Root Simple Podcast

Today on the podcast Kelly and I head to a unique homesteading supply shop called the King’s Roost to talk to the owner, Roe Sie, about aquaponics. During the show we discuss: What kind of growing medium to use Types of fish Water quality What female fish look like How to get an aquaponics system […]

On the podcast this week we continue our conversation with Craig Ruggless who, along with his husband Gary Jackemuk, runs Winnetka Farms in Los Angeles’ San Fernando valley. In last week’s podcast, episode 56, we talked about Italian vegetables. This week Craig tells us about his double-laced Barnevelder chickens, Muscovy ducks and we complain about […]

Our guest this week is Craig Ruggless who, along with his husband Gary Jackemuk, runs Winnetka Farms in Los Angeles’ San Fernando valley. Craig and Gary grow heirloom Italian vegetables, breed standard double-laced Barnevelder chickens, bake bread, preserve food and much more. In the first part of our conversation we’ll talk about Craig’s Italian heritage […]

My guest this week is designer, craftsman, carpenter and educator Will Holman. Will is the author of Guerilla Furniture Design and many how-to articles for magazines and web sites. During the podcast we discuss: Arcosonti Rural Studio Making furniture out of cardboard Frank Gehry’s cardboard furniture and Shigeru Ban’s cardboard architecture Holman’s Instructables projects Guerilla […]

Our topic this week is using digital design tools such as Sketchup to conceptualize and build simple projects around your house or apartment. Our guest is designer John Zapf, proprietor of  Zapf Architectural Renderings and the genius behind our chicken run. During the podcast we discuss: Why you should draw up plans before you build […]

On this week’s podcast Kelly and I discuss our recent breakfast nook remodel and conclude with Kelly’s ideas about how to choose paint colors. I’m so lucky to have a resident Master of Fine Arts! We’re also lucky to have a digital copy of Architectural Graphics Standards! If you want to leave a question for […]

An eclectic podcast this week. We discuss how “staying in is the new going out,” respond to Eric of the Garden Fork Radio Podcast’s love letter to toilet augers, listen to a comment on poultry health, debrief on Kelly’s sewing projects and go off on a rant about Erik’s plantar fasciitis problem. During the podcast […]

On episode 51 we listen to a comment about toilets from Eric Rochow of Garden Fork TV. Eric mentions a podcast episode of Tiny House Chat where they talk about composting toilets. Then we discuss poultry biosecurity lessons that “West Coast” Erik learned at a recent conference. So, yes, toilets and poultry! Take that Elon […]

Want some tips from a professional caterer and chef on how to make better meals at home and throw awesome parties? Listen to our 50th podcast episode with author and chef Jennie Cook of Jennie Cooks Catering. During the show we discuss: Secrets to vegan cooking Tips for healthy home cooking Roasting vegetables Making your […]

Our guest this week is organic beekeeper and gardener Patrick Pynes. I met Patrick through a comment he left on a blog post I did about Africanized bees. We talk about this subject as well as top bar hives and what it means to keep bees, as Patrick puts it, “beecentrically.” Patrick’s website is Honeybee […]

On this week’s podcast we discuss our new low flow toilet and the concept of humanure. During the show we mention: Toto Eco Promenade The toilet passage of David Foster Wallace’s essay A Supposedly Fun Thing I’ll Never Do Again The Humanure Handbook Brad Lancaster’s humanure system The Water-Wise Home by Laura Allen If you […]

Our guest this week is my East Coast doppelganger, Eric Rochow of Gardenfork.tv (who also interviewed me on GardenFork Radio episode 377). Eric covers all kinds of DIY topics: everything from gardening, to beekeeping to slow cooking to, well, just about anything you can think of. He also produces an excellent podcast. During our interview […]

In this special Catcast, we talk to Dr. Tracy McFarland, who was our guest on Episode 36, about caring for older cats. During the podcast we discuss: Signs you need to take the cat to the vet Dental disease Oxifresh oral hygene The dietary needs of older cats Dry or wet food? Obesity Arthritis Kidney disease […]

In episode 45, Kelly and Erik discuss whole grain baking, specifically a workshop the Los Angeles Bread Bakers put on featuring the very talented Dave Miller. The picture is of the bread Dave baked in the workshop. Clockwise from upper left: einkorn, sonora wheat, charcoal wheat and spelt/rye. Miller was featured prominently in Michael Pollan’s […]

Our guest this week is Daniel Kent, creator of the Cabin Textbook Dweller’s Textbook and Dean of Beverages at the Institute of Domestic Technology. In our first outdoor podcast (recorded in the mountains near a creek) Kelly, Daniel and I discuss: Daniel’s carbonated shower Gin and Tonic theory Carbonated Coffee Kelly and Erik’s carbonation system […]

Yvonne Savio is the Master Gardener Coordinator for UC Cooperative Extension in Los Angeles County. In this episode of the podcast we pick her brain about: Why you should grow your own food. Favorite vegetables. How to harvest vegetables. How to prepare a vegetable garden. Making compost. The problems with municipal compost. Raised beds vs. […]

Our guest this week is Kreigh Hampel, recycling coordinator for the city of Burbank, a city of over 104,000 people within Los Angeles County. The title of this podcast, “The Tailpipe of Consumption” is from Kreigh’s own words. I think, after listening to the show, you’ll appreciate why Kreigh, who has to deal with the […]

Kelly and Erik discuss some of the unusual sounds heard around the Root Simple compound: chickens, cats, bees and, yes, Kaiser Permanente’s music on hold. If you want to leave a question for the Root Simple Podcast please call (213) 537-2591 or send an email to rootsimple@gmail.com. You can subscribe to our podcast in the […]

Our guest on the podcast is the one and only Kirk Anderson, a natural, no-treatment beekeeper and our mentor. Kirk tells a lot of funny stories and shares his wisdom on how to keep bees in a big city. During the podcast we discuss: Mean bees Africanized bees Treating bees Buying package bees vs. collecting […]

Our guest this week is Peter Kalmus who is, among many things, a physicist, a climate scientist, a gardener, a beekeeper, a cyclist and the father of two boys. In our conversation he discusses his “Be-Cycling” response to climate change. Through a series of lifestyle changes he has reduced his personal CO2 emissions from 20 […]