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This page lists all of our information articles, you can take your time and read through them them all.

Soils and fertilizers.....

Composting
Keeping the soil rich in nutrients is key to successful organic gardening. Composting ordinary food scraps and landscape trimmings

Testing the Soil
You’ll also want to go to your local nursery or consult with a gardening expert to be sure you understand what your soil needs before you buy your first plants.

Aeration in Organic Gardening
Proper aeration is one of the critical components of good gardening. Roots need a steady supply not only of nutrients and water but of oxygen as well. Many gardeners provide plenty of nutrients and water but fail to think of aeration, yet without sufficient oxygen, even the hardiest of plants will dry up and die.

Nutrients in Organic Gardening
Plants, like animals and humans, are delicately balanced within their environments. Even a small change can be critical in disrupting that balance. If you were to deprive your body of water and essential nutrients, it would begin to break down. In a garden, the nutrients in the soil are especially critical to the health of the plants.

Organic Fertilizer
When it comes to organic fertilizer, there are organic-based solutions and 100 percent organic alternatives. The type of fertilizer you choose depends not only on the crops you're planting, but on the overall garden. Organic gardening is all about balance between the soil and its nutrients, the water, the air, and of course your plants.

Seaweed as Fertilizer
Seaweed extract is highly regarded as one of the best natural fertilizers. Different varieties of kelp have proven to be effective in seed germination, root development, and disease resistance. An all-natural fertilizer, seaweed is a great organic gardening additive.

The Benefits of Bat Guano Fertilizer
Bat guano, one of the richest natural fertilizers, has been used since ancient times to promote a good harvest. Many ancient civilizations knew of its superior properties and forbade citizens from discarding it. The U.S. government has subsidized land rich in bat guano and even offered land to those discovering the deposits.

Using Your Worm Castings
Worm castings are one of nature’s best fertilizers. They help perennials, potted plants, lawn grass, and vegetables grow strong root fibers and get plenty of oxygen by aerating the soil. Worm castings are abundant and environmentally friendly.

Rooting Hormone Stimulates Growth
Many gardeners use rooting hormone to propagate their plants. Cuttings are taken from a parent plant, called a “clonal,” and rooted in a growing medium.

Vermiculite
Vermiculite, mined in Australia, South Africa, and South America, as well as other areas, is made from laminar magnesium, aluminum, and iron silicate. It’s used in manufacturing as well as in agriculture. When heated, it gives off moisture as steam and exfoliates, giving it a wormlike appearance. When it absorbs moisture and expands, it resembles mica.

Organic Pest Controls
Some organic gardening enthusiasts believe that the use of pesticides conflicts with the principle of maintaining a harmonious ecosystem. Eliminating all insects could throw the delicate system out of balance. They advocate introducing natural predators such as birds and frogs into the garden to take care of the bugs

Growing Orchids
With over 20,000 different species, orchids are the most abundant of all the plant families in the world. Some species grow on trees (epiphytes) and others are called “air” plants. Some orchids are thimble-sized blooms while others, such as the renanthera storiei, grow 20 feet high. Many orchids release fragrances to attract insects for pollination. Odorless varieties rely on color or distinctive shape as a lure. Although they look fragile, orchids are extremely resilient. Like all plants, however, you do have to take proper care of them.

Hydroponics......

The Advantages of Hydroponics
Hydroponics gardening is also called soil-less gardening. It may not appeal to people with green thumbs who love to work the earth, but it offers many advantages. For one thing, you can raise a bountiful crop without dirt any time of the year!

Nutrient Film Technique in Hydroponics
Nutrient film technique (NFT) comprises a type of hydroponics, or soil-less, gardening system in which crops are planted in a growing medium and given precise amounts of nutrients.

Rockwool: Its Uses in Hydroponics
In rockwool, new seedlings are able to sprout their roots and grow into healthy crops that can later be transplanted in soil.

Hydroponics: Aeroponics Systems
In aeroponics, the nutrient solution is supplied by a time-activated pump beneath the foliage.

Ebb-and-Flow Hydroponics Systems
Aeroponics systems comprise one of six basic types of hydroponics, or soil-less, gardening systems. Myths about hydroponics systems suggest that they are too complex, too technological, too expensive, or environmentally unfriendly. None of these myths are true

Hydroton in Hydroponics Gardening
Hydroton is a growing medium used in hydroponics gardening. Hydroponics, or soil-less gardening, literally means “water working.” It is popular in many climates unsuitable for year-round growing. Gardening enthusiasts and commercial growers both have worked to develop effective ways to garden indoors.

Growing Media in Hydroponics
In hydroponics gardening, growing media replace soil, providing plants with a home for sprouting their roots and flourishing until they can be transplanted.

Permaculture......

Permaculture
Perm culture is a design system that seeks to follow nature’s patterns in order to create sustainable human habitats.

The Core Values of Permaculture
Permaculture espouses a broad, holistic approach with many applications in all areas of life. Its core values or ethics are seen as remaining constant regardless of a person’s situation.

The Origins of Permaculture
In the mid 1970s, Dr. Bill Mollison and David Holmgren, Australian ecologists, began developing ideas about how to create stable agricultural systems. They were concerned about the growing use of agricultural methods that they felt were destructive, poisoning the water and land, reducing biodiversity, and removing billions of tons of soil from previously fertile areas.

Biodynamic Agriculture
Biodynamic agriculture, or biodynamics, is based on the teachings of Rudolf Steiner. In Schloss Koberwitz in Silesia, Germany, in 1924, shortly before his death, Steiner delivered eight lectures on an ecological and sustainable system of agriculture that would respect all creation while producing food for humans.

Grow lighting and lamps.....

High-Pressure Sodium Grow Lights
High-pressure sodium (HPS) lamps are best used when color rendering is not of great importance. They are a good alternative to metal halide lamps but have a lower color-rendering index (CRI) rating. HPS comprises a compact grow light system with high lumens, and is an often recommended as a high-intensity discharge (HID) option.

High-Intensity Discharge Lighting
Many climates are not sunny enough to meet the light requirements of all plants. High-intensity discharge (HID) lighting offers a variety of choices for supplying your plants with the nourishment they need. Although plants vary widely in their requirements for light, all gardens need light, whether natural or artificial. HID lighting can be an important element in growing bountiful crops.

Metal Halide Lamps
Metal halide lamps are critical when color temperature matters and must approximate the spectrum of natural sunlight, such as in indoor gardens. It's impossible for any artificial source to completely match the spectrum of natural sunlight, but halide lamps come much closer than incandescent bulbs.

Using Mylar with Grow Lights
You can use Mylar in your indoor garden to make your lighting system more effective. Light is a precious resource; it requires energy to produce light. Why squander a 1,000 watts of power without regard for determining the amount of light really needed? Many gardeners needlessly indulge in a wasteful expenditure of power.

Selecting the Right Grow Lights
Even if you are a gifted, natural gardener, you still need grow lights to make up for deficiencies in natural light. If you live in a sunny climate, you know that some species of plants require constant exposure and a few cloudy days can have damaging effects. It's better to have grow lights on hand and not have to use them than it is to need them and not have them available.

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