It has been said that the externalized cost of chemical agriculture is being paid in the form of resource deletions, contaminated water, co2 emissions and greenhouse gases, soil depletion, and loss of species. The human cost is equally large. Loss of family-run farms and agriculture, the extermination of small towns and local economies, the sickness and cost caused by unregulated chemical and pesticide use, the loss of nutritional value in our food, and the hunger, and death of poor countries who produce for export instead of feeding it’s own people.

With this knowledge, it’s no wonder people are looking for alternate forms of farming. Organic is the next logical step. From the soil to the table there are organic options for every level of gardener. This article will discuss the virtues and options in organic fertilizers.

For the organic purist, organic fertilizer is something that comes from the surrounding land (manure from your own livestock or “waste” from your own garden). The fertilizer is recycled, often composted. Organic purists focus on soil health and use rotations, fallows, green manures and compost to maintain fertility.

For the not so purist, resources used in organic fertilizer must be sustainably used, and come from natural resources.

Whatever your reason for choosing to go organic, it is important to know that there are organizations which have strict international guidelines to deem an item ‘organic’. This includes fertilizers and food.This Organic Guarantee System (OGS) brings together the organic world through common standards, verification, and market identity. These organizations are very important in setting standards for a guaranteed organic product.

Basic principals

Organic foods and other products are made from organically produced ingredients that are processed primarily by biological, mechanical, and physical means.Natural, renewable, biological and regenerative resources are the basis of organic production and processing systems. Organic matter is recycled to maintain the soil fertility of organic agriculture. Availability of nutrients in the soil is primarily dependent of its own soil organisms. Cultural and local practices manage the problems of pests, weeds and disease. As well, livestock is managed with organically produced feed, and kept in living conditions conducive to natural behavior, and lack of strain.

This Organic Guarantee System (OGS) lists these as the acceptable natural organic fertilizer choices.

Plant and Animal Sources:

Farmyard manure, slurry and urine
Guano
blood meal, meat meal, bone, bone meal
hoof and horn meal, feather meal, fish and fish products, wool, fur, hair, dairy products
biodegradable processing by-products, plant or animal origin, e.g. by-products of food, feed, oilseed, brewery, distillery or textile processing.
Crop and vegetable residues, mulch, green manure, straw
wood, bark, sawdust, wood shavings, wood ash, wood charcoal
seaweed and seaweed products
peat (prohibited for soil conditioning) (Excluding synthetic additives; permitted for inclusion in potting mixes.)
Plant preparations and extracts

Most countries follow these strict guidelines, some with their own discrepancies. For instance Canadian standards are more stringent than some other countries. Raw manure and human sludge are not permitted on their organic fertilizer list.

Mineral Origin organic fertilizers

basic slag
calcareous and magnesium amendments
limestone, gypsum, marl, chalk, sugar beet lime, calcium chloride
magnesium rock, kieserite and Epsom salt (magnesium sulfate)
mineral potassium (e.g. sulfate of potash, muriate of potash, kainite, sylvanite, patent kali) (Shall only be obtained by physical procedures but not enriched by chemical processes)
natural phosphates
pulverized rock, stone meal
clay (e.g. bentonite, perlite, vermiculite, zeolite)
sodium chloride
trace elements
sulfur

Microbiological organic fertilizers

Biodegradable processing by-products of microbial origin. For example – by-products of brewery or distillery processing.

Microbiological preparations based on naturally occurring organisms

Such coastal towns and villages are dotted on the North and South coast of Cornwall. Full of character and Cornish charm these coastal towns attract many visitors each year. On exploration of Cornwall you will notice a variety of distinctive Cornish place names. Many are named after saints, such as St Agnes and St Ives which refer to the early Celtic Christian missionaries who brought Christianity to Cornwall. Others have common prefixes such as ‘Tre’ (house, farm or village), ‘Chy’ (dwelling) and ‘Pen’ (headland).

Below are just a few of some of Cornwall’s most picturesque coastal towns worth visiting:

Fowey

Fowey is situated at the estuary of the River Fowey and has a unique and unspoilt charm, with medieval and Tudor cottages, cobbled walkways, beautiful luxury Cornwall hotels, narrow streets and a busy boating scene. It is rich in nautical history. It can be traced back to the Middle Ages where it acted as an important port for warship and galleons. It also played an important role on the exportation of China Clay during the 18th Century.

Fowey has strong connections with the famous author, Dame Daphne Du Maurier, whereby she spent most of her life. Each May there is festival in the town which celebrates her life and her work.

