Several bloggers have been talking about environmentally friendly and/or cheap gardening recently. For example Kenny at Veggie Gardening Tips and Jane at Horticultural. For me these topics are almost one and the same, and I thought I would do a post on this too.
The cheapest and most environmentally thing for your garden is the thing you don’t buy! Every time you buy something it needs to be manufactured or produced, then packaged and transported. If you buy it from a store, it needs to be stocked and marketed. Eventually everything you buy needs to be consumed or disposed of. All of these things use energy and other natural resources, and not buying them is always the greenest thing to do.
In principle, with the exception of a few tools and maybe lime if your soil is acidic, nothing else is needed to grow your own fruit and vegetables.
Realistically speaking, there are some other things most of us have. For example, a shed to store our tools, maybe a greenhouse, materials to construct paths, nets, fences, raised beds, garden furniture and so on. Almost all gardens have some of these things. In addition, when you’re first starting you may have some special problems to take care of, for example it’s pretty common to find your garden is lacking organic material in the ground and needs some amendments at the beginning.
Here are some tips on how to avoid buying things, and if you must, how to buy the most environmentally friendly things.
Reuse and Recycle: If something in your garden needs replacing, consider using it a little while longer, or finding another use for it. Try to find unwanted things in your neighbors gardens or elsewhere in your neighborhood, and find a new use for them in your own garden. If you live in an agricultural are, look among the farmers. For example straw or other plant waste can be used as mulch in your garden or to make compost. Farmers may have unwanted tools. Organic farmers might make a good source of manure, but be careful of getting contaminated products like this.
Avoid Toxic Materials: Many common consumer items contain toxic materials, that can contaminate your garden and/or may be a special disposal problem when you’re finished. For example, chemicals, paint, batteries, treated wood, PVC plastic and similar things. All of these things if burned can create serious pollution problems, and if they find their way into the ground can decompose into toxic and long lasting chemicals. These products are also difficult or impossible to recycle.
Buy Long Lasting But Also Biodegradable Things: Buy good quality products, that will last and you won’t need to replace in a short time. At the same time, don’t buy things that are too durable! PVC plastic is a good example. PVC lasts virtually forever. If it’s burned, it decomposes into PCBs and dixoins. Realistically, it can’t be recycled. Materials like galvanized metal are made with heavy metals, and can also contaminate your ground virtually forever. We all need to use some of these things sometimes, but look for alternatives and think before bringing them into your garden. Try not to buy these things, only to turn around and throw them away a year or two later. Try to get these things used.
Make Use of Your Own Compost: Everyone needs organic material for the ground in their garden, and home made compost is the best source of this. Most people’s gardens are self sustainable with respect to compost, once things get started. At the beginning you may need to import material to make your compost with, or even purchase some additional compost, but this is usually only for the first year or two. A good source of compost to get started with can often be had for free or nearly free from your city. Most cities have compost available from discarded plant materials they have made themselves.
Start Small: For everyone a garden is a lifelong learning experience, and something that evolves over time. Get used to the idea that things take a few years to setup. For example, if you decide you need raised beds, try starting with one small one. Rather than going to the store and buying a peat based product to fill up your raised bed, try just using dirt or start with just a frame and raise the dirt inside over time with home made compost. In this way you are sure you’re buying the right raised beds from the right materials, and you’ll discover if you like using it and it’s the solution you really want over time. Don’t try to build everything in your garden all in one year. Don’t buy netting until you know you have a pest problem, and understand exactly what it is. Don’t buy other materials in large quantities, until you’ve had a chance to test it and you know it’s right.
Anyone else have any other tips?
