Discover more about all things organic. Do you want to plant some veggies? Interested in learning more about organically grown products and produce? We  with some information and ideas. Keep checking back as we are going to talk about GMOs (genetically modified organisms) in food and recommend other great producers of tasty organic foods.

Organic farming is fast gaining popularity in the picturesque valley of Bumthang. Organic farming was introduced in 2008 with the formation of a farmers association in Choekhor Geog. The association had only five members. Now the number has swelled to 50.

Farmers grow vegetables like spinach, potato, onion, garlic, cabbage and coriander. These vegetables are in high demand among hoteliers, office goers and the business people.

Tshering Lhaden, a farmer in Chhoekhor Geog, said “there is no dearth of buyers. Hoteliers and civil servants rush to buy them soon as we bring them to the market.”

Encouraged by the success, more and more farmers are taking up organic farming. One of the most recent farmers to take up organic farming is Ap Chechey.

“I saw my friends making good money by selling organic produce. Hoteliers who cater to tourists and civil servants prefer organic produce. So I decided to go organic,” said Ap Chechey.

The officiating district agriculture officer believes that “in a few years time, Bumthang will be one of the leading dzongkhags in organic farming with more and more farmers taking interest in organic farming.”

The local market is only going to grow with the construction of Mangdechu Hydropower Project in Trongsa scheduled to begin by the end of this year.

A Chicago gardener discovers that the 'mistakes' in his vegetable garden are easily sold at a neighborhood market, making him arguably the smallest farmer in the Midwest.

Gardeners are widely known as generous folks, eagerly giving away home-grown flowers and food to anyone who asks. The late-summer surfeit of produce often forces us to be extra-generous.

But this year, I took the exchange a step further. This year, I sold a good part of my harvest, making me arguably the smallest farmer in Midwest.

Unexpected harvests

Like any less-than-expert gardener, my vegetable patch generally turns out about 50 percent different than I planned.

This year, for instance, I wanted to try companion planting, so I sowed zinnias with my baby broccoli. An early heat wave murdered the broccoli, leaving the flowers to take over an entire bed. I now have enough to cover a Rose Bowl float.

The same mad, Murphy-esque method left me with an enormous sage plant but no potatoes to season with the herb; hundreds of grape tomatoes but only a handful of slicing ones; and an equal number of delicious but pea-sized heirloom cucumbers.

You could say I specialize in hard-to-eat crops.

Found: a solution

To buy all the ingredients I had failed to grow, I headed to a storefront grocery in my Chicago neighborhood, a friendly shop called Open Produce. It’s a small operation run by young people that stocks a little bit of everything, including lots of local produce.

One day, bummed out by my inability to grow anything approaching a staple, I propositioned the store manager: "Would you like some flowers? For the store, I mean?" Darned if the answer wasn’t yes, with $5 of store credit as my reward.

Emboldened, I offered again and again. "Would you like some sage? Tomatoes?" I got only a few bucks per sale, but it felt like big sums because I had converted my produce into a few dollars.

Moreover, to learn that someone would buy my mistakes made me wonder what other oddly desirable things I could grow. Super-hot peppers? Decorative gourds? Pink peppercorns?

The booming interest in heirloom edibles has meant that seed houses are selling some truly obscure quasi-useful varieties that became rare for a reason. Invariably, they end up in my small plot.

I just planted marshmallow and licorice. Place your orders now.

I’ve recently been activated on the genetically engineered food, or GMO, issue: If nothing is done, any crop or animal with significant market volume will be genetically engineered within the next 10 to 20 years, and consumers won’t know. The main arguments for labeling are:

1)    American consumers have a right to know and judge for themselves what they put in their own and children’s bodies. We don’t need Mama-Monsanto-knows-best force-feeding us untested, potentially unhealthy GMO food because we can’t be trusted to make our own informed decisions.

2)    GMO presents health risks, for example pesticide from GMO corn showing up in mothers’ and babies’ blood.

