Drying Herbs

from ucanr: Dry herbs just don’t compare to fresh herbs in cooking. But, while some flavor loss in all dried herbs occurs, your own dried herbs will be fresher and more pungent than any you can buy at the supermarket. Here are the basics:

Pick herbs for leaf harvest just before flowers open. This is when the leaves contain the highest concentration of oils. Leaves may be harvested until late summer. Seeds may be saved by allowing some or all plants to mature and flower, and harvesting when seeds change in color from green to brown or gray.

The day before harvesting leaves, spray herbs with water so that they will be clean and dry the day of harvest. The day of leaf harvest, pick herbs in the early morning or place stems in water for two hours after picking. Strip damaged lower leaves and remove any flowers (unless you are harvesting seeds from the flower heads as described below).

17 Benefits of raw garlic & how it can improve your health

from greenze: I have always enjoyed eating dishes seasoned with garlic. Like most people I would normally chop it up and cook the garlic with food. I’ve learned now that cooking kills the good enzymes and other good things contained in it. In fact, raw garlic is healthier for you compared to cooked garlic.

Eating raw garlic might sound a little tough for some, but after a while you get used to it. 

I normally average one clove of raw garlic a day. I add it to salads, eggs or burritos.

For people that can not handle the taste, you can cut the garlic cloves into pill size pieces, then swallow them like you would any other medication. For thousands of years garlic has been considered a herbal “wonder drug”. If garlic had been created in the laboratory instead of by nature, it would probably be a high priced prescription drug.

How To Safely Detox Fluoride From Your Body

from canadianawareness: As many people already know the commonly used sodium fluoride is extremely toxic, and contrary to most “medical professionals” it is not good for the human body.

But if you have become health conscious and stopped drinking fluoridated water, your good right? Yes and No.

If you were raised in a community that fluoridates the water, it has built up in your system. Sodium fluoride is an accumulative poison. If you are like me, born and raised in a fluoridated city, it has built up in your body. Mainly in your bones, thyroid glad, and pineal gland. So how do you get that fluoride out of your system?

That is a very complicated question. There is no 100% verified method of totally detoxing fluorides from your body. But there is several methods that I have used (along with many others), that can make a huge difference. For example: Joint pain disappearing, Chronic headaches gone, an ability to think clearer, and weight loss.

Dandelions Tastes Bitter But It Cures

from presscore: Dandelions are the fastest growing and one of the most nutritionally packed food on Earth. The dandelion is a herbaceous (a herb) perennial plant of the family Asteraceae (Compositae). Dandelions are flowers with medicinal properties yet we spend $millions every year to destroy them. Why do we spend so much time and effort to destroy this valuable herb if we also spent $millions each year to buy another herbaceous perennial plant of the same family Asteraceae called “marigold”? The answer is we’ve been brainwashed into regarding the dandelion as an unsightly weed when in fact it is a very fast growing and freely (100% free) available food and medicine (costs $0 to make) that just doesn’t treat illnesses and diseases it cures you of them. This herbal food costs nothing, in terms of time or money, to grow. There is no market value in a food that grows freely on every lawn around the World. There is however, a market value attached to destroying this free healing food – $billions are spent every year to make and disperse very toxic herbicides (anti-herb pesticides). Those herbicides not only kills this medicinal herb it kills us. How? When we spray herbicides to kill the dandelion the herbicide is absorbed by the soil with every rainfall and over time this very toxic saturation enters our fresh water supply and our food supply. Once it enters our drinking water supply we consume the toxic herbicide every time we drink a glass of water from out kitchen faucets or eat plants that have been irrigated with well water.

Welcome To HerbGardening.com

from herbgardening: At HerbGardening.com, you'll find a wealth of information on how to grow fresh kitchen and medicinal herbs in your backyard, on your balcony, deck or patio, even indoors! Words can't describe the flavors that come only when cooking with fresh cut herbs and how they enhance your culinary adventures.

Growing herbs is easy to do, and people continue to turn their love for gardening into successful businesses growing and selling fresh cut herbs, herb plants, and other herb related products.

