Photo: Jay Melissa Malouin
Looking a for a maintainable New Year’s resolution for your garden? Whether you’re looking to attract indigenous wildlife, improve the colour palette of your garden with interesting blooms, or want to create a welcoming space, one things for sure – you should be following the principles of organic agriculture for a beautiful, and healthy garden.
Successfully growing organic flowers, such as roses, can often seem a challenge. Roses, among many other beautiful plants, can succumb to diseases like black spot; whilst many people look to the quick fix of chemicals, it can often do more damage than good, especially when the environment is concerned. Follow our handy tips for growing organic and ethical flowers and you’ll see beautiful, healthy flowers in no time.
Compost
Compost is the secret to successful gardening, no matter where or what you grow. Adding much needed nutrients to your soil, it can also help fight off disease and keeps garden friendly insects like worms busy. Mix a good-quality compost from the likes of Organic Gardening Catalogue into your soil when you’re planting a new garden bed or adding new flowers to an existing plot and you’ll see a big difference.
Look after the roots
Be sure not to damage the roots or delicate ends of any plants as this is the primary spot for all the plant’s nutrient uptake – any injury in this area can impair the plant’s ability to feed and water itself. Without those much-needed essentials, your garden won’t end up looking as bold and beautiful as it could.
Food
Some harder soils require more nutrients than compost alone can provide. If you find yourself with a food-hungry plant, invest in a good organic feed to boast growth. Something like the Blood, Fish Bone Organic Fertiliser from You Garden might sound a tad, well yucky, but you’ll see amazing results. It is wise to keep this kind of fertiliser outdoors due to the smell.
If you have any indoor plants in need of a bit grub, try convenient, and less smelly products like dehydrated organic cow-manure pellets and liquid seaweed.
Pest-prevention
If you find yourself with a few unwelcome visitors, don’t reach for harsh chemical pesticides. Instead, try an ecological pesticide for great results that won’t damage the environment. You can even create your own organic treatments at home such as salt spray, or by combining soap with orange citrus oil and water. For a great how-to article, check out this post on the GHC blog.
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