RaisedBedGardenKits.com Blog

Christmas Gifts For Gardeners

2011-12-08T18:41:00.000-08:00

GARDENER in the family? We have some great gift ideas. From RAISED BED GARDEN KITS to the sweetest Butterfly, Dragonfly and Hummingbird pins you've ever seen.

Beautiful hand-sculpted hand painted HUMMINGBIRD, DRAGONFLY, and BUTTERFLY PINS. All quality made in the USA!

A great gift idea for the Gardener in your life! Pins are 1-1/2" - 2" in size.

Take a peak.................

Kim in the Garden ;o)

School Garden Projects On The Rise!!

2011-10-13T09:28:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to all the School Gardeners this year! This year our sales for School Garden Projects has doubled over past years. Gardening is for everyone, young and old. A learned treasure that if taught to young kids, will be a blessing throughout their entire lifetime.

At RaisedBedGardenKits.com, much of our aim is at promoting the unique opportunities inherent in school gardens. We believe school gardens can play a vital role in creating a healthy, engaging educational atmosphere for today’s youth: one that encourages hands-on experiences, healthy eating, a connection with local food and curiosity about nature.

It all begins in Elementary School!!

Our top selling SCHOOL GARDEN PROJECT KIT for youth and educators. And of course, it's ABSOLUTELY TOXIC FREE - Recycled Plastic.

Kim In The Garden ;o)

Delicata Squash.....how do I know when it's ready to be picked?

2011-08-28T17:39:00.000-07:00

Ahhhhhhhh, the 64,000 dollar question.

Most backyard gardeners know very little about the DELICATA SQUASH. These little delicate squash are cream or yellow colored with orange spots when they are ripe. It's best to raise them off the ground with some straw or some sort of object to ensure they don't rot while maturing.

DELICATA SQUASH (Cucurbita pepo) is a winter squash with distinctive longitudinal dark green stripes on a yellow or cream colored background. They have a sweet, orange-yellow flesh. It is also known as the peanut squash, Bohemian squash, or sweet potato squash (because they taste similar to a sweet potato).

Although considered a winter squash, DELICATA SQUASH belongs to the same group as all types of summer squash (including pattypan squash, zucchini and yellow crookneck squash).

They are absolutely delicious and easy to grow.

Kim in the Garden ;o)

The Chipmunk Stole My Stawberrys!

2011-07-02T14:04:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, upon doing my morning garden inspection, I noticed all my strawberry's missing. EVERY LAST ONE OF THEM!! And to top it off, I actually saw the culprit making his exit.

There he was, in full sight. One big fat chipmunk. He practically waved good bye to me!

Oh Well...................... part of being a gardener. But if anyone knows of a humane way to keep chipmunks out of the strawberry patch, please let me know.

Kim in the Garden ;o)

Mini Greenhouses

2011-06-30T17:39:00.000-07:00

Mini Greenhouses, otherwise known as Cold Frames are a great way to get a jump on the growing season. With nine protective square feet of growing space, our newly added Double Cold Frame is perfect for the backyard gardener.

Cold Frames are a great way to start your plants early or extend and protect plants late into the growing season. Small and compact, these easy to assemble Cold Frames come in 2 sizes. Urban gardeners love them because of their convenient size and easy mobility.

Cold Frames are like Mini Greenhouses - only on a much smaller scale. Easy to assemble, portable, made of rust proof materials and SnapGlas panels which are nearly indestructible.

Take a peak.............

Kim in the Garden ;o)

GMO - Coming To A Town Near YOU!

2011-06-27T11:43:00.000-07:00

I just had to share this article with you written by NaturalNews. It is so important that we be informed.

(NaturalNews) He who controls the seed controls the food supply; and he who controls the food supply controls the world. There is no question that Monsanto is on a mission to monopolize the conventional seed market. In fact, they are steadfastly working towards the goal of creating a world where 100% of all commercial seeds are genetically modified and patented- basically a world where natural seeds are extinct.(http://www.naturalnews.com/029325_M...)

Unfortunately for the global community Monsanto is accomplishing their purpose. They currently own 90% of the world's patents for GMO seed including cotton, soybeans, corn, sugar beets and canola. (http://www.guardian.co.uk/environme...)

Yep, the creators of chemicals that will go down in history for their toxicity and horrific side effects, is attempting to take over the world's seed supply. Ask yourself- do you really want companies such as BASF, Bayer, DuPont, Syngenta, and Dow involved with your food? Sadly, to a large extent they already are. These Monsanto chemical and GMO cronies all share genetically engineered traits and create the patented herbicides and pesticides that GMO crops require to thrive.

Monsanto is infamous for taking advantage of small farmers, and with the advent of MoU's they are doing so with governmental license. Countries like India, Pakistan, Australia, and New Zealand have all executed MoU's with Monsanto. MoU's or memorandum's of understanding permit Monsanto to use publicly owned lands to create so called demonstration farms (GMO breeding camps) which in turn -at least in the case of Rajasthan - are subsidized by the government.

Monsanto literally takes farmer seeds, creates genetically engineered copycat versions, and then retains all intellectual property rights. Dr. Vandana Shiva, Executive Director of the Navdanya Trust, an Indian organization committed to organic biodiversity, states that "the MoU's will in effect, facilitate bio-piracy of Rajasthan's rich biodiversity of draught -resilient crops .... by failing to have any clauses that respect the Biodiversity Act and the Farmers' Rights Act, the MoU's promote bio-piracy and legalize the great seed robbery." (http://www.deccanchronicle.com/edit...).

It is common knowledge that GMO seeds are much worse than conventional ones. As with all of their agreements, Monsanto shields itself from any liability- so when the Monsanto's promises of higher yields with less work ring hollow, when farmers crops fail, or when mass suicides are committed because of crop failure and spirit crushing debt- Monsanto presses on with no worries. (http://healthfreedoms.org/2011/03/0...)

Farmers that sign up for Monsanto's seeds of destruction find themselves hooked. Year after year, no matter what prices are being charged, they are dependent on GMO seeds for new crops because GMO seeds - the bastardized versions they are - don't regenerate. (http://www.naturalnews.com/031742_G...)

Monsanto has no qualms about robbing farmers that don't play poker with them. As a mater of fact; it makes a business of it. Conventional and organic farmers in both Canada and the U.S., who have the misfortune of having lands that border GMO farms, often end up with trace contamination in their crops, making them (if organic), unsuitable for sale. Monsanto actually uses this situation against farmers and files patent infringement claims that they often win.

The result farm owners are left with exorbitant legal bills and fines often forcing them to shut down: clearing away Monsanto competition. In a savvy move for survival, a preemptive suit on behalf of almost 300,000 plaintiffs seeking legal safe harbor, has been filed in New York. (http://www.naturalnews.com/031922_M...)

Monsanto's product has changed from poison to food, but it has held true to its history of violating the rights and health of people around the globe. Monsanto is a 100% committed to the sale of their seeds of destruction no matter what it takes: bullying, infiltration of high government offices with company friendly individuals, or intimidation. The organic movement has taken up the standard against Monsanto's machinations in court as well as through grassroots education and activist efforts. The organic revolution is Monsanto's Achilles heel, and its goal is a world without Monsanto.

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/032826_Monsanto_seed_supply.html#ixzz1QVGd8gzD

Even YOU can compost!

2011-06-08T11:30:00.000-07:00

Composting, it's easy. No one is wealthy enough to waste anything these days. So save all your kitchen waste. It's more VALUABLE then you know.

Here is a simple, inexpensive lazy man's way to compost.

1. You can purchase a commercial composter, or simply make a circle about 3 to 4 feet in diameter and 3 to 4 feet high out of wire garden fencing.

2. Place a 4 inch layer of long stemmed plants, sticks or other coarse material in the bottom of the bin. Now add your kitchen waste as it becomes available, dead plants, grass clipping and mulched leaves. Add water as needed to keep the pile moist - but not soggy.

3. You can turn the pile if you feel energetic, but this is not required.

4. The compost is ready to use when the materials you added are no longer recognizable.

It's easy, and you will be glad you did it. It's free dirt when you need to fill a pot or just want to give your garden a little "boost".

Kim in the Garden ;o)

School Garden Project

2011-05-28T11:45:00.000-07:00

With all the budget cuts in public schools these days, it is great to see schools picking up the slack by teaching gardening.

This year we have seen a real boom in the number of elementary schools putting gardening into their curriculum. Now THAT'S PRACTICALITY!

Young kids love gardening. And as time marches on, we ALL will need to know more about how to grow our own food. With all the occupational opportunity for Organic Gardening that lies before us, how wonderful that these kids are getting early exposure.

Keep in mind, some city kids have no idea what a garden is all about. Many kids have no idea what a potato looks like, they think it looks like a French Fry. Sad, but true.

The top choice this year for school gardens is our Multi-Season Raised Bed growing system with Greenhouse Cover- A Complete Kit!! It's our overall best seller too. A simple and complete garden kit. Perfect for schools.

Kim In The Garden ;o)

Gardening Tips & Tidbits..........

2011-05-17T10:24:00.000-07:00

Gardening Tips for the "Garden Newbie." Your goal is to grow the most produce from the least amount of space. And here are a few simple tips.

* Plant succession plants every 2 weeks in early spring and fall.

* Grow vertical crops that can grow upwards to save space. Trellis snow peas, beans, pole beans, and cucumbers. You can even get Butternut and Spaghetti Squash to climb a very sturdy fence or trellis.

* Avoid over-planting any single vegetable. Zucchini and Yellow-Neck Squash are the biggest offenders when it comes to over-production. One plant is enough!! Really.

* Plant medium and small-fruited tomatoes and peppers. The smaller the fruits, the more plants tend to produce.

* Garden with LOVE and LOVE what you Garden!!

Kim In The Garden ;o)

Urban Gardening Is The Rage!

2011-05-16T09:15:00.000-07:00

The Urban Garden is catching on with fury. My last blog brought attention to our 4 new Raised Bed Garden Kits just for the Urban Gardener. Well.......... the response was tremendous.

