Everyone has probably done a small bit of gardening at some point in their lives. Perhaps at school, you had to grow an easy project for science. As an adult, you might have grown your interest in gardening, but you could equally have shown no interest whatsoever. Now you could be thinking about doing some proper gardening for the first time or perhaps you want to expand your horizons and try something new. Organic gardening is becoming more and more popular both for beginners and for keen gardeners. Some people might want to make their gardening more eco-friendly, while others want healthy ways to be more self-sustainable. If you'd like to try organic gardening, you could create a beautiful garden or perhaps a tasty one.

What Makes Gardening Organic?

Finding Space to Grow Things

If you've decided you want to give organic gardening a try, you need to find somewhere to grow things. Don't worry if you don't have a large outdoor space. Almost anyone can find somewhere to grow something. Even if you only have a window sill, a balcony, or even space on top of a table or wardrobe, you could have room to grow some plants. However, the space you have will limit what you're able to grow. You might have to stick to a couple of potted plants or herbs if you're growing things indoors. If you want to grow inside, you might also need to be careful about moisture levels and other issues. Some people are lucky enough to get space on a community lot for their gardening, which is very helpful.

What to Grow

Deciding exactly what you're going to grow takes some careful thought. Try to think of what you're capable of growing organically before you start thinking about what you would like to grow. You don't want to pick some things and then be disappointed if it isn't going to work out. Your first choice is probably going to be between growing something pretty and growing something edible. If you're interested in organic gardening, you might also have an interest in growing your own food. On the other hand, maybe you just want to grow something that looks good, and you want to use natural methods of doing so.

When you're thinking about what to grow, consider your skill experience. If you've got some gardening experience, you might feel more confident about your choice of plants. But if you haven't done much gardening before, you should pick something easy. Organic gardening can add a layer of difficulty, and you don't want to be struggling to keep your plants alive. You should keep in mind the environment in which you want to grow things, including climate and soil or conditions indoors, to choose the best plants. There's no one answer for everyone, so you need to do a little bit of research.

Buying Organic Plant Care Products

Just because you won't be using any synthetic plant care products, it doesn't mean you're completely on your own. You can still buy products that help you grow your plants, but you just need to be careful about buying organic ones. Fortunately, there are plenty of products for gardening that are made from natural ingredients. Seaweed products like Seasol can help your plants to grow up big and strong without any artificial chemicals. You can find out more about Seasol here, and learn what their different products do. Whether you want to fertilise your plants or keep pests away, there are organic products you can use - just look for the word organic on the label. However, you might want to research individual products just to see what impact they might have and what they're made of.

How to Get Planting

Once you've chosen the plants you want, you need to know how to plant them. If you've ever done a bit of gardening before, you might have some experience with planting and transplanting. However, plants can vary in how they should be planted, and they come in different forms too. You might want to grow something from a bulb or a seed, or you might have some plugs that you want to put into new pots or plant into the ground. If you're planting seeds or bulbs, make sure you leave enough space for things to grow. However, you might be able to move things later if they start to get too big. If you're transplanting a grown or growing plant, make sure you give it plenty of space for the roots to stretch out.

Keeping Pests and Weeds Away Organically

If you've decided to take on the task of organic gardening, it means you can't use artificial chemicals to keep weeds away and to prevent pests. This can mean that if you don't get it right, you feel like you're fighting a losing battle. Fortunately, you can find natural remedies for both weeds and pests. When it comes to weeds, there are some that won't do any harm. As long as you don't mind the look of them, you could leave them where they are.  But there are some reasons you might want to get rid of them. They can steal nutrients from your plants and encourage pests. One option is simply to pull them out regularly to clear the area or use a hoe to make it easier. You can also use mulch around your plants or use corn-gluten meal.

As for pests, how to deal with them can depend on what sort of pests you're dealing with. They can range from aphids and slugs to rabbits and deer. One of the best ways to keep pests away is to make sure your plants are healthy, so choose ones that will flourish in the environment you choose to grow them in. It's also helpful to mix your plants so that pests don't target just one of them. Try to encourage predators that will eat the pests that bother you too. If pest prevention fails, there are organic products and homemade remedies you can use to tackle the problem.

Encouraging Your Plants to Grow

Another issue you need to deal with if you garden organically is how to encourage your plants to grow. You can't use artificial fertilizers but, luckily, there are plenty of natural options you can use instead. Many organic gardeners will keep a compost pile, which you can make from various vegetation and plant matter. Compost doesn't exactly make your plants grow, but it does help the soil hold nutrients better. Organic fertilizers are not that difficult to find. Manure and its byproducts are popular, even if they don't smell great. You can also explore products that use rock phosphate, wood ash, and seaweed. You can also use agricultural lime, which is made from limestone, which is good for balancing out the pH of soil that's too acidic.

Watering Plants

If you want your gardening to be organic, you're probably concerned about the environment. Watering your plants might get you thinking because you want to make sure you don't waste any water. Of course, when it's raining, you won't need to water outdoor plants. But if it's dry, you're going to have to make sure your plants get just the right amount of water. Starting off with suitable plants for the conditions is a good start so that you don't have to constantly water them. It can be better to water when it's cooler too, so less water evaporates, so try to do it in the evening or in the early mornings. A simple test of the soil is a good idea too. Push your finger into the soil before watering, and if it feels damp, your plants probably don't need watering.

Sprinklers are best avoided if you're trying to conserve water. If you want to avoid wasting water, overwatering your plants, and driving up your bills, you can find more economical ways of watering your plants. A soaker hose will steadily but gently weep water along its length to slowly water your plants. Or you might consider a drip irrigation system, which you can adjust and position perfectly, so it works for your plants. Indoors, you might like to use a spray bottle for a fine mist of water.

Organic gardening is a great way to enjoy a hobby that won't hurt the environment. You can grow a beautiful garden or even feed yourself with your harvest.