3 Simple Organic Gardening Tips

A good organic garden takes a certain set of special techniques to ensure that you get a lot of produce. These techniques are often picked up over time. Those who don’t feel like learning as they go can start using these three simple organic gardening tips to bring in the bountiful harvest as soon as possible!

pea sprouts are so freakin’ cute!

Tip 1: Compost, Compost, Compost

An organic gardener simply must learn to love the smell of fresh compost in the morning. This mixture of manure, clippings, and wood chips provides all of the nutrients a growing plant needs to thrive. Before planting a garden the gardener must amend the soil with compost, and double amend the soil if it has never been used as a garden plot before. After the plants are grown, and stable, gardeners can add compost tea to the ground to continue adding those vital nutrients into the soil. The best thing of all about compost is that gardeners can make their own using patience and modern composting techniques. If you have unused compost in your compost pile, keep it covered with a tarp to prevent the nutrient from leeching out in the rain.

Tip 2: Water, Water Everywhere

Water is essential to every garden. Most gardeners don’t water enough or properly to get the full bounty out of their gardens. Sprouted seedlings need the most watering in the garden. They have almost no root system and dry out quickly. Sprinkle a few drops of water on each seedling twice a day until they develop stronger roots. After the garden has developed further, you can give it one inch of water once or twice a week. Do the watering in the morning and never at night. This helps prevent the growth of mold overnight in damp soil.

Tip 3: Insects, Good and Bad

Every organic gardener needs to stay on top of the pest problem to keep the plants safe and protect the crops. To help keep pests down, a good layer of coffee grounds makes excellent mulch around the base of plants. You can also attract beneficial ladybugs with flowering herbs like fennel, dill, and parsley. A sprinkle of Diatomaceous Earth around the outside of the garden will help keep pests out of the plants as well. This white powder cuts the cuticles, skin, and joints of insects. Bats are a good beneficial creature to encourage as they kill more insects than birds and bug zappers.

Organic gardeners will pick up a lot of tricks as they gain more experience with their own gardens. In the meantime, these three tips will help get that garden off to a good start and keep it healthy!