There is Gardening and then there is ORGANIC GARDENING!

The word ‘organic’ has become a buzz word when referring to eating healthier. We want organic fruits and vegetables but what exactly does this mean and how do we achieve this in our home gardens?

WHAT IS ORGANIC GARDENING?

Simply put, organic gardeners don't use synthetic fertilizers or pesticides on their plants. Ideally, organic gardening seeks to work with nature through replenishing resources as it makes use of them like using waste for compost or rotating crops to replenish nutrients in the soil, organic gardening.

HOW DO YOU CONTROL PESTS AND DISEASE ORGANICALLY?

While having an organic garden doesn’t mean that you have to live with worms in your produce, it does dictate that your garden may not be 100% pest free or look magazine ready.

ORGANIC GARDENING TAKES THOUGHTFULLNESS, PLANNING, AND PATIENCE

To keep your garden organic start with following the following steps.

1.     Be Observant- Check your garden often and get to know your plants so that you will notice if a problem is manifesting and deal with it quickly before it spreads.  

2.     Ensure Healthy Soil- Healthy soil produces healthy plants that are less likely to be bothered by pests.

a.     Use a soil test to determine what your soil needs

b.     Feed the soil by adding organic soil amendments, such as compost, manure, chopped leaves, and mulches in and onto the surface of the soil.

c.      Use Mulch- Mulch suppresses weeds, conserves water, moderates soil temperature, feeds the soil, prevents erosion

3.     Maintain a clean garden- Remove diseased foliage from the area. Pick up fallen fruit. Pay attention to pruning; powdery mildew and blackspot can be thwarted by opening up the plant and cutting back diseased or weak stems.

4.     Natural Pest Control- It helps to know which bugs are beneficial, and which are destructive pests, and when they are likely to arrive in your garden. Encourage thriving populations of beneficial insects like ladybugs and pest predators like parasitic wasps, including spiders, bats, birds, lizards, and toads.

5.     Finally, Natural pesticides can be used to control some insects and diseases. You can purchase them at your nearby garden nursery. They include products that break down quickly such containing neem oil, the bacterium Bacillus, and minerals like copper and sulfur and can be very effective and are usually less toxic to wildlife, pets, and humans than synthetic pesticides.

Have patience though as natural pesticides have to be applied much more frequently than their synthetic counterparts.

Overall, once you understand the benefits of organic gardening to both you, the environment and other living organisms it’s a no-brainer that this is the way to go.

If you have an organic garden be sure to share your experience and tips on how you keep the pests at bay in the comment section below. Be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for more updates @RogueGardening