My Vegetable Patch

If you are wondering about beginning to garden organically, keep doing so. Not many people think of such causes for the benefit of nature. Nature will be smiling at you now.

Organic gardening takes a lot of hard work, so you will need to be prepared for it. Do not give up just because of a minor problem. Just think of it like nature is testing you how big your love for it is.

What makes this hard? Unlike the ordinary kind of gardening, going organic will remove from you the freedom to use just about anything that is commercially available as long as it will help you with your venture. No way. You cannot use synthetic materials on this one. Everything must be organic. It must come from nature itself. You must have done it using elements that can be found on the ground. Or you can also buy those available in the market as long as they claim to be organic.

By going organic, you’ll be able to help nature replenish its resources. You will get the dried leaves, the sawdust, some vegetable peels and other materials from the ground. This is also your way of cleaning your surroundings. But such materials can be used as elements in compost.

You can actually do your own compost by going over some books on how this can be done or reading some of our articles on this blog. You can also turn to someone who is successful with this type of gardening and ask that person for tips and tricks. You can use the result of that compost as fertilizers on your garden.

Finding somebody who gardens organically already will help you enormously. By having the aid of an expert, especially if you are only beginning on this task, you will be better at helping nature. You will quickly pick up the basics, such as what type of plants you can grow in what type of soil. You will have a clearer view as to how the elements of the ground can contribute to the success of your project. You will know what to do in cases of trouble with regards to the growth of your plants or the emergence of pests on your garden.

Nature will really love you for the way you will only utilize organic materials for the purpose of growing green things on your garden. And you will benefit a lot in the process of organic gardening. You will be able to become a guru of this type of task. You will be able to produce organic sources of food.

Filed in Gardening, Getting Started by Robin Fisher

When we talk of fertilization for in terms of organic gardening, it is almost always attributed to being similar to mulching. But there are also other aspects such as the introduction of fertilizers that can be available naturally or commercially. Simply defined, it involves placing matter, whether organic or inorganic, around your plants.

Aside from providing fertilization, it also protects your soil. Whether your garden is subjected under heavy rains or at the risk of weed infestation, the mulches provide the good protection and strengthening of soil needed to supplement the natural growth processes of your organic garden vegetables. In addition, it also regulates the temperature of the soil and it will also render visual appeal to the garden because it will help improve the ground texture and overall appearance.

If you have effectively established mulches in your garden, less watering is required because it will also help the plants retain water. Although known to help in weed control, it does not directly fight or ward off the weeds; it just helps as a filler for bare areas that are at higher risk of weed infestation. Also, persistent weeds can die down as it forces itself in the soil surrounded with mulch.

For the case of organic mulches, bacteria has the tendency to eat up the much-needed nitrogen. In some cases, you might be required to inject additional dosages of nitrogen. Examples of materials you can use for mulching include lawn clippings, compost mixes, leaves, straw, sawdust, wood chips. These are examples of organic materials for mulching. If you opt for inorganic, it often has its optimum results on plants placed on a hill.

When fertilizing your soil via mulching, you may be required to be more meticulous with your organic garden. You might be required to water more frequently when you are using inorganic fabrics, and then you must also watch out for the greater tendency to wilt because the ground cover tends to be more crowded.

Testing your soil is a good way to ensure effective fertilization. You cannot afford to buy fertilizer by the bulk, only to realize that it is not the right fertilizer suited for your soil. The best way to make sure that you are able to score the best fertilizer is by means of doing an actual test on a sample of soil taken from your garden.

Once you apply fertilizer, it is often recommended to maintain it. Having a budget for high quality fertilizer is also a must-have for a gardener, especially a beginner. There are also some fertilizers solely tailored at the beginning of the planting process and need not be maintained all throughout your gardening activities. The key is to make sure that you are getting your money’s worth and have thoroughly proven for yourself that the given fertilizer you are putting on your garden has been tried and tested on your soil type.

Even if you put fertilizers or inorganic mulches in your soil, the organic matter is still the best source of fertilization for your plant, and it adheres closely to the natural growth process of plants. If at all possible, avoid introducing too much chemical interventions in your soil so that the plants will get used to growing and maximizing its potential via natural means.

Filed in Gardening, Getting Started by Robin Fisher

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to plant vegetables. But if you want to do this the old fashioned way which has proven to be very effective, you should know the organic vegetable gardening basics.

The first thing you have to know is what is organic vegetable gardening: It is simply a way of farming that does not use any synthetic products which includes fertilizers and pesticides. In short, you work with nature to get what you want.

Choosing the right vegetable to plant is knowing which of these are suitable to the soil and the climate. If you live in an area that experiences droughts, buy those that do not consume that much water. Before you drop seeds into the soil, make sure the land is ready by tilling the land so it is clear both of rocks and weeds.

The next step will be to add compost, bone meal or rock phosphate and greensand to the soil to supply it with nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium. If the pH level of the soil is too high, add lime or sulphur to adjust it.

One more thing you have to do before planting the seeds is putting in organic fertilizer. You can use recycled leaves, grass clippings, coffee grounds, eggshells and kitchen waste which should be applied a month before planting begins.

