Sunday, December 03, 2006

Compost the turkey oil?

Compost the turkey oil?

Composting requires green vegetative material as a nitrogen source, dried plant matter to supply carbon and some soil, water, air and microorganisms. Mixing all the ingredients in the right proportion produces a rich, crumbly end product called humus. Composting is a great way to recycle leaves, stems and clippings from the yard. Vegetable refuse from the house, including vegetable peelings, melon rinds, fruit skins and cores, and houseplant trimmings can also be composted. Tea bags and coffee grounds and filters are excellent additions to the compost pile. Although meat and fish products can be composted, they break down very slowly. They smell bad and can attract a number of pests, including coyotes, dogs, cats, skunks, bears and rodents. Meat and fish bits can contaminate the compost pile with disease organisms. For these reasons, avoid composting all bones, fats, greases and oils, including the oil used to fry the turkey.

Saturday, November 25, 2006

News Alert for composting

Google News Alert for: composting Get your tree for free next weekCambridgeshire Times - Stevenage,Herts,UK... There will be compost caddies available, help and advice on planting trees and their aftercare, and composting demonstrations to help you care for your soil. ...See all stories on this topic

Saturday, November 11, 2006

Chrysanthemums and fall

Chrysanthemums add sizzle to fall KEEPING MUMS Monterey County Herald - Monterey,CA,USA ... mum flowers. ''The most valuable thing you can do to help your mums grow is to pay attention to the soil,'' Meyer said. ''Work in some compost or organic matter ...

Chrysanthemums’ days of glory will soon end for year Tooele Transcript-Bulletin - Tooele,UT,USA ... Add abundant organic matter and fertilize them with a complete fertilizer when they reach ... When summer flowers fade dig the blooming or ready-to-bloom mums and ...

Sunday, November 05, 2006

Mixing lots of organic matter into cool-season flowers

There's lots to do in your yard now Cool-season flowers and vegetables, however, are just now taking the stage for Act 1 ... to seeding by tilling it thoroughly and mixing lots of organic matter into ...

Friday, November 03, 2006

Composting - Now is the time to start

Composting easy, beneficial -- cheap Composting is a good way to enrich soil and help the environment. Now is a good time to start. Here are three things you should know: Composting is easy. ...

My Organic Flowers

How Mary's Garden Grows This blog is a must see. What beautiful photos of fall flowers and more.

Digging up memories of grandmother's garden Cleveland Plain Dealer - Cleveland,OH,USA ... flowers blooming in autumn. This is a woodland plant that grows well in partial shade. Plant witch hazels in moist, well-drained, slightly acidic, organic soil ...

Coastal Sunrise Pansy offers an artist's touch Fort Wayne News Sentinel - Fort Wayne,IN,USA ... my signal that it's time to work those beds up with organic matter and a ... Your Own Backyard," "Mississippi Gardener's Guide" and "Tough-as-Nails Flowers For the ... See all stories on this topic

Sunday, October 29, 2006

Organic Garden Pest Spray

Organic Garden Pest Spray
The most inexpensive way to make a quart of garden pest spray is by mixing water with one spoon of dishwashing soap and one cup of cooking oil. When taking up organic gardening, you start to feel that you are really doing something useful for the environment and for your health, and the satisfaction is rewarding. Saving money is the other great privilege that an organic gardening practitioner feels over the others.

Monday, October 16, 2006

Compost Key to Nutrition

Compost Key to Nutrition
Who would think that there is a link between well-makde compost and nutrition? We are literally what we eat! There are 23 elements needed for human health that come from healthy soil and are converted by plants. These nutrients include amino acids, carbohydrates, essential fats, vitamins, minerals, enzymnes, and fiber. When plants are grown properly in nutrient-rich soil, their absorption of these 23 mineral nutrients can be maximized, boosting the nutrition of the food. So keep adding that compost to your garden it's good for the soil and you!

Sunday, October 08, 2006

Alternative to raking leaves out with the trash

Composting

Consider alternatives to raking leaves out with trash, needlessly ...Birmingham News - Birmingham,AL,USA... Composting at home saves transportation and disposal costs and provides an environmentally sound way to manage yard waste.

Composting ...

