Why Go Organic?

Now that I’m a mid-life Mama, farming is on the back burner. I’m still growing and gardening like before, just on a smaller scale. Over the past year, I composted and reseeded my growing fields, turning them back into grass—or as my husband lovingly says, “normal,” and expanded my personal garden spaces. This means that that little space I told my hubs I needed includes: over 30 raised beds, a pumpkin patch, more than 1,000 square-feet of perennial plantings and a greenhouse. As one does.

But don’t think for one minute that I’ve changed the way I grow. My plants are fed a blend of fish emulsion and seaweed, and I embrace the “no-dig” mentality. Sheet mulching and a comprehensive crop rotation schedule help me achieve the nutrient- and microbe-rich soil I daydream about, while compost and cover crops are used to naturally build up nutrients. And, to control those wicked plant pests, I employ a blend of interplanting, companion plantings and beneficials—good bugs—to keep my garden strong and thriving.