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Edible Gardens and Less Lawn Are Top Garden Trends in 2010
January 19, 2010
By Melody Parker
Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier
There’s a great deal of pride in being able to say, “I grew it myself.”
Apparently, more Americans want to experience the satisfaction and pleasure of uttering that phrase because edible gardens are “in.” The National Gardening Association reports a nearly 20% increase in urban edible gardens in the past year.
 Grow your own vegetables Photo: Growing your own groceries promises to be a popular project in the garden for 2010.
The Garden Media Group’s 2010 trends report cites several reasons for the increase, including a practical response to economic uncertainty, a return to small-town values, a desire for locally grown produce and a rising demand for organic foods.
GMG President Susan McCoy points to American’s inherent “can-do” spirit and desire for self-sufficiency that is “defined more by nostalgia rather than geography” as part of the shifting priorities.
Edible gardens are no longer banished to the backyard, either. Enthusiastic gardeners are tearing up front lawns and installing vegetable beds or planting cottage gardens where tomatoes, peppers, beans and other plants happily grow alongside perennials, roses, herbs and annual flowers. Container gardening continues to be a sensible option for people with limited space and time or physical limitations.
Other “ins and outs” for 2010 from the GMG:
- Slow gardening is in. Instant gratification is out. Seed sales are up 30 to 50%, according to Lifestyle of Health and Sustainability, and home canning increased by 45%. Fruits and berries are on the must-grow list, too, particularly raspberries.
- Eco-boosting is in. Chemical-dependent gardens are out. People want earth-friendly over scorched-earth products, including fertilizers, animal and insect repellents, potting soil, etc.
- Multi-tasking is in. Single-purpose gardening is out. A greater range of plants and uses, such as cottage gardens, rain gardens, wildlife habitats, house plant collections, etc., will be popular.
- Perennials and shrubs are in. Divas are out. Translate this into selecting native perennials, ornamental grasses and shrubs, as well as creating low-maintenance gardens and sustainable landscapes and choosing drought-tolerant and pest-resistant plants.
- Mindfulness is in. Bling is out. Gardeners want value, price and performance.
http://www.nwipp-newspapers.com/dn/free/304941853956520.php
January 10, 2010
I went out today on a Sunday afternoon and braved the cold to begin prepping a dirt garden as I call it. I really like self watering container gardening much better as I have had better luck with the Texas heat using this method in the past. I guess it is still habit though and I do prefer the dirt for the winter and early spring crops and we had a nice wet spring last year also. The only time we watered was at planting time if I remember correctly.
I began by hoeing off all of the dead grass and winter green cover as I call it. I could have just tilled this in, but I prefer to do it this way. It is less of a problem when tilling and I will use this cover material in a compost pile. It is just much better when you are in a hurry to get your ground ready too. I will use this to set up a compost bin as it is both carbon (dead grass) and nitrogen (green grass) and I will add some leaves to that also. I prefer to start at one end and go backwards across it. That way I only see the part I have cleaned mostly. It’s a psychological thing for me. Every now and then I will grab a rake and rake what I have hoed into a pile to haul to the compost bin later.
Once I had cleaned all of the grass and vegetation cover down to mostly bare dirt, I got out the tiller and tilled it one time without the bedder attachment. The ground was just a little too moist but I got through it without too much of a problem. After this first pass, I put the bedder on the tiller and made some really nice deep beds.
I am going to let this set until Friday when the next above ground planting times are good according to the almanac. I used to not take much care about this, but I had an eye opener many years ago about this and I will make a special post about this when I get a chance. Really a unique story and it actually happened to me.
I will coat this entire area with about a half inch to an inch of compost from the compost pile after I plant also. Keep watching and I will post again after planting time. Last year we had cabbage, onions, radishes, greens, brocolli, and brussel sprouts in this garden area. I have include some pictures from Spring 2009 below.
:B
Living frugal involves saving money in many different ways, whether you are finding a better deal on car insurance or just stashing away some dollars from every paycheck. Remember also, you should always pay yourself first – one of my golden rules. If you are not stuffing a sock full somewhere and actually investing your money, how will you know how fast it will grow?
