Safer For Your Home And Self

Many gardeners wonder what exactly organic gardening means. The simple answer is that organic gardeners don’t use synthetic fertilizers or pesticides on their plants. But gardening organically is much more than what you don’t do. When you garden organically, you think of your plants as part of a whole system within Nature that starts in the soil and includes the water supply, people, wildlife and even insects. An organic gardener strives to work in harmony with natural systems and to minimize and continually replenish any resources the garden consumes. Organic gardening, then, begins with attention to the soil. You regularly add organic matter to the soil, using locally available resources wherever possible. And everyone has access to the raw ingredients of organic matter, because your lawn, garden and kitchen produce them everyday. Decaying plant wastes, such as grass clippings, fall leaves and vegetable scraps from your kitchen, are the building blocks of compost, the ideal organic matter for your garden soil. If you add compost to your soil, you’re already well on your way to raising a beautiful, healthy garden organically.

The other key to growing organically is to choose plants suited to the site. Plants adapted to your climate and conditions are better able to grow without a lot of attention or input; on the other hand, when you try to grow a plant that is not right for your site, you will probably have to boost its natural defenses to keep it healthy and productive.

Are you living healthy?

Mulch
A thick layer of mulch keeps light from reaching weeds. “Without adequate light, the plants don’t produce enough chlorophyll to enable further growth. Most of these plants sicken and die before you even notice them,” writes Miranda Smith in Rodale’s Chemical Free Yard & Garden. “The few plants that do manage to stick their leaves into the light will be shallowly rooted and very easy to pull.”

Organic mulches—straw, grass clippings, leaves, shreddedbark—nourish the soil as they decompose. They are fairly effective weed barriers. For even better weed protection, use several sheets of newspaper, kraft paper (the paper used to make grocery bags) or cardboard under these mulches. In a 1992-93 study at the University of Vermont, a 6-inch layer of shredded newspaper applied at the beginning of one season allowed no more than 8 weeds per square yard to sprout for two summers. Without renewing the mulch layer, the newspaper controlled weeds for two seasons. Kraft paper and cardboard allow even less light to reach weeds and are even more impenetrable.

Hoeing
Annual weeds die when you sever the stems from the roots just below the soil surface. With a sharp hoe, you cut the weeds easily. Forget about the square-headed traditional garden hoe for this job—go for an oscillating or a swan neck hoe instead.

To hoe your garden without cultivating a backache, hold the hoe as you would a broom—that is, with your thumbs pointing up. Skim the sharp sides of the hoe blade through the top inch of the soil.

Solarization
You can let the sun help you get rid of persistent weeds, if you’re willing to leave the bed fallow for six weeks in the summer. Get started in late spring or early summer by pulling, hoeing or raking out as many weeds as you can from the garden bed. Then, moisten the soil and cover it with clear plastic, weighting or burying the edges. Leave the plastic in place for 6 weeks. When you remove the plastic, the sun will have cooked weeds that would otherwise have sprouted.

Corn Gluten Meal
You can suppress the growth of weed seeds early in the season by spreading corn gluten meal over the area where they’re growing. Corn gluten meal, a by-product of corn processing that’s often used to feed livestock, inhibits the germination of seeds— bear in mind, once the weeds have gone beyond the sprout stage, corn gluten will not affect them. Also, corn gluten doesn’t discriminate between seeds you want to sprout and those you don’t want, so avoid using corn gluten meal where and when you’ve sown seeds. It works best in established lawns and perennial beds.

Handpulling
Here’s the trick to comfortable, quick weed-pulling:
Put your hands in front of you, thumbs up and palms facing your body, one hand in front of the other. Now roll your hands, like kids do when singing “This old man goes rolling home.”

Pinch your forefinger and thumb together as you reach the outermost edge of the imaginary circle your hands are tracing and move your arms to the side as you roll your hands.

With practice, you will be surprised by how quickly you clean up a row in the garden with this movement.

