So, Ok old guy, Why Garden Organically?

My Hip Forums post number 1000, how fitting........

Why Garden Organically? Short answer:

To sum it all up, as the title of the class Skip is teaching says, "You are what you eat." If you want to eat food that is high in nutrition, the nutrients must be in your food that means the food must be grown in soil that can provide what the plants need. Certainly the best way, some (including me) would say only way, to do this is to garden organically. If you want to eat food with less nutrition but with synthetic chemicals, possibly poisons, then don't garden organically. It really is as simple as that!!!

Why Garden Organically? Long answer with explanations:

Ask me, "Why garden organically?" and I will ask you, "Why not?" Since it is quite possible to garden productively, effectively and attractively without using chemical fertilizers and pesticides, then why not garden organically?

That is not to say that organic gardening is just a question of avoiding these chemical products. Far from it. Organic gardening is feeding the soil's living creatures so that they can improve soil structure and fertility, which in turn leads to healthy plant growth. It's recycling, to prevent loss and wastage of plant foods. It's creating diversity in the garden, so the chances of one organism getting out of hand are minimized. It's also a whole lot more.

There are many compelling reasons to garden organically. Organic gardening is safer, more self-sufficient, more sustainable, and ultimately easier than gardening with insecticides, herbicides and all the other 'cides' conventional gardeners rely on. Gardening organically is more responsible to yourself, your family, your neighbors, and your planet. In addition, when you garden organically you discover a deeper connection to your garden. When you use the processes of the natural world to your garden's advantage, you establish your role as steward in your backyard, garden, or farm.

Nutrition and Health:
There are many, many advantages to gardening organically. Probably first and foremost is that food produced using organic agriculture is more nourishing and more healthful. Numerous studies have proven fruits and vegetables grown organically have higher nutritional value than those treated with chemicals. By eliminating chemicals used in regular gardening, your vegetables will be healthier because there will be more nutrients (trace minerals, etc) in the soil.

In early August, 2001, the British organization, The Soil Association, reported that a comprehensive review of existing research revealed significant differences between organically and non-organically grown food. These differences relate to food safety, primary nutrients, secondary nutrients and the health outcomes of the people who eat organically.

Vitamin C and dry matter contents are higher, on average, in organically grown crops then they are in non-organic crops. Mineral contents are also higher, on average, in organically grown crops. Food grown organically contains "substantially higher concentrations of antioxidants (found to reduce the risk of some cancers) and other health promoting compounds than crops produced with pesticides.

The nutritional quality of food is declining: between 1940 and 1991, trace elements in UK fruit and vegetables fell by up to 76%. A recent review of the evidence found that organic food tends to contain higher levels of vitamin C and minerals.

For any gardener who still hasn't been convinced about the need to garden organically, here are some statistics that may help change your mind. In March of 2001, the American Cancer Society published a report linking the use of the herbicide glyphosate (commonly sold as Round-up) with a 27% increased likelihood of contracting Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma.

John Hopkins University also revealed that home gardeners use almost 10 times more pesticide per acre than the average farmer and that diseases caused by environmental illness, exposure to chemicals etc., is now the number one cause of death in the U.S. With the EPA's recent phasing out of common pesticides such as Dursban and Diazinon, we are now realizing that many of the chemicals that we thought were "safe" were never actually tested to see what their affect on children, women, and the elderly could be. The time has come to reassess our dependence on pesticides.

Soil:
When the soil is properly prepared and fed, it will in turn feed the plants in a way that will reduce plant's vulnerability to drought, insect, and disease problems. A properly compost amended soil will have good air and water penetration as well as good water retention. The high airflow within the soil will reduce rot and disease problems. The high water retention will result in reduced watering as well as ensuring a steady supply of water to the plant when it needs more moisture. Synthetic, or chemical fertilizers, usually provide only available nutrients (NPK) which are quickly lost into the soil and water, contaminating the water supply and depleting the soil of necessary nutrition and bacterial activity, and they kill a large portion of the macrobiotic life in the top 6 inches of soil. They drive out the earthworms and most of the other creatures in the soil that normally live there. The soil becomes just a medium for holding up the plants, and the plants become totally dependent on man's continued application of fertilizer to keep them healthy. I want the macrobiotic life to remain in my soil. This life provides nutrients to our plants, and when we kill the life in the soil by using pesticides and herbicides, we then have to add fertilizers to give our plants sustenance-, which makes little or no sense. In 200 square feet of healthy organically treated soil, the earthworms will produce over 150 pounds of manure every year all by themselves. The macrobiotic life in the top 6 inches of soil includes predators and parasites that help control the larvae of over wintering pest insects. If they are not there, you have more pest insects to cope with. Feed the soil and then let the soil feed the plants.

Environmental/philosophical:
There are many people who garden organically for many different reasons. Chief among these are the various philosophical reasons such as a desire to live in harmony with the Earth. Living within one's means so to speak, and attaining a balance in the garden.

Many people choose to garden organically because of concerns about the use of synthetic chemicals on their food. In addition to having possible health effects, these chemicals can affect the environment on farms and in neighboring areas through.

The modern gardening products such as fertilizers, pesticides, etc. contaminate the health of humans and the health of the environment, and lead to disruption of beneficial insect populations and groundwater contamination. The reason behind this is because the chemicals do not just stay on the soil. These chemicals seep into the ground and poison water supplies, gardens, your home, and yours and your family's health. The use of modern gardening products containing man-made chemicals are responsible for the reduction of the Earth's ozone layer; and they also have been linked to serious health problems, including cancer, in humans.

