Shopping for the kind of person who reads this newsletter is not easy. What to get someone who thinks petro-capitalism is a loudly ticking doomsday device but also loves spending time in the garden or kitchen or library?
Fortunately for you, I’ve put together this tempting holiday gift guide, ensuring that this consumption opportunity will not be wasted. Let’s dig in:
Eastern gammagrass seeds
Eastern gamma grass is a medium-height native bunch grass that nearly went extinct and remains exceedingly rare in the wild. It used to cover vast swathes of American prairie, where it served as a staple food for immense herds of migratory bison and other ruminants, as well as providing vital nesting habitat and food for wild turkeys, quail, and partridges. On top of all that, its broad leaves are the food of choice for Bunchgrass Skipper butterflies, and its dense stands provide winter cover for all manner of insects. Its deep root system allows it to easily withstand drought—unlike invasive grasses, which turn to kindling—-while preventing erosion and sequestering carbon deep underground. So why did it disappear? The extermination of the bison and the introduction of cattle killed it off. It could survive and thrive with annual foraging by a migratory herd, but overgrazing by nonmigratory cattle killed it. Now, you have the opportunity to help restore it. Seeds can be found here.
The complete Low-Tech magazine
These compilations are worth their weight in gold. Each article is a mind-blowing revelation, presented thoughtfully and clearly, with fascinating discussions of how old technology can become new again. If you're interested in the technical side of what a degrowth eco-socialist future could look like, and you want to know how our lives could actually get better and more comfortable without all the doomsday bullshit of petro-capitalism, these books are a must.
Royal corona beans
These massive beans are just unreasonably delicious. You would not expect that mere beans—and white ones at that—could taste this good, but alas, they do. And the liquid they are cooked in (known as the "gravy") is incredibly tasty, especially if you reduce it a bit. Bonus: these are viable seeds, so set aside a few before you cook them. If you like them as much as I do, you'll want to grow these out.