Cleaning Up Naturally

We have a friend with a miniature golf course close by who was lamenting to my husband the other day about having to clean the bathrooms every night after the 'mishaps' of their cherished customers. Of course while they appreciate the business that their clients bring in, it's not a lot of fun cleaning up after them!

But they're closing times been much less gruesome now that they have BiOWiSH Cleaner-Deodorizer helping them. These hard working folks deserve a few breaks, afterall. Their stinky, germ filled chore is taken care of with a quick spray of BiOWiSH Cleaner-Deodorizer. It eliminates, instead of masking odors, because it digests the bacteria. And one package of BiOWiSH Cleaner-Deodorizer equals 2.5 gallons of cleaning and deodorizing power,so it costs under $5 per gallon. An all natural cleaner, completely safe around children and pets, and economical too!

Cleaner & Deodorizer is a unique chemical-free cleaning treatment for every household and office surface. Rid yourself of the worry of chemical cleaners with all BiOWiSH™ cleaning products, including Floor Wash, Odor, Septic Tank Aid, BiO-Stix Drain Cleaner, Pond & Fountain, Aqua and Cleaner & Degreaser. Visit us and view product details at www.BestComposters.com.

Gardening Festivals

We attended our first gardening festival as exhibitors this past weekend in the beautiful city of Fort Collins, Colorado. The town has plenty of gardens to enjoy, and lots of folks interested in gardening. One thing that I loved was how many people came out with their children, to help them learn how to garden, how important honey bees are to gardens, and best of all - about composting! We had examples of things that we use in our composting on our table: grass clippings, coffee grounds, straw and alfalfa, dried leaves, drier lint, pet hair and vacuum bag contents. Since we, like most composting folks, have plenty of greens (nitrogen) to contribute to the compost pile, but struggle to keep the mix of browns (carbons) high enough, we add the drier lint and animal hair. Still usually not enough, we add BiOWiSH™ Compost Boost to keep the organisms activated and breaking down that compostable material. This ensures that we have a new batch of compost to add to our garden every 4-6 weeks. Our garden loves it! And we love the produce that we are getting from our garden. Always looking for new ways to use zucchini, here is a recipe I found for Chilled Zucchini and Green-Bean Soup with Pesto Swirl:
(Start to finish: 1 hour. Servings: 6)
Ingredients
2 TBSP extra-virgin olive oil
1 small sweet onion, chopped
1 lb zucchini, ends trimmed and thinly sliced
4 cups chicken broth (reduced sodium works great)
10 oz package frozen shelled edamame
1/2 lb green beans, ends trimmed
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground white pepper
1/4 cup store bought basil pesto
1/2 cup reduced fat sour cream or plain greek yogurt(optional)
Directions
In a large saucepan over medium high heat, heat the oil. Add the onion and zucchini and saute' until very soft, about 10 minutes. Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Stir in edamame and green beans and simmer, uncovered, until the vegetables are soft, about 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool for 15 minutes.
Transfer the soup, in batches if necessary, to a blender or food processor. Puree', then season with salt and pepper.
Serve the soup chilled or at room temperature. When serving, divide the soup among 6 bowls and swirl a spoonful of pesto into each. Top with sour cream or yogurt, if desired. Enjoy this low calorie (135)refreshing soup, and at the same time, increase your intake of healthy vegetables! Happy Composting!

Springtime Rant in the Garden

This time of year is so exciting with all the new growth going on in my garden! I enjoy checking it every day - ok, sometimes two or three times a day - to watch for the first leaves of the beet plants, see how the peas are almost tall enough to start reaching for the bean poles set out for them to climb, and the flowers as they appear on the tomato plants. Glorious birth!
I can really tell a difference this year in the growth and health of my garden vegetables with the addition of home grown organic compost. It ‘s my hope to have a bumper crop this year, and I plan on filling my freezer with produce. I've also started to think about whom else might benefit from the abundance I've planned for. The article in yesterday's Denver Post about school children in Denver who are learning about where food comes from made me think about how many families could benefit if every school had a vegetable garden. So many kids would be empowered with the knowledge of how to feed themselves and their families, as well as the nutritional benefits that they would reap with their harvests. Surely someone at each school could find the time to sponsor a garden; if not a teacher, then a parent, volunteer from the neighborhood or an employee of nearby nursery. I’d like to donate my time to teaching students how to compost and it’s various uses in a garden. Some schools might even find themselves being able to donate their garden produce to food banks and co-ops. With good weather, and the good soil that I’ve laid down this year, that’s what I plan to do!
Maybe we need a grass roots movement to contact school districts and request that space be made available at each school for a classroom garden, rather than the lawns that most schools have surrounding their facilities. Oh, how my mind does travel along a meandering pathway at times, leading me to consider ideas and dreams that crop up along the way!
And speaking of composting, I’d better get the latest batch of kitchen scraps into the composter, and put on my to-do list to shred some cardboard to mix in as well. After all, can one have too much compost?
Happy Composting!

The Facts on Waste

You may be astounded, like I was, to find that approximately 3 thousand TONS of garbage are added to our landfills each year! The EPA further estimates that almost a ton of waste is generated by each person in the US each year, and that 70% of that can be recycled and composted. That's a heck of a lot of what could be wonderful soil amendment that's instead getting added to the landfill each year!
I know that it's easier to throw it out than to compost it, but the benefits, to me, far outweigh the drawbacks. After all, nobody wants a landfill in their neighborhood; the smell, pests, the eye sore, decreasing property values, etc. And most of us these days are fairly good at conserving our water resources, but don't realize that about 3 gallons of water is used each time we run the garbage disposal to grind up kitchen waste. Instead of building better bigger landfills and wasting precious water, we could be making our own compost that will provide our gardens and lawn with a valuable boost of natural fertilizer. We can also be sharing this activity with the next generation, spending time with the children in our lives and teaching them how to better care for our world and ourselves.
Composting can be accomplished many different ways. My grandparents had a pile next to their garden that they added to each day. I don't remember them every turning it, so it may have taken quite a while to break down. A three sided apparatus can be put together with almost any materials: cinderblocks, old pallets, cyclone fencing, almost anything that you can build with can be used to build an area for compost. It just needs to allow for air circulation and a surface to keep things together. This method is inexpensive, but you'll need to put your back and arms into it, turning it over with a pitchfork or a compost 'tiller'. You'll almost most likely be dealing with pests...the kind that like decomposing food. Ick! Finally there are bins commericially available that can be sealed up pretty tight to keep pests out, but there would still be the issue of having to manually turn it at least once a week.
Or you can splurge a little and get yourself and your family a tumbling composter. www.BestComposters.com has a selection of the finest tumbling composters available anywhere. An easy turn of a handle and you’re providing your compost with the aeration that it needs to keep all those wonderful organisms happy and heated up. You'll be helping reduce the amount of trash added to landfills, reducing the water consumption and waste, and making some great soil amendment that will help your garden and lawn prosper! Come on in and order yours today!