hydroponic growing is a viable method - the Netherlands has acres and acres under glass.
costs are higher than using "the back forty" - but if you want a tomato in Holland in December, it's not coming out of the kitchen garden....
there is a lot chemistry to it - and since it usually is done "indoors" pest / disease issues can wipe out a entire greenhouse before you can blink.
I have no clue whether hydroponics can be done "organically" - everything I've ever read about commercial operations - especially pest control - does not qualify for organic.
as mentioned above, today's definition of "organic" is variable and being stretched in a lot of directions - commercial operations want the marketing advantage of labeling their stuff "organic" hence all the legal & definition flappola.
I've been kitchen gardening organically for decades. when our kids were young they would wander into the garden and start picking/eating stuff. that's what got me buying lady bugs to eat the aphids rather than malathion/<& misc. pesticides>
my personal take on "organic" fruits & vegetables is less about "what's on that broccoli?" but more about "what is not on that broccoli?"
for the home gardener, as KYHeirloomer mentioned, there's another aspect to organic - and that is creating / maintaining a good soil for the plants to grow in. lousy soil, even concrete, doesn't produce good crops regardless of how much fertilizer you pour on it.  |