There’s been a lot of talk this season about using manures in the garden, the probability of hot manures (rich in nitrogen) “burning” seedlings and squelching germination, and the fact that many commercial manures — or ones you might get from your local farmer — contain metals or toxins not suitable for organic gardens.
Your friendly Planet Natural blogger has always liked using compost to keep garden soil healthy and balanced just the way plants like it, which means most of the manure went into the compost heap. And we were happy to use it because it came from an organic goat dairy.But what about those with new gardens or those with gardens that need amending to help keep the soil at its growing best? That’s the time to fertilize.
In fact, the best time to fertilize is ahead of planting. Of course, that makes it imperative that you hold nitrogen levels down to prevent seeds from not germinating. But most good formulas come this way, so you shouldn’t have anything to worry about. You can always beef up the nitrogen (but not too much, keep it in balance and consider the special needs of different types of plants) later in the season.
Looking fornatural and organic fertilizer to ensure a beautiful, healthy crop? Planet Natural offers a large selection of guanos,liquids and slow-release dry formulas, plus specialty plant supplements at great prices. Please check them out!
There are a number of good commercial-grade organic fertilizers available with suitable and often varied NPK ratings. But many people like to mix up a fertilizer recipe themselves from trusted ingredients that answer their soil’s specific needs (soil testing is an important first step). And before the gotcha folks start writing in, let’s state this right up front. Many of the fertilizers you make for yourself contain ingredients that aren’t really fertilizers, such as peat moss (becoming an environmental no-no) vermiculite, and compost. So think of them as recipes for soil amendments… with fertilizer.
Here’s a recipe from Northwest Garden News:
- 4 measures of canola seed meal or cottonseed meal;
- 1/2 measure of ordinary agricultural lime;
- 1/2 measure of dolomite lime;
- 1 measure of bone meal or rock phosphate or high phosphate guano;
- 1/2 to 1 measure of kelp meal.
Vegans (and others, including me) don’t like to use bone or blood meal. Here’s another recipe from Frank Tozer’s excellent reference The Organic Gardeners Handbook that’s vegan-appropriate unless some mollusk got caught up in the kelp harvest:
- 2 parts cottonseed meal
- 2 parts colloidal phosphate
- 3 parts wood ash, greensand or granite dust
- 1 part kelp meal
Care must be taken when using wood ash. We’ve thrown wood ashes directly in the garden (in the fall) when we had plenty of them. But then we knew what we were burning: no treated wood or pellets, no coal or charcoal. Now what little wood ash we have goes in the compost heap.
If these recipes aren’t large enough for your garden, check this one out —measured by the wheelbarrow load — for those of you with acreage. Most gardeners I know have come up with their own fertilizer recipes over the years, based on what they have available, what their soil needs, and lots of experimentation. What’s your recipe? Share it, please, with us. And don’t forget the whys and hows of its development. Your curious Planet Natural Blogger is always ready to learn something new.
Best advice? Make compost. And plenty of it.
Messy, fun-time bonus: Here’s an activity you can do with your kids (also good for you teachers) that addresses the components (and difficulties) that go into making soil. And there’s a recipe at the end that’s edible (though barely to those of us concerned about nutrition) even if the result is called “Dirt Cake.”
Eric Vinje founded Planet Natural with his father Wayne in 1991, originally running it as a grasshopper bait mail-order business out of a garage.
Eric is now retired, but is still a renowned gardener known for his expertise in composting, organic gardening and pest control, utilizing pesticide-free options, such as beneficial insects.
Eric believes when you do something good for the environment, the effects will benefit generations to come.
Share on X (Twitter)Share on FacebookShare on Pinterest <use href="#<svg width="1em" height="1em" viewBox="0 0 32 32" class="scriptlesssocialsharing__icon flipboard" fill="currentcolor" aria-hidden="true" focusable="false" role="img"><title>flipboard</title><path d="M24.997 13.001h-5.998v5.998h-5.998v5.998h-5.998v-17.995h17.995zM1.004 1.004v29.991h29.991v-29.991z"></path></svg>" xlink:href="#flipboard"> Share on Flip it
- Compost
- Fertilizer
- Soil Health
Recommended Products
Bone Meal (2-14-0)A very strong source of phosphorus and contains up to 24% calcium.$59.95Read more
Rock Phosphate (0-3-0)Once applied, rock phosphate will remain until used by plants - NO leaching!$32.95Read more
Azomite (0-0-0.2)This naturalre-mineralizer helpsgrowstronger plants and better tastingcrops.$29.95Read more
Kelp Meal (1-0-2)An excellent source of micronutrients and beneficial plant growth promoters.$104.95Read more
Blood Meal (13-0-0)Used for years by growers as a powerful, slow release source of nitrogen (13%).$76.95Read more
FAQs
You'll need four to six tablespoons of coffee grounds, one teaspoon of cinnamon and one cup of club soda. Simply mix the ingredients until well combined and use on a bi-weekly basis for a slow release of nutrients without causing the soil's acidity levels to rise too much.
