Homesteading Family here on YT (that grows all their own food) recently did a video about how the whole family had high toxic levels of glyphosate in their bloodstream. They are currently testing to find the cause but the husband suspects their cattle hay as the culprit as that is the only thing they aren’t supplying themselves that isn’t organically sourced.
I feel like the big ag plan is to get enough chemicals out there that only GMO seeds will work. Those seeds will be one shot, so they have to be purchased every year.
Constance, I watched the video that you informed us about your poisoned beds. And watched this one all the way through. Thank you for educating your audience and doing it honestly.
My house was built over a drainage canal of some sort. You dig down a few inches and find river rock. I'm doing raised beds, too. I never knew about the bean test! Thank you for sharing it. God Bless!
Thanks for sharing and educating . I have been hearing a lot about Grazon . I Remember the heart break of Roots and Refuge with their encounter. . Thanks again Constance. Ninette Bird- The Caribbean Wife . Tx
Plant corn. This happened to Scott Head here on YT a couple years ago. He has a fantastic video on all the research he did about grazon, what plants it targets, and what cover crops will take it up.
Thank you for the bean test method. I have 2 sets of composted manure ill be planting beans in sunday to make sure it's not contaminated. I love how you said " I have my boots on and it's time to get to work". Shalom
Constance, I'm pushing 70 and loving gardening in Ark. I've run across almost every problem there is and there is usually a solution. Let's start building that 3' of FREE garden base that you would dream of having. You will need a year and a half of patience but believe it or not it will start at 3' breaking down and literally hundreds of square yards of this natural God given material that breaks down on this beautiful Arkansas rock.
Homestead Heart just went through this too. She lost most of her large garden. My heart breaks for you and everyone dealing with this. We as a group MUST find a way to stop this. One pod caster had high levels showing up in her blood test and they were homesteading for years. It's a real problem.
Seems like talking to the county extension offices would be a good place to start, and our state legislature people. Big Ag or whoever are not all evil and may be willing to help. In spite of some people saying this is a stupid idea.
You have such a Great Heart Constance! I knew Jesus was using your garden to teach other’s & that’s why we Love you! You are definitely a teacher & not at heart but for real & we Thank You! I hope you feel our Prayers🙏🙏🙏Blessing’s
I have been gardening for many years. I put in very healthy looking tomatoes,, peppers, chillies and lettuce plants into big pots of expensive potting soil. They grew for a while until they looked the same as your poisoned plants. Never had a problem before, l think the potting soil was poisoned too. I am from Australia, l think this is a world wide problem. Thank you so much for your informative videos.
So sorry this happened to you Constance….you have, however, saved me some of the pain you have experienced…we garden organically and have raised beds. We will be extending our garden with more raised beds in the coming weeks as we can’t pant till the end of May. I have done my homework as a result of your video and can only say, thank you…and I am so sorry this must hurt so much… Take care, do something good for yourself….you deserve it!
I am involved in the system. There ARE honest people in there who are there because they are fighting injustices. They are very much the minority but they make waves and need to be supported. Find them and support them. The political system is supposed to work like that. Being hands off with our representatives is what got us into this mess.
I also heard Homestead Hearts saying that she purchased Black Cow Compost this year and it killed all her plants that she used it on , she was surprised because she has used that for years . She said she must have gotten some that was not composed long enough .
Seen that video, she said it had a strong ammonia odor. Decimated their garden! Sad, all that work lost.... Seems like nothing is trustworthy or reliable anymore.
A friend of mine had this happen to their garden 2 years ago. He decided to just plant cover crops in his raised beds until his soil is cleaned. He planted a few beans in each of his beds about 3 weeks ago. They all still showed the Grazon effect. He did clear a couple of places in his yard so he could at least plant the staples. I have read that it could take at least 5 years to save the poisoned soil.
The sunflower thing makes sense. I live by an apple orchard and they recently bought more land from a farmer. It was empty for maybe a year or two and then they started planting apple trees little by little. In the land where they hadn’t planted apple trees, they planted sunflowers. Each year there were less and less sunflowers and now the field is full of new apple trees. I can’t remember what was planted in that field in years before because it has been empty for so long. I know they are now doing this with another piece of land that they used for parking for customers. They are adding sunflowers in small sections. That land has been an empty field for years. Good luck with your garden and thank you for sharing.
That is a chemical burndown. I had not heard of Grazon till the previous video, the first video of yours I watched. I did some research and the active ingredient is Picloram. That's the same ingredient in another herbicide I am familiar with, Tordon. That is nasty stuff, it doesn't bond to the soil and makes it way clear to the water table. It was used to make Agent White and help spike Agent Orange used in the Vietnam War. It can make it through the digestive tract of animals, it makes one seriously ponder how much contaminated meat we eat from ranchers who use it on a regular basis, livestock raised on pasture before being sent off to the feedyards to fatten. You have my sympathies for sure! Heartbreaking to watch the plants you pampered die from something you have no control over. Your bad experience has been a learning lesson for MANY including this new subscriber.
University of Texas recommend starting beans and watering with a tea made from compost/ manure to check for grazon contamination. Darn shame when you can’t even use your own compost to add to your garden.
I just found out that Grazon is a restricted pesticide here in Oregon since July of 2023. It is listed on our State Agriculture website, along with a very long list of other restricted pesticides!
There are some places that you have to have a license to use it. That’s probably what “restricted” means. But sadly, still legal, and probably widely used.
thank you for being real!! showing your pain actually helps others to realize how this can be costly & the fact you share the bad along with the good, shows your heart & kindness toward others. We have learned a lot from your willingness to share mistakes. Many people edit & only share the good! Thanks for the friendship. Praying God blesses you in a great abundance of joy this week !
