Ladybug

Beneficial Insects

What is it about the tiny Lady Beetle that makes people like them? Is it their bright colors or domed shape? Or do we sense how much good they’ve done us through the centuries? Whatever the attraction, it’s gone on for a long time and is quite widespread. Common...

Green ‘Lynx’ Spider

Beneficial Insects

Aptly named for their bright green body color and capability of running very fast, then jumping on its prey like a cat, Peucetia viridans, is North America’s largest ‘Lynx’ spider. These long-legged hunting arachnoids are known by the Spanish name araña...

Hydroponic Produce and Health

Hydroponics

In 1994 a test was commissioned by an investment group to determine the vitamin and mineral content of hydroponically grown crops in comparison to soil grown crops, both organic and non-organic. Plant Research Technologies Laboratory in San Jose, California, analyzed...

What’s Hydroponic, What’s Not?

Hydroponics

If a plant is grown without soil and with a complete nutrient solution, that’s hydroponics! It can be as simple as plants glowing in sand, gravel or rockwool with a nutrient drip, or as complex as a complete waterculture system, such as NFT or aeroponics. No...

What’s Organic, What’s Not?

Growing Organic, Hydroponics

We would think that this is an easy question to answer, but it isn’t. In the United States there are numerous different definitions of “organic”, many of which differ significantly. Each state has its own regulations for labeling produce as...