Organic Garden Lifestyle
Developing an organic garden lifestyle… In 2004 the house we lived in became a shared residence with some neighborhood ants. By then we knew some things about chemistry. We spent a lot of time in + around the garden adjacent directly to the house. We just did not want to use any poisons.
A scientist from Rodale said simply, and this is paraphrased- that we are so structurally similar to these creatures and material (weeds) we are trying to eradicate with biological weapons that eventually it kills us too.
So, back when the ant infestation happened, we purchased a pre-blended organic solution of Neem oil and soap. It was roughly $15 after shipping. It smelled like nothing we’d ever smelled before but it worked quickly, effectively, cheaply and reapplying wasn’t necessary until the next year.
Today we still use Neem oil for ant control around the home, for aphid control in the garden and mildew prevention on foliar plants. It is also a health tonic in ayurvedic medicine, particularly for skin issues.
There are many other tricks for easy replacement of horrible chemicals. Just replace White Vinegar anytime you were going to use Round-Up for anything from now on. It does the same job on “weeds” or plants that are out of place, without poisoning the neighborhood from storm runoff, causing reproductive issues for both men and women, cancers, neurological disorders, an increase in ADHD and Autism in this generation’s youth and birth defects. Also, White Vinegar does not devastate the soil microbes and render the soil infertile like Round-Up does.
Many problems can be solved by intuitive prevention and good planning or design. We don’t have to scramble to fix problems we don’t have in the garden: this especially applies to vegetable gardens. More helpful information is always readily available at your local Cornell Co-operative Extension. In my county, the extension folks are incredibly knowledgeable and generous.
