January, 2010:

Eco-friendly gardening is an exciting, satisfying and cheap method of gardening. Notwithstanding the many benefits of this approach few people have this far been able to fully appreciate the benefits, simply because most lack the required experience and understanding. What the organic gardener does is, at the core, a form of biomimicry, or emulating nature to resolve problems. When properly done, organic gardening can produce prime quality crops and landscapes, boost the garden environment, protect water quality, and preserve natural resources.

It is a important component of going green.

In a healthy ecosystem, such as a natural grassland or a forest, the living plants, be they perennials (like the trees) or annuals (like grass), drop litter to the soil surface as an element of their annual cycle. Organic gardening is asystematic (holistic) approach that involves understanding soil and soil management, coordinated pest management, the life cycles of plants, pests, and the pests natural enemies.

Pest Control

However, the organic gardener approach is way more than getting rid of the utilization of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers. Organic gardeners endeavor to work in conjunction with nature, and view their gardens and landscapes as part of a system that begins with the soil and includes insects, plants, the water, wild animals and humans. Simply it is to think more long-term, using natural fertilizers to build your soil up. Healthy soil means healthy plants, and healthy plants produce better, offer premium taste, and are better able to battle illness.

Organic bug elimination requires an in depth understanding of pest life cycles and interactions, and involves the cumulative effect of many methodologies, including :

• Using row covers to guard crop plants during pest migration periods
• Encouraging carnivorous constructive insects to flourish and eat pests
• Rotating crops in different spots from year to year to interrupt pest reproduction cycles

Each of these strategies also admits other benefits, for example soil protection and improvement, fertilization, pollination, water conservation and season extension.

Composting Is Most Important

Composting is in many ways the guts of organic gardening. What goes into the soil comes out as beautiful vegetables, flowers, plants and trees. Composting is starting to become quite a thing to do – as it’s also one of the methods to reduce global warming – and special composting bins can be bought or even made quite simply. Your compost will be the most important source of nutrients which must be added to the soil.

Plants grown in healthy soil are healthy and resistant to pest and diseases. Therefore, what happens below the ground is as critical as what happens above. Plant the borders of the garden in native flowers or plants such as clover or alfalfa to draw inadvantageous insects such as ladybugs. Avoid planting vegetable crops in large blocks. Planting trees and bushes in the middle of flower beds varies height and makes your garden more visually attractive. Just be sure to reflect on how tall your trees will grow in say twenty years, as well as where their roots will spread and how they will eventually shade your garden.

Organic gardener skills are not a new idea, but does represent an increasingly popular type of gardening. The climate changes occuring right now more or less dictate this is the only way to go in the future. And as it is also more fit for you it is really a win-win suggestion. Here is some suggested reading on organic horticulture.

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