Seedling Update Deux

This is week three of the trial - changing how we made the seedling pots from the suggested method on the video (see blog dated February 28th "Making Seedling Pots from Newspaper", and wanting to see if and how well they might hold up after being filled with potting soil (yes!  Potting soil!) and compost.

We also want to test out using potting soil instead of a medium made specifically for starting seeds. In the Denver Post article, SEEDS in the Saturday, March 13, 2010 edition of Inside & Out, author Susan Clotfelter  insists that seeds need to be started in 'soiless seed-starting medium' or they will experience 'seedling flop'.  This is otherwise known as dampening off, which causes the seedlings to fail after sprouting due to fungus in the soil.  We're going to try very low dose applications of BiOWiSH™ Aqua  as an 100% natural, organic and safe anti-fungal to test whether that will prevent 'seedling flop' in our seeds started in potting soild and compost.

There are now four out of four lettuce seeds that have sprouted, and two of the four spinach seeds. The pots seem to be holding up just fine, and I was outside today in the glorious Colorado afternoon sun mixing in our home grown, 100% organic compost into our garden soil to prepare for planting. We're especially excited this year to see how utilizing BiOWiSH™ Compost Boost in our compost effects plant growth. I'd recommend that you check out BiOWiSH™ Technologies website and read about studies they've been doing on how their products can boost production! Anyway, I do want to complete the experiment with the pots a full six to eight weeks, though, so I'll save transplanting the seedlings until at least the first week of April...maybe longer, unless I can plan on covering up those baby plants when frost or late snow threatens. Meanwhile, we have seedlings started and seeds for outside ready to sow.


Happy Composting!

Seedling Update, etc.

Our seeds went into my newspaper seedling pots on Monday, March 1st and have been in my kitchen garden window. As of today, Wednesday, March 10th, there are two seedlings sprouting out of the eight pots. Both are lettuces…no spinach sprouts yet. Hubby is worried. I’m more of an optimist, but will note that the first three nights the pots spent in the window, which does get cold at night. Not a whole lot of insulation between the floor of the window and the outside. In fact, I’ve insulated between the pots and the floor of the window to keep the temperature more even, and am taking the pots out of the window at night. Since we keep our house at a brisk 62 degrees at night, hubby recommended that they go in the oven overnight, which I thought was a good idea. So into the oven they go, at night (of course it’s off!) Will keep you posted as to progress. I’m ready, this weekend, to start my impatients.

I also wanted to comment on an article I read in March/April AARP magazine (oops, just gave away a hint as to my age!) The article is called “It Is Easy Being Green”, and talked about a global group of eco-minded organizations called Earth Day Network. This network is trying to encourage people worldwide to one billion Earth Day “acts of green” on April 22nd this year; something as simple as picking up litter to organizing cleanup crews for a polluted river. I’m going to see if hubby wants to participate by donating BiOWiSH-Aqua™ to the local Parks and Recreation Department. Since it is a completely organic and ecologically harmless method of maintaining proper pond chemistry, and since it would be FREE, I think they will be very interested!

You can register your green act online at billionactsofgreen.net. The article also referenced a link for new tool kits that offer simple tips on going green. The link is createthegood.org/diy-toolkits.

Skunk Odor Removal

I've been fortunate to never have a dog that got sprayed by a skunk, and I think it's remarkable!  My last dog, Indy, a Brittany Spaniel whose ancesters were bred to flush birds in the fields for hunters, loved to chase rabbits.  Birds were only mildly interesting, but rabbits!  He was no dummy...he knew he couldn't get a bird, but a rabbit stayed on the ground, and ran, and could be chased.  Maybe it was all in the chase.  I'll never know, but he surely loved to run in open fields and flush out bunnies.  He used to get down in the dry stream beds, where I was certain that someday he'd flush out and get sprayed by a skunk.  He never did get skunked, but I have plenty of friends and relatives that have experienced it and were anxious to share their horror stories.  Tales of folks not realizing that their dog has been skunked until a moment too late, when the dog has run into the house, given a good shake and promptly jumped on the nearest couch, chair or bed.  The better to share the smell and spread it around! 

I know of a woman here in town that owns a doggy daycare who's been having multiple horror stories occurring in her place of business.  My husband says it's skunk season, when they are waking from their light hibernations.  Anyway, this woman sent out an S.O.S., as she was spending a small fortune on shampoos and the old standby - tomato juice.  Wouldn't be so bad if they worked, but they typically are very effective.

We suggested that she try BiOWiSH™ Cleaner & Deodorizer  100% organic, it utilizes the unique core BiOWiSH™ Enzyme Technology to quickly remove odors at the molecular level and does not simply mask odors as is common with many deodorants or deodorizers.


Additionally there is a residual action that continues to remove odors in between applications.




