Article by Rob Ethrington

Starting a vegetable garden from scratch is highly laborious. I mean setting it up is one thing, but growing fresh and tasty organic vegetables requires a lot of crazy hard work.

Some of the things you need to do include watering, fertilizing, digging, repelling pests, taking out the weeds, digging…

Oh and you also have to perform crop rotation, relaxing the beds and planting the winter crops. Like I said, starting a vegetable garden from scratch involves a lot of “crazy hard work”.

But, there is a easy solution though…

A solution based on solid scientific principles and if followed in the correct manner, will help you develop an organic vegetable garden unlike any other.

Look, how would you like to have a low-maintenance organic vegetable garden that yields far more food than a regular vegetable garden?

And that’s not all…the maintenance stipulation is so low, that you totally do not need to perform all those highly exhausting tasks that are normally associated with traditional gardening.

Want to know what the solution is? Two words: ecological gardening. This powerful gardening method mimics nature thus effectively making your garden appear as if it is a living, breathing ecosystem.

Believe me; starting a vegetable garden from scratch is so much easier and fun if you follow the ecological gardening principles. In ecological gardening, you’re required to fill the niche space in your garden by planting a diverse range of edible plants.

Succession layering of plants (like we see in natural ecosystems) will not only prevent weeds from growing, it will also prevent pests from destroying your crops. Yes, it naturally repels pest so you totally do not need to spray pesticides!

The ecological gardening method also rules out the need for rotating crops, relaxing beds etc. You see, this method handles soil management naturally therefore enhancing the fertility and structure of soil apiece and each year.

And another reason why I love ecological gardening is that it makes automatic regeneration doable thanks to self-seeding.

It grants dormant seeds to develop naturally, and the result is that empty niche spaces are occupied automatically thus allowing no room for weeds to grow.

By the way, starting a vegetable garden from scratch using ecological principles has become much easier because video tutorials, with printable guides on setting it up is acquirable on the internet.

Follow this link for video and printable guide download details: www.growingorganicfood.info
About the Author

Rob Ethrington

Starting a Vegetable Garden from Scratch – The Most Beginner-Friendly Way

http://bit.ly/fZyT7r ! elbow grease Your Vegetable Garden Design Depends on Elbow Grease and Soil – by Ivanasma (Ivana Hasan)

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What is it that most organic gardeners want from their astonishing food gardens?

* Is it the substantial health benefits:

– knowing that your food is GM and synthetic chemicals and free?

– gathering your food from garden to plateau in minutes, retaining valuable, health enhancing nutrients?

* Or the pleasure of losing yourself in the delight of time spent in your garden?

* Maybe it’s about spending time teaching your kids how to garden

* Perhaps it’s your creative outlet; designing, creating, maintaining

* Do you view it as your part in helping the environment; reduce, reuse, recycle?

I believe Organic Gardening brings us most (or all) of these things. Some of the practices that are a must for having a healthy, high yielding vegetable garden include strategies or systems that bring about healthy soil, deep watering, balanced insect populations and crop rotation / planning.

Having nutrient rich, well balanced soil, high in microbial activity can be reached by continually adding organic matter to the soil. You can do this with compost (making your own compost has many benefits), green manures, crop rotation and a “no dig” policy. A high yielding garden is dependant on healthy soil.

Deep watering will encourage your plants to develop deep root systems. This enables them to take in more water and nutrients. You then have strong, healthy plants that do well with regular deep watering. Mulching prevents moisture loss, soil erosion and reduces weeds. Installing drip irrigation especially when combined with a timer will benefit you, your garden and the environment.

If you want to be chemical and / or spray free getting the right equilibrise of beneficial and harmful insects throughout your garden is crucial. Yes, I stated harmful insects! If there were no harmful insects for the beneficial ones to feed on all your beneficial insects will die or go elsewhere. Nature abounds in symbiotic relationships and this works very efficiently in the garden. Envision if you had no predatory insects and were then inundated with carrot fly. There would be no stopping them, unless you resorted to chemicals and you should never grant this in your organic garden.

