Who is growing organic/ non organic/ partial?

[FionaH]

New at growing veg but Im sort of organic. Had to use weedkiller to clear the back of the garden as it was covered in japanese knotweed originating from next door. Also use slug pellets as it is slug city round here. Now weed by hand and collect dead slugs each day so birds dont get them.
Funny thing is I would buy supermarket veg without thinking what was on it. Now I grow my own I dont want to put chemicals on them and I'm a lot more picky about what I buy. Guess I am just a bit more aware now.

[Wren]

Many thanks for all the reply's so far!

It seems in large we all do our best to be as organic as we can, within the practical boundaries of time restraints and travel distance from our crops . My own Kitchen Garden is within my property and i can visit it easily morning and night to keep an eye on things . It must be a bit o a nightmare for those of you with remote sited allotments that you cant get to every day when it comes to keeping on top of the slugs and caterpillars an i can see how you would need to resort to more dire chemical methods to protect things when you are not there.

With all the best will in the world encouraging natural predators does not pay off that much. I spent all winter feeding the wild birds, and keeping them fed with their babies in spring and Early summer, but there is no sign o the wee feathered traitors when my brassica's are getting munched by nice juicy caterpillars and the dogs will not allow hedgehogs or toads right of way on their land.

Like most of you guys i don't use chemical fertilizers , or sprays, but i will buy non organic seed because quite frankly the organic choice of verity is rubbish by comparison. Elbow grease seems to be the best organic choice along with crop loss and much hair pulling.

I can only imagine that the organic supermarket veg must have mostly been grown in sterile Polly tunnels and sterile compost or how else do they grow a cabbage without one single hole in it!! It don't look like they have ever seen a slug or a Caterpillar in their life!

It's not easy trying to be as organic as possible thats for sure , but it does not seem like suppliers are keeping up with what we want either. Grow your own veg is fast rising in popularity as we all know but its not just about money is it! It's about growing and eating fresh and healthy produce that is as free from chemical's and all their nasty cancer causing side effects , whilst at the same time having the satisfaction of knowing we are supplying our families with good, wholesome nutritious food and not doing harm to the enviroment.

maybe the words 'organic' and 'suppliers' are a contradiction in terms really.

Wren

[rogesse]

I expect to be told off - but I am losing the will to live

Approx 18 months ago I took on a long neglected plot covered in perennial weeds. I have tried everything going to rid myself of the monsters but coming back from hols did me. I feel the need for.....'Roundup', then I can start again. Up to now I've been oh so good!

[JennieAtkinson]

Like Sue, I don't use any sprays, poisons, weedkillers., pellets etc. but I would only say I'm partially 'organic'. I create my own compost but sometimes have to buy in non-organic composts, tomato food and I don't buy organic seeds, although I do save as much as I can from my own harvests.

But the whitefly in the greenhouse has been a problem and I might (only considering) have to resort to something else as all organic methods have so far failed.

[Paulottie]

I'm sure you've tried marigolds Jennie..no not rubber gloves!..I grow them everywhere and not seen a whitefly all year.

I think there is some confusion here..'Organic' status requires 7 years for soil association certification I think. As this is my 8th season I guess I might just scrape under the bar. I really couldn't care less!! it is just a term hijacked by the marketing men and supermarkets(boooooh! hissssss!)

What we seem to be discussing is how green and groovy our methods are

Plastic?!.I just avoid supermarkets and junkfood...I have been moving the same Mypex plastic membrane for five years now and it really helped me to get started without toxic weedkillers....and the same plant pots that I mainly salvaged. (I have raised two kids without gel nappies... Was that was my bit for landfill!!??)

We could easily descend into one of those threads where we vie to be the closest to sitting on a rock in a cave in hemp knickers (attrib. PW) and probably warmed by the glow of self satisfaction. The truth is most of us here do what we can to care for our environment and that's why we are the sort of folk that have arrived at GYO.

I think Demeter has summed up my approach and attitude pretty well. I am too mean to buy the unpleasant chemicals anyway!

I now have two alloments, three greenhouses and a veg garden at home. I grow enough, in quantity and variety, that I can take a few losses to hungry creatures and failures without us starving!! even if we have occasionally had to cut out the odd rotten nibbled bit from our supplies ...usually while presenting the perfect example to a relative/ friend

I dislike slug pellets, mainly because I like the chickens, frogs, thrushes and hedgehogs in my garden, most of the time they make little difference anyway...The occasional times I did I was sure to net the crops from those creatures likely to eat the dead slugs.

I have definitely found that things have got easier over the years - as I have tipped the balance in my favour and got on top of the weeds. I have got much better at predicting the problems.(eg. just when hungry pigeons, badgers, caterpillars, snails, weevils or fungal spores, are likely to show up) Rhythm, succession and timing are everything in gardening....plus a whole load of persistence and perspiration.

[Twinkle]

I'm a partial...
Use bird/hedgehog friendly slug pellets (marked as suitable for organic)
Also used derris on my currant bushes for sawfly this year as it was so badly infested that picking them off by hand would have been damn near impossible...
and I supplemented my comfrey mulch with some bought tomato food.

To be honest, I don't think there's a right or a wrong way to grow - just the way that works for you.

[SlugLobber]

I also don't want to support a certain well-known US company with the Italian sounding name beginning with M and ending O - avoid their products like the plague!

When I was doing my MSc we had a talk by them, about how fabulous their stuff was and why it was safe. I wasn't convinced then and I'm even less convinced, now. Companies messing with nature like this makes me ashamed to be a scientist.

[Nicos]

We were mostly organic, apart from glysophate .
That was until we had a load of contaminated manure ( fortunately we've not used it...but it's still sat there looking at us)

[Janco]

Again as organic as possible and for over 30 years now. Never spray or use slug pellets etc. but do sometimes buy seeds not organic although save as much of my own as I can. Unfortunately do have local manure when necessary which is not officially organic but can't get any from organic sources as they all seem to use it themselves!

[Mike and Louise]

We don't buy organic seed but we try to grow as organic as possible at home.

We use horse manure as fertiliser but will be using our own compost that will hopfully be ready by next year.

We use organic snail/slug pellets and an organic 'all purpose' black/green/white fly spray.

We are also going to setup a water butt that will be connected to our downpipe so that next year will can use rain water to water the crops, instead of using tap water with all it's chemicals. We don't drink tap water (only bottled water) so we don't want to use it on the veg either.

[darkangel6976]

I grow organic-no pellets and no chemicals and I have even bought organic seeds too from B n Q!
I had a real proplem with slugs and snails and I bought the dishes for them to crawl into and even read that you can reuse the dead slugs as food to feed your crops.
I use seaweed to feed my plants too and only organic foods.
I am really trying to make sure there are no chemicals in my crops but it can be a bit hard at times but so far so good!
In the Garden News Paper there was a nice lengthy piece on this subject about 2 weeks ago sayingt hat a survey was conducted and it showed the difference between non'organic and organic, I think it was conducted over a few years too-worth reading too.
I try and recycle my stuff and find better ways of recycling other peoples unwanted bits instead of them going to the landfill so I like swaps and freecycle.