It’s officially that time of the year to start getting busy with planting and preparing your garden for harvest. If you haven’t already started growing your indoor buds, now is the perfect time to check your soil outside and see if the temperature is warm and dry enough to work with. Don’t have a lot of time to start a garden? Don’t sweat it! Here are 6 time saving tips for gardening that’ll get you up and running in no time at all.

Start with a plan

For anyone looking to save time and be efficient, planning ahead is always the best option when doing virtually anything. Specifically with gardening, having a thought out plan can save you time trying to decide where you want each plant to go while you’re working outside. For additional productivity, make a decision regarding what you plan on replacing the short-lived plants with, such as lettuce and spinach.

Keep tools close

Rather than running around when you finally find time to get outside to work on the garden looking for your tools, have a designated area close to the garden where you store them. A lot of gardeners lose time outside when they are disorganized, and this is something you can easily change. Whether you have a bucket full of your commonly used tools or you have a belt with all of them attached, use whatever method that will save you the most time.

Cut off weeds

One of the most annoying parts of preparing a garden for the spring is the process of getting rid of all of the dead plants from the previous year and any weeds that have grown since then. A time saving trick is to chop any low-growing weeds all at once as opposed to plucking each one individually. Use a sharp blade to slice beneath weeds and then turn them over to completely bury the leaves. As the leaves begin to rot, weeds can help to nourish the soil and act as a green manure.

Mulch it up

Spreading mulch is a no-brainer, but most importantly you need to make sure you spread it efficiently and evenly. Using the tined edge of a rake, you can pull and spread the mulch. Then by flipping the rake over, even out the mulch on the bed.

Water water water

Plants need water to grow, and without water, you will be wasting your time trying to grow yourself a garden. With that said, invest in a soaker hose rather than a traditional watering can so that you can water with ease. The great thing about these hoses is that the water can be left on for many hours, giving you the opportunity to work on something else.

Take small steps

No garden is going to grow overnight, and it’s important to keep that mind set as opposed to pushing a garden to grow faster. A huge mistake a lot of us make is that we get impatient with the process and rather than letting your garden take the time it needs, we over-water and spend too much time monitoring the process. Take a step back and let your garden grow and you’ll be pleased with the results by the time summer rolls around!

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Ann Michaels is a freelance writer and gardening advocate. She loves making her garden look as beautiful as possible, which is why she buys religious garden statues to improve the overall look. She loves offering tips and tricks to other gardening advocates and hopes her suggestions help!

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Redesigning your garden doesn’t have to be so pricey and stressful, however, and below you will find a number of top tips that will help save you money in the long run and get your garden looking as good as you want it to.

1. Remember what happened last year!

One of the biggest things to keep in mind, upon deciding you want to give your garden a makeover, is to remember exactly what you did in the garden last year and the years preceding that. You will then be able to steer clear of doing anything that didn’t work. For example, did you plant a particular flower that didn’t bloom? Did you successfully grow a plant but hate the scent it gave off?

You need to learn from your mistakes and ensure you know everything about the plants you are planting, i.e. what soil types they prefer, climate, should they be in direct sunlight and so on. This forward planning will ensure your garden looks as perfect as you want it to.

2. Test the pH of your soil

Even if you believe your garden has good soil, it is still important to test it before trying to grow anything. Even more so if you are planning to grow any foodstuffs and have a vegetable patch. So many people just feed their soil with composts and nutrients before they know what their soil is lacking in. Do not do this.

Buy a pH soil test form your local garden centre and then you will be able to see exactly what is going on with your soil and adapt your soil feeding to suit its exact nutrient and mineral requirements. Soil planning is essential if you want your garden redesign to be a success, so do not ever miss out on this step. If you choose to forgo testing your soil, you will only end up wasting your money buying plants and seeds that will not grow and bloom to their full potential.

3. Make your garden smell beautiful

The majority of people, when redesigning their gardens, tend to only focus on the visual sense, however, this is a mistake. When planning what you’re going to plant and grow you should not only think about colours, height and spread but also smell. Some of the best gardens are a true sight to behold but have a greater impact because they smell heavenly too.

