This past weekend we had friends stay with us. Instead of watching TV or other things we went out to the Auaqaponics and Earth Farm and worked together, picking over 500 peppers and other crops that needed to be harvested.  At first I was doing it alone, but then I invited everyone to come out back. It encouraged me to hear them talking about how good the vegetables looked, and as we picked we talked about many other ideas. We spent several hours doing this, though it seemed like only one hour. Today I was thinking that this was what America was like 40 to 60+ years ago. People breathed in the fresh air and work was fun because they had the right attitude. They knew they were growing food that was extremely healthy for their families to eat, plus they grew enough for loved ones or the farmers market. 

Edible landscaping offers an alternative to conventional residential landscapes that are designed solely for ornamental purposes. Edible landscapes can be just as attractive, yet produce fruits and vegetables for home use. One can install an entirely edible landscape, or incorporate simple elements into existing yards and gardens. It’s all about rethinking some things.

What is edible landscaping?

Edible landscaping is the use of food-producing plants in the constructed landscape, principally the residential landscape. Edible landscapes combine fruit and nut trees, berry bushes, vegetables, herbs, edible flowers and ornamental plants into aesthetically pleasing designs. These designs can incorporate any garden style and can include anywhere from 1-100% edible species 

Why landscape with edibles?

There are many reasons to incorporate edible plants into the residential landscape. These include:

• To enjoy the freshness and flavor of home-grown, fully ripened fruits and vegetables
• To control the quantity and kind of pesticides and herbicides used on the foods you consume
• To increase the food security of your household
• To save on grocery bills
• To grow unusual varieties not available in stores
• To get outside, interact with the natural world, and have fun.  

History of edible landscaping

Edible landscaping is as old as gardening itself and has undergone a recent revival.

• Ancient Persian gardens combined both edible and ornamental plants.
• Medieval monastic gardens included fruits, vegetables, flowers, and medicinal herbs.
• Plans for 19th century English suburban yards, which modeled themselves after country estates, often included edible fruits and berries.

The edible components of residential landscapes were largely lost in this country to the now familiar shade trees, lawns, and foundation plantings. In the past two decades, however, there has been a revival of interest in edible landscaping, thanks to the work of early pioneers who have a passion to bring this back.

How to landscape with edibles

Like all plants used in the landscape, edible plants grow best in certain conditions. Many (but not all!) fruits and vegetables do best where they receive at least 6 hours of full sunlight a day. Most also like well-drained soil. Parts of your yard that satisfy these conditions are good places to start an edible landscape.

To perform a complete makeover on these areas, consult the books recommended below for a full design process. To start simply, consider a one-for-one substitution. Where you might have planted a shade tree, plant a fruit tree. Where you need a deciduous shrub, plant a currant or hazelnut. Where you have always had chrysanthemums, plant bachelor’s buttons—you can eat them. Edible plants come in nearly all shapes and sizes and can perform the same landscape functions as ornamental plants. A small area, about 25 by 25 feet, can be planted almost entirely with edibles that have ornamental value and appear to be a decorative garden. The list can be changed to suit individual taste or local garden conditions. 

Here are some more ideas for edible landscapes:

• Put pots of herbs on the patio
• Include cherry tomatoes in a window box or hanging basket
• Build a grape arbor
• Grow nasturtium, violas, borage, or calendula and include flowers in salads
• Eat your daylilies
• Plant a fruit tree in the corner of your yard
• Grow Red-jewel Cabbage
• Plant colorful pepper varieties (e.g., Lipstick, Habanero) alongside flowers
• Tuck lettuce, radishes, or other short-lived greens into a flower bed
• Replace a barberry hedge with gooseberries
• Put basil together with coleus in a planter
• Try yellow or “rainbow” chard
• Grow chives around the mailbox
• Train raspberries up your fence

Won’t it take a lot of work?

