Obamas to Plant Garden on White House Lawn

Discussion in 'The big picture' started by raincrow, Mar 21, 2009.

  1. raincrow

    raincrow Junior Member

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    OK....I know this is not exciting news for this forum, but you know he will eventually end up here looking for advice and I couldn't help but wonder what username he might come up with. How about "newbie pres, permie newbie"?


     
  2. gardenlen

    gardenlen Group for banned users

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    Re: Obamas to Plant Garden on White House Lawn

    g'day raincrow,

    yet this bill sits on the table in parliament waiting to be voted on and acted on:

    https://www.campaignforliberty.com/blog.php?view=12671

    maybe some talking the talk but not walking the walk going on?

    len
     
  3. raincrow

    raincrow Junior Member

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    Re: Obamas to Plant Garden on White House Lawn

    Hi Len, I don't know what impact a white house organic garden will have. It must scare monsanto and the others a little. Big ag will keep trying to change the definition of what is "organic" won't they. A white house garden seems kind of 'trendy' to me, but on the other hand a lot of people will get exposure to gardening that otherwise wouldn't, especially kids. It's going to be an expensive project. I think I would build your strawbale raised beds Len, I'm not sure I would want to go digging around there. :lol: I'm wondering if any of the Washington DC permies are preparing any seedballs to toss over the fence? rc
     
  4. gardenlen

    gardenlen Group for banned users

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    Re: Obamas to Plant Garden on White House Lawn

    yes raincrow,

    one can but imagine the amount of particulate fall out from smog that may abound? would imagine that all leafy vege's and fruits would need a good wash at the least?

    yep the defenition of organic by science for gov' definition control is if it contains "carbon" it is organic.

    len
     
  5. raincrow

    raincrow Junior Member

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    Re: Obamas to Plant Garden on White House Lawn

    Hi Len,
    Hadn't thought about actual pollution other than the verbal type. I was thinking about a shovel disturbing something buried there like a missing tape recording or a document or a bone or two.[probably buried by a former president's dog, right?] :lol:

    Yes, it always comes back to having a personal relationship with the person that grows your food rather than trusting a label on a package. rc
     
  6. Michaelangelica

    Michaelangelica Junior Member

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    Re: Obamas to Plant Garden on White House Lawn

    I think this is great!
    I saw her on the News last night. Bloody hard sod they have there. Obviously hasn't been used for 50 years. They are going to need a lot of BS ; there should be plenty in Washington.
    Perhaps a No-Dig Garden might have been an easier way to go. I have seen them produce on top of sandstone-rock outcrop!

    Somewhere in my chaotic book collection I have a Victory Garden book printed during WW2 to encourage people to GTO.
    It may need to be reprinted?
    See my first two signature quotes!!! :bear:
     
  7. Tropicana

    Tropicana Junior Member

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    Re: Obamas to Plant Garden on White House Lawn

    Hi all,
    Gardenlen wrote:
    as Michaelangelica suggested, I sent the link to my sister-in-law in the US. Here is her reply to my concerned email:

    Thanks for your concern, but it will not "become a crime to grow your own veggies," at least here in the United States. The new administration is strongly encouraging a relatively new concept called "urban gardening," which gets inner city residents involved in cultivating food plants in lots owned by municipalities. This program serves to get fresh fruits and vegetables to economically disadvantaged populations who don't usually get access to local, organic (read: expensive) produce. This segment of the citizenry is our unhealthiest...most of our largest cities don't have many of the large supermarkets that we have in the suburbs. The poorer residents get their food from fast food joints or the local bodega.

    The object of the legislation is to add a little regulation to the largely unregulated agricultural industry here in the U.S. For many generations, the American farmer has been perceived as some sort of folk hero who sacrifices day and night so that Americans can just plain eat. This industry has historically enjoyed more government subsidy than the (even more dangerous, in my opinion) insurance and pharmaceutical industries. The fact is, small family farms have been ceremoniously edged out in the last several decades by the huge mass-producing operations that were mentioned in your friend's blog. These companies have avoided heavy regulation by continuing their tradition of heavy campaign contribution and intense lobbying.