Persistence
This is your most important long-range weapon against weeds. Mulch well, pull what you can, hoe where you have to and use a handy tool or two for a few minutes whenever you visit your garden. Do these things consistently for a few seasons, and you will slowly, but surely expel the invaders for good.

http://www.organicgardening.com

Is YOUR home healthy?

You know me always looking for great articles on healthy living! Enjoy!

Substances That May Lower Cholesterol
Antioxidants
While most cholesterol-fighting drugs are designed to lower cholesterol levels, another approach might be to limit the damage LDL can do once it is in the artery wall. Some researchers suggest preventing the conversion of circulating LDL to oxidized LDL. Drugs and vitamins called antioxidants have been able to do this — at least in test tubes — but whether they have a similar effect inside the body is still under investigation.

While some studies have shown that vitamins with antioxidant properties (such as beta carotene and vitamins C and E) can lower the risk for heart disease, the evidence is conflicting. One of the randomized studies found lower rates of heart attack and death from heart disease among people given 400 IU (the equivalent of 268 mg of vitamin E from food or 180 mg of synthetic E) or 800 IU of vitamin E rather than a placebo. However, in three other large-scale randomized studies, various doses of vitamin E didn’t significantly reduce cardiovascular events. Because many of these studies involved high-risk populations or had other limitations, it’s still possible that vitamin E could have protective effects, but hope has faded considerably in the past few years.

A large study known as the Heart Protection Study also dampened hope about vitamin C and beta carotene. This study involved more than 20,000 adults with diabetes, coronary artery disease, or other artery disease. Half the people were randomly assigned to receive high-dose supplements of vitamins E, C, and beta carotene, the other half a placebo. At the end of five years, a similar number of people in each group had had coronary events, stroke, or death.

Green tea has been shown to lower cholesterol in animals, and with its high level of antioxidants known as flavonoids, it would be logical to assume that green tea might help decrease LDL’s damage. Human trials have had mixed results. However, a recent trial published in the Archives of Internal Medicine fueled hope for this traditional Asian drink. In this study, 114 Chinese adults who took a pill extract of green tea in addition to following a low-fat diet improved their cholesterol profile more than 106 adults who ate similarly but took a placebo.

Even though moderate amounts of vitamin supplements seem reasonably safe for most people, the data don’t support a blanket recommendation that everyone take antioxidants to prevent heart disease. The best advice is simply to eat a diet rich in the fruits and vegetables that provide these vitamins, such as citrus fruits, broccoli, and tomatoes.

Safer For Your Home and Self

Horticultural Therapy - Create an Enabled Garden by Joyce Schillen

Gardening is an activity I take for granted every now and then. I don’t have to think twice about bending over to pull a weed or squeezing the handles on a pair of pruners. Not everyone is so fortunate, as I am reminded when occasional twinges here and there remind me that joints do wear out.

For many people, what once were simple tasks can become obstacles to practicing favorite activities such as gardening.

Arthritis, back injuries, disabilities caused by accidents, and other health problems can make gardening difficult if not impossible for some people to do without special consideration. The ironic thing is that people with health problems are the ones who could benefit most from working in a garden.
The therapeutic benefits of gardening have been well documented for some time now. Formal programs called horticultural therapy recognize and use the physical, mental, and spiritual benefits of gardening to help their patients. What about you when you come home after a hard day? Doesn’t it feel good just to hang out in the garden, putter with a few plants, rip weeds from the pathways?

Fortunately for people struggling with possible limitations, gardening is an activity that can be adapted for all sorts of special needs, from raised beds for people in wheelchairs or using walkers, to gardens for the blind that appeal to the other senses.

Common sense will help you design an “Enabled Garden” that is easily accessible to all.

First of all, keep the garden in scale with the enabled gardener’s preferences, motivation, and skill level. Something on the smaller side usually works best at first so as to not be overwhelming or discouraging.

For people in wheelchairs or using walkers, provide smooth, wide pathways and beds built high enough to reach into easily. Design beds so that the center can be reached comfortably without stretching.

Twelve inches is a good depth for planting boxes, but remember that wet soil is heavy. Construction must be sound. Shallower boxes are sufficient for many plants such as annual flowers and herbs.

