If an herb has historical and clinical uses to treat anxiety, if it also is shown to reduce anxiety in mice, if it is also shown to be a potent GABA agonist in experiments with nerve tissue, and if I take it and feel quite relaxed and my palpitations cease, then my perspective as a scientist is that there is good evidence that the herb in fact does reduce anxiety." No, that's not the perspective of a scientist. It's the opinion of an herb user who wants to believe that a remedy works. That's why you'll never see a scientific study close with remarks by the authors saying "well, our evidence is only preliminary, but since this stuff worked for us we think that no further research is necessary." They'd be laughed out of their profession. There is no "EBM community" at odds with the scientific and medical community. The people who are most interested in optimizing medical care and making it as rational and effective as possible naturally are drawn to these principles, and work closely with physicians and hospitals to promote evidence-based care. When it comes to herbalism, there are basically three sorts of users (conveniently, all three are represented in this thread). First there are those who don't care about scientific validation of herbs (or at least profess this opinion). There are others who strongly believe in the value of good scientific evidence for the safety and efficacy of herbs before they'll use them, especially for more than minor conditions or as substitutes for mainstream therapies. There's also a large group of people who, like apollog, seem to want it both ways. They'll call attention to scientific studies that appear to support their position. But when it's noted that those studies are irrelevant to the topic at hand, limited in important ways and more evidence is needed, they'll fall back on testimonials, point fingers at other types of medical practice (the tu quoque fallacy), or deny the legitimacy of scientific inquiry that invalidates their arguments. This latter form of denial can be summarized as "Your science can never adequately measure my brand of woo." This is what has people devoted to sound scientific inquiry and rational medicine shaking their heads. They want advocates of all forms of health care to follow the rules by which the value of care can be established, including valid research and disciplined clinical observation. Unfortunately there are still self-styled advocates of herbalism who think the rules apply only when convenient. LOL.

Welcome all, finally got ahold of my state dept of health and environment person about how a sewer sedimentation pond in this state can be handle when it's got too much solids in it: 1) stop putting sewage in it and let it dry down completely. 2) dig the solids out 3) take a representative sample of the solids and submit to the state's lab for analysis 4) apply to the land at state recommended rates. The land can only be planted to non-food crops for a certain time period but can be planted to crops that animals will consume such as milo or field corn. Pasture is also a suitable land for solids distribution. So what do you think, good use for all that waste? Interestingly enough, when properly managed, the solids contained in this type of pond isn't poop, TP and the like, those are the feedstocks for the algae and bacteria in the water that break those down and die. The solids are the dead bodies of an unimaginable number of the algae and bacteria that have died over many years time. OK, I think I've finished stinking up this thread now :)

Dawn I haven't found it anywhere around here yet. The Tractor Supply store has the others you mentioned but I never found Urban Farm unless it sold out quickly. I looked again today but was in a hurry. Saw the others again. I don't go to the Wally World in Guymon unless it is an absolute necessity. Maybe 4-5 times a year. And when I do it is usually for gardening supplies and I'm in a hurry. I will be in Garden City in a few weeks so will do some looking there. I emailed them asking about a subscription last summer and the lady said as of then they were selling subscriptions. Jay

smdane05 - Sounds really good! I've definitely found gardening to be relaxing and interesting. It's work too, but even that's rewarding. I wish I would have started a long time ago. I hope you do well with tomatoes. I'm not sure when would be a good time to start those, as they seem to like warmth. I'll probably start back with them in April or so. I did get a lot of experience with them last summer. I got some good ones, but also had several battles, which I can go into more detail later, if you'd like. As for preserving, I've only dabbled in veggies, and preferring a quick harvest. Maybe this year I can get into fruits. I've read conflicting information that blueberries are either hard or easy to grow. They're so healthy for a person though that it does makes sense to try and grow them. I'd imagine that they would need more sunlight than veggies. Books and reference materials do sound like a great way to go, along with these great online forums. I have a Rodale's Illustrated Guide to Organic Farming (think that's the title) with great information, and an herb book. I too have thought about catching the rainwater, though this past year was certainly not a great one for that. The tricky part around here is making sure the mosquitoes don't get into the water. You know, they'd breed terribly. I haven't seen a water catchment system yet that gets around that, though I have an idea/design to try that might work. I wonder though about using aquarium water. Doesn't it have algae and bacteria, and/or clorine in it? None of those could be good for a healthy garden. Seems risky to me. It's important to strive for good materials in everything you use. I recommend going organic as much as possible, and watch for recycled items with a possible checkered past or connection (even through Wal Mart and Home Depot).