 - Doubling Your Dollars
This is where the old Rule of 72 can give you an idea of how fast your gopher hill can become a mountain! It is really an old formula, but the Rule of 72 can still give you some valuable information about an investment.
To find out how long it will take an interest-bearing instrument to double in value, divide 72 by the interest rate that you will be earning on this investment
72 / 20 percent = 3.6 years
72 / 10 percent = 7.2 years
72 / 8 percent = 9 years
72 / 5 percent = 14.4 years
:B
5 Tips from a Farmers’ Market Manager on Shopping the Final Market
October 1, 2009
by Lisa Kivirist
Eat. Drink. Better.
The sustainability mantra may be “less is more,” but there’s one exception when buying more makes green sense: shopping the last farmers markets. If you’re not gardening and growing your own produce, your local farmers market serves as your easy connection to one-stop local fare shopping.
 Farmers Market But as frosts linger and the cold winds start to blow, don’t punt and think your fresh local bounty will disappear till spring. With a little strategic shopping and planning, you can preserve a local meal focus all winter long by taking advantage of those last farmer’s markets.
Here’s another perk of eating local year round: you’re supporting the economic health of your community. Just ask Cindy Torres, manager of the Longmont Farmers Market outside Boulder, Colorado, and an IATP Food and Society Fellow. Passionate about using local food systems as a healthy economic development tool, Torres co-founded the Boulder County Food and Agriculture Policy Council to look at how her area can increase the local food supply to enhance the lives of community residents of all economic backgrounds.
“With a little bit of planning and preparation, we can readily eat local till the spring markets start up again,” explains Torres. Here are her favorite five tips:
Continue reading 5 Tips from a Farmers’ Market Manager on Shopping the Final Market
 Tire Garden February 10, 2009
Earth First
Photo: Flickr user of a tire garden iamterris)
Gardening is regaining popularity as a pastime for all types of people across the world, with gardens popping up in the most unexpected places. While the traditional image of a garden may not exactly fit into the reality of most urban environments, the fact is you can grow your own food whether you live on a rural farm or in a tiny Manhattan apartment. Urban gardening is all about using space wisely to regain a closer connection with your food and beautify your home or neighborhood.
Continue reading Urban Gardening: You Can Grow Food, No Matter Where You Live
Manure More Precious Than Gold
by Gene Logsdon
I half-jokingly suggested about a year ago that animal manure— used livestock, horse, and chicken bedding— was going to be the hottest commodity on the Chicago Board of Trade. There are indications now that such a seemingly absurd prediction might not be so absurd after all. Last year the prices of some farm fertilizers shot up to over a thousand dollars a ton. Ammonium polyphosphate is still nearly that high. Deposits of potash in Canada, a main source of our potassium fertilizers, are declining. Natural gas, from which commercial nitrogen fertilizer is manufactured, is rising in cost as other uses compete for it. Long term, there are reasons to believe that the era of abundant manufactured fertilizers is passing.
 Manure Compost There is nothing funny about that prediction. Nor should organic farmers feel vindicated. If we run out of commercial fertilizers, there would be no way we could avoid a precipitous decline in crop yields while farmers switched to all-organic methods. It has taken us a couple hundred years to reduce the organic matter content in our soils to the low levels of today and experts say it might take at least half that long to build them back up again. Getting enough manure and other organic wastes to make up for a shortage of commercial fertilizer would be an enormous challenge requiring changes not only in agricultural attitudes but cultural attitudes as well.
