Root Simple Podcast
169 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 4 years ago - ★★★★★ - 41 ratingsA podcast about vegetable gardening, food preservation, home economics and DIY living. Hosted by Erik Knutzen and Kelly Coyne, authors of The Urban Homestead and Making It: Radical Home Ec for a Post Consumer World.
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Episodes
099 The Amazing Sourdough Breads of Guy Frenkel
March 01, 2017 18:47Guy Frenkel is one of the most talented bakers I’ve met. If you’ve seen his whole grain, sourdough breads in Instagram (@Ceorbread) and Facebook you’ll know why I had to interview him. During the podcast we talk about his unique baking techniques such as yeast water, stencils and colored doughs. Even if you’re not a […]
098 Kelly’s Aortic Dissection Adventure
February 16, 2017 16:10On this episode of the podcast Kelly sits down to tell the story of her aortic dissection and subsequent emergency open heart surgery, that took place on November 25, 2016. We also take time to thank all the people who helped us, especially the doctors, nurses and staff of Kaiser Permanente’s Los Angeles Medical Center […]
097 Mill Your Own Flour with a Mock Mill
February 01, 2017 15:00First off, I want to thank Eric Rochow of Garden Fork for subbing for Kelly and I on the previous podcast (episode 96). Thank you Eric! And I hope everyone listening to our podcast will also subscribe to the Garden Fork Podcast and YouTube channel. Please leave Eric some good reviews too! As for Kelly, […]
096 Photographer Babs Perkins: The Land, People and Cheese of the Balkans
January 04, 2017 18:36First of all, a big thanks to Eric Rochow of Garden Fork. He wanted to do something for Kelly and me, so he set up an interview, guest hosted and edited this episode of the podcast. Please consider subscribing to Eric’s Garden Fork podcast and YouTube channel. Also take a moment to leave a review […]
095 Bean Holes and Deep Fried Turkeys with Eric Rochow of Garden Fork
November 16, 2016 15:00 - 83 BytesWith Thanksgiving just around the corner in the US it’s time to rock the friends and family with some new cooking traditions. How about baking beans in a hole or deep frying your turkey? I discuss these topics, plus how to plant garlic with Eric Rochow of Garden Fork. Eric’s got some great how-to videos: […]
094 The American Woman’s Home
October 26, 2016 17:59 - 70 BytesOn the podcast this week Kelly and I discuss a 19th century urban homesteading book written by Catherine Beecher and Harriet Beecher Stowe, The American Woman’s Home. The book was written mostly by Catherine, with some contributions from Harriet (author of Uncle Tom’s Cabin). It’s likely that Catherine realized that attaching her famous sister’s name […]
Nassim Nicholas Taleb on GMOs and the Precautionary Principle
September 30, 2016 17:15With the prospect of a Monsanto/Bayer mashup GMOs are back in the news. In an interview from 2015, former trader and risk management expert Nassim Nicholas Taleb presents what I think are some of the best arguments against GMOs. In this podcast Taleb tackles: The statistical errors found in scientific papers The need to apply […]
093 Micheal Judd on Edible Landscaping with a Permaculture Twist
September 21, 2016 14:00Our guest is Michael Judd and our topic is permaculture, edible landscaping, straw bale building, mushrooms and even a permacultural approach to death. From his bio: “Michael Judd is the founder of Ecologia, edible and ecological landscape design and Project Bona Fide, an international non-profit supporting agro-ecological research.” He’s also the author of a new […]
092 A Mattress Made of Sand
September 07, 2016 15:30Stephanie Wing-Garcia and her husband Michael Garcia devised an innovative solution to Stephanie’s crippling back pain: they handcrafted a bed made out of sand. We visited Stephanie and Michael in their Los Angeles home and tried out their bed. Stephanie tells us the story of how, while spending a sleepless night toughing it out on […]
091 Artist John Hartley’s Contingency Research
August 24, 2016 14:00Our guest this week on the podcast is London-based artist and researcher John Hartley. John is probably best known for turning an office (desk, computer and business suit!) into a sea kayak. We talk about a bunch of John’s projects, including the kayak, and the intersection of art and ecological thinking. While listening to the […]
Two Podcasts You’ve Got to Hear: Thinking Trees and Rewilding
August 03, 2016 15:47In case you can’t get enough of our podcasts, let me suggest two other podcast episodes that will definitely be of interest to Root Simple readers and listeners: WNYC’s Radiolab released an episode, From Tree to Shining Tree which features the mind-bending research of Suzanne Simard. Her work shows that the root systems of forests […]
090 Garden Myths: Nitrogen, Roundup, Compost Tea