Nearby beaches include Readymoney Cove, a sheltered cove situated close to the mouth of the River Fowey, Par Sands a large beach which is located to the West of Fowey and Lantic Bay, a quiet cove which lies East of Polruan.

St Ives

St Ives is one of the most stunning towns in Cornwall, if not the South West. The whole peninsula offers a haven for walkers, photographers, artists and writers giving inspiration thorough beautiful scenery and unspoilt beauty. It has enticed artists such as Barbara Hepworth and Ben Nicholson and is home to the Tate Gallery which opened its doors in 1993.

St Ives was named after the saint Ia or Hya, an Irish princess who introduced Christianity to the area in the 5th Century. The town boasts an array of sea-front restaurants, galleries, small Cornwall hotels, guesthouses and specialist stores which are all located within quaint, narrow cobbled streets. Porthminster Beach and Porthmeor Beach are just a short walk away from the town. Porthmear is a surfing beach whereas Porthminster offers calmer shores and is perfect for swimming – both are great for families.

Padstow

Padstow is located on the north coast of Cornwall and is most famously known for the presence of the chef Rick Stein where he has a number of establishments, including a seafood restaurant, deli and fish and chip takeaway.

For a bit of fun try the Camel Trail which was a former tram line and now a cycle route which runs through the towns Bodmin, Wadebridge and Padstow. Beaches near Padstow include Trevone Bay, a beach perfect for rock pool exploring and family picnics and Rock which is situated opposite Padstow. Either drive round to Rock or take the ferry.

I hear the latest ruse it to back-pack your way to Albania, to find semi-deserted beaches with beautiful fine sand and drink cocktails in the sunset.

Well fortunately with Cornwall you don’t have to trek quite so far to find such idyllic harmony on the coast; there’s also the option of which coast, wind depending, you chose to bathe on, plus the food is markedly more appealing.

Many holiday makers are familiar with north coast towns of Newquay and Bude, maybe even the south coast towns of Fowey and Polperro, so well captured by Eric Haines; but how familiar are they with the far south west of Cornwall, that tucked away corner which no one seems to realise until till they’ve passed Truro, just how far it is off the beaten track; it’s actually like doing a west turn off the beaten track.

There’s more secluded beaches in Penwith (official name for the far west), than I should think anywhere else in the country, and the back drop to some of these beaches, well, is pure paradise, unfortunately they probably don’t have a cocktail bar located on them (remember we’re miles from Newquay), saying that though, one cove does have a rather good hut selling pasties, ice cream and cakes.

Before the internet came along most of these beaches were even more secluded, but since the dawn of the WWW someone did a lot of ground work and decided to advertise all the far west’s beaches and give very good directions on how to get to them. This is admirable and good publicity for an area which needs it, but if you want a hermetic idyll, don’t worry there’s still plenty, even with excellent directions, that are for the more agile and thus stay quiet.

But Cornwall’s not only about the coast, be it that its everywhere, it also has a pretty fine cuisine and no self respecting restaurateur would use produce from out of the county, in fact most source their produce from within a three mile radius – and it’s not just fish, even though once you’ve tried a pan fried John Dory you’ll never be the same again, there’s vegetables fresher than your own allotment and beef you spotted from your car windows earlier in the day.

So with predictions of a dry, or was that drier, summer (heard today on ‘World at One’) and with everyone seemingly falling in love with an English holiday again, will the quiet Cornish lanes get the hum of the city, will there be parties on the miles of golden sand, or secret sandy coves, Cornwall will be pleased either way, it enjoys the visitors, only remember it’s not only open in the summer.

With its rising popularity, the organic gardening tips are finding a huge market and almost every other big publishing house is banking upon to opportunity by coming up with guides to help the ever-eager gardeners. Organic gardening is a very relaxing as well as involving hobby. Just with little help, anyone can produce tasty fruits, vegetables and herbs. People can relish them with 100% assurance they are the best that nature can produce in a pesticide, chemical and herbicide free manner.

Garden pests are an inevitable reality. Organic gardening doesn’t mean that they will no longer fancy your gardens. Instead, what will happen is that you will be countering them in the same natural manner like old time farmers used to, before the invention of herbicides and pesticides.

We are outlining here a few organic gardening tips that will be priceless in your endeavor of cultivating vegetables, herbs and fruits that are full of taste, health and economic value. Moreover, you will sleep well with assurance that your children are no longer consuming chemically infected food.

