Tony O’Neill, gardener and author of the popular “Composting Masterclass” and “Your First Vegetable Garden,” combines lifelong passion and expert knowledge to simplify the art of gardening. His mission? Helping you cultivate a thriving garden.
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After doing some research into the topic of organic fertilizers and why I should use them, I found there to be a lot of interesting information out there.
The following article will examine organic fertilizer and why you should use it in your garden.
What are organic fertilizers made from?
Organic fertilizer is derived from organic matter. It comprises once-living things and includes vegetables, animal matter, and manures. Organic fertilizers are much better for your health and the environment, so you should use them over chemically produced fertilizers.
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In this day and age, inorganic and synthetic fertilizers are sold in almost every garden store. They’re readily available and inexpensive to buy, so it’s understandable why so many people use them in their gardens.
The issue with these synthetic fertilizers is that they may promote short-term health for plants, but long term, they can damage the environment and soil life in your garden.
This is where the better alternative option of organic fertilizers comes in.
What is organic fertilizer?
A large number of organic materials make effective fertilizers and conditioners for soil. Essentially, they provide nutrition to both plants and soil.
One of the common misconceptions among gardeners is that organic fertilizers are a hassle to make and less convenient than their chemical counterparts.
In reality, organic fertilizers can match chemical fertilizers in convenience and effectiveness.
As I previously stated, the thing that makes fertilizer organic is that it only contains naturally occurring materials. However, this doesn’t mean that any natural matter will make a good fertilizer.
Certain materials will produce a more effective fertilizer, and different combinations can better suit certain situations in your garden.
Let’s look at the main categories of organic fertilizer and their best-suited applications.
List of Organic Fertilizers to buy
- Growganics
- Chicken Manure Pellets
- Dry Blood
- Biochar
- Bat Guano
- Fish Emulsion
- Seaweed
- Manures
- Compost
Organic Dry Fertilizers
The level of moisture contained in organic fertilizer has a significant influence on its effectiveness and the purpose it is best suited for. Dry organic fertilizer usually consists of a singular material.
This material could be nutrient-dense seaweed like kelp or phosphate derived from rock. Sometimes, dry organic fertilizers are composed of a mixture of these materials.
Most organic fertilizers are full of a diverse blend of nutrients. Still, dry organic mixtures are specifically formulated to give plants and soil the necessary phosphorus, potassium, nitrogen, and other vital micronutrients.
It’s possible to purchase readymade blends of dry organic fertilizer, but making your own is a rewarding process that increases your knowledge in this area.
One of the best ways to add organic matter to your garden is to produce your own compost at home. In the video below, I show you exactly how to ensure you make the best nutrient-dense compost for your garden.
When applying organic dry fertilizers, the suggested method is to spread it evenly and then use a rake to blend it into the top five or so inches of soil.
In contrast to dry chemical fertilizers, this natural alternative will not cause harm to any vulnerable young roots.
Organic Liquid Fertilizers
Another common form of natural fertilizer is a liquid mix. The advantage of liquid organic fertilizer is that plants can absorb them efficiently through the pores on their leaves and roots.
When feeding through the foliage, the plants can acquire nutrients even when the soil quality leaves a lot to be desired or the roots are not in great condition.
Liquid organic fertilizers are particularly effective with fast growers such as vegetables. They provide a great way to quickly invigorate these plants during their growing season.
One type of liquid organic fertilizer which is especially full of vital micronutrients and growth-promoting hormones is Comfrey.
How to make Comfrey liquid organic fertilizer
Making this nutrient-packed liquid feed is very simple. All that is required is to cut the leaves of the Comfrey plant. (I use the variety Bocking 14, a Russian strain). Place the leaves into a container and weigh them down.
As the leaves break down, you can collect the resulting liquid. Comfrey is an accumulator; it draws up macro and micronutrients deep from the ground and stores them in its leaves.
I use two methods for making Comfrey liquid feed. The bucket method and the pipe method.
This video shows you exactly how to make your own organic liquid feed using these methods.
This type of fertilizer can provide plants with a boost and quickly increase their uptake of nutrients.
The best way to use liquid organic fertilizers is to provide your plants with a little boost every couple of weeks when they are in the growing season.
For plants like leaf crops, it’s recommended that you spray them with liquid organic fertilizer weekly.
