Well, I have to honest and upfront first and foremost...I have been an organic gardener for as long as I can remember. My Mom especially was an avid gardener of anything she could get seeds or plants to grow, and my Dad was more of a substance gardener...gardening to eat, potatoes and corn specifically, my Mom would and did grow anything, vegetable or flower.
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| One of my favorite sights...corn tasseling. |
Organic gardening...gardening without the use of synthetic herbicides or pesticides. It's not as difficult as some make it. Now, I have no formal degrees or certifications, I simply have lifelong knowledge of what I was taught by many 'mentors', and by what works for me. It doesn't take a lot of money, and sometimes, well often, I think that organic gardening was born out of necessity. Necessity years and years ago by people of native lands using what was immediately available to them, and now in modern times by people who either have to or want to use what is immediately available to them. This can range from anything organic that can enrich soil, protect plant life by adding nutrition as it breaks down and moisture and insulation to their roots. I use what's available to me...newspaper, cardboard, hay, straw, discarded weeds, kitchen scraps...yes, kitchen scraps can be added directly to the garden and it will compost throughout the growing season, and act as mulch at the same time.
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| Brussels's Sprouts...love them or hate them. I love them!! |
I don't think a weed free garden is a good thing anyway. Certain pest bugs feed on weeds like burdock and other weeds, plus these weeds are usually native to their specific area, and wildlife depends on these weeds for food or shelter, so not all weeds are bad, just usually in a bad place when we plant our gardens. I've never had a weed free garden...not for lack of desire, but because they are just so resilient! I have learned over the years to be more tolerant of certain weeds, and that some weeds are edible. Dandelions anyone? I just read a teaser on our internet home page about how dandelion beverages are making a comeback! that strikes me as funny, because I have always know people who love to make Dandelion wine! The entire plant is edible. I'm pretty sure that dandelions will populate the earth long after humans are gone, and that's just one nuisance weed! So weeds are a bad thing next to your tomatoes and lettuce, but at the perimeter of the garden, or away from it a bit, they serve a valuable purpose.
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| Cockscomb Celosia...one of my favorite flowers and one of the easiest to grow! |
I plant both vegetables and flowers interchangeably. They often benefit each other, plus they look pretty, not to mention the pollinator's they attract right to your garden, and your plants that depend on those insects! Several flower varieties either attract pests, such as nasturtiums attracting aphids, and marigolds and mints deterring many pests by masking the scent of desirable plants, or simply by being unappealing to them. I personally love the scent of marigolds!
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| This apple tree was planted by my mom when I was a kid, and now my kids harvest the apples! |
Organic gardening can come in many shapes and sizes too. Fruit and nut trees are often grown along tree lines, and abundant wild berry bushes, at least around here, and can be harvested by humans and animals alike. Another thing about gardening organically, or living on an organic farm, be prepared to share with nature. It's bound to happen anyway, so making it a more pleasant experience for all involved is best. Now they can't devour your entire crop, but native animals are just as crucial to an ecosystem as plants. Animals eat and scatter seeds and the loot they leave lying uneaten, either gets eaten by another animal or insect, or acts as a fertilizer where it was left, or new plants sprout. I personally enjoy watching wildlife, so the thought of trying to completely keep them away is counterproductive to me. If a food source, such as an apple tree and wild berry bushes are planted far enough away from the garden, most critters would prefer to feed away from humans anyway!
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| Flowers grow harmoniously in my garden along with vegetables. Here sunflowers are dual task, they are beautiful to look at, plus great at attracting bees and butterflies to pollinate other plants, and birds to eat and spread the sunflower seeds. The birds eat slugs and garden pests too! |
So in a nutshell, it's not hard to garden organically, it just requires the desire to do so. Once the desire is there, it's possible. Once the understanding is there that gardening this way is time consuming, it shifts from being a task to being a thing of leisure. It's best to start gardening small. Plant what you will be certain to eat first. Once you have success at what you will eat, think about something you like to eat and consider growing that. For instance, most people don't have any idea of how much goes into planting and harvesting broccoli or cauliflower, it can take a few trys to get it right, so don't get discouraged. Don't overwhelm yourself, if you do, you'll never get the part of gardening that is leisure instead of a task. And doing things for leisure is a lot more fun that task oriented work! It's still work, but all good things require work. The reward is wonderful, healthy food to enjoy by family and friends.
I'll post more on specific areas of organic gardening, but is there something specific you would like to know? If I have an answer or solution, I'd be happy to share my experiences! None of us know everything, so gardening and farming is a community task sometimes, we rely on the knowledge of many for our successes!
'Til next time, have a great day! :)
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