The need for Small Space Gardens is growing at such a rapid speed. People are realizing the need to grow their own food, even if they live in the city. And now there is finally an easy way to do it.

Stop be and see for yourself. Our Urban Garden Raised Bed Garden Kits are No-Tool Assembly, absolutely Non-toxic construction, and small enough for a Small Space Garden.

They're Small, they're Easy and they're ORGANIC! Made right here is the wonderful USA!!!

p.s.: They make a great gift as a child's first garden.

Kim In The Garden ;o)

Raised Bed Garden Kits Just For The Urban Gardener

2011-03-31T09:03:00.000-07:00

We have just added 4 NEW Raised Bed Garden Kits just for the URBAN GARDENER! These beds are completely no-tool assembly, made of non-toxic materials.

As with ALL of our garden beds, everything is non-toxic and made in the USA - And ready for your Organic garden plans! Now the URBAN GARDENER has some great gardening in small space options.

We are VERY EXCITED about these SMALL SPACE GARDEN KITS. Take a look, you'll see why ..............

Kim in the Garden ;o)

Why Grow Heirloom Tomatoes?

2011-03-05T11:37:00.000-08:00

If you love tomatoes........ Heirloom Tomatoes are simply the best when it comes to FLAVOR. They are old-fashioned vegetables that have been passed down through the generations. Heirloom seeds are old-time favorites that produce plants with exactly the same traits, planting after planting, season after season, generation after generation. Some heirlooms have been known to date back 100 years or more.

And you can save the seeds and replant them next year. Many of the seeds sold in stores are hybrid, or even organic. These seeds are only good for 1 year. If you plant the seeds the next year, you have no idea what fruit it will bear. Hybrid seeds want to revert back to the original parent seeds. A great tasting tomato one year might be a poor tasting one the next year.

If you stick with Heirlooms, you have consistency. Plus you can save your seeds and save money!

Kim in the Garden ;o)

Urban Gardening And Safe Soil

2011-03-02T09:31:00.000-08:00

In regard to urban gardening and safe soil. This is an important question that MUST be considered when contemplating a city garden. With air pollution, chemicals from industry and household waste, it is important to make some wise decisions about your garden from the get-go.

If you are growing flowers, this is not so much of an issue. But if you are gardening food for your family, listen up.

In an effort to grow healthy food for your family, you don't want to do more harm than good. Your soil should be as clean as possible. You do not want to use soil with lead and toxic heavy metal contamination. Auto exhaust, paints, etc. could be hiding in your soil.

You should have your soil tested-$30.00 or less. If indeed your soil has heavy metal toxicity, you can simply start from scratch and erect some raised beds.

A raised bed garden kit is the easiest and safest way to garden in the city. Simply order a Raised Bed Kit - No tool assembly, made of Non-Toxic materials.
Get organic soil from your local nursery and fill your garden beds. It's that simple!

Each year after that, you can rehabilitate your soil by adding compost which will bind up the lead and make it unavailable to the roots of your plants.

No Need To Panic - You Can Still Grow Organic.

Kim in the garden............. ;o)

Organic Farming And Our Beloved Military!!

2011-02-23T09:12:00.000-08:00

Another great article on meshing our military with organic gardening and farming.

VALLEY CENTER, Calif. — On an organic farm here in avocado country, a group of young Marines, veterans and Army reservists listened intently to an old hand from the front lines.

“Think of it in military terms,” he told the young recruits, some just back from Iraq or Afghanistan. “It’s a matter of survival, an uphill battle. You have to think everything is against you and hope to stay alive.”

The battle in question was not the typical ground assault, but organic farming — how to identify beneficial insects, for instance, or to prevent stray frogs from clogging an irrigation system. It was Day 2 of a novel boot camp for veterans and active-duty military personnel, including Marines from nearby Camp Pendleton, who might be interested in new careers as farmers.

“In the military, grunts are the guys who get dirty, do the work and are generally under appreciated,” said Colin Archipley, a decorated Marine Corps infantry sergeant turned organic farmer, who developed the program with his wife Karen, after his three tours in Iraq. “I think farmers are the same.”

At their farm, called Archi’s Acres, the sound of crickets and croaking frogs communes with the drone of choppers. The syllabus, approved by Camp Pendleton’s transition assistance program, includes hands-on planting and irrigating, lectures about “high-value niche markets” and production of a business plan that is assessed by food professionals and business professors.

Along with Combat Boots to Cowboy Boots, a new program for veterans at the University of Nebraska’s College of Technical Agriculture, and farming fellowships for wounded soldiers, the six-week course offered here is part of a nascent “veteran-centric” farming movement. Its goal is to bring the energy of young soldiers re-entering civilian life to the aging farm population of rural America. Half of all farmers are likely to retire in the next decade, according to the Department of Agriculture.

“The military is not for the faint of heart, and farming isn’t either,” said Michael O’Gorman, an organic farmer who founded the nonprofit Farmer-Veteran Coalition, which supports sustainable-agriculture training. “There are eight times as many farmers over age 65 as under. There is a tremendous need for young farmers, and a big wave of young people inspired to go into the service who are coming home.”

About 45 percent of the military comes from rural communities, compared with one-sixth of the total population, according to the Carsey Institute at the University of New Hampshire. In 2009, the Department of Agriculture began offering low-interest loans in its campaign to add 100,000 farmers to the nation’s ranks each year.

Among them will probably be Sgt. Matt Holzmann, 33, a Marine at Camp Pendleton who spent seven months in Afghanistan. He did counterinsurgency work and tried to introduce aquaponics, a self-replenishing agricultural system, to rural villages.

His zeal for aquaponics led him to the farming class. “It’s a national security issue,” he said the other day outside a garage-turned-classroom filled with boxes of Dr. Earth Kelp Meal. “The more responsibly we use water and energy, the greater it is for our country.”

Mr. O’Gorman, a pacifist and a pioneer of the baby-lettuce business, started the coalition after his son joined the Coast Guard. The group recently received a grant from the Bob Woodruff Foundation, co-founded by the ABC News journalist who was wounded in Iraq, to provide farming fellowships for wounded young veterans.

“Beginning farming has become the cause du jour among young people with college degrees and trust funds,” Mr. O’Gorman said at the farm, where there were stacks of Mother Earth News magazines in the bathroom and a batch of fresh kale in the sink. “My gut sense is a lot of them won’t be farming five years from now. But these vets will.”

Mr. Archipley’s own journey into organic farming was somewhat serendipitous. He joined the Marines in response to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and married between his second and third tours in Iraq. The couple bought three acres of avocado orchards north of San Diego.

Mr. Archipley, whose looks bring to mind a surfer dude, found pleasure tending his grove after leaving the Marines and eventually secured a loan from the Department of Agriculture to build a greenhouse. His farm now sells organic produce to Whole Foods Markets in San Diego and Los Angeles.

In 2007, the couple started training veterans informally, financing the effort themselves. The new course, administered through MiraCosta College costs $4,500, with Camp Pendleton offering assistance for active-duty Marines.

Farming offers veterans a chance to decompress, Mr. Archipley said, but more important, provides a sense of purpose. “It allows them to be physically active, be part of a unit,” he said. “It gives them a mission statement — a responsibility to the consumer eating their food.”

Even in this idyllic setting, it can be a challenging process. Mike Nelson Hanes, now 34, enlisted in the Marines at 18. In 1994, six days into his basic training in South Carolina, his drill instructor committed suicide with an M-16 rifle in front of 59 recruits.

“He blew his head off,” Mr. Hanes said. “That was right from the get-go, at age 18.”

In Baghdad, Mr. Hanes served as a .50-caliber machine gunner atop a Humvee. “I was the one they were trying to kill,” he said. He returned home with post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and a traumatic brain injury. He was homeless for over a year, managing nevertheless to get a degree in environmental social services.

“Being outside was my comfort zone — still is,” he said. Two years ago, he stumbled upon the Archipleys’ “Veterans for Sustainable Agriculture” booth at an Earth Day festival in Balboa Park in San Diego. Mr. Hanes still struggles but is gaining ground.

“One thing I’ve noticed about agriculture is that you become a creator rather than a destroyer,” he said amid ornamental eucalyptus shrubs.

John Maki, Camp Pendleton’s transition assistance program specialist, said the life experiences of young veterans equip them for demanding work. “For a comparable age, you won’t find people who have had as much responsibility,” he said. “They’ve been tasked with making life-and-death decisions.”

Weldon Sleight, dean of the University of Nebraska’s College of Technical Agriculture, which has six enrolled veterans, said discipline — a mainstay of the armed forces — was critically important in agriculture. “A lot of these rural vets have this wonderful knowledge base about agriculture,” he added. “But we’ve told them for years there’s no future in it.”

In Central Florida, Adam Burke, who left farming to join the military, came full circle, designing a wheelchair-accessible farm in which his signature “red, white and blueberries” grow in containers on elevated beds.

Mr. Burke, a Purple Heart recipient who suffered a traumatic brain injury in Iraq, recently opened a second farm. “Squeezing a ball in physical therapy gets monotonous,” he said. “And you don’t get the mist from the sprinklers or a cool breeze in a psychologist’s office.”

Matthew McCue, 29, formerly Sergeant McCue, runs Shooting Star CSA outside San Francisco with his partner Lily Schneider, delivering boxes of organic produce directly to consumers.

He recalled how orchard farmers in Iraq pridefully shared their pomegranates, tomatoes and melons.

“You learn how to face death,” he said of his service in Iraq. But in farming, he learned, “There was life all around.”

By PATRICIA LEIGH BROWN

The Military And Organic Farming

2011-02-23T09:02:00.000-08:00

Here is an article submitted by Annie White. What great news for our beloved military and for our economy as a whole!