3)    GMO herbicide-tolerant crops require more chemical herbicides, which is breeding herbicide-resistant superweeds. GMO = chemical companies selling more chemicals.

4)    GMO is contaminating the non-GMO seed supply, interfering with farmers’ right to farm free of GMO.

5)    Yield improvements are negligible, and GMO equals chemical-intensive fertilizer/herbicide/pesticide farming, which is not economically or environmentally sustainable.

6)    If GMO supporters think GMO is so great, then they should proudly embrace GMO labels.  Great quote from a Consumers Union spokesperson in a Chicago Tribune piece: “‘If companies say genetic engineering is fine, then OK, let’s label it and let the consumers make their own decisions,’ said Michael Hansen, a senior scientist at Consumers Union, which produces Consumer Reports. ‘That’s what all the free market supporters say. So let’s let the market work properly.’”

GMO as applied to agriculture is a tragedy, especially in the developing world.  Biotech likes to market GMO as vitamins in drought-resistant rice to starving people, but GMO varieties that have been commercialized are generally pesticide/herbicide resistant so Monsanto can sell more chemicals, which is breeding resistant superweeds, and yield improvements are marginal.  There’s also been an epidemic of farmer suicides in India as farmers go into debt for GM cotton and then kill themselves. GMO is basically chemical companies selling more chemicals, which farmers in the developing world neither need nor can afford.  And synthetic pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers are all petroleum based so will continue to climb in price, and that isn’t sustainable environmentally or economically.

The UN published a great (and relatively short) report last year about how “Agro-Ecological,” ”less chemical-intensive, more knowledge-intensive” agriculture is what the world needs, and it’s worth reading through. Knowing what plants to intercrop to minimize pest pressure, promote water retention, and build soil fertility naturally is agriculture that is knowledge based, which can’t be monetized and thus is universally opposed by biotech.  Biotech concerns own the Obama U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) as much as every other previous administration.  Obama’s USDA just commercialized Roundup-ready alfalfa—only 7 percent of alfalfa right now is even sprayed with herbicide, and contamination of non-GM alfalfa is inevitable.  Also, a GMO corn for ethanol was recently commercialized, which is a sad, perverse incentive of the subsidy schemes in place that promote huge overproduction of corn; corn kernels should not be making biofuel, as the energy return is almost nil versus the energy inputs (compared to sugar cane or cellulosic feedstocks like switchgrass and waste straw).

On a personal front, my dad developed the industry-standard, most-used firefighting foam concentrate for Monsanto in the ’80s, used in structure and forest fires in the U.S. and around the world.  (Phoschek WD 881).  I grew up selling firefighters on foam with my dad, and we have a rad fire truck in his honor you can check out at AllOneArk.com. In addition, our company had to drop our Dr. Bronner’s food products in the late ’90s because they were based on soy ingredients that we could no longer obtain in non-GM form (about 5 percent of our business at the time).

I’m fine with cool uses of genetic engineering, like E. coli making insulin, better algae for biofuels, and stuff that is not about Monsanto controlling and contaminating the agricultural seed supply and selling more chemicals.  This has to stop, or we all will be living on Planet Monsanto within a couple of decades.

If you want to experience the benefits of chemical-free farming yourself—besides buying and enjoying the food—there are several ways you can get a farm experience without quitting your day job or selling your house and heading to the countryside.

Don't own a farm? No problem. Here's how to farm without being a farmer:

1. Start or join a crop mob. A recent New York Times article described the phenomenon of "crop mobs," in which dozens of volunteers gather on a farm for a day to perform tasks that could take an individual farmer days or weeks to complete, such as erecting a hoophouse, mulching field beds, or painting a barn. Participants include other farmers as well as people who want to help out, meet local farmers, and get some exercise. To set up such a group in your area, query local, sustainable farmers in your county about projects they need help with (and when), ask how you can help, and then find like-minded helpers and schedule your own crop mob event. If you belong to a CSA (see below) or shop at a farmer's market, start the conversation with the farmers there.

