kayla, to point us in the right direction. Kayla suggests when searching for the perfect pair of boots here's what you should consider. 1.) What Will you Primarily be Using these Boots for? First and most importantly, Kayla recommends that you should consider how you are planning to use the boots. Kayla asked, "Are you looking for a concert boot? Or, do you need something for riding or work?" In more candid terms she was asking, "How hardcore do you need these boots to be?" Since, North 40 carries everything from basic price point fashion boots to performance riding boots with the true rodeo competitor in mind there is a lot to choose from. From fashion boots to performance riding boots check out ...

Honey bees communicate using vector calculus and directional- mamba!! A forager uses dance to communicate the position of nectar sources she discovered. If the dance is in straight lines towards the upper part of the hive, that means the flowers or source of food can be found by following the sun's position. If the dance is downwards, towards the bottom of the hive, that means the flowers will be found by traveling away from the sun. Need to feed your bees? Check out our selection of bee feed here If the bees dance left or right, that will indicate the direction of the blooming nectar source- in relation to the sun. For instance, a 45° angle to the left of the hive's top will indicate a corresponding direction to take towards the sun and find flowers. The duration of the bee's dance and the amount of vibrations in that dance describe ex...

There's been a shift lately in people interested in farming. In recent years, consumers have been driving a change in the produce market by demanding to know and understand where their food comes from as a result, there's been an explosion in the demand for "organic" produce. Urban farms and co-ops have also seen a dramatic increase in participants and interest. Another impact of the organic shift? Urban farms and co-ops have seen a dramatic increase in participants and those interested. And that's where Prairie Heritage Farm comes in- "I don't come from a farming background in fact, I didn't really get into it until my early 30s," says Jacob Cowgill, co-owner with his wife Courtney. "I'd interned on a vegetable farm, and a larger scale organic operation up north. When we wanted to start our own farm, the easiest point of entry seemed t...

You already think about your dog's needs: you buy them food, toys, sometimes clothes... But what about ticks? Ticks are a severe irritant to your dog, and sometimes can cause diseases. So how can you keep your dog safe when you are out gallivanting around the country? Identify Tick "Time & Place" In the Northwest, ticks come out in force during the moist/warm spring months and anytime it's been rainy. That means starting around May or June, or if we are having a wet summer--you need to be ready to protect your dog from these 6-legged little beasties. Contrary to popular belief, ticks don't "climb trees" and then jump on you. In reality, a tick's favorite place is 18-24" above ground (it's called "questing" when they climb to that height- so that means tall grass and the shrubbery where you hike. Yikes. Looking for dog food, puppy tre...

Well, chances are if you've landed on this page, you probably missed the most important part of dealing with ticks: How to Prevent Ticks- and you've probably just got back from a place where ticks love to live. Here is how you identify, locate and remove ticks from your furry family member. Identify a Tick problem Ticks like warm damp places between the toes, along the groin and especially in the ear canal. So if your dog is shaking his head or gets lethargic, you need to check for ticks. The #1 way to know if your dog has ticks? If you see one inside your home! Don't treat the appearance of ticks as a "one off" thing ticks are like roaches, if there's one, there are probably more. The best way to be sure you and your dog are tick-free is to do a full body tick-check.  Looking for toys to keep your furry family member occupied? Look no f...

  Honey bees communicate using vector calculus and directional- mamba!! A forager uses dance to communicate the position of nectar sources she discovered. If the dance is in straight lines towards the upper part of the hive, that means the flowers or source of food can be found by following the sun's position. If the dance is downwards, towards the bottom of the hive, that means the flowers will be found by traveling away from the sun. If the bees dance left or right, that will indicate the direction of the blooming nectar source- in relation to the sun. For instance, a 45° angle to the left of the hive's top will indicate a corresponding direction to take towards the sun and find flowers. The duration of the bee's dance and the amount of vibrations in that dance describe exactly the proximity of the nectar source from the colony- ...

Not all herbicides are created equal. There are a lot of options to choose from when shopping around for weed killer. Many of them claim to kill weeds but we have found that some do it better than others. Using years of experience and the advice of industry leading experts, we identified the specific herbicide ingredients that seem to produce the best results. No more reading labels for general information. Identify these main ingredients and you will be sure to have fewer weeds and a healthier lawn. Before starting make sure you know what type of weed you are trying to target. Learn how to quickly identify weed types and why it is important here. Herbicides for Common Broadleaf Weeds Broadleaf weeds like dandelions, clover and plantain are usually easier to identify that grassy weeds, and that's a good thing because if you try to trea...