Thank you for that. I'm very much a "what you see is what you get" person. I think only showing the good, does a disservice to others. I want to encourage others, and it's okay to "fail" sometimes, because we all do! But then we can figure out what to do and learn from it. 💙
Constance if I could I would come by and help you fix your garden beds. Been watching you for a long time now, and I could feel your disappointment. This will be an important learning curve for your new gardeners, and I know they appreciate your sharing. Take care of yourself. God Bless
I have heard of these issues, but you are the only one that has more information. I like the bean test idea & hopefully the sunflowers beauty will make this easier to deal with
My husband and I found an independent lab in Camilla GA, we contacted them, spent the money and testing supplies are on the way. Six soil samples, 4 plant samples, 1 fertilizer sample, 1 feed sample, and one water sample.
One thing that gardening teaches us for sure, is patience and resilience - and you have both in bucketful's. I hope that your situation improves with all the things you talked about in this video. Take care, and thank you for sharing your positive attitude with us xx
I also live in Arkansas and yes the rock's are very plentiful to put it mildly. I am trying to get raised beds built but my husband and I are both disabled with limited mobility so it's very slow, we have tried to hire help but we just can't find anyone that wants to work
Can I ask what part of the state you are in? I'm in an Arkansas homesteading group on FB. Maybe someone would know of a person that would like a side job.
My neighbor had this issue 2 years in a row. She buys new soil each year and dumps it on top of the old. Having left the plants to rot the rest of the season. Using well known brand MG dirt . I have not added anything new to my soil. I use epsom salt around each plant when I first put them in the ground ,once the plant matures a bit I use Alaska fish plant food every couple of weeks. My tomatoes love it ! My basil & lettuce grew crazy huge. My peppers didn’t fair well at all . The plants grew but put out few.
0:33 ...and she's back in action. Wisdom isn't won easily. Take what she gives you and run with it. 4:31 contamination is widespread. Be aware of what you put into the soil that grows your food. 7:05 our land needs our healing hands 9:22 viruses in the garden... 10:17 view of plant leaf after growing in contaminated soil... 12:40 planting beans as a test run 14:53 gardening on the rocks 20:27 emptying the contaminated beds, growing corn/sunflowers to restore the soil 23:06 ❤
I am so sorry that you have to go through all of this.😢. I am glad and thankful you shared all of this with us. I have learned a ton from the information you have shared. This will be our first season of raised garden beds. We have always done the traditional garden, but with just me and my husband, we don’t need a full sized garden anymore. I will definitely be checking on the plants more closely and frequently to be sure they are growing properly. Thank you again Constance! ❤
We did raised beds this year. Look into hukelkultur. It will save u on the amount of soil needed to fill the beds. We filled with logs and branches and then leaves on top of that its working well so far. So sorry for your garden loss. Hopefully you will be able to salvage what you can
Bought some store bought cow manure , used three ago months to supplement in two raised gardens, my beans , jalepanoe, capsicum this season failed, noticed these plants had rolled leaves, dropping off. Capsicums never produced. My other bins are flourishing don't believe I used it in other bins. Just bought same manure, to use in making my new compost pile this yr. Have already used in two piles. Will be trying your tricks to test my soil. Thank You
Love the education on this. I have been gardening in raised beds now since 2022, and I'm in zone 9b SW Florida. With each plant I grow, I learn something new. I just learned this week about vine borers on zucchini and summer squash and the damage they can do to your plants and when they are most active in SW Florida from May - October I just had to pull all my squash and some cantalope because of this. I simply planted these at the wrong time for my zone. You're not supposed to leave any roots in the soil because they lay their eggs near the roots and will hatch the next season. It's May and hot and humid here. I will be planting long beans to fix the soil. Thanks for sharing your garden trials and tribulations. May God restore your garden for you without the big expense to do so. 😊
Oh Constance, I’m so sorry…. 🥴🥲 I do remember your beautiful gardens in Alabama, they were amazing! I also remember those tomato plants that went wonky…🤪 I also remember those beyond beautiful sunflowers you grew, they were just amazing!!🌻🌻 I’m truly sorry, but I know you will persevere through this and you’ll come out blessed in many ways! Sending love and blessings to you and your family.❤ ~ Deirdre in NE Oklahoma
In the book Jadam by youngsun cho, he explains how he used JMS (jadam microbial solution) to destroy the chemicals on his land and now it's an oasis of fresh food. Maybe this will remove the grazon
So sorry you had to go through this. Thank you for the bean test info. Danny from Deep South had put out a warning 2 years ago and I've been asking the local stable if they're aware of their product. I've held off and with chickens am producing barely enough of my own. Leaf mold is definietly being figured in more and may do a cover crop green manure of rye or alfalfa over the winter.
We also make our own compost. We do not have animals so no manure. But we use all our veggie kitchen scraps and leaves, and we supplement our soil each year. Our soil seems very nutritious but I live in the Sandhills of NC and I have never seen a worm in our garden. Really weird. The only worms I see are on our front concrete walkway after a rain, those skinny worms that dry up. I’m glad you’re on your way to fixing the situation. You’ve been in my prayers. It will be alright, you’ll get it done. If I lived close to you I would help you.😘❤🙏🏻✨
I am so sorry you are suffering through this. I heard about Grazon 2 years ago from Next Level Homestead. Check him out because he figured out a solution for his contaminated beds. I stopped buying any bagged soils and composts at that time. Also no hay either. I have been busting my 60+ year old hiney the last 2 falls collecting all my leaves to compost, Along with my house hold scraps. My beds are starting to look pretty good now. Constance, one good thing for you, is those large piles of wood chips you've reciently aquired will eventually break down to some really nice composted soil. Thank you so very much for being so informative!
