The use of manures is always a good source of organic fertilizer, there are just a couple things you must follow and pay attention to. Use manures that have been aged for 30 days, or composted, as we spoke of before so that microbiology has a chance to break things down. Organic gardening fertilizer manures vary a lot in nutrient content based on a few things: type of animal the manures come from, the age of the animal, and also the condition of the animal. Another factor is of course what they eat, a very main guideline is not to use animals that mainly eat meats. Some types of animals we look for are: cows, horses, hogs, rabbits, goats, and other exotic grass eaters. Notice all of the plants eat mainly plant matter. The best way to use manure, or organic fertilizer in your organic garden is to mix it with the soil three weeks ahead of time, however you can also mix smaller amounts with compost and work it into the top of your garden beds from the edge of the root zone in, being careful not to use too much, especially if your soil is already rich in compost and manures. Manures, or organic fertilizers are a good source of micro nutrients, but is not always a completely balanced organic fertilizer. Some very good additives for manure are potash or ground rock phosphates.

Regardless of what some may think, there are organic pesticides on the market, such as Neem oil. Neem oil is pressed out of seeds obtained from Neem trees. Neem oil disrupts insects’ hormone balance, so they die before they reach the next stage of life. Garlic oil spray can kill aphids, and other softer bodied pests. Insecticidal soap, a common formula for this is 1-2 tablespoons of dish detergent like dawn per gallon of water, you want to heavily spray affected plants with water before spraying with this solution, and never on a sizzling hot day. It can burn some plants with dull leaf surfaces, so always test on a non-visible area first. The fatty acids in the soap penetrate the insects causing the cells to collapse. Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis), basically bacteria, there are many types available as powders that you sprinkle on a plant, and must be eaten by the insect. This acts as a stomach poison which cause them to stop eating, and starve to death. However, Bt strains are very host specific, and are most always harmless to humans, birds, or other animals, and usually takes time to effect insects, as sometimes it takes days to stop them from eating to your plants. All these can help with natural insect control, but there are very many other methods, too many to list here, but be sure we will come back to this subject with more methods and explanations of them.

What is organic gardening? While it may be obvious to most people, organic gardening is the idea of not using any synthetic products, including pesticides and fertilizers. Instead, there are many organic alternatives to synthetic methods, compost instead of fertilizers, or nettle tea spray to combat Aphids. Compost is made up of organic matter, like dying plants, grass clippings, dried or dead leaves, kitchen scraps, to manures and fish heads. Compost can be used to feed in two main ways, either mixing it with the soil, or spreading it over the top of the soil for existed plants or gardens. Compost not only feeds the plants, but also conditions the soil in different ways, such as creating better aeration or attracting soil organisms to create more nutrients in the soil. As far as organic pest control goes, you have to realize in gardening that you will almost always come across bugs, especially outside. Your first defense should be inspection, visual damage and of course seeing the pests will be your obvious signs of a pest, but remember, not all pests are bad pests. For example, a preying mantis, known for hanging in one garden for periods of time will take care of some pests, Birds will munch on grubs, and lady bugs love to feast on aphids and spider mites, the pests you can really see, and of course a big helped, Spiders! They will of course spin webs and catch moths, beetles, among many other things.