Provide a place for tool storage that is close to the garden, either a small shed, a cabinet, or even a large mailbox mounted on a fence or fencepost, or on the edge of an elevated garden bed. Adapt tool pouches into hanging pouches that can be hung from wheelchairs, walkers, and the edges of raised beds.

Keep an eye out for tools that make tasks easier. Garden centers, gardening catalogs, and specialty catalogs are good places to look for specially adapted hand tools.

Use drip irrigation or soaker hoses and mulches around plants to cut down the time required for general maintenance such as watering and weeding. Provide a convenient source of water close by the garden.

And maybe most importantly, furnish a resting area where gardeners can find respite from the sun and simply enjoy being in the garden.

Green Heroes Boost Healthy Living
Written by ARAcontent
Saturday, 12 April 2008

(ARA) - Thank a plant today. Silent and always “working,” these green heroes toil tirelessly to purify our environment and improve our lives, naturally cleansing the very air we breathe.

And since most of us spend 90 percent of our lives inside, pay special attention to your indoor plants. They provide truly amazing health benefits. Working 24/7, they filter the very air we breathe from common pollutants and continuously release oxygen and moisture in our homes and offices.

Former NASA research scientist Dr. Bill Wolverton, author of “How to Grow Fresh Air” says, “Houseplants perform these essential functions with the same efficiency as the rainforest in our biosphere.” To maximize the health benefits and freshen the air in your home or office, he recommends at least one houseplant for every 100 square feet.

When selecting the perfect indoor plant for that perfect spot, consider the plant’s “job.” Does it work the day or night shift? Is it for the home or office? Read on for expert tips on which ‘green heroes’ will work best for you.

* Green Is in the Air!
Our modern lives depend on technology, but ordinary products like paints, tobacco smoke, printer inks and even carpets hold hidden dangers that plants can help reduce.

According Dr. Wolverton, plants improve air quality through their natural “filtering” ability. He discovered houseplants absorb up to 87 percent of volatile organic compounds (VOC’s), like ammonia, formaldehyde and benzene, found in many homes and offices.

And certain indoor plants “clean” the air every 24 hrs! How? They absorb toxins into the root zone where they’re turned into nutrients. Some tropical plants actually suppress airborne mold. These green heroes just keep doing what comes naturally.

Some of the hardest working plants are peace lilies, ferns, palms, and spider plants.

* Heavy Night Breathers
Did you know some plants actually work at night? Certain green friends “breathe out” oxygen (O2) and absorb carbon dioxide (CO2) at night, rather than in the daytime, when the majority of plants do their “breathing.”

Mike Rimland, research director for Costa Farms (www.costafarms.com), the largest indoor houseplant producer in North America, recommends Epiphytic Bromeliads and orchids, particularly in your bedroom. These natural botanical air purifiers make perfect bedroom buddies to refresh and beautify your room for a truly healthy, restful night’s sleep.

Rimland’s favorites are anthuriums. “They come in an array of colors with stunning blooms that last up to 13 weeks, are easy to grow, refresh the air, and add exotic beauty to your bedroom.”

* Bring a Plant to Work
Put a plant on your desk and feel happier, enjoy better health and be more productive. The NASA study recommends office workers should have at least one plant in their “personal breathing space” where most of the work is done to effectively remove indoor pollutants.

Another test conducted in Norway reports 25 percent fewer health problems, in particular respiratory ailments, headache, and fatigue, when plants were introduced to the workspace.

Snake plants, broad sword ferns and rubber plants are among the top ten air purifiers recommended by experts. They’re easy to grow, are natural humidifiers and remove airborne chemicals. Other green heroes are chrysanthemums, Gerbera daisies and spider plants.

* Location, Location, Location!
“Which plant you choose, and where you place your plants is important to reap optimum benefits,” says Rimland.

Consider the light, humidity, and temperature of your indoor spaces to determine the best choices for your home. Put a Majesty Palm in your living room, fern in the family room and a spathiphyllum plant in the kitchen. Add golden pothos or heart leaf philodendron for beauty and maximum air cleansing benefits.

