Organic gardening differs from “conventional” gardening mainly in the areas of fertilization and pest control. Organic gardening is planting without chemical fertilizers and naturally building the soil to support healthy plant life. People are increasingly aware that organic food is better for the environment. This primer of organic gardening will help you get started in this fun, healthy hobby.
The main thing to remember is that organic gardening is not only about pesticide use and the soil that your garden grows in. The goal is to create an ecosystem in your back yard where every part is respected and in good shape. Robust plants can better defend themselves against pests and diseases.
Soil Is the Source of Life
The soil is the source of life for plants. Indeed, one of the problems with chemical gardening is that it sterilizes the soil and steals the life from it. Organic soil is living, and has lots of living matter in it. It is from this wellspring of life that plants create the nutrients you will eat.
At the beginning and end of every growing season, the organic gardener works the soil by adding natural garden fertilizers to enrich the soil and replace nutrients that the plants have used. You can use animal-based organic fertilizers and plant-based organic fertilizers or any combination of both. You want to add bulk to the soil along with nutrients.
Animal-Based Organic Fertilizer
Animal-based organic garden fertilizer can be reduced to one word: manure. Cow manure, chicken manure, fish emulsion and bat guano are most usually used, but you can additionally use horse and rabbit manure. Use solid animal-based fertilizers to dig into the soil, and make “manure tea” to use when transplanting seedlings.
There are some safety issues to recognize when using animal manure. All manure should be aged or composted before using it as an organic garden fertilizer to remove E. coli and other potentially troublesome pathogens. As well, you cannot use manure from humans or predator animals, such as cats. Their digestive systems contain bacteria that are pathogenic to humans, and the bacteria can get into or on food grown in soil fertilized with their feces.
Plant-Based Organic Fertilizer
Compost, seaweed, worm castings and green manure are the most standard plant-based organic garden fertilizers. Seaweed and kelp are usually purchased as dried and processed organic garden fertilizer.
Green manure is planted as a cover crop, normally in the fall after harvest. Plant a nitrogen-fixing crop, such as soybeans, and the symbiotic bacteria in the roots will add nitrogen to your soil. Then, when the cover crop emerges in the spring, dig it into the ground, and allow the plants to decompose and enrich the soil.
Compost
Far and away the most common plant-based organic fertilizer is compost. Compost is an excellent way to recycle vegetable matter. There are many theories on composting, and you can learn how to do it from community workshops, books, or other experts. Fundamentally, however, compost is not hard to make. You just save all your vegetable scraps, garden wastes, remains of plants, grass clippings, dried leaves and other vegetable matter and let it decompose. A hot compost heap that is turned frequently (so that it gets air into it) will make compost in a matter of weeks. A compost heap decomposes faster if it generates heat, and it needs to be at least three cubic feet to get good and hot. If your compost pile isn’t that big or doesn’t get very warm, or you don’t turn it, don’t despair, it will still make good compost. You can just throw your vegetable waste in a pile and leave it. If it sits for a long time, like a year, it will compost by itself.
A worm box is an alternative to a compost-pile. Worm castings are very rich in nutrients. To create worm castings, start with the right kind of worms, which you can get from any organic gardening source. Place them in a covered tub of some kind with your slightly damp vegetable matter. The worms do all the work, and you get rich organic garden fertilizer at almost no cost. Either read about how to set up a worm compost system, or you can buy a kit at your garden center. Remember to add earthworms to the soil too, as they create natural fertilizers in the soil and provide aeration.
Add natural fertilizers such as these to the soil at least twice a year and dig them into the top six inches of soil. You’ll have rich, dark, productive soil within a couple of years–even if you started out with sterile, gray, chemically treated dirt.
Water Is a Necessity of Life
All living organisms need water. It is important for the health of your plants to give them enough water to thrive. However, indiscriminate water use wastes water and washes away the soil. Watering where it is not needed encourages weeds. Water when the sun is low, early in the morning or in the evening to cut down on evaporation. It is important that the water gets to the roots of the plants without running off and taking valuable soil with it, so add water slowly and let it soak in. Use a soaker hose to water only your garden plants and nowhere else. If a soaker hose (or irrigation system) is not a choice for you, dig a shallow well around the base of each plant and fill it up and let the water soak in. Use a mulch around plants to conserve water and to prevent rain from eroding your fertile garden soil.
Don’t Let Weeds Rob Your Garden Plants
