Fenella's Garden - organic fruit, vegetables, herbs, flowers and eggs

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Organic Life

Organic farming isn't just about growing food without sprays, although that is a big part of it. To legally sell food as organic we must be registered with an approved certification body, and regularly inspected. We have chosen to register with the Soil Association as they are considered the 'gold standard' for organic foods. They demand that we adhere to set standards and they inspect us every year to ensure we comply.

Soil health
Organic agriculture starts with the health of the soil in which plants grow, the myriad organisms from microbes to worms that maintain soil health and break down waste matter to supply nutrients. Without a healthy living soil the plants cannot find the food (and sometimes water) they need to survive and thrive, nor can they fight off attack from bugs or disease. Organic standards require that farmers care for the soil by maintaining fertility, avoiding erosion, compaction and nitrate run-off. Sterilising the soil (common practice among conventional growers of protected crops like tomatoes) is prohibited, as it not only kills the pathogens but all the beneficial organisms too.

Here at Fenella's Garden we avoid bare soil - any cultivation is followed by either a crop, a green manure (a crop planted to cover the soil and then be ploughed back in) or by a light excluding mulch. Leaving soil bare for long periods exposes it to wind and rain erosion, and starves the eco-system on which we rely of food and shelter. We avoid compacting the soil by keeping off it as much as possible. Compaction forces air out of the soil making it waterlogged and less likely to support life. We apply as much organic matter as we can obtain, and do so carefully to avoid adding to the nitrate burden of the River Ancholme.

Natural fertility
Organic farmers can only use natural sources of fertility like composted animal manures to 'feed' the soil. Note that these feed the soil not the plants - where a conventional farmer will use highly soluble artificial fertilisers to directly meet the plants' needs, an organic farmer uses bulky organic matter to create long term fertility in the soil that the plants can take up as they need it. Organic matter is also valuable in improving the structure of the soil, maintaining the eco-system of the soil and improving the ability of the soil to hold onto water.

At Fenella's Garden we spend a lot of time and energy on our compost - sad but true! We combine plant wastes from the garden with the manure of our chickens and a neighbouring (organic) horse. The animal manure means the heap gets nice and hot, killing off weed seeds and diseased material. We build the compost bins from hay bales to retain the heat, and cover the compost at all times to prevent rain leaching the goodness out. The well rotted compost is either added to the soil at the time of planting, or used as a mulch around growing crops. For your safety we do not use animal manures directly on crops like lettuces that will be eaten uncooked. Where plants need a quick boost we apply liquid feeds like comfrey or nettle tea, but we do so sparingly as we believe over feeding produces soft growth that 'dilutes' the taste of the final product.

Rotation
Most farmers, whether conventional or organic, do not grow the same crop on the same ground year after year, as this leads to a build up of diseases unique to that crop, and depletes the specific nutrients that crop needs. Most rotations include a leguminous crop (like peas, beans or clover) that can take otherwise unavailable nitrogen and make it available for following crops. Organic farmers must rotate their crops to avoid diseases that they have few defences against, and organic standards insist upon it. Rotation has many other advantages, for instance potatoes will suppress weeds, so it is a good idea to follow them with a crop like onions that cannot cope with weed competition.

At Fenella's Garden we have a complex rotation in our beds due to the huge range of crops we grow, but the basic principle of moving crops on still applies. The plant families that are most affected by soil-borne diseases have minimum seven year gaps between them, allowing such pathogens to disappear before that crop comes round again.

Protecting Eco-systems
Organic growers rely heavily on naturally occurring populations of predator species to control pests like slugs, aphids and leatherjackets. These predator populations require habitats in which to over-winter, feed and raise young, habitats like thick hedges, scrub, nettle beds and damp areas.

At Fenella's Garden we leave areas of long grass where ladybirds and hedgehogs may overwinter; we are digging ponds and leaving damp areas to encourage frogs and toads; we leave our hedges uncut and allow blackthorn to invade field edges to provide homes and feeding grounds for birds. Our plentiful supply of rabbits is fenced out from the garden area, and controlled by barn owls and weasels. Rats and mice are controlled by Eradirat, a 'poison' specific to rodents to prevent secondary poisoning of pets or predators like barn owls. We have healthy populations of many birds that are otherwise struggling like yellowhammers, thrushes and reed bunting.

Sustainability
Organic standards demand that the growing system be sustainable not only on the local level of the farm but also in the wider environment. This means that organic farmers must use finite resources such as fossil fuels, plastics and water with care.

We have covered our new polytunnels with a longer life cover - it should last ten years rather than five. Our fleece and landscape fabrics are used carefully to allow maximum re-use. We harvest as much water as we can from the rain that falls on our buildings, and water only when absolutely necessary, for instance in polytunnels. We are looking into bio-degradable packaging, although availability for small growers like us is a problem.