July 27, 2016 14:00Our topic this week is gardening myths and our guest is Robert Pavlis. We touch on a number of controversial, hot-button gardening topics such as synthetic fertilizers, roundup and compost tea. Robert maintains a six acre garden near Guelph, Ontario all by himself, he’s a master gardener and a speaker. He has a background in […]
089 The New Wildcrafted Cuisine with Pascal Baudar
July 14, 2016 15:15Our topic this week on the podcast is the spectacular foraged cuisine of Southern California based Pascal Baudar. Pascal is the author of The New Wildcrafted Cuisine, Exploring the Exotic Gastronomy of local Terroir. We cover a lot of subjects in the podcast–everything from wild mustards to harvesting sugar from insects! Here’s just a few […]
088 Eric of Garden Fork TV on Raised Beds, Coleslaw and Deep Frying
June 29, 2016 14:00On the podcast this week is a return visit from Eric Rochow of the “eclectic DIY” site Garden Fork. We talk about using pressure treated wood for raised beds, making coleslaw and Eric’s adventures in deep frying (bacon wrapped grilled cheese!) among other topics. During our conversation Eric mentions: The Garden Fork Youtube channel Pressure […]
087 Foraging Controversy with Lisa Novick
June 15, 2016 16:35On the podcast this week we talk to Lisa Novick Director of Outreach and K-12 Education of the Theodore Payne Foundation for Wild Flowers & Native Plants. We contacted her after seeing her blog in the Huffington Post, Forage in the Garden, Not in What’s Left of the Wild. In that post Lisa expresses her […]
The Degrowth Paradigm
June 09, 2016 16:10Now in its 50th year, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation’s Ideas show, hosted by Paul Kennedy, tackles controversial topics thoughtfully and in-depth. On the latest episode, a rebroadcast from 2013, Ideas looks at a topic NPR wouldn’t touch with a 100-foot pole:”degrowth.” As engineer and degrowth advocate Bob Thomson puts it, Growth has become an element […]
086 The Connection Between Cats and Grain
June 01, 2016 14:00Why is it that cats come from the same part of the world where people first figured out how to grow and store grain? Would we have bread if we didn’t have cats? In this podcast Kelly and Erik explore the ancient history, famous cats and take a detour into the world of distillery cats […]
085 Rishi Kumar: Abundance in Suburbia
May 18, 2016 15:02Our guest this week is Rishi Kumar, who along with his mother Manju, turned a suburban house in Diamond Bar, California into a lush edible landscape and then went on to form a community educational organization and a suburban farm. You can see what they’ve done on their website The Growing Club. During the podcast […]
Erik Talks Straw Bales on C-Realm Radio
May 11, 2016 15:58Instead of producing our own podcast this week, I had the honor of being on C-Realm Radio in Vermont, hosted by my favorite podcaster (and, as of last month, radio host) KMO. The topic is straw bale gardening. KMO talks first to straw bale garden expert Joel Karsten. Then I chime in enthusiastically on the […]
084 How to Make Your Own Cheese with David Asher
May 04, 2016 17:33Want to learn how to make delicious cheeses in your own kitchen? It’s easier than you think. Our guest this week is radical natural cheesemaker David Asher, author of The Art of Natural Cheesemaking: Using Traditional, Non-Industrial Methods and Raw Ingredients to Make the World’s Best Cheeses. During the podcast we discuss: The difference between […]
083 Kris De Decker of Low Tech Magazine
April 27, 2016 14:00Our guest this week is journalist Kris De Decker, the creator of Low Tech Magazine, a blog published in English, Dutch and Spanish that covers low tech solutions in great depth and detail. Without exaggeration, I think it’s safe to say it’s my favorite blog. On the podcast we discuss high tech problems, Catalan vaulting, […]
082 Get Outdoors with Jeff Potter
April 20, 2016 15:18My guest this week is journalist and outdoor enthusiast Jeff Potter who runs outyourbackdoor.com. We talk about cross country skiing, riding bikes paddling boats and even eating road kill. You can find Jeff’s non-lycracentric cross country ski how-to videos in his Out Your Backdoor Youtube channel. During the podcast we also ponder the question, “If […]
Low-Tech Magazine
April 19, 2016 14:52Yesterday, Erik and I had the privilege of interviewing Kris De Decker, the creator of one of our very favorite Internet resources, Low-Tech Magazine. Those of you who know Low-Tech will understand our vast excitement. To make it all even happier, he seems like a really good guy. If you haven’t heard of this blog, […]
081 Foraging for Wild Foods With Leda Meredith
April 13, 2016 14:00Did you know that you can eat bark? Make a foam from the common mallow weed? Use dandelion as a hops substitute in beer? Our topic this week is foraging and our guest is Leda Meredith. Leda has a certificate in Ethnobotany from the New York Botanical Garden, where she is also an instructor. She […]
