By Guest Blogger, Annie Button
Organic gardening isn’t just a way of improving your surrounding environment, it also offers health and wellbeing benefits and can increase the food security you can achieve in your garden. It’s the process of working with natural systems and cycles, but it’s more than simply avoiding chemical weed killers and pesticides. So how do you create an organic garden and follow the sustainable growing movement?
Why take an organic approach to your garden?
Gardening in accordance with the natural environment makes the best use of the resources we already have and avoids the use of harmful chemicals which leach into our soils and waterways, causing harm to wildlife and ecosystems as well as our own health. It’s a more affordable way of gardening and encourages healthier soil, which in turn yields better results for your gardening efforts.
Organic gardening can produce nutritious and flavourful produce, while also saving money in the long run by avoiding expensive synthetic additives. By avoiding synthetic pesticides and fertilisers, organic gardening can also help to conserve soil and water resources, reduce erosion, and promote a more sustainable and responsible way of growing food and other plants. Organic, ecosystem gardening centres on a few core pillars, which are as follows.
Develop the health of the soil
Healthy soil is the basis for successful organic gardening, so you need to feed the soil rather than the plants for the best results and healthier flowers, fruit and vegetables. Your soil health is an indicator of how well your crops will succeed, so it needs to be the foundation of your plans. Signs of healthy soil include a crumbly texture, with plenty of organic matter to enrich it and improve drainage, and a healthy pH that’s as close to neutral as possible to enable your plants to absorb nutrients. While some plants require a more acidic or alkaline soil to thrive, in most cases, achieving a neutral soil is the goal.
[Image source: Deposit photos]
Encourage biodiversity
The greater the biodiversity in your garden, the more beneficial pollinators you’ll attract and the healthier the ecosystem of your outdoor space will be. Biodiversity, for a gardener, is easy to achieve in several ways. For example, growing numerous types of plants, trees and shrubs will create different environments for wildlife.
Water features are also an effective way to attract animals, birds and insects, such as a natural swimming pool which supports garden life and maintains itself without the need for chemicals. Ponds and natural pools combine a host of different benefits for gardens where biodiversity is concerned, from attracting birds and wildlife to the water to native plants and microorganisms which enhance soil health.
Keep harmful toxins out
Chemicals abound in gardens around the country, from pesticides and fertilisers to weed killers and more. But while they might be effective in keeping weeds at bay or preventing slugs and snails, they damage the health of your garden and kill off more than just the specific insects you think you’re targeting. And that has negative consequences for your garden overall.
An organic ecosystem causes minimal damage to the environment, and instead is designed to contribute to the environment. Where possible, organic gardeners make use of natural resources to reduce their carbon footprint and look for plant-based, natural alternatives.
Plant native flora
Native plants which are indigenous to your local area are more likely to thrive, and they attract insects, birds and animals to your garden. In fact, many insects are dependent on specific native plants, and an environment lacking in these plants will impact ecosystems and biodiversity. Another way to enhance this aspect of organic gardening is to plant seasonally, keeping in line with the cycle of the year and planting what would naturally be growing at that time where you live.
Native plants have adapted to the local environment, making them better suited to survive and thrive with less water, fertiliser and pesticides. Their deep roots can improve soil health and fertility, reducing the need for synthetic fertilisers. By planting native plants, organic gardeners can also help to conserve endangered and threatened species and preserve biodiversity.
[Image source: Deposit photos]
Conserve resources
A central element of organic gardening is the conservation of natural resources. Organic gardeners are committed to conserving natural resources and minimising their impact on the environment. This might include using water-efficient irrigation techniques, reducing waste and energy use, and incorporating sustainable practices like rainwater harvesting with water butts and mulching around plants to retain moisture. All of these practices make better use of the environment’s natural resources and mimic what happens in nature.
Incorporated pest management
Rather than relying on synthetic pesticides, organic gardeners use a variety of methods to control pests and diseases, including crop rotation, companion planting and natural predators. This approach helps to maintain a healthy ecosystem and reduces the risk of harmful chemicals leaching into the soil and water.
To implement integrated pest management into gardening systems, gardeners must first identify the problem and monitor the situation to catch any issues early on. Good practices like crop rotation and companion planting should be used, along with physical and mechanical controls such as physical barriers or manual pest removal. Biological controls can also be effective, such as beneficial insects and predators.
Since the pandemic, more of us have been inspired to tend to our outdoor spaces and create luscious gardens that are abundant in flowers, fruits and vegetables. But while there’s a temptation to use chemical pesticides to encourage bigger produce, or plant exotic fruits and vegetables to create a colourful garden, it’s not in keeping with practices which are best-suited to our environment.
To really support the local landscape, we need to make better use of the natural resources we have available, from water conservation to encouraging biodiversity and microorganisms which will support plant health and growth. Not only will this reduce harm to the environment but it will also produce healthier produce.
About the writer
Annie Button, a freelance writer who has written for various online and print publications, specialising in lifestyle, business, branding and career development, anniebutton.co.uk.