Practical Organic Gardening Explained, Plus How to Solve Garden Challenges Naturally with Mark Highland
Mark Highland (SG 565), The Organic Mechanic, is back on the show today and we’re talking about Practical Organic Gardening.Mark is the owner and operator of The Organic Mechanic Soil Company. When it comes to building healthy soil, Mark is a master. He has taught classes at Longwood Gardens, The Tyler Arboretum, Mt. Cuba Center, Callaway Gardens and The Scott Arboretum - just to name a few. He has served as a consultant for the EPA and Institute for Local Self-Reliance and he recently received the Young Professional Award from the PPA - the Perennial Plant Association.As Mark often points out, there are a lot of benefits to organic gardening - and it’s not just about the quality of the food. Certainly, organic gardeners have a strong connection to their garden and their property, but they also care deeply about the natural world.There’s an oft used idiom to describe starting with the basics, foundation, or fundamentals and it’s “from the ground up”. From the ground up implies thoroughness, completeness, and strength. When it comes to organic gardening, the starting point is literally from the ground up and the focus begins with the soil. By building healthy soil that is loaded with organic matter, nutrients and microbial activity, you can stop using the synthetic fertilizers and pesticides used in conventional gardening.
If you are new to gardening or if you’ve been a conventional gardener all your life - using sprays and pesticides - rest assured you can be an organic gardener, too. That transition doesn’t need to be overwhelming. Just take baby steps. When it comes to gardening, everyone is learning. No one knows it all. When it comes to making a change, just remember that organic gardening is a paradigm and it takes a while to shift a paradigm.
I said at the top of the show, There’s that old saying used to describe starting with the basics or fundamentals -“from the ground up” - and when it comes to organic gardening, you literally start with the ground or the soil.Why is that?My kids would say, “Duh, to grow healthy plants”.True, we want happy, healthy plants.But the real focus when it comes to building healthy soil is creating a paradise for the superstars of gardening - the hardest working, most vitally important aspect of soil life: microbes.All the minerals and nutrients we obsess about - nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus - calcium, iron, magnesium - matter less than microbes because microbial activity is vital to fertility.And the number one thing we can do to create a microbial paradise in our gardens is to stop using the synthetic fertilizers and pesticides used in conventional gardening and begin adding organic matter to the soil with compost, cover crops, legumes, etc.
Here are just a few of the benefits that the USDA attributes to Organic Growing:
- Increased soil fertility
- Decreased fertilizer and herbicide use
- Decreased energy use
- Lock in great amounts of carbon in the soil
- Increased profitability for growers
Here are a few important points to keep in mind for today’s episode:1. Chemical fertilizers quickly push lush, soft growth full of salts - something that deer browsers, insects and pests are drawn to.2. Organic gardens cultivate a greater understanding of your garden. When challenges arise, connect with other organic gardeners to fully understand the problem and the range of solutions available.3. Ornamental plants do not need a ton of fertilizer.4. Salt-based chemical fertilizers negatively impact sensitive microbes.5. The wonderful thing about soil is that it can be healed. Organic matter feeds soil microbes.6. Think of plants as mulch. When you have a dense enough planting - you don’t even need mulch - the plants act as mulch.
7. Fertile soil has dark color, loose structure and an earthy smell.We’re talking about gardening naturally today - how to ditch the chemicals and pesticides with the Organic Mechanic - Here’s Practical Organic Gardening explained, PLUS how to solve garden challenges naturally with Mark Highland.
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What Listeners Are Saying...
I never write reviews but this is the best gardening podcast out there. Jennifer has interesting topics and guests and is not one bit annoying like some others are. I love that she involves her kids at the end of the podcast - usually with poetry or music. Really good podcast.
- Barbcfc, Mar 23, 2016
Still Growing is one of the reliably informative gardening podcasts from North America. The format consists of an intro (personal gardening status chat, seasonal remarks), an extended interview with a guest, and an outro with funny outtakes, side remarks, and some chatter (poems, readings) from the host's children. The podcast is focused on reliable knowledge - the guests are typically experts like academics, master gardeners, gardening entrepreneurs or public garden leaders. The intro and especially the outro give it a homey feel. Given I live in the high northern region, just a little below the Polar Circle, I'm always looking for more cold-weather oriented gardening information. Jennifer Ebeling is in Minnesota, so that's helpful to me! Vegetable gardening (my main interest) gets a good share, but is not predominant. Most topics transcend your specific gardening interest and are applicable to many styles: landscaping principles, vermicomposting, greenhouses. The episodes are typically an hour long, which is just fine for me.
- cwaigl, May 29, 2014
Best gardening podcast out there. Her preparedness leads to a good interaction with the guests and brings out the best in them. Very informative and yet personable.
- Corn bug, June 15, 2016
This is a great podcast. Really well produced and organized with good sound quality. I love the mix of information and personal touches. Jennifer has great guests and asks the best questions. You can tell she really does her homework. I listen to several gardening podcasts and this is my absolute favorite!
- So Cal Gardengirl, June 19,2016
You can always find Still Growing on iTunes or on my favorite app: Stitcher Radio.
Jennifer Ebeling
Latest posts by Jennifer Ebeling (see all)
- Twenty Reasons NOT to Garden and WHY I IGNORE THEM ALL with Garden Humorist Luke Ruggenberg - May 18, 2018
- Stoneleigh: America’s Newest Public Garden, PLUS an in-depth chat with Ethan Kauffman about his vision and the plants he loves most in the garden - May 11, 2018
- Practical Organic Gardening Explained, Plus How to Solve Garden Challenges Naturally with Mark Highland - April 20, 2018