Establishing an organic garden is a smart way to work towards a healthier diet. However, organic gardening does require a commitment. Perhaps you are hesitating about where to begin.
Plant strawberries for your children. For kids, there are few things as fun as picking fruit fresh from the garden. Your children will be much more interesting in helping out if they know they’ll get to enjoy some tasty strawberries.
When growing plants inside of the house, you should ensure the thermostat is set at around 65-75 degrees in the daytime. This is the optimum temperature to ensure strong growth. These temperatures may not be comfortable for you, however. As an alternative to keeping your entire home that warm, consider getting heat lamps for your organic plants.
To be as efficient as possible in the garden, always have your tools handy. You should use a large pail and wear sturdy pants that have several pockets. Keep common tools such as your gloves or your pruning shears within reach so that you can quickly and easily maintain your garden whenever you need to.
Coffee grounds work great mixed in with your soil. The grounds contain essential nitrogen, which will benefit your plants in many ways. A strong nitrogen source in your garden area is a wonderful way to have healthy and strong plants.
Stay on top of your organic gardening to-do list, and don’t let the work pile up. Even doing just a few small things each day can keep chores from piling up and eventually becoming unmanageable. This will save you a lot of time in the long run. For example, if you are playing in the yard with your child, take a few moments to pull some weeds as well.
Laundry Basket
When you want to harvest the produce in your organic garden, always have an old laundry basket to hand. A benefit of using something like a laundry basket is that it can strain for you, as well as hold a large amount of produce. The produce can be rinsed off as it sits in the laundry basket, and extra water will drain out through the sides.
One unusual tip in organic gardening, is to “pet” your seedlings often. Use your hands or a piece of cardboard and lightly ruffle the seedling about one or two times a day. That may sound like a silly thing to do, but it’s been proven to help plants grow larger than they would otherwise.
If you need to prove to customers that your produce is legitimately organic, you can become certified as an organic grower. This should boost your sales while proving to your customers that they are getting healthy products.
Consider the climate and season when watering your plants. Other factors that influence how much you need to water include time of day, soil factors and how hard your water is. For instance, in warm and balmy locations, it is important not to water leaves, as doing so tends to foster fungus growth. Water the roots with care.
More Gardening Ideas & Resources
As you are aware now, there is homework to be done and energy to be expended in setting up a real organic garden. It is very true, as well, that to see results, you must stick with it. Use the tips presented here, along with some ideas of your own, and you can be a thriving organic gardener in no time.