Arm yourself instead with companion planting practices; practical methods to outwit the enemy (harmful insects) the way nature intended. Plant combinations that will confuse pests by masking the smell and shapes of plants which pests use to locate their favourite foods. In my Companion Planting guide you will also discover which plants benefit apiece other and those you must never plant together.

With the basics covered you just need to decide what you’re going to grow, how much of it and when. You know your family’s food needs superior than anyone else, so there’s no point in growing 15 brussels sprouts plants if your family won’t take them. You also need to know the right time of year to plant different families. For example: Cucurbits (cucumbers, squash, pumpkins, melons) need to grow in warm temperatures. In winter (unless you can artificially wage the right conditions) your crop will change so leave it till the ground has warmed, the days are lengthening and the risk of late frost has passed (mid spring in most areas).

Rotating your crops is also a good practice. Otherwise you will deplete the soil of particular nutrients / elements that a crop planted continually in the same place needs. This also means that the crop will perform worse apiece year as the nutrients it needs decline.

I like to spend winter evenings planning what, where and how much I’m going to plant in my veggie garden next season. Keeping a gardening journal comes in really handy when I’m planning. It reminds me what worked previously, what I’d like to do differently and whether or not I planted enough or too much of a particular plant to meet our needs.

If you think this is all a bit overwhelming, just remember progress, not perfection. Just get started and improve upon it as you go. So you really have no excuse. You have enough information to make a great begin and you can build on it as you acquire more experience.

How to Make Hydroponic Plans | eHow.com: 1 Secret to Growing a Fresh, Organic Vegetable Garden… [Free Video]. Fo… http://bit.ly/d19wFc – by ScottfromREE (Scott Kronabetter)

Organic gardening at home is not that different from what they do in the farm. This is because the same techniques are used to make your choice of plants and vegetables grow even if you have a smaller area to work with.

The first thing you have to do is select the location. It is important that it gets at least 6 hours of sunlight each day and it has access to water. You should also check if the spot has good drainage otherwise you will have to build a raised bed garden instead.

When the location has been found, it is time to prepare the land. This is the time you bring out your gardening tools and gloves so can get rid of weeds that are present. All debris must also be removed so do this for a few days to make sure the area is secure.

The moment of truth will come when you test the soil. For that, you will need some compost from the store and then mix it with the soil. If it is healthy to integrate and stabilize itself, then you can begin planting your crops in the next 2 to 4 weeks. During such time, you can already add fertilizers into the soil to make sure that the nutrients hold. 

The fun part is when you place in the seeds. Don’t forget to begin your own compost pile at the same time by using coffee grounds, dead leaves, grass clippings, manure and vegetable or food waste that become organic fertilizer for your crops. By doing so, you will no longer need to purchase these from the gardening store.

If you don’t already know, not all fruits or vegetables planted in one area are the same for another. This is because some might not survive due to the conditions of the region such as the weather, pests and other plant borne diseases.  You can check at the store, do some research or get advice from fellow organic gardeners.

It will also be a good intent to plant a variety of fruits and vegetables. Some protect the rest from pests while others can only be grown during a certain season. In short, you get to practice crop rotation so you do not use up all the nutrients in the soil. Aside from plants, the use of birds, insects and toads can also help protect your garden.

Although you already removed the weeds before you planted, you still have to check for them again because they do some back. You will have to inspect the area and then pull them out which is one of the responsibilities of owning a garden.

Since larger animals not only insects could do alteration to your organic garden, you should also protect it by putting up some fences. Some gardeners have also used animal hair, baby powder and deodorant soaps that act as deterrents.

Surely, you have noticed that organic vegetables being sold at the grocery are quite expensive. They cost a few dollars more than the regular kind so instead of putting this on your list, why not cross it out and simply get this from your backyard.

With some practice, you will realize that organic gardening at home can be challenging and at the same time fun. It is your way of going green and being environment friendly.

Free Organic Vegetable Gardening At Home: Learn how to begin up or enhance your own organic Vegetable garden at ho… http://bit.ly/dclYsW – by FlowerGalleries (Nick Adams)