The EPA and Pesticides

According the to United States Environmental Protection Agency, there are over 20,000 pesticides containing 620 active ingredients on the market in the US.  More than 1,000,000,000 (One billion) pounds of active ingredients in conventional pesticides are applied each year in the United States.  Thats over three pounds for every man, woman, and child who is a citizen of the United States.  That in itself is alarming.  Even more alarming is the government’s information on the potential health effects of pesticides.  I am quoting the EPA’s own FAQ here: “The health effects of pesticides depend on the type of pesticide.  Some, such as the organophosphates and carbamates, affect the nervous system.  Other may irritate the skin of eyes. Some pesticides may be carcinogens.  Others may affect the hormone or endocrine system in the body.”  Stay away from the commercially grown food!  Save money and eat healthy and – grow your own organic food!!

The EPA is in charge of our safety from pesticides.  They get a large helping hand from the manufacturers of the pesticides.  The EPA is charged with setting maximum levels of pesticides likely to be found in food.  That is not a typo, I took it straight from an EPA page…”maximum levels likely to be found in food”…not actually found in food, but likely to be found. “The EPA accomplishes this by requiring pesticide manufacturers to submit data that answer basic questions about what residues are present in foods and in what quantities.”  The manufacturers submit data regarding the residues of pesticides found on crops grown in the field when applied using the highest rate allowed by the product label.  So the manufacturer of the pesticide delivers the data to the EPA and the EPA decides on how much pesticide is okay for us to eat. I love the taste of orthophosphates in the morning! Do you trust the pesticide manufacturers with the safety of your food?  If not, the only way to make sure that our food supply is safer is to grow you own organic food.

The EPA also requires a battery of toxicity tests in laboratory animals to determine a pesticide’s potential for causing adverse health effects, such as cancer, birth defects, and adverse effects on the nervous system or other organs. Tests are conducted for both short-term (acute) and long-term (chronic) toxicity. For chronic effects other than cancer, laboratory animals are exposed to different doses of a pesticide to determine the level at which no adverse effects occur. This level is divided by an uncertainty or “safety” factor (usually 100) to account for the uncertainty of extrapolating from laboratory animals to humans and for individual human differences in sensitivity. The resulting figure, termed the Reference Dose, is the level of exposure that EPA judges an individual could be exposed to on a daily basis for a lifetime with minimal probability of experiencing any adverse effect. [Quoted from EPA Factsheet].

So let me get this straight, the EPA finds a pesticide that makes us sick and then they decide how much of that we can eat.  Who checks on the farms?  Who checks at the grocery store?  Anybody want some peanuts?  I am not saying that the EPA is bad.  They do a commendable job.  I think that we should be surprised that there are not more serious health problems and outbreaks of food related illness;but how many chronic illnesses and “adverse” health effects are the cause of pesticide exposure over the course of a lifetime?  Could neurological disorders be the result of  exposure to organophosphates and carbamates?  How would you know?  If you grow your own food, you know exactly what was put on it.  You know exactly what your children are eating!  What if you could save money growing your own organic vegetables at home?  You can! Read a book and go outside! Feed your children healthy food and lower your grocery bill. You can do it.  You just have to go out in the yard and get started!

Raspberries…Yummy!

Who doesn’t love raspberries? Rubus idaeus (red raspberries) and R. occidentalis taste good! Your best bet for growing raspberries is to transplant them. They should be planted in early winter or spring when the suckers are dormant. If you live in zone six or higher (read further south) you can plant in the fall. They should be planted two to three feet apart in rows that are four feet apart. If you use deep beds, you may plant three feet apart. The plant should be mulched about six inches deep to keep the roots warm in winter and cool in the summer.

Raspberries may be propagated by taking cuttings. Make sure to take your cutting from a cane (branch or stem) that did not produce fruit. The fruit producing stems die back after fruiting and cannot be used for propagation. If your cutting doesn’t root, it is most likely due to exhaustion from fruiting earlier in the season. Don’t use tired canes!

Raspberries like on inch of rain per week prior to fruiting and one and a half inches of water while fruiting. The water can be from rain or your watering system. Feed them with slow acting fertilizer early in the season and spray with the liquid seaweed extract three times during the growing season for the happiest berries. Happy berries taste better!

