History Of Organic Farming

But these farmers were just warming up. It's hard to make sure all of your seed is organically grown. Getting discounts on health costs for being a member of a certified CSA could be a profound incentive for your customers to support your farm, but also...

(The Answer Isn't as Obvious as You'd Think) Brew Compost Tea in 5 Easy Steps Foliar Feed Vs. Soil Amendment: Which Fertilizer is Best? Gaskin doesn't approve of too much tillage. “Think about building soil health over a space of three to five years,”...

Leguminous Cover Crops You hear the words “nitrogen fixing” thrown around a lot, but it's a fairly unique and useful attribute for a crop to have. Non-Leguminous Cover Crops Fertility, of course, is not just about fixing nitrogen.

A bountiful family garden yields peppers, tomatoes, broccoli and other treasures. Carkner and Andersen don't think so. After your plan's review and assessment by the certifier, the next step involves an on-site inspection of your farm.

Also called crown of thorns euphorbia, it's one of the few succulents with real leaves – thick, fleshy, and tear-shaped. You can propagate crown of thorns from tip cuttings. It even thrives in temperatures above 90º F.

Not many flowers say love more than the rose. I shall share with you one such story of roses and love. They respond to us. Love is the most powerful of all emotions and it is love that allowed that rose to bloom at a time when it should be quietly sleeping.

This dynamic duo is nature's janitorial and recycling service. Scientists may consider fungi microbes, but hyphae are unlimited in how long they can grow. Microbes don't have teeth and jaws or a gizzard filled with tiny rocks like earthworms.

These rules include: No antibiotic use. There have been major advancements from the chicken industry to reduce the amount of human antibiotics fed to chickens. Do you have what it takes to raise chickens organically?

Likewise, this section will tell you how long you have to wait before you can harvest and eat the treated produce. Do not even think about reusing the container after it's empty! The re-entry period.

Yuck! Don't panic, though, if you see these miniscule pests bouncing around your vegetable beds. You'll save endless amounts of time in the long run if you pay careful attention to the plants that aphids are particularly attracted to, including peas ,...

“Beneficials will not take care of a severe problem,” Parson says, so spraying can become a last resort, but with a range of ecological pest-management techniques in place, you might not need to.

Water the plant by flooding the pot with water. Crown of thorns needs a potting soil that drains quickly. In Thailand it is said that the number of flowers on a Euphorbia crown of thorns plant foretells the luck of the plant keeper.

One would have to ingest a lot of the plant to have serious ill effects, but a small amount can irritate the mouth and may cause stomach upset.Additionally, the sap will definitely stain your clothing and gum up your tools.

"My love is like a red, red rose," sang the poet Robert Burns. (The wry third stanza reveals the recipient's more pragmatic desires.) Anyone familiar with the language of flowers, however, knows that roses can send numerous other messages as well.

Prevent rainwater and irrigation runoff from animal pens and compost piles into your garden. “Many producers use some type of post-harvest cleaning/sanitizing agent to reduce microbial loads … but for consumers, free-running water is still just as...

Keep the flat lightly moist with a clear lid or plastic over it and place on a heated pad in bright light.Once you see baby plants, remove the lid and mist the soil to keep just the surface wet.

Knowing your animals' average daily manure volume and weight can help you plan for storage and processing needs, but keep in mind the manure's moisture content will evaporate, reducing volume and weight over time.

This means you should cut the shoots from the bush that grew in spring.In late fall or even winter, take hardwood cuttings that have been on the bush for at least one season.Cut stems that are between 4 and 10 inches long and remove all but the top few...

These plants require at least four to six hours of full sun (or bright light indoors) in order to bloom sufficiently. Finally, make sure it is receiving adequate water and fertilizer throughout the growing season.Now that you know some tips on how to...

Top, upright growth may be pinched back to encourage the growth of side branches. Oldest and tallest stems can be removed first.removal of any suckers sprouting from the bottom of the trunk, growing from the roots or spouting in the nearby growing area.Pruning...

How much to feed althea will depend on the shrub's size. For example, rose of sharon shrubs can be very sensitive to over-fertilizing. For best results, fertilizer should be applied at the plant's drip line.Fertilizer can be reapplied in midsummer, but...

Keep the soil moist while the seedlings are small. In warm climates, you'll have another opportunity to divide the plants in fall.freestar.queue.push(function() { googletag.display("div-gpt-ad-300x250-ATF-1"); });Basket-of-gold plants only need fertilizer...

The total cost is about $1,100 per acre to be ready for planting.” The program helps install beds with its plasticulture machine, eliminating the need for the farmer to own a tractor and row-bed shaper, equipment that Goldy estimates can run up to $30,000...

Soggy soil with poor drainage and insufficient watering will cause its leaves to yellow, and the plant will eventually die.When growing bird of paradise, you should follow a regular watering schedule during the first growing season to establish a deep,...

Use watered in fertilizer once a month during the summer months. It is more sensitive to cold weather and often grown in pots. Do not leave any fertilizer on the leaves or other parts of the plant.need a slightly different feeding schedule.

The following tips will explain what to do during each period.As mentioned, bird of paradise plants come from a tropical region. During the dormant period, water only when the soil becomes dry.During active periods, fertilize your bird of paradise once...

Eye-catching and distinctive, the bird of paradise is a fairly easy tropical plant to grow indoors or out.is one of the most unique plants American growers can get their hands on these days.