"K" wrote in message
...
Farm1 writes

Even in my very big garden, I still only use herbicdes as a very, very
last resort after every other organic alternative has failed - perhaps
once or twice a year on one or two plants. I hand weed and mulch.
Overall, I've been quite surprised at how few organic gardeners there
are in this forum.

'Gardening' and 'organic' doesn't really go together here ;-) Most
gardening books exhort you to use fertiliser at regular intervals and
pesticides for preventative use, let alone cure. GC and DIY shop shelves
are heaving with bottles for growing things and killing things. We have
one or two organic gardening gurus, but they are exceptions. Prince
Charles is viewed as decidedly odd by many for his organic views.

Faced with all this as a newbie gardener, it is quite hard to go against
the grain.

Perhaps it's the garden size thing again? If you can't ever stand more
than 10 ft away from the rose bush in your garden, it's more important
that there shouldn't be a single aphid disfiguring it. Organic gardening
can give you healthy plants - what it finds more difficult to achieve is
totally pest-free plants.


--
Kay

For a few years the shelves of most Garden centres were fairly devoid of the
killing stuff due to the banning and slow withdrawal of a lot of the
traditional and nasty stuff. I too have noticed that once again they are
increasing in volume and variety.
The actual range of chemicals used has dropped and many products which are
sold are technically organic (natural) without trumpeting the fact.
It is better now than it was and will continue to improve.
As far as the fertiliser stuff is concerned not much has changed-it's all
NPK of one form or another and AFAIC it is not a problem.

"Rupert (W.Yorkshire)" writes

For a few years the shelves of most Garden centres were fairly devoid of the
killing stuff due to the banning and slow withdrawal of a lot of the
traditional and nasty stuff. I too have noticed that once again they are
increasing in volume and variety.
The actual range of chemicals used has dropped and many products which are
sold are technically organic (natural) without trumpeting the fact.
It is better now than it was and will continue to improve.
As far as the fertiliser stuff is concerned not much has changed-it's all
NPK of one form or another and AFAIC it is not a problem.

I do wonder whether we need so *much* of it. Surveys by Plantlife show
that the wildflowers that are increasing most are things like nettles
and the other thugs which like high nutrient soils, and we are losing
plants which are adapted to compete well on poor soils.

We also seem to be getting increasing problems of nitrogen run off into
streams


--
Kay

"JennyC" wrote in message
...
"Farm1" please@askifyouwannaknow wrote

the Superb Blue Wrens clean
them up totally.
http://birdsinbackyards.net/finder/display.cfm?id=3

WOW - pretty :~))

Yes, as usual, it's the male who is the pretty one but he only puts on
his blue plumage at mating time. :-))

I can sit on my back verandah watching these tiny birds cleaning
up
the aphids with no fear at all from we humans. I can see no
reason to
cause myself work by dragging out a nasty to spray to kill the
aphids
if these wonderful little birds are doing the work for me and
giving
me entertainment at the same time.

I also have a lot of "Blue tongue Lizards" and skinks in my garden
and
these eat snails but are poisoned by snail bait. They give me a
shock
every now and then when I see then because I sometimes mistake
them
for snakes but they too are more than welcome. They are preyed on
by
the raptor family and I get to see them too.

I think of my garden in a titheing sense. Some for me and some
for
the insects, small vertibrates and birds. I won't have kangaroos
in
the garden though. they are not tolerated.

Lizards, skinks, raptors (!!!)................

You forgot the snakes :-)) Amazing critters but I wish they'd go
elsewhere - mind you, even they need water too these days.

You should see the "real" birds we can see here - by this I mean the
Wedge Tailed Eagles that soar overhead on the thermal currents. These
are truly magnificent - bigger then the American Eagle and always
being chased by magpies which look like tiny specks when they get up
close to the Eagles (our magpies are black and white but not the same
as the British ones).

Do you have some pictures of your garden to share with us ??