Aphids, as every gardener would know, can cause a lot of damage to the garden. A very good preventive measure one can take is to plant marigolds close to the vegetable garden. This will keep aphids at bay. In case your garden is already doomed with an aphid attack, you can spray diluted soap water followed by clear water on your plants to get rid of them, organically.

Another organic gardening tip you can use is to produce your own compost naturally at home. We all are aware that the market compost contains many harmful chemicals. As an alternative, you can utilize your kitchen and garden waste to produce organic compost at home. It will normally consist of vegetables, coffee grounds, potatoes, dead weeds, rose or other plants pruning, egg shells, carrots etc. that have landed up in the trash bin. Compost enriches the soil by providing good texture, ventilation and structure. Various ingredients in organic compost help to break it down quickly. Overall, it is an excellent way to catalyze the root development process.

Before starting on with organic gardening, you must do good research and analysis to find out the best plants suited for your garden. Following is another organic gardening tip that will help you get rid of weeds quickly and make your soil dryness-free. Pine needles, old newspapers and grass clippings when mixed together, make effective mulch that is potent enough to keep the soil moist and your garden weed-free. Organic Gardening is the new age mantra to attain most optimum levels of chemical free and environment friendly gardening produce, and these organic gardening tips will make that goal much easier to achieve!

If you want to be the “cool dude” or dudette, then you will be wise to sign up for some lessons. You will also learn how to put your wetsuit on the right way, avoiding the first cardinal sin of surfing!

Taking surf lessons in Cornwall with one of the renowned surf schools such as Waves Surf School (see bottom of this article for links) will get you standing up and riding a wave within your first two hour lesson. And yes, that’s true for everyone, for all ages and abilities, from Gran to Uncle Albert. What can you expect from a surf lesson? Well firstly, your instructor will probably be good looking, which some might say is the best perk of all! Seriously though, here are the perks:

* Firstly, you’ll get the best wetsuit around, in a size that fits, and one that will keep you warm.

* Equipment: your surfboard will be big enough to keep you safe, but soft enough to make sure that you don’t get hurt.

* You’ll have the best two hours of your holiday, and are sure to go home with the surfing bug!

* You’ll be standing and riding a wave within two hours. Some beginners take to it like a duck to water and, with the right instruction, open up their lives to a whole new hobbie.

Surfing can be fun for all the family and is suitable for all ages and abilities, especially if you have surf lessons where you will be provided with a big, soft board. Waves Surf School of Cornwall say that their youngest learner has been six, with their eldest being a 65 year old Grandad.

The one criteria of going out into the seas to learn to surf, is being able to swim. It is recommended that you can swim 50m before taking surf lessons. Remember, surfing is an excellent form of exercise and is great for keeping fit. You don’t see many overweight surfers paddling out to sea on their surfboards!

Cornwall is the perfect place to learn to surf, with gentle waves for all the family. There is a whole coastline to be explored, with the surf beaches found mainly on the north coast from Porthcothan to Harlyn, and Padstow on the doorstep and Newquay just around the corner. And for those in the family that don’t want to surf, there’s plenty of other things to do in Cornwall, from exploring the golden beaches, to eating in many of the fine restaurants.

This English county, which is located on the far south west tip of England, is ideal for a self-catering holiday, as it has a fantastic selection of properties to rent for the duration of your holiday.

Not surprisingly, Cornwall is rich in history and there are numerous towns and villages to explore during your vacation.

Truro is the only city in Cornwall and is a good place to start your holiday. Not only is there is so much to see and do here, but also Truro is a good base from which to reach other tourist attractions in the county. Truro itself has an amazing cathedral, fantastic shopping opportunities, interesting architecture, the Royal Cornwall Museum, as well as good entertainment, sports facilities and much more! Why not take a wander around this busy city and enjoy what it has to offer.

The Royal Cornwall Museum is worth a visit, as it houses many interesting exhibits, and while you’re in the city, head along to Truro Cathedral, too. If you have the time, you can also take advantage of the city’s other attractions and facilities, including the Hall for Cornwall (theatre) and its cinema, pubs, restaurants and nightclubs. And if you want to find a spot to unwind, you can take a break in either one of the two parks in the city.

If you’ve got children in tow, then Cornwall has no shortage of attractions and activities to keep the kids happy. For example, you can take the youngsters to Cornwall’s Crealy Great Adventure Park or DairyLand Farm World – or why not spend a day at Newquay Zoo? If the sun’s shining, you will no doubt want to head straight to the beach with the children.

