All Entries in the "Gardening" Category

Does Your Lawn Really Need to Look Like Astroturf?

(this is a re-post from April, 2008)

My grandfather was named the neighborhood “lawn manicurist.” I don’t think he particularly enjoyed the title. It was a little,um, feminine, for him.

And I don’t think the neighbors particularly enjoyed his lawn. It wasn’t the lawn itself - even though it rivaled Fenway Park’s turf - if he did say so himself. It was the unbridled collection of lawn treatment chemicals he had stockpiled in his shed. I still think my cousin, Henry, is a little off since, at five years old, he tumbled head first into the bin of Scott’s Turf Builder with Bug Control.

“Over a billion pounds of pesticides are sold in the United States annually.” Most inevitably end up in “non-target destinations, such as species, air water, bottom sediments, and food.” They’re one of the major causes of water and soil pollution.

The EPA regularly monitors these chemical levels in our drinking water. Foods such as fish and meats are not monitored, but research studies confirm the presence of varying levels of toxic pesticides in many species.

At the end of this article, I’ve added a list of typical pesticides, and their health effects. The list is taken from a study done at Cornell University for the EPA.

What you can do:

Take a closer look at the fertilizers and pesticides you’re using in your yard. There’s many organic available organic products now that work comparably to more toxic ones. Increasing demand for these products will make them more prevalent, and ultimately bring prices down.

Read. Knowledge is your best defense. There’s a wealth of information on the web, not all of it accurate. Be sure to check your resources. Here a few I’m enjoying this spring:

• GreenScapes - In 2006, the EPA started this website providing practical holistic tips for gardening homeowners.
• National Coalition for Pesticide-Free Lawns - for those who enjoy detail, a great site. There’s a series of links focusing on specific areas of yard care. I particularly enjoyed Lawns We Can Live With, and Read Your Weeds .
• richsoil.com - hilarious, practical, conversational, right to the point.

Pressure any local golf courses in your area to go green. Golf courses account for 30% of all the pesticides sold in this country.

Have any resources or thoughts on the topic you’d like to tell us about?

• Basics of Organic - Essential Oils Essential oils are concentrated liquids that are extracted from plants and these oils are very popular for therapeutic benefits. There are several elements in essential...
• Organics Organic is another term very much heard of these days. Organic food stores, Organic clothing, organic makeup etc… the list is long. What is Organic?...
• If You're Not Utilizing Organic Coffee You Just May be Drinking Poison! So, let's take a little journey through the definition of organic and what this implies for organic coffee and other organic products.   1) No...

Heirloom Seeds - Ever Taste a Tomato Grown for Flavor Instead of Transport?

(This is a slightly modified re-post from April, 2008)

In between discussions of high blood pressure, and the upcoming dreaded first colonoscopy, those of us of the “I owned an 8-track once” generation, will sometimes sit around reminiscing about the good old days. One sunny spring afternoon recently, amidst the usual memories of the firsts- first communion, first part time job, first kiss…- one of my friends looked up at the sky, big puffy white clouds rolling by, and said “Remember the tomatoes?”

We sucked on our frozen margaritas and fell silent.

Ahhh, yes, the tomatoes of summer from the local farm stand, or if you were even luckier , your own family garden, where you would pick one off the vine, and later sit on your back steps with your father, a tomato in one hand and the salt shaker in the other, and take a bite out of what had to be positively the best tomato in the world- or so your father said.

Now, tomatoes just don’t taste like they used to. I couldn’t even grow a good tasting tomato last summer. I diligently fertilized and watered three plants. The tomatoes sure looked great. But they tasted like grocery store tomatoes in February- bred for longevity, transport and the flavor of cardboard.

I bought my seedlings at the local nursery. Not this year. I’ll be buying heirloom tomato plants through the mail. Bred to test like a tomato, not the package they come in.

The largest provider of tomato seeds- and all seeds -to the commercial agricultural farmers these days is Monsanto Agrochemical. The seeds are genetically engineered(GE) to meet commercial grower’s needs for a sturdy, pest and drought resistant tomato. Notice flavor is not a Monsanto criteria.

There’s something inherently unnatural about one of the largest toxic chemicals manufacturers in the world now also being the world’s major seed - and therefore food- supplier.

And Monsanto is so big, they have been systematically buying up their smaller competition, now totally controlling the seed market.

Luckily, there are alternatives. A growing number of traditionalists are starting organizations around the world such as The Seed Saver’s Exchange. Their purpose is to protect heirloom varieties of fruits and vegetables for future generations.

Thank goodness.

I wonder if some day Monsanto will decide to genetically engineer the flavor back into the tomato?

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• Save This Year's Homegrown Vegetable Seeds For Next Year's Garden Yesterday, I wrote about my little container garden that I'm housing on my deck.   Already I have a bunch of tomatoes growing and I...

Frugal Ways to Protect You, Your Yard, and Your Trash, From Summer Pests

One thing I like about winter in New England is that all those pesky bugs that have been biting me, invading my home, and eating my flowers, die.

A bit heartless, I know, but good riddance to them, I say.

And now, it’s summer, and they’re back.

I’m plotting my defense.

The criteria -

• frugal home brews, or
• all non-toxic products
• bio-degradable
• only kills the bugs - not me or my neighbor’s children.

Protecting Your Home, Yard and Garden

From Bugs.

