reading this week

Camera is still out of commission at the moment, but once it's back, there will be a seed starting update, because it is ON in those trays. Our grow light set up seems to be paying off.

Seed Starting 101 free e-book (Chiot's Run)
This is the primary seed guide we've been using this year and so far, so good! (Also a really good blog to follow if you are in to gardening.)

In the meantime, here's what I'm reading this week.

9 Facts About Factory Farming That Will Break Your Heart (Huffington Post)
This article contains the graphic photos and facts that most people ignore when they purchase and/or consume animal products from factory farms, and in that regard it's worth a look. But it's also part of a series of articles sponsored by Chipotle. And even though Chipotle has made strides in its treatment of animals that it uses for its restaurant and the removal of unnecessary antibiotics, their meat still primarily comes from factory farms. So this one is complicated.

Who Protects the People Who Live Near Industrial Meat Operations? (CLF blog)
Would you like to walk out your front door to find a layer of manure on your car? Yeah, me either.

Voracious Worm Evolves to Eat Biotech Corn Meant to Kill It  (Wired Science)
It's amazing to me how biotech companies are so scientifically advanced yet forget that nature evolves. Three quarters of our corn crops are genetically modified to be resistant to rootworm damage. Now the rootworm eats the corn for dinner.

8 Steps to Sustainable Meat and Milk (Popular Science)
Some interesting ideas on how we can make sustainability work on a large scale. Did you know 95% of milk in the EU is from grass-fed cows?