With the attention on first generation corn ethanol fading, the next big thing on the sustainable fuel horizon is nonfood biofuel crops. Within that category, inedible weeds are taking a front-row seat due to their relatively low demands on water, pesticides, and herbicides, and their reduced need for tilling and other mechanized soil prep. Some weeds with biofuel potential can also thrive on contaminated soils, absorbing and cleaning pollutants in a process called phytoremediation.

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1. Pennycress

Photographer Karen Phillips describes Pennycress as a “cool little Brassica” that can grow in nickel-contaminated soil that would kill most plants. A pennycress biofuel facility is in the works for Peoria, Illinois, and upstate New Yorkers are also looking into the weed, more colorfully known by the locals as “stinkweed.”

Image: karenphillips on flickr.com.

2. Amaranthus

Also known as pigweed, Amaranthus is a highly competitive, classified noxious weed that proves how good bad can be. The pesky little devil has garnered praises from researchers at the University of New Mexico for its ideal traits as a biofuel crop including drought tolerance, high rate of photosynthesis, and resistance to disease and pests.

Image: Just chaos on flickr.com.

3. Kudzu

Biofuel could be the redemption song for kudzu, the voracious creeper known as “the plant that ate the south.”Aside from absorbing trees and bushes into an eerie green moonscape, kudzu boasts a hi-carb content that could be converted to ethanol using a yeast-based process. To offset the expense of harvesting kudzu from the steep hillsides that it favors, researchers point out that there are no costs for fertilizing, irrigating, or planting the invader, which was imported to the U.S. from Asia in the 1870’s.

Image: Alabama kudzu by Alarob on flickr.com.

4. Arundo donax (giant cane)

Able to grow almost three inches per day in the summer, giant cane (Arundo donax) could be the superhero of the biofuel world, producing multiple harvests every year on poor soil. Left unmanaged, though, it turns to the dark side. At least six states from California to Maryland have reported it as an invasive species.

Image: Shizahao on wikimedia.org (creative commons license).

5. Castor

The lovely castor plant is a noxious weed in Australia, introduced in 1803 and firmly establishing itself as a pest in every state except Tasmania. Meanwhile over in Israel, the company Kaiima Bio-Agritech believes that it has found a way to manipulate the chromosomes of biofuel crops to double their yield, with castor showing particular promise - at least in countries where it can be cultivated without overwhelming native species.

Image: pizzodisevo on flickr.com.

6. Jatropha

The jury is still out on jatropha, which achieved biofuel superstar status a couple of years ago only to see its star tarnished by charges of land grabbing, deforestation, and even biopiracy, including the replacement of food cropland for jatropha cultivation. Lesson learned: whether it’s a food or nonfood crop, biofuel cultivation has to be balanced with regional and global nutrition.

Image: prashantby on flickr.com.

7. Chinese Tallow

We have none other than Benjamin Franklin to thank for Chinese Tallow, also known as Florida Aspen or more colorfully as the Gray Popcorn tree. It grows profusely in ditches and dikes from South Carolina through the entire Gulf Coast. Though trees aren’t usually thought of as weeds, the Chinese Tallow is in a class by itself: considered a noxious invader in the U.S., it joins algae and palm oil among the top three vegetable oil crops.

Image and background information: BaylorBear78 on flickr.com.

Last Friday a California Superior Court judge quietly tossed out a lawsuit that had been filed by developers against the cities of Los Angeles and Santa Clarita for their opposition to a mini-city development of 5,500 homes between the two cities.

The two cities rejected the development due to its environmental impact in March, but the developers sued for $100 million soon after. The judge threw out all claims made by developer Los Lomas Land Company.

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And as someone who loves gardening, from the toil of clearing a plot and weeding the rows to the belly-filling delight come harvest time, I thought I would share some tips on how you can be a compassionate, caring, careful gardener.

This is particularly important, too, since even small family gardens can become places of profound natural tragedy, places of mass murder and intensive pollution, places of blood, sweat, and tears. Ironically, gardens can often be the least “green” when the plants in them are shining with the deepest, richest shades of green.

And the main reason for these instances of terror and destruction and death? One word: VARMINTS.

Yessir, critters, pests, thieves…call them what you will. They come in many forms, and they seem to come at every moment, nibbling and draining and infesting and infecting and basically ruining everything that you plan to enjoy. Yes’m, the varmints launch a perpetual (seemingly organized and strategic) assault on your goodly little garden…and so appropriate countermeasures surely seem justified.