Then it is time to plant the seeds. Each seed must be spaced by a certain distance the roots do not fight for water. In between each of the vegetables, you can plant other things as well because the tighter the space, the lesser the chances that weeds will grow.

Pests are the biggest threat to your organic garden. To fight them, you can use birds, frogs or other insects. You don’t have these creatures to fend off other insects. You simply have to create the ideal environment by putting a bird house or a small pond. Once they are in place, they will do the rest by patrolling your garden and eating those who seek to eat your crops.

Putting up a few barriers can also help. Row covers are known to prevent moths from landing and laying eggs. You can also use sticky traps and foil collars to stop pests and borers.

There are also organic pesticides around but some of them can only kill one or two kinds of pests. So before you buy them, make sure you know what you are dealing with.

Crop rotation is the best way to preserve the fertility of the soil. This is done after you harvest the vegetables so it is ready for planting once again. For this to work, you have to plant in the same area a different vegetable.

Anyone can learn organic vegetable gardening basics and soon have their own little farm in their backyard. It is fresh and you can pick this anytime you want which is very convenient as these are only a few feet from your home.

Filed in Gardening, Getting Started by Robin Fisher

Each gardener has his own set of characteristics that make him fit for a certain gardening style. If you can identify the right gardening style for you, your lifestyle and your environment, you have an edge over other gardening enthusiasts. But what are the different types of gardening that you can look out for?

Residential Gardening

This is the most common of all gardening techniques. If you are just a beginner and not yet inclined to produce vegetables for industrial reasons, then residential gardening is for you. The primary purpose of residential gardening is to sustain a family or two on the basis of a steady supply of vegetables and at the same time, render aesthetic appeal to your garden.

Residential gardening does not require too much space. It can be cultivated in window sills, balconies and other small areas that have sufficient light source. These are easy to monitor and at the same time, easy to maintain. The good thing about residential gardening is the ease with which it ushers the gardening wannabe to a gardening expert.

Specialized Gardening

Specialised gardening involves non-residential areas that are known for their green quality and are often marketed as such. Parks, botanical gardens, amusement parts and other tourist attractions fall under this category. Often a staff is required to maintain due to its size, so effective administrative skills on top of gardening expertise may be required. It is also tailored for delivering in profit to certain causes or organizations.

Impact Gardening

If you are up to the challenge of blocking weeds with minimal costs, then impact gardening is for you. It involves using a relatively small space and maximizing its gardening potential. The plants are often crowded together.

Indoor Gardening

Residential gardening is under the huge scope of indoor gardening. Other types under this category include the gardens of conservatories, greenhouses and academic institutions. Systems for heating and air conditioning may also be found for certain breeds of plants. Because of the controlled environment that greenhouses for example offer, if you are the type of gardener who really loves cultivating plants in and out of season, then indoor gardening is for you.

Water Gardening

If you want to garden with minimal supervision and love water organisms, then water gardening is for you. This is a bit of a challenge for most gardeners because it usually doesn’t involve the initial conditions of other traditional gardening techniques. The novelty of water gardening appeals only to those who have ample water facilities to cultivate this type of gardening style.

Community Gardening

If you are motivated by group efforts, community gardening may be for you. It involves concentrated efforts of the different members of the community to be able to help make a greener place. It involves a huge scope, but the members of the community are given autonomy to style their areas in whichever way they choose.

Filed in Gardening, Getting Started by Robin Fisher

More and more people are getting into organic vegetable gardening because it is cost effective and they are able to produce almost the same yield of crops. You too can do this at home but you have to understand the principles of organic vegetable gardening.

Organic vegetable gardening does not use any fertilizers, nutrients or pesticides. Nature is your partner here because you will be using two things to make it all work namely sunlight and water. This means a little bit of extra work needs to go into planning where you will be placing your vegetable patch.

Aside from sunlight and water, you can help the crops grow by using compost heap from leftover food, chipped bark, garden compost, leaf moulds and manure. You can mix these all together and then spread this throughout your garden.

The humble earthworm will benefit your vegetable patch because it digs deep into the ground and aerates the soil bringing various minerals to the surface which also provides better drainage. This long pink colored creature also leaves casting behind that experts say is five times as rich in nitrogen phosphorous and potassium. To sit alongside your vegetable patch, why not consider a worm farm.

Organic garden is challenging since you have to deal with unwanted guests. Some of these pests include armyworms, crickets, gypsy moth caterpillars, slugs and squash bugs. Fertilizer used to be used to get rid of pests but the best option now is to use the natural food chain. The toad is known to eat almost every type of insect. If you have caterpillars or spiders lurking in the garden, encourage birds to your garden by using a bird bath or a bird feeder.

Plants and herbs can also be used as effective protection for your vegetables. Rosemary, sage or thyme is an effective deterrent against butterflies.

Notwithstanding all of the above, crop rotation is seen as the best way to keep the soil fertile and one of the principles of organic vegetable gardening. If you planted one kind of vegetable for one season, change it with another and then return to the first after this one is harvested. This ensures that finite resources in the soil have the opportunity to replenish every season before being used again.

Filed in Gardening, Getting Started by Robin Fisher