Organic gardening: Bypassing Chemical Shortcuts
The ever growing interest in organic gardening starts with a premise — you are what you eat. Gardeners have developed a plethora of methods for planting, growing and nurturing their crops, all without using chemicals (fertilizers or pesticides). The results are a garden of fresh fruits and vegatables chock full of nutrients taken directly from the soil, organic gardeners say.
While the health benefits of organic gardening are the subject of debate with both non-organic growers and within the industry itself, there is no denying that tender care given to each crop produces a vine-ripened tasty product. But just shunning the use of chemicals is far from all that is required to become a successful organic gardener.
The choice of the word “organic” to describe the process is misleading because it means anything containing carbon. Organic gardening is best defined as only using substances that at one time were alive. The staple of organic gardening is compost, basically garbage and plant residue that has decayed to the point that its original form is unrecognizable.
Horse manure is a main source of fertilizer, often turned into a manure tea that can be poured in liquid form around a plant.
The organic gardener also believes in chasing insects. Methods other than chemical pesticides exist to combat nasty little plant-eating aphids and -/other insects, organic gardeners insist.
The most popular method, though, is by growing healthy plants that are naturally pest-resistant and by intermixing different types that can assist each other in dealing with potential problems.
Vanquishing aphids can be accomplished with a mixture of soap, water and a little garlic pepper. Here is an anti-aphid recipe: Mix a quart of water with one tablespoon of Ivory liquid soap. Add to the mixture a blended ground concoction of hot peppers and garlic. The soap helps the mixture cling to the plant leaves. Spray it on the leaves plant under attack, and the aphids will leave.
Another method, even more natural, is to spray the little creatures off the plant with a jet of water. Of course, this must be done almost every day. Like all true organic gardeners, loyalists disdain the use of pesticides. A few offending bugs do not bother them.
Another way to keep the harmful insect population down is to provide an area for toads to live. You can also toss peanuts into your backyard for blue jays to eat. As payment for the peanuts, the jays patrol the garden for tasty insects. Or garden munching
snails can be plucked by hand instead of killed with poison.
The growing popularity of organic gardening magazines can be traced to the increased use by farmers continued use of insecticides, fungicides and chemical fertilizers. All are produced by companies catering to farmers who desire to have a crop easy to harvest and sturdy enough to withstand rigors of shipping.
Frequently, the treated product is picked and then allowed to ripen in a warehouse weeks later. They ignore taste completely. Organic farmers also are concerned about the pollution of the environment by an accumulation of chemicals.
Origins of Organic Gardening
The more chemicals that are added to the soil, the more they affect the balance of naturally occurring micro-organisms. Thus, starting with healthy soil should result in healthy plants. The pioneer in organic farming was an Englishman, Sir Albert Howard. The father of organic gardening in America was J.I. Rodale.
The wealthy Rodale discovered the works of Howard while traveling in Europe. In 1940, Rodale moved his family to a farm and began growing all their food organically. Convinced this had profound effects on his family’s health, Rodale devoted himself and much of his wealth to its pursuit. He founded Organic Gardening and Farming Magazine and the Soil and Health Foundation.
Organic gardening began to sputter in the 1950s as the use of poisons for insecticides and chemical fertilizers were encouraged by world authorities. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, however, people again became aware of the possible hazards of chemicals and organic gardening began a comeback.
