I don’t like the fact that pesticides are on nearly all of our fresh produce, in processed foods, even peanut butter. We try to eat healthy foods, but then if they’re loaded with pesticides what is that doing to our bodies? Pesticides affect our hormones and that’s not good. That’s the last thing we need is for something to mess up our hormones and make PMS and any conditioned affected by hormones worse! And the really bad thing is that they affect children who are in the growing stage! Not good…not good at all!

I was looking through the list of the worst foods contaminated with pesticides, and some of our favorite foods are on the list. There’s a chart of 44 fruits & vegetables ranked according to pesticides, and it has all kinds of data for each one. The worst ones unfortunately are:

1. Peaches – The worst! (however, locally grown peaches are usually OK )
2. Apples – That negates the saying, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.”
3. Sweet Bell Peppers – I use red bell peppers when I make fajitas, teriyaki, chicken tortilla soup, etc. They’re supposed to be a “superfood,” but seems like the pesticides would counteract some of the nutritional value.
4. Celery – Oh, no…that affects “Ants on a Log”
5. Nectarines
6. Strawberries – Oh, wow! That’s one of our favorite fruits!
7. Cherries – My husband nearly always has dried cherries on hand.
8. Lettuce – Yikes! We eat a lot of Romaine lettuce!
9. Imported Grapes
10. Pears
11. Spinach – Fresh spinach sauteed in EVOO just until tender is delicious plus it’s a “superfood,” too.
    
12. Potatoes – Nearly everyone loves potatoes!

See what I mean? So I have a plan. I grew up with my parents having a huge garden and a huge assortment of delicious fresh veggies at our fingertips all season long. My husband and I don’t have the space for a huge garden plus I remember all the work that goes into a nice garden. I plan to start out small and hopefully add to it next year. I’ve heard a lot about square foot gardening, and that’s what I plan to continue researching. I want to get strawberry plants and then also plant potatoes, green beans, squash, and okra.

I plan to keep you updated on my gardening adventures. This will be a learning experience because it’s been a long time since I’ve worked in a garden. I have grown a lot of flowers in my container garden, though. Does that count? 🙂

And one more thing about pesticides, locally grown produce usually has a smaller amount of pesticides than out-of-state and especially imported produce.