My Potato Project; The Importance of "Organic"

A child's experiment turns into a lesson on the toxins in our food supply.

Did you notice the differences between the three sweet potatoes?

Which sweet potato would you rather eat?

Summer Pruning and Thinning

Summer Pruning and Thinning of Fruit Trees

Keep your trees to size with summer pruning. Thin the fruit crops to get high quality fruit and improve next year's harvest. Tricia shares her tips on how and when to get it done.

REASONS FOR SUMMER PRUNING FRUIT TREES

Jun 14, 2011 - Charlotte from Peaceful Valley

TREE & FRUIT HEALTH ARE AFFECTED BY TREE SIZE

Summer pruning fruit trees controls undesirable growth on a tree by removing energy-wasting water sprouts. Summer is also a good time to remove leafy upper branches that excessively shade fruit on lower branches. After the lower branches are exposed, protect them from sunburn by painting them with a 50/50 mixture of water and white latex interior paint.
Winter pruning is meant to stimulate the tree. Summer pruning uses thinning cuts (where the branch is cut off at its point of attachment, instead of part way along the branch) and these cuts do not encourage new growth. By removing leaves with the limbs, the tree is also getting less energy.
Summer pruning is a technique to train young fruit trees, with thinning cuts to build your ideal tree limb structure. If you want to keep your mature fruit trees at an easy-to-harvest height, summer pruning is essential.

INSECTS

Pest control can be a benefit of summer pruning too. If you prune off fruit with damage from codling moths, mites or aphids, be careful with your orchard sanitation. Dispose of the fruit and branches promptly, and don’t compost them.

SPECIAL CASES: APRICOT & CHERRY TREES

Experts advise pruning apricots and cherries only in the summer. They are susceptible to Eutypa dieback, a branch-killing disease, if pruned during rainy weather. With this in mind, the most cautious gardeners do no dormant pruning on apricot and cherry trees. The University of California authorities in The Home Orchard say, “[I]t is best to prune apricot and cherry trees in the summer (July or August) so that at least 6 weeks of rain-free weather are likely to follow the pruning.”

HOW MUCH TO PRUNE

Some stone fruits (peaches and nectarines) grow quite rapidly and should have 50% of their new growth removed after harvest.
Apricots and plums grow more slowly and only need to have 20% of their new growth pruned away.
Experts differ on summer pruning of cherry trees. Mario Moratorio, former Farm Advisor in El Dorado County, suggested summer pruning cherry trees only for the first five years. Chuck Ingels, Sacramento County’s Farm Advisor, recommends pruning 10% off mature cherry trees.

THE MUST-HAVE BOOK

Do you have fruit trees on your property? If so, we hope you have The Home Orchard on your bookshelf. This primer from the University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources is as essential as sharp loppers and pruners. With all those tools in hand you can become an expert at summer pruning fruit trees.

Organic Eggs Not Created Equal, Says New Scorecard

 



Organic Eggs Not Created Equal, Says New Scorecard

ENN.com: Environmental News Network -- Know Your Environment

 

 

 

 

Next time you're at the grocery store aisle picking out eggs, you might need to think twice before assuming one organic brand is interchangeable with another. According to the Cornucopia Institute (CI), a non-profit which promotes economic justice for family scale farming, all organic eggs are not alike. They recently released the report Scrambled Eggs: Separating Factory Farm Egg Production from Authentic Organic Agriculture.

The report contains an Organic Egg Scorecard that rates 70 name brand as well as additional private label organic egg producers based on 22 factors that the organization deems critical to the typical organic consumer. The main rating criteria include outdoor access, outdoor management, indoor quality of life and welfare, and organic principles of farm interdependence and ecological sustainability.

The highest rating, five eggs, goes to companies CI considers ethical family farms, companies that go beyond national organic standards. Most of these companies are small, local distributors. The producers given the lowest rating, one egg, are those CI believes are in violation of organic standards of animal welfare and/or were not transparent with their practices during CI's research. Sadly, many of the single-egg brands are the ones most easily available to consumers. Whole Foods' 365 brand, Trader Joe's brand, O Organic by Safeway, and Costco’s Kirkland brand all received a single egg for their sup-par performance.

The report, conducted over a one year period, details how organic egg producers vary greatly in their interpretation of the Federal USDA Organic Standards, "Paths are diverging in the organic-egg-producing community: One path affords more outdoor access and more diversity on the farm; and another path has led to large-scale industrialization motivated by profit."

Article continues: http://www.triplepundit.com/2011/05/organic-eggs-created-equal-new-scorecard/

 http://www.enn.com/top_stories/article/42756

 

Best Brands of Organic Milk

 




Best Brands of Organic Milk
Find the best milk for your family using this new scorecard. 

