Ancient Technique to Water Your Garden

Staff Writer, Nicole Meyer-Greene

Gardening / Sustainability

_____________________________________

In the hot Arizona sun, do you feel you are doing nothing but watering your plants day after day?

There may be a simple and economical solution to over watering your yard: clay pots. In the article, Clay Pot Irrigation - a simple adaptation of an ancient technique, gardeners are shown how to use clay pots to water their plants.

Get hold of an ordinary 25 cm (10 inch) terracotta pot. Plug the hole with a wine cork. Bury it almost up to its neck in the soil but not too deep so that soil falls into the pot. Fill it with water. Add a terracotta lid.

Plant seedlings or sow seeds 18 inches around the base of the pot. Water will slowly seep out through the clay wall of the pot, directly irrigating the soil around the pot. As the roots grow they will wrap themselves around the pot. The plants takes up almost all the water, and because the water source is now in the ground, evaporation is almost nil.

Keep the pot filled up and you will provide a steady source of irrigation when your plants need it.

It is that simple.

With the heat of the desert on the rise, gardeners can take comfort in knowing their plants are well cared for all afternoon long without the mess and time of using a hose.

(Make sure the pot is unglazed.)

Source: Permaculture UK,

Agriculture Coexistence with GMO's, USDA Commentary Period

Staff Writer, DL Mullan

Nature / Farming

_____________________________

The USDA has opened up a commentary period for people to send their thoughts and opinions to the government about food production.:

USDA Requests Public Input on ‘Agricultural Coexistence.’

USDA published a request for public comments (FR Vol.78, No. 213, Nov. 4, 2013) on how agricultural coexistence in the United States can be strengthened. Comments will be accepted through January 3, 2014. OSA and other organizations have requested a 60-day extension to this deadline. We will notify you if there is an extension. For now, we need you to comment!

How to comment
Comment online at Regulations.gov.
Send comments via postal mail to: Docket No. APHIS-2013-0047, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS, Station, 3A-03.8, 4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238

This opportunity only lasts until January 3rd, 2014 to let the USDA how you feel about GMO crops contaminating the rest of the food supply through big agriculture's farming practices

Non-GMO agriculture has shouldered the burden of contamination for too long. This is our opportunity to tell USDA that it must use its authority to (1) implement mandatory contamination prevention measures to avoid the problem and protect the organic and non-GMO sector, and (2) ensure shared responsibility for the unwanted spread of GE products, including a fair compensation mechanism that does not further burden those who avoid, and sometimes are harmed by, contamination.

Please read the source material before commenting so there is a cohesive understanding of what is being asked of the public.: Seed Broadcast Blog. Then comment away! 

This procedure is how things are changed. Let's change farming practices for the better and remove GMO's from our food supply.

 Source: Seed Broadcast Blog