Constance, thank you so much for sharing all of this information, as it will be so helpful to so many people. I bought potting soil that smelled awful. Makes you wonder about any bagged products doesn't it? Prayers everything works out for you, so sorry this happened. God bless you.
Hey there kiddo. Where I live I have dirt in rocks like you. Looks like to me you may need to use your mulch pile for future beds. I got free mulch & piled it high. 1year later my pile had sunk half way. later it was lower. it is not an over night solution but adding the mulch to fill my beds back up each fall. I made some 2x4 wire fencing hoops and fill them to the top with leaves. In fall people rake leaves and put them on the curb in plastic bags-i ask for them and load them up and went home. In the bags they are not going anywhere till you need them. Use of mulch and leaves are the way to go for me-for you it may be different. I am like you and just moved I must start all over again. This problem is not leaving anytime soon. I watch a lot of videos learning from good sound advice. You must come up with a plan and go to work. I watch you regularly & enjoy it. Have a good day. I love you. Dewayne Willis
So, sorry Constance...this is hard to hear after all your hard work! Everything will be okay...God will help you through this set-back! Praying for You! ❤🙏
A few years ago when people were having trouble with black kow I switched to mushroom compost & never looked back. It has been great. I sometimes supplement with worm castings. I believe where you bought this raised bed mix also sells a mushroom mix. No animal composting/fertilizer. Too many things can happen.
Just saying, that Constance used animal manure from her own animals... it was in their feed...! 🐎 Good idea about the mushroom compost... hardly likely to have been sprayed, one would think.
Oh so sad for you. Also I’m now afraid to mulch with straw or bring in manure. I’m going to plant beans first to test the soil. Thank you for sharing your experience, so we can all learn, I had no idea!!
Wow, so surprise that many people are unfamiliar with the Grazon issue! Very sorry it happened to you, but glad you are getting the word out. I don’t believe for a minute that it’s safe for animals or people any more than roundup is. Prayers for you guys.
Thank you for your in depth study of this poison herbicide I am sure that God will lead you and have a wonderful garden so prayers are going onward for you
You "blow my mind"......you are sharing so much knowledge. Thanks.......I'm 72.........wish I could have had all this information years ago. Thanks, Constance. So, no veggies this year?
“This is like Round Up. It kills weeds. But never fear! If animals eat it, they will be fine. It won’t hurt or kill them”…..How the heck could anyone believe that!! Omg Constance…I’m so sorry this has happened to you. I really hope this can be rectified….♥️. Thank God the plants can tell you theirs a problem……
I have had successful gardens for 55 years. The last couple of years I planted a small garden at my husband's farm. My plants absolutely did not thrive. Each year I had about 6 tomato plants and a dozen pepper plants of different varieties. They stayed more stunted than they should have been. Long story short - the last four years they were mulched with old prairie hay. I think there must have been an herbicide issue now that I watch your video. My plants didn't look like yours but they were a complete waste of time and money. Before your video I planned to plant a few things in mineral tubs and call it good. Thanks!
All good stuff, perhaps add in some new gardening tactics? Try daikon or “tillage” radish in some of the packed clay areas. You may be able to find some new spots where you can grow your soil. The back to Eden gardening documentary is also a very good way to grow the soil. Just try a few different ways and see what works best in your area. That wooded area behind you may have some no-cost compost, too.
Jeff here from the mountains in Western Arkansas. We grow rocks. I had an issue with contaminated compost from a big box store in Fort Smith early this year. From what I learned it was probably a Grazon issue or a similar herbicide. In making my potting mixes I had certain containers that were affected but others that were not, so I narrowed it down to what I think was one or two bags that were bad. I am changing to container gardening so it was easy to isolate those containers, but in ground it will be harder to control. Best of luck and hope to see more updates on this.
My Update. My potato plants yellowed and started to wilt over the weekend so I dumped the first tub and here’s what I found. The layer in the bottom of the tub contained the suspect compost, the added layers after that were a mix of screened soil and peat. The root systems on the plants were tennis ball size, everything in the original bottom layer was gone, no roots, no tubers, nothing. The small root balls and the few potatoes had formed in the upper layers and from 7 plants I harvested less than 24 small potatoes, the largest of which is about 2/3 the size of a tennis ball. Now that I have narrowed down my personal issues with all my plant problems to the bagged compost I have another issue. I planted a greens tower and a strawberry in that same mix, and now I have plants dying in both of those planters. My remedy is screening horse manure compost I hauled in and mixing it with peat since I know the horse was never fed hay that was sprayed with anything. So be cautious and best of luck with your gardens.
I’m so sorry you are having this issue. Danny and Wanda @DeepSouth Homestead had the same trouble on their homestead. Several different ppl have. It’s getting crazy at the trash that’s in our soil .
Constance, since you already have the zucchini and are planning on planting sunflowers in that bed you should try the three sisters companion planting.
Thank you for making these videos snd i am so sorry for your loss. I wonder if there is a list of companies and/or products to avoid.....that is now known.......
