Organic farming allows you to produce high quality fruit, vegetables and flowers without the use of chemicals. The organic method is healthier for us, the environment and wildlife, and less expensive because there are no chemical fertilizers, pesticides or herbicides to buy. All this is possible if you work with nature, rather than against it. The good news is that you can become an organic farmer even if you only have a few square meters of sunny land. When cared for properly, the organic vegetable garden and garden require little attention and are easy to maintain.
Steps
Step 1. Choose a place to grow your organic garden
- Think small, especially in the beginning. A modest sized garden (1.5 square meters) requires less work and fewer materials, and can provide you with all the fresh vegetables you need.
- Don't grow too many plants. If you are growing vegetables to eat, estimate your yield and calculate your needs per meal.
- Even a window sill or boxes can become an organic vegetable garden.
Step 2. Create a corner for the compost
Compost is the main ingredient for obtaining rich and fertile soil. Almost any organic waste can be used to make compost, but the best material to start with is mostly found in your garden: fallen leaves, weeds (preferably not seeded), grass clippings and more.
Step 3. Add suitable soil
The key to organic farming is good soil. Add as much organic material to the soil as you can. Get it from the compost. The earth that forms from organic material is good for your vegetable garden and garden for many reasons.
- It will nourish your plants, maintaining their natural growth cycle, rather than encouraging bursts of rapid growth by adding chemical fertilizers, which weakens the plant.
- It is easier to dig and weed from rich soil that is not hard and compact.
- The earth is softer and therefore the roots of plants can penetrate more easily and deeper.
- It will help the water and air stay in contact with the roots for as long as necessary. Clay soils are heavy and remain moist for a long time, while in sandy soils the water passes through too quickly. The compound mitigates both conditions.
Step 4. Reduce weed growth
Weeds are those that are not expected to grow in a certain area, and can include invasive ornamental plants, such as ivy and mint, and growing plants.
- Use a hoe and keep it sharp. Keep the edges sharp with a grinding wheel. Try using a hoe. Work the earth, plucking weeds regularly. By continuously removing the green parts of the weeds, you deprive them of the necessary nutrients, weakening their regrowth.
- Pull up perennial weeds by hand, also removing the roots. Be careful, if you are weeding near your plants make sure you don't break their roots.
- Plant thickly, in moderation, especially in ornamental areas. Companion plants are used to fill empty spaces in the garden soil, and they know how to adapt well in a small space. A good green cover will discourage weed growth in your garden.
- Mulch (about 10 cm) unplanted areas around plants and trees to keep them free from weeds. Organic mulch is made up of bark, wood chips, grass clippings, and by decomposing it enriches the soil. In the meantime, it keeps weeds in check, helps keep the soil temperature moderate, and slows evaporation, which means less need for watering.
- Try using heat for weeds that grow between the cracks. You can apply steam, boiling water, or even a small blowtorch, used with great care. If you want to keep a space between the stone slabs, try planting a decorative low plant, resistant to trampling, such as thyme, between them.
Step 5. Review your lawn idea
An intact lawn requires a lot of work, and in certain climates you need to use a lot of fertilizer and a lot of water. It is also a monoculture, so it is more difficult to maintain. At least let some clovers grow in the grass, and don't panic if some weeds appear as well. Consider planting something on the edge of the lawn, or reducing the lawn area, especially if you live in an arid climate.
Step 6. Attract birds, earthworms and beneficial insects
Many creatures can help your garden. Find out what they are and create favorable conditions to encourage them.
Step 7. Get started now
Reap the fruits of your work at any time of the year!
Advice
- As a method of suppression, you can directly cover weeds with fallen leaves and cut grass. Mulch will still enrich the earth. However, it is better to compost them, because until they die they will continue to filter nitrogen into the soil.
- You can use almost any organic material available to compost, but try to avoid material that has been treated with chemicals, such as the cut grass of that pristine lawn, certainly abundantly sprayed with pesticides and herbicides.
- The key to weed and pest management is to act early and often so they don't become a problem.
- Aphids (tiny, soft-bodied climbing insects that multiply wildly in spring and early summer) can be removed from plants with a strong jet of water vapor.
- Make beds of moderate size, so you can reach the whole garden with ease. Plan trails that require minimal maintenance.
- Grow your garden with the squares technique! You can grow a lot in a small space, you don't have to worry too much about the earth, also the weed problem is greatly reduced.
- Compost bins aren't really necessary - just pile up the material and wait for it to decompose. If you want to speed up the process, "flip" the pile every now and then, to mix it up and incorporate air.
- Organic farming differs from conventional farming because it does not depend on synthetic pesticides and fertilizers. Instead, it depends on healthy soil, a carefully selected variety, and physical barriers (mulch, manual insect removal).
- Integrated Pest Management, or IPM (Integrated Pest Management), is an efficient guide to pest control. www.isprambiente.gov.it/files/…/manuali…/manuale_86_2013.pdf
If insects attack your plants, the best thing to do is remove them with your hands. Practice crop rotation, permaculture methods, and introduce companion plants. These systems can seriously reduce weeds, and in some cases, permanently eliminate them
Warnings
- Never mulch with tree bark! Sounds like a good idea, but it deprives the earth of nitrogen as it decomposes, it won't grow next to anything well, and it will attract termites.
- Do not use the following materials to compost, even if they are organic. Using them can spread diseases and can attract parasites:
- Meat, bone or fat of any kind.
- Large quantities of pulpy fruits and vegetables, such as tomatoes, oranges, watermelons, melons, etc.
- Large quantities of packaged food.
- Oil or fat.
- Feces from animals that eat meat, especially from dogs, cats, or people.
