Franklin D. Roosevelt wisely said, “The nation that destroys its soil destroys itself.” The date was Feb. 26, 1937, and he was making his case to state governors for effective soil management, explaining that healthy soil is an economic asset. Whether one is talking thousands of acres, a backyard garden, or even a compact container…

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law a bill that will make human composting a legal burial option in the state in 2027. A human composting burial method or natural organic reduction (NOR) lets a body decompose into soil, which takes about 30 to 60 days. The soil can then be given back to the family…

Your lawn and garden simply don’t need chemical fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides. In fact, these chemicals weaken your plants. What your plants need is properly managed soil, which is not as difficult or mysterious as it sounds. Good Soil Management Reduces the Need for Fertilizers and Pesticides In the vegetable and fruit garden, different plants have different needs. Some,…

When you start composting, it’s remarkable to see how much less trash you generate every week. For instance, in my house, with 2 adults full time and 2 kid on weekends, we went from 4 bags a week to 2, and sometimes 1 (we’re prodigious recyclers, too). Multiply that by the number of households in…

A new California law will require residents and businesses to separate their organic waste from their usual garbage into green waste bins beginning Jan. 1, 2022. Senate Bill 1383 was originally signed into law by then Gov. Jerry Brown in 2016 with the goal of reducing toxic gasses generated during food waste decomposition. The bill, authored…