January is a great time to start planning what vegetable varieties will be grown in the garden. Look through your catalogs and find the vegetable seeds for your garden. Some flower varieties should be started in January. In a warmer environment you can plant certain vegetables but must be ready for a frost. Indoor herbs are always great to grow in a sunny windowsill.
What is Listeria? Listeria monocytogenes is a type of bacteria that is found in water and soil. Vegetables can become contaminated from the soil, and animals can also be carriers. Listeria has been found in uncooked meats, uncooked vegetables, un pasteurized milk, foods made from un pasteurized milk, and processed foods. Listeria is killed by pasteurization and cooking.
Listeriosis is a serious infection caused by the germ Listeria monocytogenes. People usually become ill with listeriosis after eating contaminated food. The disease primarily affects pregnant women, newborns, older adults, and people with weakened immune systems. It's rare for people in other groups to get sick with Listeria infection. Listeriosis is usually a mild illness for pregnant women, but it causes severe disease in the fetus or newborn baby. Adults 65 years and older and people with weakened immune systems most commonly develop severe infections of the bloodstream (causing sepsis) or brain (causing meningitis or encephalitis).