For John Kohler, gardening is not just a hobby, it's his passion. His organic gardening YouTube channel GrowingYourGreens.com has over 164,000 subscribers. Every few days, avid followers are able to learn new tips and skills by catching the latest episode. In his most recent video, John tells us how to protect our gardens from pests without chemical pesticides.
Besides avoiding chemical pesticides, John employs a number of organic gardening methods. In fact, there are many reasons why John turned to organic gardening but it all started with his health.
He tells us, "I was in my twenties, lost my health. The doctors told me... 'You might not make it out of the hospital alive. We have no treatment for you.' I really wanted to find out why this happened, so it would not occur to me again. Luckily this happened to me at a young age... so I could make the positive changes." Because of this experience, John radically changed his diet and focused on eating more fresh fruits and vegetables.
John originally started with a few gardens, but quickly found his raised beds taking over his yard. On the advice of a friend, he eventually converted his whole yard into a raised edible garden. He wanted to show the techniques he used in his garden, so he started uploading videos of his gardening to YouTube. He quickly found that there were people eager to know what he was sharing.
You can watch John's latest video, where he addresses a few of our questions about himself and keeping pests out of the garden. Go to 8:27 to hear John's alternatives to chemical pesticides and the best organic pest control.