Your Questions About Gardening

GardenersCardiff answers:

Good evening Elysa Makayat,

I hope you had a great day. I finished my evening walk at Venice Beach. It was a beautiful day and an unbelievable sunset.

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I understand how you feel about the produce we eat. I have been eating fresh home grown produce all my life. I can actually taste the chemicals, pesticides, preservatives, and waxes in grocery store produce. I truly believe Autism and the increase in the disease/illness are caused by pesticides or chemicals in our produce.

You are a hundred per cent (100%) correct about so-called organic vegetables and fruits. I am always shocked to see people buying organic vegetables/fruits. I feel like asking them where is at least one insect? If you cannot find one insect, what in the world do you think these vegetables/fruits are doing to your own body?

Your question: Where to live and why? Southern California. California grows eighty (80%) percent of the vegetables and fruits in the United States and ships vegetables and fruits all over the world.

Http://localfoods.about.com/od/searchbyregion/a/CAFruitsVeggies.htm

Why? The main mountain range in California is called The Mighty High Sierra Nevada Mountains. The Sierras range reaches over 15000 feet in some areas. The range runs almost right down the middle of California (see blue area of website).

Http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sierra_Nevada_(U.S.)

To the west of these huge Sierra Mountains lies the Pacific Ocean. Because of thermal winds, water from the ocean is pulled upward and into these mountains. The rain and snow pours into valleys and cracks creating hundreds of lakes, unique rock formations, and plants/trees. The snow levels can reach almost forty (40) feet deep, and it never melts on the higher peaks and valleys.

The snow that falls in the Mighty High Sierra Nevada Mountains is one of the most dense and heaviest snows in the world. Throughout the world, High Sierra Nevada Mountain snow is called “Sierra Cement”. Normal snow will melt and produce one inch of water per 10 or 15 inches of snow. Sierra cement will produce one inch of water per five inches of snow.

Http://www.examiner.com/weather-in-sacramento/sacramento-weather-what-is-sierra-cement

Because of the height of the Mighty Sierra Nevada Mountains, almost no water reaches the low lying areas on the eastern side. Therefore, huge deserts and low lying valleys have been created below. The deserts like conditions are breathtaking. It is a land of extremes. It is three (3) million acres of multicolored rock layers with sand dunes and rich land. This area is called Southern California.

Mankind harnessed the water from the Mighty High Sierra Nevada Mountains. Because of the heat, mankind can produce and grow enough plants, fruits, and vegetables to feed millions of people. People can also enjoy the warm weather of Southern California cities. I spend at least one month a year fly fishing and camping in the in the Mighty High Sierras Nevada Mountains.

Http://www.naturalbornhikers.com/KearsargePass/KearsargePass.htm

My home is in Los Angeles. Right now I eat about ten (10) Strawberry Guavas a day off my tree. Guavas are called the superfruit. They have more vitamin C than an orange.

Http://www.tradewindsfruit.com/strawberry_guava.htm

I have nine (9) rare fruit trees and a 20×20 feet garden. I grow vegetables and fruits all year round. Each year we give out baskets of dried fruits, quart jars of canned vegetables, fresh fruits, and fresh vegetables to friends and relatives as Christmas gifts. They all love to see us coming.

I only have room for one more tree. I am waiting for approval to plant a “Peanut Butter Tree”.

Http://www.daleysfruit.com.au/fruit%20pages/peanut.htm

Most tropical fruits will not grow in artificial environments. They will become diseased and fungus type conditions. You can grow a lot of these fruits in Southern California.

Http://www.fruitlovers.com/fruittreedescriptions.html

I hope you and your family have a beautiful day. Peace, from Los Angeles.

GardenersCardiff answers:

Http://www.foodbycountry.com/Germany-to-Japan/Haiti.html

This is one of those Jack and the Bean Stalk stories. I believe. I think we forget that in an emergency situation or disaster, that McDonald’s do not have extra food or is not open nor are markets because everyone is in need of help or is grieving, I would love to think that like in the movies, someone appears that opens a bank and a market, and all my fears and pains are alleviated. Um, that the idea of sustainability during a disaster has to be coupled with the idea of more than just are they and where is this food source or a theory of evolution. They have had over 28 additional earthquakes. It is beyond the 7 day mark and many people still require life-saving intervention, not to mention food. In the long term, even with a product with a short-growing season, and giving everyone a goat or a chicken is not to feed them today, well maybe the chicken and the goat would but people have to learn how to grow and cultivate and preserve.

I have lived in places where I have purchased items that have been brought to market by women who do canning but I myself have never canned a fruit or vegetable or a smoked a meat or fish in a smoke house to preserve it, nor do I even know the time or season to do these things and rotate crops. Someone probably knows how to do this but again; it is a disaster.
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So after the disaster, I lose my house, my family and my friends, the I sleep outside, I hear people screaming, the ground rumbling as is my stomach, I hear people praising God, I drift off to sleep but am awakened several times by the next morning, I am hungry but see my collapsed house and do not want to leave my family inside. I leave to go to the church which is now a courtyard beside the rumble of the church itself. I am sick inside, shaken to the core, with what strength I have, I ask God to be my arms, hold them up for me. It is a disaster that puts me to shame as it reveals itself to me, as I sit fairly safe at my computer, conveniently having already part-taked in breakfast and now about to contemplate lunch/snack and even dinner. I, myself, drink another glass of orange juice, as I contemplate why with all that water, why cannot they simply fish? Is it that we only see what we want to see? I mean how long has this country been in this situation? And by that I mean eating dirt and not growing some sort of crop.

I read from this article that these are just a few of some of more native plants and foods of the area at http://www.foodbycountry.com/Germany-to-Japan/Haiti.html . It all sounded very pretty good. But of course, I have never worked in ministry work or just out of my own altruistic fervor to show any one, any thing of value in the way of agriculture or fishing. Before you get any ideas of how you want their daily lives, their political, economic status, agriculture, you will need the people their to buy into it and it requires them to be stakeholders in their own destiny and I am sure, now, this is the time to work with other organizations to work on a plan so that when the U.S. And other countries pull-out of the country that the infrastructures are in place. I mean with 70% unemployment, if when they pull out, the employment rate is 10%, now that would be a miracle, indeed. You have good questions and intentions, but there are a great many things to consider.

GardenersCardiff answers:

Yes we should, grow food closer to home. It takes an enormous amount of fuel/carbon to transport food thousands of miles. But eating local food also limits the things available to eat. All produce is in season somewhere on the planet, that’s why we can buy most produce year round. I think a lot of people wouldn’t be willing to give up the variety. Plus, it’s impossible to grow food in a lot of places.