By Pat Lawson Muse

Now that May is here, it”s time to put that green thumb to work.

The trouble is, if you suffer from allergies, your time in the garden can mean misery.

How do you stay well while potting your petunias? The key is knowing what “not” to plant.

“The garden should not be just another old boys’ club,” said Dr. Jackie Eghrari-Sabet, of Family Allergy & Asthma Care in Gaithersburg, Md. “The female plants and trees are the ones that bear the fruit or bear the nuts. The males are the ones that have the tall stalks that are filled with pollen. You see this particularly with pine trees.”

As for flowers, roses are best. Bright, showy, large and fragrant flowers make the least amount of pollen. So go for the gusto. Avoid the smaller, light -colored ones. White and light greenish flowers are the worst.

“They’re the ones with the most pollen,” said Dr. Jackie.

And while for many warm, sunny days are like magnets that draw them to their gardens, hot windy days are the worst for allergies. Cool, cloudy, damp days are best for weeding and planting. Pollen levels are lower and of course rain washes that pollen away.

Now, before hopping onto your mower to cut your grass, try donning a face mask. And steer clear of ornamental grasses, the ones with those fluffy, flowery tops that can grow several inches per day. They will pollinate when you cut the grass. Also, most people think they’re allergic to the grass itself, but what they’re really allergic to is the mold that’s on the blade of the grass.

We all know composting is a healthy treat for your garden and the earth, but beware of the compost pile.

“All sorts of things lurk in the compost pile, particularly mold,” said Dr. Jackie.  “Get somebody else to do the turning for you or wear a mask,” she said.

If you suffer from asthma, take extra care when using fertilizers and weed killers. They can make your asthma worse.  In fact, they can actually cause asthma in people who’ve  never had it before.

“These are caustic substances,” said Dr. Jackie. “So be really careful, and be sure to wash your hands. They can poison you.”

(PRWEB) April 27, 2011

Available in a convenient, ready-to-spray concentrate that attaches directly to a garden hose for easy application, Safer® Brand Grub Killer is designed to kill cinch bugs, Japanese beetles, Oriental beetles, June bugs, pillbugs, sod webworms and other common pests.

Unlike many lawn pest control products on the market, however, Grub Killer is organic. In fact, it has earned the respected OMRI Listed designation from the Organic Materials Review Institute, signifying the product is approved for use in organic gardening.

Grub Killer easily kills pests yet remains safe for organic gardening thanks to Neem oil, a powerful derivative of Neem tree seeds. The oil targets insects at the larval stage, destroying them before they have the chance to mature and reproduce. A single application lasts up to one week.

“Safer Brand Grub Killer is the natural and effective alternative for solving grub control problems,” stated Justin Emig, Safer Brand category development associate. “This is an organic grub killer that really works.”

Grub Killer is the latest innovation to demonstrate Safer Brand’s ongoing commitment to organic gardening and natural control of pests and weeds. The leader in alternative lawn and garden products, Safer Brand helps gardeners solve their pest problems on the Safer Brand Facebook page. There, organic gardeners can exchange ideas and gardening success stories, obtain gardening tips and view how-to videos to help keep their gardens, plants and lawns healthy and free of pests year-round.

To encourage gardeners to experience effective organic grub control, Safer Brand is currently offering free shipping on orders over $45; Grub Killer is included in the promotion. Learn more at SaferBrand.com!

For more information, please visit:
• Our New Safer Brand Home Page
• Learn More About Grub Killer
• Shop SaferBrand.com
• Follow us on Facebook

About Safer Brand
We are Safer® brand, Concern®, and Victor Poison-Free® – three strong brands recognized as world leaders in the organic pest control, organic plant disease control and organic gardening categories! We offer the broadest and deepest selection of quality organic bug control and plant disease control products at competitive prices. Our organic gardening products are targeted to meet the varying needs of you, the consumer! So, whether you are an experienced gardener or novice, there is a product to fit each and every situation.

Safer Brand, has been trusted by consumers since 1976 and is a division of the Woodstream Corporation located in Pennsylvania.

