bookmark_borderGMO And You

Another big misinformation problem I’m seeing in posts has to do with GMO. After all, aren’t you a GMO?

People are just fear-mongering these days. Years ago, burpee did a bunch of stuff right in Bucks County … with the lima bean. [He basically resurrected the lima bean which is one of the more nutritious uses of land]

I’m not saying there aren’t risks with GMO’s. I’m saying there needs to be a reasonable debate about the risks — http://www.washingtonpost.com/…/40e4fd58-3132-11e3-8627…

I’m also saying — in order to make an educated statement on growing food, one should grow their own food. if someone is that afraid of GMO’s, don’t grow them… but don’t force your unfounded views on others.
http://www.theguardian.com/…/genetically-modified-foods…

New genetically engineered food products have been…
I grow 400 species of edible plants… none of them are GMO. Here are a few to help get people started — http://membrane.com/food/

FREE FOR ALL — listing of plant foods that are naturally good for you to eat, provide health benefits, offer wellness and illness prevention or help cure ailments with alternative medicine. Nutritional information and organic folklore remedies. These plants are being grown in the Pennsylvania, Unit…
http://membrane.com/synapse/library/health/diet/

membrane.com
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/…/The-purple-tomatoes-double…

dailymail.co.uk
I’ve been growing a variety of “colored” tomatoes, potatoes, carrots and beans. Here’s a song I wrote about it… from the album “blooming idiot” (of the six album box set “food for thought”), the single “color me dumb” — http://membrane.com/…/blooming…/Z27_Color_Me_Dumb.html

Dm / Abdim / G NOTES From The USDA New Carrots Offer Colorful Surprises–and Health Benefits By Erin Peabody November 15, 2004 Researchers with the Agricultural Research Service may have found the best way to entice consumers to eat their veggies: Surprise them.
membrane.com

bookmark_borderMedicinal Plants

DESPITE INCREASES in the production of synthetic drugs, natural plant drug materials are still economically significant in the united States, and large quantities are harvested in the southern Appalachian region each year for medicinal purposes. A 1962 survey of 328,599,000 new prescriptions written in the U. S. showed that 25 percent were for drugs from natural plant products. However, during the past 30 to 50 years, fewer and fewer people have been harvesting wild lants in Appalachia, which is the principal American source, mainly because of families emigrating to more prosperous areas. Between 1950 and 1960, the southern Appalachian region lost through emigration more than a million people, nearly a fifth of the population. Increases in local blue-collar employment opportunities, a growing reluctance to work in the fields and forests, scarcity of some plants because of over-collecting, and land-use changes have also reduced the natural plant harvests for drug materials.

To locate, collect, and prepare plants for market is time-consuming work. Some collectors do not know all the useful plant species and the best markets for them. This manual was prepared to help collectors identify, collect, and handle plants, plant parts, and pollen.

Not all the plants listed are marketable at all times; so the collector would do well to write to one of the collecting houses listed (table 1) for prices and information about market demand. Buyers of such material are helpful in providing other useful information on collecting.

Guide To Edible Plants

bookmark_borderGardening Resources

Whistle While You Work Gardening
Guide To Edible Plants

The United States Department of Agriculture is offering these interactive and exploratory lessons as a creative way to connect gardens with nutrition messages in the classroom, cafeteria or lunch room, and at home. Whether your garden is large or small and your growing season is long or short, these materials can help you:

  • Change how children think and feel about fruits and vegetables.
  • Foster an awareness of where foods come from.
  • Get kids’ attention with colorful visuals, games, and activities that are age-appropriate and fun.
  • Integrate gardening and nutrition into English Language Arts, Math, Science, and Health lessons.
  • Provide nutrition messages that are consistent with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010.

For Use with Preschoolers

For Use with Elementary School Age Children