Organic Farming Methods

Farming methods that do not make use of chemicals, synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, genetic engineering and growth regulators are known as organic farming methods. The fact that organic farming is being pushed more by various environment protection agencies is because the methods used for cultivation helps to sustain the environment without wreaking more damage. Also, organic farming methods make best use of all the natural resources available.

There are different organic farming methods that can be used effectively to increase the productivity of the crops and still not make use of chemicals and synthetic materials. Some of the different organic farming methods are as follows:

The main aspect of organic farming is polyculture. Here the farmer cultivates a variety of crops on one single tract of land to ensure that the soil is not stripped off its nutrients. In addition, polyculture also helps to attract a variety of microbes to the soil, ensuring the soil always is rich in nutrients.

Organic farmers do not use synthetic fertilizers to increase the fertility of the soil. Instead they opt for green manure like compost. Some organic farmers first grow a crop of leafy plants, and then bury them in the soil just prior to the main crop is sown. These leafy plants add nutrients and organic matter to the soil which responsible for keeping the main crop to grow well and healthy.

An important aspect of farming is controlling pests. Organic farmers do not use pesticides or chemicals to get rid of pests. Instead they encourage beneficial insects, or grow other plants that repel pests. Also, many organic farmers plant disease resistant plants. If pests do invade the plants, then biological pesticides like neem or essential oils are used to get rid of them.

Organic farming is all about sustainable farming so that the ecosystem is well balanced and maintained. This means that the farmer uses everything to preserve the soil nutrients and ensuring that the soil can nourish the plants for prolonged periods of time.

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