The military is not for the faint of heart, and farming isn’t either,” said Michael O’Gorman, an organic farmer who founded the nonprofit Farmer-Veteran Coalition, which supports sustainable-agriculture training. “There are eight times as many farmers over age 65 as under. There is a tremendous need for young farmers, and a big wave of young people inspired to go into the service who are coming home.”

Sustainable-agriculture training offers this county a new generation of capable and knowledgeable organic farmers. It also offers an opportunity to soldiers returning from war to have a new lease on life as their attention turns from the stress of military duties to growth and the pride of providing. With programs such as this, those who are returning from service can truly ‘beat their swords into plowshares’.

Our Food Supply And The Freezing Temps!

2011-02-15T17:20:00.000-08:00

Here is an excerpt from a NaturalNews article...................

Now there's news from Mexico that the fresh produce normally shipped to U.S. grocery stores has been largely destroyed by the freak cold weather snap that struck the continental United States over the past 10 days. As a result, prices on cucumbers, zucchini, peppers, tomatoes and asparagus are set to double or triple starting right now.

Even worse, it looks like the supply of many of these items will be completely wiped out. You won't be able to buy them, in other words, at any price!

This is the fallout from the worst freeze event recorded in North America in 60 years. It has affected not just Northern Mexico, but also much of the U.S. Southwest. It also raises the question: Is the food supply further threatened by radical weather events?

Time to start planning that Organic Home Garden!!

What's Up With This New Food Safety Mondernization Act?

2011-01-12T07:44:00.000-08:00

Here is a fascinating article by NaturalNews. Take a look...............

(NaturalNews) How will the new Food Safety Modernization Act actually impact small, local farmers who grow food for CSA's, local restaurants and grocers? To find out, I took a road trip to Texas and interviewed several small, local farmers to ask them, face to face, how the S.510 Food Safety Modernization Act would impact them.

I spoke to Farmer Brad from HomeSweetFarm.com and captured the conversation on video. You can watch it here:
http://naturalnews.tv/v.asp?v=3F59F...

Here's a quick excerpt from our conversation about S.510 and the small farm exemption in the Tester Amendment:

Farmer Brad: To me, that's so un-American to say hey, you're going to stay in this box, and you can never grow your business bigger than that. $500,000 [in revenue] is your cap.

Health Ranger: It's destroying farming jobs.

Farmer Brad: It has made us start to totally re-look at our business plans and how we're going to sell our food. We're no longer going to sell wholesale, no longer going to sell to chefs or restaurants, it's consumer direct only.

Health Ranger: So you're actually pulling back from some of your expansion plans?

Farmer Brad: We are. We have actually, this last year as we've been watching this happen, we've been putting plans on hold, and pulling back our business... so again, that's how this is going to affect the local food system.

Health Ranger: Right.

Farmer Brad: Because we don't want to get too successful.

Watch the complete interview here:
http://naturalnews.tv/v.asp?v=3F59F...

If you ever wonder who is destroying America's economy...
The answer, of course, is the U.S. Congress. By slapping onerous new paperwork and reporting requirements on small farmers (who aren't even the source of the food problem to begin with), the U.S. Congress is forcing farmers out of business and causing agriculture jobs to be shifted to Mexico and elsewhere.

When you hear American farmers saying they are going to "scale back" their businesses because they "don't want to get too successful" (to fall under the authority of expanded FDA tyranny over the food supply), you know the country is headed for economic disaster.

America was once founded on ideas of opportunity and that hard work is supposed to pay off. People who invest in their small businesses and grow them should be rewarded, not punished. But now, thanks to the U.S. Congress and the Food Safety Modernization Act, small farmers who find even a little bit of success selling food (because selling $500,000 worth of food is still a very small scale operation, and the actual profit on that might only be $50,000 for a full year of work) are about to find themselves punished for being successful.

So much for free enterprise in America. So much for local food production. Watch for food prices to skyrocket in the coming years, and watch as America's local food security collapses under the iron fist of the FDA driving small farmers out of business.

But that's what the empire wants, of course: Complete control over food production so that people are forced to buy their food from the sources Big Government tells them to. Those monopolistic sources are, of course, the powerful, centralized mega-corporations planting GMO crops and spraying them with chemical pesticides. Thanks to the FSMA, we are now living under a bona-fide system of food fascism.

But don't take my word for it: Ask the farmers yourself! That's what I've been doing, and their answers reveal a disturbing truth: America's food security is headed South.

Watch my interview with Farmer Brad here:
http://naturalnews.tv/v.asp?v=3F59F...

And it might be a good idea to start buying some heirloom seeds while you still can, by the way. Before long, local food prices are going to skyrocket, and you'll need to grow some portion of your own diet. That is, unless you want to eat mega-corporate "food" sprayed with Roundup and containing transgenic "biotechnology" approved by the FDA.

I bet that makes you hungry just thinking about it. GMO corn, anyone?

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/030986_food_safety_farmers.html#ixzz1ApuUnJe8

Toxic Strawberries

2011-01-10T18:08:00.000-08:00

Here is an interesting excerpt from an article in NaturalNews.

California recently approved the use of a chemical regularly used to create cancer in lab animals for use on strawberries that will be shipped around the world. The chemical is methyl iodide and some scientists call it the most dangerous chemical known to man. Scientists use protective gear when using it in the lab because of the cancer risk and the chemical's easy ability to damage our DNA. Of course, damaged DNA leads to problems for the holder of that DNA, and for all future generations that inherit it too. The chemical is also known to cause brain and reproductive damage, so it's a move that California has made to ensure strawberries will be about as unsafe as possible.

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/030958_strawberries_pesticides.html#ixzz1AgkEieC1

Now is the time to start up that organic backyard garden you have been thinking about.

Bumblebees On The Decline

2011-01-08T08:57:00.000-08:00

(NaturalNews) New research published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences has found that another vitally important pollinator, the bumblebee, is in serious decline. According to the figures, there has been a shocking 96 percent decline in four major species of the bumblebee, and an up to 87 percent decrease in their overall geographic coverage.

"We provide incontrovertible evidence that multiple Bombus species have experienced sharp population declines at the national level," explained researchers in their report. And in a phone interview with Reuters, study author Sydney Cameron from the University of Illinois, Urbana, explained that these bumblebee species are "one of the most important pollinators of native plants."

Over the course of three years, the research team evaluated 382 different sites in 40 states, and mulled data from over 73,000 museum records. They determined that bumblebees are needed to pollinate various fruits and vegetables, and that they accomplish this task in a very unique way.

"The 50 species (of bumblebees) in the United States are traditionally associated with prairies and with high alpine vegetations," said Cameron. "Just as important -- they land on a flower and they have this behavior called buzz pollination that enables them to cause pollen to fly off the flower."

In other words, without bumblebees and the special way in which they pollinate, entire segments of agriculture are threatened with extinction. Like honeybees (http://www.naturalnews.com/028899_h...) and bats (http://www.naturalnews.com/027971_p...), bumblebees are vital in order to grow food. Without them, humanity will starve to death.

Misleadingly, many experts largely blame various pathogens, fungi and viruses for the die-offs of these pollinators, while giving only a brief mention -- if any at all -- to the toxic pesticides and herbicides that are increasingly being linked to things like colony collapse disorder (CCD), the name given to the mass bee die-off phenomenon.

Get ready for more dangerous, pesticide-ridden food from south of the border .

2010-12-22T05:49:00.000-08:00

This is a long, but very interesting article. Well worth reading.........

Congress sticks it to U.S. farmers with passage of food safety bill that will actually cause fresh produce to be more dangerous

(NaturalNews) The U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 2751 yesterday with a 216 to 144 vote (yes, many members of the House did not even vote). The so-called Food Safety Modernization Act now heads to the President to be signed into law.

When witnessing such a moment in history when the federal government greatly expands its power over an entire industry, it's important to understand the Law of Unintended Consequences. Virtually everything bad that happens after a bill gets passed is due to this Law of Unintended Consequences.

On the surface, the intention behind the food safety bill seems innocent enough: Let's all protect the food supply and prevent people from getting sick due to e.coli and salmonella exposure. But the reality of the result that emerges from the law is quite different.

Get ready for more dangerous, pesticide-ridden food from south of the border
Because the S.510 / HR 2751 food safety bill places an enormous new burden on U.S. farmers -- yes, even small farms that are supposedly "exempt" -- it's going to drive many farmers out of business.

It will also erect new barriers to farmers entering the food production business, and this is especially true for the small local farmers who grow food for local co-ops, farmers' markets and CSA organizations (Community Supported Agriculture). What we're going to see from all this, then, is the following:

• A reduction in the available SUPPLY of fresh local produce.
• A loss of local farming know-how and food sustainability.
• The financial failure of CSAs, food co-ops and small local markets.
• The loss of countless jobs that were related to local food production.
• An INCREASE in the price of local food, especially organic food.

Food safety bill does nothing to address food imports
At the same time these huge regulatory burdens are thrust upon U.S. farmers, there are no new regulations required for food grown outside the United States.

This means that food coming into the USA from Mexico, Chile, Peru or anywhere else does not have to meet S.510 food safety regulations at all. The FDA, after all, doesn't inspect greenhouses in Mexico or grape farms in Chile which export their products to the United States.

Furthermore, many dangerous chemical pesticides that have been banned in the USA are legal to use elsewhere, and foods treated with those pesticides are perfectly legal to import into the United States. So instead of buying food grown in the United States on small, organic farms, more U.S. consumers are going to be buying food grown elsewhere that's treated with extremely toxic pesticides.

Here are some of the unintended consequences of all this:

• An INCREASE in the importation of fresh produce from other countries.

• A worsening of the agricultural trade imbalance between the U.S. and other nations.

• An INCREASE in the pesticide contamination of fresh produce sold at U.S. grocery stores.

• An INCREASE in agriculture jobs in Mexico, Chile, Peru and elsewhere, even while agriculture jobs are lost in the USA.

• A DECREASE in the overall safety of the food supply because now the proportion of foods imported from foreign countries with little or no regulatory oversight will greatly expand compared to U.S. grown foods.

