What Does the Word Organic Mean?

The term "organic" in the context of gardening means raising food plants and flowers without using synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, growth stimulants or antibiotics. But there’s more to the concept of organic gardening. Organic gardeners encourage plant growth and control pests and diseases through cultural practices. They also use of products derived from natural sources with minimal processing.

Healthy, productive organic vegetable and flower gardens start with fertile, well-drained soil. Organic gardeners improve their soil by adding organic matter in the form of composted green plants and animal manures. If soil testing shows specific nutrient deficiencies, organic gardeners apply natural materials such as bat guano, bone meal, fish emulsion or rock phosphates that contain the needed nutrients.

The main organic weapons against weeds are frequent shallow tilling and thick blankets of mulch. The tilling uproots and kills weeds while they are still small, while mulch denies weed seeds the sunlight and fresh air they need to grow. As your garden plants get bigger, their leaves provide shade that deters weed growth.

Organic gardeners select their plant varieties carefully, looking for strong disease and insect resistance. They also rotate their crops, meaning they don’t grow an annual plant species in the same spot for a second year. With rotation, pests and diseases that afflicted a plant in one year will find a totally different species in that spot when they emerge the next year, which might thwart an attack.

There are several active pesticide ingredients for insect and disease control that qualify as organic because they are derived from natural plant or mineral sources, not artificial chemicals. Plant-derived organic pesticides such as pyrethrin, made from chrysanthemum flowers, are effective for killing insect pests. Pyrethrin is sold as a liquid concentrate for use in pump sprayers. Mix 4 tablespoons of concentrate per gallon of water, unless instructed otherwise. Spray solution on tops and undersides of leaves when insects are active.

Mineral-based organic fungicides such as elemental sulfur are effective in destroying a variety of blights, mildews, rots and rusts. For most garden plants, apply powdered elemental sulfur as a dust at a rate of 1 pound per 1,000 square feet or 40 pounds per acre unless directed otherwise. Start application at the first sign of disease and repeat every two weeks so long as wet, muggy conditions favor disease development. When using organic insecticides or fungicides, wear gloves, eye protection and old clothing. Avoid breathing spray or dust. Change clothes and shower yourself immediately after using pesticides.