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Gardening organically usually cheaper

Organic gardeners have to think differently from others who putter around in the dirt. They have just as many insects, weeds and diseases to deal with as the rest of us, but don’t have the option of grabbing a poison off the shelf and hosing down the offending pest, screaming “DIE! DIE! DIE, you @#*%&!”. The closest most of us get to gardening organically is to put down a layer of mulch. Even though it takes a bit more thought than most of us are used to, it is to your benefit to try at least some of the methods organic farmers use. At the very least, it is usually cheaper.

Good gardening, organic or otherwise, begins and ends with a healthy soil. Healthy plants grow in healthy soil and healthy plants tend to be more resistant to diseases, insects and heat stress. Too much fertilizer, contrary to popular opinion, will result in plants that have thinner cell walls and are much more vulnerable.

Think about what you’re going to plant before you plant them. Different varieties behave differently and can display greater or lesser resistance to pests. Try more than one type and see which ones do best in your situation. Talk to the MSU Extension Service for some good information about what to grow. Once you know which plants do best and which pests tend to crop up, you’ll be able to choose the best varieties.

Rotate your crops. OK, we’re not talking about farming the back 40, but the same principle applies, no matter what the size. If you’re growing vegetables, it’s smart to move the different ones around year to year. This is especially true for tomatoes and root knot nematodes.

Not all insects and weeds are necessarily bad. Ladybird beetles, lacewings, spiders and wasps should be a welcome part of your garden. These wee beasties consume huge numbers of pestiferous arthropods and are a cost-free benefit. If your garden doesn’t seem to have enough predators hanging around, you can purchase them. There are a number of Web sites that sell ladybird beetles, lacewings, praying mantises and the like.

You can also buy Encarsia formosa for controlling white flies. You can use weeds as “trap crops” – if the bad guys are feeding on the weeds, they won’t be feeding on your veggies. Weeds also offer a place for the good guys to hang around.

Lastly, try using physical barriers. Copper sheets or strips will repel slugs and snails. Once your vegetables and fruits have stopped blooming, a fine meshed cloth can be placed over your plants to protect them against pest insects. Netting will keep birds from getting at your ripening fruits and vegetables.

If you can’t help yourself and you just have to use a pesticide, you still have options. Neem oil that comes from the neem tree has both insecticidal and fungicidal properties. Pyrethrum and nicotine are among the first insecticides (the other is arsenic). Both are plant extracts; pyrethrum comes from chrysanthemums and nicotine comes from tobacco. Pyrethrum should be available in most garden centers (but it will probably contain a synthetic synergist like piperonyl butoxide). Nicotine is available over the Internet.

Organic gardening is predicated on anticipation. If you have to react to a problem, it’s probably too late to do anything about it. It’s easier to pinch a small caterpillar between your thumb and forefinger than trying to get rid of it after it’s eaten half your tomato plant.

 

 

Tim Lockley is a specialist in entomology (the study of insects) and is retired from a 30-year career as a research scientist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture. To have him answer your individual questions, please send a stamped, self-addressed envel