Take care when buying your plants and flowers because unfortunately, many will have very limited fragrance because unfortunately it has been lost over time as breeders have worked to ensure plants have longer blooming periods. For instance, there’s no harm in choosing flowers like roses for their visual beauty but their fragrance will now be rather limited. Therefore try to also plant many of the more old-fashioned plants like gardenias, nicotianas and dianthus as these will not only provide colour but are also still strong in perfume too.

4. Create a focal point

As with interior design, where you might make a fireplace or central wall a focal point in your living room, you should look to make a focal point within your garden. You will have a much wider choice of where to make your focal point in your garden as opposed to inside your house and can even vary it on a year by year basis if you so choose.

Many people buy water features and make them a focal point of the garden. They do this by installing a lovely garden path that leads right up to them or by setting them apart from the rest of the garden by setting up ornamental handrails around the feature. Focal points don’t have to be water features though; they can be anything from a distinctive plant to a garden patio.

5. Make sure you have the right tools

This should go without saying and if you are particularly green fingered, no doubt you will have a stock of useful garden tools in your shed. However, there are many people who start off redesigning their garden without many of the key tools they need, simply because they’ve not planned what they’re going to do to their garden in advance.

You don’t need to spend a fortune; however, it is definitely worth investing in some good quality tools, in order to make sure your garden redesign goes smoothly and looks professional once you have finished. At the very least you should have the following:

- Rake
- Shovel
- Pruners
- Garden knife
- Trowel
- Hard-wearing gloves
- Knee pad
- Water hose
- Watering can

Take good care of these tools and you will be able to use them for years. For instance, each time you use any of the metal based tools, rinse off any soil and grime thoroughly, dry them and then place them into a bucket with a sand and motor oil mixture. This will prevent rusting and ensure your tools stay sharp and shiny – perfect for helping you redesign your garden.

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Laura writes for Seagull Balustrades. When not blogging about banister rails, she’s usually trying to wipe childrens’ fingerprints off hers.

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Summer is the perfect time for relaxing in the garden and refreshing your landscape with lots of pretty flowers and seasonal fruits and vegetables. Most plants will flourish during the summer months, though the dry weather and variation in wildlife means that you may have to take extra care when planning your summer garden.

Plan your garden out before you do the work

Many of your plants will need to be exposed to sunlight for all daylight hours, so making sure they are in an optimum position will ensure that your plants last for as long as possible. Arranging your plants by their colours will also create an attractive landscape, as well as arranging by scents and textures. Creating a story with your flowers and plants can really heighten the pleasure gained from simply wandering around your garden and getting hit by different smells and sights.

You should also experiment with using pots as well as planting in the soil, as this adds height to your garden and some plants are better suited to pots. Of course, adding some ornaments around your garden also adds a greater sense of beauty, and lining your garden with lights or bunting can be a nice touch for a summer’s evening.

Reuse and recycle where possible

As summer nears many councils impose a ban on hose pipes, so reusing water is an environmentally friendly option and a great way of getting around any bans. Watering your plants with leftover kettle water or boiled vegetable water is a good start, and installing a water butt in your garden can be a great way to maintain water levels in your plant pots and beds over the summer months. It’s important to ensure your water butt is covered properly to prevent any wildlife from getting inside. Additionally, putting coffee grounds or tea leaves on your garden maintains the acidity of your soil without having to make a full-blown compost heap.

Tending to your lawn

The lawn can be a forgotten area of care, but it soon becomes apparent when it goes brown and starts fading away! When you mow the lawn make sure you don’t remove more than a third of the height of the grass as it can stress the roots of the grass. It’s also a good idea to leave the clippings on the grass as the remains can restore nutrients into the lawn. Mowing your lawn in the evening means that the grass has had a small chance to grow back before the heat of the midday sun, and this also helps to prevent it from browning.

As your lawn will undoubtedly be the victim of the summer heat, it’s also important to feed your lawn as often as possible, by watering it and giving it specially designed lawn feed. You should also be vigilant and remove any moss build ups and have some grass seeds to hand for any persistent bald patches of grass.

Beware of the insects

Summer is peak time for insect infestations and many delicate plants can be ruined by pests. Aphids and white flies in particular can be damaging for flowers such as roses, so inspecting your plants as often as possible is a must. To avoid using chemicals on your plants, you can order ladybirds and other “good” insects online to ward off any bad bugs on your plants.