A representative from BiOWiSH™ Technologies suggested that this doggy daycare owner mix up a batch of the BiOWiSH™ Cleaner & Deodorizer by adding one of it's sachets to 16 oz. of warm water.  Let it set for 15 minutes or so to allow the enzymes to activate.  While she waits, she can use a regular shampoo (I always used a no tears generic baby shampoo on my pooch) to clean off some of the oil.  After the shampoo is rinsed out, spray the dog's fur thoroughly with the solution of Cleaner and Deodorizer.  And If they have, like stories I've heard, infected every nearby surface with skunk odor, the next most cost effective step would be an application of BiOWiSH-Odor™.  Made with the same enzyme technology, BiOWiSH-Odor™ benefits include:



· Fast acting


· Removes rather than masks odor


· Cost effective


· Operative at low dosage rates


· Wide range of operative conditions


· Long residual effective period


· Natural anti-microbial action – sanitizes as it works


· 100% organic


· Non-toxic, non-chemical, non-pathogenic


· Harmless to humans and the environment

Since it's enzymes need to be kept moist to remain active, she may benefit by covering those smelly inanimate objects that she's needing to deodorize with a plastic sheet.  Once the enzymes dry out, they die out.

The first five people to try this and respond will receive $5.00 off their next order of any BiOWiSH™ Products.  Happy composting, and happy deodorizing!

An Experiment with Starter Pots

After I made bunches of seedling starter pots and packed them snuggly in their trays, I spoke with a friend about what I'd accomplished.  We discussed the various changes to the procedure that I'd made, why I made the changes, and what I might expect as a result.


This friend (we'll call her JS) expressed her concerns about using only a half a sheet of newspaper, rather than the whole sheet that had been suggested by the video on Ehow.com by the Ehow Presenter Willi Evans Galloway. JS was concerned about the efficacy (I just love that word, don't you?!) of the pot, whether it could hold up during the 6-8 weeks of water and sun.  And so the experiment has begun.  As of this morning, eight newspaper seedling starter pots are filled with a mix of potting soil and home made, organic compost  Four of the pots have lettuce seeds, and four have been planted with spinach seeds.  They are basking in the southern exposure of my kitchen garden window, soaking up the light and warmth from the sun, drawing in nutrients from the compost and water.  I'll keep you posted on the progress of the seedlings and their pots.  Will the pots last?

We Made Seedling Starter Pots from Newspaper

You may remember (that is, if there are actually, factually people out there reading this) reading my blog of  Jan. 6th that included a link to a video about making starter pots out of newspaper.  If you've tried this, you no doubt have made some adjustments to the procedure.  We made our first pots last night, and here's how we changed the process:

1. I thought that using a whole sheet of newspaper was too much...too much newspaper, more difficult to fold into the glass, plus I hoped that using less might make it easier to break down in the soil so that we could just plant the seedling pot and all instead of removing it from the pot.  I like to jostle the seedlings as little as possible! So I started with half a sheet of newspaper. 
2. Then I was folding it into thirds (again, less newspaper on the sides, bottom) rather than half and then half again, so that I could have a little taller pot to start out with.  I can also, then, have a little more length at the bottom so that I'm sure to completely cover the bottom and not have soil drop out.
3.  I folded the top over a little, like 1/2 an inch or so, thinking that it will hold it all together a little better.
4.  Finally, I used a jar to roll the newspaper up with because I don't have a straight sided drinking glass and didn't want to go buy one.  I also used a slightly smaller jar to mash down into the pot to flatten the bottom better.
5.  Into the soil that we fill each pot with, we'll be mixing in our home made compost so that we really give our seeds a great medium to start in.  I'm also planning on using a very low dose of BiOWiSH-Aqua™ on a control group of seedlings once they sprout to see what difference it will make on their rate of growth and production.  The BiOWiSH Technologies folks have done a study on hydroponically grown lettuce and BiOWiSH-Aqua™ with great results.
6. I know they recommended, in the video, removing the pot before planting.  Hubby says the pots will break down "in no time".  I'm alittle worried about stunting the growth by making it more difficult for the roots to spread out into the garden soil.  I'm thinking that putting slits into the newspaper every 1/2 inch or so will reduce the effort that the roots have to go through to break out of their pots.  We may have a control group for this, as well.

We're ready with our pots, and the trays that they'll set in.  Hubby is online right now ordering our seeds.  I'm even going to start my impatients from seed.  I never have before, but he has, so I'm willing to give it the college try.  I figure I'll save about $50 on the impatients alone.  I hope it works, because my front yard, raised bed for impatients next to my porch are a highlight of my summer! 

We have a garden window in our kitchen made for plants.  It has traditionally housed only succulents and cacti, because it faces south and I have had a challenge keeping greenery watered enough.  With hubby's help and extra care, we've added a potted oregano plant that has been doing just fine. Into this window, we'll be putting 4 trays of starter pots (28 pots in each tray).  Another 4 trays (containing the same number of pots) will go under a grow light in the garage. Wish us luck.  I have my mouth all set for those vegies!
Happy Composting!