There are numerous pests that may afflict your berries. If your foliage curls, puckers, and turns yellow, and then is also stunted, you may have aphids. If there are ants on your bushes, they are attracted by the honeydew from the aphids. There will be clusters of aphids under the leaves. Dang pestilence. Be gone! They are the about the size of a pinhead and may be green, brown, or pink. They will be destroyed by insecticidal soap sprayed on them every two to three days until they are gone. The big concern from the aphids lies in the virus carrying properties. They bring the mosaic that can kill your plants.

If a cane borer comes a calling you can expect to see sudden tip wilting. Closer examination of your plant will reveal two rows of punctures about one inch apart at the tip of your cane. The adult beetle has deposited eggs in your cane and is killing your berry. You just have to cut off the wilted tips below the low row of punctures and burn up the beetle larvae. Nothing to it as long as you pay attention to your plants.

Japanese beetles will make your leaves look like skeletons of leave. The shiny green beetle is about a half an inch long and has copper colored wings. If you put up pheromone beetle traps at least fifty feet from your crops to lure the beetles away. If the traps can’t handle the infestation, the infestation won’t be able to handle pyrethrum. The pyrethrum will get rid of the infestation. Leave traps up id beetle infestation is regular in your garden spot

The raspberry root borer in an insidious foe. Your plant will break off easily at the base and show general lethargy and lack of vigor. You may often find the half inch grubs eating your plant in the crown of roots. Sometimes you and off the buggers by stabbing them with a wire; however the only surefire way to rid yourself of the pestilence is to cut the affect canes below the soil line and destroy them. Dang those bugs.

Whiteflies are another common garden pest that may affect your berries. The whiteflies honey dew encourages fungus growth on your leaves and weakens the plants. You can tell you have them if, when the plant is disturbed, it looks like dandruff is flying around your plant. Insecticidal soap applied daily for a few days will control the outbreak and send the whiteflies to an appropriate end.

Pay attention to your raspberries and take good care of them. Plant them where they are happy and protect them from evil. You will be rewarded with big, fat, juicy fruits! Raspberries are fun to grow, fun to pick, and even more fun to eat in jams, tarts, salads, cakes, breads, and even right off the plant. Plant some today!

Okay So I’m all for Non-Hybrid/Heirloom Seeds in the Organic Vegetable Garden

but I am so not the target audience for this. Is it cynical to target the survivalists for additional sales? Do gun toting crazies deserve good food too? Read more

Your Garden Journal: The Best Book Ever

There are numerous gardening books available…in your home, at the library, in your local independent bookstore, and online. The contain very helpful information and encouragement.  In the you can learn things about what to plant, when to plant, how to germinate seeds, how to make your own compost, how make your own insecticide, etc. The are most helpful if you remember to read all the words and plan your garden using the information available….but they are not the most helpful gardening book available. Those books are written with excellent general information.  They are not specific to your yard or garden plot.

The books in the stores have good information and much inspiration for your organic garden.  They tell you about soil pH, air temperature, gardening climate zones, plant mixing, interplanting, new ideas; however, the most helpful garden book is not available in bookstores or online.  You have to write the best organic gardening book.  Only you will actually garden in your yard or plot. If you take good notes and create a thorough gardening journal, you will have the best gardening book ever written.  It will be customized just for you.

In order to have the most successful organic vegetable garden possible for you and your location, what should you record in your journal?

Soil and air temperature at different times of day including the daily minimums and maximums will give you information that helps in choosing plants for your garden in the future.  More immediately, that information will assist in determining whether you need to shade plants or soil for optimum garden production. If you use row covers, record the temperatures under the row covers and/or your plastic mulch.
Record unusual weather events [storms, droughts, deluges, very hot and/or very cool weather].  Several years of regular “unusual” weather events become regular weather events.
Be sure to keep a watering record.
Keep track of the dates your seeds germinate.  Then track and record your planting and transplanting dates for each crop.
Make sure to keep information on cover crops and times that you leave an area fallow.
Journal your composting piles [the dates started, when you water, material added, and the finishing date for the pile].
Track your pests and diseases making sure to note the number, duration, severity, what you treated it with, and the outcome.
Track your soil maintenance [crop rotation, compost addition, rock powders, leaf mold, other soil supplements.
And finally, track and record your harvest notes.
How much did you end up with? Several years of comparing what you did and what happened to the output will result in excellent information of maximizing your garden production.

