Plan your garden to include the “Dirty Dozen”

Hello Friends!

March has arrived and we are enjoying it! This week we had a couple days in the 50s and this week we might even get to 70 degrees! I’m hoping to get some seeds started for the GreenStalk and work on cleaning up the garden. The GreenStalk will be getting a lot of salad greens planted in it this year. I think having it full of greens close to the house will be a great help this year. If you want more info on GreenStalk and other helpful gardening items check out this post I wrote https://bit.ly/5musthavegardeningitems

Since gardening season will be here before we know it, I thought it would be a great time to talk about planning what you will be planting this year. I have been working on a garden layout and want to walk it out this weekend (I will share more about planning a garden layout soon). Having this layout planned will help me avoid a lot of the fruits and vegetables listed on the Dirty Dozen.

What is the Dirty Dozen? According to EWG (https://www.ewg.org/foodnews/dirty-dozen.php) the Dirty Dozen is a list of fruit and vegetables that have the highest amount of pesticides administered on them.

The list includes:

1. Strawberries 2. Spinach 3. Kale, Collard and Mustard Greens 4 .Nectarines 5. Apples 6. Grapes 7. Cherries 8. Peaches 9. Pears 10. Bell and Hot Peppers 11. Celery 12. Tomatoes

So, what does this mean? This means you probably should be growing these for yourself. If you don’t have the space to grow these things (like the fruit trees), then you really should consider buying them organic certified. If you have the space to grow fruit trees, spring is a good time to decide which varieties you would like to have and get them planted.

Where should I buy fruit trees? Our county Soil and Water Conservation offers a list of trees for sale in the spring. We actually have a list of trees we will be ordering this week (some fruit, some nonfruit). Another local place that most people are aware of is Tractor Supply. The one in our town usually has a nice selection of trees to choose from also.

I wrote an article about growing strawberries (here’s the link https://bit.ly/brinkerfamilyfarmstrawberries). It gives you some great info on strawberries and growing your own.

The thing to remember is that some of these fruits and vegetables you will be able to harvest and enjoy this year, like tomatoes, peppers, salad greens. While others (apples, peaches, grapes) may take a couple (or more) years before you can enjoy them. Which makes right now the perfect time to get them started. We all know how far off 5 years feels, yet it seems to come faster then we would expect it to (one minute you have newborn, then next you have an almost 15 year old!).

If you would like more info on fruits and vegetables Michelle Visser has a wonderful podcast to listen to. Her season 3 has been full of great tips to add more healthy foods into your diet. Go check her out, I’m sure you won’t be disappointed! https://bit.ly/simpledoesntmeaneasypodcast

I hope this encourages you to plan your garden knowing that you will be providing you and your family with the best fruits and vegetables.

Until Next Time,

Julie