The best times to use your liquid fertilizer are in the early morning or evening, as this will allow them to be easily absorbed without running the risk of burning their leaves.
It’s best to pick a day when the temperature is relatively standard. You should apply the spray until it forms droplets on the foliage for the best results.
Organic fertilizer for enhancing growth
Some natural fertilizers are extremely effective at helping plants to grow healthily. They aid the plants in absorbing important nutrients from the soil.
One of the most commonly used growth-enhancing natural fertilizers is the kelp type of seaweed I previously touched upon.
Kelp and other seaweed forms have been used for hundreds of years as natural fertilizers because they are both safe and highly effective.
With a myriad of trace elements essential to the healthy growth of plants, kelp is one of the most effective naturally occurring fertilizers known to man.
How to make your organic fertilizer
When it comes to making your organic fertilizer, there is a seemingly endless amount of options. In the following section, I’ll review some of the most effective and popular ways to do so.
The process can be as complicated as you make it; some mixtures are easier to formulate than others.
Let’s start with the simplest way to make your organic fertilizer. This method requires you to brew weeds and herbs, similar to making a cup of tea.
The herbs and weeds you choose are ultimately up to you, but some of the most effective are borage, chickweed, nettles, and comfrey.
You fill a container with your chosen mixture of weeds and herbs, stems, leaves, and flowers. Compact them together, then fill the container with water.
Then leave the container in an area that receives plenty of sunlight. Leave it there for a full day, so it gets ample heat and the mixture brews.
It’s then time to sieve the weeds and herbs and fill your spray bottle with the resulting liquid. This will make a nutrient-dense fertilizer in one day.
The issues with chemical fertilizers
To fully understand the benefits of organic fertilizers, we must look at the downsides of using chemical fertilizers as an alternative.
Chemical fertilizers are renowned for being hard on plants because they simulate the process a plant must go through to get its nutrients.
This unnatural process causes the plant’s ability to do the work itself to diminish over time. It’s much like the old saying, if you don’t use it, you lose it.
Chemicals also make the soil less nutritious. Although it may initially cause some benefits, it’s a vicious cycle that is detrimental in the long term.
Eventually, the plants become dependent on the quick-release nature of the chemical fertilizer.
The liquid, purified form of these fertilizers provides the plants with a quick fix in the form of nutrients, but later, there is an inevitable drop-off.
The sudden change can damage plants, requiring more chemicals to survive.
Another reason to choose organic fertilizers over chemicals is that they are much kinder to the environment.
Chemical fertilizers are commonly synthesized from oils; therefore, producing them is taxing on the planet and can cause problems when they leak into other environments.
There’s a long list of negative environmental repercussions due to inorganic fertilizers, which should act as an incentive to avoid using them and choose the natural solution wherever possible.
Most synthetically made fertilizers contain chemical molecules and lack carbon. The molecules of these chemicals are known to disrupt microbes. Organic fertilizers, on the other hand, help these microbes to thrive.
This is partly because the organic options contain carbon, essential for feeding microbes, and nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus.
This mixture allows the microbes to make nutrients accessible to plants naturally.
Using organic fertilizer can also reduce the need for pesticides and fertilizers. This is due to promoting natural processes that help all living organisms thrive within a garden.
Chemical fertilizers can cause harm to some of the insects or bugs essential to your garden’s overall health, not just your plants.
List Of Chemical Fertilizers You Can Buy
- Urea
- Sodium Nitrate
- Potassium Nitrate
- Ammonium Nitrate
- Nitrophosphate
- Superphosphate
- Diammonium phosphate
- Potassium chloride
- Magnesium oxysulfate
- Dolomitic limestone
- Calcium chloride
- Phosphoric acid
Using too much fertilizer can cause the plant roots to burn and make them more vulnerable to diseases of harmful insects. All fertilizers should be used sparingly and with caution.
Conclusion
Organic fertilizers are much better to use than inorganic or chemically based fertilizers. They promote the soil life to grow instead of destroying it.
As they build soil life, the microbes themselves help to feed your plants and strengthen their immune systems. Whereas chemically produced fertilizers destroy the soil life, you, as a gardener, will become dependent on them.
If you use chemical fertilizers, you will notice that your plants struggle, and you must keep using them to ensure your plants live.
However, this provides weak plants that do not produce well and ensure your reliance on the products you purchased, which is exactly what the chemical companies want.
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