080 Lessons From the Theodore Payne 2016 Garden Tour
April 06, 2016 14:00What’s the good side of our historic drought here in California? Native gardens, of course! In this episode of the podcast Kelly and I share the lessons we learned from a native garden tour put on by the Theodore Payne Foundation. During the podcast we discuss: a provocative white paper by two UC horticulturalists on […]
Douglas Rushkoff on How Growth Became the Enemy of Prosperity
March 30, 2016 15:52In lieu of an episode of our podcast this week, (I’m still debating whether to post every week or every other week) I thought I’d point to this inspiring lecture by media thoughtstylist Douglas Rushkoff. You simply must listen to this talk, entitled “How Growth Became the Enemy of Prosperity,” and let us know what […]
O79 Growing and Breeding Tomatoes with Fred Hempel
March 23, 2016 14:00Want to know how to grow tomatoes? What are the best varieties to plant? Want to learn how to breed your own? Our guest this week is farmer and tomato breeder Fred Hempel. Fred farms and breeds gourmet vegetables in Northern California. His focus is on tomatoes, peppers, squash, herbs and edible flowers. In the […]
078 Mark Lakeman on City Repair
March 14, 2016 14:00Is your neighborhood not all it could be? Do people drive too fast? Does it feel lonely and anonymous? Is there no safe place for your kids to play? Mark Lakeman has some ideas for how all of us can transform the communities we live in. Hint: it starts with a potluck! Mark is the […]
A Brief Note About the Podcast
March 09, 2016 15:00A brief programing note here instead of a full podcast–the next few months are going to be busy ones around the root simple compound so I’ve decided to produce the podcast every other week–twice a month rather than four times a month. On next week’s episode we’ll have an interview with tomato breeder and farmer […]
077 Radical Mycology
March 02, 2016 16:56Our guest this week is Peter McCoy. Peter is a self-taught mycologist with 15 years of accumulated study and experience, Peter is an original founder of Radical Mycology, a grassroots organization and movement that teaches the skills needed to work with mushrooms and other fungi for personal, societal, and ecological resilience. Peter is the lead […]
076 Keeping Your Poultry Healthy with Dr. Maurice Pitesky
February 17, 2016 15:33Our guest this week is Dr. Maurice Pitesky and our topic is keeping your backyard poultry flock healthy. Dr. Pitesky is an Assistant Specialist in Cooperative Extension for Poultry Health and Food Safety Epidemiology at the University of California Davis where he researches disease surveillance, food safety management, and other topics related to poultry health. […]
075 Visionary Architect Glen Howard Small
February 04, 2016 20:06Our guest this week is architect Glen Small. If you’re not familiar with his work I’d really recommend taking a look at some of his amazing buildings, drawings and models while you listen to this podcast–you can see them on his blog which is Small at Large and at glenhowardsmallarchitect.com. Glen was one of the […]
074 Beyond the War on Invasive Species with Tao Orion
January 27, 2016 15:00Is there something wrong with the “war” on invasive plants? What are these resilient plants trying to tell us? Is there such a thing as a “natural” landscape? What’s wrong with Glyphosate? These are some of the topics we discuss in our conversation with Tao Orion, author of Beyond the War on Invasive Species: A […]
073 Permaculture From the Inside Out with Rachel Kaplan
January 20, 2016 15:00In this week’s episode we talk to Rachel Kaplan who is a somatic psychotherapist, permaculture designer, educator, and author. Rachel lives on a small urban homestead with her family and their many critters in Petaluma, CA. She is a co-founder of the 13 Moon CoLab, an all-woman teaching team offering an evolutionary training, Permaculture from […]
072 How to Set Goals
January 13, 2016 15:00In our first podcast of 2016, Kelly and I review play back excerpts from New Year’s resolution show and discover why it’s a really bad idea to publicize your goals. We go on to discuss the “SMART” (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, Time Framed) way of setting goals. During the podcast we reference an article in […]
071 Farmer Mai Nguyen
December 16, 2015 15:00Wondering about the next generation of farmers? Meet Mai Nguyen. She grows grains and vegetables in Northern California using a no-till, dry-farming method with draft horses–all in the midst of a historic drought! During the course of the conversation we discuss: Southeast Asian vegetables Growing rice Dry farming No-till agriculture Growing wheat Sonora wheat Red […]
070 Reconsidering Organic “Waste”
December 09, 2015 15:00What happens to the organic matter you put in the green bin? Where does it go? What could we do with it that could save the world? Kreigh Hampel, recycling coordinator for the city of Burbank, is our guest once again to discuss thinking of organic “waste” as organic “nutrients.” Kreigh was on 042 of […]
