Bacteria Be Gone!

My back yard strawberry plants have matured enough to produce a decent crop (enough right now for a nice fresh-fruit-and-yogurt breakfast every morning!) Such a treat. I do believe my homegrown compost is responsible for such large, lush berries.

How to effectively clean these little beauties (as well as any produce grown or purchased)? I recently came across a study done comparing 1) rinsing with water, 2) using one of those "veggie washes" you can buy and 3) simply using 1 part vinegar to 3 parts water in a spray bottle. (Click here to read the article or here to listen to the NPR report.) Turns out the vinegar solution (followed by a water rinse) removes 98% of bacteria on smooth-skinned produce. (You can soak more textured fruit and veggies.) I now keep a spray bottle filled with vinegar solution under the sink--super easy!

I also used a vinegar/salt/lemon combo recently to clean the tarnish off a brass tray my Mom wanted to display. Combined with a little elbow grease, worked like a charm. That vinegar is amazing stuff...click here for more uses (like removing those pesky stickers from stuff you buy!)

CSUC Organic Veggie Project

Mission Statement for the Chico State Organic Vegetable Project: A self-sustaining education, research, and production facility for organic vegetables to support school, university, and community agriculture education, provide research information for local growers, and provide produce for the CSUC campus food services.

I hadn't heard about this project until a friend posted a link on Facebook (see how educational FB can be?). My family and I have always been fans of the U-pick peach orchard at the Chico State farm on Hegan Lane. And I have actually attended the compost workshop at Chico State (and y'all know what an advocate I am of composting--my plants & trees have NEVER looked better or been happier, with all those scraps going to nourish them rather than going to the landfill!). So I was happy to learn that CSUC students are getting this hands-on experience, learning how to grow organic veggies, providing staff and students with healthy alternatives to fast food. (Here's to the Slow Food Movement!)

Click here to view a video created by the students working on this awesome project!

"Grounding" your plants

Don't have the space to compost but love healthy plants? Instead of adding those coffee grounds or used tea leaves to the landfill, just spread them around your acid-loving plants (roses, azaleas, blueberries etc.). Not only do the plants thrive on this nitrogen-rich stuff, it can help deter slugs and snails. (Many coffee shops have bins where they offer free coffee grounds to patrons.) Especially here in California, where the soils are typically highly alkaline, coffee grounds can improve both the quality and texture of the soil. If you DO have an area where you can create compost, all the better! I simply picked an out-of-the way spot, dug three holes, and started throwing all my kitchen waste (no animal products other than smashed eggshells), coffee/tea grounds, grass clippings, and garden waste into the first hole (occasionally supplemented with horse manure from a friend), turning it occasionally with a pitchfork and sprinkling it with the hose during the dry season. When that hole got full, I rotated the compost to the next hole and started a fresh batch in the first hole. But the time the first batch got rotated to the third hole and ripened there for a while, it was ready to use: rich, dark, and crumbly. My plants (including houseplants) LOVE the stuff! And I feel better about reducing the amount of household/yard waste going to the landfill. Try it; you and your plants will like it! (Check out the ChicoLaura web site: www.ChicoLaura.com )