Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Tuesdays with a Twist #8 and a HUGE Seed GIVEAWAY!

You are amazing!  Last week we had another fabulous party with 63 links!  Yes!  Should we shoot for 70 this week?  
To celebrate LIFE and encourage you to plant heirloom, non-gmo seed varieties I've also decided to give YOU multiple chances to win FREE heirloom seeds from Mary's Heirloom Seeds.  Enter below!
Back to the Basics

My features this week are:

Tips for Growing Great Tomatoes from Black Fox Homestead

Denim Re-Purposed from Family Home and Life

If you've been featured we have a button for YOU!
Back to the Basics

WHY did I choose to give away multiple packs of Mary's Heirloom Seeds?  I am an advocate for growing your own and using non-gmo, organic, heirloom seeds and I want to share with YOU!
All of the seeds listed are untreated, heirloom seeds.
Mary has signed the Safe Seed pledge. 
All seeds are organic, open-pollinated, non-gmo and non-hybrid.
Free shipping on all heirloom Seed orders! 
Seed Orders placed Monday-Friday are shipped within 24 hours,

except for holidays.

There are 3 chance to win!  Each "pack" will include
Peat Pellets to get your garden off to an easy start!
The giveaway will end Saturday, June 9th.  Feel free to share!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
The party starts every Tuesday at 7am EST and will continue until Saturday at 11:59pm.  Feel free to stop back any time and "like" your favorites.  Please visit other blogs if you have a moment. 
Share older posts as well as new ones.  No limit on links!
*Pictures should be your own* 
By linking up you give us permission to use these photos
 (with proper link backs) in our features. 
And now for the party!



Monday, May 27, 2013

Plants to Grow in Full Sun

I have this smallish planter on my front porch.  When we moved into the house 2+ years ago there were little bushes out front.  Something happened last year and they died. 

This weekend I decided I finally wanted to plant a bit of color out front so I made a list of sun-loving plants that would be beneficial like attracting bees and/or edible.  This may not be a complete list because my main focus is veggies and herbs that we'll use.

Here's what I came up with:

African Crackerjack Marigold

Dark Purple Opal Basil


Chioggio Beets

French Breakfast Radish

Vulcan Swiss Chard
Eggplant, Tomatoes, Peppers, Beans, Cucumber, squash and Onions

Here's the before...

Stay tuned for the After...  AND don't miss the HUGE Heirloom Seeds Giveaway tomorrow with 3 chances to win!!!
Sharing this post HERE and Tuesdays with a Twist
Back to the Basics

Sunday, May 26, 2013

Join us at the Creative HomeAcre Hop!

Whew!!  A little late today but at least I made it!
Did you participate in March Against Monsanto yesterday?  I had to work so I used my blog to share GMO Junk.  AND to celebrate Memorial Day we'll be taking it easy Monday and celebrating our freedom.

Stay tuned for a HUGE giveaway announcement sponsored by Mary's Heirloom Seeds for Tuesdays with a Twist!

The Creative HomeAcre hop is hosted by:

Mary from Back to the Basics and Mary’s Kitchen  
Alison from Mumtopia  
Manuela from A Cultivated Nest and  
Lisa Lynn from The Self Sufficient HomeAcre  

That means that when you link up your posts each week, they will be viewed by even more people! Each host will be sharing her own picks for Featured Bloggers. This gives everyone a better chance of being featured and increases your exposure to new readers. Be sure to check all of our blogs to see if you were featured!

Please note that we have made a slight change to our requirements. Please link up no more than 3 posts per blog each week. Thanks!

Featured Posts

Each blog has chosen their own features so be sure to check to see if you've been featured.  This week I chose Egg & Veggie Muffins.  Since I recently went completely meat-free this is a perfect recipe!!!