HerbGardening.com provides necessary information for many popular herbs such as their preferred growing pH, soil requirements, suitability for container and hydroponic cultivation, watering needs, potential pest problems, and much more. Plus you'll find resources to obtain the seeds, plants and supplies you need to begin what will surely be a life long hobby that not only provides enjoyment for the kitchen and palette, but provides spiritual renewal and stress relief as well.

7 Secrets for a High-Yield Vegetable Garden

from organicgardening: Here’s how to get the most out of your garden.

Imagine harvesting nearly half a ton of tasty, beautiful, organically grown vegetables from a 15-by-20-foot plot, 100 pounds of tomatoes from just 100 square feet (a 4-by-25-foot bed), or 20 pounds of carrots from just 24 square feet.

Yields like these are easier to achieve than you may think. The secret to superproductive gardening is taking the time now to plan strategies that will work for your garden. Here are seven high-yield strategies gleaned from gardeners who have learned to make the most of their garden space.

1. Build up your soil.

Expert gardeners agree that building up the soil is the single most important factor in pumping up yields. A deep, organically rich soil encourages the growth of healthy, extensive roots that are able to reach more nutrients and water. The result: extra-lush, extra-productive growth above ground.

The fastest way to get that deep layer of fertile soil is to make raised beds. Raised beds yield up to four times more than the same amount of space planted in rows. That’s due not only to their loose, fertile soil but also to efficient spacing—by using less space for paths, you have more room to grow plants.

Survival Gardening Priority Crops

from organicsurvivalistsite: What to plant in your survival garden is a somewhat personal decision and there is no definitive guide for this but I have a few personal thoughts on this about some of the crops that will help most for survival needs.

First off in a survival situation you need to grow things quickly and get the most nutrition you can as staying healthy and getting proper nutrient levels is just as important as satisfying hunger.

But beyond just providing high nutrition they should also serve practical uses.

The Future Of Food Documentary : A Must See!

from psychedelicadventure: There is a revolution happening in the farm fields and on the dinner tables of America ! A revolution that is transforming the very nature of the food we eat. The Future Of Food is a must see documentary for all ! It offers an in-depth investigation into the disturbing truth behind the unlabeled, patented, genetically engineered foods that have quietly filled U.S. grocery store shelves for the past decade.


From the prairies of Saskatchewan, Canada to the fields of Oaxaca, Mexico, this film gives a voice to farmers whose lives and livelihoods have been negatively impacted by this new technology. The health implications, government policies and push towards globalization are all part of the reason why many people are alarmed by the introduction of genetically altered crops into our food supply.

4 Simple Steps to Grow a Hundred Pounds of Potatoes in a Barrel

from greenupgrader: Container gardening isn't only for savvy urban gardeners and folks with limited space to grow, it can also be for folks who want to maximize their yields in a controlled environment.

Not only does growing potatoes in a barrel reduce the amount of weeding and exposure to pests and fungi, you don't even have to risk shovel-damage to the tender potatoes by digging them out of

the ground when they're done, just tip the container over!

After extensive research to plan my own potatoes-in-a-barrel, I've boiled all of the recommendations down to 4 simple steps to a winning potato harvest.

IoS campaign buries plan to close allotments

from independent: Outcry forces PM to promise new rights to land.

A resounding success was achieved by The Independent on Sunday's Dig for Victory campaign yesterday, when ministers promised that people would have new rights to land for allotments.

The move followed widespread concern, highlighted by this paper and raised at Prime Minister's Questions last week, that the Government is planning to remove the 103-year-old protection for allotments, raising the possibility that councils would sell off plots by the thousands.

The IoS received dozens of letters from plot holders – including a veteran of the Second World War Dig for Victory movement – calling on ministers to rethink the review of "unnecessary burdens" on local councils. The list includes the obligation to provide allotments where there is demand.

40 Fruits, vegetables and herbs that will grow in partial shade

from examiner: We all know that most garden crops want as much sun as possible. Tomatoes, melons and peppers will positively pout if they don't get oodles of light. What you may not realize is that many other garden crops will do quite well with limited sunlight.

