Frequently Asked Questions
What makes my garden “organic”?
Our philosophy is that an organic garden should:
- Provide an opportunity to enjoy food grown without the use of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides;
- Be grown without harm to the health of the soil and environment;
- Put an emphasis on long-term sustainability.
My Organic Garden focuses on building a healthy “living” soil, incorporating herbs and flowers to attract beneficial insects, planting seeds that have been open-pollinated (including many heirloom varieties) to preserve biodiversity, and using methods such as crop rotation and cover crops to maximize the return of nutrients to the soil.
By capitalizing on an understanding of the garden’s ecosystem, we are able to provide you with a garden where “everybody wins”: your family, the community, and the environment.
How much space do I need for a garden?
The size of your garden depends on the number of people who will eat from it. A small, 130 square foot (10’ x 13’) garden can feed 1 to 2 people, while 400 square feet (20’ x 20’) or more may be needed to feed a family of four. The size of the garden can also be affected by your diet preferences (are you a vegetarian?) and choice of vegetables (e.g. corn takes up lots of space, while potatoes are very “efficient”).
What makes my garden sustainable?
For most people living in an urban setting, it is simply not practical or possible to create a 100% sustainable garden within their yard. My Organic Garden helps to bridge this gap by creating organic gardens that are sustainable within the community. Local sources of compost can be used to build soil health, mulching conserves our water resources, and locally grown seedlings (and gardens!) reduce the fossil fuels needed to get your vegetables to your plate.
Do you use chemicals or sprays?
My Organic Garden does not use synthetic chemical insecticides and herbicides. Plants grown in healthy soil during their ideal season are much more resistant to attacks by insect pests and disease. For particularly voracious non-native insect pests, we will sometimes use organic preventative measures such as a garlic-water spray or scented colored sticky traps (which work like fly paper).
There are a lot of bugs in my garden. Won’t they eat all the vegetables?
Most of the insects you see flying, hopping, and crawling around your garden are actually helpful predators (like ladybugs), important pollinators (such as bees) or harmless visitors (butterflies). Very few are garden pests. The flowers and herbs planted in your garden are selected specifically to attract beneficial insects and deter pests. The presence of a large variety and number of insects in your garden is a sign that it is a healthy, thriving ecosystem anxious to produce lots of veggies.