Ursula Jones writes about gardening tips and Virginia Hayward hampers. For more information visit www.virginiahayward.com

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Prime and most perfect time for landscaping is the fall and winter season. During this time of the year, you can consider taking up all the landscape renovation or build up plans. To enhance your knowledge on what is good and what would look the best, you can consider watching some gardening programs on the television or go visit some home and garden show. But all these learning and know-how has little relevance when spring fever hits in. The inspiration to get on to those beautiful looking backyards, leads the person to take some hasty decisions, which messes with the whole landscaping efforts. Don’t fall prey to such mistakes even unknowingly. Below are some the most common landscape mistakes that gardeners usually make. Read it and avoid it!

Using excessive lawn ornamentation

In the context of landscaping, the concept of more the merrier just do not apply. Many people generally commit the mistake of installing too many decorative pieces in their backyards which instead of adding to the beauty, mars it. So, before buying any decorative item your lawn, first try and figure out how you will position it and if it is necessary. At times it is better to have just one small whimsical statue than having ten. Think, consider and re-consider before you decide to include some of the statues in your backyard.

Planting trees just too deep

Many people are of the impression that adding more soil in and around the tree is just like giving it more support. But is this true? No! More soil only chokes the tree and just does not produce the required results. Hence to avoid such issues, ensure that you test the main stem and the tentacles before planting it on the ground. Best and easiest way to solve this issue would be to dig out a hole up to the height of the bag of the tree.

Many people think that by cutting their grass short, they will need to mow it less. But this myth again is far from the reality. If the grass is cut just too short then you are doing nothing but inviting the insects. One of the best ideas would be to cut the trees into varied lengths on different seasons. During winters, you can consider cutting it too short so that the sunlight well penetrates into the soil. In summers, you can leave the blades standing up tall as this would act as a shelter to the soil.

Fertilizing properly is essential

Over fertilizing or no fertilizing at all, both are bad for your landscape. Consider visiting your garden centre and drawing some tips on what are the best fertilizers for your yard. This would not only ensure a healthy growth of your plants but will also give your yard that amazing look which you always craved for.

Today’s article is contributed by Chase Cullen. He is a writer who has written articles for many popular magazines and newspaper. He is also working on a novel. His hobbies include gardening and painting. He says for lush, green landscaping and lawn, people have to put in time and effort in its upkeep.

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Humans are not the only ones who get to enjoy winter. Many garden pests and diseases also thrive during the winter months causing serious harm to our gardens. There are a variety of plants and flowers that can tolerate the cold weather but they often get infested by annoying insects. It is such a shame to allow these pests and diseases to destroy a garden that gives life to a home during dreary winter months. If you want to protect your garden during the winter and keep it healthy for the arrival of spring, then learning more about these pests and diseases and how to prevent them is your best solution.

Snails And Slugs

There are creatures that are able to survive the cold and snails and slugs are among them. They find shelter from the cold and remain dormant until the temperature rises a little. Though they may hide during the day, they come out at night in search for food when the weather is moist and cool. The best way to protect your garden from snails and slugs is by scattering crushed eggshells around your plants and flowers. You can also use copper tape around potted plants to keep these pests away as they avoid having their bellies come into contact with it. Another method is by applying salt or lime around the plants to effectively deter snails and slugs.

Root Rot

This is a common problem with plants during winter as it can make leaves turn yellow and plants wilt. If a plant is affected, it will be mushy and black, while the roots may fall off the plants. To get rid of root rot, simply take the plant and wash the roots, then trim the roots with a sharp scissor. Once clean and trimmed, you can replant it in a pot.

Aphids

Aphids are a common problem in gardens and they can infest plants throughout the year so you must always keep an eye out for them. They can survive the colder weather by overwintering on hedgerows and ornamental plants without being seen until ants begin to infest the plants as well. The best way to keep aphids off your garden is by picking them off by hand to prevent them from multiplying. Another pest that can infest your garden similar to aphids is the Cabbage White Butterfly that overwinters in gates and fences.

Cutworms, Carrot Fly, Onion Fly And Beet Leaf Miner

If you have vegetables growing during the winter then you must be cautious about a handful of pests thriving in your garden as they can overwinter in the soil. The beet leaf miner, carrot fly, cutworms and onion fly can seriously damage your vegetables and make your garden look poorly cared for. To get rid of these pests during the winter, you can dig up the soil and expose them to birds and the cold weather. To protect your garden from carrot fly larvae, you need to dig up all the roots and burn the roots that have been infested.

