Tips from the Tomato Lady: How to Grow the Tastiest Tomatoes

Tips from the Tomato Lady: How to Grow the Tastiest Tomatoes

Q: Any special tips for growing those lovely tomatoes, especially in this hot, dry weather we’ve been having?

A: First, plant deep, to get more root growth. Overall, tomatoes are annuals, so they’re ready to go; they know it’s this year or nothing, so you don’t need to snip their roots or take them out of the peat pots. Just plant them deep. All those little hairs on the stem that you can see will become roots once they are set underground, so it’s a great way to give your plants an amazing head start.

Join the Circular Economy: COMPOST

Join the Circular Economy: COMPOST

Keeping food waste out of landfills via composting is a perfect example of how the circular economy can work. Following is a list of Chicagoland composting resources recommended by Jonathan Pereira of Plant Chicago. For those outside of Illinois, search for similar resources in your area to get involved.

Filmmaker Q&A with Pamela Tanner Boll of 'To Which We Belong'

Filmmaker Q&A with Pamela Tanner Boll of 'To Which We Belong'

Q: Tell me about the film’s title.

A: It comes from a quote by Aldo Leopold (1887-1948)—a revered environmentalist of the past century. He said, "We abuse land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect." In other words, land is something we can’t live without. Humans don’t live in a vacuum. We depend as much on the health of the ants and the bees and the dung beetles and the soil as we do on the larger flora and fauna.

Filmmaker Q&A with Clement Guerra of 'The Condor and The Eagle'

Filmmaker Q&A with Clement Guerra of 'The Condor and The Eagle'

Most people who get married and decide to have children build a nest and settle in. Clement and Sophie Guerra did the opposite: they cashed in their savings and flew to South America. The result of their deep commitment to listening and learning is the revealing documentary “The Condor and the Eagle,” a film that profiles women leaders of communities most impacted by the fossil fuel industry. It will be screening on Tuesday, April 20, at 6:30 p.m. CDT.

Julie Howe interviewed Clement Guerra to learn more about why they made the film and what they learned.

14 Honorable Mention Winning Youth Films Will Screen April 24

14 Honorable Mention Winning Youth Films Will Screen April 24

See an environmental superhero fly through the sky, a time-traveling climate change reporter, and animals saved from Western wildfires.

As part of the Earth Day Mini Film Fest 2021, the One Earth Young Filmmakers Contest will feature 14 Honorable Mention short films in two one-hour events on Saturday, April 24, at 3 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Online discussion with young filmmakers from California to Texas to New York will be facilitated by Young Filmmakers Contest Founding Director Sue Crothers.

Filmmaker Q&A with Trish Dolman + Betsy Carson, Producers of ‘The New Corporation'

Filmmaker Q&A with Trish Dolman + Betsy Carson, Producers of ‘The New Corporation'

Q: What are the most important "action items" you hope people take away from your film?

Betsy: I hope that people discuss with their families, their friends, and their coworkers how they can disentangle their lives from corporate values. That constant growth is not a sign of success but a sign of greed. And that joining groups that work on environmental change, democratic change, poverty and inequality issues, or other issues that work toward a more equal society is worth doing. That it's rewarding to participate in change in many ways.