    Just this year (2009), we have had a big scare with peanut products (several children died). The problem was traced back to a Georgia plant which hadn't been inspected in years. The plant's owner was proved to have knowledge of tainted products, and he shipped out the product anyway. Last year, it was tomatoes and chili peppers; in recent years, it has been spinach and green onions. Government regulation of the food supply is just the type of business I want my government to be in!

    As "green living" has been catching on here, more people have become aware of buying locally produced food and other consumer goods and the benefits to the small farmer and the environment that local buying provides. We buy as much of our produce as possible in the organic section of our grocery store, but we still have to be wary of the "organic" label. The USDA-Certified Organic (United States Department of Agriculture) stamp is not enough, and many Americans know it. The agency does not have the authority or resources to date to ensure compliance by the big food producers. I am more apt to trust the independent labeling companies who exist only to double-check the USDA. I try to buy food with their labels instead.

    I am quite suspicious of many of my government's motives and policies (more so of our former government, as you know), but not this legislation in particular. Obama is a common-sense guy who is trying to negotiate through a tidal wave of bureaucracy and get some desperately-needed change in this country. Healthcare reform, campaign-finance reform, environmental policy reform and economic reform go right along with keeping my food safe, if you ask me. When you read someone's blog, I think you should be more critical and ask questions, like, "Do I really think the government of the United States aims to make it a crime to grow a vegetable garden?"

    Tropicana

    PS I think that, like all legislation, clear definition of it's aims should be made before it is passed into law.
     
  8. gardenlen

    gardenlen Group for banned users

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    Re: Obamas to Plant Garden on White House Lawn

    yes the meaning is in the abiguity of the text, your relative is but one opinion the "all" opinion on the garden forums is that very abiguity, and many feel gardeners should be wary, but then once it is enacted the horse would have bolted hey? they need no new laws to be able to check farm produce, that is their rite and job to do so, but they obviously aren't excercising that rite. clear defenition is unlikley to occur if all members don't read the bill before voting on it.

    they already have regulation to say what an organic farm is and what can be done on that farm.

    i don't know what is going to happen in the end but be wary when politics doesn't spell it out. at the very least this legislation could very well advantage the chem' giants.

    len
     
  9. gardenlen

    gardenlen Group for banned users

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    Re: Obamas to Plant Garden on White House Lawn

    here are some recent comments by USA citizens from the 'net,

    from same thread.

    that's a fairly representative sample across the board some posts are way too long.

    len
     
  10. pumpkin

    pumpkin Junior Member

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    Re: Obamas to Plant Garden on White House Lawn

    I read in today's Canberra Times that Peter Cundall is offering to help our own PM rejuvenate the long neglected vegie garden at The Lodge. I think Mr Rudd and Ms Rein are considering the idea.

    If urban gardening can be encouraged from our elected representatives this can only be a good thing.

    Hope Mr Rudd takes the project on. I could even donate some seed to save taxpayers the cost. :)
     
  11. raincrow

    raincrow Junior Member

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    Re: Obamas to Plant Garden on White House Lawn

    The only way they will get my organic tomato is when they pry it from my cold, dead, dirt encrusted fingers!
     
  12. gardenlen

    gardenlen Group for banned users

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    Re: Obamas to Plant Garden on White House Lawn

    g'day raincrow,

    they probably have that in their plans already hey??

    also along with this H something bill they are bringing in that stock control bill like we have had here now for about 6 years or so, that is if you own a property large enough to run some beefers for you, you can no longer buy from regular auctions without an ABN, you would need to ask a friendly farmer to do that for you, a fee may be required?

    you also then can't take any exess feed ons you have to that same market or even privately to sell maybe to offset costs of butchering, without an ABN, and when you can use the market place you have to pay for a health check everytime thouhg farmers only go through random checks. over in the USA they know it doesn't work over here and in England where it is the vogue as well. you also then can't share any meat products off you site with relatives friends whom ever, but if we wanted we could drive 200k and buy meat and transport it in an esky from a regular butcher. then there is the banana protection bill in qld, there never has been any hard evidence to prove that a lady finger banana grown in a backyard in brissy infested a banana plantation, never even heard of infested backyard plants.

