Watershed Voice columnist Deborah Haak-Frost weighs the pros and cons of mulberry trees, and the importance of using what you have to get what you need.

“The field of permaculture holds a principle of ‘obtaining a yield’ — in other words, work with the world around you to get or produce what you need. This seems fairly obvious: the point of a vegetable garden is to yield vegetables, after all. Working a job yields monetary income, which pays the bills. But what if the idea of yield was expanded? Where can we see potential and possibility for greater yield?”