"Organic Gardening"
Organic gardening was the way of the past and hopefully it will be the way of the future, as we learn more about the damage we are causing to our environment.   Organic fruit and vegetables are often still at least twice the price of un-organic produce, and it pays therefore to be producing our own food as much as we possibly can. Unless you have a large area of land, including polytunnels and greenhouses, and perhaps an army of gardeners to do a lot of the work for you, it's unlikely you will be able to grow the variety of fruit and veg you are used to buying.However, there are many different fruits, vegetables, herbs and even edible flowers we can grow in an average sized garden, and in a few hours every week, organic food can be included in the diet for all the family, however addicted to burgers, fries and chocolate buttons they are! Plan your organic gardening well and buy the seeds you want from a reputable seed supplier. Thompson and Morgan are online award winning suppliers of seeds and other products and they have some great pictures to drool over! Keep your fruit and veggies free from weeds, and water well, especially during long dry periods in the summer. Keep an eye on the slug and snail population when the plants are small. A slug attack can wipe out a whole row of carefully planted lettuces in a matter of hours. Organic gardening worked for our ancestors so try using old fashioned ways of dealing with slugs rather than buying chemical slug pellets. For example, crushed eggshells placed around the plants, making sure there are no gaps, will prevent slugs from eating your young plants. Many gardeners swear by a glass of beer - maybe to drink :-) but also to sink into the ground next to a new line of plants. Apparantly slugs prefer the smell of beer and will happily drown themselves in alcohol and leave your baby lettuces to fight another day! Other pests can get into the garden and enjoy the free food you are providing, and they will particularly love your organic gardening methods :-) but with a little vigilance and a regular potter around the veggie patch, you should be able to keep on top of most of the problems that could turn up. The cabbage white butterfly will attack your brassicas - and they WILL attack so watch out for them. They lay their eggs on the underside of the leaves and within a couple of days the hungriest caterpillars in the world will munch through your entire crop of cabbages, or any other brassicas. Remove them at the egg stage and burn or throw them to the chickens. If you miss the egg stage, simply take off the leaves the caterpillars are eating and throw them on the fire, or again to the chickens. This may seem very un-zen like but unless you are intending to buy your cabbages and are just planting them for the fun of attracting caterpillars and increasing the butterfly population, there is little choice. Always look out for natural products or advice from local gardeners. Some will use chemicals, but many gardeners dislike un-natural products. If you put chemicals onto your plants, the chemicals will find their way into the soil and the soil wont be as fertile next year, so its really worthwhile avoiding any "chemical" products. Stick with organic gardening, and the wonderful organic food you produce will feed your family for many years to come from the same patch of land. Find out more about healthy eating on this page... Healthy Eating Happy Gardening! Grow Your Own Winter Food: A good diet incorporating plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables is a must if you want to stay fit and healthy and keep the bugs at bay during the cold winter months. Growing your own winter food is just one way of ensuring you get the freshest, tastiest produce packed with goodness straight from the garden to the kitchen table. This easy-to-follow self-sufficiency book shows you how to grow your own fruit and vegetables for winter use and includes facts on each fruit, vegetable or herb as well as nutritional value, recipe ideas and storage suggestions.  Grow Your Own Winter Food is perfect for those with limited gardening experience, with gardens big or small who are looking to become more self-sufficient. Order it now direct from the publisher... Grow Your Own Winter Food Grow It, Cook It!: Many crops, including herbs, can be produced in a relatively small space with a little pre-planning and organizing: in containers, on a balcony, and indoors. Herbs are perfect for enhancing the flavour of cooking, treating minor ailments, and preventing colds and flu. Your own back garden will not only produce the best food on the planet for you and your loved ones, it is also economical, environmentally friendly and more fun than shopping. Organic gardening is more than a hobby; it's a way of life. .  This book provides all the information you need to keep your family and friends healthy, fit and enjoying life to the full. Order it now direct from the publisher... Grow It, Cook It! Grow Your Own Pharmacy: If, like me, you want to be able to eat the best food on the planet, grow your own!  • Clear instructions on planning, planting, growing and harvesting the fruits, vegetables and herbs required for a healthy vitamin intake. • Recipes and menus to help incorporate the fruit and vegetables into your daily diet. Grow Your Own Pharmacy Herbs and Spices: Some herbs grow vigorously, some are tender and need special growing conditions, some are annuals, some perennials, some you can grow indoors, all can be grown in pots or directly into the ground. There are also certain spices, such as chillies, that can be grown in temperate climates.  This clear and concise directory of herbs and spices provides all the essential information to help you grow a selection of these flavour-enhancing foods in small or large spaces. Ideas for which herbs and spices go best with which foods also accompany each description, so that you can really enliven your repertoire of recipes. Order it now direct from the publisher... Herbs and Spices Granny's Book Of Good Old Fashioned Common Sense is packed full of great ideas and tips. Granny brings traditional home-making up to date with cooking, gardening, needlecrafts and even games to play with the kids...Click on the link below to order your copy.  Cooking doesn’t have to be a chore and preparing nourishing home cooked meals for the family will certainly keep them away from the goodie shelf. Gardening encourages physical exercise and a good healthy dollop of fresh air. And you can get the kids involved too. Before the days of computer games and electronic pets, children used to have fun without rummaging about in the fridge every five minutes. Enjoy a few rainy-day games and crafts of yesteryear with today’s kids. They’ll love it and so will you! Granny's Book Of Good Old Fashioned Common Sense Back to Gardening Back to Flower and Garden Tips Homepage Click here to subscribe to "Creative Gardening" - Your FREE monthly ezine! http://www.flower-and-garden-tips.com/organicgardening.html |
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