We did this on another garden forum that has since gone defunct and not only did it show us how we gardened as individuals but also changed some ideas about what worked and what didn't for others. All in all, I think some of us added practices we hadn't considered before and it changed practices for others.
Interested? If so, keep reading and we'll do a little poll based on a 1 to 5 scale (for simplicities sake). Be as honest as you dare and don't be afraid to ask questions or make comments if you have them. Because the scale has intentionally few categories, if you think you fall somewhere in between points, you're welcome to note that if you wish.
Note: The 1-5 categories have no significance other than as a selection device and are not intended to distinguish "good" from "bad" practices.
On the following scale, how do your overall gardening methods compare to what you believe others do?
1) If it's a commercial product, I'll use it. This includes items like mass spectrum insecticides, weed and feed fertilizers, granular grass fertilizers/treatments, etc.
2) I use a few of the things noted in 1) but on the whole, I use just what I have to use and not necessarily on a regular basis.
3) I'm pretty neutral about the whole organic / non organic thing and incorporate both styles into my gardening practice.
4) I try to be as organically correct as possible but on occasion, I've been known to use a little Miracle Gro on my potted plants, slow release nitrogen fertilizer on my grass, and/or maybe a few squirts of a pyrithrin product to get rid of tiny creepy crawlies on selected plants. On the other hand, I have no qualms about wiping out whole generations of fire ants.
5) I'd rather eat a big ol fat bug than use or do anything other than generally accepted organic practice.
A little survey of your gardening practices?
Just to start it off, I'm between 3 and 4. I use a minimal amount of granular slow release fertilizer on my grass (about 80% St. Augustine) three times a year and make sure it's not over applied so as to control any runoff into the environment. On the whole, the amount of pesticide I use in any given year is maybe two or three TBS total (pre-mixed indoor/outdoor pyrethrin in a purchased spray product). And although I see ants here and there, I can't remember the last time I treated for the little buggers because for all their bad press, they're still important to the ecosystem.
The only foreign product that intentionally goes into my flower beds is pine bark mulch and compost. If a plant can't survive on that then it comes out.
Tried going full on organic for a couple of years and it just didn't work for me at all.
I like your poll, I would say I fall between 4 and 5.
Somewhere around 3 & 4 for me also. I raise the caterpillars of butterflies, that is the purpose of my flower gardens. That means my plants get chewed and nibbled on a lot. This is tolerated in my garden because I have beautiful butterflies and the insects and lizards provide the natural pest control.
But if I see a paper wasp nest, sorry Charlie...they are history. Main reason is they carry small caterpillars to their nest to feed the young. I only use ant killers if they are a walkway of me or the dogs.
I use Miracle Grow Potting soil for young plants but usually fertilize any on lawn or plants. I do however spread my compost in my beds each year, at zero cost!
Sheila N Cental TX
I would say a 4 for me. I am very organo phosphate sensitive and cannot handle poisons very well. That being said, I never met a jar of Orthene I didn't like. I will go after red wasps too. Since I have so much manure, leaves, straw, and others because of the farm, so I rarely buy any extras.
I'm also about a 4 tending towards 5. I use some Osmocote on my potted plants, and I occasionally use a little something on wasps and fire ants.
3) and 4) with an eye to all others. Less is better, but, this area has very flexible needs, AND VERY strenuous impact reaction needs.
I'm a 5. I think. Nothing comes to mind that I've used that isn't 'organic'. I guess some people might question the use of 20% vinegar, but I think that's still in the organic category.
There may come a day, however, when I might succumb to something if I get too frustrated with my inability to keep up with the dreaded bindweed!
What Sheila_FW said...I'm around a 3 & 4...
I haven't sprayed anything except Bt in the last 3 years, and that only because I got an infestation of little green worms from Mars for the first time, ever, and I couldn't pick 'em all fast enough!
Most times I'll pick or squish whatever needs to go away. And, I wouldn't use Seven Dust anywhere on the planet...I think it's total overkill..I only use what is minimally necessary, and, if I have to, will work up from there...
The bees and wasps and I get along just fine...no ants that bother me...
I picked the frog up and put him in the flowerbed, so I could mow the lawn yesterday...that's my way of doing it...
1. Weed and feed on the St. Aug, cause I'm trying to bring it back from death...
2. Winterizer in a couple weeks on the grass...(see #1)
3. Turf builder on the grass (see #1)
Linda ^^_^^
5 and only 5!
Five!
I'm probably at a 4...but my "chemical splurge" comes in the form of Roundup to kill grass where a new bed will go, rather than killing bugs (moved here in April, have lots of work ahead). I learned in MG classes that Roundup breaks down into nitrogen in the soil, rather than staying around, so I don't sweat it too much.
I will kill fire ants if they're right where I need to work that day or in the dog's favorite "chill zone", but since a yard with fire ants is a yard without fleas and ticks, I try to live and let live. I don't mind wasps either, so unless they're right by the door, I leave them alone. We have tons of birds, lizards and beneficial bugs, so the balance is pretty well established regarding the Yardizens.
I don't fertilize the lawn, but use Medina Granules for all the plantings. Osmocote or Miracle Gro for houseplants, organic pesticide / fungicide for a rose or two, and that's about it. I'd probably do better if I were more disciplined about regular feeding and controls.
Maybe that puts me more between 3 & 4? :~)
TexasDollie- Monsanto loves everyone to believe that glyphosate "breaks down" in the soil but studies show otherwise. Try using plain white vinegar (it's much cheaper, too)and apply just as you would RoundUp. It will not harm the microorganisms in the soil and you can safely plant in about a week.
I'm fall somewhere between 3 and 4. I have a terrible time with fire ants. I they are in a bed or in the grass and I kneel down to tend to a bed or step into a bed to harvest something, then they will be all over my shoe and up my leg or up my arm in a matter of seconds. It has gotten so bad that I am starting to show the beginning signs of becoming allergic to their stings/bites. And so after a heavy rain we do put down the bait and wiping out a whole generation sounds good to me. My son is very allergic to poison ivy. Plain white vinegar just doesn't work on poison ivy patches. It comes right back. But goats love poison ivy, so that is helping a lot.
But I try very hard to stay on the organic side. Especially with the fertilizers. And we have our own fertilizer factories in the chicken coop, goat pens, and out in the pasture. Also the fellow who leases the grazing rights on one of our pastures just told me I could have a couple of his round bales from two years ago for my compost heap. So my veg patch should be fluffy and fertile this spring what with the cover crops tilled in and the extra boost of compost and all!
About a 3 to 4, I guess. I'm still learning!
I'm a 4. I try to be as organic as possible. If I fertilize, it's microlife, molasses and top dressing the lawn with compost. No weed and feed or chemical fertilizers for me. Although I do buy miracle grow potting mix. Too many stoies of two headed frogs and fish with no reproductive organs to risk atrizine (weed and feed) getting in the water supply.
This message was edited Sep 26, 2013 5:19 AM