"You Don't Poison What You Love": Grow Safe: Non-Toxic Missoula
- Jul 24
- 2 min read
Updated: Jul 25
Did you know that Beyond Pesticides reports that suburban lawns and gardens receive more pesticide applications per acre (roughly 3.2–9.8 lbs) than agriculture (about 2.7 lbs per acre on average)? It's not hard to imagine when you walk through your local home and garden store. Grow Safe: Non-Toxic Missoula has alternative solutions.
This year, as I waited for an available cashier at mine, the line was long with eager gardeners. The easy to overhear conversations among the customers seemed to have a theme this year talking of neighbors and friends who are sick, passed away and in the hospital. They were alarmed at the rise of disease and suffering in and among their friends and neighbors. The backdrop was a complete aisle of "cides" Pesti, Herbi, Insecti
Reminder: The suffix "cide" means to kill.
We spoke to Alison Reintjes who is showing the way to optimize health, right here in Montana. Here is a short clip with the full interview below.
" You don't poison what you love"
Why take action? You may remember our story last year where we spoke about the parents in Gallatin Valley who shared photos of local baseball fields treated with Roundup. You may also remember our book review of Changing Faces revealing a 20 year analysis of diseased domestic and wild animals (and some humans) in a popular food growing valley.
As Alison says, "You don't poison what you love." However, it appears we are. Approximately 4.4 billion pesticide applications are made each year to American homes, gardens, and yards. According to surveys by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), more than three quarters of U.S. households use pesticides, with 66% treating major living areas in the home one or more times per year.
This is about the food we eat, the air we breathe, the water we drink and its relationship to our health. Alison's spirited, knowledgable and professional approach to advocating for removal of the dangerous synthetic "cides" is to the benefit of every Montanan. Please listen to her story below and contact GrowSafeMissoula.org to offer help in terms of collaborations, outreach and/or public meetings.
Our favorite moment of our first meeting was envisioning the possibilities of abundance, commerce and optimum health throughout Montana. It's time.
"I believe service and action spur change and that change is most possible at the grassroots level." Alison Reintjes
Alison Reintjes
Grow Safe: Non-Toxic Missoula, Director
