These organic gardening ideas will help you maintain your garden and ensure a healthy environment for all living things that wander into your garden. As with any organic gardening ideas, the rules are simple: keep it natural and don't be afraid to get creative.
The best organic gardening ideas always begin with soil, then seeds. We suggest you begin with composting, but if you're like some of us, store bought soil will suffice for starting this process too. And, rest assured we will cover composting in future issues, as we feel this is vital.
A few things to consider before you just throw those egg shells and coffee grounds into your garden bed: First, eggshells are great for your soil as are coffee grounds, but make sure they are organic! I can't tell you how many people think they're helping Mother Nature when they're pouring more toxicity into their soil with processed coffee or non-organic eggs. It truly is a long, slow process, but it can be achieved with some patience.
Of all the organic gardening ideas we can suggest, if the seeds aren't organic, then the plants can't be. Main Street Seed & Supply has an outstanding selection of vegetable seeds, including a broad range of hybrids that are certified organic. However, all organic seeds are not created equal, which is why Main Street ensures that all of their organic seeds are up to the highest quality standards. By beginning with an organic seed, you ensure that you are not introducing chemicals into what you eat, or tainting the soil.
When starting your seedlings, perform a small dedication and blessing. Bless them and set an intention for them to grow healthy and strong. We love the Natural Beginnings Seed-Starting Mix, only available at Gardens Alive. This mix is an organic growing medium, formulated to help seeds sprout faster and grow better with plenty of nutrients and circulating air.
The best water for your garden doesn't come out of your hose; it comes from the sky. You can't make it rain every time your garden needs water, but you can make the most of the rain that does come your way by collecting rainwater when it comes.
Check out the Downspout Rain Catcher from Lehman's. It's an easy way to collect rainwater. You simply place the rain catcher at the bottom of your downspout and pray for rain. While you will most likely still need to use a hose, the more rain water you can use, the better. As you use your rainwater in the garden, you are a natural part of the earth's weather, a part of the cycle of growth.
The last of our organic gardening ideas will make you wonder how you ever got through your transplant planting before. The PotMaker, also from Lehman's, provides a fast, easy way of recycling newspapers and creating fully biodegradable transplant pots. No more ugly, environmentally unsound, plastic pots! The PotMaker allows you to create your own pots using strips of newspaper. The best part is that they will naturally break apart in the soil, meaning that you can just plant them as is in the ground when you are ready. The PotMaker requires nothing but newspaper and the PotMaker form, so you can use it time after time for years.
Talk about recycling!