Unfortunately I don't and to be honest, no-one would want to see it in
it's current sad state. 6 years of drought and we are now making
decisions about what we are going to save if things keep going the way
they are. We've decided it must be the trees as we won't be able to
grow them again to the current height in our lifetime. The roses will
survive being as tough as old boots, as will my named irises but
anything else will have to just have to take its chances. We are now
in the process of building a shade house as I suspect that I may have
to take things out of the garden and put them in pots. I'm watering
the rose bed which has 50-70 roases in it and other plants and I'm
trying to keep a few veg going (corn, tomatoes, rhubarb, cucumber,
zucchini, chard, pak choi and a few salad greens and herbs) but beyond
that..........

Bloody depressing.

"JennyC" wrote
"Farm1" please@askifyouwannaknow wrote

Lizards, skinks, raptors (!!!)................

You forgot the snakes :-)) Amazing critters but I wish they'd go
elsewhere - mind you, even they need water too these days.

You should see the "real" birds we can see here - by this I mean the
Wedge Tailed Eagles that soar overhead on the thermal currents. These
are truly magnificent - bigger then the American Eagle and always
being chased by magpies which look like tiny specks when they get up
close to the Eagles (our magpies are black and white but not the same
as the British ones).

Do you have some pictures of your garden to share with us ??

Unfortunately I don't and to be honest, no-one would want to see it in
it's current sad state. 6 years of drought and we are now making
decisions about what we are going to save if things keep going the way
they are. We've decided it must be the trees as we won't be able to
grow them again to the current height in our lifetime. The roses will
survive being as tough as old boots, as will my named irises but
anything else will have to just have to take its chances. We are now
in the process of building a shade house as I suspect that I may have
to take things out of the garden and put them in pots. I'm watering
the rose bed which has 50-70 roases in it and other plants and I'm
trying to keep a few veg going (corn, tomatoes, rhubarb, cucumber,
zucchini, chard, pak choi and a few salad greens and herbs) but beyond
that..........

Bloody depressing.

How hot is it ??
When did you last have any rain?
jenny

"JennyC" wrote in message
"JennyC" wrote
"Farm1" please@askifyouwannaknow wrote

Do you have some pictures of your garden to share with us ??

Unfortunately I don't and to be honest, no-one would want to see
it in
it's current sad state. 6 years of drought and we are now making
decisions about what we are going to save if things keep going the
way
they are. We've decided it must be the trees as we won't be able
to
grow them again to the current height in our lifetime. The roses
will
survive being as tough as old boots, as will my named irises but
anything else will have to just have to take its chances. We are
now
in the process of building a shade house as I suspect that I may
have
to take things out of the garden and put them in pots. I'm
watering
the rose bed which has 50-70 roases in it and other plants and I'm
trying to keep a few veg going (corn, tomatoes, rhubarb, cucumber,
zucchini, chard, pak choi and a few salad greens and herbs) but
beyond
that..........

Bloody depressing.

How hot is it ??

Yesterday it was 39 degrees C and this is just the start of summer -
much worse to come yet. Today is a glorious 14 degrees C so I'm
taking advantage of that and gardening today.

When did you last have any rain?

15 November - 3 mms - total of 30 mms for the month of Nov, total of 2
and a half mms for the month of October. The worst thing is the hot
dry winds. I don't think the winds have dropsped for more than a
couple of days since spring (October) of 2005..

"JennyC" wrote
"Farm1" please@askifyouwannaknow wrote
How hot is it ??

Yesterday it was 39 degrees C and this is just the start of summer -
much worse to come yet. Today is a glorious 14 degrees C so I'm
taking advantage of that and gardening today.

Phew

When did you last have any rain?

15 November - 3 mms - total of 30 mms for the month of Nov, total of 2
and a half mms for the month of October. The worst thing is the hot
dry winds. I don't think the winds have dropsped for more than a
couple of days since spring (October) of 2005..

Maybe you should start to love cacti................:~)
Jenny

"JennyC" wrote in message
...
"Farm1" please@askifyouwannaknow wrote

Maybe you should start to love cacti................:~)

I do, but Himself doesn't :-(( He likes things like Camellias and
Rhodos.

BTW, if you ever fall on really droughty times, Camellias are very
good in droughts. Don't believe the twaddle about how they need
copious water - so long as they have a strong root system when the
drought strikes, they just keep keeping on. So long as you have the
old fashioned ones then they will survive well in a drought - probably
far better than most Australian natives which survive by dying (after
throwing out copious seed which will sprout when the next lot of good
rain arrives).