Caring for a garden during the cold weather can be a challenge, but it is essential if you are determined to have a healthy garden next season. Since pests are the primary concern in a garden, it is better that you consult with a professional to determine the best treatment for your garden.

Citations:

• Photograph by: LittleJack.

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•  License: Royalty Free or iStock source: http://mrg.bz/CO2iWc

Valerie Williams is a freelance writer specializing in gardening and natural forms of Preventive Pest Control in gardens. She also provides information about natural pest control methods during the winter months, how pests can affect plants and how beneficial plants and insects can help keep pests away.

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Wouldn’t it be lovely if we could all live in the countryside and have beautiful gardens, wooded areas, ponds and somewhere for the children to disappear off to? How about pouring a glass of cold wine and sitting with a bowl of olives on your patio looking out at the rolling hills?  Ok, this is my dream, and actually I’m sat here with a cold cup of tea looking out at a postage stamp of a garden with rolling roofs as a view.  Your city garden doesn’t have to be duff. It is possible for us city dwellers to have a really smart space that is both functional and leafy. If, like me, you’re uninspired and have no idea how to make your patio fit for a party, or your pots productive, then read on to get glean some tips.

Work out your space

It may seem tiny but you could be surprised by how large the area is once it is cleared of clutter and the general garden detritus that we collect. Get out and clear up so that you can take some proper measurements to make a plan.

How do you want to use it?

You need to decide what is you actually want from your outdoor space. We went against small city garden advice and decided to have a grassy area. We felt that it would be nicer for the children but it may suit you to have zero maintenance and go for a patio. Maybe you want to grow as much as possible or maybe you need to block a nasty view. Prioritise what your requirements are.

Style

You may already have fixed ideas about the style of your garden, but if you have no clue, then buy some gardening magazines or get some books out from the library. Make yourself a folder and snip out cuttings when you see something you like that you think may be transferable to your space. You will probably work out quite quickly what type of garden you’re drawn to, whether it’s formal and structured, or flowing like a cottage garden. Both these types and others can be incorporated into a small space.

Ambiance

Some people think of certain garden adornments as tacky but there are ways to create an atmosphere in your space with resorting to naff items. Some small lanterns or a discreet water feature can add soothing lights and sounds and make a brilliant outdoor space for entertaining or simply relaxing.

Think Pots

Pots are the small garden owner’s friend. There are countless styles, shapes, colours and sizes and numerous outlets to purchase them in. Almost anything can be grown in a container: small trees, fruit shrubs, perhaps roses or exotic plants. They can line the edges, cluster on steps or be hung from walls and fences. Box shapes are often an effective way to maximise space while adding structure to your urban design. The possibilities are endless and you don’t need to be a horticulturalist or have an urban design job to make your space fabulous. Everyone can have a go. In fact, I’m going to get a hot cup of tea and sit in my garden with a magazine and get some ideas to improve my own.

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Sam Wright is a urban journalist and dweller of small spaces with pots of advice.

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There is this hallowed idea among the general working population that some of us are happy. Do you know any of these people? I know a few but I also know a few more that aren’t  Maybe in your social circle job satisfaction is the norm but there are an awful lot of people for whom this is not the case. They may have had ideas and dreams as a child or teen but somehow life didn’t pan out that way. We’ve all heard the cliché that money doesn’t bring happiness. According to a City and Guilds study, gardeners are the happiest workers and the least happy are, wait for it… bankers! What is it that makes us happy and contented in our work and why is it so important? We spend such a large part of our week at work. Even when we’re not there, we’re often thinking about it or preparing to go back, so it makes sense that our feelings towards our work will affect our general well being. Apparently, to be truly happy and contented at work, we need to feel recognised, appreciated and supported. We need to feel as if we’re doing something worthwhile while being able to use our skills every day, as well as receiving training and having the opportunity to learn. Gardeners, it would seem, are getting all of this in spades. Ahem. Read on to see how they manage to tick all these boxes.

Exercise

It’s good for us! We all know that really. Many of us spend the day sitting at a desk and call at the gym after work, or go out for a run. Well, I have heard of such people anyway, but gardening is pretty much hard core exercise all day long. Bending, squatting, digging, weeding, hoeing and raking makes a pretty good workout for the whole body and most gardeners will be fit and toned, presumably adding to their general contentment as well as filling them with endorphins.

