Organic Gardening
Organic gardening is the exact same as regular
gardening except that no synthetic fertilizers or pesticides are
used. This can make certain aspects difficult, such as controlling
disease, insects, and weeds. Organic gardening also requires more
attention to the soil and the many needs of plants.
Organic gardening starts with the soil. Gardeners must add organic
matter to the soil regularly in order to keep the soil productive.
In fact, compost is essential to the healthiness and well being of
plants grown organically. Compost can be made from leaves, dead
flowers, vegetable scraps, fruit rinds, grass clippings, manure, and
many other things. The ideal soil has a dark color, sweet smell, and
is full of earthworms. Some soil may need more natural additives
than regular compost can give, such as bonemeal, rock phosphates, or
greensand. A simple soil test will tell you the pH balance and which
nutrients you will need to use.
One thing that makes even gardeners that are very serious about
organic gardening reach for pesticides is insects on their plants.
The best way to defend plants against insects is to take
preventative measures. One thing that can be done is to make sure
plants are healthy and not too wet or dry because insects usually
attack unhealthy plants and if healthy, they can often outgrow minor
insect damage. A variety of plant types is a good idea to keep pests
of a particular plant type from taking out the entire garden.
Perhaps the best way to defend against insects is to make your
garden enticing to insect predators, such as ladybugs, birds, frogs,
and lizards. You can do this by keeping a water source nearby or by
growing plants that attract insects who feed on nectar. Other ideas
are sticky traps, barriers, and plant collars. There are some
household items that prevent against insects too, like insecticidal
soaps, garlic, and hot pepper.
To avoid plant disease in organic gardening, choose disease
resistant plants and plant them in their prime conditions. Many
diseases will spread because of constant moisture and bad air
circulation, so the site of your garden and the way it is watered
can help ensure against diseases.
Weeds can be an annoying and frustrating part of organic gardening.
Organic mulch can act as a weed barrier, but for even better
protection put a layer of newspaper, construction paper, or
cardboard under the mulch. Corn meal gluten will slow the growth of
weeds if spread early in the season before planting, as does
solarization. There’s also the old-fashioned art of hoeing and hand
pulling that always works. Your best bet in weed prevention is
persistence. Mulch well and pull and hoe what you can; after a few
seasons you can beat the weeds for good.
Organic gardening is an excellent way to assure that your plants
will be free and clear of all pesticides and, if taken care of
properly, will be as healthy as possible. Organic gardening may take
a little more time and care than regular gardening, but after
gardeners get the hang of it and figure out all the quirks of their
garden, it is definitely worth the extra time.
About the Author: D. Benjamin is the owner of
iapsales.com LLC - a family business specializing in HVAC products. We
are distributors of
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