Growing Green

This is from my Do It Green! Minnesota newsletter:

Grow Your Own Food: Save Money and the Earth!

Growing your own food is such a simple idea. It makes sense that we should try to be more self-sufficient, self-sustaining and simplistic in this multi-national, corporate owned, complex world. And what could be simpler than having a garden?

Here are some tips on growing your own food:

1. Write a garden journal to learn more effectively from your experiences
2. Collect organic scraps in a small box in the kitchen and throw it on the compost heap to have something to feed back to your soil. It’s free nutrients for the soil.
3. Turn your compost regularly to speed up composting
4. Seedlings need 17 hours of light each day to stay healthy
5. Plant fruit trees in your garden to provide shade in the middle of the day
6. Use wood chips on the lanes between your beds instead of spending time on cutting grass
7. Seed saving takes up a lot of area and many spare plants
8. Water the soil not the plants to avoid fungus
9. Increase diversity in your garden and be rewarded with healthy plants and more food
10. Take good care of the birds in your garden and they will help you debug your garden