Organic Gardening Magazine

[Kelilah]

I subscribed to Organic Gardening last year and I've just been so disappointed with it. I know that any magazine survives on advertising revenue, and hence is going to be more consumer-oriented than I'd like, but it seems like every other page in Organic Gardening has an ad for a Monsanto-owned company like Burpee Seeds. Now I just got a big thick seed catalog from Johnny's Selected Seeds, a catalog I did not request, from another Monsanto-owned company. There's no way they could've gotten my name and address except from Organic Gardening selling my information.

You wouldn't expect a magazine called ORGANIC GARDENING to be in Monsanto's pocket. Argh. I already told them I'm not renewing my subscription and why, but is there another magazine where I could keep up with organic gardening developments in a Monsanto-free environment?

[Erinz]

I use to suscribe to that magazine and I really can't tell you if I changed or they did, but it has been years since I looked at one. I find a lot of "organic" stuff is following trends ($$) and I know so many people who are into "green" as a sidekick when it's life for so many others. It's a funny time right now... trendy vs real. I keep thinking as long as there is SOME info out there available and attractive to more mainstream people then mission accomplished. Where did I ever start kwim? It's a journey.

As for magazines, for the green factor there are so many reasons to not receive publications in the mail. And with so many fabulous garden blogs and resources online I just haven't renewed any of my subscriptions. Maybe I'm lost in bloglandia but it's free, it's fun, informative and just darn good. (and no trees are lost in my casual perusements!) I only have stolen minutes here and there in the day!

This might be a good reason to start a fresh garden blog post!

[Kelilah]

That's a great point. Any blogs you recommend? I follow a few cooking blogs but not so much any gardening ones.

[elanorh]

Just to let y'all know - Monsanto doesn't own Johnny's seeds. Johnny's Seeds had been buying seeds from Seminis seeds (which is now a subsidiary of Monsanto) prior to Monsanto taking that company over. But they have been working on finding different sources for their now Monsanto-owned seeds.

http://www.johnnyseeds.com/t-ownership.aspx

I absolutely agree about avoiding Monsanto, but want to make sure we have our facts straight. Incidentally, according to this link, only about 40% of their seeds are via Seminis at this point. More than I'd like, but definitely less than being "owned" by Monsanto. They state that if you buy their organic seeds, you are definitely not supporting Seminis/Monsanto.

I have an Organic Gardening gift subscription - my Mom got it for years, and it is very different. I think the major difference is that they are more tailored for beginning gardeners than they used to be, which means that there is more focus on trends and less on overall methodology. But that's where good garden books come in, isn't it? It's a rare magazine which can pick and choose their advertisers to the extent that Mothering does -- I'm not sure whether Organic Gardening is even its own entity any more, or maybe owned by a parent company now? That's so common in the publishing world today.

ETA: I won't be renewing my subscription, just because I don't want another magazine to recycle, and it hasn't been that helpful. I agree with the next poster - Mother Earth News has some very good gardening articles, and good online resources for gardeners too.

[Chamomile Girl]

I find Mother Earth News to be better than OG.

[Kelilah]

Oops. Monsanto-LINKED, not Monsanto-owned. I stand corrected; thank you.

[lynsage]

I <3 Mother Earth News

[nattybo]

Monsanto is the devil. Linked or owned, it corrupts everything it touches.

So sad to hear that about OG. I enjoyed reading back issues from the 70's and 80's from the library. So sad.

[InchByInch]

You know, I really liked Mother Earth News until they started pushing for population control as THE key to solving our planet's problems. When magazines start getting political, I lose interest, unless they manage to present their stories in a truly unbiased manner.

The one mag I've really stayed attached to is Countryside and Small Stock Journal (www.countrysidemag.com)-- it's chock-full of homesteading/gardening info, and the ads are actually pretty useful. MaryJane's Farm is a cute publication, too, but (from the issues I've seen) not very in-depth.

[steffanie3]

Originally Posted by InchByInch

You know, I really liked Mother Earth News until they started pushing for population control as THE key to solving our planet's problems. When magazines start getting political, I lose interest, unless they manage to present their stories in a truly unbiased manner.

The one mag I've really stayed attached to is Countryside and Small Stock Journal (www.countrysidemag.com)-- it's chock-full of homesteading/gardening info, and the ads are actually pretty useful. MaryJane's Farm is a cute publication, too, but (from the issues I've seen) not very in-depth.

I canceled my MEN subscription last year because of this, I don't mind a magazine having a political bend, but if I don't agree I am canceling. They can have their prerogative and I can have mine, but I won't be supporting theirs. I haven't had Organic Gardening in years either.

[Chamomile Girl]

MEN has always been political. That would be kind of like saying Mothering shouldn't be political.

[InchByInch]

Well, in my admittedly humble opinion, Mothering shouldn't be political, either. If you look at the latest issue (Jan/Feb), in the "Your Letters" section to the editor there's a note that really resonates with me-- it says,

"I would like to gently remind you that your reader base is not made up of one political group. As two sides of the same coin, please remember that we 'ultra-conservative' types share many of the same parenting ideals as our more crunchy counterparts. My love for Mothering runs deep, but I often feel as though a political agenda is allowed too deeply into the pages of your wonderful magazine." --Mykael Richards, San Diego, CA

Couldn't say it better myself. Anyway, this is kind of derailing the thread, so I'll hush now. Let's go back to bashing Monsanto!

[newbymom05]

I'm another who likes Mother Earth better than OG. See if there's also a gardening mag for your state--I get Texas Gardener and it's wonderful.

GardenWeb also has great gardening forums for every conceivable g subject--sq ft, organic, fruits, different states, etc-- and a lot of people have links to their blogs.

[Owen'nZoe]

As for blogs, Path to Freedom is a good one for urban gardening, and they have their own user community which is excellent. It is called Freedom Gardens. If you're into biointensive, Bountiful Gardens also puts out a newsletter. It is very science-nerdy but interesting.

[Kelilah]

Thanks, y'all! I'm already a member of Freedom Gardens but I find their website crashes on me a lot. So thanks for the references to new reading material!

[ambersrose]

Originally Posted by InchByInch

The one mag I've really stayed attached to is Countryside and Small Stock Journal (www.countrysidemag.com)-- it's chock-full of homesteading/gardening info, and the ads are actually pretty useful. MaryJane's Farm is a cute publication, too, but (from the issues I've seen) not very in-depth.

Thanks for this link. This magazine looks like just what I am looking for!

[PiesandAbrosmama]

The Heirloom Gardner published by Baker Creek Heirloom Seed is a 4x a year publication that is great! Baker is big on pushing out Monsanto and getting a good base of heirloom seeds for the planet. Check it out

[FarmerCathy]

Originally Posted by PiesandAbrosmama

The Heirloom Gardner published by Baker Creek Heirloom Seed is a 4x a year publication that is great! Baker is big on pushing out Monsanto and getting a good base of heirloom seeds for the planet. Check it out

Oh, I totally forgot I wanted to start getting that mag. Thanks for the reminder. I to have found OG to be not as good as it used to be and now they have an editor who really isn't that much of a gardener. I don't get it.

[Porcelain Interior]

I also like Permaculture magazine, but it's based in the UK I think. You can google and subscribe though.