What if plants, regenerative technology, and spaces for people comprised the structure of our urban environs? Envision It!

Artist and community-grower Jayvn Solomon does, in his big body of work, Loutopia. On view through May, 2022 at TechArtista, 4th and Pine, in downtown St. Louis, this energizing array of 50 image panels puts nature-for-people in the foreground of urban life. 

This Earthworms conversation hikes through sustainability, social justice, urban planning, arts-as-essential, resilience - and more. Join it, with Jean and Jayvn.

Thanks to Andy Heaslet, Earthworms audio engineer, and to Jon Valley and Andy Coco, KDHX Production mavens.

Related Earthworms Conversations:
Chalk Riot: Street Art, GRL-Powered Art Riot (May 2018)

VR Botany - Techno-Biologist Dr. Kyra Krakos brings nature waaaaaay in! (June 2020)

Urban Environments: STL Style with Randy and Jeff Vines (June 2018)

From plots of land in the Dutchtown neighborhood of south St. Louis, farmed since the 1870s, partners Mimo Davis and Miranda Duschack send forth bunches, bouquets and buckets of flowers that are "locally grown, not flown" to gladden many local hearts.

Especially poignant in this conversation with Earthworms host and flower fan Jean Ponzi is the story of Urban Buds covid pivot. Nature, Love and Beauty will not be stopped!

More than 70 varieties of blooming plants are sustainably grown using drip irrigation, compost, integrated pest management, minimal tillage and cover crops. This unique farm's one acre across seven city lots embodies knowledge and commitment that joyously hold Golden Beet Certification from Known & Grown St. Louis, the regional local food evaluation program of Missouri Coalition for the Environment. Thanks to Known & Grown!

Urban Buds supplies seasonal and high-tunnel grown flowers for weddings and events, direct sale at Farmers Markets, and wholesale customers. Farm tours (by appointment) welcome visitors of all ages to see how the blooms we all love grow, and learn why local growing is so valuable - especially for plants with intense production impacts as we "typically" source them.  Pick details at www.urbanbudscitygrownflowers.com 

THANKS to Andy Heaslet, Earthworms intrepid engineer, and to Jon Valley and Andy Coco, KDHX production team. 

Related Earthworms Conversations:

Custom Foodscaping with Matt Lebon (Dec 2018)

Kate Estwing Grows, Loves, Arranges . . . Slow Flowers (July 2018)

From Flint to Standing Rock - indeed, world-wide - communities keep resisting corporate and government actions that threaten water quality and access. One heroic story from El Salvador embodies the most resourceful courage and painful struggle of "ordinary people" who know water is more precious than gold.

John Cavanagh and activist/author partner and wife Robin Broad lived support for this saga. Their new book The Water Defenders (Beacon Press, March 2021) draws on over a decade of research and their own roles as international allies of the Salvadoran champions who took on Big Gold and the World Bank - and saved their country's water from corporate greed.

Thanks to Andy Heaslet, Earthworms friend and engineer - and to Jon Valley and Andy Coco of KDHX Production.

Related Earthworms Conversations: Photographer Neeta Sataam, Documenting Himalayan Climate Change (March 2018)

Rule of Five: The Supreme Court and CO2 (July 2020)

The land of second generation Missouri farmer Matt Arthur flowers thanks to his investment in growing soil. He says:

“We are stewards of our land, committed to a no-till practice of regenerative agriculture. No chemicals, lots of cover crops, a preference for native species. Growing in permanent raised beds: once formed, we never disturb them."

Flowers and herbs, native and medicinal plants, grow on three BLH Farm acres of this Fulton MO hillside.  Honeybees and other pollinators forage on 140 forested acres. Subscription compost collection from nearby St. Louis communities nourishes the BLH Farms' soil. Cut-flower customers can buy through the BLH CSA or online store and at Hy-Vee in Columbia MO.

BLH Farms proudly holds membership and certification through Known & Grown St. Louis. 

THANKS to Andy Heaslet, Earthworms audio engineer, and to Jon Valley and Andy Coco, the KDHX Production team. 

Related Earthworms Conversations:

Dr. Elaine Ingham: Soil Science Rocks Plant Health (Oct 2017)

The Work of Ecological Restoration (July 2020)

For Sam and Bill Wiseman, Sunflower Savannah Farm embodies  the continuity of life. Everything serves a purpose and contributes to the wellbeing of the farm.