In effect, then, what Congress has done is impaired the competitiveness of U.S. farms, shifted farming jobs out of the country, increased the pesticide residues in fresh produce sold in U.S. grocery stores and harmed local food security and sustainability by driving small, local farmers out of business.

Such is the nature of the Law of Unintended Consequences. And such is the nature of just about everything that Big Government tries to do when it threatens to "solve problems" by expanding its regulatory control over almost any industry.

We need food security in America
What Congress fails to understand is that we need food security far more than we need more FDA regulations. The knowledge base of local farmers who know how to grow, harvest and distribute food is far more valuable to the security of our nation than preventing a relatively small number of people from getting sick from e.coli each year (even if such a trade-off were a simplistic equation, which it isn't). Because if we lose food security, then we become slaves to the big corporate food producers who are attempting to centralize food production and place food, seeds and crops under their absolute control.

A cynic might even suggest that was the whole purpose of the food safety bill in the first place: To destroy small farmers and centralize food production power in the hands of a few wealthy corporations. Whether that was the intent or not, it is certainly going to be the effect.

What Congress has done with this food safety bill, in effect, is to cripple America's food production know-how and poison the population with far more dangerous pesticide-ridden produce that will now be imported from other countries instead. This bill should have been called the "Mexico Farming Jobs Act" because it's going to shift countless jobs south of the border as farms in the USA realize they simply can't operate under the immense burden of FDA regulatory tyranny.

What's the definition of insanity?
It all makes you wonder what the members of Congress are really thinking. Don't they ever step back and attempt to consider the real-world ramifications of their actions?

Time and time again, the U.S. government seems to do the opposite of what would reasonably be required to solve problems. Think about it: When the U.S. government wanted to stop Wall Street bankers and investment firms from wasting money, it simply handed them a few trillion dollars in new money so they could waste more.

When the government wanted to end debt spending, it spent more debt money out of the foolish belief that you can somehow end your debt by going deeper into it.

When the government claimed it would reduce your health care costs and cover everyone with health insurance, it passed a sick-care law that has only seen health care costs spiraling out of control while insurers cancel policies and end coverage for many children.

And now, the government claims to be making your food safer even though the real impact of the new law will be to make your food far more dangerous while destroying U.S. farming jobs.

This is why those who really know government also know that they who govern best govern the least. Instead of trying to "fix" all the nation's problems by meddling with the actions of hard-working people trying to make a living (such as organic farmers), the government needs to simply get out of the way and let farmers produce their food without the heavy regulatory burden of the FDA -- an agency that we know is frequently engaged in actions that can only be called criminal in nature (http://www.naturalnews.com/030461_S...).

Get ready for skyrocketing food prices in 2011 - 2013
With the passage of this food safety bill, I am now publicly predicting skyrocketing food prices over the next two years. We will see fresh, local produce become increasingly more expensive and more difficult to acquire. Many local farmers will shutter their businesses, and farming know-how will be lost for perhaps a generation. The damage that will be done to America's food security and agricultural base is incalculable.

Such is the price we shall all pay for allowing our representatives in Washington to once again violate our Natural Right to grow food and exchange it for goods or cash with our neighbors. The reason this Natural Right was never even mentioned in the US Constitution, by the way, is because the right to grow your own food without government interference is such an obvious "Natural Right" (a God-given right, or a right that is self-evident) that our forefathers never imagined such a right would be infringed by the federal government.

Or if a right were ever infringed by the federal government, our forefathers were certain that the citizens of the United States of America would exercise their other Constitutional rights to nullify the attempted overreaching authority of the federal government and thereby restore their freedoms. Sadly, such a solution does not work when the majority of the population is lulled into a false sense of freedom by a government that deliberately lies to them on a daily basis. Freedom does not exist with the vast majority of the population has no interest in defending it.

Vegetable gardeners can learn something from marijuana growers
Better buy yourself some heirloom seeds while you have the chance. Plant your stealth garden and cover it with camouflage so the government can't see it and order you to destroy it. Soon, backyard vegetable gardeners will need to operate like marijuana growers and start hiding their food from government's prying eyes.

No doubt the U.S. federal government will start using spy satellites to identify "unregistered gardens" that will be targeted for termination. Soon, small farmers may even be raided by armed FDA agents who terrorize their operations and seize cabbages. Seriously.

It sounds crazy today, I know. But a decade ago, no one thought the government would ever outlaw raw cow's milk and arrest ranchers for selling milk to their neighbors, and that's now happening on a regular basis.

In five years, FDA farm raids may be routine. That is, if there's anything left of the federal government (as we know it) in five years. I'm not sure how long they can keep up the financial house of cards, frankly. Always remember this enlightening fact: The entire federal government is just one paycheck away from collapse. I wonder how long FDA inspectors will keep harassing farmers if their paychecks stop? Remember, FDA employees have no loyalty to anything other than their paychecks. Once the money from Washington stops, the army of FDA mercenaries collapses virtually overnight.

And the resilient farmers of America will win in the end, I have no doubt. If I had to choose to live on a deserted island with either ten North Carolina farmers or ten FDA bureaucrats, the choice would be a no-brainer. Farmers can keep you alive. FDA bureaucrats will only stab you in the back, steal your coconuts, and refuse to do any actual work on their own.

They are, after all, parasites who feed on taxpayer dollars and lend nothing of value to society. If the FDA actually did anything useful at all, it would have banned mercury fillings to protect the public from mercury toxicity

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/030808_food_safety_bill_American_farmers.html#ixzz18qeF9HaX

Foods You REALLY SHOULD Buy Organic!!

2010-12-17T07:19:00.000-08:00

Organic foods have started taking root (no pun intended) in the minds of more and more consumers each year as people strive to live healthier lives.

Not only do they taste a lot better (without the help of chemicals and flavour enhancers), but they also provide far more nutrients and benefits than their often irradiated and chemically fertilized counterparts. Admittedly, organic foods are often more expensive, but the benefits of consuming them are well worth the expense.

While growing, some foods absorb a lot more chemical fertilizers and pesticides than others, so they should be bought organically as much as possible. There are still cases where crops are absorbing Dieldrin (a highly carcinogenic insecticide) from soil, even though it was banned way back in 1974!

Some foods absorb a lot more chemicals than others, so even if you truly cannot afford to purchase all organic foods, there are some that you should only ever buy organic:

Apples:

Apples absorb more pesticides than any other fruit. Around 36 different chemicals have been discovered on them. There were as many as seven different chemicals found on a single apple. Therefore, it makes good sense to only purchase these from an organic source. Alternative options for these would be tangerines, bananas and watermelon.

Strawberries:

These are also among the most contaminated fruits you can buy. If you cannot buy these organic, rather opt for kiwifruit or pineapple.

Peaches:

These have also been known to absorb far more chemicals and pesticides than other fruits.

Baby Foods:

Babies and children have developing immune systems, so it's very important for them to be exposed to as little pesticides and chemicals as possible. Wherever possible, purchase organic baby foods, or better still, make and puree your own, using organic fruit and vegetables.

Blueberries:

These may be hailed as a superfood, but this only applies if they are organic. Tests have shown them to be contaminated with as many as 52 different pesticides.

Dairy Products:

Most cows consume grain that contains chemicals, pesticides and antibiotics. Wherever possible, try to source organic dairy products. Or better still, 100% raw milk and cheese will be 100% healthy and nutritious, unlike the pasteurized versions.

Nectarines:

These contain as many as 33 different chemicals and pesticides. If they are not available as organic, safer alternatives would be papaya, watermelon and mango.

Cucumbers:

These have been ranked as one of the most contaminated fresh foods.

Bell Peppers:

Because these have a very thin skin, they absorb pesticides and chemicals very easily. Should they not be available as organic, safer alternatives to these would include peas, cabbage and broccoli.

Grapes:

These can contain as many as 17 different chemicals and pesticides. They are also very high in fructose, so they should be consumed in moderation. Safer alternatives include kiwifruit and raspberries.

Spinach and Kale:

The leaves of these two vegetables are capable of absorbing as many as 48 different pesticides, so it is very important to only use the organic varieties. Safer alternatives would be cabbage, broccoli and asparagus.

Potatoes:

Potatoes have been known to absorb as many as 37 chemicals and pesticides. Safer alternatives to these would be mushrooms, eggplant and cabbage.

Winter Squash:

These have also been known to absorb Dieldrin from soil.

Green beans:

These unfortunately rank high on the contamination list, with as many as 60 different pesticides being used on them.

Meat Products:

Organic meats are always healthier, as they contain no growth hormones and stand little to no chance of containing any pesticide products.

This article was written by Naturalnews

Where Have All The Bees Gone?

2010-12-16T13:37:00.000-08:00

U.S. bee populations are still declining and scientists believe pesticides are a critical piece of the puzzle.

On December 8, Pesticide Action Network and Beyond Pesticides joined beekeepers from around the country in calling on EPA to pull a neonicotinoid pesticide linked with Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) off the market immediately.

CCD is the name given to the mysterious decline of honeybee populations across the world beginning around 2006. Each winter since, one-third of the U.S. honeybee population has died off or disappeared. CCD is likely caused by a combination of pathogens, the stresses of industrial beekeeping, loss of habitat and more. But many scientists believe that sublethal pesticide exposures are a critical co-factor potentiating this mix. In the U.S., agencies are focused on research, trying to quantify these risks. In Germany, Italy and France, they decided they knew enough to take action years ago, banning suspect neonicotinoid pesticides. Bee colonies there are recovering and beekeepers here are outraged.

What can the home gardener do to help the BEES? Don't use pesticides and build a few simple bee houses.

Bee houses are easy and fun to make. To build your own, start with pieces of untreated scrap lumber and drill holes of various sizes from 1/8-inch to 5/16-inch in diameter. 5/16th of an inch works best for Mason bees, including the Blue Orchard Bee. Use some scrap lumber and drill holes 3 to 5 inches deep but not all the way through the wood block. Space the holes about 1/2-inch to 3/4-inch apart. Nail your bee blocks securely in places protected from direct sun and rain, such as under building eaves, in the early spring.