If you are interested in the more existential aspects of gardening, journal how different events make you feel, your reaction to hardship, your reaction germination, harvest, pests, dogs, cats, moles, etc. Gardening is a process.  The journey is excellent and a lesson in patience and letting go.  You cannot control nature.  You can help it.  There is frequently no why as to the events in nature.  It’s okay not to understand.  You don’t have to understand here to be here.

Gardening can be a great help in understanding and getting in touch with now. A journal can track your past help improve the present. Make sure to review your journal regularly.  Most importantly, a garden journal assists with planning and is invaluable when the snows set in, the seed catalogs come in the mail, and your plan your spring, summer, and fall planting schedule. Go outside and garden. Save money with your own organic vegetable garden.

Organic Gardening, Healthy Food and the EPA

EAT HEALTHY AND SAVE MONEY: GROW YOUR OWN ORGANIC FOOD

According the to United States Environmental Protection Agency, there are over 20,000 pesticides containing 620 active ingredients on the market in the US.  More than 1,000,000,000 (One billion) pounds of active ingredients in conventional pesticides are applied each year in the United States.  Thats over three pounds for every man, woman, and child who is a citizen of the United States.  That in itself is alarming.  Even more alarming is the government’s information on the potential health effects of pesticides.  I am quoting the EPA’s own FAQ here: “The health effects of pesticides depend on the type of pesticide.  Some, such as the organophosphates and carbamates, affect the nervous system.  Other may irritate the skin of eyes. Some pesticides may be carcinogens.  Others may affect the hormone or endocrine system in the body.”  Stay away from the commercially grown food!  Save money and eat healthy and – grow your own organic food!!

The EPA is in charge of our safety from pesticides.  They get a large helping hand from the manufacturers of the pesticides.  The EPA is charged with setting maximum levels of pesticides likely to be found in food.  That is not a typo, I took it straight from an EPA page…”maximum levels likely to be found in food”…not actually found in food, but likely to be found. “The EPA accomplishes this by requiring pesticide manufacturers to submit data that answer basic questions about what residues are present in foods and in what quantities.”  The manufacturers submit data regarding the residues of pesticides found on crops grown in the field when applied using the highest rate allowed by the product label.  So the manufacturer of the pesticide delivers the data to the EPA and the EPA decides on how much pesticide is okay for us to eat. I love the taste of orthophosphates in the morning! Do you trust the pesticide manufacturers with the safety of your food?  If not, the only way to make sure that our food supply is safer is to grow you own organic food.

The EPA also requires a battery of toxicity tests in laboratory animals to determine a pesticide’s potential for causing adverse health effects, such as cancer, birth defects, and adverse effects on the nervous system or other organs. Tests are conducted for both short-term (acute) and long-term (chronic) toxicity. For chronic effects other than cancer, laboratory animals are exposed to different doses of a pesticide to determine the level at which no adverse effects occur. This level is divided by an uncertainty or “safety” factor (usually 100) to account for the uncertainty of extrapolating from laboratory animals to humans and for individual human differences in sensitivity. The resulting figure, termed the Reference Dose, is the level of exposure that EPA judges an individual could be exposed to on a daily basis for a lifetime with minimal probability of experiencing any adverse effect. [Quoted from EPA Factsheet].

So let me get this straight, the EPA finds a pesticide that makes us sick and then they decide how much of that we can eat.  Who checks on the farms?  Who checks at the grocery store?  Anybody want some peanuts?  I am not saying that the EPA is bad.  They do a commendable job.  I think that we should be surprised that there are not more serious health problems and outbreaks of food related illness;but how many chronic illnesses and “adverse” health effects are the cause of pesticide exposure over the course of a lifetime?  Could neurological disorders be the result of  exposure to organophosphates and carbamates?  How would you know?  If you grow your own food, you know exactly what was put on it.  You know exactly what your children are eating!  What if you could save money growing your own organic vegetables at home?  You can! Read a book and go outside! Feed your children healthy food and lower your grocery bill. You can do it.  You just have to go out in the yard and get started!

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