But, alas, most of these countermeasures employed on any scale are far from careful, far from compassionate, and extremely far from sustainable or natural or eco-friendly. Just go into any garden center or hardware store and look at the panoply of pesticides, sitting there as an ingredient in a witches’ brew with other chemical fertilizers and enhancers. You may start to feel dizzy even before opening one and inhaling the fumes!

So, then, how can you make your garden green in the healthiest, most sustainable and ecologically friendly ways? How can you be a careful gardener and a small-scale steward on your own little plot? How can you save lives even as you nourish your and your family’s (and maybe even your whole neighborhood’s!) lives? Here are just a few ways you can garden green to get a green garden.

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I have a unique way of getting the creeping charlie weeds to stop taking over my driveway cracks. I love to buy produce from the Skellys market cart guy that sets up shop at the roller rink parking lot 2 blocks from me every summer. I buy a lot of corn and watermelon from this guy, and I love to buy local as much as possible. I often cook big pots of this corn on my outside boiler and I couldnt find a spot to dump the boiling water when I was done. One day I dumped it on my driveway and realized that it killed the unwanted weeds that had infiltrated the cracks in my driveway. Voila! natural weed killer! Now I use my spaghetti water on it to, and my zuchini water, and my bean water….you get the picture.

Thanks Chimneyballoon! I have used the boiling water method to remove poison oak, which is difficult to do naturally from my property. Many organic gardeners I know have resorted to Round Up to kill the irritiating poison oak, but I refuse to use herbicides on my land. Boiling water is a great option, especially since you may otherwise just pour it down the drain. This method is only appropriate in areas where there are not other plants growing that you would like to protect, and the weeds may return if the water does not reach their roots. This is especially a great option for canners, who have lots of boiling water to spare during canning season. For further ideas about removing weeds, visit Amy's Tip o' the Day: Weed out the Weeds.

Got a tip for Amy and Jennifer? Share it with them!

1. Pennycress

Photographer Karen Phillips describes Pennycress as a “cool little Brassica” that can grow in nickel-contaminated soil that would kill most plants. A pennycress biofuel facility is in the works for Peoria, Illinois, and upstate New Yorkers are also looking into the weed, more colorfully known by the locals as “stinkweed.”

Image: karenphillips on flickr.com.

2. Amaranthus

Also known as pigweed, Amaranthus is a highly competitive, classified noxious weed that proves how good bad can be. The pesky little devil has garnered praises from researchers at the University of New Mexico for its ideal traits as a biofuel crop including drought tolerance, high rate of photosynthesis, and resistance to disease and pests.

Image: Just chaos on flickr.com.

3. Kudzu

Biofuel could be the redemption song for kudzu, the voracious creeper known as “the plant that ate the south.”Aside from absorbing trees and bushes into an eerie green moonscape, kudzu boasts a hi-carb content that could be converted to ethanol using a yeast-based process. To offset the expense of harvesting kudzu from the steep hillsides that it favors, researchers point out that there are no costs for fertilizing, irrigating, or planting the invader, which was imported to the U.S. from Asia in the 1870’s.

Image: Alabama kudzu by Alarob on flickr.com.

4. Arundo donax (giant cane)

Able to grow almost three inches per day in the summer, giant cane (Arundo donax) could be the superhero of the biofuel world, producing multiple harvests every year on poor soil. Left unmanaged, though, it turns to the dark side. At least six states from California to Maryland have reported it as an invasive species.

Image: Shizahao on wikimedia.org (creative commons license).

5. Castor

The lovely castor plant is a noxious weed in Australia, introduced in 1803 and firmly establishing itself as a pest in every state except Tasmania. Meanwhile over in Israel, the company Kaiima Bio-Agritech believes that it has found a way to manipulate the chromosomes of biofuel crops to double their yield, with castor showing particular promise - at least in countries where it can be cultivated without overwhelming native species.

Image: pizzodisevo on flickr.com.

6. Jatropha

The jury is still out on jatropha, which achieved biofuel superstar status a couple of years ago only to see its star tarnished by charges of land grabbing, deforestation, and even biopiracy, including the replacement of food cropland for jatropha cultivation. Lesson learned: whether it’s a food or nonfood crop, biofuel cultivation has to be balanced with regional and global nutrition.

Image: prashantby on flickr.com.

7. Chinese Tallow

We have none other than Benjamin Franklin to thank for Chinese Tallow, also known as Florida Aspen or more colorfully as the Gray Popcorn tree. It grows profusely in ditches and dikes from South Carolina through the entire Gulf Coast. Though trees aren’t usually thought of as weeds, the Chinese Tallow is in a class by itself: considered a noxious invader in the U.S., it joins algae and palm oil among the top three vegetable oil crops.