What Is An Heirloom Seed?

2010-11-15T11:06:00.000-08:00

Sorry, but there is no "exact" definition for this term. In fact, there still is no agreement between gardeners as to what constitutes an heirloom and what does not.

What everyone does agree on is: Heirlooms are always open-pollinated varieties. This means that if the seeds produced from the plant are properly saved, they will produce the same variety year after year. This cannot be done with hybrids, which are a cross between two separate varieties, as the seed produced from those plants will either be sterile, or start to revert back to the parent plants. Supposedly there is no exact definition for the term heirloom. However, there are many characteristics regarding what constitutes an heirloom that gardeners do agree on.

Heirloom Seeds are OLD. Exactly how old a seed variety must be to earn the classification of heirloom is highly debated. Most gardeners agree that Heirloom varieties should be at least 50 years old. Some say the seed must be 100 years old, while others use the year 1945, the end of World War II, as the marking point (1945 was also the beginning of the widespread use of hybrid commercial seed varieties). Commercially marketed, hybrid seeds gained great popularity in the 1970s. Many Heirloom varieties are 100-150 years old and some are much older.

Heirloom plants are High in Quality and Highly Quirky. Many gardeners are drawn to Heirloom seeds for one simple quality: FLAVOR. Heirloom plants taste the way we imagine our fruits and vegetables, in a perfect world, should taste. Heirloom plants taste wonderful, look beautiful and (in most cases) are easy to grow.

Heirlooms are also more "quirky" than their predictable hybrid counterparts. Heirloom seeds may be slow to germinate, they may show up after you've given up on them or they might come-in erratically. Some varieties have "unusual" qualities and growing habits that must be learned and appreciated through experience.

Heirloom plants, vegetables, herbs or flowers are also referred to as "cultivars". A cultivar is an assemblage of plants that have been selected for a particular attribute or combination of attributes, and that is clearly distinct, uniform and stable in those characteristics. Cultivars, when propagated by appropriate means, retain those characteristics

Heirloom seeds that are grown and selected year after year in a particular region or garden will adapt to that areas soil, climate and pests, making it an ideal micro-climate cultivar.

One thing EVERYONE agrees on, is that the taste and quality of the Heirloom fruit is far superior to any hybrid or supermarket strain!

Genetically Manipulated Foods

2010-11-08T07:57:00.000-08:00

A fascinating article. Just one more reason to grow your own food!

(NaturalNews) As scientists are busy manipulating the genes of edibles including corn, soybeans, canola, papaya, zucchini, and now rice and salmon, an interesting fact comes into light about what exactly scientists know and don't know about human genes. According to geneticist Steven Salzberg of the University of Maryland, "Not only do we not know what all the genes are - we don't even know how many there are."

Genetically manipulated foods have been found to change the genetic structure of our healthy bacteria - and this makes one wonder if GMO foods might be altering our own genetic make-up as well. But if they are, how would we know? By a geneticist's own words, scientists can't even find all of our genes - let alone know what they all do or how they'll act if they are changed. In addition, one gene often controls several different things - and with scientists not even knowing all of the genes we have, it makes it pretty difficult to know where to look when things start going wrong - and next to impossible to fix.

In all seriousness, isn't this a little like letting a kindergartner have free reign over a delicate, extraordinary, and extremely complicated project that affects the health and, quite literally, the survival of our entire species? How smart would that be?

Some of the foods that scientists are genetically manipulating - and dumping into grocery stores - make it impossible for plants to reproduce naturally. These plants have what are called terminator genes inserted into them and terminator genes are literally designed to end the reproductive ability of the plant. According to GMO manufacturers, these genes have no other purpose but to protect the profits of the manufacturers by discouraging seed saving.

But what happens if these terminator genes permeate our own genetic make-up - the same way the genes of GMO soy incorporate themselves into the genes of our healthy bacteria? There's been little to no testing of this, but perhaps it's one of the reasons that animals consuming genetically manipulated foods often become sterile and have reproductive problems. Perhaps it's one of the reasons that human infertility rates have been sky-rocketing too.

Despite the extraordinary risks and deplorable consequences, the FDA stands firm that no testing is required for these new, genetically different foods that scientists are making up in laboratories. The agency is also staunchly against labeling these new genetic creations so that informed people who actually want to have children can easily avoid them.

Here's what we know: the genes of these new genetic creations can and do leak into other living organisms. We also know that these scientifically derived foods have genes specifically designed to put an end to reproductive ability and produce pesticides continuously. With GMO foods lining grocery store shelves, this combination unfortunately takes the term buyer beware to a whole new level.

Food Prices Are On The Rise

2010-11-07T14:52:00.000-08:00

No surprise.........food prices are on the rise. And with the Fed watering down the dollar, the U.S. is heading into a price inflation scenario. This means you and I will have to spent a lot more money to buy the same food in 2015 as we did in 2010.

What can we do about this? As the spring comes back in a few months, it might be a good time to start thinking about growing a little garden for yourself.

Gardens aren't just for fun any more - they are quickly becoming a necessity!

Kim In The Garden ;o)

Anti-cancer benefits - More good news on broccoli and other veggies!

2010-10-25T12:39:00.000-07:00

This is a great article on the ANTI-CANCER BENEFITS of Broccoli and other Cruciferous Vegetables. And Broccoli is an easy backyard garden crop to grow!

(NaturalNews) New research out of the University of Illinois (U of I) has proven that sulforaphane, an organosulfur compound found in broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables, is transferred directly from the digestive system into the body through the "good" bacteria that live in the gut. When operating at optimal capacity, the body is able to absorb the most sulforaphane and gain considerable anti-cancer benefits from it.

Sulforaphane is known to have anti-cancer, anti-diabetic, and anti-microbial properties, but researchers have wondered exactly how, and how well, the compound is assimilated into the body. According to their inquiry, intestinal microbiota actually consume and break down glucoraphanin, the parent compound of sulforaphane, and deliver it into the bloodstream where it provides a direct anti-cancer effect.

"The presence of sulforaphane in measurable amounts shows that it's being converted in the lower intestine and is available for absorption in the body," explained Elizabeth Jeffery, a U of I professor of human nutrition. "It's also comforting because many people overcook their broccoli, unwittingly destroying the plant enzyme that gives us sulforaphane. Now we know the microbiota in our digestive tract can salvage some of this important cancer-preventive agent even if that happens."

Since broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables are rich in sulforaphane, it does not take very much of them to achieve a substantial anti-cancer benefit. Sulforaphane is so potent that even minimal amounts are capable of staving off the disease.

"The amount that you get in three to five servings a week -- that's less than one daily serving of broccoli -- is enough to have an anti-cancer effect," said Jeffery. "With many of the other bioactive foods you hear about, vast amounts are required for a measurable outcome."

But having a healthy digestive system with well-functioning gut microbiota is vital for obtaining the most benefits, which is why Jeffery stresses the importance of eating plenty of prebiotics and probiotics as part of a healthy diet.

"One way (to boost bacteria in the colon and enhance the anti-cancer effects of sulforaphane) might be to feed the desirable bacteria with prebiotics like fiber to encourage their proliferation," she said. "Another way would be to use a probiotic approach -- combining, say, broccoli with a yogurt sauce that contains the hydrolyzing bacteria, and in that way boosting your cancer protection."

LASAGNA GARDEN

2010-10-10T11:12:00.000-07:00

This is a great article we found on LASAGNA GARDENING. You can fill your Raised Bed Garden Kit this fall and be all ready for planting in Spring!

Lasagna Gardening
No-Till, No-Dig Gardening
By Colleen Vanderllinden

Lasagna gardening is a no-dig, no-till organic gardening method that results in rich, fluffy soil with very little work from the gardener. The name "lasagna gardening" has nothing to do with what you'll be growing in this garden. It refers to the method of building the garden, which is, essentially, adding layers of organic materials that will “cook down” over time, resulting in rich, fluffy soil that will help your plants thrive. Also known as “sheet composting,” lasagna gardening is great for the environment, because you're using your yard and kitchen waste and essentially composting it in place to make a new garden.

No Digging Required
One of the best things about lasagna gardening is how easy it is. You don't have to remove existing sod and weeds. You don't have to double dig. In fact, you don't have to work the soil at all. The first layer of your lasagna garden consists of either brown corrugated cardboard or three layers of newspaper laid directly on top of the grass or weeds in the area you've selected for your garden. Wet this layer down to keep everything in place and start the decomposition process. The grass or weeds will break down fairly quickly because they will be smothered by the newspaper or cardboard, as well as by the materials you're going to layer on top of them. This layer also provides a dark, moist area to attract earthworms that will loosen up the soil as they tunnel through it.

Ingredients For A Lasagna Garden
Anything you'd put in a compost pile, you can put into a lasagna garden. The materials you put into the garden will break down, providing nutrient-rich, crumbly soil in which to plant. The following materials are all perfect for lasagna gardens:

Grass Clippings
Leaves
Fruit and Vegetable Scraps
Coffee Grounds
Tea leaves and tea bags
Weeds (if they haven't gone to seed)
Manure
Compost
Seaweed
Shredded newspaper or junk mail
Pine needles
Spent blooms, trimmings from the garden
Peat moss
Just as with an edible lasagna, there is some importance to the methods you use to build your lasagna garden. You'll want to alternate layers of “browns” such as fall leaves, shredded newspaper, peat, and pine needles with layers of “greens” such as vegetable scraps, garden trimmings, and grass clippings. In general, you want your "brown” layers to be about twice as deep as your “green” layers, but there's no need to get finicky about this. Just layer browns and greens, and a lasagna garden will result. What you want at the end of your layering process is a two-foot tall layered bed. You'll be amazed at how much this will shrink down in a few short weeks.

