Features

• Organic gardening means growing without any synthetic fertilizers, soils, amendments or pesticides. Instead, gardeners use plant- and animal-based soils, fertilizers and pesticides.
  
  

Considerations

• Organic soil must contain natural ingredients only, without any artificial amendments. Organic gardeners should start with natural soil and amend it with rich organic compost made of kitchen and yard scraps.
  
  

Benefits

• Vegetables require deep, nutritious soil that gives them a good supply of vitamins and minerals. Organic soil and compost provide all 16 vitamins and minerals, and they also make soil loose, porous and quick to drain.
  
  

Fun Fact

• According to Washington State University, organic compost and fertilizer maintain rich, healthy soil but do not act directly on a plant's roots. This means that organic fertilizer is slow acting, and is only effective on plants that survive for many years. Organic gardening helps maintain long-term soil nutrition, and does not deplete soil as quickly as synthetic gardening.