Water is arguably our most precious resource. All living things need water to survive. But we don’t just want our productive organic food gardens to survive, we want them to thrive! And a growing plant uses a lot more water than one that is just surviving. Every part of the plant growing process uses water. When plants start to become dehydrated they stop photosynthesising, close their stomata, stop taking in nutrients and stop growing. It can take a few days for some plants to recover even if there has been no tissue damage. So it is vitally important not to let your plants become dehydrated (just like yourself). Not enough water can kill or stunt your plants. Sometimes mild water stress can be a good thing, as it encourages plants to send their roots down deeper into the soil, making them more drought tolerant. The aim is to use as little water as possible without causing stress.Ways to use less water 1. Create soils that are made up of humus and organic matter. These soils can hold lots of water and plants can easily draw it up. It has great water-holding capacity as well as having a high nutrient content. 2. Mulch the soil ... [more..]

Google has renewed online excitement over the effectiveness of banner ads in click rate conversion. When Google reintroduced image ads and animated flash ads in Adsense in 2008, advertisers took heed. After all, Google should know what it’s doing. So if you happen to be an advertiser, perhaps you should consider the advantages of banner ads, as well. And if your target market is comprised of cooking enthusiasts, Lutongbahay.com is right where your banner ad should be. Lutongbahay.com is the first and only interactive cooking portal online that features Filipino regional food recipes as well as international dishes. Lutongbahay means homecooking in Filipino. In this site, cooking enthusiasts from the Philippines and around the world gather to read from a huge library of articles on food and cooking, access thousands of recipes and talk about their shared passion in a discussion forum. They can ask experts their cooking questions and request for any recipe not found in the vast collection. They can create their own meal planners and compile their choice of recipes in their own cookbooks, all ready for print out. Members also receive a weekly e-newsletter filled with information and updates.The drawing power of a cooking community that ... [more..]

Organic food is the food that has been prepared sans harmful chemicals, such as herbicides, fungicides and insecticides. A complete organic food also prohibits the use of anti biotic in feeding animals. Though the yields from organic farms are lower, the benefits of consuming organic food are multi fold higher than consuming conventional foods. Children and pregnant women are more vulnerable to the harmful effects of artificial fertilizers and it is worth spending a few more dollars on organic foods. Studies indicate that, in organic foods, the level of antioxidants, vitamins and minerals that are essential for the good health, are generally higher in content and organic food tastes better, too. The increasing awareness among the people about the diseases occurring due to the lingering effect of chemicals has made them to adopt organic food consumption. The organic foods are not only healthy but are also friendly to the environment because they are available in packs that contain only green materials and hence can be recycled easily.While conventional foods are chemically treated while still in the ground and thus exposing the soil to chemicals, organic foods are not done so .This helps to protect the soil as well as our ... [more..]

Good health is vital if you want to live well and look your best no matter what the occasion. The different vegetables and fruits that you can eat will help you to attain the vegetarian nutrition that your body needs. When you look at these different foods that you can eat, you will notice that vegetables and fruits are ones that seem to offer you a better way of living. This route to vegetarian health is one that anyone can adopt. You will find there are various types of vegetables and fruits that can be placed on a vegetarian diet. These vegetables all contribute to the way that your vegetarian nutrition and metabolism can change for the better. One way that you can find information about vegetarian nutrition is to look at the USDA food pyramid and the vegetarian food pyramid. For vegans there is a pure vegan food pyramid to look at too. With the help that you can get from the food pyramid you will be able to plan your daily meals in a healthy manner and quantity. This is helpful if you are trying to maintain a healthy and slim looking figure. The food pyramid is divided into a number of ... [more..]