  
Thanks to all of the talented bloggers who linked up last week! If you would like to be featured, be sure to link back to the hop! Grab the button if you were featured!
The Self Sufficient HomeAcre
<div align="center"><a href="http://www.theselfsufficienthomeacre.com/" title="The Self Sufficient HomeAcre" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.theselfsufficienthomeacre.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/new-featured-button-e1364654655957.jpg" alt="The Self Sufficient HomeAcre" style="border:none;" /></a></div>
  Now, on to your latest creations!
  • Share up to 3 of your Creative Home posts featuring photography, creative writing, home cooking, eco-friendly crafts, home decor, vintage finds, objects d’ art, fiber arts and sewing, farm girl fashion, thrifty tips, food preservation and gardening helpers, hand made ‘wholesomeness’, and good ol’ fashioned homemaking news. If you have a creative side, I’d love to see what you’ve been working on! Etsy sellers are welcome to share here too. :)
  • Please link back to the hop in your post. If you don’t take a couple of seconds to do this, you won’t be featured. I’ve created a couple of cute buttons for you to grab, or you can use a text link in your post. Thanks for sharing the hop with others!
  • Pretty please, with cherries on top, go visit as many of the other bloggers posting as you can! The whole point of a hop is to build a community of like minded bloggers who share and support each other. :) We all love to hear from our visitors, so please leave thoughtful and kind comments when you visit!
  • You are welcome to link your archived posts here, as long as all of the content you share is your own.
  • Link your posts once. Please do not link the same post you linked last week! Let’s keep it fresh and fun!
  • By linking your posts here you are agreeing to let us share your post and images on social media and our blogs.
  • Happy hopping!
The Self Sufficient HomeAcre
<div align="center"><a href="http://www.theselfsuffici



Saturday, May 25, 2013

GMO Junk #MAM

This is my guest post from Mary-Andering Thoughts and Issues. She asked if I would share about GMOs.  In Honor of MARCH AGAINST MONSANTO today I'm sharing with YOU as well!

Hi!  I'm Mary from Back to the Basics and Mary's Kitchen.  I also own and operate an online heirloom seeds and supplies company called Mary's Heirloom Seeds.  

You may have noticed that the price on food, especially produce has been going up.  The quality, not to mention the nutritional value, has been suffering for quite a while.


Heirloom seeds or seeds that have been passed down for generations are far hardier and as some studies suggest, have more nutritional value than genetically modified (GMO) seeds.  I don't sell anything that I wouldn't grow in my own garden.  All of the seeds listed are organic, open-pollinated, non-gmo, heirloom seeds. 


When I first started to become aware of the GMO threat to our food system I went through a progression of feelings from denial to anger and then resolution.  I have made GMO education a personal goal of mine which has included Mary's Heirloom Seeds with Mary's fb page and now a new project called GMO Free Worldwide on fb.

I think I'm getting ahead of myself here.  Do you know what GMO stands for?  It means Genetically Modified Organism.  But what is it you ask?  From the Non-GMO Project,  GMOs, or “genetically modified organisms,” are plants or animals that have been genetically engineered with DNA from bacteria, viruses or other plants and animals. These experimental combinations of genes from different species cannot occur in nature or in traditional crossbreeding.





Also from the Non-GMO Project, In more than 60 countries around the world, including Australia, Japan, and all of the countries in the European Union, there are significant restrictions or outright bans on the production and sale of GMOs. In the U.S., the government has approved GMOs based on studies conducted by the same corporations that created them and profit from their sale.   

GMOs have been blamed for increased occurances in a myriad of diseases including cancer, diabetes, autism and even obesity.  Monsanto Corn and the use of Roundup have also been blamed for Collony Collapse Disorder, which has killed millions of bees.  No bees, no germination!  I always encourage individual to conduct their own research and trust me when I say there is plenty of information online.

I often ask myself "Why would the US allow a product to be approved for use without longterm testing?"  The simple answer is Money!  On March 25th we are Marching against Monsanto, the worlds leading producer of GMOs.

It's time to expose the incestuous relationship of the US Government and Monsanto / Dow chemical (Dupont)
 
From  The Dark Side of Food and Food Production
 The Unholy Alliance:
On the campaign trail in 2007, he (Obama) promised:
“We'll tell ConAgra that it's not the Department of Agribusiness. It's the Department of Agriculture. We're going to put the people's interests ahead of the special interests.” 

Michael Taylor, former Monsanto Vice President, is now the FDA Deputy Commissioner for Foods. 

Roger Beachy, former director of the Monsanto-funded Danforth Plant Science Center, is now the director of the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture. 

