DIY ORGANIC PRODUCE IN 4 STEPS

The demand for organic produce is big and getting bigger. What’s not to love? Less pesticides, more natural nutrition. It also saves the environment! Millions around the world are adopting an all-natural organic food diet. Unfortunately organic farming requires more effort, and there’s an associated increased cost. So how do you eat organic without breaking the bank? DIY organic produce, of course!

Growing your own organic produce can actually be significantly cheaper in the long run than buying from a market or supermarket. There’ll be some ups and downs along the way. You’ll probably lose a few plants altogether to start with. But stick with it and learn from your mistakes and you’ll be on your way to growing your own organic produce in no time.

Here are four steps to DIY organic produce.

GET SOIL AND COMPOST READY

Organically conditioned soil contains a careful mixture of manure, leaf and grass clippings, and compost. This gives it all the nutrients your plants will need to survive and thrive without using chemicals that can seep into the plants.

Just like we need the right food, soil needs the right combination of nutrients. There are home testing kits available, or most cities will have testing facilities. Manure is widely available from any garden shop. Just specify you’re going for organic farming and they’ll send you in the right direction.

Compost can be easily made at home. It has a reputation for being smelly, but the reality is good compost shouldn’t smell much at all. If you have a garden, you can make a nice 1-meter-square pen or bin. Otherwise, there are many home kits available that range in size from a small tub to a large rotating barrel.

Compost should be composed of alternating brown, carbon rich material (leaves, garden trimmings) and green layers (food scraps, manure) separated by thin layers of soil. You should turn the heap every time you add a new layer. If you’re buying a home kit, go for a rotating option that makes alternating the different layers a breeze.

It’ll take a few months for compost to get ready — longer in colder months. While you’re waiting for your DIY compost, you won’t have any trouble finding pre-packaged organic compost in a garden shop to get you started.

With the soil and compost prepped, you’re on your way to DIY organic produce in no time! … kind of.

GET THE RIGHT PLANTS

Not all plants are made equal. Some need very precise conditions, others are more robust. When making your decision it’s best to consult with locals who know what they’re talking about. Garden centres, farmer markets, etc. You’ll find people who can tell you what grows best in your given conditions.

Beyond the hardiness of the plant there are a few things to take into account:

• Regional climate. What works for one end of your country might not work for the other. Find out what suits your exact location.


• The season. Most foods are seasonal — we’ve even done an article about autumn foods lately! Plants that thrive in the season you intend to grow them are obviously going to be a lot easier to grow. You could try to fake the season, but that sort of goes against the point of organic gardening.


• Available space. Some plants need a lot of space to themselves, others will take any available millimetre and run with it. Vines, like tomatoes, will happily grow in any space.


• Type of soil. Not all soil is equal. There are varying pH levels that will effect what plants will or won’t thrive in the soil you’ve made. Once you’ve tested your soil, you’ll know what you can plant in it. Or choose your plants, then tailor your soil — either or.

If you're still feeling a little stuck, here are some hardy all-rounder plants that'll grow in most conditions:

• lettuce


• tomatoes


• carrots


• green beans


• cucumber


• zucchini


• radishes

Everything you need to make a great salad.

PLAN YOUR SUN AND WATER SUPPLY

When it comes to DIY organic produce, sun and water can be two of the hardest things for people to get right.

A good rule of thumb is that plants need as much sunlight as possible. Plant your gardens in the sunniest spot of your yard, or on windowsills, or on a balcony. A little shade throughout the day is fine, but generally, get them as much sun as possible.

Water is a bit trickier. Genetically modified plants are often designed to be as water-efficient as possible. They’re also modified so that many types of plants need the same amount of water.

With organic plants, you’ve got to know how much water each plant needs. Some need more than others. Appropriate hydration and adequate drainage are vital. Plants don’t do any better with too much water than people do.

WEED AND PEST CONTROL

Proper pest management is the key to organic, and therefor DIY organic produce.

When it comes to keeping on top of weeds, there are many options. For starters, small gardens are not difficult to maintain. You won’t have many weeds in a meter-square garden. To limit the amount of manual weeding necessary, though, you can always use:

• Mulch, which also protects the soil.


• Burlap, landscape fabric, or other similar materials to prevent them growing.


• Straw, which is cheap but needs to be replaced often


• Wood chips, which can be costly unless you’ve got your own wood chipper.

As for pest control, it’s interesting to note that homeowners actually use more pesticide per plant than a farm does. If we’re going for organic, how can we avoid this?

First, understand that a pest infestation might be a sign of a problem with your plants. They might not be getting enough light, moisture, or nutrients.

Biodiversity can help a great deal. The more types of plants there are, the less of a single food source there are for individual creepy crawlies. Not all insects eat the same plants, so limiting the food source limits the predators.

Natural pest controls include such wonderful things as bats, spiders, lizards, frogs, toads, snakes, and predator insects. A nice sunning spot will attract reptiles which will eat pests. Certain plants like dill will attract predator insects. A watering dish will do a good job attracting everything else.

If you’re in an apartment, or not keen on having your garden swarming with arachnids and reptiles, there are other methods available. Hot pepper spray or humble garlic can work wonders. Certain bacteria will mess with the digestive systems of leaf-eating pets. There are also organic, non-chemical soaps and oils you can use.

After that, all you need to worry about is harvest and cleanup. Harvest and cleanup will change from plant to plant  so you’ll need to read up on the specific plants you grow. Some plants should be harvested at specific times, while some herbs need to be picked almost daily, and so on.

And there you have it: DIY organic produce. It’ll be a bit more work than driving to the market, but the ultimate reward is that you’ll save money and have peace of mind that you’re only eating the most natural food around. Enjoy!