Mothering Earth Podcast

Chickens are kept by humans all over the world, as a source of fresh eggs, and by carnivores, as a source of meat. Perhaps you keep chickens, or know someone who does? Or you may be thinking about starting your own little flock. In this program, chicken expert Jesse Huth shares his extensive experience on keeping chickens healthy, happy and laying!

Bats are found on every continent in the world, except Antarctica. These flying mammals are often misunderstood and persecuted, yet they perform several valuable services for us humans. In this program, Mylea Bayless of Bat Conservation International will inform and delight you with her knowledge of the amazing creatures we call bats.

In part two of our conversation with Katherine Romans of the Hill Country Alliance, we'll hear about what you can do to conserve water, to keep our night skies dark and starry, and to preserve the character of small towns in the hill country.

What happens when an area known for its natural beauty and resources experiences rapid population growth? The Texas hill country is such an area, and the swift influx of people is resulting in a severe strain on resources. The Hill Country Alliance (HCA) is a group of local citizens who organized to take on the challenges to the environment. I spoke to Katherine Romans, executive director of the H...

What is a MRF? It is a Material Recovery Facility, and it is where your recyclable trash goes to be sorted, and eventually reused. Workers and machines at theTexas Disposal Systems MRF sort through the millions of pieces of paper, cardboard, glass, metals and more that arrive daily. It is a staggering task and in this program, we’ll find out how they do it, and what you can do to make the system m...

In this program we continue our exploration of herbs with Robyn Clark, especially those plants that are used in therapeutic ways. We also re-visit Tara Chapman, chief beekeeper at Two Hives Honey to talk about how to start your own beehive.

Herbs are those marvelous plants we use to make our food taste better. Herbs also have a long history of being used as medicines, and if that's not enough, they are used to provide pleasant fragrance in soaps and body products, and to scent the air. On Mothering Earth, we talk to herbalist and botanist Robyn Clark to learn more about these amazing plants.

Most people who plant fruit and nut trees and herbs look forward to harvesting and using their bounty by themselves, or perhaps sharing some with friends and neighbors. So imagine an urban park, planted with fruit and nut trees and other edible plants, that is completely open to the public. This is the concept of an urban food forest, where anyone can come, harvest, and enjoy what grows there.

Did you know that honey bees visit two million flowers to make one pound of honey? That’s a lot of work for that sweet treat that you spread on your toast! In this program, we visit Tara Chapman, chief beekeeper at Two Hives Honey to find out what else bees do for us, and what we can do for them.

There are thousands of unique bird species on our Earth, which makes them an important part of the world’s environment. They contribute to the diversity of nature, but also delight us with their pretty feathers, chirps and songs. In this program, we’ll meet wildlife biologist Rufus Stephens to talk about birds and the things they do.

Bicycling is a fun activity for both children and adults. It has a positive effect on the environment because unlike automobiles, bikes don’t emit harmful pollutants into our atmosphere. Biking is also good for your health, as we hear from Doug Ballew, from the City of Austin Public Health department.

The term permaculture is a combination of the words “permanent” and “agriculture” and describes a way of thinking about food production that is both sustainable and self-sustaining. It appeals to the practical gardener who wants to design a garden where all the parts work together in a natural harmony, as you will hear in this program.

We may live in urban and suburban places, but we still crave a connection to nature, to green-spaces and to the birds and the bees. Urban horticulture is about designing cities and towns that nurture that connection, as we learn in this conversation with Dr. Alice Le Duc of Texas State University.

Food Co-ops are communities of people who care about food and the environment. In this program, Mothering Earth goes to the only food co-op in Texas--the Wheatsville Food Co-op, which is located in Austin, TX.

A staggering amount of food is wasted each year in the United States. Good edible food goes in the trash and then in the landfill, while others go hungry. On Mothering Earth, we explore this issue with Russell Cavin of Keep Austin Fed.

Dark night skies allow us to view the stars and the Milky Way, but keeping the night dark also has health benefits and affects your wallet. In this program Cindy Luongo Cassidy explains why dark night skies are so important for humans, animals and even plants.

Artists, creatives and educators alike can find repurposed materials at very low cost for projects of all kinds. Founder and Board President Rebecca Stuch takes us on a tour of this amazing resource center that helps keep valuable materials out of the land fill and available to the public.

Rain is free water falling from the sky that you can capture and use for watering your garden, and for cooking, bathing and drinking. That’s called rainwater harvesting and in this conversation with Kathi Thomas, coordinator of the Rainwater Revival educational festival, you’ll learn what you need to get started.

What do trees do all day long, besides stand there and look pretty? In this conversation with Dr. Susan Schwinning, at Texas State University, we go under the bark, and find out.

Keeping the San Marcos river clean, clear and flowing is no easy task, as Dianne Wassenich can tell you. Dianne has been an essential part of the San Marcos River Foundation for more than 30 years and in this program, she tells us what it takes to carry out this important mission.

San Marcos, Texas residents Betsy Robertson and her husband Todd Derkacz have found fun and effective ways to lower their carbon footprint. In the process, they enjoy a healthier lifestyle that is better for the environment and saves money.

Making compost is good for our earth in many ways. It removes items that would otherwise fester in landfills, from the waste stream, and turns that material into a rich food for soil. In this program, Texas Organic Products production manager Zach Halfin tells us about making compost on an industrial scale and about where you can buy it for your garden.

There are things we can do, on the land we live on, to alleviate the severe effects of a lot of rain in a short period of time. In this conversation with land management consultant Jamie Kinscherff, we hear about simple land management practices that help minimize the effects of flooding.

The clothes we wear have an impact on our environment in many ways. There’s the environmental impact when the materials used for the fabric is grown, or harvested, or manufactured, the impact at the clothing factory, the impact on the people who make the clothes, the environmental effect when you wash and dry the items and finally the impact when you dispose of them. That environmental circle is w...

Central Texas and many other areas around the country experience periods of drought followed by flooding. There are best practices we can all follow that help mitigate the effects of flooding and in this program, Christine Middleton of the Hays County Master Naturalists shares ideas of what helps, and what doesn’t.