Every spring, optimistic gardeners gather their essential gardening tools, plant seeds and their best intentions and head out into the backyard to plant a garden. Each gardener likely dreams of lush plants with branches laden with vine ripened produce. Instead, many will struggle through a season-long battle against unwanted insects, unhealthy plants plagued with disease and a minimal harvest.
In desperation, some will turn to chemical pesticides in an effort to decrease the insects and, hopefully, increase the health of their plants. Pesticides are designed to attack the nervous system of the insect and kill it. More and more independent studies are finding that the ongoing and long-lasting effects of these “safe” chemical pesticides are without boundaries. Many investigators are concerned that these “safe” chemicals are actually having long-term side effects on current and future generations of humans, animals and other insects.
Organic farming and gardening practices offer hope in reducing the amount of chemicals in our food, in our soil and in the air we breathe. Anyone can be an organic gardener or farmer.
The Secret is in the soil
The first key to success in an organic farmer’s pest control program is to grow healthy plants. Healthy plants are more resistant to disease and predatory insects. The secret to healthy plants is healthy soil. If you want to have a healthy garden, it is important to introduce nutrients to your soil. An inexpensive way to do this is to use homemade compost in your garden.
“The more nutrition that is in the soil, the stronger the plants will become and therefore better able to defend themselves against bugs and disease,” said Jacqueline Freeman, Battle Ground resident, local organic farmer and owner and operator of Friendly Haven Rise Farm, www.friendlyhaven.com.
Composting is a very simple process using a two-step, color-coded recipe of two parts brown with one part green; “browns” are dry grass and sticks, “greens” are food scraps, lawn cuttings and manures (do not use dog and cat feces as both are filled with disease). A compost pile is built with alternating layers of “browns” and “greens.” It needs to be kept moist but not saturated. Occasional turning must be done to combine the layers and promote the decomposition of the compost; a compost pile can take 4-6 months to decompose. Composting can also be done with worm bins. A worm bin takes about 60 days to make one batch of compost.
Once harvested, the compost is mixed into the soil, increasing its nutritional value and structural content. This makes for a healthier environment for plants to grow.
“Soil in this area is very ‘clay-like,’ ’’ said Freeman, “and the problem with clay soil is that it can get very dense and it is difficult for the roots of the little plants to get out through it. This is the secret to organic gardening and farming, build the soil to make strong plants and then everything is healthy.”
Following Mother Nature’s lead
Organic gardening and farming is about growing things in cooperation with nature.
“Weeds get such a bad rap,’’ Freeman said. “The function of weeds is to actually do something to heal the soil. Dandelions for example, the function of the dandelion is they come into a soil with very low calcium and is often very hard packed soil, (which is) soil that doesn’t have a lot of air in it.
“What the dandelions are doing is, they send down a really long tap root and that tap root is actually mining calcium. It brings it up through its roots into its leaves and flower and then the leaves and flower die back and leave the calcium on the surface of the soil. In addition, this is an important flower for honeybees. They are the start of bee season, so they are important bee feeders. They actually have a dual function and (still) everybody wants to kill them.”
Freeman suggests that homeowners battling against a dandelion issue simply add calcium to the lawn.
“You would probably see your dandelions go away without having to poison anything,” said Freeman.
Following and understanding the “circle of life” in a garden or on a farm is fundamental to maintaining a positive garden ecosystem.
“I actually want to have a little bit of aphid activity around, because if I don’t have any aphid activity, I am never going to have ladybugs,’’ Freeman said. “So a little bit of them, coming in and picking out a little bit here and there, is a good thing. Then I have the seeds of future Ladybugs and future Praying Mantis around.”
There are many beneficial insects that will help defend your plants against harmful ones. Easily recognized Ladybugs and Praying Mantis are joined by the less familiar Lacewings, Hover-flies and Brachonids, Chalcids and Ichneumon Wasps.
As an organic gardener, it is important to learn to recognize different insects and their habits. Garden insects come in all shapes and sizes and often it is difficult to identify a beneficial insect from a destructive one. Recently the Washington State University (WSU), Clark County Extension, published Organic Pest Management in the Home Garden, Orchard and Berry Plantation, written by Charles Brun, Ph.D. Horticulture Advisor Washington State University at the local WSU extension in Hazel Dell.
Brun’s book identifies the most common disease problems and insects in our area. He strongly urges gardeners to identify a pest problem prior to using any type of insect sprays. It is important to note, that any organic or chemical insect sprays are going to directly affect all insects and our environment, both beneficial and destructive, so it is important that any insect deterrent is used wisely.
In addition to Brun’s book, WSU offers a website resource, http://pep.wsu.edu/hortsense/, which gives detailed descriptions of insects and diseases. It also offers other horticultural resources for the organic gardener or farmer.
There are many homemade organic insect repellants that can deter unwanted pests without killing them. The organic smelly pest spray is a very effective way to deter unwanted insects from taking residence in your garden.
Organic Smelly Pest Spray
Ingredients:
1 onion
1 whole garlic bulb
1 2-inch piece fresh ginger root
1 tbsp cayenne pepper
2 cups water
2 tbsp liquid castile soap
Instructions:
Put the onion, garlic, ginger and cayenne pepper in a large mason jar. Cover with boiling water. Let stand overnight. In the morning, strain the liquid into a sprayer. Add the water and liquid soap to the sprayer. Shake to mix ingredients.
How to use:
Spray generously on the tops and bottoms of the leaves and along the stalk of the plant.