Look for all of these environmentally-friendly plants at the ‘From the Earth for the Earth’ display at most local Home Depot stores.

For more information on the benefits of houseplants, and help finding the perfect indoor plant for your home or office, visit www.costafarms.com.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

Don’t harm your precious plants by having all those chemicals in your home. Do you know the the “indoor pollution” can be up to 70% GREATER than “outdoor” pollution.
http://saferforyourhomeandself.com

Spring is in the air down here is South Florida. Actually very HOT!
This weekend I am looking forward to getting into the “garden”. Many flowers are starting to bloom. Now do I start a compost? I’d love to have organic fertilizer. Anyone have any great tips on building a small compost? I would love to have one but I am a little concerned about “critters”. I live in the city and do not want to attract any “unwanted” animals. Any comments on that?

SaferForYourHomeAndSelf.com

I don’t know about you but I really would like to learn about creating a organic garden. Herbs is what I would like to start with, okay maybe a few tomatoes as well!

Here’s what I have come up with so far. Anyone out there have any tips?

1. Mulch your flower beds and trees with 3″ of organic material - it conserves water, adds humus and nutrients, and discourages weeds. It gives your beds a nice, finished appearance.

2. Mulch acid-loving plants with a thick layer of pine needles each fall. As the needles decompose, they will deposit their acid in the soil.

3. The most important step in pest management is to maintain healthy soil. It produces healthy plants, which are better able to withstand disease and insect damage.

4. Aphids? Spray infested stems, leaves, and buds with a very dilute soapy water, then clear water. It works even on the heaviest infestation.

5. Compost improves soil structure, texture, and areation, and increases the soil’s water holding capacity. It also promotes soil fertility and stimulates healthy root development.

6. Look for natural and organic alternatives to chemical fertilizers, such as the use of compost. Our use of inorganic fertilizer is causing a toxic buildup of chemicals in our soil and drinking water.

7. When buying plants for your landscape, select well-adapted plant types for your soil, temperature range, and sun or shade exposure.
8. Landscaping your yard is the only home improvement that can return up to 200% of your original investment.

9. Plant trees! They increase in value as they grow and save energy and money by shading our houses in the summer, and letting the sun shine through for warmth in the winter.

10. Think of trees and their locations as the walls and roofs of our outdoor rooms, when you are planning their locations and sizes.

11. Grass won’t grow? Find an appropriate ground cover for the exposed earth and fill the problem space, creating an interesting bed shape.

12. Plant vines on walls, fences, and overhead structures for quick shade, vertical softening, and colorful flower displays.

13. If gourmet cooking is in your plans, organically grown herbs make wonderful landscape plants. They flavor foods, provide medicinal properties, and offer up fragrances. And most thrive on neglect.

14. Shade gardens are low maintenance - they require less watering, slower growth, and fewer weeds to fight.

15. Everyone loves flowers! Annuals are useful for a splash of one-season color. But since replacing them each year is expensive, concentrate them in just a few spots.

16. There is no need to work the soil deeply when adding compost or soil amendments. Eighty five percent of a plant’s roots are found in the top 6″ of soil.

17. The best organic matter for bed preparation is compost made from anything that was once alive, for example leaves, kitchen waste, and grass clippings.

18. Dig an ugly hole when planting a tree or shrub. A hole with “glazed” sides from a shovel will restrict root penetration into the surrounding soil.

19. Planting from plastic containers? Carefully remove the plant and tear the outside roots if they have grown solidly against the container.

20. Think of mulching as “maintaining the forest floor”: add 1″ to 3″ of compost or mulch to planting beds each year.

21. Natural fertilizers, compost and organic materials encourage native earthworms. Earthworms are nature’s tillers and soil conditioners, and manufacture great fertilizer.

22. Bare soil should not be visible around a new planting. Always cover with a layer of mulch, any coarse-textured, loose organic material.

23. Think “biodiversity”. Using many different kinds of plants encourage many different kinds of beneficial insects to take up residence in your yard.

