Backyard Gardening
What I Learned about Organic Vegetable Gardening from WWOOF, Part I
By Carol Lugg
After experiencing a few days of warmth and sunshine, with warmer weather right around the corner, gardeners begin planning their summer gardens. Early spring brings new ideas of novel seed varieties you want to plant and interesting techniques for your garden, or you may start working toward implementing organic gardening practices into your garden routines. Organic gardening uses plant nutrients from natural sources for fertilizing and pest management. Organic gardeners are committed to not using artificial chemicals or fertilizers to control garden diseases, weeds, and insects.
Ideas of summer vacations may also sprout as you consider new places to explore.
If you are new to organic practices, you should explore a little-known opportunity to travel the world and learn from fellow gardeners. Starting in 1971, a non-profit movement called Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF) may be worth exploring. WWOOF connects visitors (or WWOOFers) with organic farmers while creating a community of individuals prioritizing ecological farming practices. Hosts worldwide register their farms and post the details of the experience available at their farm or homestead. In exchange for helping with the farm or garden work, WWOOFers are offered free room and board and the opportunity to learn new sustainable farming practices. Depending on the location, WWOOFers may find themselves planting, making compost, practicing animal husbandry, helping with eco-construction projects, or harvesting.
I was introduced to the WWOOF movement in the spring of 2023 when my youngest son traveled to England and Scotland and participated in the program for four months. Using the networked system of WWOOF hosts, he worked on farms from Stroud, England to Glen Elg, Scotland, across from the Isle of Skye. Spending a few days to a month at each farm, he had the opportunity to explore the local communities and create friendships at each site. The tasks ranged from working in poly tunnels to raise tomatoes, helping with farm animals vaccinations, and harvesting organic vegetables for weekly subscribers to the home delivery service.
The WWOOF movement started in the United Kingdom, to develop practical experiences on a farm and sustainable skills for homegrown food. WWOOF opportunities are now available in 130 countries. Suppose international travel isn’t of interest to you. In that case, there are plenty of domestic opportunities to work alongside a fellow gardener to increase your organic and sustainable practices in your home garden. If you are already implementing organic practices, you can also host others. More information is available at https://wwoof.net
If you’d rather stick closer to home, organic gardening involves careful planning. Sites for successful organic gardens should have at least 6 hours of full sunlight a day, have good drainage to reduce the opportunities for plant diseases to develop, and preferably soil that is already fertile. Soil tests from Clinton County’s Penn State Extension Service will help you determine soil fertility.
https://ag.umass.edu/home-lawn-garden/fact-sheets/what-is-organic-gardening https://wwoof.net/
https://extension.psu.edu/soil-testing
https://www.ams.usda.gov/rules-regulations/organic/organic-seal
https://ag.umass.edu/fruit/ne-small-fruit-management-guide/general-information/cover-crops-green-manures https://extension.psu.edu/growing-an-organic-garden-the-fundamentals
https://extension.psu.edu/growing-an-organic-garden-the-fundamentals
https://extension.missouri.edu/publications/g6220)
Carol Lugg became a Penn State Extension Master Gardener in March 2022. She can be reached at clintonmg@psu.edu or the Clinton County Master Gardener Hotline at (570) 858-0198.