Chickens in Urban Gardens

When I was young we used to get fresh eggs and bushels of apples right off the trees from a small farm in Ontario, Canada.  I remember they always tasted so fabulous, and now that I'm grown, and I know how long produce can sit on shelves in storage areas or on trucks or railcars, I know exactly why the food straight from the farmer's doorstep tasted so much better.  It made complete sense to me, then, when I read an article about a movement that's been formed here in Denver, Colorado to make getting and keeping a permit for livestock a whole lot easier. The article, called "Fowl lovers unite to streamline Denver chicken laws" by Joel Warner was in The Denver Post on Monday, Mar. 16 2009. 

Right now it seems to be a somewhat expensive and time consuming process to get and keep a permit.  But personally, I'm all for people being more responsible for their own consumption, so anything that makes that process easier is okay by me.   I mean, look at the benefits:

1. You know what you're eating, what's gone into it and what hasn't
2. It's fresher
3. Growing your own reduces transportation and storage costs and expenses
4. It tastes better when you've worked for it
5. A sense of accomplishment
6. It should be less expensive

I guess some people worry about odor that can arise with the keeping of livestock, but by using a product called BiOWiSH-Odor™ , there's no need to worry about that potential problem!  BiOWiSH-Odor™ reacts bio-chemically with odor-causing molecules, catalyzing their transformation into smell-free non-toxic end products, which are consumed in nature.  It does not mask the odor, but rather, it rapidly accelerates decomposition.  BiOWiSH-Odor™ has been tested by independent laboratories and confirmed to be non-toxic, non-irritating, non-flammable, non-pathogenic and non-hazardous!  Some of the benefits to using BiOWiSH-Odor™ are:
· It's fast acting
· It's cost effective
· It's operative at low dosage rates
· It works in a wide range of operative conditions
· It has a long residual effective period
· It's all natural anti-microbial action – sanitizes as it works
· 100% organic
· and it's harmless to humans and the environment

Maybe I need to share the above with the Denver Community Planning and Development spokesman Julius Zsako. He expects a city council discussion "sometime in the near future". 
I think the City Council needs to know about BiOWiSH-Odor™ so they can be relieved of worries on the point of odor issues.  Just sayin'.  By the way, the article in The Denver Post also expected the proposed changes to-

"go through without much of a feathered fight. After all, the city council

 voted last November to allow residents to keep beehives in their backyards

and officials seem to be similarly convivial to this proposal.

"I'm for anything that makes the process easier, as long as it's effective,"

says Denver Animal Care and Control's Kelley."

I'd be curious to know just how many people in Denver would really be interested and inclined to have chickens in their urban gardens. I wonder if anybody has studied that? I know I'd like to have some chickens in my garden. They don’t have to take up much room, and oh, for fresh eggs once again!

Calling Out for Recipes

I’ve been here blogging for 53 days and, so far, I have no fans. Does that mean that no body even reads these? I’m thinking maybe not, maybe it doesn’t mean that because last night I was reading a blog written by a woman who quit her 9 to 5 job and moved to a small farm in northern Michigan. I guess I didn’t have to become a fan to read her blog. So maybe there are folks out there who read this. If so, and you have a recipe to share, I hope you’ll let me know. I must say that I’d be thrilled to get ANY recipe, but I am particularly calling out for recipes that will include fresh veggies that I plan to grow in my garden. Even more particularly, but not exclusively, recipes for GREENS.

The reason I bring this up now, when it's still only mid-February and there's still snow on the ground is that I was at Home Depot yesterday perusing the seed packets. Red Swiss Chard caught my eye, partly because the leaves remind me of beet greens, which I love, love, love! But I’ve never cooked Swiss chard before. (Call me backward, if you must!) In my defense, since I’m probably the only one who will put up defense, I know it’s healthy as all get out. Heck, back in the day, I used to juice chard leaves with carrots and apple, sometimes with wheat grass thrown in for added enzyme, free radical kickin’ punch. Few things in life beat the antioxidant rush of freshly juiced veggies! Especially those grown organically, eh?

So I know I can use chard leaves in a juicer, but I would have to redesign my garden for that program big time. Plus, the seed packet of interest indicated that, at least in this variety, the stalks were prized as much as the leaves. What to do with the stalks? For the leaves, I like to steam them until they wilt, then give them a nice, ice cold bath. Chop them up and sauté them in a little olive oil with chopped onion and garlic, add a little salt and pepper and a tsp of bacon drippings for flavor. Simmer for about 10 minutes to let the flavors blend together and it’s ready to eat! Yum!

If you’re out there, reading but not becoming a fan, and would like to share a recipe or two for healthy (I know I forgot to specify healthy before) vegetables, please feel free! I’d love to hear from you!