Image and background information: BaylorBear78 on flickr.com.

The best way to get rid of weeds is a little manual labor: Pull 'em. When pulling by hand remove when soil is damp (it's easier than taking them out of dry soil) and try to get ALL of the roots. After pulling weeds toss them in your compost bin. Don't put off weeding. Get to weeds when they're little, before the root systems have a chance to take over your garden.

Use fabric groundcovers or newspaper covered with mulch. It'll prevent weeds from sprouting up and protect soil from erosion.

For weeds growing up between sidewalk cracks or gravel driveways mix up a solution of 1 cup salt, one teaspoon liquid detergent, and one gallon of vinegar. Sprinkle or spray directly on the weeds. Don't use this in the garden as it will likely get rid of plants you do want around. And keep in mind that vinegar may not get to the root of the problem.

The best way to control weeds in your yard or garden area is to really assess and plan accordingly. The Washington Toxics Coalition has some great information on identifying whether or not your weeds are annuals, biennials or perennials, and how to tackle each different kind. They also have tips on how to assess your weed problem and offers non-toxic, preventive solutions for keeping weeds away in the long term.

If you do decide to use chemical herbicides don't use them as a preventative measure, and don't use in your food garden. Be sure to apply directly on the weed area and don't use broadly - more is not better. And those inert ingredients can be just as toxic as the active ingredients.

More info on weeds:
Washington State Toxics Coalition: Weed Management for the Lawn and Garden (PDF)

More weed advice from GO:
No More Chemicals! Eco-Friendly Weed Control For Your Lawn
Organic Lawn and Garden Care
No to Herbicides, Yes to Weed-Free Garden Design

1. Pennycress

Photographer Karen Phillips describes Pennycress as a “cool little Brassica” that can grow in nickel-contaminated soil that would kill most plants. A pennycress biofuel facility is in the works for Peoria, Illinois, and upstate New Yorkers are also looking into the weed, more colorfully known by the locals as “stinkweed.”

Image: karenphillips on flickr.com.

2. Amaranthus

Also known as pigweed, Amaranthus is a highly competitive, classified noxious weed that proves how good bad can be. The pesky little devil has garnered praises from researchers at the University of New Mexico for its ideal traits as a biofuel crop including drought tolerance, high rate of photosynthesis, and resistance to disease and pests.

Image: Just chaos on flickr.com.

3. Kudzu

Biofuel could be the redemption song for kudzu, the voracious creeper known as “the plant that ate the south.”Aside from absorbing trees and bushes into an eerie green moonscape, kudzu boasts a hi-carb content that could be converted to ethanol using a yeast-based process. To offset the expense of harvesting kudzu from the steep hillsides that it favors, researchers point out that there are no costs for fertilizing, irrigating, or planting the invader, which was imported to the U.S. from Asia in the 1870’s.

Image: Alabama kudzu by Alarob on flickr.com.

4. Arundo donax (giant cane)

Able to grow almost three inches per day in the summer, giant cane (Arundo donax) could be the superhero of the biofuel world, producing multiple harvests every year on poor soil. Left unmanaged, though, it turns to the dark side. At least six states from California to Maryland have reported it as an invasive species.

Image: Shizahao on wikimedia.org (creative commons license).

5. Castor

The lovely castor plant is a noxious weed in Australia, introduced in 1803 and firmly establishing itself as a pest in every state except Tasmania. Meanwhile over in Israel, the company Kaiima Bio-Agritech believes that it has found a way to manipulate the chromosomes of biofuel crops to double their yield, with castor showing particular promise - at least in countries where it can be cultivated without overwhelming native species.

Image: pizzodisevo on flickr.com.

6. Jatropha

The jury is still out on jatropha, which achieved biofuel superstar status a couple of years ago only to see its star tarnished by charges of land grabbing, deforestation, and even biopiracy, including the replacement of food cropland for jatropha cultivation. Lesson learned: whether it’s a food or nonfood crop, biofuel cultivation has to be balanced with regional and global nutrition.

Image: prashantby on flickr.com.

7. Chinese Tallow

We have none other than Benjamin Franklin to thank for Chinese Tallow, also known as Florida Aspen or more colorfully as the Gray Popcorn tree. It grows profusely in ditches and dikes from South Carolina through the entire Gulf Coast. Though trees aren’t usually thought of as weeds, the Chinese Tallow is in a class by itself: considered a noxious invader in the U.S., it joins algae and palm oil among the top three vegetable oil crops.

Image and background information: BaylorBear78 on flickr.com.