About Woodstream Corp:
Woodstream Corporation is a long-standing, privately held company and a leading manufacturer and marketer of quality-branded wild bird feeders, rodent control products, caring control products for pets and wildlife and organic solutions for lawns & gardens.

Gardening is a forgiving hobby. You can always right any wrongs next growing season.

The best way to prevent problems, though, is with good planning.

“Designing from the top of your head may work, but things most likely will work better if you write it down and do a simple drawing,” said Jack McKinnon, a garden coach from San Francisco. “Think before you plant.”

Most gardening failures result from simple things, he said, “like people who don”t fertilize, or if they do, put on too much. The same goes for people who don”t understand watering, or add too much. Many tend to do their pruning with power tools and then overdo it.”

Here are 10 common gardening mistakes and ways to avoid them:

1. Neglecting soil preparation.

Test the plant beds before you begin, and again every few years to see if soil conditioners are needed. Add sand or peat moss to compacted, poorly drained ground, to improve its structure and encourage root growth.

2. Overplanting. Design with the size of mature plants in mind. Try succession planting, in which early, cool-weather crops are harvested before later, less hardy plants reach maturity.

3. Flawed feeding.

“Mulch plants and they”ll be so much happier,” said Tia Pinney, adult program coordinator at the Drumlin Farm Wildlife Sanctuary, in Lincoln, Mass. “Supplement your soil, don”t just fertilize it.”

4. Improper watering.

Too much water can be just as damaging as too little. Do a finger-in-the-ground test to ensure that the soil around the roots is moist. Vegetables need about an inch and a half of water per week.

5. Wrong location. Growing conditions change as trees and shrubs mature, creating different shadow patterns. Most plants need six to eight hours of sun per day to develop.

6. Improper pest control.

Don”t kill the good bugs, like pollinators, in an effort to eliminate the bad. “One thing we hear a lot is an attitude of: ”All I have to do is spray and that will cure it”,” said Mary Ann Ryan, master gardening coordinator with Penn State Cooperative Extension in Adams County, Pa.

7. Faulty maintenance.

Don”t set your cultivator (or hoe) too deep, damaging plant roots. Pull some weeds by hand.

8. Over-pruning.

As a rule, don”t remove more than 30 percent of the foliage from shrubs in one cutting. And don”t “top” trees to control their height. “That reduces their life span rather than improves their health,” Ryan said.

9. Botched planting.

Choose the right plant depth. “I know of one property where they put a tree with its root ball on the surface of the ground, and then mulched around it up to the level of the trunk,” Ryan said. “People don”t know how to plant.”

10. Failing to start over.

“Oftentimes, people let diseased things grow that should be pulled out, and it affects the health of the entire crop,” McKinnon said.

Start with a small plot so you can correct mistakes more easily, the experts say. Look your county extension office for support if you run into trouble. Garden coaches can diagnose problems and suggest remedies.

Online: For more about avoiding garden mistakes, see this North Carolina State University planning guide: http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/hil/ag-06.html

Many people think plants in ponds are just for looks.  Boy could that not be further from the truth.

Pond plants are like a vacuum in a pond, sucking up all the waste and potential toxins thus keeping the pond cleaner and healthy. As part of the normal life cycle in a pond, waste from fish and other creatures accumulates and breaks down, creating toxins in the form of ammonia, nitrites and nitrates.  With some help from beneficial bacteria, pond plants utilize the waste as a food source to grow strong a big while at the same time removing these pollutants from the water.  The result is a cleaner, clearer and healthier pond.

Additionally, the removal of those wastes also prevent the outbreak of algae, which is a pond owners worst nightmare and an absolute bear to prevent.  Ponds with upwards of 60% coverage with various pond plants will experience noticebaly improved water quality and a minimal occurance of algae.

