“Being green” is not just a phrase being thrown around anymore, it is a fact of life. More and more manufacturers are getting on the green path and creating better and more cost-effective organic products, which brings me to the point of my column this month.

I have been using two products over the last few months that I am so impressed with, I feel I should share them with you. I’ve used Preen in my garden for years. It is a pre-emergent: A pre-emergent prevents weed seeds from germinating. It does not kill existing weeds (Drat!), but it does not let new ones come out and play, Yippie! I found that if I use it regularly, every two months or so, I have a relatively weed-free garden. What’s not to love? Before 2007, Preen was a level 3 pre-emergent, which means it was one step below an organic material, but now it is completely organic! The active ingredient in the new Preen is corn gluten, and my-oh-my does it work! The big yellow bag is labeled “garden weed preventer,” but I find it works everywhere and is totally safe around kids, pets, wildlife, and water. Visit www.preen.com for more information.

The other product worth raving about is green on several levels. The product itself is sustainable, and its packaging is recycled. Run screaming to your local garden center and buy Terracycle. You will know you have found it because it says “WORM POOP” in big letters, right on the label. Yep — worm poop. Yikes, you may say, but worm poop — or worm castings as they are rightly called, is an amazing fertilizer for your garden. Terracycle feeds millions of red worms organic waste, and the worms give back their own organic waste, which is then liquefied and bottled for you spray it onto your plants. Don’t worry, it is odor free. You cannot even believe how much your plants love this stuff. I noticed an immediate difference in my garden, and I am sure you will too. And if the product itself isn’t enough, it is packaged in recycled plastic bottles to help Terracycle with its “zero footprint” policy. It’s a win-win! Visit www.terracycle.net for more information.

So there they are, my two new favorite green products for the garden. Try them out for yourself, and your garden will thank you! Here’s to dirt under your nails! Cheers!

JJ De Sousa is the owner of digs inside & out located at 1829 NE Alberta, Portland. She can be reached at jj@digs-pdx.com or 503-460-3447.