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Post by Valerie on Jan 14, 2014 18:40:12 GMT -5
I sure wouldn't dump out that compost just yet. I still don't believe that it's all sprayed. They been saying that for years, that stuff from the store won't sprout. Hah, tell that to the plain old white potatoes I get, and the garlic and the onions. And every year I start sweet potato slips from plain old non-organic potatoes from the store. They all sprout just fine. Maybe if they were organic they might sprout more, I don't know, but I'll be derned if I'd dump out all that compost.
If you're worried about it keeping seeds from germinating, use it in areas where you're going to put started plants like tomatoes.
I really don't believe that at this point it's even possible to keep everything 100% chemical free unless you bring absolutely nothing onto your place. Even certified organic has some chemicals - they just have to keep them below the allowable limits.
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Post by Granny Smith on Jan 15, 2014 22:00:53 GMT -5
i guess the best alternative is to restrict buying to produce at local farmer's markets - the stuff out of home gardens is least likely to have been adulterated with any kind of mass-marketing chemicals - That's great advice! I have some potatoes that the neighbors gave me last fall. I think I'm going to hold back any of those that sprout to start my white potatoes.
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Post by susan on Jan 16, 2014 17:54:37 GMT -5
Val, they may not be spraying all of it, but what I've bought obviously has been sprayed. With my chemical sensitivities I have to try and keep as many chemicals out of my environment as possible. That's the whole reason I garden organic. Eating the sprayed veggies may also have contributed to my MCS getting worse. Between that and the weekend retreat last spring, I haven't been able to totally detox. Years ago when my MCS got bad I was able to change my environment and it improved and stayed that way for years until a very bad oil based paint exposure in 2006. It took me a couple of years to recover from that. I was finally doing better until being locked in a building for 4 days with women loading themselves with all kinds of perfumes, scented bath products, hair spray and spraying Lysol in the bathrooms. It was a little bit better when they asked the women to not use the stuff, gave me a designated bathroom without Lysol and a separate room to sleep in. Problem was, the indoor air was constantly being recirculated without any fresh air coming in or me being able to breathe any fresh air. It's been 10 months and I'm still very sensitive and my food having a herbicide sprayed on it explains some of that. I won't use the compost.
Susan
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Post by Valerie on Jan 16, 2014 19:21:13 GMT -5
I see, Susan. That does complicate things quite a bit. Sorry you're still suffering those bad effects!
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Post by susan on Jan 17, 2014 16:00:15 GMT -5
We're keeping the compost! I was doing some searching this morning and found a site that gave info on how long it takes that chemical to break down in the soil. They gave temps in C so of course I had to go pull out my old algebra book to find the formula to convert it to F. The higher the temp the shorter the half life and our composter got pretty hot last summer before it cooled down for fall and winter. So the compost on the bottom that's ready should be ok and what isn't ready will get heated up this spring and should be cooked enough by the end of May to put on the garden. We are going to be more careful from now on as to what goes in it. Susan
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