Many common ornamental plants can survive with minimal care. Most edible plants, however, require a certain amount of attention to produce well. They may require a little extra watering, pruning, fertilizing, or pest management. The time required, however, need not be exorbitant. To care for a fruit tree, for instance, may take only a few hours a year, while the yield could be enormous. It is best to treat edible landscaping as a hobby and not a chore. You may find yourself checking on your plants more than they strictly require, just because you want to see how they’re doing. If you are concerned about being overwhelmed, just start small.

Conclusion

The possibilities for edible landscaping are endless. By incorporating just one—or many—edible plants into a home landscape, you can develop a new relationship with your family and come to understand the food you eat.

The book we have posted on square foot gardening is the best book written on this subject anywhere in the world.  It is an all-time best seller, and this last year its sales broke records, even during the recession.

Large portions of this document is from Ohio State University Extension Horticulture and Crop Science.

Organic versus Non-Organic Fruits and Vegetables

The National Organic Program, which is the governing body of organic products, is rigorous about what foods constitute as organic. Organic foods can not be processed and can not contain or come in contact with any additives which have been strongly debated over in recent years. Certain organic foods such as fruits and vegetables are considered to be healthier because they contain nutrients that are generally lost during most food manufacturing processes. Many times, food corporation marketing strategies tend to promote products as being “natural” and “organic” but they are sometimes misleading to the consumers. Natural foods, another common food nomenclature, are also defined by the way the food is produced. These products may not contain additives, including color, man-made substances, or any additional preservatives. Natural foods are not the same as organic foods despite their similarities.

Increased Popularity in Organic Foods

Organic fruits and vegetables are becoming more popular around the world. As people become more health conscious, they are aware of what is going on in the environment and the potential unknown risks involved with consuming processed foods over time. Research shows that in the last 60 years, there are more toxins found in our environment than ever before. These toxins are often ingested and absorbed into the bloodstream and attach themselves to human skin and tissue. For example, products, such as milk, could ultimately be harmful to the human body if the cows producing the milk are injected with growth hormones, used to increase milk production. Fruits and vegetables that have been sprayed for pest management and fertilization may contain, and sometimes absorb, the dangerous chemicals used in the sprays which could possibly lead to potential health risks.

Healthier Eating and Healthier Living

Eating certified organic foods can reduce the amount of toxins ingested into the body and allow people to receive more nutrients from the fruit and vegetables compared to their processed counterparts. Organic produce also contains more vitamins, minerals, and enzymes the human body needs to stay healthy. It is a common misconception that organic foods cost more than non-organic foods; however, the reality is that purchasing non-organic foods from farmers will cost consumers triple the amount due to the taxation from the grocery stores, and the money collected to maintain and repair the environment that is being harmed by the pollution from non-organic farming practices. Organic farming uses preventative measures to avoid the need to use pesticides and chemicals and helps create a more sustainable environment.

Long-Term Benefits of Organic Produce

While the effects of chemical pollution may not be readily evident to human health, the chemicals can build up inside the body and cause problems down the line. There could be long-term physiological and neurological damage to the body. It is also suspected that the antibiotics and growth hormones injected into animals can lead to human obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and autism.

As organic produce becomes more common, it is easier to find such produce in mainstream grocery stores. To be ensured that produce is certifiably organic, visiting farmer’s markets and health food stores may provide the most reliable, organic produce and foods.

There are many health benefits of eating tomatoes

Tomatoes contain compounds that have been proven to help prevent cancer, heart disease cataracts and many others. Tomatoes are a member of the deadly nightshade family, and as such were considered toxic, causing many conditions like appendicitis, “brain fever” and cancer.

In fact, they may have just the opposite effect. Tomatoes were not even eaten in the US until the early 1800s, when an eccentric New Jersey gentleman Colonel Robert Gibbon Johnson brought them back from a trip overseas. Always one to take advantage of a dramatic opportunity, he announced an amazing display of courage would take place on September 26, 1820. He shocked his hometown of Salem by consuming and entire basket of tomatoes in front of a crowd of spectators, expecting him to keel over any second.

