EvoOrganic’s Weed Free Blanket and Web site save water and support thriving organic gardening market
LEXINGTON, Ky., April 1, 2009 — Few industries are thriving and many are barely surviving as our nation suffers through its current financial crises. But a “top 10″ list published recently by U.S. News says a handful of businesses and product lines are winners in the 2009 recession. The list, which includes McDonald’s restaurants, professionals who edit resumes and producers of condoms, cites home gardening as the No. 1 way in which Americans are battling against tough times. Home gardening will jump 20 percent this year, the publication estimates.
Entrepreneur Rick Baker may not have seen the recession coming, but when he formed his company, “EvoOrganic,” in 2006, his keen instincts about the needs of individuals and communities everywhere appeared once again to be right on the money. At the heart of Baker’s company is a product called the Weed Free Garden Blanket and an online gardening community, GroSmarter.com.
Baker, the former CEO of an Internet technology company that launched fourteen Web companies, including Rovion.com, owns a small farm in Versailles, Ky., where he and his wife, Tish, have embraced sustainable and organic gardening and have become part of a growing worldwide “green” trend.
Rarely does one travel more than a few miles without seeing bumper stickers such as “Live Green,” “Grow Green,” “Think Green” or even “Green is Cool” smoothed across the back of luxury cars and jalopies alike.
EvoOrganic’s Weed Free Garden Blanket is designed to preserve water as well as prevent sprouting weeds. Slow-drip irrigation tubes (connected to a garden hose) run through the blanket much like heating lines run through an electric blanket. Gardeners spread the blanket on tilled soil and cut slits (through which seeds are planted into the soil) in the blanket between the drip tubes. The blanket seals moisture deeply in the roots while eliminating evaporation and preventing weeds from growing.
“According to the USDA, 71 percent of all water drawn in the world is drawn for agriculture,” says EvoOrganic CEO Baker. “Our Weed Free Garden Blanket method conserves up to 80 percent of the water used in growing vegetables, herbs, flowers and landscape plants. It’s a great way to conserve water and still get great growing results. With the growing world water crisis, blue is definitely the new green.”
GroSmarter.com is an online community for people who love to grow vegetables, plants, shrubs, flowers, even lawns – and who choose sustainable gardening. At the heart of the system is O.G.R.E., the “Online Garden Resource.” O.G.R.E. is a live database of PLANT, PEST, DISEASE and PRODUCT information. Users can build their own personal garden online and generate a Customized Care Guide for their garden. It allows gardeners to adjust plant dates, watering times, fertilization and pest and disease treatments based on conditions within the user’s specific zip code and climate zone.
The site’s goal is to connect PUBLIC USERS with LOCAL and NATIONAL EXPERTS. GroSmarter.com is building contact databases for University Extension Programs, Local Agricultural Extension Agents and Independent Garden Retailers. In the not-too-distant future, members will have access to TEXT AUDIO and VIDEO CHAT with Garden Gurus to find answers to almost any growing question. The site promises to be one of the most comprehensive organic gardening resources on the Internet.
“The system of growing that we are promoting is based on the best practices of organic growers across the world,” Baker said. “It saves consumers and farmers time, water and money. What we have done is make it possible to follow this practice without expensive machinery used in large-scale production.”
For those who have experienced the joys of backyard gardening yet grown weary and worried about back-breaking weeding and harsh chemical herbicides, EvoOrganic is offering an easier, safer and more economical way to plant and grow. And for those who haven’t gardened? There’s never been a better time to start.
The Weed Free Garden Blanket is available on the http://www.GroSmarter.com site or by calling 1-800-731-6461.
Contact:
Rena Vicini
EvoOrganic, Inc.
800-731-6461
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