Grow beautiful fruits, vegetables, and flowers with rich soil you produce yourself! Whether you have experience with compost or have always wanted to learn more and see how you can incorporate it into your lifestyle, this book provides everything you need to know. From understanding what compost is and how to make it to using and storing it, this guide carefully explains this sustainable, low-cost way to produce rich soil in your backyard. With detailed chapters on composting techniques, worm composting, and even a section on frequently asked questions, Organic Book of Compost is the only one you’ll ever need!
Organic farming, composed of organic fertilizers as an integral virtue, continues to remain a lucrative bet for the expanding agricultural industry, in line with growing organic food appeal to consumers as a healthy and ethical choice. Beyond ethics, organic fertilizers are gaining significant traction on account of numerous environmental benefits, such as enhanced soil structure and water conservation. Growing awareness among farmers about the nutritional benefits of plant based and animal based fertilizers and their role in promoting growth of earthworm and other microbiological activities vital for plant growth are fuelling adoption of organic fertilizers. Animal based organic fertilizers are garnering significant traction over plant based variants owing to their good aeration and water retention capabilities that enhance the soil fertility. As consumers today are inclined towards clean labels and seeking transparency in everything they consume, organic has emerged as a promising approach to address these concerns. In light of these beneficial aspects of organic approaches and after gauging the futuristic opportunistic value of organic fertilizers. Increasing health issues such as diabetes, obesity and digestive disorders are also one of the factors driving the growth of the organic food. The increased accessibility of organic food and beverages in retail outlets make it more convenient for consumers to purchase these products. Asia-Pacific is also expected to rapidly increase in CAGR, owing to the changing lifestyles and increase in consumer disposable income. Organic food products and shifting consumer preference towards organic food are among the major factors expected to boost demand for organic food products in India. Growing awareness among the consumers regarding the benefits of organic fertilizers over chemical fertilizers, and increasing awareness among farmers and cultivators towards eco-friendly fertilizers. The escalating demand for organic food products is likely to create a dire need for large scale development of organic fertilizers in the forthcoming years, which in turn will create a wide field of opportunities for stakeholders. Sensing the growing demand for organic fertilizers, market goliaths have shifted their focus on expanding their organic fertilizer produce to capitalize on the growing unmet demand from consumers. The book cover various aspects related to different organic farming and production of organic compost with their agriculture process and also provides contact details of machinery suppliers with equipment photographs and plant layout. A total guide to manufacturing and entrepreneurial success in one of today’s organic farming and compost industry. This book is one-stop guide to one of the fastest growing sectors of the organic farming and compost industry, where opportunities abound for manufacturers, retailers, and entrepreneurs. This is the only complete handbook on the commercial production of organic farming and compost. It serves up a feast of how-to information, from concept to purchasing equipment
Compelling portraits of organic farmers bring to life facts and figures in an extensive overview of the phenomenal growth in recent years of organic production and consumption.
The organic gardening movement has been long established among vegetable growers. With the mainstreaming of ideas about environmental and ecological preservation, the organic movement has come to ornamental gardening. And one of the primary spokespeople for that movement is Sasquatch’s longtime author Ann Lovejoy. This new book is a complete handbook for ornamental gardening follows the principles and techniques of organic and sustainable gardening. Gardening naturally does mean going without products like Roundup, Weed and Feed, and chemical fertilizers. It also means that gardeners may opt for a selection of native plants that are compatible with local climate and soils. Some of the paradigm shift has to do with getting over the notion that one’s garden needs to be as spotless and tidy as something on a magazine cover. Gardening is all about process, and the methods that Ann Lovejoy explains in this book emphasize good soil preparation, composting, drainage, mulching, and right plant selection. This comprehensive book covers the steps from landscaping and designs to soil preparation to planting beds. She covers all of the elements of the garden: ground covers, lawns, shrubs, bulbs, trees – all with an eye to building a sustainable garden that grows without chemical fertilizers and pest control. You can try to make an Arizona backyard look like a Connecticut estate, but it’s going to take a lot of work, constant maintenance, more water than all the other gardens on your block, and a fat checkbook. There’s a simpler, more gratifying way to garden that is also good for people, pets, and wildlife. This practical book tells gardeners how to achieve that.
“A breakthrough book. No comprehensive horticultural library should be without it.” —American Gardener When we use chemical fertilizers, we injure the microbial life that sustains plants, and then become increasingly dependent on an arsenal of toxic substances. Teaming with Microbes offers an alternative to this vicious circle, and details how to garden in a way that strengthens, rather than destroys, the soil food web. You’ll discover that healthy soil is teeming with life—not just earthworms and insects, but a staggering multitude of bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms. This must-have guide is for everyone, from those devoted to organic gardening techniques to weekend gardeners who simply want to grow healthy plants without resorting to chemicals.
Growing awareness of the importance of soil health means that microbes are on the minds of even the most casual gardeners. After all, anyone who has ever attempted to plant a thriving patch of flowers or vegetables knows that what you grow is only as good as the soil you grow it in. It is possible to create and maintain rich, dark, crumbly soil that’s teeming with life, using very few inputs and a no-till, no-fertilizer approach. Certified permaculture designer and lifelong gardener Diane Miessler presents the science of soil health in an engaging, entertaining voice geared for the backyard grower. She shares the techniques she has used — including cover crops, constant mulching, and a simple-but-supercharged recipe for compost tea — to transform her own landscape from a roadside dump for broken asphalt to a garden that stops traffic, starting from the ground up.
Rodale's Ultimate Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening has been the go-to resource for gardeners for more than 50 years, and the best tool novices can buy to start applying organic methods to their fruit and vegetable crops, herbs, trees and shrubs, perennials, annuals, and lawns. This thoroughly revised and updated version highlights new organic pest controls, new fertilizer products, improved gardening techniques, the latest organic soil practices, and new trends in garden design. In this indispensable work you will find: • Comprehensive coverage for the entire garden and landscape along with related entries such as Community Gardening, Edible Landscaping, Horticultural Therapy, Stonescaping, and more • The most in-depth information from the trusted Rodale Organic Gardening brand • A completely new section on earth-friendly techniques for gardening in a changing climate, covering wise water management, creating backyard habitats, managing invasive plants and insects, reducing energy use and recycling, and understanding biotechnology • Entries all written by American gardeners for American gardeners, with answers for all the challenges presented by various conditions, from the humid Deep South and the mild maritime coasts to the cold far North and the dry Southwest Rodale's Ultimate Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening has everything you need to create gorgeous, non-toxic gardens in any part of the country.
Explains what composting is and how it works, provides instructions for making and using compost, and offers ecologically sound solutions to waste disposal problems
Following the successful first edition, this revised and greatly expanded edition Tomato Diseases: Identification, Biology and Control is the definitive work on the diseases and disorders of the tomato. The tomato is the world's most widely produced vegetable. The number of diseases affecting the tomato is enormous: hundreds of bio-aggressors, more