Breathe

An added bonus of all of this lovely, happy exercise is that it is executed outside in the fresh air. Plenty of sunshine, vitamin D, and lots of lovely oxygen in the lungs contribute to a healthy lifestyle. The downside is being required to work in bad weather but fresh air is mood boosting even if it is a rainy day.

Creation

People tend to feel real pride in creating things and gardeners are constantly surrounded by the fruits of their labour. Planting a seed and watching it grow into a plant is one of life’s simple pleasures and in gardening this will often be happening on a grand scale. Being surrounded by beauty that has been cultivated and created by ourselves is extremely pleasing, leading to that all elusive job satisfaction.

Nurture = Love

Creating a wonderful garden is an act of love. It requires the gardener to nurture and care for their plants and raise their babies into healthy adults. This is the same for relationships and well, if it can be done in the garden…

Dirt is good for you

As well as the digging part being good for you, there is actually something in the mud that improves mood and reduces anxiety. A particular bacterium has been shown to be present in the soil that can have all sorts of health benefits as well as increasing serotonin. With all of these pointers for happiness and well-being, I, for one, am going to log off now and get out in my garden.

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Sam Wright is happily growing and working as a journalist for HorticultureJobs.

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Caring For Your Orchids

Orchids are just like any plants that can be infested by pests and diseases. To prevent this from happening you must first be very observant and make a habit of inspecting your plants regularly. When you are vigilant about it, you can avoid having to deal with pests or diseases in the long run. It is also a good idea to sterilize your gardening tools before you work on your orchids and invest in new one sided razor blades for cutting. Never use a blade on an infected plant and then on a healthy one. Knowing what type of pest can infest orchids is also necessary so you can apply the proper treatments.

Identify Pests That May Be Infesting Your Flowers

When you learn to identify the different types of pests that can infest orchids, you will find it easier to care for these beauties. Here are a few common pests that infest different varieties of orchids:

Aphids

This is a common pest found in a variety of plants and they can be easily distinguished by their black, orange, pink, red, yellow or beige colors. Aphids are normally seen on flower buds, new leaves and shoots feeding on the plant. Sadly, these pests can deform orchids and infect them with virus and bacteria, but hey can be washed off with water or you can spray them with orange oil or isopropyl alcohol.

Scale

Scale is a pest with a hard shell to protect the soft hidden body from danger, making it more difficult to eliminate it with alcohol or other natural remedies. If you look on the underside of leaves or on the edge or bracts of leaves, you will find this pest feeding. Getting rid of it can be tiresome, but with plenty of patience, you can simply pick them off your orchids. When you remove this pest from your plants, you can expect your orchids to become healthy.

Slugs

These are also common orchid pests and they can do serious damage to your expensive plants from the roots all the way to the flowers. You can easily find them at night hiding under flower pots and in cool damp places. However, you can eliminate slugs by simply placing a few broken egg shells around your orchids as these shells can cut through slugs.

Mealy Bug

Resembling cotton masses, this pest can be found hiding on the growing tips, stems, bracts and buds.  Usually, they can be seen together with aphids. Unfortunately this pest is quite difficult to eliminate as repeated treatments are necessary.

Orchids are indeed one of a kind and extensive care is recommended for these exquisite plants. If you think that the pests you find infesting your garden and orchids seem to be great in number, you must consult with a pest control professional to get rid of the tiny beasts to save your beauties.

Citations:

• Photograph by: greenfinger.

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•  License: Royalty Free or iStock source: http://mrg.bz/S9b1DL

Valerie Williams is a freelance writer specializing in gardening and natural forms of pest control in gardens. She also provides information about natural pest control methods in homes and in the garden, how pests can affect plants such as orchids and how the services of Las Vegas Ant Control professionals from help treat severe infestations.

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Spending time in your garden is one of life’s simplest and most affirming pleasures. But there’s no denying that designing, implementing and maintaining a desirable outdoor space can become a financial drain. When belts need tightening as your bank account falls into the red, gardens can quickly fall to rack and ruin.

But there are a host of ways to spruce up even the most unloved yard that needn’t cost the earth. In face, many methods of improvement require little more investment than your time and patience. The more people you involve, the merrier – what better excuse to revive the rusty barbecue than a mass landscaping party?

