Organic Gardening How To Blog

I actually have to tell you that I got excited early this morning…and here is why. Last night, we had a light rain here in South Carolina. I got up early this morning to take my daily walk and that walk takes me past where we usually plant our organic vegetable garden.

As I was walking by that plot of soil, something very small caught my eye…red ants…the red ants were out of their hills and were strolling about. That’s when I realized that spring has sprung in our organic garden and that it was going to be an early spring!

You see, Mother Nature has her own story to tell and while this has seemed to be the longest, coldest winter that I can remember, Mother Nature was giving me a positive sign. Red ants don’t normally get active until spring is very close by…I think it has something to do with the temperature of the soil.

Spring excites me because I am such an avid gardener. All winter long I think about the coming spring and what new things my husband and I can plant in our organic garden. This year, it is going to be the Ghost Pepper…the hottest pepper known.

Now, we have already planted our vegetable seeds and have been maintaining them inside of our home, but with these early signs of spring, I think we will be able to re-plant them outside in the very near future…that’s even more exciting!

Here is a short video you can watch…it’s a celebration of an early spring in our organic garden:

Until next time from the Organic Gardening How To Blog…

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Some bugs are really helpful to have in your organic garden. The Asian Ladybug is an example of one of these. These bugs have a voracious appetite and especially like to feed on aphids (read my article The Ladybug Attacks).

But, the Asian Ladybug is also a problem. Let me explain.

The Asian Ladybug is not native to North America or Europe. It’s natural habitat is northeast Asia. During the 1980′s, in an attempt to control the spread of aphids, the USDA introduced these ladybugs to crops in the southeastern United States. After a few years, it was discovered that the Asian Ladybug was spreading rapidly. These bugs are now found throughout the United States and Canada.

The first problem with finding Asian Ladybugs in your organic garden is that you won’t likely find ladybugs that are natural to your area. It’s still not completely understood why this happens, but Asian Ladybugs tend to drive away other types of ladybugs.

The Asian Ladybug population grows rapidly and in the fall and winter they can be a nuisance. When the air gets colder, these bugs often seek shelter by penetrating small cracks in homes and other buildings. Often, thousands of these bugs can be found in walls and garages. This is the second problem.

Watch this Organic Gardening How To video to get an idea on how bad this can be:

The best way to keep these bugs out of your home is to caulk all of the small cracks on the exterior of your home. If you find some inside your home, it’s best to vacuum them up and immediately dispose of the bag.

So, Asian Ladybugs may be good to have in your organic garden, but keep them out of your home!

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I just love to use organic ginger in the organic foods that I cook. The problem with buying ginger root at most stores is that I don’t know if it’s organic or not. That’s why I started growing my own organic ginger. Growing organic ginger in your own organic garden is what this Organic Gardening How To Blog post is about.

I found out that it is amazingly easy to grow organic ginger. And what’s more, I discovered that it’s a beautiful plant that produces strikingly beautiful red, yellow, and orange blooms.

If you live in a tropical region where the air temperature rarely dips below 50 degrees Fahrenheit, you can simply grow ginger right out of the ground. Ginger is a tropical plant and loves warm temperatures.

But, you can grow ginger easily in other areas as well…that’s what I do. In late fall or early winter, I simply replant the plants to pots and move them to my garden dome and to the warmest parts of my home.

Watch this short video to learn how to grow organic ginger in your own organic garden:

Here are some additional tips to help you:

1. Purchase organic ginger root from a local herbalist or health food store. Make sure that the root looks somewhat fresh and has plenty of small “fingers”. At least two of these finger should have small buds on them that resemble the eyes of a potato.

2. Soak the root in water overnight before planting.

3. The best time to plant is in late winter and early spring.

4. Ginger is not a picky plant, but it does like moist soil that drains well. When planting, mix compost into your soil. Bury them 4 inches deep, 7 inches apart, with the “fingers” pointing upwards.

5. Harvest the organic ginger when the leaves dry out…this will take 8-10 months. Keep some of the roots to satisfy your cooking needs and replant the rest, especially those with desirable “fingers” on them.

And, that’s it!

Enjoy not only the flavor of organic ginger, but also the beautiful blooms in your organic garden.

Until next time…

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I recently saw a cool video about making containers for seedlings using newspaper. It’s simple to do and I thought the kids would have fun doing this, but then I started having some concern for my organic garden. Is newspaper and the ink on it harmful to my organic soil? After some research, I found that 95% of newspapers use a soy based ink. I also found that the paper itself is made from 70-80% of ground wood pulp and that the remaining percentage is made from pulp that has been bleached. Most manufacturers use a bleach made from hydrogen peroxide versus chlorine.

Read this article from the Newspaper Association of America to learn more.

So, for those organic gardeners that are reading this blog, if you’re strict about your organic methods, you may not want to make these containers for your organic garden from newspaper. The containers are not “Pure Organic”.

I know, I decided not to do this in my garden. But, many who read my blog are not “Pure Organic” gardeners and I thought many of them would like this video.

So, go ahead and watch – it is a clever idea:

At the very least, contact your newspaper printing office and discuss with them the characteristics of the paper and the ink that they use in their publications. Newspaper pots are not for every organic garden.

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This year, I got a little concerned about the azaleas that we have in our organic garden. I started noticing that a lot of the stems on the azaleas were developing a mold that was growing on the stems of the plants.Not all of our plants had this mold, but a lot of them did.   Last month, my husband and I traveled several hundred miles to Florida to visit my husband’s brother and his family. My husband’s brother also has an organic garden. While in their garden, I noticed the same mold growing on the stems of their azaleas.

I asked my husbands brother if he had seen that mold. He said he had seen it and it was a concern to him, but he had no idea what may be causing it. He told me that if I found an answer, to let him know.  

Well, after coming back home, I started doing some research and I believe I found the answer. First off, take a look at the mold growing on these plants:

As you can see, the mold is grayish and in some places it is turning black. The mold is only on the stems of the plant and not on the leaves. I believe this mold is a fungus called Sooty Mold.

The fungus does not penetrate into the plant, but it does block sunlight and reduces the plant’s ability to produce food. If severe enough, it can kill the plant.

Sooty mold is the result of insect infestation – white flies, aphids, scale and mealybugs. When these insects are on the plant, they leave a sticky substance called “honeydew” on the plant. Honeydew is an excellent growing medium for sooty mold.Sooty mold is blown by the wind and when it sticks to the honeydew, it begins to reproduce.

To fix this problem, all you have to do is wash the sooty mold off the plants.

To cure this problem, you have to control the insects in your organic garden – something I thought I had done a pretty good job with, but, obviously not good enough. But, I’ll certainly work harder at it during the coming growing season.

If you need some tips on controlling insects in your organic garden, read my article called Pest Controls From Your Kitchen Cabinet. Until next time…

UPDATE: For an update on this organic garden article, visit Mold On Azalea Update | Oraganic Gardening How To

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