WHY ORGANIC GARDENING? In recent years, there has been an increasing trend towards growing fruit and vegetables at home. The reasons for this are various. These include concerns about the miles travelled by supermarket food and the use of pesticides, as well as promotion on TV by celebrity chefs including Jamie Oliver and Gordon Ramsay. Also, with the recent credit crunch beginning to bite, people are becoming more aware of the need to utilise their gardens to save money as well as of course, staying healthy. What better way of getting your children to eat 5-a-day than to involve them with growing their own vegetables? And if you have access to ready-to-use veggies that are pesticide free and organic, there is every chance you yourself can stick to doctors orders!
Eating five portions of fruit or vegetable a day can help keep you healthy by reducing the risk of hert disease, stroke and even some cancers. People seem to be taking notice of this nowadays; Vegetable seeds are now outgrowing flower seeds in some parts of the UK by 2:1, a real sign that people are picking up on the benefits of organic gardening! However, before going all out on a health/money saving quest in your back garden or allotment, it is worth spending some time getting to know a bit about organic gardening. After all, not everyone picking up on the craze are already 'green-fingered'. So, how to start?
Make your own compost This will help replinish the nutrients used up by your vegetables. Use old lawn clippings or weeds for fast growing rotting materials as well as fruit and vegetable peelings. If you cant wait though, why not invest in some organic compost in the meantime? (once your own develops this cost wont occur again). Compost is perhaps the most important aspect of growing your own vegetable garden - regardless of the cost and supposed quality of seeds.
Pick your seeds A quick search on the internet will reveal thousands of suppliers of various seeds, some of which are disease resisitant.
Organic fertiliser (!) Another web search will reveal suppliers of pellet fertilisers - a great way to complement your home made compost.
Be Patient Going organic may mean that you are more vulnerable to predators and of course, the seasons may not always be kind - but be patient and persist. Also, dont try and grow too much in one area - competition isnt kind to veggies!
And Finally...............For a step-by-step guide for the complete novice, invest in a good eBook or visit your local library to read up on how to grow your own veggie patch. After all, investing some time up front will help make the most of your organic gardening.
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