Tag: Herbicides

Gardening Organic Tomato Made Easy

I bet you have already seen organic vegetables being sold in supermarkets. Nowadays, the area dedicated for organic produce in supermarkets is growing and more. It used to be that people are going organic as a matter of alternative, lifestyle changes, or making a statement. But today, organic food has become more the conventional rather than the alternative. The benefits of organic gardening can never be observed more in the area of commercial agricultural products such as fruits and vegetables. Tomatoes, for example, are becoming bigger, rounder, redder, and fresher through organic gardening than previous cultivation methods. Gardening organic tomato is really not a mystery but rather involves balancing the health of the environment and the plant itself.

When planting tomatoes using organic gardening, it is important to not that healthy tomato plants will be able to repel pests and diseases better. There are a number of ways to make certain that your tomato plants are healthy. For one, you could start by buying plants or seeds from disease free varieties. Local varieties usually have a developed adaptive mechanism which protects them from common pests and diseases.

Tomatoes can be divided into determinates and indeterminates. The first variety will grow to a certain extent and then stops. Unlike the indeterminates variety where the tomato vines continue to grow which is why you need to provide support for the plants when you cultivate these kinds of variety.

Planting tomatoes in the organic way means you need a very healthy soil. Note that healthy soils are rich with fungi, bacteria, and other organisms that are good for your tomato plants. You need to understand that ordinary backyard or front yard soils are not often sufficient to provide tomato plants with the sustenance they need. The key in growing great tomatoes are good quality soil.

This is the reason why other people are tempted to use chemical fertilizers, pesticides or herbicides to augment the poor quality of their current soils. Although using chemical fertilizers do offer quick results, it is not the true way of organic gardening.

Just like any other organic gardening, the use of composts in your tomato gardens is very important. By adding composts, the soil will become healthier and will be able to provide a better source of nutrients for your tomato plants.

Now pests are common occurrences and in your tomato garden one of the most common and most damaging is the Tomato hornworms. These are large caterpillars and mostly found in the Northern parts of America. They can cause a lot of damage not only in tomatoes but in eggplants, pepper, tobacco and potatoes when they are left to themselves.

If you notice any Tomato homworms in your garden, you should start with pest control as son as possible. The most basic and remains one of the most effective in dealing with pests is to get down and handpick the caterpillars from the plants leaves or stem.

Another option would be to release in your garden natural predators and in the case of Tomato homworms, lady beetles or lacewings are effective friendly insects. These insects will attach the eggs of the homworms destroying them from the source.

Gardening organic tomato can be very easy, all you need a simple guide, a sample pamphlet maybe or a brochure. Just remember that organic gardening will require special care and attention.

Elements of Organic Gardening

Organic gardening in the truest sense means gardening without the use of any chemical substances, may they be in the form of fertilizers, pesticides, growth enhancers, etc. Some people think that if they use only small amounts of chemical fertilizers they still are producing organic. But they are wrong. Lets tackle some of the misconceptions and issues that surround organic gardens.

Dont get us wrong, organic gardens dont mean just leaving them to nature. It does need fertilization and pest management as well. However, you will use materials, techniques or approaches that are truly organic.

When it comes to fertilizers, for example, organic gardens obviously need fertilizers that are either plant or animal in origin and not petroleum or chemical based as most synthetic fertilizers are made of. So this means, organic gardens will have to rely on composts, animal manures, etc to provide added nutrients to the soil that the plants needs for growth. Its a good thing really, natural based fertilizers is less damaging to the soil in the long run that synthetic ones.

One of the many tips an expert organic grower will give you is that importance of maintaining a healthy soil. Some studies have found out that soils that are not treated with any chemical or synthetic fertilizers or herbicides grow plants that attract less pests. There are several ways to protect your soil. Covering it with vegetation or mulch will protect the soil surface from unnecessary damage from excess sun exposure and erosion from winds and rains. Remember that the top layers of the soil contain the living organisms that plants needs.

At times, organic gardens are also beleaguered by pests and you need to provide some sort of support or else your plants can easily be destroyed by aphids, worms, etc. There a number of effective alternatives for commercial chemical fertilizers. Some are readily available in your own kitchen which makes them really convenient.

Garlic and peppers for instance can be utilized as a spray against common pests. Extracts from the neem tree is also a great weapon against leaf eating, stem boring, or flower devouring pests. Also, you should note that spiders, ladybugs, and lacewings are three of the many insects that are on your side. These insets are natural predators of aphids, worms, larvae, and other pests so treat them nicely.

Another way to manage the pests in your garden is by thinking ahead. When you planted your plants, you could also place along side them plants that are natural repellants of insects such as marigolds which are very effective against nematodes.

Everything about an organic garden should revolve around nature.

Sometimes, it is nice to view organic way of gardening as a means where we can contribute to the protection of nature by helping minimize the use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers that are harmful to the environment. May it be a flower garden, your lawn and shrubs, a vegetable patch, or even a fruit and herbs garden, as long as you incorporate organic techniques you are helping build a better future for the next generation.

These are only a few elements that you will have to internalize when start your own organic garden. Just remember that organic gardening is a technique where emphasis is on the interaction of living organisms.