Islam Siddiqui, Vice President of the Monsanto and Dupont-funded pesticide-promoting lobbying group, CropLife, is now the Agriculture Negotiator for the US Trade Representative. 

Rajiv Shah, former agricultural-development director for the pro-biotech Gates Foundation (a frequent Monsanto partner), served as Obama's USDA Under Secretary for Research Education and Economics and Chief Scientist and is now head of USAID.

Solicitor General Elena Kagan, who took Monsanto's side against organic farmers in the Roundup Ready alfalfa case, has been nominated to the Supreme Court. (Confirmed to the Supreme Court since written) 

Now, Ramona Romero, corporate counsel to DuPont, has been nominated by President Obama to serve as General Counsel for the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
source
Is that enough info to get your attention? 
Who is Monsanto and what have they even contributed to society besides GMOs?

From Natural News: "Historically Monsanto has been involved with the production of PCBs, DDT, dioxins and the defoliant / chemical weapon ‘Agent Orange' (sprayed on American troops and Vietnamese civilians during the Vietnam War). Originally a chemical company, Until the late 1990s Monsanto was a much larger ‘lifesciences' company whose business covered chemicals, polymers, food additives and pharmaceuticals, as well as agricultural products." 

Ask yourself this,  "Are OK eating foods and food additives created by the same company who poisoned thousands of people including civilians and American troops?"

Not Me! 
What is GMO Free Worldwide
Objectives
- Educate the masses about GMOs
- Get people ACTIVE
- Use social media to get people connected
- A place to brainstorm, network and share ideas / info


If you're interested in getting involed or you want more information just send us an email or fb message.  As I mentioned, March Against Monsanto is Saturday, May 25th and there are events scheduled worldwide!


Helpful Links:
 
GMO Free Worldwide

Thursday, May 23, 2013

March Against Monsanto throwback post

The Dark Side of Food and Food Production

*Originally posted August 2012*
Do you know where your food comes from?  Do you know WHO is making decision about your food and food production?  Some say the topic of food is Political, others say it's economics.  Read "So you think you're buying Organic,"  and "The Politics of Food" so you might have a better understanding of where I am coming from.

Hunger and poverty are on the rise in the US.  Are we still "The land of opportunity?"  Some say the answer is No.

Today is a dark day in the world of commercially grown/raised food.  It's politics as usual in Washington and it has nothing to do with our (the citizens of the US) best interest.

The Unholy Alliance:

On the campaign trail in 2007, he (Obama) promised:
“We'll tell ConAgra that it's not the Department of Agribusiness. It's the Department of Agriculture. We're going to put the people's interests ahead of the special interests.”
Michael Taylor, former Monsanto Vice President, is now the FDA Deputy Commissioner for Foods.
Roger Beachy, former director of the Monsanto-funded Danforth Plant Science Center, is now the director of the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
Islam Siddiqui, Vice President of the Monsanto and Dupont-funded pesticide-promoting lobbying group, CropLife, is now the Agriculture Negotiator for the US Trade Representative.
Rajiv Shah, former agricultural-development director for the pro-biotech Gates Foundation (a frequent Monsanto partner), served as Obama's USDA Under Secretary for Research Education and Economics and Chief Scientist and is now head of USAID.
Solicitor General Elena Kagan, who took Monsanto's side against organic farmers in the Roundup Ready alfalfa case, has been nominated to the Supreme Court. (Now confirmed)
Now, Ramona Romero, corporate counsel to DuPont, has been nominated by President Obama to serve as General Counsel for the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
source
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Did you know that the 2012 Farm bill has special provisions for Monsanto and GMO crops?
"A so-called 'Monsanto rider,' quietly slipped into the multi-billion dollar FY 2013 Agriculture Appropriations Bill, would require -- not just allow, but require -- the Secretary of Agriculture to grant a temporary permit for the planting or cultivation of a genetically engineered crop, even if a federal court has ordered the planting be halted until an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is completed," wrote Alexis Baden-Mayer and Ronnie Cummins in a recent piece for AlterNet.
DO NOT take my word for it.  Read the bill yourself HERE.
"Historically Monsanto has been involved with the production of PCBs, DDT, dioxins and the defoliant / chemical weapon ‘Agent Orange' (sprayed on American troops and Vietnamese civilians during the Vietnam War). Originally a chemical company, Until the late 1990s Monsanto was a much larger ‘lifesciences' company whose business covered chemicals, polymers, food additives and pharmaceuticals, as well as agricultural products."
As The Washington Post reported, "for nearly 40 years, while producing the now-banned industrial coolants known as PCBs at a local factory, Monsanto Co. routinely discharged toxic waste into a west Anniston creek and dumped millions of pounds of PCBs into oozing open-pit landfills. And thousands of pages of Monsanto documents : many emblazoned with warnings such as 'CONFIDENTIAL: Read and Destroy' : show that for decades, the corporate giant concealed what it did and what it knew."
Are you still with me?  This is no conspiracy theory.
Last but certainly not least is Eli Lilly.
From Think Before you Pink:
"Eli Lilly acquired rBGH, sold as Posilac, from biotech company Monsanto in 2008, despite the bad publicity Monsanto received for years for developing the hormone. Even more disturbingly, Eli Lilly acquired rBGH from Monsanto knowing that Monsanto’s own studies show milk from cows treated with rBGH/Posilac contains increased levels of IGF-1, a hormone linked to cancer.
Eli Lilly has taken pinkwashing to a whole new level. By adding rBGH to the products they sell, Eli Lilly has completed its cancer profit circle: it creates cancer with rBGH, it sells cancer treatment drugs like Gemzar, and it sells a drug, Evista, to reduce the risk of breast cancer in women at high risk of the disease. Eli Lilly’s cancer drugs made $2,683,000,000 for the company in 2008. Its potentially carcinogenic dairy hormone made millions of dollars in the same year. Eli Lilly is milking cancer."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Speak up!  For your children, your friends and family...Speak up for people you don't even know.  Be aware, be active and do your part to ensure food safety for generations to come!

Add a button to YOUR blog and spread the word about GMO Free Worldwide!



GMO Free Worldwide




GMO Free Worldwide  

Sharing this post at The HomeAcre Hop , Fabulously Frugal Thursday , Show and Tell and HERE.

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Tuesdays with a Twist #7 We're GROWING!

GOOD Morning and thanks for stopping by for another wonderful PARTY!  We had a whopping 58 links last week.
Let's see if we can make it over 60 this time around.

Back to the Basics

I have 3 fantastic features for you and here they are in no particular order! 

Baker's Dozen Cake Recipes from Family Home and Life



Guest: Vegan Mother Hubbard from Mary's Kitchen

Front Yard Gardening from Home Grown Montessori


If you've been featured we have a special button for you!

Back to the Basics

Please consider following your hosts on Bloglovin, GFC, fb and/or pintrest! Not mandatory.
For Back to the Basics: Bloglovin , facebook , Pintrest  (I follow back)

The party starts every Tuesday at 7am EST and will continue until Saturday at 11:59pm.  Feel free to stop back any time and "like" your favorites.  Please visit other blogs if you have a moment. 

Share older posts as well as new ones.  No limit on links!
*Pictures should be your own* 
By linking up you give us permission to use these photos
 (with proper link backs) in our features. 
And now for the party!


Monday, May 20, 2013

Good Morning Monday!

Hey there!  I'm over at Mary-Andering Thoughts and Issues today.  
It is Past Time we start thinking about Where Our Food Comes From was exhilarating to write.  I am passionate about spreading the word about GMOs and I hope you learn something from my contribution.

Check out the post and when you have a minute check out GMO Free Worldwide!

Tomorrow Tuesdays with a Twist goes LIVE at 7am EST at Back to the Basics and It's Your Life!

Find out what I did this weekend at Mary's Kitchen!

Sunday, May 19, 2013

Sunday Throwback post and The Creative HomeAcre Hop

Good Morning!  Since March Against Monsanto is right around the corner (May 25th) I'll be sharing a few of my "throwback posts" about GMOs.