Obviously, he didn’t and since then tomatoes have been a staple of the American diet and with good reason.

Starting with the basics, tomatoes contain large amounts of vitamin C, providing 40 percent of the daily value (DV).

They also contain 15 percent DV of vitamin A, 8 percent DV of potassium, and 7 percent of the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) of iron for women and 10 percent RDA for men.

The red pigment contained in tomatoes is called lycopene. This compound appears to act as an antioxidant, neutralizing free radicals that can damage cells in the body. Only recently, studies have revealed that lycopene may have twice the punch of another well-known antioxidant betacarotene.

Studies conducted by Harvard researchers have discovered that men who consumed 10 servings of tomatoes a week, or the equivalent to 10 slices of pizza, can cut the risk of developing prostate cancer by a formidable 45 percent.

However, its benefits are not limited to the prostate. Italian researchers have found that those who consume more that 7 servings of raw tomatoes lower the risk of developing rectal colon or stomach cancers by 60 percent. Israeli researchers have found that lycopene is a powerful inhibitor of lung, breast, and endometrial cancer cells. Research has also indicated that the lycopene in tomatoes can help older people stay active longer.

New research is beginning to indicate that tomatoes may be used to help prevent lung cancer. Two powerful compounds found in tomatoes-coumaric acid and chlorogenic acid-are thought to block the effects of nitrosamines. These are compounds that not only are formed naturally in the body, but also are the strongest carcinogen in tobacco smoke. By blocking the effects of these nitrosamines, the chances of lung cancer are reduced significantly.

When choosing your tomatoes, be sure to pick those with the most brilliant shades of red. These indicate the highest amounts of betacarotene and lycopene. Though raw tomatoes are great for you, cooking them releases even more of the benefits. Lycopene is located in the cell wall of the tomato, so by cooking in a bit of oil, this healing compound is more fully released. In addition cooking the tomato in olive oil allows your body to absorb the lycopene better.

Don’t worry about the availability of fresh tomatoes. Tomatoes don’t lose any of their nutritional value in the high heat processing , making canned tomatoes and tomato sauce are both just as viable and beneficial as fresh tomatoes.

Worlds Healthy foods: 

Bell peppers are considered one of the world’s healthy foods. 

One of the crops that grows very well with fish waste fertilizer and fish wast compost tea is the bell pepper. Our bell peppers shine. Most of our special soil is only five inches of deep. The only problem we are having is they grow so fast we can’t harvest them quickly enough.

A wonderful combination of tangy taste and crunchy texture, bell peppers are the Christmas ornaments of the vegetable world with their beautifully shaped glossy exterior that comes in a wide array of vivid colors ranging from green, red, yellow, orange, purple, brown to black. Although peppers are available throughout the year, they are most abundant and tasty during the months of August and September.

Sweet peppers are plump, bell-shaped vegetables featuring either three or four lobes. They usually range in size from 2 to 5 inches in diameter, and 2 to 6 inches in length. Inside the thick flesh is an inner cavity with edible bitter seeds and a white spongy core. Bell peppers are not ‘hot’. They contain a recessive gene that eliminates capsaicin, the compound responsible for the ‘hotness’ found in other peppers.

This chart graphically details the %DV that a serving of Bell peppers provides for each of the nutrients of which it is a good, very good, or excellent source according to our Food Rating System. 

Health Benefits

 Colorful Protection Against Free Radicals 

Want to color your life healthy? Brightly colored bell peppers, whether green, red, orange or yellow, are rich sources of some of the best nutrients available. To start, peppers are excellent sources of vitamin C and vitamin A (through its concentration of carotenoids such as beta-carotene), two very powerful antioxidants. These antioxidants work together to effectively neutralize free radicals, which can travel through the body causing huge amounts of damage to cells. Free radicals are major players in the build up of cholesterol in the arteries that leads to atherosclerosis and heart disease, the nerve and blood vessel damage seen in diabetes, the cloudy lenses of cataracts, the joint pain and damage seen in osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, and the wheezing and airway tightening of asthma. By providing these two potent free radical destroyers, bell peppers may help prevent or reduce some of the symptoms of these conditions by shutting down the source of the problem.

