GREENER FINGERS - Sustainable Gardening

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We all have a moral duty to behave in sustainable way across all aspects of our lives.

Growing our own food provides many opportunities in this respect. For example, our plots provide diverse habitats for wildlife (particularly insects) which can be further enhanced by restricting our use of chemical pesticides. By generating our own compost and using local sources of manure we can reduce our reliance on man-made fertilisers. These, and similar practices lead to healthier soils on allotment sites than those found on farmland with modern commercial agricultural processes;

The following sections describes ways in which you can grow crops without harming the environment and, in many instances, making a positive contribution to it.

People think about having an allotment for different reasons and a key issue is enjoying the process of growing while enabling my family to eat vegetables that were free of chemicals. 

There is a lot of research now to suggest that the overuse of chemicals in farming generally is not good for human health and is also having an effect on wildlife. The organic method places importance on looking after your soil. Growing plants takes nutrients out of the soil and you will need to replace these regularly.

Organic gardening uses techniques which occur naturally – the word ’organic’ describes living organisms. 

 People think about having an allotment for different reasons and a key issue is enjoying the process of growing while enabling my family to eat vegetables that were free of chemicals. 

There is a lot of research now to suggest that the overuse of chemicals in farming generally is not good for human health and is also having an effect on wildlife. The organic method places importance on looking after your soil. Growing plants takes nutrients out of the soil and you will need to replace these regularly.

Some people think that organically grown food tastes better but the proven benefits are safer growing (by using fewer potentially toxic pesticides and fertilisers) and protecting/encouraging wildlife. It can also reduce waste where compost is used by recycling kitchen and/or gardening waste. 

Organic gardening includes the following: 

• Using natural mulches to restrict weed growth and retain soil moisture 
• Using organic manures and peat-free compost 
• Capturing and storing rainwater 
• Cultivation processes with reduced or no digging 
• Plant to encourage beneficial predators: birds, insects (ladybirds, wasps, lacewings…) and reptiles (frogs, toads and slow worms) 
• Companion planting – plants which benefit each other (e.g. the onion family can be grown with carrots to deter carrot fly) 
• Using green manure over winter to keep the soil warm and retain moisture 

It is not easy to be wholly organic but applying some of the principles will help to establish a natural balance on your plot. 

For more information see www.gardenorganic.org.uk. 

A good way to replace nutrients without chemical fertilisers is to spread organic material such as well rotted horse manure, spent mushroom compost or maybe garden compost over the ground surface.

Mulch is the name given to this  thick layer of organic matter which absorbs rainfall, reduces evaporation and keeps the soil warm. Ideally it should be at least 10cm (4”) thick, but as this would dwarf small seedlings it can be applied in layers. 

The first layer should be overlapping card or newspaper applied around any established plants. This layer’s job us to block out light and suppress weeds. Weed control fabric could be applied as an alternative.

This layer is then covered with plant matter to keep it in place: grass cuttings, leaves, compost, wood chip, straw and small non-pernicious weeds (without seeds) are all ideal. This is the layer which is most effective at moderating the temperature and moisture content of the soil  

The deeper the layers the better but you should aim to cover the soil to a depth of about three inches. More good news is that you don’t have to dig in the organic matter into your ground. All you do is sit back and allow worms to take the material down into the soil and for all the beneficial bacteria present to process it so it can be absorbed by whatever plants you are going to grow. 

The other benefit of applying a mulch is that the soil structure is much improved, opening up the ground to the penetration of water and making it much easier to plant things into it. You could aim to apply a mulch as often as possible even when you have plants growing but in any event you should do it at least once a year either after the growing season has ended, around the end of October, or perhaps in early spring.  

Growing many different types of plant close together creates several small natural ecosystems which, in turn, creates habitats for a wide range of creatures. This increases the chances of encouraging natural predators and helps to ensure that no single pest population is large enough to create problems.

Growing different plants together – companion planting – brings other benefits. For example, carrot flies are attracted by the smell of young carrot plants, but if strong-scented herbs or garlic/onions are growing amongst the carrots the carrot fly become confused.

A good approach is to plant some flowering plants between crops. Generally, these will attract hoverfly and ladybirds and occasionally bring further advantages – Cabbage White butterflies prefer to lay their eggs on Nasturtiums rather than cabbage plants, thus providing a natural decoy.

Other parts of the allotment can also support wildlife – log piles provide shelter predatory insects and compost heaps are ideal habitats for beetles and centipedes and provide a warm, safe haven for slow worms and hedgehogs.

Further information is available from the Br6thers web-site -  https://sixbrotherspestcontrol.com/garden-pests-natural-guide/) 

We often think about our crops in isolation, not thinking about how plants interact. In fact, many plants can affect others by attracting insects, repelling pests, and using complementary nutrients. 

Some crops grow well together because of the shape and size, root structure, and need for light. Climbing beans and sunflowers, tomato and fennel, and other combinations are bad neighbours. However, onions can grow happily alongside beans, leeks can be grown amongst celery, and turnips can be grown with peas. 

Tomatoes are believed to deter asparagus beetle, onions and other alliums can reduce attack by carrot fly. Cabbage root fly is dissuaded by herbs such as mint, rosemary or sage. 

Native Americans believed that crops would thrive if they grew squashes alongside sweetcorn plants, and planted climbing beans in between, which grew up on the sweet corn plants, using the stems like canes while fixing nitrogen amongst its roots. This system known as the Three Sisters which is now scientifically understood to be a sustainable method of growing a nutritious combination of crops.