24. Organic pest control is a comprehensive approach instead of a chemical approach. Create a healthy biodiversity so that the insects and microbes will control themselves. Using natural products and building healthy soil is the best long-term treatment for pests.

25. Weeds? Spot-spray with common full-strength household vinegar, on a sunny day. It’s an organic weed killer that’s safe for you and the environment.

26. Mulch! The rain and irrigation water runs off the land, eroding and depleting your unprotected soil.

27. Residential users of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides apply more pounds per acre of these chemicals then farmers do. As these pollutants run off, they harm aquatic life and contaminate the food chain. If you keep your soil healthy, you won’t require chemical fertilizers.

28. Some mulching benefits are protection of roots from the sun’s heat, and protection of plant crowns from winter cold.

29. To prevent diseases and pest infestation , avoid piling mulch against tree trunks. Spread mulch out as far as the drip line.

30. For effective weed control use a layer of coarse mulch 3″ or more in depth. Some hardy grasses may need to be rooted out for successful removal.

31. For a good start, water the ground thoroughly before and after applying a mulch cover.

32. Use plants in your landscape that are either native to your area, or were imported from areas with similar climate and soil. They require a lot less water and care, and won’t die off in the winter.

33. Compost is what happens when leaves, grass clippings, vegetable and fruit scraps, woodchips, straw, and small twigs are combined, then allowed to break down into a soil-like texture. Use it instead of commercial fertilizers.

34. Formal gardens are for you if you love symmetry. They work best around a focal point like a fountain, sculpture, specimen tree, or group of plants.

35. Some flowers, including sweet peas, iris, foxglove, amaryllis, lantana, lupines, clematis, dature, poinsettia, and oleander, are poisonous.

36. When buying annuals or perennials, select plants that are budded but not yet in bloom, so their energy the first two or three weeks in your garden will be directed toward making larger and stronger plants with better-developed root systems.

37. To increase water conservation, look for drought-resistant plants. Usually these plants have silver leaves, deep taproots and small leaves. Succulents are also able to withstand dry weather.

38. When planting, take into consideration the plant’s size at maturity. Layer by height and bloom time for emphasis and constant color.

39. Soaker hoses deliver water directly to the base of the plant, reducing moisture loss from evaporation. Early morning is the best time of day to water.

40. Compost balances both acid and alkaline soils, bringing PH levels into the optimum range for nutrient availability. It contains micronutrients such as iron and manganese that are often absent in synthetic fertilizers.

41. Avoid frequent, deep cultivation, which can damage plant roots, dry out the soil, disturb healthy soil organisms, and bring weed seeds to the surface where they will germinate.

42. Use the least-disruptive and least-polluting protections against a pest. Try the following methods as applicable: first physical removal, barriers, and traps; next, biological controls; then, appropriate botanical and mineral pesticides.

43. Red, orange, and yellow in your landscape will draw the eye and bring objects closer.To make a small garden feel larger, place warm colors in the front of the space and cool colors in the back.

44. Cover street noise - sound pollution can be minimized by the use of water features, such as a waterfall, or a pond with a fountain jet. Wind chimes also help, as can bird feeders that attract songbirds.

45. Newly planted trees need supplemental water to avoid transplant shock, so water deeply on a weekly basis throughout the growing season.

Browse compost tumblers, reel mowers and garden carts online at Clean Air Gardening.

46. Give order to your garden by defining the boundaries with fences, stone walls, or hedges. Include paths for movement.

47. Less than 2 percent of the insects in the world are harmful. Beneficial insects such as ground beetles, ladybugs, fireflies, green lacewings, praying mantids, spiders, and wasps keep harmful insects from devouring your plants. They also pollinate your plants and decompose organic matter.

48. Plant newly purchased plants during the late evening or on a cloudy day. They have a much better chance of surviving if planted during cloudy, rainy weather than dry, sunny weather.

49. Compost introduces and feeds diverse life in the soil, including bacteria, insects, worms, and more, which support vigorous plant growth.

50. Bright light washes out the cool colors, blue, green, and purple. They are best used in shaded areas for maximum impact.