Monday, September 25, 2006

Organic news

Organic garden
Katrina and Rita destroyed residents' sense of selfNorthJersey.com - Hackensack,NJ,USA... of about 35,000, the Camellia City, known for the plentiful and colorful flowers that dot ... He had the best organic garden I have ever seen in his back yard and ... FREDERICKSBURG TRANSPLANT GETTING HER GREENS Laura Shepherd ...The Free Lance-Star - Fredericksburg,VA,USA... Also that day, Shepherd helped Goplen weed borders, transplant flowers and move bushes. ... In exchange for unlimited cups of her favorite organic latte, she hauls ... Agro-exporters say return of DDT will be devastatingEast African - Nairobi,Kenya... exports of coffee, fish, tea, tobacco, cotton, cut flowers, cocoa beans ... protect human health and the environment from persistent organic pollutants, including ... Eco-Friendly Food Of The WeekIndependent - London,England,UK... into dishes such as a dessert of "eight pure flavours of organic chocolate". ... All the fruit, vegetables, herbs and flowers grown on site are incorporated into ... Garden color out of the blueArizona Daily Star - Tucson,AZ,USA... of organic matter. ● Cleveland sage is a mounding plant that grows 3 to 4 feet high and up to 6 feet wide. It has blue to violet-blue flowers, arranged in a ...

Monday, September 18, 2006

Why compost leaves first?

Using Leaf Compost
Why compost leaves first? If newly fallen leaves are added dirctly to the soil without first being composted, the microbes that decompose the leaves complete witht he growing plants for soil nitrogen. The temporary nitrogen shortage caused by the microbes can reduce plant growth. To reduce or eliminate this competion for nitrogen, composting of the leaves is recommended prior to incorporating them into soils. Using leaf compost

Friday, September 01, 2006

Orangic Flower and Garden Tips

organic flowers Gardening Diamond Frost one tough flowerBiloxi Sun Herald - MS, USA... after it rains, then by all means loosen the clay with organic matter or ... performance with the exception of producing hundreds of tiny white flowers instead. ... Healing gardensMartinsburg Journal - Martinsburg,WV,USA... She specialized in herbs and organic gardening ... planted medicine wheel gardens wherever she lived, picking up gardening techniques and plants or flowers she liked ... Local flower growers find support at the Watsonville farmers ...Santa Cruz Sentinel - Santa Cruz,CA,USA... "People really love the country flowers," Anna said. The Ruvalcabas have been growing mostly organic flowers near Prunedale for the past 17 years. ... Vermont stays focused on organic farmingBurlingtonFreePress.com - Burlington,VT,USA... Could natural foods stores around New England sell Vermont organic milk at a ... benefit from the freshest, locally produced fruits, vegetables, flowers, eggs, milk ... Get Out GuideOregonLive.com - Portland,OR,USA... Beaverton Farmers Market: More than 100 vendors offer farm-direct organic and traditional produce, fresh flowers, hanging baskets, plants, herbs, bulbs, trees ... Growing fall astersFranklin County Courier - Enosburg,Vermont,USA... It is covered with purple flowers through a long period in the fall, and unlike ... fertilizer such as one-fourth to one-half cup of an organic fertilizer early in ... East Coast to Central CoastSan Luis Obispo Tribune - San Luis Obispo,CA,USA... She practices organic gardening and has never sprayed with insecticide and uses no synthetic ... Dailey loves birds, and she plants many flowers to attract them. ... Best of the restThe State - Columbia,SC,USA... 3, beginning Sept. 8. Open-air market with flowers, organic produce, specialty gifts, art, handmade crafts. 1230 Main St. on First Citizens new plaza. ... What’s New in Greater Phoenix? (September 2006)TravelVideo.tv (press release) - USA... Each open-area plot will grow organic vegetables such as lettuce, carrots, celery, heirloom tomatoes, along with a variety of herbs and edible flowers. ...

Thursday, August 17, 2006

Why Compost?

Why Compost?
Nothing warms a gardener’s heart like the sight of compost, the rich, organic material made from recycled vegetable peelings, grass clippings, leaves, twigs, and even coffee grounds. The gardener who has only a few Big Boy tomato plants in between Dark Red Irene geraniums and Bells of Ireland still appreciates a ripe pile of black, nutritious dirt. Recycling is more popular than ever as conspicuous consumption gives way to a growing ecological awareness. Creating a compost pile, even a simple one, contributes to a healthier ecosystem. The person who recycles cans, glass, and newspapers, and who composts vegetable peelings, leaves, grass clippings, and so on, has taken a small step toward ecological balance. Once you start recycling, you will be reluctant to throw even one apple peeling into the garbage. Besides, most town dumps no longer take any yard waste: grass clippings, leaves and weeds, twigs, and basic yard material. More tomorrow...

