Grid Magazine

#097 May 2017/All Topics

Pennsylvania leads the U.S. in supporting farmers to be better water stewards

Farmers, Water Protectors by John Henry Scott While many people believe access to clean water should be a basic human right, the necessary level of government involvement to regulate water is a more contentious issue. In Pennsylvania, voluntary programs that work with our region’s farmers are one way advocates are protecting our water supply. Since

April 26, 2017

3 mins read

#097 May 2017/gardening

Where to get the best plants this spring

Garden Supply Hot Spots by Laura Everard Whenever you talk to gardeners, regardless of who they are, where they live and what kind of garden they have, they always have the garden center that they swear by, and they tend to get very “Sharks and Jets” about the whole situation. I don’t claim to have

April 26, 2017

3 mins read

#097 May 2017/Food

Terroir shines through Va La’s family farmed wines

A Time, a Vine and a Place by Emily Kovach For Anthony Vietri of Va La Vineyards, wine has always been a family affair. Since 1928, they’ve owned the farm in Avondale, Pennsylvania, where Vietri and his wife currently live, grow grapes and make wine. It was started by his Italian great-grandparents; Vietri’s daughter now

April 26, 2017

5 mins read

#097 May 2017/Food

Recipe: Spring greens showered with Vietnamese fish sauce, ginger, peppers and lime

Spicy Watercress Salad by Brian Ricci When I was a child, my mother would bring home bags upon bags of watercress each spring. They were gifts from one of her colleagues who cultivated watercress in his garden at home. Mom would gently rinse it and then clip the long tendrils, discarding the thicker, more fibrous

April 26, 2017

1 min read

#097 May 2017/Column/Guest Editorial

Access to land contributes to healing and self-determination

Refugees Take Root by Lan Dinh Growing up on the 4700 block of Sansom Street, an area where many Southeast Asian refugees were initially resettled, I still remember the food oasis in our 5-by-5 back porch. Beautiful, big, fuzzy leaves crawled up every vertical inch of available gate, pole or fencing. My parents were skilled

April 26, 2017

3 mins read

#096 April 2017/gardening

Perfect plant picks for that tricky backyard patio

Made in the Shade by Laura Everard “I can’t grow anything because my garden is too shady.” If I had a dollar for the number of times people told me this, I would have enough money to buy all of the plants they would need to revamp their shade garden! Just because you aren’t living

March 29, 2017

4 mins read

#096 April 2017/Column/The Right Question

The Right Question: It’s Time for a Little Physics 101

Illustration by Jameela Wahlgren Stop Confusing Energy with Electricity by Jerry Silberman Question: Can we run our entire society on solar energy?The Right Question: Which kind of solar energy would you like? Right now, more than 90 percent of all of our energy needs are powered by the sun, so we can answer the first

March 29, 2017

3 mins read

#096 April 2017/gardening

Healthy eating in the lunchroom at Friends’ Central School

Tiny Farm to Tiny Table by Grid Staff School cafeterias of old are notorious for mushy veggies and fried mystery meats, but students at Friends’ Central School in Wynnewood hope to promote healthful lunch hours with a new year-round food-growing program. Students from nursery school through fifth grade are taught the significance of healthy eating

March 29, 2017

1 min read

#096 April 2017/gardening

Sidewalks. Rooftops. Raised beds. Give a city gardener an inch, they’ll take a mile.

Photos and illustrations by Marika Mirren How Does Your Garden Grow? by Brion Shreffler Turning the corner of South 10th and Christian streets in Philadelphia, heading north into the Bella Vista neighborhood, a newcomer out on a jog might be caught off guard by the fiercely squawking green parrot taking umbrage at their swift passage.

March 29, 2017

6 mins read

#096 April 2017/Column/Editor's Notes

Spring should be a time of celebration and hope, not fear

Ice Storm by Heather Shayne Blakeslee In 1912, Mayor Yukio Ozaki of Tokyo made a gift of 3,000 cherry trees to Washington, D.C., as a sign of the close relationship between Japan and the United States. For centuries, the Japanese have revered the fleeting beauty of the cherry blossoms, which bloom in early spring and

March 29, 2017

2 mins read

The Latest