On Thu, 22 Feb 2007 00:57:48 GMT, "Cynthia"
wrote:

g'day cynthia,

1) I live on a main road near the CBD and I grow herbs among the other potted plants in the yard. Does anyone know if there are risks in eating home grown plants in the inner city?

When I sweep the yard, I always collect a layer of sticky diesel dust and for the last year, I've simply thrown this back into the soil, along with any leaves and soils which I've collected. My concern is that the plants we eat will be absorbing the pollutants in the soil and we in turn will be slowly poisoning ourselves.

can't realy say here i would be wanting to know as well as lots of
this material can become solluble to the plant once it is in the soil.

washing off the leaves before use would be an advantage but still may
not be any guarantees, i've heard of a family who live on jubilee tce
ashgrove who can't use their front yard for relaxation as it affects
their healths and those of their pets, that isa very buys road 24/7.

them and their pets where always sick and doc's/vet's had no idea so
money being no objsect they arranged for full testis and samplings
from their front and back gardens.

maybe you could grow your plants out the back keeping the front yard
and home as a buffer? plant some of the smaller trees out front to add
to the buffer, trees seem to trap a lot of that air borne stuff.


2) The other issue was that when I recently spoke to a rep for a company who make small worm farm kits, they told me that it was not a good idea to use the worm castings on vegetable plots. When I asked whatthe reason was for not mixing it into the vegetable plots, the rep said that she couldn't tell me why this was as she didn't know. This seems contrary to any other info I have found on the internet. Does anyone know what the hazards might be or if there are any?

i don't agree with her in that statement actually it si the first time
i ahve ever ehard of such a thing part from anotehr wormer saying worm
wee was no good for plants???? if a agrden is full of worms this stuff
is there in the garden as part of the nutrient cycle for the plants.

None of this is pleasant stuff, but I am already concerned about the damage we may already be experiencing from breathing in diesel fumes on a constant basis.

um yeh that i would expect would be a concern living in or near the
inner city, one reason that keeps me well out in the suburbs.

not only the fall out from fule fumes (cars now deposit cyanide
instead of lead, and the tyer dust is full of lead as well)


Cynthia
With peace and brightest of blessings,

len

--
"Be Content With What You Have And
May You Find Serenity and Tranquillity In
A World That You May Not Understand."

http://www.lensgarden.com.au/