Pond plants come in several varieties, primarily sorted by Lotus, Lillies, Marginals and Submerged Grasses.  While all of these are beneficial, some are better at certain tasks than others.  Lotus and lilies float on the surface and have blooming flowers.  They are ideal for provided shade to the water, while also removing waste.  Marginals are the best at absorbing waste and excess nutrients from the water, however they only grow in the shallow water along the edges.  Finally submerges grasses or often added to help added extra oxygen into the water.  These grasses grow under the surface of the water and can also proved additional nutrient filtration as well.

So the next time you see a pond or water garden loaded with plants and think they are just there for looks, think again, chances are there is a larger plan in place.

Apparently, our government wants to make it illegal to grow, eat, share, feed, sell or trade our own food. On November 30th, the Food Safety and Modernization Act (Bill S 510) quietly passed in the United States Senate with a 73-25 vote. Due to the bill containing an unconstitutional provision (which basically is just some legalese that allowed the Senate to raise revenues, a power that is granted exclusively to the House of Representatives.)

What should scare everyone is that this completely and utterly unconstitutional bill passed in the Senate in the first place. If Bill S 510 were made law, it would be illegal to consume or even have food that was grown locally or even on your own property. So those prize-winning rhubarbs that you’re used to growing every season would be considered illegal. What’s more disturbing is that the government wouldn’t need so much as a warrant to come on to your property, destroy your crops or garden and confiscate anything they wanted (and make you pay the bill for it all), while charging expensive administrative fees for prosecuting you for growing your own tomatoes that year.

Read Steve Green’s following of bill S 510 and then check out this 2-part video series by Shawn Buckley over Bill C-6 (now known as bill C-36) in Canada.

While daunting as it may sound, it is possible to have a nice and clear pond without the over use of chemicals.  The secret is in the air we breathe…oxygen.  Ponds thrive when given enough oxygen, but ponds lacking in oxygen can turn ugly and messy quick and allow for pond weeds to take over.  So, how to you get oxygen into a pond?  Through the use of pond aerators.  Pond aerators come in different shapes and size, but the main result is to mix the pond water so that oxygen from the atmospheres can be mixed into the water, which adds dissolved oxygen that fuels beneficial bacteria which helps to create an environment that is not favorable for plant growth and murky water.

Aerators can be made to fit any pond no matter the size or depth.  Some styles work better in shallow ponds, while others are made specifically for deep water.  Still other types harness the power of wind to create energy to power the air pump for ponds in remote areas.

Bottom line, anyone with a pond would benefit from an aerator and the up front costs from the unit and quickly recovered due to the minimal amount of chemicals needed year after year.

Madison Heights, MI (PRWEB) August 27, 2010

HealthierOrganics.com, an online community and blog that discusses a variety of topics related to knitting and sewing, has released several new pages, including “Beneficial Garden Insects,” “Cordless Garden Tools,” and “Organic Herbs.”

The page “Beneficial Garden Insects” from HealthierOrganics.com summarizes the key benefits offered by having two common insects in the garden: bees and ladybugs. The page notes that bees are responsible for pollination, which is necessary for many flowers to bloom and yield fruit. Ladybugs, on the other hand, are cited as being “voracious predators” of many common garden pests, including aphids and mites. The author does warn that introducing beneficial garden insects to the garden may push out desired native insects, and thus precautions should be taken to prevent this if possible.

“Cordless Garden Tools,” published on HealthierOrganics.com, investigates the potential utility of using several different cordless garden tools. The page recommends a Black & Decker 18V Cordless Garden Cultivator for “weeding and aerating soil” as well as a Black & Decker 36V Cordless String Trimmer, though it comments that some users of the latter may want to purchase a second battery to trim large yards. However, the page does not recommend cordless blowers, which are described as being “underpowered” in comparison to traditionally gas or plug-in electric powered blowers.

Organic “herbs fit in perfectly with organic vegetable gardening, as many of these plants tend to complement each other,” states HealthierOrganics.com on the page “Organic Herbs.” The author encourages readers to use homemade organic compost for planting organic herbs instead of store-bought fertilizer. It also notes that some herbs, namely mint and parsley, may grow too aggressively in a garden, and instead should be grown in containers. Finally, the page suggests using organic herbs in salads and as spices for meat or bread.