When To Make A Lasagna Garden
You can make a lasagna garden at any time of year. Fall is an optimum time for many gardeners because of the amount of organic materials you can get for free thanks to fallen leaves and general yard waste from cleaning up the rest of the yard and garden. You can let the lasagna garden sit and break down all winter. By spring, it will be ready to plant in with a minimum of effort. Also, fall rains and winter snow will keep the materials in your lasagna garden moist, which will help them break down faster.

If you choose to make a lasagna garden in spring or summer, you will need to consider adding more "soil-like" amendments to the bed, such as peat or topsoil, so that you can plant in the garden right away. If you make the bed in spring, layer as many greens and browns as you can, with layers of finished compost, peat, or topsoil interspersed in them. Finish off the entire bed with three or four inches of finished compost or topsoil, and plant. The bed will settle some over the season as the layers underneath decompose.

Planting and Maintaining a Lasagna Garden
When it's time to plant, just dig down into the bed as you would with any other garden. If you used newspaper as your bottom layer, the shovel will most likely go right through, exposing nice, loose soil underneath. If you used cardboard, you may have to cut a hole in it at each spot where you want to plant something.

To maintain the garden, simply add mulch to the top of the bed in the form of straw, grass clippings, bark mulch, or chopped leaves. Once it's established, you will care for a lasagna garden just as you would any other: weed and water when necessary, and plant to your heart's content.

Advantages Of A Lasagna Garden
While you will be maintaining a lasagna garden the same way you would care for any other garden, you will find that caring for a lasagna garden is less work-intensive. You can expect:

Few weeds, thanks to the newspaper suppressing them from below and the mulch covering the soil from above.
Better water retention, due to the fact that compost (which is what you made by layering all of those materials) holds water better than regular garden soil, especially if your native soil is sandy or deficient in organic matter.
Less need for fertilizer, because you planted your garden in almost pure compost, which is very nutrient-rich.
Soil that is easy to work: crumbly, loose, and fluffy.
Lasagna gardening is fun, easy, and allows you to make new gardens at a much faster rate than the old double-digging method. Now your only problem will be finding plants to fill all of those new gardens!

IT'S TIME FOR FRIED GREEN TOMATOES

2010-09-21T08:12:00.000-07:00

Due to popular demand, we have started posting Garden Recipes on our website. Here is our FRIED GREEN TOMATOES recipe.

Seasoned cook, or just a beginner, this recipe is GUARANTEED TO PUT YOU ON THE MAP!!

FRIED GREEN TOMATOES RECIPE

Ingredients
3 medium, firm green tomatoes
1/2 cup all-purpose unbleached flour
1/4 cup milk
2 beaten eggs
2/3 cup fine dry bread crumbs or cornmeal
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

1. Cut unpeeled tomatoes into 1/2 inch slices. Sprinkle slices with salt and pepper. Let tomato slices stand for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, place flour, milk, eggs, and bread crumbs in separate shallow dishes.

2. Heat 2 Tbsp of olive oil in a skillet on medium heat. Dip tomato slices in milk, then flour, then eggs, then bread crumbs. In the skillet, fry half of the coated tomato slices at a time, for 4-6 minutes on each side or until brown. As you cook the rest of the tomatoes, add olive oil as needed. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

** Now, if you REALLY want to be remembered for your FRIED GREEN TOMATOES, here is the KEY. Add a little "spin" on things by substituting or adding: A little Bacon Grease, Buttermilk, 1 Tbsp of Fresh Garlic, Pinch of Cayenne Pepper, Chopped Basil, Hot Pepper Sauce, Grated Parmesan Cheese, or Squeeze of Lemon Juice. **

If you like what you see here............. Visit us for more tasty seasonal recipes!

Kim in the Kitchen

GARDEN DECORATIVE ITEMS - DECORATIVE STAKES

2010-08-09T10:20:00.000-07:00

HEY............THERE'S A DOG IN THE GARDEN!

THAT'S RIGHT........ we just added 37 ADORABLE Dog Breed Garden Stakes. Quality made right here in the USA! These stakes make a great gift for your favorite gardener.

But that's not all....... there are many more garden gift ideas to choose from!

Enjoy!!

Kim in the Garden

Raised Beds Save Tomato Plants From Untimely Death!

2010-07-29T12:33:00.001-07:00

Last week in beautiful Southeastern Wisconsin we had 11.6 inches of RAIN in 2 HOURS. Power went out for 1000's, sump-pumps stopped, roads flooded, pavement buckled, basements flooded, man-hole covers blew off and sewage shot-up basement drains.

Our Airport closed and cars were swept off roads, frogs inhabited areas that were once dry land, water drained from yards for days!

A Cadillac SUV dropped into a GIANT SINK HOLE on a very busy street. The man was pulled-out and survived the ordeal. It was a mess - a very costly mess!

From a Gardeners perspective.........WAY TOO MUCH WATER! The tomato plants really took a "hit". Tomatoes that were not planted in RAISED BEDS are all but dead now.

BUT........... if you had your tomatoes in RAISED BEDS, they came through like CHAMPS! The water drained right through the beds, and the tomatoes were just fine.

RAISED BEDS SAVE TOMATO PLANTS FROM UNTIMELY DEATH- Read All About it!!

A happy ending for SOME gardeners and their tomato plants.

Until the next garden drama............

Kim in the Garden ;o)

Teach Children Gardening For A Natural Head Start

2010-07-12T13:45:00.000-07:00

(Raised Bed Garden Kits)A new study conducted for Britain's Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) has found that encouraging children to learn gardening boosts their development by helping them become happier, more confident, and more resilient. In addition, gardening also helps teach children patience and the benefits of a healthy diet and lifestyle.

The study was conducted by researchers at the National Foundation for Children, who surveyed 1,300 teachers and 10 schools. Teachers who used gardening as part of their learning experience reported that it improved children's readiness to learn. The teachers also reported that gardening encouraged pupils to become more active in solving problems, as well as boosted literacy and numeracy skills. Now the society is urging that gardening should be incorporated as a key teaching tool in schools' regular curriculum instead of being an optional extra-curricular activity.

The report said: "Fundamental to the success of school gardens in stimulating a love of learning was their ability to translate sometimes dry academic subjects into practical, real world experiences. Children were encouraged to get their hands dirty, in every sense. Teachers involved in the research said the result was a more active, inquisitive approach to learning. The changeable nature of gardening projects - where anything from the weather to plant disease can affect the outcome - forced children to become more flexible and better able to think on their feet and solve problems."

Dr Simon Thornton Wood, director of science and learning at the RHS, said: "Schools which integrate gardens into the curriculum are developing children who are much more responsive to the challenges of adult life."

Sadly, gardening has become a lost natural endeavor in much of today's urbanized societies. As a result, modern man is losing out on a wealth of natural physical and mental health benefits. Gardening provides aerobic, isotonic and isometric exercise, which benefits muscles and bones as well as respiratory and cardiovascular systems. Such benefits help prevent health problems such as heart disease, obesity, diabetes and osteoporosis. Strength, endurance and flexibility are also improved by gardening, which makes it one of the best all-round exercises.

Physical exercise such as one gets from gardening releases endorphins, which are natural compounds that alleviate stress and its many negative health consequences. Studies have shown that simply being in a garden lowers blood pressure. Gardening also fosters a good night's sleep and exposes people to both healthy sunshine and beneficial immune boosting soil microorganisms.

Gardeners are more likely to eat a wide range of fruit, vegetables, salad and herbs than non-gardeners, even if they don't cultivate the produce themselves. Eating a wide variety of fruits and vegetables is essential to a healthy diet.

In addition to the benefits of physical activity, gardening helps people reconnect with the natural world from whence they sprang. It provides a calm oasis where one is lost in the moment and can be a natural form of meditation that quiets the conscious mind. It can also be a form of self-expression, enabling one to develop creativity and build confidence while allowing a healthy outlet for emotions.

Furthermore, gardening helps develop a sense of achievement where we are able to step back and see the differences we have made and discover the small, important things in life. Gardeners tend to be hopeful and philosophical people who look forward to future seasons, enjoy the present and respect the past, and are more accepting when things are not perfect.

Clearly, teaching our children to garden, both at home and at school, will help give them a head start at living and at appreciating a more natural and healthy life. (Raised Bed Garden Kits)

Monday, July 12, 2010 by: Tony Isaacs, citizen journalist

Sources included:

http://www.optimistworld.com/Childr...
http://www.biosciencetechnology.com...
http://www.news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_n...
http://www.helium.com/items/910565-...
http://www.raysahelian.com/soilorga...

New Life, It's All Around Us!

2010-07-10T09:54:00.000-07:00

It's about this time each year that I am in ABSOLUTE AWE of the MIRACLE OF LIFE. From a small seed a gorgeous plant emerges and produces PERFECT FOOD !! It truly is miraculous when you stop and think about it. From a seed to a 4 foot tomato plant heaving with bright nutrient rich fruit. Food that is EXACTLY what a body needs! Food that HEALS and SUSTAINS LIFE.

GOD surely is AMAZING!!

Tomatoes, cucumbers, broccoli, squash, cantaloupe, peas, basil, and the list goes on.................... MIRACLES, each and every one of them.

Talk about sewing a seed and reaping 30, 60 & 100 FOLD! It's breathtaking. Enjoy, and remember to share with your neighbors!

;o)

Kim

Strawberries are about to Become More Toxic

2010-06-23T07:52:00.000-07:00

This is a very interesting article. Thought we would share it with you. All the more reason to Grow Your Own Strawberries.

(NaturalNews) On most dirty produce lists, strawberries make the cut for pesticide contamination. Currently, California strawberry growers use millions of pounds a year of a chemical called methyl bromide. Methyl bromide is banned in many parts of the world and is being phased out because it damages the ozone layer. Like every chemical pesticide, methyl bromide comes with health risks. Respiratory, nervous system, and neurological problems are common with the chemical - and it's especially dangerous to people working on or living near the farms. Now, we're getting this dangerous chemical out of strawberry fields, but it'll be replaced with another chemical that can damage our DNA, as well as cause miscarriages, cancer and brain damage. The new chemical, methyl iodide, is actually considered more toxic than the chemical it's replacing.