You will be spoilt for choice by the number of beaches in this county. In fact, Cornwall boasts 697km of coastline and has numerous beaches to choose from – whether you want to do spot of surfing or simply to sunbathe.

Newquay has some lovely beaches, such as Fistral Beach, Towan Beach, Great Western Beach and Tolcarne Beach, among others. Bude’s beaches (Summerleaze, Crooklets etc) are also worth checking out. There are so many other beaches along Cornwall’s lengthy coastline, some of which you will no doubt want to explore during your holiday.

Other attractions which you might like to visit during your Cornish vacation include The Eden Project, Land’s End, National Maritime Museum Cornwall, World Of Model Railways, Blue Reef Aquarium, National Seal Sanctuary, Trevarno Gardens, St. Michael’s Mount, Tate St Ives, Poldark Mine, Bodmin & Wenford Railway and Geevor Tin Mine – plus more!

To get the most out of your holiday in Cornwall, you will probably want to tour the county. There are many different ways in which you can travel around. You can walk, hire a bicycle or car or take a cruise and enjoy the sights. You can even see Cornwall from the air by taking a helicopter trip from Cornwall to the Isles of Scilly!

Cornwall is also an ideal destination if you’re planning a sporting holiday, too. Whether you’re into golf, fishing, sailing or surfing (Cornwall is a surfer’s paradise), you will also have a fantastic holiday here.

Cornwall has so much to offer its visitors. Whether you’re looking for a relaxing break, a sporting holiday or a fun-filled family vacation, Cornwall has it all.

Organic gardening is a chemical-free and earth-friendly method of gardening. Organic gardening and conventional gardening differ on how they control pests and nourish the soil. Conventional gardening uses chemical pesticides and chemical fertilizers while organic gardens use organic means of enriching the soil and organic weed killers and fertilizers.

Organic gardens follow natural practices that include:

Organic Soil: Quality soil is the main component of creating a successful garden. By providing nourishing natural substances to the soil, you will be well on your way to growing healthy plants and vegetables. For an organic garden, it is essential to add natural additives such as organic compost, manure, chopped leaves, and mulches. Before adding natural compounds, you should do a soil test to determine whether the soil has any mineral deficiencies. To improve the quality of the soil, you can add a number of natural products that are rich in nutrients. Natural additives can include organic compost, fish emulsion, and blood meal. If you do not have the time to make your own natural soil feed, there are many natural products available for purchase. Such products that are rich in nutrients include seaweed meal, straw mulch, and worm casts. Making worm compost is a great way to compost organic waste

Organic Pest Control: Every garden will attract pests that will eat some of the plants and vegetables. Conventional gardens use pesticides to control pests. These pesticides contain chemicals that are harmful to the environment, humans, and animals. Attracting or buying bugs that will eat pests such as aphids will help reduce their numbers. Bugs that kill aphids include damsel bugs, lady bugs, and lacewings, and more. There are also organic pest control products on the market. Homemade tomato leaf and garlic sprays will also repel aphids.

Diversifying your garden will help reduce pests. Planting strong smelling herbs will repel plant eating bugs. Birds and insects that feed on aphids will also be attracted to a diverse garden and will reduce pests that harm your plants. To control weeds, there are number of organic weed control products on the market. Removing weeds daily is the best way to control weed infestation.

Crop Rotation: To maintain rich and healthy soil, it is recommended that you rotate your crops. Crop Rotation involves planting crops so that plants and vegetables are not grown in the same spot each year. This will ensure that the soil does not lose its nutrients. It will also reduce the risk of disease. The nutrients left behind from one set of plants can be used by another type of plant the next year. The best way to rotate your crops is to draw a map of the garden that outlines where each plant is located. You can then refer to it the following year to make sure you do not plant the same type of plant in the same location. Crop rotation and growing diverse plants will help deter pests.

The benefit of organically enriching your soil, using organic pest control, and rotating your crops ensures a healthy garden. This method will also attract bees which will result in pollination of the plants.

The biggest difference between organic gardening and conventional gardening is that organic gardens do not use chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Successful organic gardening can be achieved by understanding how to create organically productive soil that is rich and fertile, the type of crops to plant that includes the appropriate plants for the particular climate and season, and implementing organic maintenance practices.

Because of the illnesses and diseases such as cancer that are now being linked to chemicals in fertilizers and pesticides, more people are turning to organic gardening. Developing an organic garden may seem like a bit of hard work, but the reward of creating a healthy garden will be very gratifying.