    they are heading the same way with citrus plants again an issue caused by a greedy farmer and like any issue i have heard about bananas all caused by farmers. all designed to make us use chemicals or buy their chemically grown produce 100% of the time.

    len
     
  13. raincrow

    raincrow Junior Member

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    Re: Obamas to Plant Garden on White House Lawn

    Hello Len,
    Where I live, 150 miles north of San Francisco, in previous years a pear orchard was forced to spray for codling moth or they [the state of ca] would spray it for you and send you the bill. Now there are several organic orchards around. Fetzer wine grape vineyards are organic and are a wealthy and powerful family. How are they going to be pushed around? What am I missing? cheers
     
  14. gardenlen

    gardenlen Group for banned users

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    Re: Obamas to Plant Garden on White House Lawn

    g'day raincrow,

    the devils (opperative word)in the detail, the fine print or read between the lines look behind the picture, take nothing at real value, contol for controls sake. organic certification is wool being pulled over our eyes, that wealthy organic gardener is most likely using the same amounts of spray applications as does a conventional farmer, only thing is the organic guy will have a longer witholding period. organic has a different meaning to what most of us believe it is, our way is natural organic manage bugs not erradicate bugs, what we grow in our backyards could never effect a farm, we manage our fruit properly especially if it is infested. for defenition purposes the gov' called for science to identify organic, they came up with if it contains carbon it is then organic that makes tyres on cars organic.

    last summer our tomato crop was devastated by tropical fruit fly although we used all our current management controls, this means someone in our neighbourhood has a maybe mango or guava tree that has come into fruit the season before, and they aren't destroying damaged fruit, but there is no controls on mango's or guava's (guava's are a native plant).

    they can march onto yor property anytime, refusal means a fine or worse, you do what they say or they kill the suposedly offending plant, same we have smoke alarm policing they can march in at anytime, they can issue fines and summonses, you might say this could (being the opperative word with no hard evidence) save lives but also what else are they observing whilst in your home?

    did you see the other post getting around about the conventional farmers protesting that the white hous in supporting organic speak is saying that conventional farming ahs failed? another poster said any encouragement to get people growing their own can only be good! yes but at what price? and are they use they aren't looking at a smoke screen?

    read with eyes and mind wide open.

    len
     
  15. raincrow

    raincrow Junior Member

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    Re: Obamas to Plant Garden on White House Lawn

    gardenlen wrote;


    https://www.envirolink.org/external.../articles/oct98-4.html&itemid=sbn531521142165


    I'm not promoting this wine or anything. I drink some australian wine too eh? But I don't get from this link that they are doing anything other than strictly organic. None of my permie and tree hugger friends are talking about this bill at the moment, although it may come up soon. I will keep my brain open.
     
  16. gardenlen

    gardenlen Group for banned users

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    Re: Obamas to Plant Garden on White House Lawn

    g'day raincrow,

    that organic vineyard comment isn't mine, all i know about our vineayrds at large over here is not very many are organic and none that i see on tv agricultural type presentations are using mulch or even for that matter promoting the growth of grasses between the rows, they are all seemingly very much into chem' applications to produce quality of fruit. so not sure what you may be getting if you buy organic cert' wine?? lots of average sized and smaller sized vinyards sell their crop to bigger producers. so from what i see and hear any that MAY BE organic might then have to actually ferment their own crop or crops from like vinyards which could spell for very expensive wine roduced in small volumes? and small wineries will have difficulties accessing market places even world wide i would imagine, as known names and brands hold dominance. latest is that even conventional wine from aus' is suffering a loss of popularity in english and usa markets. also latest from the biggies is that there are too many vinyards which equates to oversupply which then means as one yard said they won't make a profit on their current harvest.

    must be awful expensive shipping glass bottles full of wine overseas?

    that a topic isn't being discussed in some groups may also mean they are adopting a wait and see that could be disasterous because once enacted it wn't be repeeled, other simply have the head in a bucket of sand scenerio, turn a blind eye or deaf ear. there is certainly a lot of chat on the usa gardening webs.

    len
     

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