Ground Zero

I checked my garden tonight and the grim reality is that I've lost roughly 90% of the plants to the hail storm. I've read about farmers dreading hail and now I understand why. The size and velocity of the falling rocks of ice must have been like firing at the plants with birdshot from ten feet away. This weekend will be busy for me as I replace some of what I lost from a local nursery and, in a gesture of defiance, rip up more of the backyard and plant twice as much corn as I originally planned.

It Came From The Heavens!

Hail. A massive hailstorm hit our neighborhood yesterday. My father-in-law called my wife in a fit, saying the plants I put in at his house were torn apart. I was at the Sox game last night and stayed in Boston, but tomorrow I'll be inspecting the damage in my garden. Considering there was a good, fat layer of ice all over the ground I imagine the destruction is considerable.

I'll post pics soon.

Food, fertilizer, and an agrorevolution.

Great post, Aphid.

The industrial agriculture system's heavy production and use of nitrogen based chemical fertilizers contribute to a score of environmental and health harms. Ironically, the advent of mass chemical fertilizer production has sustained billions of human lives, and continues to be largely responsible for the results of the "green revolution" that allowed crop production to meet the needs of a population that literally quadrupled between 1900 (1.6 billion people) and 2000 (over 6 billion people). The very means that have granted so many lives are now becoming increasingly responsible for potentially irreversible changes to the climate and natural resources upon which we depend. Fortunately, industrial agriculture as it is currently practiced is not the only way to feed the world.

________________________________________________

Nitrogen fertilizers are typically produced by combining hydrogen, derived from natural gas, with atmospheric nitrogen, under intense heat and pressure. The result is nitrogen-containing ammonia. Plants soak up the nitrogen through their roots, using it to produce essential proteins for growth and survival.

The production of chemical fertilizers requires enormous amounts of natural gas to produce hydrogen, and electricity to drive the process and create the conditions under which the reaction can occur. Furthermore, the application of nitrogen fertilizers contributes to the release of Nitrous Oxide, a potent greenhouse gas.

Finally, farmers apply typically more than twice the necessary amounts of nitrogenous fertilizers to ensure high yields. Excess nitrogen runoff, as the TIME article describes, creates massive "dead zones." The area in the Gulf of Mexico, roughly the size of New Jersey, is one of many regions affected by fertilizer use; The World Resources Institute identifies over 100 eutrophic (excess chemical content) and hypoxic (too little oxygen) sites along the coastal U.S. alone.

Chemical fertilizer production and use is one of a number means by which the industrial food system impacts the natural environment and human health. On the whole, the U.S. food production system accounts for 17% of the fossil fuel use and 20% of all anthropogenic (human-caused) greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. In addition, 2/3 of water use worldwide is accounted for by agricultural needs.

None of this is to suggest that food, agriculture or fertilizers, chemical or otherwise, are inherently "bad." In fact, the Haber-Bosch process, by which nitrogen fertilizers are created, is responsible for providing billions with food. The process' inventors, Fritz Haber and Carl Bosch, won the Nobel Prize for their contribution to human growth and survival.

Without chemical fertilizers, four-fifths of the world's population may not exist today, and many more might be suffering of hunger and starvation. However, at the current rate at which our agricultural production system is consuming natural resources and fossil fuels, polluting air, water, and soil, and producing greenhouse gas emissions, we are outstripping the earth's capacity to sustain human life faster than it can be replenished. The irony is that the technologies designed to feed humanity are now contributing to polluted waterways, depleted soil, droughts, sea level rise, coastal storms, and the spread of disease.

But this is not a blog about doom and gloom. I think I speak for both Tim and I when I say we write for hope, change, awareness, and a simple desire to share the literal and figurative fruits (and vegetables) of our labors. While much of the food industry is - for the moment - utilizing methods that compromise the health and well-being of current and future generations, there is a growing realization among the American people that we can experience healthy, affordable, and delicious food that satisfies both body and spirit without causing harm to the planet or its inhabitants (human or otherwise). More and more people are attending farmer's markets, joining community supported agriculture (CSA) programs, reducing red meat consumption, choosing organic and locally grown foods at the supermarket, and rekindling the close relationship to the soil beneath our feet by growing crops in our own backyards, or even on our rooftops (the soil over our heads). This is a revolution of sorts, or if that's a bit too extreme sounding, perhaps just a much needed change - and we're happy to share the experience with you.