Only your cherished plants should get the advantage of the rich soil and water you provide. Therefore, it is necessary to take out all the other plants which find your garden a great place to live. That is, it is important to weed your organic garden. In the mid-twentieth century, at the height of chemical use in gardening, it became usual to spray herbicides on the soil to control weeds. But now we understand how damaging such chemical use is to the environment. Pulling out weeds by hand is neither hard nor particularly time consuming. Your organic garden is a beautiful place to spend time, why not spend it taking out the weeds that compete with your plants.
Here are the basics of weed-control. Firstly, make sure you get rid of weeds before they go to seed. Weeds routinely produce thousands of seeds in a short period of time. If there are patches of weeds growing at the periphery of your garden, make sure to mow them before they spread seeds. Second, when pulling weeds by hand make sure to pull out the roots so the plant doesn’t grow right back. Use a trowel to dig out deep-rooted weeds. Third, use mulch as a barrier to weed growth. Organic mulch will also help maintain moisture and add organic material to the soil. You can cover the entire area with plastic during the winter season to kill off weed seeds.
Control Pests without Harmful Pesticides
Pest-control is probably the biggest issue facing organic gardeners. Chemically-based pesticides are some of the most toxic substances to have on your food or polluting the environment. How, then, do you keep ravenous bugs like Japanese beetles from destroying your produce? In organic gardening you begin with the least toxic intervention and proceed from there.
Pest Prevention
The first step is to plant wisely. Remember that healthy plants will need less help from you with fighting pests, so make sure that your plants are well-fed and have adequate water. Also, use companion planting and crop rotation to discourage pests before they arrive. Some plants keep bugs away and planting them next to your tasty plants is a good idea. Garlic, onions and marigolds are commonly used to repel bugs. Plant them in a border around your garden and between your garden plants. Crop rotation is the method of planting a different crop in a given area of your garden each year. Where you put tomatoes this year put squash or corn in the next year. Crop rotation is especially helpful in preventing plant diseases.
Non-toxic Pest Controls
The next step is to remove pests when you find them. Remember that not all bugs are pests. In fact, a number of bugs are your helpers in pest control, but the wholesale use of toxic pesticides eliminates the predatory bugs as well as the harmful ones. It is important to be able to identify the good bugs and the bad bugs. Go out early in the morning or late in the evening when it’s cool, and remove any tomato hookworms, potato bugs, Japanese beetles, slugs or other harmful insects that you find. Squash them, or carry a bucket of soapy water to drown them. Better yet, feed them to your chickens. The most efficient way to remove small bugs such as aphids and mites is to spray the plants with the hose, using a strong stream of water to wash the insects off.
Physical barriers are another non-toxic method of organic pest control. They prevent pests from getting access to your plants. Some examples of barriers are to cut the top and bottom out of coffee cans and push them into the soil around tender young plants to keep cutworms away, or use fine netting to cover your plants to protect them from grasshoppers or birds.
Predatory Insects
One of the biggest defenses against pests are other bugs. Bugs that eat other bugs are a fantastic organic gardening pest control. Ladybugs, praying mantises, and lacewings are all beneficial insects. You can buy them at the garden store and release them into your garden. These predatory insects control aphids, mites and many other pests. Most spiders are bug-eaters, too, so let spiders work for you.
Using Organic Pesticides
If you are using these non-toxic pest controls and you are still faced with an overwhelming pest invasion, the last resort is to use organic pesticides. They are routinely made from plant derivatives or minerals. These natural pesticides are certified for use in natural farming and are far less dangerous than synthetic pesticides, but they are still toxic. It is important that you determine how harmful the insect pests are; you may elect to live with them rather than use something that is organic, but more toxic than you want to expose your food to.
Insecticidal soap is quite safe for food plants and the environment and works well to get rid of garden pests. Buy it at your garden supply store, or make your own by adding a few drops of liquid dish soap to a cup of water. Spray it on the plants, and then rinse off. This works great on aphids and thrips.
You can usually tell how toxic an organic pest control is by checking for a warning label. If there is no warning on the label, the substance is probably non-toxic. If the label says, “caution,” it is mildly toxic. “Warning” on the label means it is moderately toxic, and “danger” means the substance is very toxic. Organic gardening pest controls rarely have a “danger” warning on them. It is very important to apply organic pest control products exactly as the label directs. These products can be dangerous, so they must be used correctly to minimize everybody’s exposure to toxic pesticides.
For More Information
If you want to get started on your organic garden, you’ll find an abundance of help. Look for gardening clubs or workshops in your community; gardeners are always eager to give advice. Additionally, there are countless books, magazines and web sites. You can also look up your local Cooperative Extension Office, which offers advice in cooperation with local universities. Like all living processes, there is a rhythm to organic gardening. You don’t do everything at once. Begin slowly and learn as you go.

