As anyone knows who has ever planned out a garden, there are rules to gardening organic that help to make the garden even more successful. Some of this will involve the use of organic garden fertilizer, which is a big boon for smaller home gardens, and some will involve the choice of plants you use. Because there are many choices when looking at what to do when gardening organic, having a few choice plans in place will help even the novice gardener to have a successful organic garden the first year.

Companion Planting

One of the oldest ways in organic gardening that you can make your garden more successful is with companion planting. This is when you plant with the ideal of each plant being beneficial to the rest of the garden. There are a few plants that seem to be perfect for this and have been used for years.

• Trap Cropping – This is generally done on a larger scale. You would plant a crop in one field that will attract the insects you don’t want in your main field.
• Nitrogen Trapping – Anyone can practice this in their garden. If you plant legumes which trap nitrogen in the plant, you can then turn them under at the end of the season for a natural and organic garden fertilizer for the soil in the coming year. Many gardeners will companion plant legumes with other plants in a nitrogen-poor soil to improve the following year’s crop.
•  Pest Repellant – Marigolds have long been known to repel insects because of their scent. They also repel in the soil because their roots also give off the scent that most insects avoid.
• Spatial Interaction – This is when you grow plants that mutually help because of the kind of conditions they need. A good example is to grow a tall sun-loving plant next to shorter shade-loving plants. Another example is growing plants with spines on them right next to something like corn, so that animals such as raccoons cannot pick them before you get a chance to harvest.

Increasing Your Yield

If you are gardening organic with vegetables in mind, then the yield per foot becomes very important. One important aspect to increase your yield is to be sure that organic garden fertilizer is applied each spring to replenish the soil. This should just be a basic part of the soil preparation each year. There are a few other things that you will want to consider as you get ready to set up your garden this spring.

• Raised Beds – It has been shown time and again that raised beds will always give a gardener a better yield per foot than the traditional row gardening. This is because not only do you have a looser soil that makes it easier for roots to get the nutrients they need, but also that you can devote more of the space to planting since you will not need to add footpaths. These closer spaced plants will also cut down on weeding time since there is less sun between the plants for weeds to sprout up in.
• Round Your Bed Tops – This may sound small, but a five foot square bed becomes a six foot square bed when you make the top of the raised bed rounded instead of flat. That extra foot times the length of your bed can be significant in terms of yield in the long run. When gardening organic you want every advantage you can get. And if you plant something like lettuce or cabbage at the edge you get even more of a yield.
•  Trellising – Whenever you grow anything that likes to grow up, like beans, peas and tomatoes, trellis them. This gives you more room below for bushy plants and helps the trellised plants by giving them lots of sun. Remember – grow up whenever possible!

As you can see these are just a few ideas for ways you can increase your garden yields or have more lush flowers when planning to begin gardening organic. Once you have added the organic garden fertilizer during the spring to enrich your soil, planned your raised beds to increase your gardening space and placed your companion plants to encourage healthy growing, you will be a much happier and more successful gardener. Then all you need to do is enjoy!

There are many ways to add fertilizer to your garden. One of the more popular, especially if you need to cover a large area, is using liquid fertilizer.

Different soil situations need different nutrient values (the NPK numbers). You can learn more about nutrient values here from an article by Cornell University.

Here are some books about various ways you can create your own liquid fertilizer or how to make the most of the liquid fertilizer you have.

 Here are some

Here are some great liquid fertilizers you can get that are ready to go, truly organic and really great for your garden.

If you are lookiing for organic liquid fertilizer for your hydroponic garden, here are some great ones:

When it comes to planting and growing with seeds, every gardener should consider it as a starter for thier next garden. Everyone loves a garden with plenty of great flowers growing in a lush garden. But paying for all those plants can cost you a small fortune! The most inexpensive way to grow plants is growing seeds. Here are some great seed companies, books on planting and more.

First – every one at some time is a beginner gardener. Here are a few books I have found are really helpful for beginners to get you started:

Now that you have read about the basics of gardening, here are some resources for growing seeds and getting the best seeds, plants and bulbs to start your garden right. Even those really cool vegtables you see at The Farmers Market, you can grow right in your own garden! Or check out greenhouse seeds for more ideas.

Some places have these cool mixed packs that are great for getting your garden started. They might be just the ticket for starting your own vegtable or flower garden.

