WHY GARDEN ORGANICALLY?

Organic gardening requires a completely different approach to traditional, chemical-based gardening techniques. As more and more gardeners throughout the country become aware of the harmful effects of chemical use on our families, communities and environment, the more educated we become on alternative methods of plant and lawn care, pest control and sustainable agriculture.

Synthetic, or chemical fertilizers, usually provide only available nutrients (NPK) which are quickly lost into the soil and water, contaminating our water supply and depleting our soil and plants of necessary nutrition and bacterial activity. And they definitely scare away all of those beneficial creatures, such as earthworms, from the garden.

The Happy Gardener has developed an exclusive line of organic blends, Happy Naturals, ™ which are designed to replace the nutrients in the land and soil that have been taken away, so our land and soil can continue producing indefinitely.

Gardeners often ask "Is organic gardening expensive?" In fact, the answer is "No." With a little care and education, gardeners are happily saving money as they incorporate composting and soil conditioning practices in their personal gardens. Recycling kitchen scraps and garden debris is taking the place of purchasing bags of compost at the local garden center, and replacing monthly applications of synthetic fertilizers with slow-release, organic soil conditioners is a much less expensive way to go.

Organic gardeners find that they use less energy and resources in the garden as birds and bats are invited to establish residence in their backyards and in turn, take over the ugly chore of pest control. We also learn about and use companion planting to control pests in vegetable gardens. A pack of marigold seeds to plant near the tomatoes is much cheaper than purchasing bottle after bottle of chemical pesticide.

Organic gardeners are strong believers in "cheaper and easier is not always better." What are your gardening priorities? Does it make sense to take the time to grow home-grown vegetables, fruits and herbs to soak the soil with chemicals to feed the produce with chemicals to eventually consume those chemicals? We have complete control over what we use in our gardens. Why would anyone consciously use anything other than organic?

Still Don't Understand? Here's something to think about…

• The Pesticide Action Network of North America reports that U.S. consumers can experience up to 70 daily exposures to residues from organic pollutants through their diets;
• More than 1 million children between the ages of 1 and 5 ingest at least 15 pesticides every day from fruits and vegetables;
• U.S. General Accounting Office reports that exposure to pesticides can cause ill effects in humans, including headaches, fatigue, cancer and neurological disorders;
• Scientists worldwide estimate that up to 85% of the sperm produced by healthy humans have DNA damage by environmental causes including exposure to chemicals and pesticides;
• Worldwatch, a nonprofit public research organization, reports that toxic chemicals are contaminating groundwater on every continent, endangering the world's most valuable supply of freshwater;
• Worldwatch also reports that 67 million birds are killed each year and the U.S. honeybee population (needed for crop pollination) has shrunk dramatically. Chemical use and pesticides are the leading suspect of both.
• Numerous studies have proven fruits and vegetables grown organically have higher nutritional value than those treated with chemicals.