Reduce Risk of Cardiovascular Disease 

For atherosclerosis and diabetic heart disease, peppers also contain vitamin B6 and folic acid. These two B vitamins are very important for reducing high levels of homocysteine, a substance produced during the methylation cycle (an essential biochemical process in virtually every cell in the body). High homocysteine levels have been shown to cause damage to blood vessels and are associated with a greatly increased risk of heart attack and stroke. In addition to providing the vitamins that convert homocysteine into other beneficial molecules, bell peppers also provide fiber that can help lower high cholesterol levels, another risk factor for heart attack and stroke.

Promote Optimal Health 

Red peppers are one of the few foods that contain lycopene, a carotenoid whose consumption has been inversely correlated with prostate cancer and cancers of the cervix, bladder and pancreas. Recent studies suggest that individuals whose diets are low in lycopene-rich foods are at greater risk for developing these types of cancers.

For people worried about colon cancer, the fiber found in peppers can help to reduce the amount of contact that colon cells have with cancer-causing toxins found in certain foods or produced by certain gut bacteria. In addition, consumption of vitamin C, beta-carotene, and folic acid, all found in bell peppers, is associated with a significantly reduced risk of colon cancer.

Consuming foods rich in beta-cryptoxanthin, an orange-red carotenoid found in highest amounts in red bell peppers, pumpkin, corn, papaya, tangerines, oranges and peaches, may significantly lower one’s risk of developing lung cancer. A study published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention reviewed dietary and lifestyle data collected from over 60,000 adults in Shanghai, China and found that those eating the most crytpoxanthin-rich foods showed a 27% reduction in lung cancer risk. When current smokers were evaluated, those who were also in the group consuming the most cryptoxanthin-rich foods were found to have a 37% lower risk of lung cancer compared to smokers who ate the least of these health-protective foods.

Promote Lung Health 

If you or someone you love is a smoker, or if you are frequently exposed to secondhand smoke, then making vitamin A-rich foods, such as bell peppers, part of your healthy way of eating may save your life, suggests research conducted at Kansas State University.

While studying the relationship between vitamin A, lung inflammation, and emphysema, Richard Baybutt, associate professor of nutrition at Kansas State, made a surprising discovery: a common carcinogen in cigarette smoke, benzo(a)pyrene, induces vitamin A deficiency.

Baybutt’s earlier research had shown that laboratory animals fed a vitamin A-deficient diet developed emphysema. His latest animal studies indicate that not only does the benzo(a)pyrene in cigarette smoke cause vitamin A deficiency, but that a diet rich in vitamin A can help counter this effect, thus greatly reducing emphysema.

Baybutt believes vitamin A’s protective effects may help explain why some smokers do not develop emphysema. “There are a lot of people who live to be 90 years old and are smokers,” he said. “Why? Probably because of their diet…The implications are that those who start smoking at an early age are more likely to become vitamin A deficient and develop complications associated with cancer and emphysema. And if they have a poor diet, forget it.” If you or someone you love smokes, or if your work necessitates exposure to second hand smoke, protect yourself by making sure that at least one of the World’s Healthiest Foods that are rich in vitamin A, such as bell peppers, is a daily part of your healthy way of eating.

Seeing Red May Mean Better Eyesight 

Bell peppers appear to have a protective effect against cataracts, possibly due to their vitamin C and beta-carotene content. Italian researchers compared the diets of hospital patients who had cataracts removed with patients who had not undergone the operation. Certain vegetables, including sweet peppers, reduced the cataract operation risk. The red variety of bell peppers also supply the phytonutrients lutein and zeaxanthin, which have been found to protect against macular degeneration, the main cause of blindness in the elderly.

