Eco Gardeners

Here it is late January and those of us living in the northeast are seeing forsythias and cherry trees in full flower. My girls and I went for a walk yesterday in t-shirts and as we strolled through our Richmond, VA neighborhood it felt like the start of spring as we encountered daffodil after daffodil with their flower buds ready to pop open. Its the neighbors with the heart wreaths on their front doors that remind us we are approaching February.

So how does this disappearing winter affect the gardens of those of us living in areas including those 21 states that have had more than 300 record high January temperatures? In a nutshell, it will mean fewer nuts on our nut trees, less blossoms on our perennials, decreased flowers on our trees/shrubs, and not as much fruit on our fruit trees. This upcoming spring and summer will show signs of the winter stressed plants but most should acclimate okay.

“I don’t think we’ve seen the extremes yet that would cause a lot of long-term damage to trees and shrubs,” says George Good, professor in Cornell University’s Department of Horticulture. “Some flower buds will be killed. So we may see fewer blooms on flowering trees and shrubs this spring. ” This has commercial growers concerned as their harvests will be affected.

David Wolfe, scientist at the Department of Horticulture, is studying climate change and states that chances are good that we will continue seeing more warm winters, caused in part by increasing carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere which is affecting agriculture, especially in the Northeast.

For more information, visit the Cornell University at

www.gardening.cornell.edu

Diets in Review.com has compiled a nice list of alternative fundraising programs that are designed to eliminate the sweet treats and expensive giftwrap.

Included are The Happy Gardener’s Eco-Fundraising Programs which allow schools, groups and organizations to raise necessary funds while educating families and communities on healthy living methods.  Products include flowering bulbs, organic bug repellent, chemical-free cut flower/holiday tree preservatives and “Just Add Dirt” Eco-Grow Kits for veggies and herbs!

Read the entire article by visiting http://www.dietsinreview.com/diet_column/09/guilt-free-school-fundraisers-are-replacing-candy-pushers/

Shopping for fresh veggies at the Charlottesville, VA Market

Choosing to support and eat local food ensures that the family farms within our communities will continue to thrive, and that healthy, flavorful, plentiful food will be available for future generations.

Though “buying local’ has been gaining exposure and trust with ‘conscious consumers’, we must not neglect the importance of consumer education. As farmer’s markets and CSA’s become more widespread, remember that just because its “local” doesn’t mean its necessarily healthier.  It is our responsibility to ask questions of our local suppliers:

Is the farm certified organic and/or working towards an organic certification?

If the farm is not certified organic, what pesticides/herbicides/fertilizers are used to maintain crop production? How often are they applied? Do they use animal by-products/manure to fertilize?

Asking questions will inform you, the consumer, of the quality of produce you are buying and will provide you with the trust to continue working with your local farmers.

FoodRoutes.org provides a list of benefits to supporting local farmers:

• Exceptional taste & freshness:  Local food is fresher and tastes better than food shipped long distances from other states or countries. Local farmers can offer produce varieties bred for taste rather than from shipping and long shelf life;
• Strengthen your local economy:  Buying local food keeps your dollars circulating in your community. Getting to know the farmers who grow your food builds relationships based on understanding and trust;
• Support endangered farms:  There’s never been a more critical time to support your farming neighbors. With each local food purchase, you ensure that more of your $$ spent on food goes tot he farmer;
• Safeguard your family’s health:  Knowing where your food comes from and how it is grown or raised enables you to choose safe food from farmers who avoid or reduce their use of chemicals, pesticides, hormones, antibiotics, or genetically modified seed in their operations.
• Protect the environment:  Local food doesn’t have to travel far. This reduces carbon dioxide emissions and packing materials. Buying local food also helps to make farming profitable and selling farmland for development less attractive.

The Happy Gardener continues to encourage gardeners, home owners and lawn growers to get educated on what you’re using around your home, family and pets. Weed control and weed killers can contain seriously harmful and toxic ingredients, and it is our responsibility to become aware of what we’re using and the safe alternatives available.

As more and more research is being done on the ingredients found in common weed killers on the market, we are learning specific ones to stay away from and the healthier choices becoming widely available. As a gardener, a mom and a pet owner, I know the annoying and time-consuming task of ridding my veggie and flower beds from weeds, especially crabgrass and dandelions! BUT I also know the harmful effects the toxins in conventional weed killers can have on my children, dogs and the wildlife playing in my backyard.

Most Harmful Weed Killer Chemicals to KEEP AWAY FROM!

Check your weed killer labels for the following toxic chemicals:

• Glyphosate: glyphosate is the most widely used herbicide on the market and has many harmful effects on both humans and animals. Found in Monsanto’s Round-Up, glyphosate studies have been directly linked to non-Hodgkins lymphoma, and the Women’s Cancer Research Center has reported that glyphosate results in reproductive damage as well as damage to the kidneys and liver. It is toxic to earthworms, amphibians, beneficial insects, birds and mammals. Glyphosate is also the third most commonly reported cause of pesticide related illness among agricultural workers.
• Atrazine: found in lawn weed control products such as Scotts, atrazine has been reported by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) to impair the reproductive systems of amphibians and mammals, and has been linked to cancer in both humans and animals.