Continue reading Manure More Precious Than Gold
What to Do If Attacked By Africanized Honey Bees
IMPORTANT NOTE: African Honey Bees are attracted to CO2, which is expelled naturally while breathing. AHBs will aim for the mouth and nose first. Often people and animals die of asphyxiation when the nose or throat swells shut from the stings. More deaths occur from suffocation rather than from the venom itself. —Jerry Hays, apiary inspection chief, Florida Dept. of Agriculture
Remember these important steps:
1. RUN away quickly. Do not stop to help others. However, small children and the disabled may need some assistance.
 Africanized Honey Bees Photo: Closeup of Africanized honey bees (AHBs) surrounding a European queen honey bee (EHB), marked with a pink dot for identification. Since AHBs arrived in Texas in 1990, they’ve mated with EHBs and spread throughout the Southwest. But rather than commingling, AHBs tend to replace EHBs, partly because EHB queen bees mate disproportionately with African drones. (by Scott Bauer)
2. As you are running, pull your shirt up over your head to protect your face, but make sure it does not slow your progress. This will help keep the bees from targeting the sensitive areas around your head and eyes. (They are attracted to the CO2 expelled from your nose and mouth during normal breathing and will target those areas first.)
3. Continue to RUN. Do not stop running until you reach shelter, such as a vehicle or building. A few bees may follow you indoors. However, if you run to a well-lit area, the bees will tend to become confused and fly to windows. Do not jump into water! The bees will wait for you to come up for air. If you are trapped for some reason, cover up with blankets, sleeping bags, clothes, or whatever else is immediately available. Continue reading What to Do If Attacked By Africanized Honey Bees
May 28, 2008
Alexandra Marks and Patrik Jonsson
Christian Science Monitor
Think of it as a modern-day Victory Garden. With gasoline prices soaring and food costs not far behind, the number of Americans planning to grow their own backyard vegetables this year is up sharply.
Gardening organizations, seed wholesalers and nurseries all are reporting increases in the number of people buying vegetable seeds and starter plants.
The trend started slowly several years ago, spurred by concerns about food safety, food quality and global warming, garden mavens say. This year’s gasoline and food price spikes have had what could be called a “Miracle-Gro” effect on the backyard garden movement.
This year, 39 percent of people with back yards told the Garden Writers Association they planned to grow vegetables this year. That’s up 5 percent from last year, after remaining relatively stable with just small increases for much of the past decade.
“This is evolving into a perfect storm for vegetable gardening,” says Charlie Nardozzi, senior horticulturist at the National Gardening Association in Burlington, Vt. “A lot of the economic things happening, and concerns are rising about global warming and carbon footprints, and so are worries about the quality of food, its price, and freshness – it’s all come to a head.” Continue reading Backyard Farming: As Food Prices Rise, So Do Home Gardens
Gardening has become a hot topic lately at my workplace. More and more people are discussing what they are planting and how they are going to do it. With rising food costs and scares about tainted food, we are seeing a growing interest in gardening.
:B
Victory Gardens Sprout Up Again
People are borrowing an old wartime concept to lessen the need for mass-produced food, reduce pollution, form communities and save on grocery bills.
January 9, 2009
By Mary MacVean
Los Angeles Times
 Victory Garden These days, digging some holes and planting a little lettuce or a few beets is a political act. Just ask Julie Stern, who shares a backyard organic garden with her neighbor in Topanga Canyon. Stern worked at the polls on election day. “There’s a feeling you had,” she said. “You saw your neighbors, and you felt good about what you did.” Growing food, she added, “I sort of do feel the same way.”
Or ask Sandra Young, who put two raised beds in the neatly kept front yard of her Westside house.
“For me, it’s much more a political question than a gardening question,” Young said, adding that when her family moved to the house 10 years ago, she asked: “What are we doing with all this grass?” Though she claimed she had too little time to be a top-notch gardener, last month beets, carrots, lettuces, basil and parsley were growing steps from her front door. Gardening, she said, is one thing she can do, “a step in the right direction.” Continue reading Gardening is suddenly becoming a hot topic
There’s a lot of buzz surrounding the Master Cleanse. Lately it seems like every Hollywood actress or actor who needs to get in shape is turning to this decades old health system that involves drinking a mixture of lemon juice, maple syrup, and cayenne pepper.
With all the diets out there to choose from why would anyone bother with the Master Cleanse?
There’s two main reasons people like the Master Cleanse. The first (and most obvious) is that it works. The results people are getting with the Master Cleanse border on miraculous, and they are backed by thousands of devoted users who are living testimonials to the effectiveness of the Master Cleanse.
Continue reading Why Bother With The Master Cleanse?
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