By Alison Rogers 
October/November 2007

You'll enjoy that tall glass of fresh, cold milk even more when you're sure it came from a well-managed organic dairy.

TABITHA ALTERMAN

The ever-growing popularity of all things organic has encouraged a boom in organic and hormone-free dairy products. While this trend gives us more healthy and affordable options at the grocery store, it also has given rise to a number of dairies willing to bend the rules for a share of the profit. But the Cornucopia Institute, a nonprofit small farm advocacy group, has developed a way to enable consumers to identify the best dairy brands. The report, Maintaining the Integrity of Organic Milk, includes a scorecard that rates 68 different organic dairy brands against a set of criteria central to true organic standards. Check out the milk brand scorecard.

http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-Food/2007-10-01/Best-Organic-Milk-Brands.aspx

Today I Found Out . . . 10 Facts about Worms

Source: TodayIFoundOut

http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2011/05/10-facts-about-worms/

Raspberries

Growing, picking, preparation and cooking advice for these tasty berries, and recipes for raspberry-surplus salsa.

By Kris Wetherbee
October/November 2002
 

With today's choice of varieties, you can enjoy fresh raspberries from early summer to fall whether you grow them yourself or buy them by the basketful. Raspberries can easily be grown throughout the country and come in a diversity of delicate hues including red, purple, black and yellow.

The richest flavored are varieties of black and purple raspberries. Black raspberries (sometimes called blackcaps) are firmer than red raspberries and somewhat bolder in taste. Purple raspberries are a hybrid of the red and black types, yielding large and richly flavored berries. Yellow raspberries develop a light pink blush when fully ripe, and are sweeter and more tender than the red types. All colors are highly aromatic and deliciously sweet with floral undertones.

Raspberries are high in fiber and vitamin C, and are a rich source of the anticancer compound ellagic acid. Black raspberries are especially fruitful in antioxidant and cancer preventive agents. Fresh raspberries are highly perishable and are best used within one to two days for peak quality, flavor and nutrient content. Rinse berries with cold water just before using.

If your raspberry patch only provides enough berries for fresh eating, you can buy larger quantities for preserving at local produce stands or farmer's markets. Prices will vary, but you can usually find flats (12 pints) priced around $14 per flat. The best way to preserve berries for winter use is by freezing, drying into fruit leather, or turning into jams or preserves.

Freezing is simple: Freeze whole berries on a tray or cookie sheet, then pack loosely in freezer bags. To freeze raspberries packed in sugar, gently mix 1/2 cup sugar to each quart of raspberries and fill freezer containers to within 1 inch of the top. To freeze raspberries packed in syrup, fill freezer containers with berries (leave a headspace) and cover with a syrup made of equal parts honey and water, or 3 cups sugar and 4 cups water.

Use frozen berries in pies, tarts, cobblers and muffins. Sprinkle over hot cereal, stir into yogurt or make a quick raspberry spread by mixing 2 tablespoons crushed berries with 1/3 cup soft margarine and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon. Cook them into puddings and sauces, or make jam during winter after garden chores have died down.

For a quick and delicious jam, add 1 cup frozen raspberries and Y cup sugar in a saucepan, bring to a boil and cook for five minutes. Pour berry mixture into a blender and process for 15 seconds or until thick. For more fruit flavor and fewer calories, why not make a low-sugar or no-sugar jam? Pomona's Universal Pectin, available in supermarkets or natural food stores, makes it simple with easy-to-follow, instructions and recipes.

Raspberry-Surplus Salsa

Easy to make, this recipe is a wonderful way to preserve fresh raspberries as a ready-made fruit salsa you freeze now and serve later. It's great for dipping, as a condiment for barbecue, or as a topping for baked or grilled chicken, turkey, fish and pork.

This salsa also does double-duty as a sauce to serve over sweet potatoes, squash or rice.

4 cups fresh raspberries 1/2 cup chopped sweet or red onion 1 garlic clove, minced 1 to 2 serrano peppers, seeded and minced 1 to 2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced 1 red or orange bell pepper, cored and diced 1/3 cup fresh lime juice 1/3 c up chopped fresh basil 1 teaspoon sugar (optional) 1/2 teaspoon salt (optional) 1/2 teaspoon ginger (optional).

In a medium-sized bowl, mix raspberries together with remaining ingredients. Leave raspberries whole for a chunkier salsa, or mash raspberries lightly with a fork before adding other ingredients.

Let stand for one hour to blend flavors. Depending on use, freeze remaining salsa in 1/2 to 1 cup portions. Makes about 5 cups.

Read more: http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-Food/2002-10-01/Raspberries.aspx

Nourish Means . . .

What does "nourish" mean to you? Jamie Oliver, Michael Pollan, Alice Waters, and other voices explore this question in this video from Nourish.




What does NOURISH mean to you???