Mk Neal

Parsnips from “Going to Seed,” maybe some celery also.

Anne Miller wrote:My take on this is if the compost pile gets hot enough the toxins are killed off so there is no need to worry...

But if what makes something toxic is a chemical poison (as with the yews), and not a living organism, it cannot be “killed.”

It may possibly be rendered less toxic through some chemical processes such as chemical reactions that change it at a molecular level or cause it to become bound up with other substances and therefore less available. But the required reagents and conditions would be different for each substance. Some toxins, like botulism toxin, are neutralized by heat. But others, like the heavy metals lead and arsenic, are unaffected by heat levels you could reach at home.

I mostly hang up my clothes, either outside or inside. But I do run some kinds of clothing (silk shirts and some knits that don’t iron well) in the dryer for a few minutes to relax the fibers and make them less wrinkly if hanging inside.

I love so many cheeses. This is the reason I have never gone vegan.

Some highlights from the American Midwest:

Milton Creamery, love their “Prairie Breeze” a unique hard cheese similar to cheddar or Gruyère.

These methuselah cheddars from Mouse house Cheesehaus in Wisconsin. The 12-, 15-, and 20-year cheddars are an amazing experience. You really have to try it to understand. It is like savory fudge, with such complexity to the flavor.

I’ve seen/heard reports of flocks of wild waterfowl dying en masse— the mergansers along Lake Michigan, and then in other places people stumbling across dozens of dead geese lying out in fields. Also  heard one bald eagle in western Illinois found dead and tested positive. I have not encountered these personally, though.

Backyard songbirds seem to be more or less normal numbers here.

Josh Hoffman wrote:I wish they would let some of these places keep the birds alive and see how they do.

The info below is from this article: https://www.thelunaticfarmer.com/blog/2/12/2025/bird-flu-4-days

Might not be enough healthy birds after an outbreak to be worthwhile. Reports I’ve seen of bird flu in Illinois, it sounds like all birds just start dying really fast, one vet says almost 100% fatality rate. We’re seeing that with wild birds here too, a huge number of dead mergansers washed up on the lakeshore.

https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/south-suburban-chicago-loses-hens-bird-flu/

Ah, y’all got me looking stuff up on the internet, and now I see that this is the thing that happens to my toes in winter!

I’m on the ore “urban” end of suburban. One advantage for growing corn is being well-isolated from commercial GMO varieties. Actually, isolated from any real chance of cross-pollination, so I can be sure of the parentage of the seed I am saving.

Nancy Reading wrote:

Timothy Norton wrote:Unless you own quite a bit of acreage, public land can be a wonderful thing.

We're so lucky in the UK to have public footpaths over much of the countryside, even outside of national parks - but they aren't the same of course as the North American National parks. I doubt there is any true wilderness left here. In Scotland we have a 'right to roam' which means that you can walk and wild camp most areas as long as you respect the place. I can walk up the hill behind my house and enjoy the moorlands anytime .

Often wish we had the same “right to roam” here in U.S., the national parks and other public lands are wonderful, but inaccessible to many.

Put my order in today! Love the landraces.