I received an email in mid-May from a young woman in North Carolina who had just ordered and received my book on Organic Gardening. She started her first garden this year and wants it to be organic.
She wrote: “—my Mom keeps telling me it will be eaten up with critters, since I want it to be organic. So I look forward to learning a lot from your book, and proving her wrong.”
I’ve thought about her everyday since and all the other folks who have written to me over the years with basically the same desire of looking forward to proving the skeptics of organic gardening in their life wrong.
Can She (They) Prove the Skeptics in Her (Their) Lives Wrong?
Indeed, by following the book‘s advice you can prove all the skeptics wrong.
I learned the 3 simple keys on my own through experience. But they’re not new. These principles were known thousands of years ago. The knowledge of them began to be suppressed when chemical companies came on the scene about 135 or so years ago.
In order to sell the chemicals, the companies needed reasons for people to buy them. Thus, they came up with plenty of lies that are now accepted as truth by most. One lie being that you can’t have crops organically without them being eaten up by pests.
It’s Not a Question of IF You Can Prove Them Wrong, It’s a Question of WHEN.
Instant gratification is promoted in every aspect of life in our society with total disregard for the fact that most things of greatness take time to accomplish.
So how long will it take YOU to prove the skeptics wrong??
There’s no way I can tell you because I don’t know your exact situation.
What It Will Depend On
A lot will depend on how good or bad your garden soil is right now.
Much will depend on why you garden and how much you believe in what you’re doing and how well you can withstand peer pressure.
My experience has been that it’s next to impossible to explain how well you’re doing (or will be doing) to a skeptic who sees one bug hole. That’ll usually set them off on lecture about how what you’re doing isn’t working.
The first year we gardened at this property (18 years ago), my snap beans (the first 3 plantings) were eaten up with bugs. I had a visitor who immediately pointed it out to me (like I hadn’t noticed) and announced that I would have to spray to get rid of them. I just ignored what they said, but I still didn’t like it. They had no idea what they were even talking about, but that doesn’t usually stop folks like that.
For the past 17 years, I’ve had few if any bugs on my snap beans. I wish I could say the same for squash bugs and potato beetles — although their numbers have greatly decreased over the years. Overall I don’t have that much problem with pests. BUT, I’m always checking so I can stay on top of things.
Want to Strengthen Your Resolve? Afraid you Might Fail or be Tempted to Give Up?
Over the years I’ve written numerous posts to help you, because I understand what you’re going through. I want you know you CAN succeed and that you’re not alone.
I’ve chosen a dozen posts out of the 600 posts I’ve written to help over the years and listed them below. I hope you will read them and find strength and encouragement that you need to continue your quest for a great organic garden.
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Suggested Reading:
Your Garden – Are You Breaking Rocks or Building a Cathedral?
Gardening – Don’t Allow Fear of Failure to Keep You from Success
Organic Pest control – Disease Management – Working on the Cause rather than the Symptom.
Garden Diversity can equal better Organic Pest & Disease Control
Success in your Garden is Proportionate to the Health of Your Soil
Playing with the hand you’ve been dealt – even in the Garden
Yes, patience is key! Every year my garden gets better, healthier, and more productive, with fewer and fewer pests and weeds. Over the years my soil has improved and become more fertile. If I had taken the “easy” or “quick” way out and used chemicals, my soil would be getting sicker each year, the bugs and weeds would become more resistant, and my produce be no better than what I could buy in the store. Why work so hard at a garden if you’re not going to enjoy wonderful, tasty, chemical-free fruits and vegetables? Many years and many gardens have made me a believer.
Oh, Wow! Thank you so much, Theresa! I had read through some of your posts before I ordered your book, but these links are just what I was searching for! They, along with the book, are going to be so helpful! This first garden of ours is going to be a learning experience, for sure, as we’re just getting the feel for gardening. But next year, I am going to put all of your steps in place from the beginning! Thank you again for all of your help! I really appreciate it!
Jenae
Thank you Theresa for encouraging us once again. I have read your book and others you have suggested and they have changed my life. I also watched a video recently on “Back To Eden Gardening” that made a point I found very logical and important. They talked about our tendency to only want produce without blemish and “perfect” but pointed out the reason the bugs won’t eat it is that it is POISON! The bugs are smart enough to leave it alone. So it looks good and we eat it poisoning ourselves. That which is pleasing to the eye is not always good for us and those things that seem imperfect are often of great value. A lesson for life.
I have no doubt that this reader will be 100% successful using your methods, Theresa. When we started, we had many in our family who looked down on organic methods – mainly because the methods were different from that which they solidified in their minds as the right way. Some were the children and grandchildren of those who had made a living in conventional farming and others were backyard gardeners who were confident in gardening conventionally.
Although we more than proved each one of the naysayers wrong, none of them acknowledged our success nor did any of them change their ways. To this day, many years later, they are still trying to “teach” us how to garden the way they think is right. Now, I just smile, try to think the best of them, and ignore it. Some folks are just blinded by pride. And if they ever ask, I would be happy to share my November tomatoes with them.
Theresa,
You are lovely in many ways. Your intelligence goes beyond the issue at hand. Your persistence goes beyond success. Your success goes beyond your will. You have been able to use fate in positive ways. Faith seems to be your firm foundation though. The faith to acquire what is needed for the situation at hand, in this case it is growing produce with the earth naturally. I have always thoroughly enjoyed reading your posts. They are life inspiring, educational, to the point, and help us to grow food naturally.
I miss a little something, if you don’t post when I am in need of some education.
Keep me coming back for more.
PS my garden is doing the best this year since I started. Much of it due to reading your posts.
Thanks
Steve