My garlic bed went sideways on me last year, right now, it's bursting with 6ft sunflower plants. I love the bean test. Im going to plant a few in my 5 other raised beds to see what happens! Then, back to mushroom. Never used hay, just our own chicken manure but who knows, they want us dependent on them, not ourselves. Blessings
Your logic is good, Constance. Good to see you muchly recovered, and going well! Thankyou for sharing your Real Life with us, and teaching so much in the process...🌱Cotyledons🌱 Hah! (It's all in there... whether it comes to the recall department sooner, rather than later, is anyone's guess! 😏 Today is a good day...😊👍)Cotyledons, yeah!🌱🌱🌱 (seed leaves). Glad to be of service. Love, hugs and prayers for you and yours. Happy Mothers' Day for all Aussie Mums! Keep on... 😊👍❤🫂✝️x0
Good Luck! Hope it all works out. Sorry you had to deal with this crap. It just stinks that people have to do this. My local dairy has always given us good composted cow manure thank God! Nothing is a guarantee.
I am heartbroken for you 🥺. It's important to also be aware when you are having loads of chips dumped by a tree service that you may encounter chipped walnut tree. Very, very damaging to plants!
I'm so sorry this happened to you. I heard a number of people have had this problem the last 4 years. My question would be would you really want to eat the food that is produced around grazon, even if the plant?veggie looked good? I don't think I would. Its bad enough thinking it could be in the meat we eat.
I'm not sure that just the soil from the mushrooms will work. When this happened to Jess she did something with mushrooms but I'm not sure what. She also used compost tea extensively. I believe It took her a full year to remediate things.
Bought 6 bags of soil for two raised beds two years ago. NOTHING will grow in that "dirt!" I followed Roots & Refuge during her episode with it. Such a shame. So far, we're good this year with in ground and wicking tubs and a few raised beds that weren't contaminated. I'm pleased with wicking tubs; had mine for four years and they're still doing well. Emptied one that had ants and the milk jug watering system was still in good shape. I'll come and get your asparagus or rendezvous in Ozark! lol My six plants are all males! Fail! Hope you solve it soon!
I’ve been monitoring my garden and have noticed the same problems you have. I got my soil from an organic yard. I spent a small fortune and am very afraid I have poisoned my garden also.
I am wondering if you have just explained what’s going on in my grow bags. I used bagged composted manure last year to build my new bags. And my plants just sat there until they died. Not knowing why, I thought maybe I had mixed it too hot. So I let those bags sit. This year I added potting soil and placed healthy plants which looked happy for about 2 days. Then the leaves started to yellow and the new growth looks dark and curled. I’m going to check them as soon as the sun comes up. What if i pull the plants out and dump the dirt and start with fresh potting soil. Being that the plants have only been in the soil a week, can I save them? Still watching the video. Def doing the bean test!! Your soil! Yes! My ground is rocks. No traditional garden possible here!
Ask Jessica, I think mushrooms may have been part of her remedy. She has someone who works for them who is proficient in mushrooms and may have had some input.
I’ve been using Black Kow for years. It was incredible stuff. Starting in 2021 I used just as usual. All the sudden I’m loosing crops. Ive heard people talking about it. I have about ten bags remaining I don’t trust anymore. I have heard, plant a test bean since they show the effects faster. So now I’m testing my compost every year. Smh. Just something else our gardens and we have to do just to grow our own food.
Maybe it's worth to make a soiltest before doing anything to the soil? Maybe it's not Grazon but something that can be solved? I hope so!❤ It didn't really look like Grazon to me, the leaves on the plants were not curled up, like they usually are when it's caused by pyralides from Grazon etc... Maybe there is something else? But Grazon and everything that has pyralides in it, or harm our gardens, should be banned! ❌
Listen to Homesteading Family's video, about a month ago, titled The Lab Tests Came Back. That was shocking! How much they have in their bodies. Where they live and how they homestead; to test that high is scary.
Homesteading Family here on YT (that grows all their own food) recently did a video about how the whole family had high toxic levels of glyphosate in their bloodstream. They are currently testing to find the cause but the husband suspects their cattle hay as the culprit as that is the only thing they aren’t supplying themselves that isn’t organically sourced.
Aww Constance, I cried for you ... I am sure God will guide your footsteps. Praying for you.
I have seen several youtubers complaining that they lost their gardens due to the cow manure they purchased this year. It all makes sense now.
I feel like the big ag plan is to get enough chemicals out there that only GMO seeds will work. Those seeds will be one shot, so they have to be purchased every year.
Constance, I watched the video that you informed us about your poisoned beds. And watched this one all the way through. Thank you for educating your audience and doing it honestly.
My house was built over a drainage canal of some sort. You dig down a few inches and find river rock. I'm doing raised beds, too. I never knew about the bean test! Thank you for sharing it. God Bless!
I have raise beds too, because of tans of river rocks and clay.
Thanks for sharing and educating . I have been hearing a lot about Grazon . I Remember the heart break of Roots and Refuge with their encounter. . Thanks again Constance. Ninette Bird- The Caribbean Wife . Tx
Plant corn. This happened to Scott Head here on YT a couple years ago. He has a fantastic video on all the research he did about grazon, what plants it targets, and what cover crops will take it up.
Thank you for the bean test method. I have 2 sets of composted manure ill be planting beans in sunday to make sure it's not contaminated. I love how you said " I have my boots on and it's time to get to work". Shalom
Constance, I'm pushing 70 and loving gardening in Ark. I've run across almost every problem there is and there is usually a solution. Let's start building that 3' of FREE garden base that you would dream of having. You will need a year and a half of patience but believe it or not it will start at 3' breaking down and literally hundreds of square yards of this natural God given material that breaks down on this beautiful Arkansas rock.
Homestead Heart just went through this too. She lost most of her large garden. My heart breaks for you and everyone dealing with this. We as a group MUST find a way to stop this. One pod caster had high levels showing up in her blood test and they were homesteading for years. It's a real problem.
Her garden was due to Green manure from Black Cow. They didn't fully compost it before they sold it.