So what to do with those pesky weeds? Over the past five years, I have experimented with several safe, effective and cheap ways to control weeds in the garden and lawn. Here are my organic weed control recommendations:

• Hand Pick: NOT my most favorite method but very effective and the cheapest way to get rid of weeds. If you have kids, consider adding this chore to their weekly summer list
• Boiling Water: To spot treat weeds growing up through the cracks of a driveway, patio or walkway, pour boiling water over weeds and by the end of three days they will be burned down to the roots- VOILA!
• Vinegar: Spot spraying straight, undiluted white vinegar onto dandelions, crabgrass and other weeds will burn them down to the roots; very effective method and inexpensive to buy in the grocery store.
• Organic-Certified Weed Control: The Happy Gardener offers a highly effective, inexpensive and 100% safe pre-emergent weed control. Apply the granular weed control to flower beds, veggie beds and lawns to prevent weeds from germinating. Available in 5 lb bags at www.thehappygardener.info

On the 9th day til Earth Day my children said to me,

“Making compost is smart & costs us no money.”

Why compost?
Composting is an easy, environmentally beneficial way to turn yard and kitchen wastes into a dark, crumbly, sweet-smelling soil amendment that will build your soil, increase garden production and do wonders for your landscaping. It is as easy as putting your recyclables out for pick up!
Composting will:

• Save you money by lowering garbage bills and replacing the need for commercial soil amendments.

• Increase production by improving the fertility and health of your soil.

• Save water by helping the soil hold moisture and reducing water runoff.

• Benefit the environment by recycling valuable organic resources and extending the lives of our landfills.

What is Compost?
Compost is the end product of a complex feeding pattern involving hundreds of different organisms, including bacteria, fungi, worms, and insects. What remains after these organisms break down organic materials is the rich, earthy substance your garden will love. Composting replicates nature’s natural system of breaking down materials which are slowly dismantled by the small organisms living in the soil. Eventually these plant parts disappear and humus keeps the soil light and fluffy. Humus is our goal when we start composting. By providing the right environment for the organisms in the compost pile, it is possible to produce excellent compost.

Click on the following link to watch a really cool animation of the composting process:

http://www.recyclenow.com/home_composting/composting/what_happens_in.html

What Goes in the Composter?
yard trimmings, garden debris, vegetable and fruit scraps, coffee grounds and filters, tea bags, algae, seaweed, lake moss, kitchen rinse water, cardboard, dryer lint, crushed eggshells, hair, newspaper, oak leaves, pine needles and cones. Did you know that the average household produces more than 200 pounds of kitchen waste every year?
What Doesn’t?
meat, fish, oily foods, milk products, pet manure, diseased or insect infested plants, weeds that have gone to seed, coal or charcoal ashes, lime, bones

The Happy Gardener’s founder, Annette Pelliccio, shares the benefits of composting in this 5 minute Youtube video intro.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VoLWCNYxTc0

Compost4Fun Virtual Game: this one’s fun for all ages!
Try maintaining your own virtual compost bin by exploring the house and garden, looking for potential household waste to compost. See if you can get onto the Compost4Fun scoreboard by getting the right balance of green and brown waste.

http://compost4fun.recyclenow.com

On the 11th day til Earth Day my children said to me,

“Our home & garden should be phosphate-free.”

What is phosphorus and why are so many counties and states throughout the US regulating its availability in household and lawn/garden products?

Phosphates are found in most fertilizers (the “P” in the N-P-K plant food nutrient ratio), especially formulated for lawns, and are present in consumer products such as detergent, baking powder, toothpaste, cured meats, pharmaceuticals, and water softeners.  Within the past decade research is concluding that an excess in phosphorus is very damaging to our water and marine life.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has identified eutrophication (over-enrichment with nutrients) as the main threat to water quality. In most cases the nutrient of importance is phosphorus.

With the inclusion of phosphorous in our waterways, the decrease in oxygen severely inhibits the growth of many aquatic organisms, especially fish (e.g., recreational catch fish such as trout) and in extreme cases may lead to massive fish kills. Excessive input of phosphorus can change clear, oxygen-rich, healthy water into cloudy, oxygen-poor, foul smelling, toxic water. Therefore, control of the amount of phosphates entering surface waters from domestic and industrial waste discharges, natural runoff, and erosion is recommended to prevent eutrophication.

The Maine Extension Office reports that 90% of lawns tested in the past five years would not have been any greener with the addition of phosphorous. This means that our lawns and lawn care budgets can stay healthy without using phosphorous. When looking for a do-it-yourself or commercial lawn care program be sure to find one with 0% phosphorus, such as The Happy Gardener’s Lawn Feed n’ Weed and Lawn Conditioner.

Check the ingredient list when choosing garden & lawn fertilizers. Products that include animal manure will also contain high levels of phosphorous. Oklahoma State University Division of Agriculture Sciences & Natural Resources reports that one of the major concerns associated with manure application is the buildup of phosphorous in the soil. This occurs because manure contains more phosphorous than the crops/vegetation require. Choose products that do not contain manures such as The Happy Gardener’s full line of organic, vegetarian plant foods, pest control, weed control and lawn care.