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Why Organic Food is More Expensive

Most people believe that because organic food is all naturally grown and thus better for us, it is more expensive. There are no chemicals or pesticides used so it should cost less. That makes perfect sense doesn’t it? Well the frightening truth is organic foods are more expensive because organic farms are not government subsidized, as the chemically laden agriculture industry is. Food shortages during the aftermath of world War II, caused many governments, including the U.S., to start subsidizing the use of growth hormones and other chemicals in farming. At the time the world needed food as fast as possible, and with the help of chemistry we prevented starvation and famine in Europe and other war stricken areas.

What started as a noble cause, however,  has over decades proven to have overstayed its welcome. Huge rotting surpluses of food since the 1970’s has confirmed that production from intensive farming is not working. Today our food contains not only growth hormones, but an arsenal of toxic chemicals in the form of pesticides, insecticides, antibiotics, fertilizers and a whole host of other toxic artificial additives, flavorings, colorings and preservatives. Modern agriculture is like the junkie who has to take a pill to stay alert, and than pops another to get some sleep. We have flooded our food with so many chemicals that we need more chemicals to get some taste and color back. Let us not forget that these additives are bad for you as well.

Here is to a Healthy Life

How to Get Healthy Affordable Food
So for those of you who can afford to pay extra for food that is better, more tasty, and abundant in vitamins, nutrients, and minerals, here’s to a healthy life. For those of you who are just happy when your favorite grocery store has a sale, trusting that what you are buying is good for you, there is hope. After years of eating supermarket food and other fast foods your body begins to store all of the toxins and chemicals. These toxins can affect your body in many ways. Unless you live on a farm or have access to one, the chance of you procuring naturally fed meat and poultry is very slim, unless you are willing or able to pay the extra price. Your fruits and vegetables are a very different story however. The First Lady has made planting and growing your own garden, fashionable again. I will say that, for my wife and me, the last two years of having our own garden have been fun and mouth watering. I had no idea that there is a system to growing a backyard garden, which entailed more than simply planting a bunch of seeds, watering and weeding. We struggled for a few years before we discovered the secret to growing an organic garden. I am sure that we are healthier for it. However, the taste is extraordinary , and, I promise, will be the first thing you notice.

You can Be Eating Healthy Again

Grow Your Garden Right the First Time
I wish that we knew what we know now the first garden we planted. There is indeed a correct way of doing anything, and planting seeds is no exception. For example, I had no idea that the soil needs to be properly prepared, and that there are organic fertilizers that should be used. There are many dangers you should be aware of, including what exactly should be done with those pesky weeds. I found everything we needed to know in a guide quite appropriately named, My Organic Food Garden. Absolutely everything you need to know about organic gardening at home can be found in this guide. This book was written  so that the absolute beginner can setup a professional quality garden without the headaches.

If you have been thinking of going green, this is as green as it gets. You will not only be saving the planet, but with the money you save, you’ll have no trouble being able to afford the natural meats and poultry, if that is your desire. I don’t profess to being an expert, but I have put together, along with this guide, the best online instructional information on green living ideas, all on one site. Possibly GREEN has reviews on do-it-yourself subjects like:
Alternative Energy – Solar and Wind
Car Conversion Bio-fuels, Electric, HHO
Green Forums-join a free like-minded community

When  you check out My Organic Food Garden be sure to look up Zero Chemicals- Learn how to rid your home of toxic cleaning products, and replace them with equally efficient all natural products.

A layman’s article about organic gardening.

What is organic gardening? It is gardening using materials and or matter that comes from compost, manure and other living matter. It is also a way to garden without using pesticides, insecticides and other harmful ingredients.  It may be in the far future before most large agriculture farmers turn to complete organic products.  In the mean time most novice and backyard gardeners should start practicing how this is done.

Organic gardening is an excellent way to grow your trees, shrubs, flowers, vegetables and all edible plants. Start Spring color for your garden

Organic composting comes from worms, food waste, grass clippings and old leaves. If left alone in some type of tumbler or rotating container it will eventually be consumed by bacteria. You can then use this type of “Compost” to amend your soil for your gardening needs. Humus comes from composted vegetable matter. You can make your own organic compost using a Compost Tumbler.

Mulching is another form of organic gardening. Mulch is added to the top layer of any gardening bed, tree, or plant thus keeping moisture in and suppressing weeds from growing. This helps in eliminating harmful herbicides and or insecticides into the environment.

Organic fertilizers are cottonseed meal, blood meal, Fish Emulsion, manure and sewage sludge. Many of these type of fertilizers usually have a lower types of nutrients needed for your plants such as nitrogen, phosphorus, or potash.

Be sure to read labels before purchasing any organic product. In my opinion fish emulsion is the best and easiest to apply. You should also be aware that some organic fertilizers may burn the roots of plants.

You can use manure as a fertilizer and the fresher the better.  However over time this type of fertilizer will weaken, it is important to note that manure can easily burn the root system of many tender young plants. Yea I know it stinks but it works…sorry had to say it.

Cottonseed oil is the safest but is normally used for acid loving plants.  Bat Guano is another excellent fertilizer and can be used liberally.  Again this type of fertilizer is low in nitrogen, phosphorus and potash which are the 3 basic ingredients needed for green growth and overall structure of any plant.