Seems like talking to the county extension offices would be a good place to start, and our state legislature people. Big Ag or whoever are not all evil and may be willing to help. In spite of some people saying this is a stupid idea.
Didn’t Black Cow have Grazon in their manure too?
You have such a Great Heart Constance! I knew Jesus was using your garden to teach other’s & that’s why we Love you! You are definitely a teacher & not at heart but for real & we Thank You! I hope you feel our Prayers🙏🙏🙏Blessing’s
Thank you Laura. You are so sweet.
I so agree!! ❤️❤️❤️
I have been gardening for many years. I put in very healthy looking tomatoes,, peppers, chillies and lettuce plants into big pots of expensive potting soil. They grew for a while until they looked the same as your poisoned plants. Never had a problem before, l think the potting soil was poisoned too. I am from Australia, l think this is a world wide problem. Thank you so much for your informative videos.
I lost almost ALL of my plant starts this year because of the organic soil I bought at Home Depot. I think this was an agenda.
So sorry this happened to you Constance….you have, however, saved me some of the pain you have experienced…we garden organically and have raised beds. We will be extending our garden with more raised beds in the coming weeks as we can’t pant till the end of May. I have done my homework as a result of your video and can only say, thank you…and I am so sorry this must hurt so much…
Take care, do something good for yourself….you deserve it!
Thank you Denise. That is my hope in sharing this information. The more people that know, the more gardens will hopefully be safe.
Wake up, America’s, why would you go to the lawmakers, the very people who are doing this to us?
Yes, expecting those who created or allowed the problem to fix it...seems an exercise in futility.
Exactly. I learned a hard lesson this year; make my own dirt and compost. I can't trust the bagged dirt.
I am involved in the system. There ARE honest people in there who are there because they are fighting injustices. They are very much the minority but they make waves and need to be supported. Find them and support them. The political system is supposed to work like that. Being hands off with our representatives is what got us into this mess.
My heart felt and good wishes for heathy soil are for you. God bless you and your homestead.
I also heard Homestead Hearts saying that she purchased Black Cow Compost this year and it killed all her plants that she used it on , she was surprised because she has used that for years . She said she must have gotten some that was not composed long enough .
Seen that video, she said it had a strong ammonia odor. Decimated their garden! Sad, all that work lost.... Seems like nothing is trustworthy or reliable anymore.
I seen that too, very sad. If you have trees on your property then save them in the fall and use them for your compost.
A friend of mine had this happen to their garden 2 years ago. He decided to just plant cover crops in his raised beds until his soil is cleaned. He planted a few beans in each of his beds about 3 weeks ago. They all still showed the Grazon effect. He did clear a couple of places in his yard so he could at least plant the staples. I have read that it could take at least 5 years to save the poisoned soil.
David The Good reports up to 10 yrs. It’s devastating!
The sunflower thing makes sense. I live by an apple orchard and they recently bought more land from a farmer. It was empty for maybe a year or two and then they started planting apple trees little by little. In the land where they hadn’t planted apple trees, they planted sunflowers. Each year there were less and less sunflowers and now the field is full of new apple trees. I can’t remember what was planted in that field in years before because it has been empty for so long. I know they are now doing this with another piece of land that they used for parking for customers. They are adding sunflowers in small sections. That land has been an empty field for years. Good luck with your garden and thank you for sharing.
That is a chemical burndown. I had not heard of Grazon till the previous video, the first video of yours I watched. I did some research and the active ingredient is Picloram. That's the same ingredient in another herbicide I am familiar with, Tordon. That is nasty stuff, it doesn't bond to the soil and makes it way clear to the water table. It was used to make Agent White and help spike Agent Orange used in the Vietnam War. It can make it through the digestive tract of animals, it makes one seriously ponder how much contaminated meat we eat from ranchers who use it on a regular basis, livestock raised on pasture before being sent off to the feedyards to fatten. You have my sympathies for sure! Heartbreaking to watch the plants you pampered die from something you have no control over. Your bad experience has been a learning lesson for MANY including this new subscriber.
University of Texas recommend starting beans and watering with a tea made from compost/ manure to check for grazon contamination. Darn shame when you can’t even use your own compost to add to your garden.
I just found out that Grazon is a restricted pesticide here in Oregon since July of 2023. It is listed on our State Agriculture website, along with a very long list of other restricted pesticides!
There are some places that you have to have a license to use it. That’s probably what “restricted” means. But sadly, still legal, and probably widely used.
@@CosmopolitanCornbread just awful! We don’t need all this poison amongst us!
thank you for being real!! showing your pain actually helps others to realize how this can be costly & the fact you share the bad along with the good, shows your heart & kindness toward others. We have learned a lot from your willingness to share mistakes. Many people edit & only share the good! Thanks for the friendship. Praying God blesses you in a great abundance of joy this week !
Thank you for that. I'm very much a "what you see is what you get" person. I think only showing the good, does a disservice to others. I want to encourage others, and it's okay to "fail" sometimes, because we all do! But then we can figure out what to do and learn from it. 💙
You are really educating us. Thank you so much.
Constance if I could I would come by and help you fix your garden beds. Been watching you for a long time now, and I could feel your disappointment. This will be an important learning curve for your new gardeners, and I know they appreciate your sharing. Take care of yourself. God Bless
I have heard of these issues, but you are the only one that has more information. I like the bean test idea & hopefully the sunflowers beauty will make this easier to deal with
Suggestion, go into the wooded areas of your land, use the composted leaves of years gone by, ❤
My husband and I found an independent lab in Camilla GA, we contacted them, spent the money and testing supplies are on the way. Six soil samples, 4 plant samples, 1 fertilizer sample, 1 feed sample, and one water sample.
