Salmonella in the Garden

FDA warns of salmonella in sprouts? by Yukon Mike

I am more than remotely far from an expert when it comes to a garden. I simply plant the seeds, fertilize, water them and then presto they grow and give me vegetables to eat!

Well, today in your garden it’s like having a politician living in your soil and corrupting it like they have our government and constitution.

Salmonella continues to headline the news. Recently it has been showing up in garden fresh vegetables like hot peppers, tomatoes and now alfalfa sprouts.

What’s up with this?

I can understand salmonella in factory processed foods because the factory fails to follow safe processing methods or at your home because of not following basic food safety guidelines that results in cross contamination during food preparation.

Now it’s coming from our garden dirt? I never knew this before but plant roots are up-taking the salmonella from the dirt and delivering it to the vegetable itself.

It’s the garden soil that really concerns me. How does salmonella get into your garden and how do you get it out?

My limited web research says it may be from dog and bird droppings. Well, this is just great and it brings up some serious questions. Is it possible to protect your garden from bird droppings? When the droppings are in your garden it is alive and active for 280 days.
So, how do you kill salmonella in the garden dirt?

I don’t mean to leave you hanging but I can’t find a solid, reputable answer to how we kill salmonella in our garden soil. If any of you have accurate information about this please let us know.

How long does Salmonella remain active?
Salmonella: Then and Now and it will be posted on the blog.

Days/Months: In:
89 days – Tap Water
115 days – Pond Water
120 days – Pasture Soil
280 days – Garden Soil
28 months – Avian Feces
30 months – Bovine Feces