When you’re growing an organic garden, you can’t forget about the supplies. Just buying organic heirloom seeds or seedlings isn't enough to do the trick. Here are a few tips to help you remember what to add to your shopping list the next time you head to the gardening section.
Fertilizer
Most plants and crops need a good fertilizer to grow to their fullest potential. However, most fertilizers sold at your local big box outdoor store are full of harsh and dangerous chemicals. If you want to fertilize your plants without compromising your organic lifestyle, you’ll need to pick up organic fertilizer or make your own at home.
Pesticides
Pesticides are a no-no for any organic gardener, but you can still keep pests away without introducing chemicals into your garden. You can buy organic pesticide instead of synthetic pesticides at the store, or you can create your own natural pesticides at home in lots of different ways. You can try vegetable soap mixtures or companion planting, but you will need a form of pest control that doesn’t harm your crop or the environment.
Soil
Buying organic soil is very important for your garden. You can fertilize it with compost, but organic soil is where everything truly begins. If you’re growing organically, the soil your plants live in needs to be chemical-free. Your plants rely on soil to live in and feed from. When your soil is full of chemicals, your plants are literally soaking those chemicals in as they soak up the nutrients in the soil.
Weed Control
Weeds are a problem in every garden, but prevention is the best option to keep weeds under control. A good organic option is to buy weed controlling landscape fabric. Just place the fabric down before you plant your garden to prevent weeds from popping up later in the season. You can also just use newspaper as a weed-controlling layer under your crops. It’s biodegradable and will dissolve into the ground over time.
Compost
Good compost can transform a regular organic garden into a fantastic organic garden. You can buy organic compost from your gardening store, or you can make your own at home using kitchen scraps and lawn litter. Compost is an organic gardener’s best friend and making it at home is the best way to ensure that your compost is made up of only organic materials. You can control exactly what goes in your compost and in your garden.
