Tips for Creating a Closed Loop Garden
June 14, 2010 – 9:49 pm by MarinaHanes
In order to have an organic no-dig garden, it’s important that you create a self-sufficient vegetable garden. Although there are many variations on how to accomplish this, there are some things that you should include in your closed loop garden.
A closed loop garden is one that maintains a balance. For example, instead of polluting your young crops with pesticides, it’s best to avoid such products, because it’s only going to make the pests come back and return stronger than before. Therefore, the pests will come back faster than the predators. So natural elements such as rich soil enhanced with micro-organisms and worms is the first essential for a permaculture garden.
Another way to grow a successful closed loop garden is to have organically raised chickens running around. You can use their nitrogen rich manure as fertilizer, and the chickens will also eat up the pests if they’re free-range. All you have to worry about is providing the chickens with appropriate bedding (e.g. Lucerne hay and straw), water and supplemental vegetable peelings and scraps. As a result, you will have happy chickens, organic eggs and a garden few of damaging insects.
To further prevent the spread of pests and predators into your garden, you can redesign your yard. Keeping dragon flies, frogs, wasps, local birds, etc. out of your garden is easy when you have a water feature such as a pond or wet area with mud that is away from your vegetables. When it comes to predators, a water feature provides these animals with a daily sanctuary. While you might not wish to share your yard with these creatures, it’s essential to maintain a balance in the closed loop system.
Once you become accustomed to growing a garden in this environment, you will be more comfortable with it. Over time, you will also understand and benefit from the balance that you create.