Thank you for sharing your experience-God’s blessing be upon you.
One thing that gardening teaches us for sure, is patience and resilience - and you have both in bucketful's. I hope that your situation improves with all the things you talked about in this video.
Take care, and thank you for sharing your positive attitude with us xx
I also live in Arkansas and yes the rock's are very plentiful to put it mildly. I am trying to get raised beds built but my husband and I are both disabled with limited mobility so it's very slow, we have tried to hire help but we just can't find anyone that wants to work
Can I ask what part of the state you are in? I'm in an Arkansas homesteading group on FB. Maybe someone would know of a person that would like a side job.
@@CosmopolitanCornbread I'm in North Central not far from the Missouri border. Thank you, 🙏🙏 for your garden situation
My neighbor had this issue 2 years in a row. She buys new soil each year and dumps it on top of the old. Having left the plants to rot the rest of the season. Using well known brand MG dirt . I have not added anything new to my soil. I use epsom salt around each plant when I first put them in the ground ,once the plant matures a bit I use Alaska fish plant food every couple of weeks. My tomatoes love it ! My basil & lettuce grew crazy huge. My peppers didn’t fair well at all . The plants grew but put out few.
0:33 ...and she's back in action. Wisdom isn't won easily. Take what she gives you and run with it.
4:31 contamination is widespread. Be aware of what you put into the soil that grows your food.
7:05 our land needs our healing hands
9:22 viruses in the garden...
10:17 view of plant leaf after growing in contaminated soil...
12:40 planting beans as a test run
14:53 gardening on the rocks
20:27 emptying the contaminated beds, growing corn/sunflowers to restore the soil
23:06 ❤
I am so sorry that you have to go through all of this.😢. I am glad and thankful you shared all of this with us. I have learned a ton from the information you have shared. This will be our first season of raised garden beds. We have always done the traditional garden, but with just me and my husband, we don’t need a full sized garden anymore. I will definitely be checking on the plants more closely and frequently to be sure they are growing properly. Thank you again Constance! ❤
We did raised beds this year. Look into hukelkultur. It will save u on the amount of soil needed to fill the beds. We filled with logs and branches and then leaves on top of that its working well so far. So sorry for your garden loss. Hopefully you will be able to salvage what you can
Bought some store bought cow manure , used three ago months to supplement in two raised gardens, my beans , jalepanoe, capsicum this season failed, noticed these plants had rolled leaves, dropping off. Capsicums never produced. My other bins are flourishing don't believe I used it in other bins. Just bought same manure, to use in making my new compost pile this yr. Have already used in two piles. Will be trying your tricks to test my soil. Thank You
Love the education on this. I have been gardening in raised beds now since 2022, and I'm in zone 9b SW Florida. With each plant I grow, I learn something new. I just learned this week about vine borers on zucchini and summer squash and the damage they can do to your plants and when they are most active in SW Florida from May - October I just had to pull all my squash and some cantalope because of this. I simply planted these at the wrong time for my zone. You're not supposed to leave any roots in the soil because they lay their eggs near the roots and will hatch the next season. It's May and hot and humid here. I will be planting long beans to fix the soil. Thanks for sharing your garden trials and tribulations. May God restore your garden for you without the big expense to do so. 😊
Yes, vine borers are terrible! Gardening is a continual learning process. There’s always something new ❤️
Thank you for sharing! I had no idea either.
Trying to help others not have this happen!
Becky over at Acre Homestead, orders Vermont Compost, it comes in bags, delivered to you. She loves the stuff
Oh Constance,
I’m so sorry…. 🥴🥲
I do remember your beautiful gardens in Alabama, they were amazing!
I also remember those tomato plants that went wonky…🤪
I also remember those beyond beautiful sunflowers you grew, they were just amazing!!🌻🌻
I’m truly sorry, but I know you will persevere through this and you’ll come out blessed in many ways!
Sending love and blessings to you and your family.❤
~ Deirdre in NE Oklahoma
In the book Jadam by youngsun cho, he explains how he used JMS (jadam microbial solution) to destroy the chemicals on his land and now it's an oasis of fresh food. Maybe this will remove the grazon
So sorry you had to go through this. Thank you for the bean test info. Danny from Deep South had put out a warning 2 years ago and I've been asking the local stable if they're aware of their product. I've held off and with chickens am producing barely enough of my own. Leaf mold is definietly being figured in more and may do a cover crop green manure of rye or alfalfa over the winter.
You are in your 50s?? You look like you're in your 30s! You are blessed indeed. Best wishes on your soil remediation. Greetings from central Florida.
Thank you 😊 yes, in my 50s and grandmother of 2 ❤️
❤❤❤Feels good to put the plan into action! Be blessed girlfriend! Still praying❤❤❤
We also make our own compost. We do not have animals so no manure. But we use all our veggie kitchen scraps and leaves, and we supplement our soil each year. Our soil seems very nutritious but I live in the Sandhills of NC and I have never seen a worm in our garden. Really weird. The only worms I see are on our front concrete walkway after a rain, those skinny worms that dry up. I’m glad you’re on your way to fixing the situation. You’ve been in my prayers. It will be alright, you’ll get it done. If I lived close to you I would help you.😘❤🙏🏻✨
I am so sorry you are suffering through this. I heard about Grazon 2 years ago from Next Level Homestead. Check him out because he figured out a solution for his contaminated beds. I stopped buying any bagged soils and composts at that time. Also no hay either. I have been busting my 60+ year old hiney the last 2 falls collecting all my leaves to compost, Along with my house hold scraps. My beds are starting to look pretty good now. Constance, one good thing for you, is those large piles of wood chips you've reciently aquired will eventually break down to some really nice composted soil. Thank you so very much for being so informative!