So you have gone through the trouble to plant a garden to be proud of. You have planned it, collected the proper supplies, and sown your seeds. You are all done now, right? Wrong! You have to help that organic garden thrive.

There are five simple things that most new gardeners overlook when they plant their first garden. Once everything is planted, the real care begins. You have to tend your garden well in order to produce the best results.

Tip #1: Water your garden. Watering is the number one responsibility you have when it comes to a garden. The best practice is to get into a routine and water consistently every day at about the same time. Don’t let a rain fall get you off track, you still have to water the next day.

Tip #2: Water in the morning. I know this goes hand in hand with number one, but this one is equally important. If you water in the afternoon, the heat from the sun can evaporate the water before your plants have fed. It is best to water prior to 10 am when possible.

Tip #3: Weed your garden. It sounds like a no-brainer, but weeds are a vampire to your garden. They suck the nutrients and the water out of the soil. You have to get out there every day and pull weeds before they are allowed to take root. Dig them out when possible to remove all traces.

Tip #4: Rid yourself of pests. Since you are growing an organic garden, over the counter pesticides are a no-go. You can make your own homemade pesticide though that will assist you if your garden is being overrun. Mix two teaspoons of dish soap with one cup of vegetable oil. Add a couple of teaspoons of this to a spray bottle with water in it. Then spray the heavily infected areas with this solution to control pests.

Tip #5: Care for your spot all year round. If you let the garden just be overrun with weeds, leaves, etc in the off season, you are asking for trouble. Even if you are just seasonally growing, you should keep that patch of earth clean. Caring for your garden area all year round will lead to a more bountiful, disease free harvest the next season.

Armed with these 5 tips and a “can do” attitude you are well on your way to a healthy organic garden.