Even the smallest changes can make a big difference, so try a few of these spendthrift suggestions and reclaim your garden during the recession.

1. Small but powerful

A sizeable garden may be a dream come true. But then again, it is also considerably more expensive than a medium-sized one. If you’re finding that maintaining a big garden is not within your budget, do the sensible and reduce the space for flowers and plants by covering some areas up with easy-to-maintain stones. This will also save you time when landscaping in the weekends. If you need advice on how to create a lovely stepping-stone path in our yard, absolutely free, take a look at this highly recommended article on gardening from financial website Dollarstretcher.

2. Bookkeeping for gardeners

Due to the financial obligations connected with it, a garden is less like a hobby, but more like a full-time project. For this reason alone, you should treat it with the seriousness it requires and deserves. Keep book of your expenses for your garden and think about opening up a separate account for them – this doesn’t have to be, or perhaps shouldn’t even be, a regular current account, but can be a basic bank account ideal for reducing one’s debt and expenditure.

3. Clear the decks

Trimming, tidying, deadheading and sweeping all need doing, and preferably before you take any other action. A clear space will allow you to accurately assess what you’re working with. Have a look at soil types and areas of light and shade and choose accordingly.

4. Make it work for you

Consider your lifestyle. Do you need a family-friendly space where children and animals can tumble around without creating chaos? Or do you desire a zen-like space you’re happy to tend for hours on end? Perhaps garden that takes care of itself when you’re busy is more your style? What you may initially think of as ‘the perfect garden’ will end up being anything but, if it’s not perfect for your needs.

5. Freely inspired

Draw inspiration from anywhere and everywhere- beautiful blogs, visits to local free-admission parks and gardens, period dramas and films, or even just poking around the gardens of people you know. When you’re raring to go, underpin your enthusiasm with expertise gleaned from garden centre factsheets, TV shows, free magazines, trustworthy online forums and the many books available at the local library.

6. Waste not

Poor quality soils will thank you for a good dose of quality compost, which you can create and maintain from the everyday food waste in your kitchen. Many local authorities provide counter-top containers you can use to ferry kitchen scraps out to your main pile, which, when rotted down, is a free treat for the garden.

7. Deck out your deck for free

Check out websites which list unwanted goods, such as local FreeCycle networks or Freegle , where you can pick up anything from garden furniture and water features to power tools and equipment for absolutely nothing, providing you can arrange a pick-up.

8. A lick of paint

Garden fences and furniture come in such a narrow spectrum of colours – so don’t fret too much over making it all match. Instead, create your own custom colour palette. Buy an industrial-sized container of white emulsion and browse household paint ranges for those diminutive tester pots in a full spectrum of colours. Even a few pots mixed into the white yields a surprisingly dynamic hue. You can go as pale or bold as budget allows, but be sure to mix enough to complete the job, as colour-matching is a tricky business.

9. Inject Colour

Staring at a flowerbed studded with bright blooms lifts the spirits like nothing else. Don’t worry too much about sourcing specific varieties here – just have fun with a few supermarket and garden centre specimens whose appearance brings you the most joy. Sow with abandon and watch duller growing spaces light up with spots of colour. Keep it cheap and, if a plant doesn’t take, it’s a minor disappointment. If it thrives, however, garden life will be that little bit brighter.

10. Buy hardy

When it comes to the crops that you’re investing more cash on, there’s nothing worse than watching them wither at the first sign of a frost. Research notoriously robust, hardy varieties and use these to form a solid foundation for your space, rather than more fickle specimens which would leave the garden looking barren should they fail.

11. Get green fingered with sad specimens

Don’t bypass those sagging seedlings if they’re being sold off at a serious knock-down price. Take a really good look and consider whether they might be ripe for salvaging. With some careful tending, a good drink of water and a nourishing soil, many ailing plants can spring back to life.

12. Grow to eat

Growing edible crops is a canny move, helping you cut your food spend as you improve your garden. Choose fruit and veg varieties practically – olive trees may look fetching, but will provide little sustenance. Potatoes, pumpkins, lettuces and root veggies, on the other hand, are low maintenance and high yield. Be sure to pick things you won’t mind feasting on in times of glut- tomatoes, French beans and soft fruits are all good options that also look great.

