false 2009-03-23T12:33:05-07:00 <p>A few years ago while at the Chicago&rsquo;s Flower and Garden Show, I attended a seminar about microbes. Jeff Lowenfels was speaking about an all-organic way to restore life to soil and, because an environmentally sustainable lifestyle has always been important to me, I knew the subject would definitely grab me.&nbsp; <br /></p><p>Compost tea is the best organic alternative to synthetic chemical fertilizers. It contains an extremely diverse set of microorganisms &ndash; up to 30,000 different types &ndash; and when applied to your soil they literally restore life to it. Compared to synthetic fertilizers when tend to be salt-based and behave as plant steroids, the compost tea works with the natural ecology to produce healthy and luscious plants. <br /></p><p>I got home that night and researched compost tea. I read every article I could find and they were all saying the same thing: this stuff is great for your soil and it really does work. After researching the best companies, becoming a distributor of fresh Alaskan humisoil sounded like a fantastic idea. I bought myself a brewer and went right to work.<br /></p><p>After only a few applications, I noticed my tomatoes growing bigger and the grass outside my building was looking a lot healthier. My landlord even commented to me on how he was surprised that my dogs hadn&rsquo;t ruined the front lawn. With its microbial life restored, the grass seemed much more capable of restoring itself. My indoor plants were thriving, too, and I knew this was a product that everyone needed to know about.</p><p>At the time, I worked for a landscape company based out of the Chicago suburbs and decided I would tell my boss about this product. He was not as enthusiastic as I thought he&rsquo;d be, but he did decide to bottle and sell the tea. I was completely in charge of this aspect of the company, but still didn&rsquo;t quite feel like I was doing everything I could possibly do to get the word out about the compost tea.<br /></p><p><br /></p><p>It didn&rsquo;t take long for me to leave that landscape company to start my own: Organic Garden Company. It&rsquo;s still a small business, but we&rsquo;re gradually expanding and doing everything we can to spread the word about compost tea and all-natural lawn care and creating beautiful yards on the way!</p><p>I&#39;m planning to purchase a CNG (compressed natural gas/gasoline hybrid) truck and a scooter for appointments around town.&nbsp; I&#39;ve also done research on wind and solar power.&nbsp; My goal is to be off the grid and lower my carbon imprint.&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p> cl6mpPAtaqllvkab8P4pmk false true true 2009-05-31T20:11:26-07:00 0 true 0 false false false 1 How Bugs Can Save the World 2009-05-31T20:11:26-07:00 biGwv3sQWqllvkab8P4pmk essnicksic 592 0 dY1Ghod6ZhRBWr3AL8abBw