Growing fruit and veg naturally

Posts

• Dovefromabove Posts: 88,147

  August 2018

  I do 

  
  Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
  
  
  
  
  
  

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• [Deleted User] Posts: 30

  August 2018

  The user and all related content has been deleted.

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• Hostafan1 Posts: 34,889

  August 2018

  Check you tube for film by Charles Dowding. Very easy to watch and full of good , sensible, practical, follow-able advice.

  Devon.

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• Posy Posts: 3,601

  August 2018

  You may need to know more about chemicals. Soil is jam-packed with chemicals essential to the life and productivity of your plants. You can do a lot to find out whether they are in the right amounts for what you want to grow and how to adjust them if not. You may find that adding compost and manure, seaweed, minerals and so on is beneficial. Some people add chicken poo, or there is blood fish and bone or bonemeal. Even the water you pour on contains chemicals. And I make no mention of Mr Flowerdew's chemical additions...  People can get very hung up about what they think are unnatural additives in gardening, but it is worth working out what is natural or unnatural before jumping to conclusions. Without chemicals, there would be no life at all.

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• Dovefromabove Posts: 88,147

  August 2018

  Very well said @Posy 👍

  
  Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
  
  
  
  
  
  

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• debs64 Posts: 5,184

  August 2018

  Many of us on here garden organically we don't use insecticides or weedkillers. Is that what you mean by "gardening without chemicals"
  If so it's perfectly possible and a very enjoyable way to garden. 

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• raisingirl Posts: 7,093

  August 2018

  A coda to Posy's well made point is to remember that 'natural' chemicals are not always harmless. Conserve and manage your soil the best way you can if you want any plants to grow well for you

  Gardening on the edge of Exmoor, in Devon
  
  “It's still magic even if you know how it's done.” 

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• tessagardenbarmy Posts: 346

  August 2018

  Boost your soil with homemade compost or buy in manure. I dig trenches in the autumn and slowly add vegetable peeling and cardboard etc then cover with a bit of soil until the trench is full. Mark the ends with canes it all rots down over winter ready to.plant into next year courgettes,beans ,peas etc.
  Use fish blood and bone /bone meal and chicken pellets depending what ratio of NPK you want. Grow comfrey to line trenches or make into the world's smelliest feed.
  Netting most crops on the allotment saves them from many pests. Also companion planting nastursiums to keep black fly off broad beans and having some borage to entice pollinators.My biggest problem is slugs and not using pellets unless absolutely desperate then the 'safe'ones. Only planting well established,robust seedlings helps as they are less susceptible.Planting in well spaced rows then you can hoe between easily to remove weeds and this year I've planted through weed suppressing membrane which has worked well. Have rampant ground elder intertwined in my autumn raspberry bed and have had to ,on occasion,use weedkiller but everything else no chemicals.

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• Fairygirl Posts: 55,117

  August 2018

  Also - it's easy to assume organically produced food crops [ the mass produced ones ] use no chemicals too - but they do. 
  We also tend to think of chemicals are contained in the 'baddies' only - weedkiller for instance - but  many of us use tomato food or Miracle Grow for our flowers and veg. They're full of chemicals too. 

  It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
  
  
  
  I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...

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• Jules41 Posts: 178

  August 2018

  There maybe some good starter ideas here...
  https://www.gardenorganic.org.uk/growing-advice
  

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