Food-Gardening Lessons From A Wartime Victory Garden

Do I Have To Worry About Your Soils While Pregnant?

“I am pregnant and was watering my plants when I got Black Gold potting soil on my hands. I am concerned about toxoplasmosis and have questions. Is your soil made in areas where cats are present?” Question from Katie

Answer: Feline waste is not an ingredient present in our mixes! As you probably know, toxoplasmosis may be present in fresh or old cat feces. Any garden threat of this parasite would come from cats defecating directly into your garden soils. (Click here to read the CDCs guidelines for protecting yourself against toxoplasmosis.)

With that said, be cautious when gardening while pregnant, and always wear waterproof garden gloves followed by washing your hands well after gardening. All natural, in-ground soils always contain Listeria monocytogenes, a bacterium that can cause the disease listeriosis, which pregnant women are susceptible to. So, dig carefully, and clean up well. (Click here to read the CDCs guidelines for protecting yourself from listeriosis.)

We also recommend washing any garden herbs, fruits, or vegetables very well before consuming them.

Garden safely,

Jessie Keith

Black Gold Horticulturist

About JESSIE KEITH

Plants are the lens Jessie views the world through because they’re all-sustaining. (“They feed, clothe, house and heal us. They produce the air we breathe and even make us smell pretty.”) She’s a garden writer and photographer with degrees in both horticulture and plant biology from Purdue and Michigan State Universities. Her degrees were bolstered by internships at Longwood Gardens and the American Horticultural Society. She has since worked for many horticultural institutions and companies and now manages communications for Sun Gro Horticulture, the parent company of Black Gold. Her joy is sharing all things green and lovely with her two daughters.

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