SolveYourProblem
Article Series: Organic Gardening
Organic
Gardening Tips & Advice
Types
of Organic Gardening Fertilizer
There are many types of organic gardening
fertilizer which can be either 100% organic or organic-based,
which will be less than 100%. The organic-based fertilizers
are generally hormone and vitamin supplements that should not
harm other life in your garden but are not entirely natural.
If you want to run a truly organic garden you will probably
want to go for one of the 100% organic options.
Seaweed extract
Seaweed, or kelp, has long been known to be a wonderful natural
fertilizer. There are many different varieties but they are
all vegetable-based rather than animal products like the other
100% organic alternatives that we consider below.
Kelp fertilizer is particularly effective for leafy plants
such as tomatoes, corn and peppers. It can help with seed germination,
development of healthy roots, and resistance to disease. It
contains many of the nutrients that are healthy for plants
such as potassium as well as many amino acids and trace minerals
that other fertilizers lack. Some varieties of kelp can contain
up to 60 naturally occurring nutrients in a form that is easily
absorbed by the plants. No chemically-based fertilizer can
boast anything like this.
Seaweed extract in its pure form can also be used in a hydroponics
garden - that is, a water-based rather than soil-based garden.
Being naturally soluble in water, many varieties of kelp are
ideal for hydroponics and can produce noticeably stronger plants.
Bat guano
Bat guano is probably the richest animal-based fertilizer
known to man. It has been used for centuries and was highly
prized by farmers and vegetable gardeners in many different
societies. It includes nitrogen (to strengthen stalks and shoot
growth) and phosphorus (to promote flowering) in high concentrations.
There are also many other minerals and nutrients which can
vary depending on the bats' diet.
Bat guano is particularly useful if you are in the process
of converting your garden from chemicals over to organic. This
is because it contains particular microorganisms and trace
elements that work together as a bioremedy to remove toxins
from the soil.
Worm castings
Every gardener knows that worms are one of the gardener's
best friends. They aerate and break down the soil as they work
their way through it, and the castings that they leave behind
are one of the best fertilizers for your garden. They are particularly
helpful for building strong plant roots, especially for perennials,
lawns and root vegetables.
If you have a standard backyard garden you probably already
have a lot of worms in your soil but you can either add to
them and increase the variety of worm species by buying worms,
or you can simply buy worm castings to spread over your garden.
If your garden has been created from bought-in soil or compost
in raised beds or pots then the soil probably has a low worm
population and you should definitely consider increasing it
with live worms or bought castings.
Be careful when buying worm castings to always read the label.
Sometimes the castings are mixed with other fertilizers and
some of these may be chemically based. An organic gardener
will want either pure worm castings or at least a mix with
other compounds that are 100% organic.
Fertilizer is required in any soil that grows plants. In a
wild environment, fertilizer is constantly produced by decaying
animal and vegetable matter that falls on the soil. In our
gardens where we clear away a lot of this matter, and where
there are not many wild animals living, excreting and dying,
we need to add back the nutrients if we want to keep growing
strong and healthy plants.
Chemical fertilizers may help our plants grow strong but they
can damage the balance of life forms in the garden. The whole
ecosystem of the garden, including insects, worms and microorganisms,
can flourish if the soil is kept rich with organic gardening
fertilizer. # # # # #
SolveYourProblem.com
: 2008
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