The Mother Earth News ... It Tells You How

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Here are a few more of THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS syndicated features which have appeared in 100+ newspapers over the past four and half years.

Winter is here again and, contrary to what most folks believe, this season can be productive for the wild food forager.

Tasty beans, concealed in what looks like flat leather pods, still cling to the black locust trees. Pick what you can reach and then take a long pole and whack the pods that are higher up. They'll come spinning down to be gathered from the snow. Pick a lot of these pods.

Locust beans can be used like any other bean and are good just boiled in water (add a little fried bacon for flavoring) or added to fish and bean soup!

Snow was made for children, and you can help your neighborhood half-pints automate the construction of that next winter fort with this simple homemade block mold.

Build the form from the lumber in a stout, discarded wooden case, and take care to fit the mold with both a leather hinge and leather clasp on opposing corners as shown. (Sections cut from an old pair of shoes will work just fine.)

Place the finished form on the sidewalk, a piece of plywood, or a similar flat surface ... and solidly pack the mold with snow. Scrape the top of the block square with any suitable straightedge, release the catch, and remove the finished "brick".

A well-designed structure built from these snow blocks can last as long as winter holds out.

After a healthy fall or winter romp through the countryside those friendly old leather boots and shoes often take on more moisture than they should. The method you choose to dry them out could mean the difference between a few extra minutes of your time or an unnecessary trip to the shoe store for new ones ... so dry them carefully.