2. Become a WWOOFer. The World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms program lists organic-farm host families from all over the world who allow people of all different backgrounds the opportunity to spend a week or even months on sustainable farms. Each host family lists the length of stay and expertise level required for volunteers, but many require a visit of just a week or two (perfect for a volunteer-vacation experience) and no immediate farming skills. The volunteers get room and board, and take home invaluable advice they can apply to their own garden—or who knows, maybe one day to a farm of their own. Experiences range from vegetable farms to organic dairy or shiitake-mushroom-growing operations.

3. Join a CSA. Community-supported agriculture involves buying a share of the season's harvest, and it's a great way to ensure a variety of healthy food during the growing season. Some CSA programs even offer meat, cheese, and eggs. But if you want a more hands-on experience, ask your CSA farmers if you can lend a hand. Some programs even let you pay a lower fee if you provide a weekend of volunteer time during the growing season, and some farmers may welcome your help on packing and distribution days. It's a great way to get your hands dirty and become friends with your local farmer. Find hundreds of CSA programs at LocalHarvest.org.

4. Grow a farm crop. Even if you only have a small patch of land, you can still grow a farm crop, and what could taste better than sweet corn grown in your own backyard? Contrary to what you're used to seeing on farms, you don't need to plant rows of the starchy vegetable. For growing sweet corn at home, opt for a square plot in lieu of rows, to maximize use of space. According to Organic Gardening magazine, you can use a Zuni Native American trick and plant the corn in hills in the square patch. For details on growing sweet corn, visit OrganicGardening.com. For other ideas, check out our story, Grow Your Own Farm on Less Than an Acre.
 

The 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake left many of San Francisco's urban freeways structurally unsound. (Back then, there were many, carving up the core of the city.) But the flipside was a boon: The teardown of broad segments of elevated road has led to the revitalization—the reinvention, really—of neighborhoods like Hayes Valley. It has also given the city chunks of unused space, including the stretch between Laguna, Octavia, Oak, and Fell Streets, where ramps to the old Central Freeway haven't led anywhere in years.

San Francisco plans to develop this lot eventually, probably with mixed housing and green space. But a clever new project has been conceived for the interim years: an urban agriculture cooperative called the Hayes Valley Farm. "The Hayes Valley Neighborhood association contacted the Mayor's Office of Economic and Workforce Development to 'activate' the lots," says Chris Burley, now the project's director. Agriculture was the idea that moved everyone. "We've all seen the power of gardens to transform a space," he says.

First, they had to transform some soil. Raising crops around an ex-expressway has meant thorough testing of the ground to ensure safe lead levels (all but one patch of the site have passed), and extensive layering of organic matter. But now they're off and planting. "[We've] potted up one hundred and fifty fruit trees which will be available for sale to homeowners around the Bay Area," Burley says. "We are also planning on growing vegetable starts in a greenhouse."

As importantly, residents have gotten the chance to work their own urban acres. Much of HVF's labor happens at "work parties," where locals—including young students—learn farming skills and something like the value of tilling with a neighbor. When Burley comments, "at this stage we are allowing things to grow organically," it's interesting to realize he's talking about the community, not the crops.

We’ve been hearing a lot about the decline in bee populations. Orchard Mason Bees are a type of bee that rarely sting and provide a huge benefit to your garden by pollinating your vegetable garden and flower beds.

The Orchard Mason Bee does not live in a nest like other bees; it lives in wooden blocks, but does not drill holes and destroy wooden items like other bees. It uses holes that are already available. The male Orchard Mason Bee can not sting and the female rarely stings.

Be sure to be cautious of the use of insecticides around bees and especially during open bloom. Use products that are recommended, and during times that the bees will not suffer.

It is a great idea to have bee boxes in our backyards because the blue orchard mason bee will only lay eggs in pre-existing holes. She is not capable of making nesting holes herself and will potentially lay fewer eggs if she can't find adequate housing.