• Get a bat house. Bats can eat up to 3000 mosquitoes per night.
• Plant catnip plants, peppermint plants, or sprinkling cinnamon around your house foundation to help keep ants out of your home.
• Take a box of Cream of Wheat cereal and spread it around and over a red ant nest. It will expand inside them after they eat it and kill them.
• Borax can be sprinkled in carpets, beds, furniture and especially around baseboards to help control fleas, roaches and ants. You can leave it in your carpet. For furniture and bedding, leave for at least one hour, then vacuum it up.
• Basil is a natural insect repellent.
• Planting marigolds around your garden can ward off certain types of insects.
  

From Animals.

• Moles are my worst nemesis.

Bounce Fabric Softener – the fragrance in fabric softener, oleander, is a natural repellent. Stuff a few fresh sheets of fabric softener into their tunnel openings, then use dirt to fill in the tunnels.

Coffee Grounds — moles are repelled by coffee grounds, so try spreading some around your yard. Coffee grounds also act as a fertilizer.

Radio & Sealable Freezer Bag — put a portable radio inside a freezer bag, turn it on, and seal the bag shut. Put the bag near the gopher/mole tunnels. Much like a scarecrow, the human noise scares away moles and gophers.

Cat Litter — if you have a cat, try pouring used cat litter into the opening of the mole/gopher tunnels. Cats are natural enemies of moles and gophers and the scent will scare them away.

Human hair or dog hair stuffed in mole holes can frighten them off.

• To battle deer and rabbits try -

DeFense Rabbit and Deer Repellent by HavaHart.

Remember the Slinky? Hang them from tree branches or stretch them across fence posts. They will frighten away deer due to the metallic sound and the shiny reflection.

Water your garden periodically with a solution of one half cup castor oil and two gallons of water. Castor oil drives away rodents, but it also enriches the soil.

Raccoons hate salt.

Protecting Your Garbage

From Bugs -

Hanging bunches of cloves around where your garbage cans sit is going to deter flies from the garbage.

Citrus smell keeps flies away. Citrus fruits around your home and around garbage cans will prevent flies from coming around. A tiny slit in the fruit makes the fragrance stronger.

From Animals -

A squirt of ammonia in your outside trash cans will keep pesky animals out of it.

Other Battles

With Bugs -

• Vicks Vapor Rub on your hands and arms before going into a tick infected area will keep ticks from attacking you.
• Vicks, rubbing alcohol or a mixture of half vanilla/half water on your skin will deter mosquitoes.

From Animals -

• Put a liberal amount of cayenne pepper into your bird seed. Squirrels hate cayenne pepper, but birds can’t taste it.
• Cats hate the smell of citrus fruit.

With Weeds -

• Weeds are not really pests, but they can be really pesky! Hot water will kill most unwanted plants –just boil some water and pour it over the plant you want to kill.

Have any of your own tips?

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• Natural Pest Control It is a fact of life that insects exist, and that they go to where the food is. Who can blame them for wanting to...

Does Your Lawn Really Need to Look Like Astroturf?

My grandfather was named the neighborhood “lawn manicurist.” I don’t think he particularly enjoyed the title. It was a little,um, feminine, for him.

And I don’t think the neighbors particularly enjoyed his lawn. It wasn’t the lawn itself - even though it rivaled Fenway Park’s turf - if he did say so himself. It was the unbridled collection of lawn treatment chemicals he had stockpiled in his shed. I still think my cousin, Henry, is a little off since, at five years old, he tumbled head first into the bin of Scott’s Turf Builder with Bug Control.

“Over a billion pounds of pesticides are sold in the United States annually.” Most inevitably end up in “non-target destinations, such as species, air water, bottom sediments, and food.” They’re one of the major causes of water and soil pollution.

The EPA regularly monitors these chemical levels in our drinking water. Foods such as fish and meats are not monitored, but research studies confirm the presence of varying levels of toxic pesticides in many species.

At the end of this article, I’ve added a list of typical pesticides, and their health effects. The list is taken from a study done at Cornell University for the EPA.

What you can do:

Take a closer look at the fertilizers and pesticides you’re using in your yard. There’s many organic available organic products now that work comparably to more toxic ones. Increasing demand for these products will make them more prevalent, and ultimately bring prices down.

Read. Knowledge is your best defense. There’s a wealth of information on the web, not all of it accurate. Be sure to check your resources. Here a few I’m enjoying this spring:

• GreenScapes - In 2006, the EPA started this website providing practical holistic tips for gardening homeowners.
• National Coalition for Pesticide-Free Lawns - for those who enjoy detail, a great site. There’s a series of links focusing on specific areas of yard care. I particularly enjoyed Lawns We Can Live With, and Read Your Weeds .
• richsoil.com - hilarious, practical, conversational, right to the point.

Pressure any local golf courses in your area to go green. Golf courses account for 30% of all the pesticides sold in this country.

Have any resources or thoughts on the topic you’d like to tell us about?

• If You're Not Utilizing Organic Coffee You Just May be Drinking Poison! So, let's take a little journey through the definition of organic and what this implies for organic coffee and other organic products.   1) No...
• Organics Organic is another term very much heard of these days. Organic food stores, Organic clothing, organic makeup etc… the list is long. What is Organic?...
• Basics of Organic - Essential Oils Essential oils are concentrated liquids that are extracted from plants and these oils are very popular for therapeutic benefits. There are several elements in essential...