Cheers and happy eating, growing, cooking, or whatever it is you love,

-Brent

"Dead Zone" Grows in Gulf Of Mexico

Here is a stark example of what "factory" farming can do:

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1815305,00.html?cnn=yes

To summarize, millions of tons of fertilizer is used in the American Midwest to grow our food. Rains drain it out into the Mississippi and then dumps it in the Gulf of Mexico. The fertilizer feeds oxygen-sucking algae, creating a "dead zone" where nothing can live. The most telling part of the article I'll quote here:

"Unfortunately, the dead zone isn't simply an environmental failure, but also a consequence of our national agricultural policy, which subsidizes farmers to grow vast, heavily fertilized quantities of corn and other grains. The pork-laden farm bill, which recently passed Congress over President George W. Bush's veto, will only worsen the problem. And even if we can begin to reduce the future flow of fertilizer, repeated dead zones are having a cumulative effect, with smaller amounts of nitrates and other chemicals in the Gulf having a larger hypoxic impact than in the past. "We have to decide how much we're willing to spend to save the Gulf fisheries," says Daigle. "Right now, we don't seem to be willing to invest much." Put simply, the Gulf is running out of air — and we're running out of time to fix it."

Cutting Out The Middlemen

(Two recently picked basil plants)

If you're thinking, "Why the **** would I want to waste time growing or making my own food when I can buy it right down the street?"

1. Growing local, or at least buying locally made foods, drastically cuts economic costs. Wonder why gas is so high? Look to the tens of thousands of diesel trucks moving every single day to deliver food to hundreds of thousands of stores across the country. Why buy a tomato that was grown 1,000 miles away when you can get a better one from your backyard?

2. 4oz of basil costs about $4. For $3 or less you can have a basil plant that will produce many times more than that, up to a pound or more. A container of blackberries costs about $5, while a blackberry bush costs $20, comes back every year and will produce 10-20 pounds each year. Planting seeds from last years harvest costs nothing. You get free food!

3. Sure, five pounds of basil or 20 pounds of blackberries sounds like a lot, but most fruit and vegetables can be preserved for months or years, allowing you to enjoy your harvest well through the cold winters and into spring giving you year-round access to cheap, healthy food. Canning, drying and freezing are all viable ways to preserve.

4. Make your own bread. I've been doing it for a couple of weeks now and to great success. You can make 5-10 loaves of honey wheat bread for the price of 1 from the store. It tastes better and you know exactly what goes into it. Trust me, even high quality store bread doesn’t hold a candle to home made stuff.

5. Lower yourself from the food pyramid by doing all of the above. Most of us live at the top where all the food we eat has been worked for and prepared by many, many other people and puts unnecessary demand on our oil supply.

America was built on the farmer, the independent grower. Everyone has an opportunity to take part in one of the world’s oldest professions. All it takes is your time and the time you spend pays back in dividends. I challenge you to grow something, even if it’s a couple basil plants in your windowsill. And when you have basil pouring out of your ears over the next few months and you’re making pesto, spaghetti sauces and bruschetta with it make sure to invite me over!!

Up Next: Update on my own garden…where’s my damn food? And the wife brings home more seeds to plant, should I rip up the front lawn to plant more?

Get This Party Started

I thought planting a garden would be easy. As a new “grower” you will face a lot of early challenges, I sure did. When you start your garden you are opening up a whole new world, and window, into nature itself which most of us don't see anymore in our busy lives.

