Organic Gardening- Not Just For Food

The case for organics is bound to the desire to produce delicious health food that sustains us and the earth it is grown in. The organic garden is a means to the end of producing organic food.

Organic certification is almost entirely thought of in terms of food production. However, the majority of garden area in our cities is dedicated to ornamentals. We seem less concerned about keeping our ornamentals organic. Those into organics probably see ornamentals as waste of space that could be occupied by productive food crops and the more conventional ornamental gardener sees little benefit in organics beyond the veggie patch.

Yet I believe the organic ornamental garden is the next stage in the organic movement. That is an organic garden that is produced primarily to be a thing of beauty in its own right. I would like a merging as the organic gardener moves beyond the utilitarian to consider plants for the aesthetic and environmental benefits and the conventional gardener considering how the principles of organics can improve their gardening success.

After all, Dostoyevsky's Prince Myshkin might be right “Beauty will save the world”. But that beauty will not be the artificial insipid beauty propped up by petrochemicals to defy the natural world.

It will be a beauty that springs out of the soil, that responds to place. It is the beauty of the lawn that goes golden in the summer as opposed to pumped up artificial lush turf. Our Diggers gardens at Heronswood and St Erth are the only certified organic, publicly open ornamental gardens in Australia.

Principles we use in ornamental organics

1. Holistic approach

• See the garden as an ecosystem.
• Avoid looking at problems in isolation. For example, a white fly epidemic may actually be about getting more airflow in a garden bed. Pruning is interconnected with pest management.

2. It is all about the soil

Soil health is paramount:

• At Heronswood we apply nutrient as composted mulch
• We routinely test our soils nutrient levels and apply fertilisers only if needed

3. Right plant, right place

We don't fight our climate, selecting plants from similar ecosystems. At Heronswood we feature many plants from the Canary Islands which share our Mediterranean climate: Echiums, Aeoniums, the Giant Tree Euphorbias and thistles.

4. Closing the loop

• We recycle all our green waste compost it and return it to the garden
• In the ornamental garden, an abundant fruit crop is not the aim. There is little need for high nitrogen input
• By limiting fertiliser application we avoid nutrients leaving our site and polluting Port Phillip Bay

5. Water management

• We zone the garden according to water needs. Over irrigating can lead to weak, sappy growth. We water according to plant observation not set routine
• Turf areas are largely unirrigated. We use hardy summer-active Kikuyu

6. With a little help from our friends: the beneficials

• We are the lazy gardeners; we encourage birds and insects to do our pest control
• We have a wildflower meadow in our valley. Our garden beds are filled with insect attracting plants: Alyssum, Cosmos, Salvia and Agastache.
• Heronswood's ducks are on snail patrol
• A dedicated band of hens turn the compost in the parterre

7. Plant hygiene and pruning

• We play close attention to the timing and technique of pruning with sympathy to the growth pattern of the plant

8. Weed management rather than eradication

• Hand weeding means no unsightly dying weeds in high maintenance areas
• We tolerate weeds at the periphery, using planting to eventually smother them

Oh, la, la! A pesticide free university 

Last summer I had a serendipitous meeting at Heronswood with Ciscoe Morris, a master gardener and organics advocate from Seattle.