Bee boxes are easy to make, and having mason bees around will help your garden grow. To make your own bee box, follow these simple steps:

	• Find an old or new 4x4" block of wood that has not been treated. • Using a 5/16" drill bit, drill deep holes into the side of the wood being careful not to drill through the end. • Ensure that the holes are clean as these critters tend to be very finicky about their nesting areas.
	• Find a piece of wood that is 7 inches long and 1 inch thick. Nail this piece to the top of the bee box to protect the holes from rain water.
	• Hammer a hook into the back of the bee box. Using this hook, hang up the block in an area that is south- or east-facing (exposed to morning light). The box should be about 4 feet off the ground and is most efficient if it is placed near native plants and/or fruit tree blooms.

A recent article in Nature Biotechnology (PDF) reveals data, formerly suppressed by the biotechnology industry, that demonstrate a transgenic variety of corn is fatal to ladybugs. In 2001, at the request of seed company Pioneer Hi-Bred International, university scientists conducted research on a new variety of transgenic corn containing the binary toxin Cry34Ab1/Cry35Ab1. The scientists found that nearly 100% of ladybugs fed on the corn could not survive past the eighth day of their life cycle.

Pioneer prohibited the scientists from publicizing their data and, when applying for regulatory approval for a corn variety containing the same toxin, submitted different data that made no mention of potential harm to ladybugs. Scientists are often barred from publicizing data that is unwelcome to biotechnology companies, particularly when the corporations themselves commissioned the research.

Based on claims of business confidentiality and strict contracts with researchers, companies are able to keep unwelcome data under wraps and scientists’ hands tied. Companies routinely deny scientists’ research requests and suppress research by threatening legal action, a practice one scientist describes as “chilling.”

In February 2009, 26 corn-pest specialists anonymously submitted a statement to U.S. EPA decrying industry’s prohibitive restrictions on independent research.  “The risks of genetically modified crops are coming to light in spite of industry’s attempts to strangle the science,” observes Kathryn Gilje, executive director of Pesticide Action Network North America. Ireland recently banned GM crops in favor of developing agriculture that emphasizes proven agroecological solutions.

SAN FRANCISCO -- The government illegally approved a genetically modified, herbicide-resistant strain of sugar beets without adequately considering the chance they will contaminate other beet crops, a federal judge in San Francisco has ruled.

The ruling by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White rejected the U.S. Department of Agriculture's decision in 2005 to allow Monsanto Co. to sell the sugar beets, known as "Roundup-Ready" because they are engineered to coexist with Monsanto's Roundup herbicide.

Sugar beets produce 30 percent of the world's sugar and, according to consumer groups, half the granulated sugar in the United States. This year's planting, centered in Oregon's Willamette Valley, is the first to include a full crop of the Monsanto product.

White said the USDA, in concluding that the new crop would have no significant environmental effects, discounted the likelihood that wind-borne pollen would spread to fields where conventional sugar beets, table beets and the beet variety known as Swiss chard are grown.

Planting genetically modified sugar beets has a "significant effect" on the environment, White said in his ruling Monday, because of "the potential elimination of a farmer's choice to grow non-genetically engineered crops, or a consumer's choice to eat non-genetically engineered food."

He said the department must prepare an environmental impact statement, which would include public input.

White did not immediately prohibit distribution of the genetically modified sugar beets, but a lawyer for plaintiffs in the case said they would ask the judge for an injunction against sales until the review was completed.

The ruling "sends a very clear message to the USDA to protect American farmers and consumers and not the interests of Monsanto," said Kevin Golden, a San Francisco attorney for the nonprofit Center for Food Safety, which opposes genetically modified foods and supports organic farming.

Golden said the ruling could also affect herbicide use, because the Environmental Protection Agency has allowed more herbicide spraying in areas where the resistant crops are grown.

