Today some holiday garden links – maybe you can just relax and have some reading time during this hectic week. Why gardeners need to STOP growing flowers – this is an excellent post commenting on the whole beating the proverbial Jones’, growing with the use of chemicals to produce a showstopping garden when frankly it’s unnecessary, and how we can find a way to work with nature to grow better flowers. A great read. It’s a little late to grab gifts for the holiday but this Greenhouse Kit is pretty cute so I wanted to link to it anyhow. Made for kids this kit goes beyond theory and gets into the dirt of growing. The set has a four-tiered “global greenhouse” that’s an interactive habitat for water, flora,... [Read more]

Green goals are excellent, but there’s no need to go overboard. Starting slow means you can concentrate on making sure you follow through on the little green tasks you choose before you try to build up to bigger goals naturally. Following are four totally easy green goals you can take on for 2010 – they won’t take much time, won’t cost much (if anything), and are a great start if you’re new to green living. Ditch common paper trails – two common paper trails include bills and notes. You can easily leave these trails behind in 2009. Get some whiteboards, leave them by phones, hang one on the fridge, and place little ones out where you normally take and leave notes for people. You can thus skip pads of paper... [Read more]

Crop rotation has been used forever by large farms but for small gardens you may think it seems like too big a deal. However it’s still a useful practice to get into if you have a small garden and not that complicated, especially if you like making lists. Basics of crop rotation: Crop rotation is pretty much a self explanatory term. You rotate crops on an annual basis. Most commercial growers use a four year rotation which you can also use at home. However some books and experts recommend a three year rotation plan for smaller gardens. When I started my first solo garden in my early 20s, I didn’t know about crop rotation, thus didn’t do it at first and when I finally read about it, I only heard about the four-year plan so... [Read more]

Late last month we heard some bad news about insecticides being linked to autoimmune disorders, and now some far worse news. Insecticide exposure earlier this month resulted in the death of a 10 month old baby and both the baby’s mother, 25-year-old Elizabeth Whitfield, and her 2-year-old son, Kenneth, were hospitalized with severe respiratory distress, also due to insecticide exposure. Investigators on the case noted that “Whitfield and her children had only lived in the home a short time and she was trying to deal with a serious insect problem.” About half a dozen used insect foggers were found in the home and the contamination was so severe that a hazardous materials team was called out to help get rid of the foggers. Now... [Read more]

If you’re a frequent Whole Foods shopper than listen up because a holiday baking essential has just been recalled. Whole Foods Market is recalling… Organic raw hazelnuts, also known as filberts, that were sold in bulk in its stores in California, Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah and Washington. Non-organic dry roasted hazelnuts (filberts) sold in bulk through its stores in California, Nevada, Oregon and Washington. Non-organic raw hazelnuts (filberts) sold in bulk through its stores in Oregon and Washington. The above products have been recalled because they may be contaminated with salmonella, an organism that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections, especially in young children, the elderly and those with... [Read more]