069 Understanding Roots with Robert Kourik
December 02, 2015 15:00What do roots tell us about how to take care of plants? That’s the topic of this week’s Root Simple Podcast with our guest Robert Kourik. Kourik is the author of many books including Designing and Maintaining Your Edible Landscape Naturally and Drip Irrigation. The discussion begins with the remarkable tree root diagrams pioneered by […]
068 Planting a Post-Wild Garden
November 18, 2015 16:39This week I interview Kelly about the ideas behind the remake of our front yard. We talk about why we took out a bunch of stone fruit trees and Kelly discusses how the principles in Thomas Rainer and Claudia West’s book Planting in a Post-Wild World inspired the new design of our yard. If you […]
067 Wild Drinks and Cocktails With Emily Han
November 04, 2015 15:00Our topic this week is wildcrafted drinks and cocktails with writer, recipe developer, educator, and herbalist Emily Han. She is the author of Wild Drinks and Cocktails and the Communications Director for LearningHerbs.com. Emily’s website is EmilyHan.com. During the show we discuss the difference between “wildcrafting” and “foraging” and how you can use easily foraged […]
066 Saving Seeds and Seed Libraries with David King
October 21, 2015 16:19Want to know how you can save your own vegetable seeds? Develop your varieties? Start your own seed library? We talk to David King of the Seed Library of Los Angeles about these topics and more. During the podcast David mentions a few resources including the Organic Seed Alliance and Carol Deppe’s book Breed Your […]
065 The Martian
October 14, 2015 15:38On the podcast this week Kelly and I discuss the horticulture and philosophy of the Ridley Scott/Matt Damon film The Martian, which is based on the novel by Andy Weir. It’s apparent that the character played by Matt Damon has read both John Jeavon’s How to Grow More Vegetables and Joe Jenkins’ Humanure Handbook. We […]
064 One Straw Revolutionary Larry Korn
October 07, 2015 14:00On the podcast this week we interview Larry Korn, author of One-Straw Revolutionary and translator and editor of Masanobu Fukuoka’s The One-Straw Revolution and Sowing Seeds in the Desert. We talk about Larry’s experience living on Fukuoka’s farm and we delve deep into Fukuoka’s natural farming philosophy. During the discussion we cover how natural farming […]
063 New Slow City with William Powers
September 30, 2015 14:00On the podcast this week we interview William Powers author of New Slow City, 12 by 12, Blue Clay People and Whispering in the Giant’s Ear. We talk about living “slow” in the big city and his move from a 12 by 12 foot cabin to Queens and then on to Manhattan. Powers is a […]
062 Plantar fasciitis, Vegetable Gardening Disasters and Rain
September 23, 2015 14:00On the podcast this week Kelly and I discuss my plantar fasciitis situation, our vegetable gardening disasters and what happens when it rains in Southern California. If you want to leave a question for the Root Simple Podcast please call (213) 537-2591 or send an email to [email protected]. You can subscribe to our podcast in […]
I’m on the Garden Fork Radio Podcast
September 18, 2015 22:40Hear “East Coast Eric” interview “West Coast Erik” on Garden Fork Radio Podcast Episode #390 about attic fans, stovetop pizza and what happens with the power goes out in LA.
061 National Heirloom Expo Report
September 16, 2015 14:00This week we go to the Santa Rosa Fairgrounds in Northern California to the National Heirloom Exposition. The three day Expo is run by the folks behind Baker Creek Seeds and features speakers, a huge hall of heirloom fruits and vegetables, vendors, livestock, a biodynamic pavilion and live music. I’ve attended each year for five […]
060 Eric of Garden Fork Returns
September 02, 2015 14:00Kelly has jury duty this week and I had no guest. Coincidentally, Eric Rochow of the Garden Fork Podcast also had no guest or host this week so we both agreed to be guests on each other’s podcasts. This is the second time we’ve had Eric on and in this episode he discusses tapping maple […]
059 The Dew Abides
August 26, 2015 14:00This week Kelly and I interview Brad Barnes and Jenn Collins of the blog The Dew Abides-their mantra is: simple living doesn’t have to be boring. Jenn and Brad live in Columbus, Georgia. During our conversation we talk about decluttering, taking care of elderly parents, living on a food stamp budget and much more. Jenn […]
058 All About Aquaponics
August 19, 2015 14:00Today on the podcast Kelly and I head to a unique homesteading supply shop called the King’s Roost to talk to the owner, Roe Sie, about aquaponics. During the show we discuss: What kind of growing medium to use Types of fish Water quality What female fish look like How to get an aquaponics system […]