Eco Gardeners

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

The Happy Gardener’s exclusive line of organic gardening products were featured on Philly’s NBC 10 Morning Show. Check it out!

http://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/shows/10-show/Green_This__Not_That_Philadelphia.html

Organically grown produce provides our families with more nutrition than conventionally grown!

If you’re buying your food from commercial sources, such as a grocery store, take a look at the difference in the quality of conventional versus organic food.

Rutgers University Study Comparing Organic versus Commercially Grown Foods

I know that “Green Tips” can be found everywhere, but I was very impressed with TreeHugger.com’s Top 10 List and wanted to share it with you. Here it is….

#1. Keep it real

You know what they say about Mother knowing best? Well, Mother Nature never needed to steal sips from a chemical cocktail of pesticides, weed killers, and chemical fertilizers to keep her act together. Nix the poisons and layer on some all-natural compost, instead. Call in beneficial insect reinforcements to wrestle pesky garden pests to the ground.

#2. Make compost from kitchen scraps

Compost like a champ by throwing in your vegetable waste, instead of allowing it to be trucked off to the landfill. Known as “gardener’s gold,” compost enriches soil fertility by giving it a shot of high-powered, plant-loving nutrients. Aside from stimulating healthy root development, the addition of rich and earthy compost also improves soil texture, aeration, and water retention. Why waste your hard-earned cash on commercial products when the real deal is free for the taking? Speed up the process with the help of earthworms.

#3. Buy recycled

If your delicate aesthetic sensibilities balk at the idea of reusing yogurt or takeout containers to house your hydrangeas, check out the myriad environmentally friendly planters and raised-garden kits now available. It takes less energy to recycle something than to mine virgin materials, so whether you choose recycled copper, plastic, or even rubber to anchor your tender shoots, it’s all copacetic. Admire your handiwork and eco-smarts while lounging on recycled lawn furniture.

#4. Grow your own food

Buying organic produce can admittedly get pricey, so how about growing your own food instead of painstakingly manicuring that lawn for the umpteenth time? An estimated 40 million acres of the 48 contiguous American states are covered in lawns, making turf grass the United States’ largest irrigated crop. American homeowners apply a cringe-worthy tens of millions of pounds of fertilizers and pesticides to their lawns, often at many times the recommended levels. All that for little more than ornamentation. It’s time to return to the use of gardens as food sources—you won’t find fresher (or cheaper) eating anywhere else.

#5. Join a community garden

Urban dwellers bereft of a yard shouldn’t fret: You can still get in on the hoeing and growing action by signing up for a plot at your local community garden. Community gardens typically have a communal composting area, as well, so if you don’t have room for one of those triple-duty rotating barrel composters in your home, here’s your hookup.

#6. Go native

Now that you’ve learned some of the merits of “de-lawning” your home, consider replacing the ol’ putting green with native and indigenous plants, whether they’re cactus gardens in Arizona or bottlebrush grasses in Northern Michigan. Already adapted to local conditions, native plants are easy to grow and maintain, generally requiring less fertilizer and water, as well as less effort to rein in pests.

#7. Harvest rainwater

Adding a rain barrel is an inexpensive and effortless way to capture mineral- and chlorine-free water for watering lawns, yards, and gardens, as well as washing cars or rinsing windows. By harnessing what’s literally raining from the sky, you’ll not only notice a marked dip in water costs, but also a reduction in stormwater runoff, which in turn helps prevent erosion and flooding. Pop a screen on top of your barrel to keep out insects, debris, and bird missiles, and make frequent use of your water supply to keep it moving and aerated.

#8. Water with care

While we’re on the subject of water, adopting a few smart-watering habits will do much to stretch out your supply, especially during dry, hot spells in the summer. Adding mulch and compost to your soil will retain water and cut down evaporation. Plus, soaker hoses or drip irrigation only use 50 percent of the water used by sprinklers. Water early in the day so you can avoid evaporation and winds. And the best place to drench your plants? Directly on those thirsty roots.

#9. Bring on the butterflies and bees

Provide a pesticide-free sanctuary for our pollinator pals, such as butterflies and bees, by growing a diverse variety of native flowers they’re particularly drawn to, such as wild lilac, goldenrod, and lemon balm. (Gardens with 10 or more species of attractive plants have been found to entice the most bees.) If you haven’t already heard, we’re in the throes of a major bee-loss epidemic, which is causing beekeepers in North America and Europe much hand-wringing. Because pollinators affect 35 percent of the world’s crop production—and increase the output of 87 of the leading food crops worldwide—extending a little hometown hospitality could go a long way.