Constance, thank you so much for sharing all of this information, as it will be so helpful to so many people. I bought potting soil that smelled awful. Makes you wonder about any bagged products doesn't it? Prayers everything works out for you, so sorry this happened. God bless you.
Hey there kiddo. Where I live I have dirt in rocks like you. Looks like to me you may need to use your mulch pile for future beds. I got free mulch & piled it high. 1year later my pile had sunk half way. later it was lower. it is not an over night solution but adding the mulch to fill my beds back up each fall. I made some 2x4 wire fencing hoops and fill them to the top with leaves. In fall people rake leaves and put them on the curb in plastic bags-i ask for them and load them up and went home. In the bags they are not going anywhere till you need them. Use of mulch and leaves are the way to go for me-for you it may be different. I am like you and just moved I must start all over again. This problem is not leaving anytime soon. I watch a lot of videos learning from good sound advice. You must come up with a plan and go to work. I watch you regularly & enjoy it. Have a good day. I love you. Dewayne Willis
So sorry!! Wow, that is just horrific! Thank you for making this video
Smart bean start testing ❤ THANKS
So, sorry Constance...this is hard to hear after all your hard work! Everything will be okay...God will help you through this set-back! Praying for You! ❤🙏
3:29 hello kitty kat
A few years ago when people were having trouble with black kow I switched to mushroom compost & never looked back. It has been great. I sometimes supplement with worm castings. I believe where you bought this raised bed mix also sells a mushroom mix. No animal composting/fertilizer. Too many things can happen.
Just saying, that Constance used animal manure from her own animals... it was in their feed...! 🐎 Good idea about the mushroom compost... hardly likely to have been sprayed, one would think.
I'm so sorry. Jessica at Roots & Refuge went through this with compost. She vlob the process of cleaning the beds. Best of luck & many blessing ahead
Thank you for the information.
I loved your video
Oh so sad for you. Also I’m now afraid to mulch with straw or bring in manure. I’m going to plant beans first to test the soil. Thank you for sharing your experience, so we can all learn, I had no idea!!
I am so sorry , I found out the hard way about Grazon and hay also , keep your chin up , you inspire so many ❤
Thank you for sharing. Peace and blessings.
Wow, so surprise that many people are unfamiliar with the Grazon issue! Very sorry it happened to you, but glad you are getting the word out. I don’t believe for a minute that it’s safe for animals or people any more than roundup is. Prayers for you guys.
Peanuts are also used by farmers to remediate cotton - which is highly sprayed with pesticides.
Thank you for your in depth study of this poison herbicide I am sure that God will lead you and have a wonderful garden so prayers are going onward for you
You "blow my mind"......you are sharing so much knowledge. Thanks.......I'm 72.........wish I could have had all this information years ago. Thanks, Constance. So, no veggies this year?
Lord willing, there will still be veggies. Thankfully we have a long growing season. Next week I am starting more seeds.
“This is like Round Up. It kills weeds. But never fear! If animals eat it, they will be fine. It won’t hurt or kill them”…..How the heck could anyone believe that!! Omg Constance…I’m so sorry this has happened to you. I really hope this can be rectified….♥️. Thank God the plants can tell you theirs a problem……
I have had successful gardens for 55 years. The last couple of years I planted a small garden at my husband's farm. My plants absolutely did not thrive. Each year I had about 6 tomato plants and a dozen pepper plants of different varieties. They stayed more stunted than they should have been. Long story short - the last four years they were mulched with old prairie hay. I think there must have been an herbicide issue now that I watch your video. My plants didn't look like yours but they were a complete waste of time and money. Before your video I planned to plant a few things in mineral tubs and call it good. Thanks!
Thank you for sharing.
Your rock garden looks like mine. We're in Madison county. So sorry you're dealing with this. I wish you the best.
All good stuff, perhaps add in some new gardening tactics? Try daikon or “tillage” radish in some of the packed clay areas. You may be able to find some new spots where you can grow your soil. The back to Eden gardening documentary is also a very good way to grow the soil. Just try a few different ways and see what works best in your area. That wooded area behind you may have some no-cost compost, too.
Made some manure tea and pour on your beds along with the sunflowers
Jeff here from the mountains in Western Arkansas. We grow rocks.
I had an issue with contaminated compost from a big box store in Fort Smith early this year. From what I learned it was probably a Grazon issue or a similar herbicide.
In making my potting mixes I had certain containers that were affected but others that were not, so I narrowed it down to what I think was one or two bags that were bad.
I am changing to container gardening so it was easy to isolate those containers, but in ground it will be harder to control.
Best of luck and hope to see more updates on this.
My Update.
My potato plants yellowed and started to wilt over the weekend so I dumped the first tub and here’s what I found.
The layer in the bottom of the tub contained the suspect compost, the added layers after that were a mix of screened soil and peat.
The root systems on the plants were tennis ball size, everything in the original bottom layer was gone, no roots, no tubers, nothing.
The small root balls and the few potatoes had formed in the upper layers and from 7 plants I harvested less than 24 small potatoes, the largest of which is about 2/3 the size of a tennis ball.
Now that I have narrowed down my personal issues with all my plant problems to the bagged compost I have another issue.
I planted a greens tower and a strawberry in that same mix, and now I have plants dying in both of those planters.
My remedy is screening horse manure compost I hauled in and mixing it with peat since I know the horse was never fed hay that was sprayed with anything.
So be cautious and best of luck with your gardens.
Great video! Very informative.
Thank you!