Blood meal comes from cattle blood after they have been slaughtered. Be careful not to overuse blood meal as it can also burn plants. It is high in nitrogen and good for green foliage.

Insecticides and pesticides do harm the environment.  I recommend using neem oil as this type of insecticide is safer than most syntethic products.

If you are concerned about the environment then “Organic Gardening” is the way to go or should I say grow.

With the enhancement of technology, we have lost our connections with the roots. It is not the case for any one particular thing but for every single thing that we come across in our lives each day. Similar is the case with our beautiful gardens too. We have almost forgotten that pest control in the gardens used to be organic. Today people have moved from the organic gardening pest control to so-called better and advanced tools of pest control.

Now-a-days, we use pesticides over our crops very well knowing that is a dangerous method. These pesticides are harmful for not only the bugs but also for the crop, the people and the land. Organic gardening pest control has stayed for centuries and was beneficial for ancestors and their ancestors too. Not only this, even the first crops that were placed on the first farm used organic gardening pest control to get rid of the bugs. If people from the past were using these techniques then so can we. Many farms, in the present age, are adapting the organic way of pest control to kill the pests to save the land and humans from them.

The best of using the organic gardening pest control is that the organic products are never harmful on the crop. They do not come with any kind of toxic substance and that is why they do not kill the crop. One of the best ways of organic gardening pest control is to use certain bugs that eat bugs. For instance, the ladybug is useful in a farm or home garden. It preys on insects and aphids and is not at all harmful for the crop. Another example is of the praying mantis. It is one of those insects that feed on other insect that are dangerous for the crops.

There are some other damaging bugs like whiteflies and grasshoppers. The organic gardening pest control uses that bugs that eats up the eggs of the parasites and pests along with killing the pests. These are some of the ways that are on-toxic and thus not harmful for the environment or the land or the crop. The methods of organic gardening pest control can be used on both small and large scales. Whether you want pest control methods for your backyard garden or for your farm, these methods are easy, organic and beneficial.

You can also plant some special plants that are known for repelling insects in a natural way. For example, plants of marigold, onion and garlic are repugnant to insects. You can also spray organic soap on your plants to save them from harmful bugs and insects in an organic way. Using these organic gardening pest control methods for your garden will benefit you in many ways and will cut your maintenance costs too.

Summary: The organic gardening pest control methods are much older, safer and effective than the chemical pesticides. Through the organic ways, one not only saves the crops from pests but also saves the land, the human and the environment from harmful chemicals. Moreover, the organic methods are also helpful in cutting down the costs of maintenance.

Organic herb gardening is an all natural method for growing delicious herbs in your backyard garden.  If you choose to use conventional chemical fertilizers you run the risk of introducing carcinogens and other toxic matter into your body as you eat your herbs.  At the same time the chemicals you spray on your garden can be harmful to wildlife, your pets, and your children and will also create toxic run-off that can contaminate ground water supply.  The practice of organic herb gardening is becoming very prominent as more and more people become aware of the dangers of conventional gardening, in fact there has been an exponential growth in organic fertilizers and pesticides.  You will actually be amazed at the huge variety of natural fertilizers available for organic herb gardening.

When one begins to explore organic fertilizers options, one should classify the search into base fertilizers and top-off fertilizers.  They are both used regularly in organic herb gardening: base fertilizers are additives that get mixed into the soil once a season or once every few years, instead top-off fertilizers are used in organic herb gardening on a regular basis during the growing season and both kinds are necessary to grow abundant and healthy herbs.  

Base fertilizers concern themselves with the overall condition of the soil.  Does it have enough of the essential nutrients of nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium?  Nitrogen is arguably the most important nutrient for growing healthy herbs, and also one of the easiest elements to get. In fact it can be obtained from household kitchen waste and grass clippings.  In organic herb gardening practice, composting is a simple and safe method of fertilizing the herbs naturally. Just a handful mixed in with the soil activates the bacteria in the earth and helps the seeds develop into strong plants.

When a keen gardener has to choose how to supplement his plants with fertilizers, he gets into a dilemma because most of the commercial fertilizers are chemical based. However, very few people that practice organic herb gardening know that there is a brilliant alternative to the chemical fertilizers that can be home grown:  comfrey. Comfrey is used an herb with large leaves which is a native of Europe and grows prolifically in the garden. As a matter of fact the leaves can be harvested five times a year. Its roots contain all the essential nutrients for the plant growth like phosphorus, nitrogen and potassium and when used as mulch for organic herb gardening it acts as a complete fertilizer. In addition to that, a few comfrey leaves added to the compost heap speed up the breakdown of organic matter making it possible to obtain larger quantities of compost and faster.

Blood and bone is a light top-off fertilizer that can be sprinkled on the herbs once a week and is absorbed into the soil once the rain comes.  On the other hand, one of the most potent top-off fertilizers adopted in organic herb gardening is fish emulsion which is essentially pureed fish that is rich in nitrogen and can be sprayed on or added to the watering can and used fortnightly to fertilize the herbs.

Because natural fertilizers are all slow release, they are especially great for organic herb gardening as they do not damage the roots and allow the herbs to grow steadily through multiple harvests.