Representatives of the Agriculture Department and Monsanto were unavailable for comment. Luther Markwart, spokesman for the 10,000-member American Sugar Beet Growers Association, said the group is "looking forward to aggressively advocating" for farmers who want to use the altered beets.

The ruling followed a similar decision in 2007 by another federal judge in San Francisco, Charles Breyer, to halt the nationwide planting of Monsanto's genetically engineered strain of alfalfa until the USDA conducted an environmental study. A federal appeals court upheld Breyer's decision last year.

The department's 2005 decision on sugar beets acknowledged that pollen from the genetically modified crop could spread to other beet crops. But the USDA said farmers would not be harmed because they would still be able to buy non-genetically modified seeds.

Yoplait, a leading brand of yoghurt, and the19th largest dairy producer in the U.S., has announced, that as of August 2009, it will no longer purchase milk from dairies injecting their cows with Monsanto's controversial genetically engineered synthetic hormone, recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone (rBGH).

Yoplait's rejection of rBGH-tainted milk comes in the wake of a consumer campaign organized by the Oregon Physicians for Social Responsibility, the OCA, and dozens of allied public interest organizations. Yoplait's action is amplified by a growing number of mainstream companies who have recently turned their backs on rBGH, including Starbucks, Caribou, Cabot cheese, and Subway.

For over ten years, OCA and our allies have led the charge against rBGH and other genetically engineered foods and food ingredients.

Although rBGH is not allowed on organic farms and is banned in most of the industrialized world because of its threats to both animal and human health, this cruel and dangerous drug is still injected into approximately 10% of U.S. dairy cows--to force them to produce more milk. With your help, OCA and its allies will continue our campaign until Monsanto's rBGH is driven completely off the market.

Scheme aims to boost the amount of locally grown food in the capital

A man tending his allotment in Crouch End in north London.
Photograph: David Levene

Londoners will be encouraged to turn flat roofs into vegetable plots as part of a scheme to grow food on 2012 patches of land across the capital by 2012, Boris Johnson said today.

The "Capital Growth" project is the first initiative delivered by Rosie Boycott since she was appointed chair of London Food by the London mayor over the summer.

The former newspaper editor wants councils, schools, hospitals, housing estates, and utility companies to identify derelict land that can be turned into vegetable gardens by green-fingered Londoners keen to grow their own spuds rather than buy transported produce from the supermarket.

Boycott also envisages that spare pieces of land can be found on canal banks, banks of reservoirs, and disused railway yards.

Boycott said: "London has a good deal of green spaces – some derelict or underused - but not being used as well as they could be. We also have a veritable host of enthusiastic gardeners who are well equipped to turning derelict or underused spaces into thriving oases offering healthy food and a fantastic focus for the community.

"Capital Growth will identify spaces across the capital – often in surprising places such as roof gardens – and help London's communities grow their own food."

Boycott said in an interview in yesterday's Times that it was hoped that the 2012 makeshift plots could be found in time for the Olympics so that some of the homegrown food could be provided to athletes.

The demand for allotments has rocketed over recent years as environmental awareness has increased.

But a survey conducted by the London assembly two years ago found Londoners in some parts of the capital were waiting up to 10 years for an allotment, due to a dramatic decline in the number of available plots caused by owners wanting to put the land to other uses.

The London mayor wants to turn back the tide to promote locally grown food in the face of rising food prices and the challenge to protect the environment.

Londoners will receive both financial and practical support to grow their own, such as gardening tools and compost.

Launching the project at a vegetable and herb garden run by a charity for disabled people in Battersea Park, Johnson said: "Linking up currently unloved patches of land with people who want to discover the wonders of growing their own food, delivers massive benefits. It will help to make London a greener, more pleasant place to live while providing healthy and affordable food.

"This will aid people to reconnect with where their fruit and veg comes from and cut the congestion and carbon emissions associated with the transportation of food from miles away. Capital Growth is a win-win scheme - good for our communities and good for our environment."