Which plants will put up with lower light levels?

A general rule is that plants grown for their stems, leaves or buds generally tolerate light shade fairly well. Those grown for roots or fruits tend to need more sun.

That said, even many of these crops will also tolerate light shade, simply providing smaller yields. These are noted on the list with an asterisk (*).

Make Your Own Rose Water, Elixir of the Goddess

from organicauthority: Rose water is a deliciously fragrant and versatile botanical made from delicate and seductive rose petals.

Store bought rose waters can be overpriced, contain artificial fragrances and lack the freshness of a homemade batch.

Making homemade rose water is easy and fun. Add it to baked goods (try these rose water cupcakes), beverages, and pour it into baths.

Use it as a refreshing spritz—perfect to have with you on those warm summer days just ahead, or for those times when you just need to feel a little fresher.

And, it makes a most wonderful gift. When making anything with flowers that will go in or on your body, it's important to use petals that have not been exposed to toxic pesticides.

Commercial flowers are some of the most heavily sprayed crops, so it's best to stick with roses that you know have grown without the use of chemicals (like from your own yard).

"The elixir of youth" - "The herb of immortality"

from liveandfeel: Aloe Vera health benefits
Also called "the elixir of youth" by the Russians, "the herb of immortality" by the old Egyptians or the "harmonious remedy" by the Chinese, Aloe vera is without a doubt the medicinal herb most widely known for its noticeable impacts on health and at the same time the ingredient most widely used in the cosmetic industry.

Not one study conducted so far was fully able to explain the wonders which lie within this herb and how its compounds work together in a miraculous way to bring about the treatment or the alleviation of some of the most serious illnesses like cancer or AIDS.

Aloe vera or "Aloe Barbadensis" is a plant which originated in North Africa and spread to the fertile lands with mild climate. Its physical aspect is similar to that of the cactus; the thick rind hides a succulent core formed mostly of water.

The aforementioned herb gained worldwide recognition and has been intensively used from the oldest of times due to its extraordinary features. A clear proof of this fact is a clay plank found in the antic city of Nippur, Babylon (the Irak from today) dating from year 2200 b.c. From Greek physicians like Celsius and Dioscorides to Romanians (Pylni the Great) and Arabs (Al-Kindi) to C.E. Collins, the one who published the first modern medical thesis in United States (1934), "aloe vera" has always been an issue with a long history behind it.

Just about every important civilization used it for its beneficial effects over health and beauty. Egyptians would mix aloe with other herbs while preparing remedies for internal and external anomalies. After the Second World War, aloe vera was introduced in treating the victims of the catastrophies from Nagasaki and Hiroshima because of its ability of mitigating the pain of the patients and renewing skin tissues.

What to Plant in May

from ufseeds: Finally warm temperatures are here to stay and you don't have to worry about that frost. You may think it's too late to grow all your favorite vegetables from seed but warm May temperatures have made the soil perfect for sowing seeds.

Warm soil will allow for fast germination and growing plants. Good choices are summertime kitchen garden staples like squash, beans, cucumbers and melons.

Feds sting Amish farmer selling raw milk locally

from washingtontimes: A yearlong sting operation, including aliases, a 5 a.m. surprise inspection and surreptitious purchases from an Amish farm in Pennsylvania, culminated in the federal government announcing this week that it has gone to court to stop Rainbow Acres Farm from selling its contraband to willing customers in the Washington area.

The product in question: unpasteurized milk.

It’s a battle that’s been going on behind the scenes for years, with natural foods advocates arguing that raw milk, as it’s also known, is healthier than the pasteurized product, while the Food and Drug Administration says raw milk can carry harmful bacteria such as salmonella, E. coli and listeria.

“It is the FDA’s position that raw milk should never be consumed,” said Tamara N. Ward, spokeswoman for the FDA, whose investigators have been looking into Rainbow Acres for months, and who finally last week filed a 10-page complaint in federal court in Pennsylvania seeking an order to stop the farm from shipping across state lines any more raw milk or dairy products made from it.