What is the best natural fertilizer? ›
Compost. Compost reigns supreme in the world of natural fertilizers. This nutrient-rich material is created by the decomposition of organic matter like food scraps, yard waste, and leaves.
What is the richest natural fertilizer? ›
Worm Castings are the richest natural fertilizer known to humans. That's right: as little as a tablespoon of pure worm castings provides enough organic plant nutrients to feed a 6" potted plant for more than two months.
Is vinegar good for plants? ›
Vinegar is a contact herbicide, which means it kills the part of the plant it comes into contact with. Systemic herbicides, on the other hand, are taken up by the plant's vascular system and delivered to roots, eventually killing the whole plant instead of just its top growth.
Are coffee grounds good for plants? ›
Coffee grounds contain several key nutrients needed by plants, including nitrogen, potassium, magnesium, calcium, and other trace minerals. These are all nutrients that plants need to grow. The grounds are particularly rich in nitrogen, making them a great addition to compost.
What plants Cannot have coffee grounds? ›
Knowing that most coffee grounds are acid-leaning, don't use fresh coffee grounds on plants that prefer alkaline soil. This includes asparagus, campanula, salvia, achillea and Mediterranean herbs like lavender, thyme and rosemary.
How to make fertilizer quickly? ›
Dissolve 1 tablespoon of Epsom salt in 1 gallon of water. Shake the solution thoroughly. Use the solution to water your plants. Water them with this solution once per month during the growing season.
What does coffee and tea grounds do for plants? ›
Coffee grounds also contain needed plant macro and micronutrients, such as phosphorus, potassium, and magnesium, while tea leaves contain a decent level of nitrogen, a macro-nutrient that encourages leaf growth.
Is baking soda good for plants? ›
When applied to plant leaves and stems, baking soda does slow or stop the growth of fungi. However, the benefits are fleeting at best. Studies have shown that while baking soda impacts the growth of fungal spores, the spores and actively growing fungi are not killed.
What is a good homemade plant fertilizer? ›
"A compost pile would be the natural fertilizer I would strongly recommend," says Kemper. To make compost, take all your scraps (like eggshells, fruit peels, and coffee grounds) and put them into a pile with leaves, sticks, and other organic debris.
Organic fertilizers include animal by-products, plant-derived materials and mined minerals. These can be purchased individually or as fertilizer blends. Many of these materials also contain other nutrients, and some contain carbon, which will help maintain soil OM and soil structure.
What is poor mans fertilizer? ›
An old wives tale says that snow is the poor man's fertilizer. This is true because snow contains the nutrient nitrogen. The snow lies as a blanket on the ground and slowly percolates through the soft spring soil, gradually releasing its fertilizer and moisture into the soil.
How to make your own fertiliser? ›
Quick how to: Add banana peels, coffee grounds, vegetable scraps, tea bags, and any other organic waste to a large, glass jar using a 1:10 ratio of compost to water. Mix in fresh or dried seaweed as an added nutritional bonus. Seal and shake the mixture once a day to agitate the tea.
What fertilizer makes plants grow the fastest? ›
The short answer is that nitrogen-containing fertilizers help crop plants grow faster and helps to produce more crops. This allows agricultural land to be used more efficiently because fertilized land produces more food.
What does Epsom salt do for plants? ›
Aside from the anecdotal evidence about human benefits, Epsom salt does seem to help plants. Generations of gardeners have said it helps their plants grow bushier, produce more flowers and have better color. It's also said to help seeds germinate and repel slugs and other garden pests.
How to make fertilizer with coffee grounds? ›
Add 2 cups of used coffee grounds to a 5-gallon bucket of water. Let the "tea" steep for a few hours or overnight. You can use this concoction as a liquid fertilizer for garden and container plants. It also makes a great foliar feed you can spray directly on the leaves and stems of your plants.
Can you use banana peels and eggshells as fertilizer? ›
Furthermore, the use of kepok banana peel as a liquid organic fertilizer resulted in increased plant height, number of leaves, and wet weight of plants. These findings suggest that the combination of banana peel and eggshell as fertilizer can have beneficial effects on plant growth.
There’s been a lot of talk this season about using manures in the garden, the probability of hot manures (rich in nitrogen) “burning” seedlings and squelching germination, and the fact that many commercial manures — or ones you might get from your local farmer — contain metals or toxins not suitable for organic gardens.