I’m so sorry you are having this issue. Danny and Wanda @DeepSouth Homestead had the same trouble on their homestead. Several different ppl have. It’s getting crazy at the trash that’s in our soil .
Yes it is
Clover is also supposed to help pull contaminants out, as well...
Constance, since you already have the zucchini and are planning on planting sunflowers in that bed you should try the three sisters companion planting.
I don't know that the beans of the trio would work, with beans being so susceptible to the herbicide. I may throw a few in and just see what happens.
Thank you for your wisdom and knowledge. May the Lord bless you!
Thank you for making these videos snd i am so sorry for your loss. I wonder if there is a list of companies and/or products to avoid.....that is now known.......
My garlic bed went sideways on me last year, right now, it's bursting with 6ft sunflower plants. I love the bean test. Im going to plant a few in my 5 other raised beds to see what happens! Then, back to mushroom. Never used hay, just our own chicken manure but who knows, they want us dependent on them, not ourselves. Blessings
Your logic is good, Constance. Good to see you muchly recovered, and going well! Thankyou for sharing your Real Life with us, and teaching so much in the process...🌱Cotyledons🌱 Hah! (It's all in there... whether it comes to the recall department sooner, rather than later, is anyone's guess! 😏 Today is a good day...😊👍)Cotyledons, yeah!🌱🌱🌱 (seed leaves). Glad to be of service. Love, hugs and prayers for you and yours. Happy Mothers' Day for all Aussie Mums! Keep on... 😊👍❤🫂✝️x0
And any other Mums celebrating today! 😊❤🎀💐
Good Luck! Hope it all works out. Sorry you had to deal with this crap. It just stinks that people have to do this. My local dairy has always given us good composted cow manure thank God! Nothing is a guarantee.
Love your headband❤
Thank you :)
I am heartbroken for you 🥺. It's important to also be aware when you are having loads of chips dumped by a tree service that you may encounter chipped walnut tree. Very, very damaging to plants!
I'm so sorry for your loss. Can you plant sunflowers to draw up the poisonous herbicide? Hugs and prayers for God to restore your land!
Roundup is illegal to use in Canada.
I think it is also sprayed over / around/ under power lines! Often here they spray it by airplane!
That is terrible!
I'm so sorry this happened to you. I heard a number of people have had this problem the last 4 years. My question would be would you really want to eat the food that is produced around grazon, even if the plant?veggie looked good? I don't think I would. Its bad enough thinking it could be in the meat we eat.
I'm not sure that just the soil from the mushrooms will work. When this happened to Jess she did something with mushrooms but I'm not sure what. She also used compost tea extensively. I believe It took her a full year to remediate things.
Bought 6 bags of soil for two raised beds two years ago. NOTHING will grow in that "dirt!" I followed Roots & Refuge during her episode with it. Such a shame. So far, we're good this year with in ground and wicking tubs and a few raised beds that weren't contaminated. I'm pleased with wicking tubs; had mine for four years and they're still doing well. Emptied one that had ants and the milk jug watering system was still in good shape. I'll come and get your asparagus or rendezvous in Ozark! lol My six plants are all males! Fail! Hope you solve it soon!
I've been reading that activated charcoal can absorb herbicides in soil.
Homestead Heart reported the same problem.
I’ve been monitoring my garden and have noticed the same problems you have. I got my soil from an organic yard. I spent a small fortune and am very afraid I have poisoned my garden also.
😩
I am wondering if you have just explained what’s going on in my grow bags. I used bagged composted manure last year to build my new bags. And my plants just sat there until they died. Not knowing why, I thought maybe I had mixed it too hot. So I let those bags sit. This year I added potting soil and placed healthy plants which looked happy for about 2 days. Then the leaves started to yellow and the new growth looks dark and curled. I’m going to check them as soon as the sun comes up. What if i pull the plants out and dump the dirt and start with fresh potting soil. Being that the plants have only been in the soil a week, can I save them? Still watching the video. Def doing the bean test!! Your soil! Yes! My ground is rocks. No traditional garden possible here!
Ask Jessica, I think mushrooms may have been part of her remedy. She has someone who works for them who is proficient in mushrooms and may have had some input.
I’ve been using Black Kow for years. It was incredible stuff. Starting in 2021 I used just as usual. All the sudden I’m loosing crops. Ive heard people talking about it. I have about ten bags remaining I don’t trust anymore. I have heard, plant a test bean since they show the effects faster. So now I’m testing my compost every year. Smh. Just something else our gardens and we have to do just to grow our own food.
It sounds like you have a good plan for moving forward. So frustrating. I hope the fixes work and it’s minimally painful. ❤
Maybe it's worth to make a soiltest before doing anything to the soil?
Maybe it's not Grazon but something that can be solved? I hope so!❤
It didn't really look like Grazon to me, the leaves on the plants were not curled up, like they usually are when it's caused by pyralides from Grazon etc... Maybe there is something else?
But Grazon and everything that has pyralides in it, or harm our gardens, should be banned! ❌
So sorry for your lose. Pray your plans workout.
Hmm does the Grason seep into the wood frames of the raised beds, hence still will contaminate your new soil?
😳😲 Woo didn't think of this but great question ❓⁉️
Listen to Homesteading Family's video, about a month ago, titled The Lab Tests Came Back. That was shocking! How much they have in their bodies. Where they live and how they homestead; to test that high is scary.
It is terrible how toxic our world has become. There is no wonder whatsoever why we see all that we do in our "health."
Thank you so much for this. I saw another guy uses wheat straw. He let's it sit out for a while. Look up millennial gardener.
God bless you❤
Is there any sort of testing kit you can get that tests for herbicides?
I haven’t come across any.