So, you want to go organic?

Organic foods are the most nutritional food there is . . . no chemicals, no preservatives.

Organic is the food of choice today.

Many people find the prices for organic fruits and vegetables found in the local grocery store too high. Consequently, they would like to ‘grow their own’.

My organic garden started when my children were small. Not small, however, were the giant sweet potatoes cultivated from rich soil built on fine white ‘sugar’ sand in the heat of South Florida. My little backyard plot was responsible for a healthy abundance of squash, beans, eggplants, peppers, onions, radishes, cabbage, broccoli, kale, etc.

How Did I Build A Healthy Organic Garden in soil that only supported sandspurs? Let me tell you how I did it and how you can do it, too.

1. Mark off a plot of land with stakes and string. (First lay it out on paper)

2. Rent a garden tiller to loosen the sod or whatever top soil YOU have.

3. With a shovel, dig trenches about 6” – 10” deep x 12” x 18” wide, either vertically or horizontally, depending on your paper layout.

4. Mound the dirt up parallel to the trenches as you go along your course. This is where you’ll put your plants.

5. Buy some top soil and processed cow manure and spread it along the mounds. This is where you’ll plant your seeds or seedlings and the purchased soil will give them a jumpstart while your ‘organic’ soil is being created.

[Check the links on the side of this page for excellent mail order catalogs when buying your seeds.] I mulled over seed catalogs during the dark hours of night.

6. Fill the trenches with newspapers, grass clippings, leaves, hay, etc to keep the weeds out and the moisture in. This is your path between the rows of vegetables.

In an area near your potential garden plot, start a compost pile with leaves, grass clippings, kitchen waste, and manures. Manure heats the pile and breaks down the enzymes of your ‘living’ elements.

Be creative when it comes to your organic compost pile. I went so far as to pitch water hyacinths out of canals and lakes to add to my compost for volume. I cleaned horse stables for fresh manure. I collected elephant dung from a local tourist attraction. I collected bags of human hair clippings from hair salons. Ask them to save it for you – it’s full of nitrogen. Get the kids and family involved. Water and turn the pile regularly to keep it evenly moist.

One word of CAUTION: Fish Scraps are an excellent fertilizer. Make sure you bury any fish scraps deep into your compost to avoid attracting flies.

Plant your seeds (arrived from the mail order seed catalogs) and/or seedlings (from a plant nursery). Buy some bales of hay and loosely blanket the hay around the plants. This keeps in the moisture, lets in the air, and hinders weed growth.

Water daily. I found liquid fish emulsion to be a wonderful fertilizer. Use it once a week during the growing period.

Plant marigold and nasturtium flowers around your plot. These plants ward off insects.

If little boring insects appear on your bean or cabbage leaves during the growing process, collect the worms and/or bugs in a container. Add them to a cup of water with a teaspoon of dish detergent and blend them in your blender. Then pour the mixture over the plants. The worms will disappear. They don’t like feeding on the remains of their own kind.

If all this seems like a lot of work and expense in buying hay, etc. – don’t worry. The results are worth every penny and minute. Your organic garden will flourish. You’ll have more than enough organic vegetables to feed your family with some to spare.

Check the links on the side of the page as your source for gardening products.

Happy Organic Vegetable Gardening!