About HealthierOrganics.com:

HealthierOrganics.com was launched in March of 2009, and wrote about topics like organic gardening. WebsiteBusiness.com is responsible for the site structure and maintenance of HealthierOrganics.com.

Salt Lake City, UT (PRWEB) August 5, 2010

Quadex Labs, a Utah based pharmaceutical company has announced the launch of their new cold sore and fever blister treatment product, Blister Blaster. The company also announced the launch of their new website where orders may be placed. www.blisterblaster.com.

Blister Blaster has been in planning and development for over 18 months. The end result of this hard work is a product based on other effective, and patented cold sore treatment formulas offered by Quadex through medical and dental professionals known as Viroxyn Professional. Blister Blaster not only utilizes much of the same proven formulation of Viroxyn Professional, which has been shown to cut the time to heal cold sores by 75%, but also incorporates patented technology in the applicator. The result is an extremely effective option for those individuals who may be suffering from the painful and unsightly oral herpes virus.

“We wanted to deliver a product directly to consumers that offered many of same benefits of Viroxyn Professional and our other products. It also offers a lower price point for consumers and comes in a convenient 2 application package,” Said Jeff Smith, Chief Marketing Officer of Quadex Labs. The company is initially releasing Blister Blaster exclusively through online channels in order to better reach out to the millions of cold sore and fever blister sufferers.

Smith continued “We can offer a very competitive price point and a broader reach by offering the product online. This distribution model fits our business plan of working to offer Blister Blaster on a global basis over the coming years”.

With over 10 years of consumer results with Viroxyn Professional, the formulation comprising Blister Blaster has been praised in the practical literature regarding oral health and the treatment of the herpes virus. Quadex Labs has distributed over 1 million applications through medical professionals and retail distribution and has enjoyed broad acceptance and positive reviews in the medical and dental communities as an effective topical remedy for cold sore and fever blisters.

(PRLEAP.COM) E-tailer eLightSpot.com continues to grow and position itself as the next big outdoor lighting superstore by recently adding a full selection of headlamps from some of the top brands in the industry.

eLightSpot.com is proud to carry a wide assortment of LED headlamps and headlights from well-known and trusted brands such as Black Diamond, Coleman, Dorcy and Brinkmann. These top quality headlamps boast durability, bright beams and long battery life, while carrying affordable prices. The selection includes headlamps with brightness up to 100 lumens, some featuring red night vision LEDs, others that are rechargeable and some that tilt and swivel.

“There is a growing market for affordable, hands-free lighting,” states an eLight Spot rep. “Headlamps are used for all sorts of outdoor activities like camping, fishing and hunting to even home improvement projects. We are confident that the brands we have brought in will accommodate everyone from the weekend warrior to the hard core hikers and backpackers.”

For more information about headlamps or the other outdoor lighting products offered by eLight Spot, call 1-800-309-4747or visit www.eLightSpot.com.

About eLight Spot, LLC
eLight Spot, LLC (eLightSpot.com) is your source online for high quality, affordable outdoor lights. Our constantly growing selection of landscape lights, security lights, pond lights, spotlights and flashlights from leading manufacturers makes us the up and coming premier light store on the internet.

(PRLEAP.COM) US based, online superstore for eco friendly ink and toner cartridges, and peripherals for the direct mail and package marking industries, is pleased to introduce their new website.

Instead of cutting jobs, or worker hours, to help sustain our improving economic outlook, Mother Earth Recycling would like to encourage US businesses to cut costs and go green on their office supply and printing ink purchases.

Mother Earth Recycling is pleased to announce their new website featuring compatible laserjet, fax and copier toner cartridges; HP compatible, biobased, eco friendly, toner cartridges; remanufactured inkjet cartridges; and specialty mail addressing, barcode and package marking ink for use in mailing equipment, or packaging equipment, utilizing HP Technology.

Going green and extending the life of a plastic core by keeping non biodegradable plastic from our nations landfills is a smart business decision. Reusing plastic cores by filling them with new ink and internal components helps keep costs low without sacrifice to quality.