Sheep eat the grass, conserving tractor fuel, and produce compost to grow cut flowers and specialty veg. Garden produce supports the Market, the animals and the farm family. Dogs guard the animals and the house and cats hunt critters that would ruin the grain eat garden seeds. Chickens, ducks, and geese feast on the bugs that eat the plants that feed everyone, and provide eggs to eat and compost to feed the garden soil. garden. This is the cycle for Sam and Bill, farming 22 acres in Beaufort, MO.

Thanks to Known & Grown STL, our regional local food brand and farm certification, for connecting KDHX Earthworms to Sunflower Savannah - and to all the Earthworms On The Farm conversations.

Earthworms engineer is Andy Heaslet  - THANKS! also to Jon Valley and Andy Coco of the KDHX Production Team.

Related Earthworms Conversations:

Kate Estwing Grows - Loves - Arranges SLOW FLOWERS (July 2018) 

Slow Money's Woody Tasch on Culture, Poetry, Imagination, Soil (July 2018)

Kirsten Lie-Nielsen on Keeping Geese (Nov 2017)

Where in an urban space do goats, bees, flexible muscles, resilient spirits, elderflowers, generous hearts, and veg all flourish?

Thanks to farmer and healer human being Janett Lewis, in Spanish Lake, a community in unincorporated North St. Louis County, MO.         

Janett's work through Rustic Roots Sanctuary grew its strong fibers from her Georgia childhood on a family plantation, through work at a Waldorf School "where everything revolves around nature," to hands-on learning of bodywork skills in global cultures. A real estate business decision brought her to Spanish Lake. She stayed to address community needs and "because it's so beautiful and the people are amazing."

Rustic Roots 6.64 acres add urban farming land-wealth to the GROW Spanish Lake community garden, both co-creators with Spanish Lake CDC - with Janett's strong hand in each.

In each of her key roles in Spanish Lake, Janett Lewis draws from her lifetime of experience and commitment to help people feel better. Rustic Roots Sanctuary is a proud member of Known & Grown STL, our regional local food brand and certification program from Missouri Coalition for the Environment.

Thanks to Jenn DeRose and Known & Grown STL for facilitating this edition of Earthworms On The Farm!

Thanks to Earthworms truly verdant engineer, Andy Heaslet - and to Jon Valley and Andy Coco, KDHX Production guys.

Related Earthworms Conversations: One Health for People - Animals - Earth with Dr. Sharon Deem (April 2020)

Tend & Flourish School of Botanicals (Feb 2020)

Building Futures: Kids, Wood, Tools, Design, Future Benefits Now (June 2019)

If you can only plant one tree, make that tree an Oak.

Doug Tallamy, national advocate for restoring the LIFE in our places with the power of Native Plants, celebrates the mighty Quercus family of trees with this latest book, his third as definitive matchmakers for humans and plants.

The Nature of Oaks: the Rich Ecology of our Most Essential Native Trees (Timber Press, 2021) is Tallamy's personal story, scientific observation chronicle and love song to the oak trees around his home. He connects tree lore to healthy soil, songbirds, and more caterpillars than even he (an expert entomologist) can count.

Earthworms host Jean Ponzi welcomes Doug Tallamy back to KDHX, in a conversation part Eco-FanGirl idolizes Bug Guy, part Summit of Biodiversity Peers. Prepare to want to grow with an Oak!

Presented in partnership with the 2021 Green Living Festival from the EarthWays Center at Missouri Botanical Garden.

THANKS to Andy Heaslet, Earthworms audio engineer and Sierra Club national communicator, and to Andy Coco and Jon Valley, KDHX Production Guys.

Related Earthworms Interviews: Nature's Best Hope? Ecologist Doug Tallamy Says WE ARE! (Feb 2020)

In the Company of Trees: Forest Bathing with Andrea Serrubi Fareshteh (January 2019)

On Legacy Circle Farms, Tyler and Erin Bernsen start their growing underground: nourishing "challenging Ozark soil" with compost, mulch and intensive grazing. Vibrantly visible are their crops of vegetables, fruits, mushrooms, nuts, high value herbs like turmeric and ginger, and heirloom varieties of garlic.

Recent addition of high tunnels boosted productivity from the quarter-acre the Bernsens farm. Their big-picture stewardship of Legacy Circle's 71 acres in Lonedell, MO embodies a unique exchange: a rent-free relationship with their landlord from which Tyler and Erin are seeking like-minded "landless" farmers to share their place for a farming start.

