GREEN MANURE – Working for You and Your Soil

Ancient Greece and China recognized the importance of green manure and has been practicing it for more than two thousand years. It was introduced to North America by colonists coming from Europe.

Leaving your soil unattended and open to the elements will cause it to dry and erode. One way to prevent this is to practice green manure planting. If it sounds new to you, well, it is basically the process of growing certain plant and then being dug into the soil to improve its nutrient and quality for the next crop. Green manure also improves the soil texture, the topsoil depth and its capacity in holding water. One other benefit is that weeds will find it difficult to set in simply because the green manure has already covered the ground.

Growing green manure may seem difficult, but actually it’s not. It is even very cheap when you save the seed you gather every year. Besides it gives you a good daily exercise! Before rolling up your sleeves and start getting dirty, you have to know some equally important things like the types of green manure to use and the planting season.

There are two types of green manures, one is called Legumes - which grabs nitrogen in the atmosphere by its roots and the Non-legumes - which are all the other regular green manures. Whichever you choose will depend on the soil and the season you plan to grow like for winter and spring.

The best time to plant green manure is when the rain is about to come in order to keep your planted seeds moist during germination. Spread the seed evenly and rake the soil back, making sure that the seeds are covered well for germination and protected from birds. When it is three months old, till or mow them down before they start seeding and eventually becoming weeds, just let them decompose in the soil.

Cover crops give the same benefits to the soil just like common composting but it’s far better. It can fertilize large acres of land cheaper and easier. Just imagine hauling and spreading tons of compost. You cannot eat compost but the produce of some cover plants like peas and beans can be eaten. Green manure attracts good insects. It assists in controlling diseases in the soil and even from nearby plants. Roots of certain legumes can supply acres of topsoil with tons of atmospheric nitrogen after they are mowed down. Regular compost can do none of these.

There you have it, whether as a living or a decaying plant, green manure works for you!

Check out Organic Farming Blog for more informative articles!

RAW CACAO - Everyone’s favorite Superfood

“Food of the Gods” … is indeed what raw cacao really is. Let’s feed our brain a bit about this amazingly versatile superfood.

Raw Cacao is native to the tropics of the Americas. It was thought to be a gift from the Gods and revered for centuries because of its medicinal qualities. The ancient native people of Meso-america valued cacao so much that they used it as a currency and were even depicted on places of worship dating back 600 A.D. Cacao has also been used in Ayurvedic and Chinese medicines. About 500 years ago cacao traveled to Spain where it intermingled with the European culture. Today,raw cacao is mainly sourced from Peru & Ecuador. Thanks to the ancient Mayans, we now enjoy this utterly delicious superfood.

You may not be aware but raw cacao comes in several form. They are frequently available in nibs, finely ground powder, different varieties of food bars and even in raw cacao butter.

Now let’s find out what this super bean has to offer in terms of health benefits. If you haven’t heard of chromium, it’s an essential trace element known to regulate blood sugar levels naturally and is a very potent aid to weight loss. Guess what? Raw cacao boasts very high chromium content and that is good news because you can enjoy eating this raw chocolate without piling on extra pounds. It makes a healthy and delicious substitute to regular chocolate bars and other sweet snacks. Taking raw cacao as part of a balanced diet can enhance your physical health and mental well-being.

What makes up this organic superfood?

• It is totally pure and unrefined unlike processed chocolate.
• It doesn’t contain fattening sugars and milk which are responsible for weight gain and obesity.
• It is extremely rich in powerful nutrients including vitamins, fibers, minerals, essential fatty acids and antioxidants.
• It actively encourages weight loss by stimulating a sustained feeling of fullness.
• It increases energy, heightens libido and improves both mood and concentration.
• It is clinically proven to reduce hardening of the arteries, lower blood pressure and reverse heart disease.

You can enjoy this versatile superfood in a variety of ways. Mix raw cacao powder to nut milks or your favorite smoothies and you have a delicious health drink. It also comes in nibs or crunchy beans which makes for a perfect snack.

Now, how about some heavenly cacao butter for a rather relaxing massage?

Check the original blog at Organic Superfoods Store

BOKASHI – The Japanese Way of Composting

Image from http://www.renaissancecaveman.com/

Have you heard of the word “Bokashi”?

It is a farming practice used by Japanese farmers centuries ago that makes use of microorganisms to quickly breakdown organic wastes.  With the discovery of microorganisms by Dr. Teruo Higa who specializes in agricultural research, Bokashi fermentation was made even better by introducing the right combination of microbes. This ensured better quality and larger harvest of produce that are free of harmful chemicals.

As commonly thought of typical composting, Bokashi is actually more of a process of fermentation. The procedure does not require use of air to ferment the organic matters and this is what makes the whole process odorless. It’s good to have one even in the kitchen. You may ask about those pestering insects and animals gathering around your bin and messing up the place. Well, the nice thing about this system is that it can be sealed completely so you don’t have to worry about them.
Bokashi is an excellent way of adding nutrients to your garden instead of throwing them to landfills. With this process you can include food scraps that normally cannot be added to regular composting method like dairy products, meat, cheese and scraped cook foods.

Throughout the whole fermenting process, a certain liquid from the organic matter accumulates and can be drained. This liquid is commonly called as Bokashi Tea (which I am sure is not the type you would like to take a sip!). There are two ways on how you can use this amazing tea… as a great fertilizer and as a highly effective drain cleaner (goodbye to chemical based household cleaners).
The fermenting process is rather quick. Covering the food waste with some rich soil that contain microorganisms would start the process by quickly breaking down the organic waste that is fermented and not rotten.  In two weeks’ time, you’ll yourself a bin full of highly nutritious Bokashi organic matter.

By this phase of the fermentation process, the scraps have been broken down into nutrients which the plants can use directly. This organic matter can now be mixed with garden soil and depending on the soil temperature, it will take more or less a couple of months to be completely fused with the soil. Since no aeration or soil turning is needed, no other attention or caring is required.  Another great idea is to add it in worm compost if you have one. Surely, the worms will love it and will work more efficiently.

Let’s take care of our environment by keeping wastes out of landfills and start recycling at home… the Bokashi way!

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