Picture three ripe red tomatoes arranged on a wooden cutting board awaiting your pleasure. They’ve each come from a different source: can you tell which one was grown organically?
Two of the tomatoes were lovingly tended in backyards – one in a conventional garden and the other in an organic garden. The third tomato came from the supermarket, and it’s easy to eliminate from the guessing game.
The supermarket tomato is the pale red one the size and shape of a tennis ball. Bred for packing, shipping, and storing, (not flavor), this tomato was picked green, has traveled more than a thousand miles from farm to store, and has sat on the shelf for weeks — looking none the worse for wear.
Set this one aside. It was definitely not grown organically.
Two remain. For the sake of the game, they are the same tomato variety, let’s say Big Beef slicers. Bright red, they were just picked and are still warm to the touch from afternoon sun.
It’s not so easy to tell the difference in these; we have to look beyond the surface… literally. The quality of the soil from which they grew is the key element to naming the winner of this game: conventional tomato vs. organic tomato.
The chemicals in the fertilizers used in conventional gardens actually break down the health of the soil. Microbes that are necessary for making soil nutrients available to the plants are killed off.
The dead soil requires increasing doses of conventional fertilizer, and still the plants are malnourished, falling prey to insects and disease. Enter the deadly pesticides, sprayed liberally on the plant.
Now, the game is getting serious. One of the two remaining contestants in our tomato contest had better be carefully washed before being eaten; it’s been dusted with poison.
On the other hand, the organically grown tomato also had fertilizer applied to it, but this fertilizer was made from naturally occurring substances like bone meal, fish emulsion, and rock phosphate. These additions fed the soil and did no harm to the beneficial microbes that make nutrients available for use by plants.
Pesticides probably weren’t necessary because a healthy plant produces its own pest-resistant chemicals. But if there were pests, the organic gardener might have used a home-mixed spray of hot pepper and garlic, or something similarly non-toxic to humans.
There are a few additional techniques the organic gardener probably used, such as tilling in a cover crop to add organic material for the microbes and earthworms to decompose. This process results in a crumbly textured soil that holds moisture and allows the roots to breathe.
But even without the soil improvement from a cover crop, it’s fairly clear which tomato is better for health: the only nutrients that can be found in the fruit had to come from what was available in the soil. The organically grown tomato provides better nutrition.
What is not so clear is which tomato is better for flavor. A test of the ratio of sugar to acid might be made, but that isn’t a big issue. Both the conventionally grown and organically grown tomato are vastly superior in flavor to the poor tomato found in most supermarkets.
The original question in this tomato guessing game was whether you could tell which one of those ripe, juicy tomatoes on the cutting board was organic. Turns out that it’s hard to tell just by looking, or even just by tasting.
So, what’s the big issue? Mainly this: sustainability. Conventional growing depletes and eventually destroys the soil. Whereas organic growing techniques actually build and improve the soil.
In the end, the nutritious organic tomato contributes more to your health, and it is certainly better for the health of the soil from which all future crops will come.

If you are going to move to an organic way of gardening, one of the most frustrating factors you will face is handling diseases, pests and assorted problems that will be there no matter what method you use.

Many natural methods will solve those common garden problems and one of the most used methods is companion planting.  

Companion planting is the procedure of placing particular vegetables,flowers and herbs near by other types of plants that will help keep safe from pests, diseases and fungus. This method also helps each plant to produce maximum flavor of vegetables and its blooms on flowers. this comes about because the plants are not burdened fighting each of the predators trying to invade them. All their energy goes into production.

In your vegetable garden companion planting is quite important in keeping those nasty pests and bugs off your plants. When you plant two vegetables close together make sure they are compatible. Maximum taste is attained on both plants and will compliment in all aspects.

Lets say you put basil along side your tomato plants this will better the flavor of the tomatoes. Especially if plan on using them for your making of spaghetti sauce.

Chives have shown to improve the well-being of tomatoes and carrots. It will improve the taste as well as the growth of the plants. The aphids on tomatoes will stay awaay because of the chives and carrot rust is kept at a distance.Roses will not get black spot as long as chives is there, the draw-back is that chives need to be located there for at least 2 years before they are compatible.garlic will work a little faster and may be a better choice.

On the other hand some plants are not good for each other, for example, planting cabbage near strawberries and tomatoes may affect the production and growth in a bad way.

Using potatoes, celery and dill together will compliment each other in a postive way. Beans are a good companion for these plants also and they will add nitrogen fixed from the atmosphere.

Calendula, aka marigolds, are known to repel pests, rid bad nematodes in the soil. You may want to plant these throughout the garden or flower beds. Use only the ones with a hefty scent in order for them to work better. Some folks do not like the odor of marigolds. Mexican marigolds are said to be the best insect repellant of them all but keep away from cabbage and beans. For centuries people have used this plant for this reason.  Nasturtiums are best planted around radishes, tomatoes, cucumbers and under fruit trees. They will repel whiteflies, squash bugs, cucumber beetles and wooly aphids. And the leaves, seeds and flowers are edible and are used in salads.

