Soil Health: The Challenge of Our Time
Soil health is defined as the ability of soil to function as a vital living ecosystem. The soil's ability to function, to cycle water and...
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Happy Dancing Blog
Jim Chamberlin
- Dec 28, 2022
- 3 min
The Forest Below Our Feet
I have a distinct memory from years ago of a portage we took on a canoe trip in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. I believe the...
Jenny Hill
- Dec 16, 2022
- 2 min
Reconsider Gift Cards
It’s easy to get overwhelmed by the end-of-the-year holidays–busy schedules, parties and family gatherings, expectations to perform...
Jenny Hill
- Dec 9, 2022
- 4 min
Clothes-minded: What Is the True Cost?
Do you find yourself spending both more money and less money on clothing today? It seems like some basics, like jeans, cost more. But...
Jim Chamberlin
- Dec 2, 2022
- 4 min
Celebrate World Soil Day
World Soil Day is December 5th and is dedicated to focus attention on the importance of healthy soil and to advocate for the sustainable...
Jenny Hill
- Nov 23, 2022
- 3 min
Tips for Treading Lightly Through the Holidays
The holiday season is here! For some, it can feel like the season of overwhelm. After Thanksgiving, does time actually accelerate towards...
Jenny Hill
- Nov 18, 2022
- 3 min
Rs for Resilient Living: Repair
In the list of the Rs--such as Reduce, Reuse, Refuse, Repurpose--Repair is a step many of us may not immediately think to take. Often I...
Jenny Hill
- Oct 28, 2022
- 4 min
When the Weather Gets Cold, Local Eaters Get Creative
Do you have a summer and winter diet? Many of us do, at least to a certain extent because it seems more fun to eat melon in the summer...
Jenny Hill
- Oct 21, 2022
- 3 min
Getting Your Pollinator Friendly Yard Ready for Winter
The population of pollinators is declining worldwide. Habitat loss and lack of food for pollinators are the primary reasons for the...
Jim Chamberlin
- Oct 14, 2022
- 6 min
Food in a Changing Climate
On what appears to be the backside of the 2021 drought, it’s a good time to reflect on the impacts the drought had, and explore ways we...
Jenny Hill
- Oct 7, 2022
- 3 min
Put the Birds (and Our Planet) in the Dark
Saturday, October 8 is the next World Migratory Bird Day! And as their slogan says: “Dim the Lights for the Birds at Night.” Why would...
Jim Chamberlin
- Sep 30, 2022
- 4 min
Soil Health, Part Four
Jim Chamberlin, Happy Dancing Turtle’s Conservation Technician, also operates a 109-acre diversified farm and forestry operation near...
Jim Chamberlin
- Sep 23, 2022
- 5 min
Soil Health, Part Three
Jim Chamberlin, Happy Dancing Turtle’s Conservation Technician, also operates a 109-acre diversified farm and forestry operation near...
Jim Chamberlin
- Sep 16, 2022
- 5 min
Soil Health, Part Two
Jim Chamberlin, Happy Dancing Turtle’s Conservation Technician, with his wife, Audra, operates a 109-acre diversified farm and forestry...
Jim Chamberlin
- Sep 9, 2022
- 5 min
Soil Health, Part One
Jim Chamberlin, Happy Dancing Turtle’s Conservation Technician, also operates a 109-acre diversified farm and forestry operation near...
Jenny Hill
- Sep 2, 2022
- 4 min
Intro to Seed Saving
If you’re a beginning gardener, like me, the amount to learn may seem overwhelming. I had to figure out when to plant, where to plant,...
Jenny Hill
- Aug 19, 2022
- 3 min
The Garden Files: Recipes for the Abundance of the Season
To me, this is the time of year Minnesota really shines–I call it High Produce Season. Whether you are in our Northern Lakes region (Pine...
Jenny Hill
- Aug 5, 2022
- 3 min
The Garden Files: Cover Crops, Who’s Bugging the Potatoes, Garlic Success, Berries, and Herbs
It’s August! This time of year, many gardens are a feast for the eyes with the many, many shades of green and colored pops of fruit and...
Jenny Hill
- Jul 29, 2022
- 4 min
Plastic Free July Scorecard: Kind of Ugly
Quick! How many single-use plastic bottles are bought around the world EVERY MINUTE? One million. How has Plastic Free July been going...
Jenny Hill
- Jul 8, 2022
- 4 min
Rs for Resilient Living: Refuse
It is not news that we consume a horrific amount of plastic. As author Susan Freinkel (Plastic: A Toxic Love Story) famously shows on her...
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