These suggestions are, naturally, merely a point of departure. For further reference, gardening magazine Better Homes and Gardens offers plenty of useful ideas on how to stun your guests while remaining in the black.

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•  License: Royalty Free or iStock source: http://photodune.net/licenses/regular

Reporting from London, William Masters has established himself as respected journalist for topics ranging from international economics and personal finance. To Masters, finance is like gardening, both dealing with how to make the most with limited means. In terms of banking, William recommends eccount money, a leader in the field of companies specialising in helping people with debt and improving their budget.

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We have dishwashers that take care of the mess after the storm, and microwaves to “zap” our food into warm, leftover delight. In the same lazy fashion, many of us aren’t taking the appropriate amount of time in preparing our meals. The result is bacteria-ridden food, glazed with germs and harmful pesticides; which are generally used to banish pests from crops and to extend product shelf life.

These toxic chemicals can be detrimental to your family’s health and have been linked to:

• Nervous system toxicity
• Hormone system disruption
• IQ deficits in children
• Cancers

With this knowledge at hand, I suggest shopping locally. Not only will you help your community’s economy, but you’ll be consuming foods that are locally sourced and fresh. Many of these farms will promise organic produce, which will be pesticide free. Regardless of where you purchase your food, it is imperative to properly cleanse all of your fruits and veggies.

It has been proven that even rinsing your produce in water alone is beneficial in removing dirt, germs, bacteria and chemicals. When compared side-by-side with a store-bought “vegetable cleaner,” the results were very similar. With this said, it seems like a complete waste of money in investing in one of these “miracle” washes.

There are some things in the produce aisle that have higher levels of pesticide residues than others. Some of the most harmful levels can be found on:

• Strawberries
• Peppers
• Spinach/lettuce/greens
• Cherries
• Peaches/nectarines
• Blueberries
• Celery
• Apples
• Apricots
• Green beans
• Grapes
• Cucumbers
• Pears
• Squash
• Potatoes

Instead, make your own eco friendly cleaning products with a natural wash.

You will need:

• A large spray bottle and large container
• White vinegar
• Lemon Juice
• Distilled water

Cleansing Your Produce

1. In a large spray-bottle, combine 1/6 white vinegar, 1/6 lemon juice and 2/3 distilled water. Shake violently and store in the refrigerator.
2. After you have purchased the produce, thoroughly wash your hands. The “happy-birthday” song in hot water with antibacterial soap works well. Make sure to extend the soap all the way up the wrists, and in the crevices of fingernails and hand-jewelry. After you have washed your hands, dry them on a clean towel.
3. Go ahead and pull out the fruits and veggies. Place them in the large container and mist them thoroughly. Let them sit for approximately 30 seconds and rinse in cold water. Pat dry. If you are cleansing a leafy vegetable like lettuce, you will want to use the large container as a “bath” with the same ratios of vinegar/lemon juice/water.

You will want it to sit for 30 seconds to one minute before removing for the final cold rinse. Take note of any bruises or dark markings, as these areas tend to harbor more bacteria. If you spot a blemish, cut it off. If your cleansing a fruit or veggie with a texture, like a peach, use a small brush and lightly brush under a bath for the same duration. Don’t forget to pat dry, because the inconsistency of the texture can also harvest airborne bacteria. In addition, any area near the stem or which opens into the actual fruit or veggie should be discarded. These tend to be the most bacteria-prone areas.

Anytime that my family takes a trip to our local grocery, we go crazy filling our baskets with fresh fruits and veggies for salads, stews and quiches. What we fail to consider are the many hands that touch their surfaces, the nasty mists of pesticides and the natural bacteria that grow in the temperate conditions of the store. Cleansing your food of these harmful invaders doesn’t have to be extremely time consuming or expensive. With a pre-mixed bottle, and a flick of your wrist, you can sanitize your produce and give your family a safer and healthier meal.

Alexa Mehan, self-confessed day-time-TV junkie, works in the comfort of her apartment with her partner and dog Pekoe. She loves creepy artwork and surrealist paintings. Active traveler and hiker, Alexa loves the freedom of the outdoors. When she isn’t writing about the importance of going green, she is checking updates on sites like www.ecohomeinspired.com for ideas. Alexa finds herself creating various works of art when she isn’t freelancing.

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