By using companion planting, a lot of gardeners discover that they can reject damaging pests without losing the beneficial friends. Be open to trying out and see what does well for you. Use the plants that are native in your area though. Companion planting will help you work in agreement with nature.

Vegetable farming tips for tomato upward are speedily offered. Most gardeners are lucky to stake their tomato emergent tips and even non-gardeners who crack to grow tomatoes every mechanism will proposal guidance. The difficulty for the novice tomato farmer comes in difficult so genus the useful vegetable farming tips for tomato emergent from the old wives’ tales. One of the best sources for vegetable farming help is a regional playgroup. Buying plants at a supermarket or a sequence warehouse with plot crux may permit you to purchase plants at a cheaper charge, but it is unlikely that the pole in these supplies know a great agreement about farming. For reliable vegetable farming help, vacation a home nursery. Many nurseries pass plants that they, themselves have adult from seed, and they will be knowledgeable about each type of works and can warn on regional conditions. Most towns have a home patch bash and meeting together with other gardeners is a great way to find vegetable farming help and result your facts. Other gardeners from your vicinity will have abundant information about the requirements of vegetables in your zone. When you get the aid of gardeners that are area to your section, you will get vegetable farming help that you can use because these gardeners understand the matchless desires of your particular zone. Local patch clubs steadily run workshops or program on topics ranging from composting, to growing a particular diversity of heirloom vegetable, to annoyance running in the backyard. Many evenly sponsor projects such as identity gardens which can bestow gardening distance to those who live in apartments and have no patch interval of their own. And pleasing part in an altruistic effort with your fellow patch strike members is a fantastic way to learn all sorts of gardening secrets and tips. Even if you don’t bond a garden society winning part in some workshops will provide you with an opportunity to link fellow gardeners and form friendships with people with an everyday concern. Another top source for vegetable gardening guidance is your home province porch personnel. They specialize in solving the gardening problems matchless to your local environment. They can execute soil tests, recognize plants and diseases and sometimes deliver gratis seeds or plants Once you’ve gained some gardening skill it’s time to get your hands dirty. Tomatoes and other vegetables are calm to grow if you begin with good soil. Before you yard your garden, till the soil to about deepness of ten inches and dig in some well rotted manure or other organic notes. Complete this stair numerous weeks before you want to place your tomatoes. For a bigger garden, you can rent the controls, but for a small garden freedom you can use a gardening fork to dig in the manure. When gamble of cold has passed, desire a 3/4 shuffle stake into your prepared garden bed. Dig a gulf a little deeper and wider than the range of the tomato conceal’s pot next to the stake, gently place the workshop into the defect and stable it in. A framework or tomato cage can also be worn for joist in lieu of a stake. These are readily offered at nurseries and hardware supplies. Use subtle string or tomato ties to tie the lodge’s stem loosely to the stake or lattice. As the tomato place grows, prove the ties regularly and slacken them occasionally to preclude stem wound. The tomato seedlings should be planted 18. Feed your tomato plants regularly using a potassium-based lodge food or you can invent your own organic fertilizer mix. Planting sage adjacent to your tomato plants will help in custody rats at bay. Watering is as important as feeding. Water your tomatoes regularly with a hand-detained rinse. Direct the water at the improper of the hide and prevent wetting the grass which can control to rot. Never let your tomatoes dry out to the purpose that they wilt. Although you can commonly avert the wilting yard by watering it, the dry spot will take its toll on the yard and influence the class of the fruit. Extending dry spells may root your tomatoes to crack. Regularly nip out by hand any face shoots that develop between the leaf and the stem. This will help to station the yard’s energy into its fruit. When your tomatoes have mature, select them by bending back the fruit at the attain on the stem. Ripe tomatoes can be stored in the fridge for up to a week. Continue to water and nosh the place to help the enduring tomatoes to develop and mature.