All the Dirt on Gardening

Earth Day 2008 - Here's how to use your kitchen waste in a vermicompost bin . Growing a garden has too many benefits to list. Even if you do not have time to dig in the yard, you can help the earth by feeding your food scraps to a bin of Organic material makes up two-thirds of the waste in any city. The food in that waste can be recycled through the use of worm composting. Compost worm information and starter kits will be given away this Saturday when Muskogee Farmer’s Market celebrates Earth Day. The primary benefits of worm composting include the production of “black gold” worm castings to add to potted plants or back the earth and a way to use up kitchen scraps without sending them to the landfill. Build a compost worm bin for your home or apartment — 1) Buy a plastic or wooden box 10 to 18 inches deep and drill air holes around the sides about half way up and drainage holes in the bottom. Compost worms, red wigglers or Eisenia fetida, cannot function in light so do not use a cl...

If you bought one of the 34 million Christmas trees that were sold this year here are a few tips for a fresh tree: - keep fresh trees in the house for a maximum of 10 days - a fresh tree can consume a quart of water a day -never burn a Christmas tree in your fireplace -recycled trees can be placed in ponds for fish shelter ( In fact, several trees can be put into one pond with great benefit so if you have a pond, get your neighbors' trees too.) -recycle cut trees into mulch by cutting off the boughs and laying them over flower gardens - use the tree in the yard as a wildlife habitat or hang feeders and use it as a bird feeding station And in the holiday spirit, The Christmas Spirit Foundation, sponsored by the National Christmas Tree Association, coordinates the donation of 3,500 freshly cut trees to military installations in the US and abroad. The same organization has given a Christmas tree to the first family every year since 1966.