#10. The power of 4

Get hip to four “R”s of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s GreenScapes program: Reduce, recycle, reuse and rebuy. You want to reduce your output of waste to ensure you’re using materials efficiently. Reusing compost and tree clippings for mulch, or rainwater for watering take up little time and energy, but offer plenty of environmental bang for your buck. Recycling saves resources, while rebuying means seeking products that meet your needs, but are more environmentally friendly than your usual purchases—take, for instance, solar outdoor lighting versus electric-powered fixtures.

The Happy Gardener can help you with all of your Green Gardening needs. Check us out at www.thehappygardener.info

Summer is a time of beauty with flowers and greenery galore.  Indoor plants bring many decorative and health benefits to your home living space. Read on for some interesting houseplant research provided by AOL and Prevention:

1.    Plants Fight Stress:  Virginia I. Lohr, PhD, a professor at Washington State University has been studying the subject for more than 30 years. It’s suggested that evolution wired humans to know that plants are essential to survival, so seeing one makes us calm and settled.
2.     Plants to Boost Creativity:  Studies show that plants are a mood booster, and good moods are associated with higher levels of dopamine, the hormone that controls the flow of information throughout the brain.
3.    Plants to Fight Colds:  Dry air can lead to a parched nose and throat and raise the risk of infection or sinusitis, says Michael Janson, MD, author of User’s Guide to Heart-Healthy Supplements.
4.    Plants to Cut Toxins:  When plants take in oxygen and carbon dioxide, they also pull in any toxins floating around in the air, says Kyle Wallick, a botanist at the United States Botanic Garden in Washington, DC. The toxins travel through the plant, ending up near the roots. There, bacteria in the soil break down the chemicals into nontoxic compounds that the plant uses for food.

•    In one study from Washington State University, people in a room of plants including the Chinese evergreen had a 4-point drop in their systolic blood pressure after taking a stressful test, compared with only a 2-point drop in a group that had no exposure to plants.  In another study, the arrowhead vine helped induce a 4-point drop in systolic blood pressure among stressed-out test subjects.
•    In a study from Texas A&M University, women who worked for an hour in a room decorated with two potted plants and a bouquet of flowers generated 13% more ideas than women in a room with abstract sculptures.
•    Studies show that plants are a mood booster, and good moods are associated with higher levels of dopamine, the hormone that controls the flow of information throughout the brain.
•    Houseplants can inject moisture back into the air and boost humidity by up to 5%, finds research from Bavarian State Institute of Viticulture and Horticulture in Germany. According to a study from the Agricultural University of Norway, people with table and floor-standing plants in their offices reported 37% less coughing.
•    The small openings on the underside of an ivy plant’s leaves release moisture into the air, boosting humidity to alleviate cold symptoms. Because of English ivy’s high volume of leaves, horticulturists recommend it as one of the most effective cold-fighting plants.
•    In one study from the Agricultural University of Norway, people with office plants including the heart-leaf philodendron reported 37% less coughing and 25% less hoarseness after 3 months than when they left their offices plant-free.
•    Peace lilies paired with a few other plants, including the heart-leaf philodendron, can boost a room’s humidity by up to 5%, finds a study from the Bavarian State Institute of Viticulture and Horticulture. In the dry winter months, this small increase is enough to relieve dry throats and noses.
•    Three Janet Craigs cut VOCs in a 130-square-foot room by up to 70%, finds research from the University of Technology in Australia.

Results from a European study suggest that organic food is more nutritious than ordinary produce. The study, the biggest in the world, showed that organic fruit and vegetables contained between 20 and 40 percent more antioxidants, which scientists believe can cut the risk of cancer and heart disease. They also had higher levels of vitamin C and beneficial minerals such as iron and zinc.
Carl Leifert, co-coordinator of the EU-funded project, said the health benefits were so striking that moving to organic food was the equivalent of eating an extra portion of fruit and vegetables every day. Other results show that:
- Organic milk has at least 50 percent more nutrients than conventional milk and vitamin E;
- Organic cheese can have up to twice as many nutrients s conventional varieties;
- Organic tomatoes, potatoes, cabbage, onions and wheat have 20 to 40 percent more antioxidants than conventionally grown fruit and vegetables;
- Organic spinach and cabbage have more minerals, including iron, copper and zinc.

This study is expected to be available to the public within the next 12 months.
The Happy Gardener is here to help you grow your own organic vegetables, fruit and herbs.