It's Easy Being Green

Is the price we pay for food really worth the impacts it will have on our life in the future?  I think it’s a question more Americans should be asking themselves as they cue in line for a meal at the drive-thru or pull in to the local convenience store as they nab 44-ounces of carbonated diabetic bliss iced in a Styrofoam cup.

If more Americans took the time to learn about how their food is made they would inevitably make smarter choices.  King Corn, a documentary highlighting the amazing influence corn has on our daily lives, is just another wake up call for people to change the way they think about the means in which they fuel their body.  I’m left wondering why a product that is nutritionally void for humans, deadly to the animals that eat it and is worth next to nothing on the open market is so beloved by our federal government.

As the harvest ramps up here in southwestern Indiana, more and more fields of Number 2 corn are meeting the combine this week.  I’m glad I watched the film King Corn, the brainchild of two college buddies, Ian Cheney and Curt Ellis.  It has given me a new perspective on a harvest process that I used to think was quaint and steeped in tradition but now I know is anything but.  According to the Environmental Working Group, more than $50 Billion has been paid to subsidize corn farmers in the past decade. Between 2003 and 2005, 66% of those subsidies only went to 10% of our farmers.

The Global Development and Environmental Institute in a report titled Industrial Livestock Companies’ Gains from Low Feed Prices showed just how far those grain subsidies stretch in our food system.  Between 1997 and 2005, the industrial broiler chicken industry saved $11.25 Billion and the industrial hog industry saved $8.5 Billion from the very farm bill policies that keep corn and soybean prices below the price of production.

King Corn goes on to show the dramatic rise in human consumption of high-fructose corn syrup over the past three decades and the severe health consequences we as Americans now face because of it.  I highly recommend this documentary to anyone interested in learning the impacts brought about by what you might think is just a quaint field of corn.

If you’re interested in purchasing a copy of the DVD:

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This weekend my wife and I were looking for some free things to do with the baby where perhaps, a little fussiness on her part would be allowed.  We made some stops on our errand list and then headed over to the open house put on by the Southwest Indiana Master Gardeners at their demonstration gardens.

Looking through the historical kitchen garden at the gazebo taking center focus in the Southwest Indiana Master Gardeners Demonstration Gardens. It's located in Evansville, IN at the former site of an old state hospital, now long gone.

The event is an opportunity for the Master Gardeners to showcase their skills and chat with people interested in learning the hobby of gardening.  Wherever I’ve lived, I’ve found the Master Gardeners to be the “go-to” resource for the best information on how to make your garden grow in the particular region you’re at.  They can offer insights into local pests and diseases, what grows best and what you shouldn’t waste your time on and maybe new things to look out for.  Master Gardener programs generally work in partnership with the local agricultural extension office which provides another amazing source of gardening info.

The demonstration gardens feature many All-America Selection Winners, not only in the flower features but also fruits and vegetables. I took notes on the varieties that seemed to be thriving so I can try them out in my own garden next season.

Not only did we get to wander through several different garden styles like a water garden, rain garden, butterfly and bird garden but they also had several different vegetable and fruit demonstration gardens as well.  One of the goals was to showcase two different ways to grow your own food, either organically in raised beds or in normal garden plots.  They also showcase many All-America Selections; plants that are nationally tested and proven locally for the past 75 years.

The berry demonstration garden showcased a plot of strawberries, blueberries and another plot of vining berries. Blackberries and raspberries were trained to climb up the arbor that separated the two plots from each other.

It was great being able to walk through the demonstration gardens and get some ideas for our gardens of the future and the advice dished out by the Master Gardeners was great too.  Now I’m considering taking their classes this fall and becomming a Master Gardener myself.

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By now, just about everyone has heard about the mysterious dilemma plaguing our world’s pollinators.  Honey bees are dieing off in vast numbers and no one is truly quite sure why they’re vanishing.  Some scientists have started hypothesizing what is behind the drastic decline in bee populations.  Some have speculated cell phone signals, a virulent disease and even pollution as a cause.  Now one group of researchers is looking into the bee dilemma with a unique, grassroots approach:  The Great Sunflower Project.

