All About Home and Garden

Has the selection of "organic" foods at your local grocery store expanded as it has in so many others? Organic foods are no longer just for the fringe environmental nuts. No longer confined to health stores, organic foods have become a staple at most grocery stores. So what about the fruits and vegetables you grow in your home garden?

Don't let the idea of going organic put thoughts of "too much effort" into your head. It is a lot easier than many people think it is and there are effective ways of handling fertilizing and pest control organically. And, you want to remember that the whole idea is to provide you and your family with safer, healthier fruits and vegetables.

Organic gardens differ from regular gardens in that the plants are fertilized and pests are controlled in the garden without the use of synthetic or excessive use of chemicals. Organic gardeners use only natural products and materials and avoid fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides that could be harmful to the environment and their families.

Any successful garden takes a lot of work and organic gardening is no different.

First of all, giving your organic garden a proper start also means an early start. Organic fertilizers take longer to work, so start prepping your soil at least 3 weeks ahead of time. Make sure you remove any organic materials that have not decomposed over the winter, as well as weeds and such. Fertilizers usually involves composting, which is easier to do than people usually envision. You can also use animal manure, like chicken droppings.

Your organic fertilizer or compost will remove the hardness of the soil and improve its overall condition. Properly prepared soil will be able to hold both water and nutrients much better after fertilizing it. In addition, organic fertilizer buffers the soil so it is more stable to extremes of acidity or alkalinity. Another benefit of using compost or organic fertilizer is the slow and continual release of nutrients as the fertilizer decomposes throughout the growing season.

Nitrogen is an important and necessary nutrient for growth in gardens-even conventional ones. Compost piles help organic gardens by improving the usable nitrogen component of the soil through a process called "nitrification".

Animal manures make for the best type of fertilizer for the average organic garden. It needs to have been aged for at least 30 days to make the nitrogen more bio-available. The manure varies depending on the type of the animal, the way the animal was fed and even the condition of the animal. After letting the soil rest with the animal manure, you're ready to plant and grow the healthiest garden possible.

So, you've gotten in a little exercise, properly prepared the soil so your organic garden will have a great start and can now take a break while your soil "matures".

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