Why the Homestead Life Will Make America Great Again

I'm not here to talk politics or endorse any candidates, but I would like to discuss the state of our nation, and why I think living a more self-reliant lifestyle is what it will take to make us great again.  Whether you live in an apartment or on 20 acres, the change begins with each of us and how we live.

How to Start a Community Garden

Last year, my business had the opportunity to partner with a charity and build a community garden at our local youth center. In one day, the community came together, young and old, to build raised beds and a fence to surround the garden. Now the youth center includes gardening as an after-school activity for the kids. They feed them after school snacks and meals out of the garden, and send the extra produce home to their families.

               

Seeds of Grace (dreambigaskbold.org), the non-profit that organized and fundraised for the event, has now built nine community gardens in Washington State and Mexico. Each garden donates their produce to a specific organization to help the community. Homeless shelters, food banks, after school programs, and Meals on Wheels are a few of the recipients. 

               

I sat down with Seeds of Grace founder, Karole Johnson, to ask her how others can start building community gardens where they live. She offered several helpful suggestions based on her own experiences.

Why the World Needs More Organic Gardeners

We are living at a crucial time in history.  The choices we make now will have a profound impact on our future as a species.  

Our world is polluted and toxic, but not beyond repair.  Rates of cancer, autism, obesity, Alzheimer's, dementia, depression, anxiety, and ADD/ADHD, and many more diseeases are at all time highs. Our bodies and our planet are both sick.  If we continue down our current path, the situation will only get worse.  If we all pull together and change how we do things, we have a fighting chance.

Public policy will dictate the most dramatic changes, especially concerning carbon emissions.  We can make a significant impact ourselves by making certain lifestyle changes, but we all have to do it together.  Each small act will combine with billions of other small acts to create positive change.  

It all starts in the garden.  The garden will heal us in many different ways.

Fall Organic Gardening Checklist

Our outdoor growing season is winding down, but that doesn't mean you're off the hook for gardening chores just yet. There are many things you can do right now to make the best of the remaining season and set yourself up for success next year.

Make FREE Fertilizers & Pesticides for Your Garden Using Common Weeds

Many people today put extra effort into eradicating weeds from their lawn.  They will even use harmful chemicals like glyphosate found in Monsanto's Round Up, which the World Health Organization has deemed "probably carcinogenic."

What most people probably don't realize is that the weeds they are trying to kill are some of the most beneficial medicines on the planet.  Dandelions, for example, are known to make an excellent liver tonic.  They are also rich in vitamins and minerals.  You can read more about these amazing health benefits in my earlier post.

The health benefits of these "weeds" are not limited to the human body.  You can use them to create plant teas and fertilizers for your garden.  Biodynamic gardening teaches the gardener how to make special preparations and plant teas for the garden using plants.  The preparations can get quite complicated, however the plant teas are so simple anyone can make them.  All you need to do is go into nature, or maybe even just your backyard, and pick some dandelions, comfrey and stinging nettles.

Visit Eden and Learn How to Grow Your Own Food for Free

Paul Gautschi works in his garden.

There is a garden nestled among the trees of Sequim, WA, that has gained worldwide attention through an internet documentary called Back to Eden.  The documentary stars a humble, but revolutionary, gardener named Paul Gautschi and his home garden. 

Paul will grab your attention when he tells you his gardening methods, which are contrary to traditional techniques.  For example, he hasn’t watered his garden in 34 years.  He doesn’t rotate his crops.  Pests and weeds don’t seem to be a problem for him.  He doesn’t ever till his soil.  His only gardening tools are a rake, a shovel and a wheelbarrow. 

Grow Microgreens for a Powerful Vitamin Boost

We all know it is good for us to take our vitamins, especially in a world where our store bought food is nutrient deficient.  Our food lacks vitamins and minerals because our soil is not as healthy as it used to be, and because our food is irradiated before it is delivered to the grocery store.  Irradiation is a process  that zaps our food in a big microwave.  The process makes our food last longer by killing beneficial enzymes, but it also kills our vitamins and minerals. 

For these reasons, and many more, it is best to grow your own fruits and veggies.  This way, you are in control of creating rich, healthy soil which in turn creates nutrient-rich fruits and vegetables.  It also allows you to guarantee the food you're eating is truly organic, free of chemicals and pesticides, and not genetically modified. 

Grow a Medicinal Herb Garden for Better Health

 Echinacea is a beautiful flower and powerful medicine to grow in your garden.

Have you ever paid close attention to pharmaceutical ads on TV?  They all seem to follow the same script: happy people feeling good, maybe some puppies and sunshine thrown in for extra measure, all distracting you from the very fine print that rolls across the screen.  The fine print warns you of all the side effects you could potentially suffer.  We usually end up getting new prescriptions just to deal with the side effects of other prescriptions.  It can be a vicious cycle.

We all may need to take prescription drugs at some point in our lives, but shouldn’t we avoid their side effects if we can?  If there is a natural alternative that is just as effective with fewer side effects, shouldn’t we try it before we get hooked on the hard stuff?

Grow a Stress Busting Garden

English lavender

Before there were pharmaceuticals to cure what ails us, there were herbs.  There was a time when families and communities worked together to be self-sufficient with their health by growing plants that would cure everything from sunburns to indigestion.  In today's society, stress is the silent killer.  Herbs such as chamomile, lavender and lemon balm can be grown in containers, indoors or outside, and can be dried to make a relaxing and refreshing tea that will ease stress as well as aid indigestion, nervousness, headaches and insomnia.

Weed or Herbal Medicine?

We put a lot of effort into eradicating one of Mother Nature's most beneficial medicines.

For millennia, human beings and plants have evolved with one another in a symbiotic relationship. We take care of the plants and they take care of us. Plants grow when and where we need their nutritional and healing properties. 

This is true here wherever you may live. In fact, your home is probably covered in healing medicine, and more likely than not, you have these useful herbs growing in your backyard. Unfortunately, in our modern world, we view these plants as nuisances and weeds instead of the little green miracles that they are.

Nature's Way to Beat Allergy Season

Spring is here, which means allergy season isn't far behind. There are plenty of over-the-counter allergy pills to choose from, however they come with side effects. Common side effects include drowsiness, dizziness, constipation, stomach upset, blurred vision, and dry mouth/nose/throat. If you want to avoid these uncomfortable side effects, there are plenty of other methods that will ease your symptoms.