The project is led by Gretchen LeBuhn, an associate professor at San Francisco State University.  LeBuhn says she’s interested in broad areas of conservation and the bee is one of her most interesting subjects.  If you sign up to help LeBuhn’s research project, they will send you a packet of wild sunflower seeds.  Once you plant them and have sunflowers, the researchers will email you a particular weekend that you are supposed to head out into your garden and watch your sunflowers.  Twice per month you will plant yourself in your yard so you can record how many bees visit your sunflowers within 30 minutes.  Then you record the data and send it back to the researchers.  The goal is to find out where exactly bees are in trouble and what areas don’t seem to be impacted by the mysterious death.

I think the project is a great way for anyone who understands the impacts of bees on our life.  It’s said that one out of every three bites of food has been visited by a native pollinator and if they totally disappear, we’ll be in some major trouble.  Just think about the things you can learn by participating in this research.  If you have children it would make for a great summer project, something for them to focus on come away with a feeling that they’re helping to make a difference too!  If you want to sign up, visit the Great Sunflower Project website and join the research.  Hopefully together we can make a difference!

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Would you believe that it is possible to have a floating greenhouse in New York that actually produces food? Well it is and the full scale greenhouse operation on the Hudson River in New York has once again opened its doors for all to see. The project is called the science barge and is a prototype of a sustainable urban farm. It also serves as an education center. Last year, more than 3,000 school students made their way through the Science Barge.

So what makes the floating greenhouse so special? Inside the greenhouse they grow tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuce with zero emissions and no runoff into the Hudson River. The barge is powered by solar, wind and biofuels and harvests irrigation water by filtering from the Hudson River and catching rainwater. The developers say the Science Barge requires 7 times less land and 4 times less water to grow than conventionally grown crops. In a city like New York, land has skyrocketed to the point that it would be nearly impossible to grow food in town. Riverfront barges could be the answer to the dilemma. Some studies have also suggested that there is enough rooftop space in New York to grown enough food for the entire city.

What are the hopes? The non-profit group New York Sun Works wants to demonstrate that it is possible for cities to reduce their global footprint by looking at ways to provide their own food. They say most land in cities is contaminated and shouldn’t be used to grow food anyway. That’s why they think they’re hydroponic growing system is the best, most sustainable way to grow! If you’d like to learn more about the project or how to visit, head over to The Science Barge website.

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Here are the last four easy green tips as we celebrate Earth Day:

17. If you’re replacing windows, use energy saving models.

18. Plant trees next to your home and paint your house a light color if you live in a warm climate. If you live in a cold climate, make sure the trees are deciduous, meaning they lose their leaves in the winter so the sun can shine on your home to warm up. Also make sure to paint your house a dark color, attracting more heat absorption.

19. Be an energy activist. Setup recycling programs at your school or office.

20. Stay informed about environmental issues. Write your local congressman or woman and keep track of their voting record. When you know they’ll be voting about an important issue regarding the environment, make sure you let them know how you feel.

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13. Purchase a car that gets good gas mileage.

14. Buy minimally packaged goods and choose reusable products over disposable ones.

15. Be sure your car’s air conditioner coolant is recycled after servicing.

16. Insulate your walls or attic to help save about 25% of your home heating and cooling bill

Check in tomorrow as we celebrate Earth Day and reveal the last four tips, easy ways to go green!

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Here’s four more tips as we count down to Earth Day:

9. Install low-flow shower heads to reduce the amount of water you use while taking a shower

10. Caulk and weatherstrip around doors and windows to cut down on air leaks and save on your energy bill to heat or cool your home.

11. Ask your utility company to do a home energy audit. A lot of utilities provide this service for free and can offer up some tips customized to your own home and energy use.

12. Walk, bike, carpool or use mass transit whenever possible to get to where you need to go.

Stay tuned for more tips tomorrow!

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