Would you like to grow your own organic groceries but just don’t know where to begin?  You may think vegetable gardening requires a large yard, is extremely time consuming, confusing, and grueling hard work...lies I tell you! 

Vegetable gardening can be very simple and fun, my advice is to start out small and stay organized.  The perfect way to stay organized is to take advantage of an online garden planner!  You can quickly plan, design and lay out your “virtual garden".  Additional features include guidelines on when and how to plant your veggies, gardening activity tracking and harvest quantities and dates.

There are numerous options, just conduct a simple web search for “garden planners online” and take a look. 

NOW IS THE PERFECT TIME TO PLAN YOUR GARDEN!  I would like to highlight three of my fav programs to get you started: 

The most simplistic and cost effective (it’s free!) tool is the Kitchen Garden Planner managed by the Gardener’s Supply Company.  The tool is based on the Square Foot Gardening method and offers several pre-designed garden plans, including a design for a salad garden and (perfect for the busy gardener) a “plant it and forget it” garden.  You can also design your own garden by simply dragging and dropping different vegetables into the grid.  The program automatically drops in the appropriate number of plants for the given area.  You will also find plant specific care instructions, a veggie encyclopedia, and suggested tools and equipment.  Special features include the ability to edit plant variety names, print or email detailed plan and planting guide, and companion planning information.

 

GrowVeg is another wonderful virtual garden option. The tool makes it easy to virtually sketch out your garden plan and decide how best to plant it. This program clearly demonstrates how much space plants require and how to group them for maximum success, removing the need to look up planting distances and crop families.  Growveg offers a free 30-day trial.  One year subscription-$25, two year subscription-$40.

Growing advice is just one click away as you select the plants that you wish to include, enabling you to solve problems and maximize your harvest from the space you have.

Options include: 

• Create Plans: Quickly produce garden plans, add plants and change the layout. Either metric units or feet and inches are supported.
• Growing information: Just click for full details of how to grow each plant, where to position them etc
• Spacing and Crop Families: Clearly shown by the colored area around each vegetable
• Personalized Planting Chart: Print a chart showing how many of each plant you require and when to sow, plant out and harvest them. Our advanced system works out the dates for your own area.
• Reminder Emails: Reminds you what needs sowing and planting out in your garden (optional)
• Easy Crop Rotation: Plan next year’s garden and it shows you where to avoid planting each vegetable

Enjoy your virtual garden planning!

For more information on corporate gardening, please contact Stacy Walters, RKT at www.fittogarden.com

Raw food is NUTRITIOUS & DELICIOUS! This is one of my favorite pates. The great thing about raw food is that is simple to make and tasty to eat. Don't forget to use all organic ingredients! The real deal behind eating raw food is that it is the highest vibrational food available on the planet - it is organic, fresh (live) and thus the most nutrient-dense. For optimum health, clarity of mind and energy - eat REAL FOOD!  

Dear Diva,

Do you have any suggestions for Bath oil for babies for dry winter skin? One we were using contains parabens :( Any suggestions? Help, Diva!


photo via boopsie.daisy

Dear DuckDuckGreen,
Great question and one that a few friends have been asking about.


One friend who lives in Cold, Dry Eastern Canada has had good success with Petroleum Jelly, but really didn't like the "petroleum" part of that solution.


I was thrilled to tell her that Alba makes a product called Un-Petroleum Jelly, scores a 1 in the Cosmetics Database http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/product/201520/Alba_Botanica_Un-Petroleum:_MULTI-PURPOSE_Jelly/. Same texture and results without the harsh ingredients!


I also feel comfortable suggesting products from Badger Baby - all of their product score a low 0-2 http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/brand/Badger/. Alternatively, Earth Mama Angel Baby their entire line scores a 0 http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/company/Earth_Mama_Angel_Baby/, so you can shop with confidence!


Finally - I know a lot of mom's who have had great success using pure Olive or Almond Oil. I would probably choose Oil just in case of nut allergies. If you want to try almond oil, do a small spot test for allergies!


I hope that helps get your babies body baby soft!


Love,
Diva

Learn more about diva, Tania Reuben at www.purenaturaldiva.com

Improvements in transportation are better supporting walkability and green neighborhoods. Local food markets are sprouting up all across the country. And by responding to these myriad sustainability challenges, our cities are not only creating better places to live, but driving a clean energy economy, helping to save residents money and creating new green jobs. The U.S. Green Building Council is facilitating the work of cities through the creation of the STAR Community Index, a partnership with ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability and the Center for American progress. STAR, still in development, relies on the participation of a vast array of federal, state and local governments as well as member organizations and NGOs to develop a benchmarking tool to give these cities a path forward towards a more sustainable future.   Photo via dannotti

STAR identifies the key components of urban sustainability, providing cities a way to measure their own progress in those areas. In doing so, STAR can serve as a planning tool for local governments and their citizens to take steps to become more sustainable while providing a mechanism to assess how successful cities are in their efforts. Rather than continuing to talk about the concept of urban sustainability in inconsistent terms, STAR will anchor the discussion with broad consensus and allow both public officials and their constituents to identify and work towards specific goals that contribute to the overall sustainability of a community.

While STAR will continue to develop and undergo changes in the next year, a draft list of components that STAR will look to measure will be available soon, allowing local governments to incorporate them into future plans. Information about these draft goals and the entire STAR program can be found at Star Community Index. Please take time to review these goals and share them with your local government officials if they are not already aware of this effort. Our nation’s cities are moving towards sustainability and STAR will help lead the way.

Learn more about Allisyn & Become part of the community & learn more by visiting The Climate Community.

Go green this Valentine's Day and give yourself a homemade facial and hair treatment.

What You'll Need:

• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp organic yogurt
• 1-2 tbsp honey 
  
  

Hot Oil Hair Treatment

This treatment will give your hair lots of shine and hydration, and help reduce any split ends. To begin, wet your hair and microwave 2 tbsp of olive oil for 20 seconds. Massage the oil into your hair from scalp to the ends and then tie it back. While this treatment is working let's start the facial.

Hydrating Facial (Scrub & Mask)

The facial consist of a scrub and a mask that will re-hydrate your skin a give it a beautiful glow.

For the scrub, mix 2 tbsp of olive oil and 2 tsp of salt together. Apply this to your face in gentle circular motions concentrating on your cheeks, forehead and chin. After about 1 minute, rinse off the scrub with warm water - this will open our pores and help the mask to fully penetrate.

For the mask, mix 2tbsp of yogurt and 1-2 tbsp of honey, apply to your face and leave on 15 minutes.

The honey acts as a humectant that draws moisture from the air and locks it into your skin. Honey also helps to soothe, repair, and heal skin. The yogurt will even out and brighten your complexion.

After wards, hop in the shower and rinse your hair and face. If you have any olive oil and salt left over, you can scrub any part of your body that feels dry such as your elbows or knees.

Once your done in the shower - you'll have an instant healthy glow and shine for Valentine's Day.

To learn more about Charmaine, visit Glamology.com