Protection against Rheumatoid Arthritis 

While one study suggests that high doses of supplemental vitamin C makes osteoarthritis, a type of degenerative arthritis that occurs with aging, worse in laboratory animals, another indicates that vitamin C-rich foods, such as bell and chili peppers, provide humans with protection against inflammatory polyarthritis, a form of rheumatoid arthritis involving two or more joints.

The findings, presented in the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases were drawn from a study of more than 20,000 subjects who kept diet diaries and were arthritis-free when the study began, and focused on subjects who developed inflammatory polyarthritis and subjects who remained arthritis-free during the follow-up period. Subjects who consumed the lowest amounts of vitamin C-rich foods were more than three times more likely to develop arthritis than those who consumed the highest amounts.

Article from: The Worlds healthiest foods

Amazing Facts…About Honeybees

1. Did you know that bees have 4 wings?

2. The honeybee’s wings stroke 11,400 times per minute, thus making their distinctive buzz.

3. A bee flies at a rate of about 12 miles per hour.

4. How many eyes does a honeybee have? Five.

5. The queen bee is the busiest in the summer months, when the hive needs to be at its maximum strength.

She will lay about 1,000 to 1,500 eggs per day.

6. In the cold winter months, bees will leave the hive only to take a short cleansing flight. They are fastidious about the cleanliness of their hive.

7. Honeybees do not die out over the winter. They feed on the honey they collected during the warmer months and patiently wait for spring. They form a tight cluster in their hive to keep the queen and themselves warm.

8. It takes 35 pounds of honey to provide enough energy for a small colony of bees to survive the winter.

9. Honeybee colonies have unique odors that members flash like identification cards at the hive’s front door. All the individual bees in a colony smell enough alike so that the guard bees can identify them.

Amazing Facts…About The Work of the Honeybee

1. The honeybee is not born knowing how to make honey; the younger bees are taught by the more experienced ones.

2. A honeybee visits between 50 and 100 flowers during one collection flight from the hive.

3. In order to produce 1 pound of honey, 2 million flowers must be visited.

4. A hive of bees must fly 55,000 miles to produce a pound of honey.

5. One bee colony can produce 60 to 100 pounds of honey per year.

6. An average worker bee makes only about 1/12 teaspoon of honey in its lifetime.

7. At the peak of the honey-gathering season, a strong, healthy hive will have a population of approximately 50,000 bees.

8. It would take approximately 1 ounce of honey to fuel a bee’s flight around the world.

9. Honey is the primary food source for the bee. The reason honeybees are so busy collecting nectar from flowers and blossoms is to make sufficient food stores for their colony over the winter months. The nectar is converted to honey by the honeybee and stored in the wax honeycomb.

Amazing Facts…About Honey and Your Health

1. Honey contains vitamins and antioxidants, but is fat free, cholesterol free and sodium free!

2. One antioxidant called “pinocembrin” is only found in honey.

3. Honey is the only food that includes all the substances necessary to sustain life, including water.

4. Honey has the ability to attract and absorb moisture, which makes it remarkably soothing for minor burns and helps to prevent scarring.

5. Honey speeds the healing of open wounds and also combats infection.

6. As recently as the First World War, honey was being mixed with cod liver oil to dress wounds on the battlefield.

7. Modern science now acknowledges honey as an anti-microbial agent, which means it deters the growth of certain types of bacteria, yeast and molds.

8. Honey and beeswax form the basics of many skin creams, lip-balms, and hand lotions.

9. According to Dr. Paul Gold, a Professor of Psychology at the University of Virginia, “people remember things much better after they’ve consumed glucose, a form of sugar found in honey.”

10. Honey is nature’s energy booster! It provides a concentrated energy source that helps prevent fatigue and can boost athletic performance.

11. Recent studies have proven that athletes who took some honey before and after competing recovered more quickly than those who did not.

12. Honey supplies 2 stages of energy. The glucose in honey is absorbed by the body quickly and gives an immediate energy boost. The fructose is absorbed more slowly providing sustained energy.