Honeybee Deaths and Genetically Modified Crops

This article was originally published by Global Research in March 2008
Commercial beehives pollinate over a third of {North}America’s crops and that web of nourishment encompasses everything from fruits like peaches, apples, cherries, strawberries and more, to nuts like California almonds, 90 percent of which are helped along by the honeybees. Without this pollination, you could kiss those crops goodbye, to say nothing of the honey bees produce or the flowers they also fertilize’.1 

      This essay will discuss the arguments and seriousness pertaining to the massive deaths and the decline of Bee colonies in North America. As well, it will shed light on a worldwide hunger issue that will have an economical and ecological impact in the very near future. 

      There are many reasons given to the decline in Bees, but one argument that matters most is the use of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) and "Terminator Seeds" that are presently being endorsed by governments and forcefully utilized as our primary agricultural needs of survival. I will argue what is publicized and covered by the media is in actuality masking the real forces at work, namely the impact of genetically modified seeds on the reproduction of bee colonies across North America.

      Genetically modified seeds are produced and distributed by powerful biotech conglomerates. The latter manipulate government agricultural policy with a view to supporting their agenda of dominance in the agricultural industry. American conglomerates such as Monsanto, Pioneer Hybrid and others, have created seeds that reproduce only under certain conditions, often linked to the use of their own brands of fertilizer and/or insecticide.

The genetic modification of the plant leads to the concurrent genetic modification of the flower pollen. When the flower pollen becomes genetically modified or sterile, the bees will potentially go malnourished and die of illness due to the lack of nutrients and the interruption of the digestive capacity of what they feed on through the summer and over the winter hibernation process.

 You'll find the rest of the article here.

And now for the Party...
Each of the co-host have chosen their own features so be sure to stop by each blog to see if you've been featured!

My favorite last week was Savory Caprese Quick Bread from Pink Recipe Box

The Creative HomeAcre hop is hosted by:

Manuela from A Cultivated Nest  
Mary from Back to the Basics and Mary's Kitchen  
Alison from Mumtopia and 
Lisa Lynn from The Self Sufficient HomeAcre  

That means that when you link up your posts each week, they will be viewed by even more people! Each host will be sharing her own picks for Featured Bloggers. This gives everyone a better chance of being featured and increases your exposure to new readers. Be sure to check all of our blogs to see if you were featured! Thanks to all of the talented bloggers who linked up last week! 

If you would like to be featured, be sure to link back to the hop! Grab the button if you were featured!
The Self Sufficient HomeAcre
<div align="center"><a href="http://www.theselfsufficienthomeacre.com/" title="The Self Sufficient HomeAcre" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.theselfsufficienthomeacre.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/new-featured-button-e1364654655957.jpg" alt="The Self Sufficient HomeAcre" style="border:none;" /></a></div>
  Now, on to your latest creations!
  • Share your Creative Home posts featuring photography, creative writing, home cooking, eco-friendly crafts, home decor, vintage finds, objects d’ art, fiber arts and sewing, farm girl fashion, thrifty tips, food preservation and gardening helpers, hand made ‘wholesomeness’, and good ol’ fashioned homemaking news. If you have a creative side, I’d love to see what you’ve been working on! Etsy sellers are welcome to share here too. :)
  • Please link back to the hop in your post. If you don’t take a couple of seconds to do this, you won’t be featured. I’ve created a couple of cute buttons for you to grab, or you can use a text link in your post. Thanks for sharing the hop with others!
  • Pretty please, with cherries on top, go visit as many of the other bloggers posting as you can! The whole point of a hop is to build a community of like minded bloggers who share and support each other. :) We all love to hear from our visitors, so please leave thoughtful and kind comments when you visit!
  • You are welcome to link your archived posts here, as long as all of the content you share is your own.
  • Link your posts once. Please do not link the same post you linked last week! Let's keep it fresh and fun!
  • By linking your posts here you are agreeing to let us share your post and images on social media and our blogs.
  • Happy hopping!
The Self Sufficient HomeAcre
<div align="center"><a href="http://www.theselfsufficienthomeacre.com/" title="The Self Sufficient HomeAcre" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.theselfsufficienthomeacre.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/new-small-creative.jpg" alt="The Self Sufficient HomeAcre" style="border:none;" /></a></div>