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Here, as promised is the latest Dirt Works Newsletter. Keeping you informed about current events at Dirt Works, recent trends in Organic Gardening, responses to your questions submitted by e-mail and Green Shopping ideas. In this issue:
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There are many pests and insects that drive us crazy all summer eating our precious vegetables and ornamentals, however they are only a small percentage of the insects in your gardens. Over 90% of the insects are actually beneficial and learning to attract these insects and preserve their environment can create the proper life cycle for a successful garden. We all know that bees pollinate crops and are essential to our food supply and like bees many other insects are essential to the balance that needs to be achieved in an organic garden. Many species of insects are decomposers, recycling nutrients from organic materials but most important to gardeners are the thousands of predatory insects that attack pests. These are most commonly found in gardens where pesticides are not used. Sometimes the beneficial insects are difficult to discern from the pests so careful analysis of the insect is required before getting out the pest control spray. The easiest way to do this is to take a picture of the pest and compare it to pictures on the internet. From there you can learn about the particular insect and whether you should provide it a home in your garden or give it the eviction notice. But first you must avoid using toxic sprays if you want to see any insects at all. Even botanical pesticides and insecticidal soap sprays can kill beneficial insects, so they should be used sparingly and only on the affected plant directly. It is also important to not use pesticides, organic or otherwise during the flowering stage. Doing so can reduce pollination and fruit production. To lure native beneficial insects to your garden, provide them with a food supply of pollen and nectar by planting small flowered plants, such as dill, fennel, parsley and mint family plants. Avoid planting mint itself because it can take over the garden and drive you nuts for years trying to get rid of it! Mustard plants such as radishes or broccoli or flowering annuals, biennials and perennials planted among the beds are also a good idea. Any flowering plants like marigolds, petunias, etc. can work well too. They add color and texture to the garden as well, making it a very pleasant place to spend time. Once the adult insects have made your garden their home they will need a place to lay eggs such as walkways of sod, stone or thick mulches. These provide a safe place to hide when plantings are disturbed for cultivation or harvest. You will also need to provide water for the beneficial insects as they are easily killed by dehydration. An old birdbath or claw foot bath tub, if you have the space, filled with water and rocks for landing pads (so they don’t drown) will be used by many predatory insects while hedgerows provide them with an alternate food supply of nonpest insects living in the hedge. Of course the quickest way to attract beneficial insects and establish a robest population is to purchase them and release them in your garden or greenhouse. At Dirt Works we have four different kits of various beneficial insects that can be found here http://www.dirtworks.net/Nematodes-Garden-Greenhouse.html
With gas and food prices soaring and stagnant wages and lost jobs everyone is feeling the pinch from the economy these days. And there is one frightening indicator that needs attention from our many gardening customers. Working families make up 41% of those receiving food stamps, a 30% rise from just a decade ago. So even families with one or two jobs can’t afford enough food to get through the week. There are even more families that don’t qualify for food stamps that visit food banks regularly. Second Harvest, the nation’s largest network of food banks, says demand is up an average of 15% to 20% from a year ago. More than 80% of its food banks reported that they could not meet demand without trimming operations or reducing the amount of food given out. We at Dirt Works are asking all of our customers out there that are fortunate enough to have a garden plot to Plant A Row for their local food bank. Most of us love gardening so much that we tend to over do it and end up with more produce than our families and friends can eat. It would make a huge difference at your local food bank if you gave all those extra veggies to them instead of letting them go bad. In the past year, the demand for hunger assistance has increased by 40%, and research shows that hundreds of hungry children and adults are turned away from food banks each year because of lack of resources. For more information on this program please visit http://www.gardenwriters.org/Par/Donation.html To see a brief report about food bank shortages on the PBS show Bill Moyer’s Journal click here http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/04112008/watch.html Here is a handy zip code locator for local food banks http://www.secondharvest.org/zip_code.jsp If all of our customers planted a few extra plants for the food banks it would make a tremendous difference without much extra effort or money. The quality of your donation will far outweigh the nutritional value of traditional can drives. Please write us and tell us about your experience with Plant A Row and we may include your story in a future newsletter update. Many things grow in the garden that were never sown there. ~Thomas Fuller, Gnomologia, 1732
Smoked Salmon Garden Pasta Recipe Ingredients:
Prepare pasta according to directions while sautéing butter and olive oil in a skillet with the green onions and red bell pepper. Once softened add the peas, basil, parsley and water (decrease water by 1/4 cup if using frozen peas). Cook for 10 minutes covered until peas are soft and water has evaporated. Toss in pasta, smoked salmon and salt and pepper and serve topped with a basil leaf. Reach us at emanager@dirtworks.net for the Newsletter. Thanks |
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