All the Good Your Organic Garden Can Do

You probably know that gardening organically has incredible benefits for both you and your garden. But here's a refresher anyway!

What Organic Gardening Means Fundamentally, organic gardening favors growing plants with natural & unprocessed materials, avoiding synthetic pesticides, and relying on biological controls for pests. These choices contribute to healthier soil and a stronger surrounding ecosystem. Some examples include but are not limited to:

• making your own compost instead of purchasing synthetic fertilizers

• introducing or supporting populations of native beneficial insects (lady bugs, which will eat aphids)

• buying organic, open-pollinated seeds and seed saving every year

• weeding more often and using burlap, straw, or leaves to mulch instead of applying synthetic chemical pesticides

Better for Planet (Cools the Planet)

All-natural gardening protects the living microbes in the soil that trap carbon. Composting, less tilling, and keeping perennials are 3 ways to protect those microbes and help them grow. Adding organic matter (using leaves as mulch) helps build the habitats these microbes need. Both synthetic pesticides and the conventional practice of tilling destroy humic substance (the "apartment complex" for carbon-eating microbes). Saying NO to synthetic sprays and minimizing tilling when possible are amazing practices that protect these super small superheroes. A widespread adoption of pro-microbe gardening practices could potentially sequester 5.5 billion tons of carbon dioxide. In other words, more organic gardens could help cool the planet.

Better for People (Improved Nutrition)

Of course, many variables such as soil, geography, irrigation, and heat affect nutrient composition of fruits & vegetables. However, it is possible that gardening organically will result in higher levels of vitamin C, magnesium, phosphorous, and antioxidants in your food. A 2014 meta-study of over 300 studies from the British Journal of Nutrition showed that organic foods have 50% more anthocyanins and flavonols. These are compounds which give fruit their color and fight off chronic inflammatory diseases (cardiovascular disease, cancer, and more). Iron levels in organic produce might be higher as well.

Even if your all-natural garden has roughly the same amount of nutrients as a conventionally grown one, you also benefit from reduced exposure to pesticides. Several pesticides that are available at major stores, including glyphosate and malathion, have been shown to disrupt endocrine and nervous systems in animals and humans alike. There's the risk of contact when using them, but they also seep into the ground water and accumulate in our water bodies after heavy rains, which then harms fish and wildlife.

Better For Plants (Stronger Plants)

There's no doubt about it - living soil supports plant development in a multitude of ways. Enlivened soil from composting and low-tillage means more nutrients and more microbes digesting those nutrients, making them readily available to our crops. Additionally, food researchers theorize that the higher nutrient levels found in organic produce are partially because organically grown crops experience more "natural stress." Organically grown crops experience more frequent exposure to insect attacks, so they produce more defensive substances. Ironically or not, those compounds are often very healthy for human consumption.

We could write all about the ways natural gardening nurtures people, plants, and planet - but we're off to go tend to our own garden. If you need help figuring out how to get started with YOUR organic garden, reach out right away at info@outdoornurture.org and we'll help you out. 🌱