The word "organic" is tossed around these days more than a basketball that's been set on fire. A lot of people confuse the word "organic" with the word "natural". There are some differences. A natural plant is a plant that grows where it wants to, no matter when any human might think. An organic plant is a plant that has been grown by humans in an area chosen by humans – but does not use man-made products to grow or maintain it.

Holistic Viewpoint

Instead of just looking at an organic garden as the place to grow a desired organic plant, organic gardening tries to consider the impact that organic plant is going to make on the local (and even global) environment. About a hundred years ago, all gardeners were concerned was growing what they wanted on their properties because they owned that property and everyone else be damned.

Now an organic gardener asks himself or herself some questions before planting. How many resources will it take to grow? Are those resources sustainable? Will this organic plant wind up in the food chain? Is this organic plant a domesticated species, native species or introduced species? Will this organic plant play nice with other plants? Will this organic plant kill a native animal, bird or reptile species?

An organic gardener realized that his or her patch is connected to all of the other garden patches in the area. What you do in your patch can have a great affect on other patches. For example, commercial synthesized fertilizers and pesticides wash away with water when they are flooded or over watered. This stuff winds up in the public drinking water supply.

Function Before Fashion

Growing an organic plant might not result in as pretty a garden, but it will result in a garden using less resources to grow and maintain. For example, many people love grass lawns. They have become a kind of status symbol. However, green lawns are purely ornamental and take up vast amounts of labor, water and money.

An organic lawn would be left alone with no weed killer added and dandelions left to proliferate. When mowed due to legal requirements, the clippings would be left on the lawn as natural compost. No extra water would be spent on maintaining the lawn – if it shrivels in the summer, too bad. The water and resources could be put to better use growing native plants, trees, fruits and herbs that do much better in the soil than grass.