There are several different definitions of "organic."

1. To a modern organic chemist, any molecule containing carbon is "organic," regardless of its source. It was originally thought that only biological processes could create the complex molecules found in living organisms, hence the term "organic chemistry." However, some of these compounds were later able to be synthesized, making the original definition invalid, and organic chemistry eventually became "carbon chemistry." Under this definition, diamonds, carbon dioxide, and carbonate rocks are all organic.

2. Although unofficial, some people restrict "organic chemistry" to include only molecules containing both carbon and hydrogen, which excludes CO2 and carbonaceous minerals.

3. "Organic" still retains its old meaning of "derived from living things."

4. "Organic" agriculture is defined by its avoidance of artificial chemicals. However, most fertilizers and pesticides are themselves organic molecules under definitions 1 and 2.

Confusing? Yes, but no more so than a lot of other English words and phrases with multiple meanings.
Source(s):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organic_chemistry
http://chemed.chem.purdue.edu/genchem/topicreview/bp/1organic/organic.html
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla...

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