Vegetable Sampler Pack

A bountiful variety packet of seeds to grow everything tasty that you can imagine. Includes 1 packet each of the following vegetables: Black Zucchini, Early Scarlet Radish, Delicious Tomato, Black Seeded Simpson Lettuce,  Topcrop Bush Bean,
Bloomsdale Spinach,  Tendersweet Carrot,
Cylindra Beet, Chicago Pickling, Wando Pea,
Yellow Monster Pepper, Minnesota Midget Cantaloupe.

Learn More

       …….. 

Decorative Sunflower Mix

If you have ever wanted to grow sunflowers, here is the packet for you. An amazing mix of four varieties of Sunflowers:
Velvet Queen has crimson petals
Lemon Queen has pale yellow petals
Dwarf Sunspot has 10" flowers on 2' stems
Autumn Beauty whose colors may be bronze, yellow, burgundy, red or orange

Learn More

 Sometimes it is better to order the plant rather than grow from seeds. The two plants below, roses and fruit bushes, are a good example of plants that are best grown this way. One of the best things I have found with ordering on the web, is the abundant variety of plants I have found from specialty nurseries like this one listed below:

Double Knock Out Rose Grows into a tight, compact 3 to 4 ft. high shrub/hedge with a non-stop explosion of brilliant red blooms. Double Knock Out survives in many areas and is so adaptable that it thrives from Florida to Canada…full sun or partial shade. Plant along walkways, borders, patios and foundations. Since this plant will continue to bloom throughout the year, there is no need to trim off old or dead flowers. New flowers are continually pushing the old ones out of the way. It is naturally resistant to diseases and pests that attack other roses. Learn More		Blackberry Ebony King Rubus 'Ebony King', is large and has delicious purple berries that are perfect for baking. Excellent berry for pies, cobblers, turnovers, topping ice cream, and added to cereal. Ebony King's upright thornless canes bear fruit in summer before hot days set in. Picking is easy and fun! Blackberries fruit on two-year old canes. After they have finished fruiting, the canes should be pruned away at the base. Plants flower around the start of summer and fruit ripens about mid-July. Learn More

When it comes to planting a garden, we all can use a little help from someone who has years of experience. That is where the vast library of great gardening videos come in handy for just about anyone who really loves to be planting a garden.

There are some really great videos and books to guide planning and planting your garden. Whether you are a beginner or looking for new ideas, these can help.

Let's start with a few books that simply inspire:

Now that we know how the grand masters have done it, here are a few basic books every gardener should have, broken down by region. Here are a few, starting with the west coast:

 Here are some great regional books looking at the East and South:

Beyond just books and videos, some nurseries offer kits that help you plan out your own garden. Here are a couple that include plants, plot plans, tips on soil conditions, where to grow and how to set up very specific types of gardens.

Color in the Shade Perennial Shade Garden Combines shade-loving plants for under trees and they come back year after year without replanting! Includes 6 varieties of plants that just love shady areas, the areas where even grass won't grow. Designed to fit a space 7' wide x 4 1/2' deep. Included is a FREE Planting Diagram with each garden that will show you how to plant your garden. You'll receive: 2 Regal Blue Hosta (mid summer), 4 Red Trinity Plants (early summer), 3 Mixed Astilbe (summer), 2 Double Blue Barlow Columbine (late spring), 5 Lily of the Valley plants (early summer), 2 Cinnamon Ferns. Turn that barren shady area into a colorful mini garden. 18 plants total. Learn More		Planning Your Own Garden This website works with you to help you plan your garden. Sign up, try it out, and read the tutorials, find out when to plant, use the plot planning tools, read the blog. They have everything! If you are new gardener, or even an experienced one with new ideas – this is a great site for you! Learn More

 For many of us, beyond the garden plots we love to have as much of the garden around us as we can, and so beautiful garden containers become part of our garden experience. This is especially true for city gardeners who have to get truly creative. If your garden is mostly deck or patio – you will want some pretty containers to show off your plants. Here are a variety that will look great anywhere.

 
Here are some additions for your garden that are containers of a different kind of beauty.

