This is a guest post by Terry Wallace

I just came in from the garden with my basket full of fresh strawberries. I often stand in the strawberry bed and eat a few—sometimes quite a few. There’s nothing like a ripe strawberry fresh from the garden, juicy, fragrant, sweet, and safe. Commercially grown strawberries are at the top of the “dirty dozen” list of plants that are laced with pesticides. I am safe eating mine in the garden because no pesticide has ever touched them.

Growing healthy organic vegetables is not as hard as you might believe. Taking care of the soil and selecting appropriate varieties for your area ensure a successful harvest. There is a special joy in eating vegetables and fruits when you have taken part in the process, from sprouting seeds to serving them. They taste better, are higher in nutrients, and they’re free from pesticides and herbicides. Not all of us can grow our own produce, but we can support farms that adhere to safe, sustainable practices.

Unfortunately, the pesticide industry has convinced consumers that their products are safe and healthy, as well as harmless for people and pets. As a result, pesticides are readily available in our country. They are cheap and easy to use. Pesticides are sold in big box stores, grocery stores, hardware stores, and even large pharmacies. Easy access to pesticides reinforces the message that pesticides are harmless. Pesticides with the highest level of toxicity are registered for commercial use.

But pesticides are not harmless and exposure to them has consequences. They have to be registered with the EPA and most state environmental protection agencies because they are dangerous (since they are designed to kill living organisms). Pesticides are found in air, water, soil, rain, and fog. Exposure occurs through inhalation, consumption of food, and absorption through skin and eyes. Pesticides are found in human blood, urine, and breastmilk.

What can we do to minimize our exposure to these chemicals? Avoiding treated lawn areas is a start. Popular weed and feed products used on lawns contain 2,4D, which is linked to certain cancers. It disrupts hormones, the thyroid, the immune system, and reproductive functions in mammals, and it causes neurotoxicity. The chemical 2,4D is a major component of Agent Orange used in the Vietnam War, leaving behind horrendous birth defects that are still occurring to this day. Keep off the grass is very good advice!

A picture-perfect lawn is an unnatural and expensive form of land management. It must be maintained by fertilizing, watering, pesticide treatment, and mowing. For lawns that will be used for walking or playing, less toxic options are available, including maintaining healthy soils by using organic fertilizers, growing diverse species, mowing at 3 inches or higher, and withholding pesticides.

Earthworms aerate the soil and keep plants healthy when given the opportunity to thrive. Rain gardens flourish in damp places and help control runoff. On slopes, meadows are a good solution. They support biodiversity and retain healthy soil while requiring mowing annually instead of weekly. Mixed species lawns survive dry spells, and healthy diverse plantings tolerate insect predation and continue growing. Meadows and mixed species lawns shelter pollinators and help to feed the birds. Our love of pristine lawn comes with a high price, both environmentally and financially.

Another way to minimize our exposure to pesticides is to avoid consuming them in our food. Most of us cannot grow our own vegetables, but many of us have access to small local producers of certified organic meats, vegetables, and dairy products. Fortunately, grocery stores offer organically grown food. It may cost a little more, but isn’t our health and the health of the earth worth it? Organic fruits and vegetables taste better, are more nourishing, and safe. By supporting organic practices, we lead the way to a healthy environment for our children and grandchildren and help to save the earth.