The current debate is over how much of this chemical farm workers and town residents will really be exposed to and how severe the health problems they'll have as a consequence. However, the debate really should be: how do we move away from dangerous chemicals as solutions to agricultural problems? Just as we need to move away from dirty oil, we need to move away from polluting our earth and our food growing communities with pesticides. With this choice, we'd also take a step away from polluting the entire human race that ends up eating chemically contaminated crops and drinking contaminated water. Scientists say that using this chemical in agriculture ensures that it will end up in the air and groundwater.

Part of the problem with attempting to figure low end ranges of exposure to known poisons is that no one is accounting for what other poisons people already have in their bodies. For example, if you were to eat a strawberry sprayed with chemical pesticides and you'd never been exposed to chemicals before in your life, the chemical-laced strawberry would probably make you immediately ill. This is because your immune system would be much more active and therefore mount a greater response to threats than most people's do today. However, because you weren't already so chemically polluted your body would be able to detoxify this chemical out of your body.

But today, that isn't the case. It's now being widely documented that pesticides and many other chemicals are backing up in people's bodies and never really being eliminated. When this is the case, no chemical is safe. It's like trying to determine what degree of spanking to give a child that's just been in an accident and has 16 broken bones and severe burns all over the body. Even if you could somehow argue that hitting a child is helpful, or that pesticides in our foods are okay, the damage that's already been done is too great to even consider it reasonable to inflict more - especially when non-toxic, natural solutions are available for anyone who looks into them.

About the author
Kim Evans is a natural health writer and author of Cleaning Up! The Ultimate Body Cleanse. Deep cleansing has helped her, personally, eliminate over a dozen problems in her own body - including several that medical professionals had said there were no solutions for, except long-term drugs.

Update On Pesticides In Our Food

2010-06-15T10:01:00.000-07:00

Here is an updated article on the pesticides in our commercial food. More compelling evidence why it is so crucial for all of us to grow our own Organic backyard gardens.

Dirty dozen’ produce carries more pesticide residue
Submitted by Drew Kaplan on June 9, 2010 – 10:56 am6 Comments

If you’re eating non-organic celery today, you may be ingesting 67 pesticides with it, according to a new report from the Environmental Working Group.
The group, a nonprofit focused on public health, scoured nearly 100,000 produce pesticide reports from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to determine what fruits and vegetables we eat have the highest, and lowest, amounts of chemical residue.
Most alarming are the fruits and vegetables dubbed the “Dirty Dozen,” which contain 47 to 67 pesticides per serving. These foods are believed to be most susceptible because they have soft skin that tends to absorb more pesticides. “It’s critical people know what they are consuming,” the Environmental Working Group’s Amy Rosenthal said. “The list is based on pesticide tests conducted after the produce was washed with USDA high-power pressure water system. The numbers reflect the closest thing to what consumers are buying at the store.”

Special report: Toxic America

The group suggests limiting consumption of pesticides by purchasing organic for the 12 fruits and vegetables.

“You can reduce your exposure to pesticides by up to 80 percent by buying the organic version of the Dirty Dozen,” Rosenthal said.

The Dirty Dozen

Celery

Peaches

Strawberries

Apples

Domestic blueberries

Nectarines

Sweet bell peppers

Spinach, kale and collard greens

Cherries

Potatoes

Imported grapes

Lettuce

Not all non-organic fruits and vegetables have a high pesticide level. Some produce has a strong outer layer that provides a defense against pesticide contamination. The group found a number of non-organic fruits and vegetables dubbed the “Clean 15″ that contained little to no pesticides.

The Clean 15

Onions

Avocados

Sweet corn

Pineapples

Mango

Sweet peas

Asparagus

Kiwi fruit

Cabbage

Eggplant

Cantaloupe

Watermelon

Grapefruit

Sweet potatoes

Sweet onions

What is a pesticide?

A pesticide is a mixture of chemical substances used on farms to destroy or prevent pests, diseases and weeds from affecting crops. According to the USDA, 45 percent of the world’s crops are lost to damage or spoilage, so many farmers count on pesticides.

The Environmental Protection Agency, the FDA and the USDA work together to monitor and set limits as to how much pesticide can be used on farms and how much is safe to remain on the produce once it hits grocery store shelves.

“In setting the tolerance amount, the EPA must make a safety finding that the pesticide can be used with ‘reasonable certainty of no harm.’ The EPA ensures that the tolerance selected will be safe,” according the EPA’s website.

Although the President’s Cancer Panel recently recommended that consumers eat produce without pesticides to reduce their risk of getting cancer and other diseases, the low levels of pesticides found on even the Dirty Dozen are government-approved amounts.

Can small amounts of pesticides hurt you?

The government says that consuming pesticides in low amounts doesn’t harm you, but some studies show an association between pesticides and health problems such as cancer, attention-deficit (hyperactivity) disorder and nervous system disorders and say exposure could weaken immune systems.

The Environmental Working Group acknowledges that data from long-term studies aren’t available but warns consumers of the potential dangers.

“Pesticides are designed to kill things. Why wait for 20 years to discover they are bad for us?” Rosenthal said.

Some doctors warn that children’s growing brains are the most vulnerable to pesticides in food.

“A kid’s brain goes through extraordinary development, and if pesticides get into the brain, it can cause damage,” said Dr. Philip Landrigan, chairman of the department of preventive medicine at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York.

Can pesticides be washed away?

Not necessarily. The pesticide tests mentioned above were conducted after the food had been power-washed by the USDA. Also, although some pesticides are found on the surface of foods, other pesticides may be taken up through the roots and into the plant and cannot be removed.

“We’ve found that washing doesn’t do much,” Rosenthal said. “Peeling can help, although you have to take into account that the pesticides are in the water, so they can be inside the fruit because of the soil.”

All fresh produce, whether it’s grown with or without pesticides, should be washed with water to remove dirt and potentially harmful bacteria. And health experts agree that when it comes to the Dirty Dozen list, choose organic if it’s available.

“To the extent you can afford to do so, [parents] should simply buy organic, because there have been some very good studies that shows people who eat mostly organic food reduce 95 percent of pesticides [in their body] in two weeks,” Landrigan said.

June Has Finally Arrived!

2010-06-04T09:49:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone. June has finally arrived. And Summer is officially underway. Here in Beautiful Southeastern Wisconsin, all plantings should be firmly planted in the ground.

Now it's time to shift into the protective mode. The critters are out in full force - And it's us against them!

This year I made a raised bed garden just for Asparagus and one just for Strawberries. Already the critters have pulled up some of my Asparagus roots. ;o(

And here's some more bad news.......... One cucumber was pulled up and left to die a slow death on top of the soil. Even the major thorny Blackberry's were "topped" by someone.

The backyard is laced with fencing - fencing going in every direction. The makeshift scare crows will be going up soon. Like I said, It's US AGAINST THEM! It seems even my own dogs will turn on me. That's right, I've caught them pulling up young broccoli plants! CAN YOU IMAGINE !!

They even pull their own raspberry's off the canes. If they see me doing something, it's almost a given I will catch them doing the same. Oh, did I ever mention our sister website........ www.DogGoneGlamorous.com. You might want to take a look - Gardeners are generally dog lovers as well.

Until next time..........

Yours In The Garden,

Kim ;o)

GROW ASPARAGUS

2010-05-16T11:33:00.000-07:00

This is an interesting article. Thought I would publish it on our blog for all to benefit. Enjoy!!

p.s.: Just planted one of our raised beds with Asparagus last night.

Kim

Ohio State University Extension Fact Sheet

Horticulture and Crop Science

2021 Coffey Rd., Columbus, Ohio 43210-1086

Growing Asparagus In The Home Garden

HYG-1603-94

Carl J. Cantaluppi

Asparagus is a long-lived perennial vegetable crop that is enjoyed by many gardeners. It can be productive for 15 or more years if given proper care.

Soil requirements

Asparagus grows in most any soil as long as it has good internal drainage. Asparagus roots do not like waterlogged soils that will lead to root rot. It prefers a soil pH of 6.5-7.5., and will not do well if the pH is less than 6.0. Have the soil tested to determine phosphorus and potassium needs; or add 20 lbs of a 10-20-10 or similar analysis fertilizer per 1,000 square feet, tilled to a 6 inch depth before planting.

Planting

Buy one-year-old, healthy, disease-free crowns from a reputable crown grower. A crown is the root system of a one-year-old asparagus plant that is grown from seed. Each crown can produce 1/2 lb. of spears per year when fully established. A list of crown growers appears at the end of this fact sheet.

Asparagus can be planted from seed. However, caring for the small seedlings until they become established can be time consuming. Also, because the seeds are spaced a few inches apart, the crowns will have to be dug and transplanted to their permanent, wider-spaced location in the garden after one year. Thus, one year of potential spear production is lost due to transplanting.

Select the new all-male hybrid asparagus varieties such as Jersey Giant, Jersey Prince, and Jersey Knight. These varieties produce spears only on male plants. Seeds produced on female plants fall to the ground and become a seedling weed problem in the garden. Female plants also have to expend more energy to produce the seeds that decreases the yields of asparagus spears on female plants. The all-male hybrids out-yield the old Mary Washington varieties by 3 to 1.

Asparagus can be planted throughout Ohio from mid-April to late May after the soil has warmed up to about 50 degrees F. There is no advantage to planting the crowns in cold, wet soils. They will not grow until the soil warms and there is danger of the plants being more susceptible to Fusarium crown rot if crowns are exposed to cold, wet soils over a prolonged period. Plant the asparagus at either the west or north side of the garden so that it will not shade the other vegetables and will not be injured when the rest of the garden is tilled.