Using chemicals also physically weakens the soil structure, leaving the soil more susceptible to erosion. Run-off erosion sediment clouds our waterways and kills aquatic life. Central Costa water district in Martinez, California determined that 60% of the organophosphate pesticides (like diazinon and chlorpyrifos) entered the sewer from residential neighborhoods. According to the National Foundation for Integrated Pest Management Education, most wastewater treatment plants do not have the capability to completely detoxify the water they treat. Although usage of the organochlorine DDT ended in the United States over thirty years ago, a study of the Mississippi river embayment in 1998 found DDT in 67% of streambed sediment samples and in 14% of surface water samples.

Productivity, Yields, and Quality:
For the last forty years we've been told that chemically dependent agricultural practices will eventually feed the world, but newer studies are proving that organic gardening practices produce equal (and often better) yields than conventional gardening. In a 32-year study on fertilizer use conducted by the Nordic Research Circle for Biodynamic Farming in Sweden, organic crops produced higher yields faster than the chemically fertilized crops. In addition, the organically grown test crops (potatoes and wheat) had a higher protein quality than the conventionally grown food. The organic crops were more stress resistant and had a longer viable storage life. In addition, when the soil was tested for vitality in years 19, 28 and 32, the organic soil had improved in quality while the soil with the fertilized crops had not.

Results from another study published in the journal Nature report the same promising organic gardening outcomes. This five-year study of apple orchards conducted by researchers at Washington State University found scant yield differences between organic and conventional orchards. However, this study found great differences in other tangible ways. The organic orchard system excelled in profitability, energy efficiency, and environmental sustainability. The researchers concluded the organic orchard would break even financially in nine years, while the conventional orchard would take fifteen years to have net returns equaling costs. In addition, in their blind consumer taste test, people found the organic apples sweeter than the conventional.

Economic:
Being an organic gardener makes good business sense. I am an organic gardener because, among other reasons, the techniques allow me to get excellent production from my garden with a decrease in my costs and my time requirements every year. For me, organic gardening is an investment in my future in terms of real dollars and cents, plus real days and hours.

Here's why. From the very start, I didn't spend money for all the special equipment for storing, mixing, applying, and protecting myself. If I have to spend money to protect myself from stuff I'm spraying onto food that me and my family will eat.... well, there's something very wrong with that picture. The primary source of food for my garden is compost. My compost is free. Chemical fertilizers are not free, and their cost has been going up and will rise significantly in the next decades. Therefore, I also save myself the ongoing cash outlay of buying more & more chemicals at ever higher & higher cost.

The time it takes me to make my compost and apply, it is about the same as the time it takes to go and buy the fertilizer and spread it appropriately throughout the growing season. Every hour I spend mulching and composting probably saves me a couple hours of other work. And as time goes by, which it certainly will, the soil in my gardens gets better & better, requiring less and less time & effort. With regular gardening, the soil would become more & more dead & depleted therefore requiring increasing cost & time & effort as the years go by.

One other thing, if you're going to be selling any of what you produce, then organic makes even more sense. From the start, your costs are lower, and by being organic, you will get a higher price for what you sell. Lower cost of production, higher prices for your produce means higher profit. Now I know that some of us think capitalism is one of the main evils of this world... could be true. However, if you're going to try to make a go of it living a self-supporting farm type life style, then you'll need all the help you can get. In addition, if you're like me and some folks I know, you'll be growing extra just to be given away to the hungry & to shelters, etc., so let that ease your conscience.

Here's some more things to think about…

* The Pesticide Action Network of North America reports that U.S. consumers can experience up to 70 daily exposures to residues from organic pollutants through their diets;
* More than 1 million children between the ages of 1 and 5 ingest at least 15 pesticides every day from fruits and vegetables;
* U.S. General Accounting Office reports that exposure to pesticides can cause ill effects in humans, including headaches, fatigue, cancer and neurological disorders;
* Scientists worldwide estimate that up to 85% of the sperm produced by healthy humans have DNA damage by environmental causes including exposure to chemicals and pesticides;
* Worldwatch, a nonprofit public research organization, reports that toxic chemicals are contaminating groundwater on every continent, endangering the world's most valuable supply of freshwater;
* Worldwatch also reports that 67 million birds are killed each year and the U.S. honeybee population (needed for crop pollination) has shrunk dramatically. Chemical use and pesticides are the leading suspect of both;
* You can ensure produce is pesticide and GE-free;
* You can improve the nutritional quality of the fruit and vegetables you eat
* You will probably save money
* You can eat fresh, better tasting varieties of produce - commercial varieties are grown to survive transportation and increase shelf life rather than for flavor
* You can eat local food. Food grown in your environment doesn't add "food miles" (Food miles: when food is transported vast distances by road or air, the use of fossil fuels contributes to global warming. Other resources are also used in the process e.g. extra chemicals, packaging etc.)
* You enjoy fresh air, exercise, getting to know nature and her seasons
* You can help educate children, family, and friends about food growing.

The World Health Organization estimates 25 million cases of pesticide poisoning each year worldwide. Pesticide exposure has been linked to neurological, reproductive, behavioral, developmental, hormonal imbalances, and immune system health problems. Children who eat organic fruits and vegetables have "only one-sixth the concentrations organophosphate pesticide byproducts in their urine as children who eat conventionally grown produce" (Science News p.120). Why risk your health and the health of your family when organic alternatives to pesticides, insecticides, and herbicides exist?


OK, now we've cover all the background info. If there are any questions, or things anyone want to know more about, just ask & I'll do my best to answer.

We've covered the what, where & why.... it's time to get into the how. Next topic will be "Soil - where it all starts and ends"

Peace,
poor_old_dad