Organic Gardening How To Blog

Organic foods are grown naturally and the industry is closely regulated in the United States. Naturally grown means that the food is grown and produced without pesticides, fertilizers, food additives, sewage sluge, and/or radiation. Organic foods are not genetically modified. Organic farms are very productive. So, one might ask, why are organic foods more expensive than conventional foods?

That’s because the U.S. government does not subsidize organic farming unlike conventional farms. Lobbyists from the huge conventional farming industry have managed to keep these subsidies away from the organic farming industry.

Have you ever wondered why the American public is growing so much taller? Or, why American’s are gaining so much weight? Could it have something to do with what Americans are eating?

Watch these two Organic Gardening How To videos and I think you will find the answer:

PART 1

PART 2

I believe the answers to the questions asked above is answered in these two videos. Americans are slowly ingesting the same fertilizers and additives that conventional farmers are using to make their livestock and crops grow faster and bigger. Slowly, Americans are changing – and not for the better.

So, should you quit buying conventional foods and start buying the more expensive organic foods? Only you can answer that. You have to decide if you want to trade you and your family’s health and fitness for a more expensive product.

If you choose to go organic, you can buy organic foods in a number of large organic grocery stores such as Earth Fare and Whole Foods Market. And there are many smaller stores. Go to Organic Store Locator and you can find a list of all the grocery stores near you that sell organic foods.

Or, buy online. Try Shop Organic.

Until next time…

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One way to enjoy organic foods long into fall and winter is to pickle them. To me, pickled organic foods tastes so much better than most pickled food products. I know that I am a bit biased on this, but I believe that’s because organic food has not absorbed all of those harsh chemicals that most foods are subjected to. I have no scientific proof of that, but I believe it’s true.

Around Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s, my family loves to nibble on a variety of things that we grew in our own garden over the past year. One of their favorites to nibble on is pickled organic asparagus. If you would like the recipe to this dish, check it out at Organic Foods – Pickled Organic Asparagus.

Another one of my family’s favorite, is pickled organic okra. Let me show you how we make it:

THINGS NEEDED

Canning Jars

Jar Tongs

Funnel

3-Lbs Fresh Organic Okra

3-Cups of Water

3-Cups of White Vinegar

1/3-Cup Canning Salt

2-Tsp. Dill Seed

Hot Red Peppers

Fresh Garlic Cloves

Now, for preparation instructions, watch this Organic Gardening How To video:

That’s how we make our pickled organic okra.

We do add a lot more hot peppers in ours than what they show in the movie. So, add hot peppers to your desired taste. We even have a friend who adds Tabasco.

One thing to be sure that you do that I don’t think is really clear in the movie is to do this: After filling the jars with the brine solution and placing the lids on them, re-boil the filled jars in hot water for about 5 minutes – you want to be sure to kill all of the bacteria.

Hope you enjoyed this short article on pickled organic foods and I hope you also enjoy them this Holiday Season. Until next time…

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Got too many cucumbers? Are tomatoes running you out of the house? You’ve probably had a bountiful harvest and have given much of it away. Well, why not save those fresh organic foods for a delicious meal in late January? Preserving organic foods is fast and easy. Over the next few weeks, I’m going to discuss a number of different ways that you can preserve your harvest. Today, I’m going to discuss the time-tested method of dehydrating.

Using the sun and wind to dry food has been practiced since ancient times. Thankfully, most of us today can do it much faster in our own ovens.

Fruits, vegetables and meat can be dried in the oven. Take the organic foods that you want to dry out and was them thoroughly. Slice them up and spread them out evenly on cookie sheets.

Put your cookie sheets in the oven. Cook slowly at 250 degrees F until your dried foods are leathery to the touch. This will take several hours and you may have to flip your organic foods 1-2 times.

It’s difficult to get all of the moisture out using this oven method, so store the dried food in plastic bags in the freezer.

Food dehydrators are the best way to dry food and that’s how I do it. They allow you to dry large amounts of vegetables and fruit in a small space. Food dehydrators will dry organic foods quickly, evenly, and completely. Once dried, you can keep dehydrated fruits and vegetables at room temperature for months.

Food dehydrators can be purchased for as little as $35.00 . But, be sure that you get one that will handle the amount of organic foods that you want to dehydrate and one that will last more than 1-2 uses.