Tuesday, August 15, 2006

Orangic Flower and Garden Tips

Organic flowers and gardening Gardening challenges can be overcomeAkron Beacon Journal - Akron,OH,USAMy workweek was filled with site visits, including stops at an organic vegetable farm ... if the farmer happens to be growing vegetables, flowers or turf ... Landscaping may be a holy endeavourToronto Star - Ontario, Canada... of neglecting and then over-watering our plants and flowers. ... There is an organic connection between our souls and ... But walking by lawns that draw my eyes to ... Go tropical with fatsia's fabulous foliageNews & Observer - Raleigh,NC,USA... One of my favorite plants in this category is Japanese ... Following bloom, the flowers give way to clusters of black ... moist soil that is high in organic matter, it ... Organic flowers and gardneing

Sunday, August 06, 2006

Organic Flowers

organic flowers Now is a good time to give glory lily a tryContra Costa Times - CA,USA... The flowers are spidery, lilylike, with six bright red petals with yellow margins and long ... In the landscape, plant them in organic-rich, well-drained soil. ... Fresh Crop: FirstGarden Unites GenerationsSouthern Pines Pilot - Southern Pines,NC,USA... Flowers, such as sunflowers, marigolds and zinnias, grow nearby, serving double duty to ... reviewed their study of weeds and their control in the organic way. ... Lazy Gardener Morning search nets best bloomsHouston Chronicle - United States... An avid organic gardener, Wadsworth loves the sunflowers for both their beauty and their habitat use. ... They can demolish whole flowers in a very short period. ... The Valverde codeChronicleHerald.ca - Halifax,Nova Scotia,Canada... Valverde also uses oil pastel for added texture and varies his lines between hard-edged and gestural for an organic spill of flowers within a more rigid ...
Organic Flowers

Thursday, July 27, 2006

Organic Gardening-
Bugs, beetles, borers and caterpillars are bugging gardeners this summer.While it might be tempting to get rid of all of them, a closer look reveals that many insects are beneficial, as natural predators of garden pests or as pollinators and honey producers. Gardeners, then, are seeking ecologically sound ways to control specific pests that threaten to eat, defoliate or discolor their flowers and vegetables. For many people, a goal of keeping pesticides out of waterways and sparing beneficial insects means that they will use more hands-on controls and learn about the effects of organic products they apply...

Wednesday, July 19, 2006

Your compost garden news

Your compost garden
THE GARDENER WITHIN: Getting to know the enemy: Japanese beetlesSacramento Bee - CA, USA... The adults eat flowers and skeletonize the leaf tissue between the veins, leaving behind ... on the roots of turf-grass and other various plants and organic matter ... Farmers' market provides its customers with varietySouthCoastToday.com - New Bedford,MA,USA... might not associate with a farmers' market, such as organic insect repellent ... a wide selection of organically grown products, as well as flowers and plants. ...

Saturday, July 15, 2006

Formula for Powdery Mildew

Formula for Powdery Mildew

Milk works in two ways: It has a germicidal effect--it kills the fungal spores-- and it also appears to stimulate plants in such a way that they become more resistant to the disease. In recent university tests, the milk and water spray was found to be more effective than the two most popular synthetic fungicides on the market today. Using milk as a fungicide is not new.

Here's the recipe:

  1. Mix 1 cup of milk with 9 cups of water.
  2. Put the solution in a sprayer and spray the entire plant including the undersides of the leaves.
  3. Do this twice a week and your powdery mildew problem should disappear.
Sprinkle powder milk around your tomato plants every other week and watch your plants grow. Formula for Powdery Mildew

Sunday, July 09, 2006

Composting news

Composting news -
Composting easy to beginRocky Mountain News - Denver,CO,USA... Effective composting requires a temperature range of 70 to 140 degrees, with breakdown occurring more rapidly at higher temperatures. ... Public Comments Requested on Proposed Livestock Composting ...Kansas City infoZine - Kansas City,MO,USA- infoZine - The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) is requesting public comments on a proposed livestock composting facility, Midzell Farms ... Composting News

Wednesday, July 05, 2006

The good, the bad and the weedy

The good, the bad and the Weedy
A weed is defined as a plant that's out of place. But the distinction between a weed and a flower isn't as clear-cut as you might think. In fact, some of the weeds we try to banish can benefit our yards and gardens, while some that look as pretty as flowers can wreak havoc. We take a closer look at five common weeds, what they do, and what you can do about them...