Contemporary Hanging Stoneware Planter Flowers will fade, but this planter will forever shine with contemporary color! Individually shaped on the potter's wheel with durable stoneware clay, the hanging planter provides an outstanding addition to porches, patios, courtyards and balconies. Learn More		Verdi Green Cattails Birdbath An elegant birdbath to compliment any garden! The cattail pattern is fabricated from heavy 1/4" galvanized steel and welded into a tripod pedestal, allowing the flurry of cattails to be appreciated from all angles. Learn More

DYNAMIC DESIGN IMPORT 20" Worn Iron Harvest Planter Casual traditional style in an Old world English Swag pattern. Bull-nosed rim and a modified pedestal base with a smooth textured finish. Worn Iron – 20". Sold as a 4 pack. Learn More		Apple Green – 6-Pocket Strawberry Jar This 6-Pocket Strawberry Jar is suited for strawberries, ground covers, or herbs. This attractive container is glazed for durability. The beautiful hues, variations and simple shape all define the essence and charm of this pot. The dark, rich colors provide a distinct contrast to light-colored garden plants. It is an excellent container for showcasing just about any low growing plant. Learn More

 Whether you have a giant spread in the "back forty" or a little pocket lawn, here are a few types of fertilizer and lawn feed that will help you keep it healthy. Notice that we have fertilizer for special needs in here, including heavy traffic areas and both summer and winter formulas. For harsher cold climates, be sure to fertilize before the snow hits as well as in the spring. the      the sring.  

 

 No matter what kind of garden you want to create – you need fertilizer to feed the soil and help plants resist pests. Here are some basic garden fertilizers that I find have helped me. 

 Or you can make your own organic fertilizer. There are many formulas for this, depending on what type of soil you have. Here is a basic one that you can use for most gardens:

3 parts seed meal
1 part blood meal
1 part dolomite/calcite lime mixture
half part part bone meal
half part kelp meal

As you can see – this is measured by volume not by weight. Adding a third part of diatomaceous earth will help to keep pests from your plants as well. Do not use the kind for pools but be sure to only use the kind made specifically for food and garden use.

You may need a different version or your amounts of each part may differ depending on the type of soil you have in your garden. You can find this out by testing the soil and then deciding what formula works best for you. You can find out more about fertilizer formulas and reading your soil here or check out this calculator from Oregon State University. I have listed here some of the elements for your own fertilizer, as well as a testing kit of your own .

No matter what kind of soil you have, it is always best to use the soil testers first, and then decide on your fertiizer based on your findings. If you want to go ahead and formulate your own fertilizer using the formula above, you can find the basic ingredients here.

Kelp Meal

Dolomitic Lime

Blood Meal

Cottonseed Meal

To make a great lawn and garden, you need the right equipment. Sometimes you can even find them online at great prices for Lawn & Patio stuff. Here are a few that I have found make a great difference in the work and results of my garden.To keep that lawn beautiful, seed it, feed it and make sure to water it (but not too much)…

Seed and/or Feed Spreaders – These spreaders are great for ensuring that you have an even cast when it is time to either add seed or to fertilize that lawn. 

With all the changes in the rules and when you can and cannot water in many cities these days, a watering timer can be a very useful tool to keep your lawn green and still watch your water consumption.

If you have bushes or just a lot to trim, you are going to need some pruning tools or shears.

A few of the basics that every gardener needs. Mine always need replacing!

One of the most important additives to a garden is your own compost. Here are some books, videos and products to help you get the most from garden compost.

And of course, not just videos but MP3s and downloadable videos that will show you more about composting:

There are also some great information available through your Kindle. What a great way to carry this info with you into the garden or wherever you go.

Now that you have the basic idea from these books, you need to start by putting aside all those scraps from the kitchen for the composter you will want to set up in your backyard. You could use an old empty plastic container – but why would you want to when their are so many wonderful looking containers out there for your kitchen counter? Here are just a few:

Now that we have setup a place to put our scraps from the kitchen in something that still looks good on the counter, here are a few ways to setup your in house worm composter. And if you live in an apartment, don't worry! Many of these worm composters you can setup right in your kitchen under the sink!

Here are a few things to help you teach your kids to garden. This is not only a great activity to share, but it teaches kids responsibility and creativity.

Everyone knows that gardening can be messy! Let you kids get as messy, and have as much fun, as possible. Here are some kids sized gardening stuff to help with that.

And, of course, kids need to have their own tools- made to their size. Here are some cool tools for kids to learn to garden right alongside with you!