Legacy Circle Farms proudly holds Golden Beet Certification from Known & Grown St. Louis, our regional local food brand, a program of Missouri Coalition for the Environment. With advance reservations, tours are welcome. Goods are available through a local farms online collaborative,  at the Wildwood, Washington and Point Labbadie Farmers Markets. 

Listening to this interview before May 22? Legacy Circle Farms is hosting Open House on 5/22/21 - consider a visit!

THANKS to Andy Heaslet, Earthworms engineer, and for KDHX production support from Jon Valley and Andy Coco. 
THANKS to Jenn DeRose of Known & Grown STL for coordinating this special series, Earthworms On The Farm.

Related Earthworms Conversations:

Fungus Farming for Food & Fun: McCully Heritage Project (Feb 2018)
Project Garlic: Crop-Sourcing the Super Bulb with Brian DeSmet (Oct 2015)

Sustainable farming is both lifestyle and full-time job for Holly Evans, Randy Buck and their three children. Holly and Earthworms host Jean Ponzi "tour" this young family's 15+ acre Rosy Buck Farm on a hillside property in Leasburg, MO, where Randy digs circular vegetable beds!

Third in Earthworms' series featuring local farmers certified by Known & Grown STL, our regional sustainable food brand, this conversation explores Rosy Buck's search for land, learning process, and joyful commitment to farming, overall.

Rosy Buck Farm brings their bounty to Sol Market (Maplewood), Wednesdays 4-7, to Point Labadie Thursdays 4-7 and Wildwood Saturdays 8-9. CSA subscriptions are, happily, sold out for 2021. They proudly hold Golden Beet Certification from Known & Grown STL. 

Thanks to Andy Heaslet, Earthworms Green-savvy engineer, and to Jon Valley and Andy Coco at KDHX.

Related Earthworms Conversations:

Nancy Lawson, the Humane Gardener (Feb 2019)
Kate Estwing Grows, Arranges Loves . . . Slow Flowers (Jan 2018)

Here at the confluence of the fourth largest watershed on Earth, most St. Louisans don't connect with our big rivers - or our community tributaries - beyond an occasional public event. How to  help us relate to the value, needs and health of our waters? Convening presenters from local, DC and global advocacy groups, this is the Global Freshwaters Summit's intent.

Organizer Laura Madden grew up in St. Louis on Coldwater Creek, now notoriously contaminated by radioactive waste. From a visit here with DC colleague and friend Myra Jackson, these women have rallied colleagues in environmental and social action, coordinating a virtual event hosted by the Missouri Historical Society around their landmark "Mighty Mississippi" exhibit. 

Conference sessions and a film festival take place April 19-23, on Zoom. Registration is free. Overflowing the banks of "normal" Earth Week events, this summit aims to Change In One Generation how we humans relate to freshwater resources - and each other.

THANKS to Andy Heaslet, Earthworms Engineer, with a shout-out to Andy Coco and Jon Valley, KDHX production staff.
Related Earthworms Conversations:

Related Earthworms Conversations: Mighty Mississippi Exhibit with curator David Lobbig (Dec 2019) 

Living with Rivers: Big Muddy MO (Feb 2019)

Earth Day, April 22, is one of the most widely observed dates on this planet. For enviro-advocates, this celebration has become Earth Month: starts in March, runs to May.

This is way true for the folks of EarthDay-365, celebrating virtually again this year in St. Louis. Executive Director Dr. Jess Watson, and Bob Henkel, Director of Programs. Earthworms host Jean Ponzi knows Jess and Bob as colleagues and friends, so this preview of a month of social action, learning, engagement and fun comes from heart, hands and eco-logic intertwined.

Give a listen, get involved! Happy Earth Month to you!

THANKS to Andy Heaslet, Earthworms engineer, and to Andy Coco and Jon Valley, the KDHX production team.

Related Earthworms Conversations:
Earth Day: History of a Genius Event with Adam Rome (May 2018)

As dancer and choreographer Dawn Karlovsky read about The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate in Peter Wohlleben's bestseller of that name, SHE felt that communication - and transformed her experience into dance.

Her conversation with Earthworms host Jean Ponzi explores the nature of movement as a primary force mastered (even in stillness) by trees, from whom our species can take a useful leaf!

Karlovsky and Company's performance this spring of Interwoven celebrates the nourishing nurturing interconnected nature of what we now know as the "Wood-Wide Web" in a collaborative performance that includes original music by Tory Starbuck and Kalo Hoyle with stage design/visual art by Dr. Bill Russell.