Dig a furrow no deeper than 5 to 6 inches. Research has shown that the deeper asparagus crowns are planted, the more the total yield is reduced. Apply about 1 lb. of 0-46-0 (triple superphosphate) or 2 lbs. of 0-20-0 (superphosphate) fertilizer per 50 feet of row in the bottom of the furrow before planting. This will make phosphorus immediately available to the crowns. Omitting this procedure will result in decreased yields and the spear production will not be as vigorous.

Toss the crowns into the furrow on top of the fertilizer. The fertilizer will not burn the crowns, and the plants will grow regardless of how they land so don't bother to spread the roots. Space the crowns 1-1/2 feet apart in the row. If more than one row is planted, space the rows five feet apart from center to center. Wide between-row spacing is necessary because the vigorously growing fern will fill in the space quickly. Wide spacing also promotes rapid drying of the fern to help prevent the onset of fungus diseases.

After planting, back fill the furrow to its original soil level. It isn't necessary to gradually cover the crowns with a few inches of soil until the furrow is filled in. However, do not compact the soil over the newly filled furrow or the emergence of the asparagus will be severely reduced. Spears should emerge within one week in moist soils.

Do not harvest the asparagus during the planting year. Spears will be produced from expanded buds on the crown. As the spears elongate and reach a height of about 8 to 9 inches, the tips will open. The spear will become woody to support the small branchlets that become ferns. The ferns produce food for the plant and then move it down to the crown for next year's spear production.

Asparagus is very drought tolerant and can usually grow without supplemental watering because it seeks moisture deep in the soil. However, if rainfall is insufficient when planting or afterwards, it is beneficial to irrigate the crowns. Otherwise the plants will become stressed and vigorous growth will be impeded.

Insects and Diseases

Inspect the ferns throughout the season for insect feeding and fern dieback. Asparagus beetles chew on the fern, causing the stem to turn brown and reducing the yield the next year. Spray the ferns with an approved insecticide when beetles are seen. For disease prevention, spray with an approved fungicide on a 7 to 14 day schedule beginning when the ferns reach a 3 to 4 foot height and continuing until mid September.

Do not cut down the fern growth at the end of the growing season. The all-male hybrids stay green until frost, enabling photosynthesis to occur longer throughout the season. Leave the dead fern growth intact over the winter. This catches snow for additional soil moisture and keeps the soil temperature about 5 degrees F cooler than bare soil with no covering of dead fern. The cooler soil temperature is helpful in delaying the early emergence of asparagus in the spring, when air temperatures might rise prematurely and then fall again, predisposing the spears to frost damage. Frost-damaged spears should be snapped and discarded.

Remove the old fern growth by cutting or mowing as low as possible during the first week of April in central Ohio. Dead stalks are very sharp and can easily skin knuckles when harvesting new spears.

Weed Control

Weed control can be accomplished by hand hoeing and cultivating during the planting year since there are no herbicides labeled for use in asparagus during the first year. Labeled pre-emergence herbicides may be used during the second spring, by applying it over the shredded fern, about three weeks before spear emergence (April 1st in central Ohio). Do not use salt as a weed killer. It will not harm the asparagus, but it inhibits water penetration in the soil. Also, rains can leach the salt out of the asparagus bed and into the rest of the garden, injuring other vegetables that are less salt tolerant than asparagus.

Harvesting

Harvest asparagus by snapping 7 to 9 inch spears with tight tips. There is no need to cut asparagus below the soil with a knife. This may injure other buds on the crown that will send up new spears. The small stub that is left in the soil after snapping, dries up and disintegrates. A new spear does not come up at the same spot, but comes up from another bud that enlarges on another part of the crown.

As the tips of the spears start to loosen (known as "ferning out"), fiber begins to develop at the base of the spears, causing them to become tough. The diameter of the spear has no bearing on its toughness. When harvesting, the asparagus patch should be picked clean, never allowing any spears to fern out, as this gives asparagus beetles an excellent site to lay their eggs.

The year after planting, asparagus can be harvested several times throughout a three-week period, depending on air temperatures. Research shows there is no need to wait two years after planting before harvesting. In fact, harvesting the year after planting will stimulate more bud production on the crown and provide greater yields in future years, as compared with waiting two years before harvesting.

Asparagus spears will start to emerge when the soil temperature reaches 50 degrees F. After this, growth of asparagus is dependent on air temperature. Early in the season, 7 to 9 inch spears might be harvested every 2 to 4 days. As air temperatures increase, harvesting frequencies will increase to once or twice per day, harvesting 5 to 7 inch spears before the tips start to fern out and lose quality. The second year after planting, the length of harvest can increase to about 4 to 6 weeks. The third year after planting and thereafter, harvesting can continue for 6 to 8 weeks. Since the length of harvest season will vary from year-to-year depending on air temperature, stop the harvest when the diameter of 3/4 of the spears becomes small (less then 3/8 inch). Experience gained by growing the crop will make it easier for the gardener to know when to discontinue the harvest.

When harvest is finished, snap all the spears off at ground level. Apply 1/2 lb. of ammonium nitrate fertilizer per 50 feet of row . At this time, a home garden formulation of glyphosate non-selective herbicide (such as Roundup) can be sprayed on the asparagus patch. This will kill any existing weeds. New spears will then emerge, fern out, and provide a large canopy to cover the space between the rows. Once a dense fern canopy is formed, weed growth will be shaded out.

Storage

Asparagus is very perishable and should be harvested in the morning when air temperatures are cool. After picking, immerse the spears in ice-cold water to remove the heat; then drain the water and place the spears in plastic bags. Store in the refrigerator at 38 to 40 degrees F. Asparagus will keep for 1 to 2 weeks with little loss of quality.

ARE WE THINKING INSIDE THE BOX YET?

2010-05-14T18:39:00.000-07:00

You bet we are! Raised Bed Garden Kits are selling like hotcakes. The "season" is upon us. And in Beautiful Southeastern Wisconsin, it is a race against time. Our growing season is Soooo short. We really can't afford to waste any time here.

Peas are in. And this weekend, all other vegetables grown by seed indoors will be planted outside. One raised bed will be housing a new planting of Asparagus. YUM!! A crop that takes patience. In 3 years we should be reaping a glorious harvest!

Another raised bed will take on the luscious Strawberry Patch. And OH, the wild vines of Zucchini, Spaghetti Squash, Cantaloupe, and Butternut Squash....... Where to put all these plants #!!@#?? HELP!!

The fun is just beginning! I'll keep you posted on how this weekend goes.

Will we find enough SPACE for ALL these plants?? Or will some be deemed homeless, unloved and without care - ;o(

To be continued.................... Follow the entire drama, right here on RaisedBedGardenKits.com Blog.

Kim

IS IT TIME TO START PLANTING YET?

2010-04-14T13:03:00.000-07:00

OK, took my own advise this past week and worked on my shed. Cleaned it out and even did the dreaded, scrape, prime, and re-paint "thing". Glad that's over...................!!

Is it time to start planting yet? Well, in beautiful southeastern Wisconsin, the answer is - YES. The general rule of green-thumbs is:

First week in April is Clean-up, Second week is Repair & Fertilize, Third week is start tomatoes from seed indoors............ and WE'RE OFF TO THE RACES!!.

You can also sow seeds outdoors for the following crops: asparagus, beets, carrots, chard, kohlrabi, leaf lettuce, mustard, onion sets, parsnips, peas, potatoes, radish, spinach, and turnip. Start new plantings of grapes, strawberries, raspberries, asparagus, and rhubarb as soon as the ground can be worked.

Since the weather can be very unpredictable here in Wisconsin, something I like to do with my Apricot Trees, is some pollinating by hand. The Apricot Trees bloom early, but the bees are still sleeping. So after years of NO FRUIT and much frustration, I decided to take pollination into my own hands. With the help of my Kabuki make-up brush, some duck tape, and my longest knitting needle, I was able to do the work of MANY bees.

And yes, it worked like a charm. Last year yielded a bumper crop. And I'm anticipating a good yield this year as well!

Catch ya next week. ;o)

Kim

The Urge To Start Planting

2010-04-01T08:13:00.000-07:00

April 1st, and it is an absolutely GORGEOUS DAY here in beautiful southeastern Wisconsin. The urge to start planting is in the air. But hold on............. the average frost free date in southeastern Wisconsin is not until the first week in May! A good time to work on getting the compost pile going again. Or, if you are really ambitions - cleaning out the shed!!

This glorious 1st week of April is the time to sow seeds indoors of broccoli, early cabbage, cauliflower, celery, eggplant, and head lettuce. Even peppers can be sown from seed indoors now, too. But hold off a week or so on the tomatoes.

If you are ahead of the game, you can begin the process of hardening-off vegetable and flower seedlings that will be transplanted outside later this month; like your broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, head lettuce, onions, and parsley. Begin by placing flats in a shaded place protected from the wind. Gradually increase their daily exposure to sun and wind.

If you need any Raised Bed Garden Kits, now is the time to order. Remember, you will need to locate your "bed" in it's ideal location, and fill it with soil. Time waits for no man..................!!

An investment you will enjoy for YEARS and YEARS. www.RaisedBedGardenKits.com

Have a BLESSED EASTER!

Kim

Strategizing for Spring!

2010-03-27T13:02:00.000-07:00

It's on its way.......... And now is the time to start strategizing, visualizing, planning - and watching for sales on seeds! Yes, we love SALES. Just bought myself Butternut Squash, Pea, Basil, Dill, Zucchini, Broccoli, Cabbage, & Cantaloupe seeds. 10 packs for $1.00!! Oh, before I forget.

If you are not yet a Raised Bed Gardener, and are interested in this type of gardening, please view our website at: www.RaisedBedGardenKits.com. We sell what we believe to be the most Quality, Eco-Friendly, Cost Effective and Easy To Assemble Raised Bed Garden Kits available on the market today!!

From our experience, this is the easiest way to begin and successfully continue year after year to grow a backyard vegetable garden. And with the economy as it is, who can afford not to grow their own food!

Until the weather warms..........keep strategizing.

Kim