Organic gardening doesn’t require a green thumb, but it does require attention. Keep an eye out for early signs of insect or disease damage, and soon you’ll have a healthy and bountiful organic vegetable garden.

Finding the right location will make all the difference.

• Choose a site that has as much direct sunlight as possible (6-8 hours of sunlight during your main grow season).
• Flatten your garden bed to avoid water collection. A soggy site will take longer to dry and is subject to rotted plant roots during grow season.
• If you’re at the mercy of high winds, position your garden by a wall or structure that will protect it.
• Also consider your proximity to water, tools and compost. Make it easier on yourself and don’t tote your tools around.

Start with a good foundation. A recent study from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich found plants can absorb vitamins from soil and that using manure as a fertilizer can boost a crop’s vitamin B12 level. Learn about the type of soil and how well it drains. You may also want to have your soil tested to see which nutrients are deficient.

Opt for organically-grown and GMO-free plants and seeds; conventionally-grown plants are already loaded with pesticides and chemicals. Also be sure to do your research to ensure that you’re giving your vegetables the right amount of water and nutrients. Then you’ll be on your way to a homegrown harvest.

The Deer Valley Club is located in a beautiful true ski-in/ski-out location on the Homestake ski run in prestigious Silver Lake Village at Deer Valley Resort. Nestled in Utah’s picturesque Rocky Mountain Wasatch Range, Deer Valley Resort is committed to providing a level of service and convenience rarely found at a ski resort.

Named the #1 ski resort in North America by the readers of SKI magazine, you’ll find elegant timbered lodges, award-winning restaurants and immaculately groomed ski slopes at Deer Valley Resort.

Atticus Books, Coffee & Teahouse is Park City’s favorite hangout for all ages.  Atticus welcomes everyone and anyone to come hang out and enjoy their funky, relaxed, literary atmosphere.  Check it out!

Gregory’s Wheat Shop provides the finest quality fresh, natural, organic foods and nutritional products.  This of course includes Allgood Provisions organic snack foods!

In addition to their selection of goods Gregory’s also offer Children’s cooking classes throughout the summer.  And, if you spend $20 or more you receive a free loaf of fresh baked bread!

1. Say goodbye to bottled water
Think you’re doing good because your plastic bottle is recyclable? Just think about the trek your bottle had to go through to get to you. It was likely bottled in one place, and then shipped elsewhere for consumption. You’re better off investing in a bottle and filling it up as you please.

2. Keep your car
This may seem surprising, especially with gas prices reaching new heights, but by keeping your car, you’re reducing your impact. Just think, even electric cars and hybrids create a big carbon footprint when they’re built.

3. Buy organic and local
Food that was grown in an eco-friendly way, that is also locally grown, is best. It’s that simple. (Allgood Fun Fact: Allgood products are certified organic by the USDA)

4. Beware the packaging
Sure you’re buying eco-friendly products from companies that are doing good for the Earth. But what if that packaging ultimately ends up in a landfill for eternity? What good are you actually doing? (Allgood Fun Fact: Allgood packaging is made with PCW and biodegradable materials, requiring 30-50% less fuel than other packaging)

5. Eat less red meat
The largest byproduct from the factory farming industry is methane—the greenhouse gas 72 times more potent than carbon dioxide—is one of the biggest culprits for destroying the Earth’s atmosphere.

About Silver King

Owners Ben Buehner and Garth Holmoe are life time residents of Utah and embrace the outdoor lifestyle. They understand that in order to be first on, first up you need a good hot drink to get you going on those dark cold mornings. The name comes from the old Silver King Mine in Park City; they wanted the old feel with a touch of the new school!

“Together we can change the way people eat by educating every child about food, giving families the skills and knowledge to cook again, and motivating people to stand up for their rights to better food.”

From making healthier choices, shopping locally, opting for organic, to choosing products in-season, everyone can participate in the Food Revolution, while making an impact.

For more information on Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution Day, please visit: http://foodrevolutionday.com.

1. They’re packed with antioxidants. Tart cherries, also called sour cherries, are rich in antioxidant compounds including anthocyanins and quercitin, which may play a role in reducing total body inflammation as well as fighting free radicals.