Audiences can virtually experience Interwoven March 26 - April 11, and learn more about this and other collaborative works at www.karlovskydance.org 

THANKS to Andy Heaslet, Earthworms friend & engineer, and to KDHX production staff Andy Coco and Jon Valley.

Related Earthworms Conversations:
In the Company of Trees with Andrea Sarubbi Fareshteh (Jan 2019)

Joan Lipkin: Focusing Theater Power on Climate Change (Oct 2017)

Related: Joan Lipkin Climate Plays

NEED PIX from Dawn

Becky Brittain is a passionate sparkler of life, a practiced mover of energies to help ourselves, Earth and others.  Her new book The Art of Sparkling - Share Your Inner Light with the World (Weeping Willow, 2020) embodies Becky's energy, grounded in some hefty experiential cred.

Becky Brittain, Ph.D., R-DMT, is a clinically trained psychotherapist, life coach, registered dance-movement therapist, and energy transmitter. Her doctorate in prenatal and perinatal psychology from the Santa Barbara Graduate Institute, M.A. in dance therapy from UCLA, and B.A. in Psychology and Dance have, as she describes in the book, all contributed to Becky's work in evolving fields and to her sparkle explorations. 

Becky Brittain and Earthworms host Jean Ponzi are old friends. When Becky taught somatic psychology at Washington University in St. Louis (for 29 years) she tuned into Earthworms on KDHX, driving home from class. Hear connection sparkling between these two! As Becky Brittain says, it's a dance in light.

THANKS to Earthworms Green-pro engineer Andy Heaslet, with a shout-out always to KDHX production pros Andy Coco and Jon Valley.

Related Earthworms Conversations: 
Dr. Sharon Deem DVM - One Health for People, Animals, Earth (August 2020)

Pen Augustin on Energy Healing (May 2015)

Crystal Moore Stevens: Grow, Create, Inspire (Oct 2016)

Lark Rodman on Ecological Revival (Feb 2015)

Sparkle Plenty - Yippee-oo!

Back in 2009, HUD gave St. Louis their largest-ever grant award to develop a regional sustainability plan. A zillion stakeholder-session hours late, OneSTL took form. But, as with many plans, there was no $$ for implementation - until Person-Power took the helm.

Today, circles of advocates working in six focus areas are implementing SMART targets, making OneSTL both plan and reality. Earthworms is proud to spotlight OneSTL in this conversation with Aaron Young, Sustainability Project Manager, and Gena Jain, Sustainability Planner with our East-West Gateway Council of Governments. 

      

Across our bi-state region, under the banner of OneSTL, good work is underway the areas of Food Access, Water and Green Infrastructure, Materials and Recycling, Energy and Emissions, Green Transportation and Biodiversity. Give a listen!

THANKS to Earthworms engineers, Andy Heaslet, Jon Valley and Andy Coco

Earthworms host Jean Ponzi contributed to We Are OneSTL stories for November 2020. 

Earthworms Conversations with St. Louis Leaders: 

Dr. Sharon Deem, DVM: One Health for People, Animals, Earth

VR Botany: Dr. Kyra Krakos Brings Outdoors Waaaaaaay In

Heather Navarro: 50 Years of MO Coalition for the Environment

The mission of Heru Urban Farming, growing on lots in the City of St. Louis, is to bring healthy, sustainable produce to those who need it most. Founder and CEO Tyrean Heru Lewis is a 5th generation farmer with a background in health and physical education, a Master's degree in Management, and a vibrant passion for growing food that will grow health and vitality for the community he feeds.

Heru's passion is a tangible force. Hearing him talk about his work is feeling the joyful focus he pours into working. Inspiring, practical.  Extraordinary. Heru Urban Farming holds Golden Beet Certification from Known & Grown STL, our regional sustainable food brand and certification system. 

Big congrats for the early December announcement that Heru Urban Farming is awarded a $50,000 grant from the University of Missouri-St. Louis Accelerator. Heru is one of five recipients selected from 470 applicants. The award also includes $200,000 in in-kind service from the Accelerator program.

THANKS to Andy Heaslet, Earthworms engineer, supported by Andy Coco and Jon Valley at KDHX Production

Related Earthworms Conversations: 
Tosha Phonix: Organizing Food Justice, Growing Community (Oct 2019)

Known & Grown: Brand Boosting Capacity for Local Food (June 2019)

Greenwood Cemetery: History, Community, Restoration Work (Jan 2018)