When first planting your garden, decide what you want to grow. If you don’t feel you have the time or the space to care for a lot of plants, grab a few tomato and basil plants at first and Google topics on growing them. I recommend finding a local nursery, but even right now you can go grab tomato plants and basil from most grocery stores or Home Depot and put them in your yard or a large pot. Growing from seed is for experienced gardeners, so stick to buying "saplings".

The photo above is my garden, about 500 sq feet. In the lower left foreground is a blackberry bush. I also have cucumber, cantaloupe, sugar snap peas, red onion, basil, romaine, hot red peppers and tomatos. I'm a little addicted, so I jumped in head first. The red circles is mulch to keep weeds down and avoid soil "splash" when watering.

Dig up a nice hole for each plant and mix a good amount of compost into it so that it’s underneath the plant your putting in. As the roots grow they’ll tap into this nutrient rich soil which is key to having healthy, productive plants. I won’t go into detail about specific plants, which is up to you to find out regarding how much sun and watering they should get, pruning, spacing, etc. Basics to Remember: Good Soil, Good Sun, Water!

Bugs I learned about the hard way, quickly and unexpectedly. My plants were attacked my aphids and a cut worm. Aphids suck the nutrients out of your plants and cut worms, well, cut down your plants like an enraged lumberjack. As a new grower, keep an eye on your plants day to day. This way you will know when something isn't right.

It is tempting at this point to go buy a canister of insecticide. You essentially drop a nuclear bomb on a problem that could have been solved by a little reading, creativity and old fashion bug huntin’. Insecticides kill EVERYTHING, even the good bugs. Not only that but it soaks into the soil which the plants suck from to grow and produce the food you're going to eat, and of course gets all over your food if it’s hanging on the vines.

I lost 3 tomato plants and part of a pea plant to the cutworm before I found his hole one morning, dug him out and killed him after 3 weeks of torment. For the aphids, I bought ladybugs and released them in the garden. They are little hungry hippo’s and will cull your aphid population in a matter of days. You can get them at a plant nursery for about $9 for 1,500. You can also buy praying mantis’, which can help take care of the bigger bugs.

I resisted using insecticide even though I was losing my plants to a one inch Terminator, but natural pest controls worked. I also had the satisfaction the other day of finding a baby mantis near my cucumbers. I never bought any, they just showed up! If you can help keep the right “good” bugs in your garden, and even certain types of plants that attract/repel certain bugs, you can organically and safely handle insect problems.

My goal is to stay organic. However, as a first time grower this is a difficult task unless you do a lot of reading beforehand for tips and tricks. I broke down and bought an organic, copper-based fungicide because my tomato plants were all attacked by early blight, a fungus that will ruin your tomatos. Even if it’s called “organic” it’s still a chemical, but I did not need to use much to save my plants so to me it was worth it.

Do your best to stay organic. It is a big reason to grow your own vegetables. You will have the satisfaction that everything you eat has nothing harmful in it. You’ll also come to appreciate nature when you can see prey and predators all working together to keep each other in balance, and your plants thriving due to your care. For me, the garden is a very personal investment. If I take care of it, it’s going to take care of me and many other people in the end.

Up Next: Why have a garden when we have food at grocery stores?

Welcome to Grow Local!

I am Tim Scott aka Vampiric Aphid, and will be bringing to your cerebral cortex my first hand experience at growing and making my own food, which is also my first experience at doing either. Through this blog I will show that anyone can begin living this way and for a surprising number of excellent reasons which I and Kimu will go into greater detail about. While I will be in the trenches providing first hand accounts of my effort and putting theory to practice, my good friend Kimu will offer his own insight and hard facts on the impact of our current living standards on the world and how it simply is not sustainable. I guarantee you won’t ever look at vegetables, fruit or meat the same ever again!

Some things I will be discussing:

- How to start growing fruit and vegetables
- Lessons to learn
- How growing and consuming locally saves you and others money
- How to easily make your own food
- Caring of a garden and its impact on your life
- Health benefits
- Long-term storage of excess produce and fruit
- Philosophical meanderings about it all

Up Next: How to start a backyard garden and the fight to be an organic grower.