One of the best food dehydrators on the market is the Excalibur Food Dehydrator . That’s the one that I use and have used it for years. I like it because it has 9 racks and can handle all of the organic foods that I dehydrate. I only have to use it 9-10 times per year.

If you want to try food dehydration, choose the food dehydrator that best fits your needs.

For more information on food dehydration, watch the two videos that I have below. They provide excellent information. Watch this one first:

Now, watch Part 2:

Also, if you’re the type of person that likes to have something in writing to help you out, try The Dehydrator Bible . It provides written instruction on food dehydration along with over 400 recipes.

So, give food dehydration a try. It’s a great way to save your organic foods for the middle of winter.

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Organic foods implies that the food has been grown and produced without pesticides, fertilizers, food additives, or sewage sludge. Organic foods are not genetically modified and are not exposed to any type of radiation.

It’s not uncommon to see the term “Organic” or “100% Natural” in many of your local markets. But, does this mean that the food you are thinking about buying is truely organic? Definitely NOT – and don’t be fooled by it!

Organic food commands a higher price and many wholesalers and markets try to increase this profits by tricking their customers into buying products that are not truely organic. If you see the term “organic”, check it out closely before making a purchase decision.

In the United States, federal organic legislation defines 3 levels of organics. The first level, “100% Organic”, means that the product has been made entirely with organic ingredients and methods. The second level, “95% Organic”, means that at least 95% of the product has been made with organic ingredients. Both “100% Organic” and “95% Organic” products can be marketed with the use of the word “organic” and both can display the USDA organic seal that is shown below:

This label is sometimes green/white/brown (as shown), but sometimes it is also only black/white.

The third organic level, containing at least 70% of organic ingredients, can be marketed with the term “made with organic ingredients”. Product’s that use less than 70% organic ingredients canot advertise this information and can only display it on the product’s ingredient list.

Be aware of thes differences in organic foods. If you only want to buy real organic foods, look for the certified USDA organic label.

Watch these two videos for some further information on organic foods:

If you are new to organic gardening or would like to learn more, try either one of these two great eBooks: Organic Gardening Magic and My Organic Food Garden. Or, try them both! Satisfaction Guaranteed for your organic gardening how to, or your money back.

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It’s the beginning of winter and you may or may not be growing an organic vegetable garden right now, but, eating organic foods is delightful all year long. Most grocery stores have an organic food section and one thing you can almost always find are organic cucumbers. Following is a really simple recipe for making organic dill cucumbers. My kids love to snack on these!

Aunt Mary’s Organic Dill Cucumbers

• 1 Qt. white vinegar
• 1 Qt. water
• 3/4 Cup sugar
• 1/2 Cup non-iodized salt
• 1 Bag of pickling spice
• 6 Lbs. of organic cucumbers
• 6 Wide mouth canning jars w/lids and rings
  
• 12 Cloves of whole garlic, peeled
• 12 Hot chile peppers (optional)
  

Fill the jars with water and place them in a large pan filled with water. Turn the stove on and bring the water to a near boil. You want to raise the temperature of the water inside the jars to 180 degrees. This will kill any bacteria that is on the jars. Do the same thing with the jar lids and rings using another pan of water.

In a third large pot, mix the vinegar, sugar, salt, and a quart of water together. Add the spice bag. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes. Turn the stove off and remove the spice bag.

If necessary, trim your cucumbers to size. When you put the cucumbers in the jar, you want to leave about 1/4″ space at the top of the jar. I also trim about 1/4″ off both ends of the cucumbers and I cut each cucumber into quarters (save the scraps to discard in your compost bin).

Carefully remove a jar from the hot bath that it was in and drain the water. Immediately put two garlic cloves and two hot chile peppers in the jar and fill the remaining jar with the sliced cucumbers. Pack the jar as full as you can being sure to leave a 1/4″ space at the top. Now, using a ladle or an empty cup, remove some of the hot spicy water that you prepared and pour into your jar filled with cucumbers. Continue filling the jar with the spicy water until the jar is filled within 1/4″ of the top of the jar. Remove one jar lid and ring from their hot baths and close the top of the jar. Hand tighten only.

Now, you have completed one jar of organic dill cucumbers. Repeat this process to complete the other five jars.

Organic foods are delicious and you will enjoy this one,too! Wait at least three weeks before eating. Watch the following video for some additional tips.

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