2. They soothe sore muscles! Tart cherries have been getting a lot of attention lately based on new research suggesting that they may speed recovery and relieve muscle aches and pains after working out. In one study, one group of participants drank 12 ounces of tart cherry juice, two times per day, seven days before running a long race, while another group drank a placebo cherry-flavored drink. The group that drank the tart cherry juice reported significantly less pain following the race.Clarke and Jarosh add that while tart cherry juice is the type that has been involved in the research so far, sweet cherries are also packed with other antioxidants and nutrition — they just haven’t been the subjects of as much research yet.

Many companies are selling tart cherry juice without added sugar, but it’s pretty tart, say Clarke and Jarosh. But it’s also sold as a juice concentrate, so you can choose to mix it into other foods (like a smoothie) to temper some of the tartness.

3. They’re rich in vitamins and fiber. Since cherries (both tart and sweet) are a good source of vitamins A and C and fiber, they’re a nutritious fruit to include in your diet as another way to strengthen your body’s defenses and improve overall health.

If fresh cherries aren’t available at your grocery store (yet), here are some of Clarke and Jarosh’s tasty ways to incorporate cherries into your diet:

- Add dried cherries to cereal, yogurt parfaits, pancakes, muffins and breads.

- Top salads with dried cherries.

- Make a cherry crisp and top with Greek yogurt for dessert.

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The latest “feed the world” scare tactic has been a really good way for Big Ag folks to shut down arguments for any agricultural path other than the one they promote. And we’re now seeing it repeated verbatim as a fact over the dining room table, across the kitchen counter, and in the grocery store aisles.

Here are a couple of good sound bites to throw back the next time friends, family members, or even strangers tell you we need super-chemicals and GMOs to feed the world:

1.  Chemical farming isn’t “feeding the world” now. Despite more than 70 years of chemical- and petroleum-reliant farming practices, about 1 billion people are malnourished or starving in today’s world.

2.  It takes three calories of energy to create one calorie of edible food with conventional farming.These facts from a report from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health don’t even include the energy used in transportation or processing. Our current system relies on practices that actually diminish the resource base that is needed to sustain it.

3.  Biotech crops falter and fail without expensive herbicides, pesticides, fertilizers, and irrigation. While enormously productive in ideal conditions, biotech crops gobble up incredible amounts of resources to produce that yield.

4.  Organic methods can produce harvests 180 percent larger than chemical farming in communities that struggle to feed themselves. Although global population is on the rise, population in the developed world is actually on the downturn. Most of the growth is in the developing world, where organics have been shown to have the most beneficial effects.

5.  We could double food production in just 10 years using organic practices and other agroecological farming methods, according to a report from the United Nations. Agroecological practices, such as organic farming, attempt to mimic natural processes and rely on the biology of the soil and environment rather than synthetic sprays and other inputs.

6.  Organic farming creates more of the resources on which our food supply relies, while conventional farming destroys them. Conventional farming leeches nutrients from the soil, puts a strain on our water supplies, and relies heavily on fossil fuels to make it work; organic farming builds better, more self-sufficient land, creates cleaner water, recycles nutrients, and leaves us with a cleaner atmosphere.

In a 30-year research trial at Rodale Institute it was found that for corn and soybeans, organic yields matched conventional yields,
organic outperformed conventional in years of drought, and organic farming systems built rather than depleted soil organic matter, used 45% less energy, and were more efficient. Organic fields were more profitable than conventional, and while conventional growers battle herbicide-resistant superweeds with bigger, badder chemicals, the organic crops held their own against weeds, producing just as much food as the conventional fields without the assistance of herbicide.

Even in the face of a rising global population, organic techniques provide a more secure, more stable, and more sustainable food system. A food-production system based on organic principles is the only hope the world has, according to a global study produced by the United Nations World Food and Agriculture Organization. We like to say, “Organic has the strength to not only feed the world, but feed the world well.”

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For over 100 years, the Utah Food Bank has stayed true to its mission of serving those in need throughout our state.  It takes a village to raise a child. And sometimes it takes a village just to feed one. The Utah Food Bank is here to help with after-school programs and a belief that no child should go without.

Hunger in Utah