I'm not sure what is or isn't organic so rule of thumb me thinks, anything I've made is organic but stuff bought might not be.On that basis, I use horse muck and leaf mould as additions to home made compost to feed the ground and make liquid seaweed to feed plants.
Then I have a selection of bought stuff like FB&B, growmore and bone meal which is used generally in pots mixed with compost or spread in holes when planting flowers, shrubs etc...depending on the plant.
Then I have stuff to give vegs a quick burst like sulphate of amonia and potash.
Non organic fertilisers just supply NPK. growmore, sulphate of potash and ammonium sulphate come into this bracket.
Organic fertilisers supply micronutrients such as selenium, and copper which are only needed in tiny amounts. Its a bit like us living on a diet of boiled rice and fried fish. we would still get adequate protein, fat and carbohydrate but we would be missing all the vitamins and minerals needed in small quantities. Feeding plants on quick fix inorganics leads to poorer quality veg in my opinion. Also, adding humus back into the soil with compost or manure, stabilises the soil, enhances its water holding properties, and stops sandy soils blowing away in a gale.
I use fish, blood and bone on my borders - a sprinkle in spring. I use microrhizzal funghi when planting, I think it really helps the plants get going. Other than that, the plants in the borders generally get by with generous mulching of compost or leaf mould. I use comfrey tea for tomatoes and other potted flowering plants, and also "stinky juice" from my bukashi food composter. Plants seem to love that. Have used pelleted chicken manure in the past also, which seemed good but as I haven't got a car, haven't bought a big tub of that for a while. Maybe next year.
My bought stuff is only used in pots along with vermisculite when potting up seedlings or spread ontop of seed trays to improve germination and I use perlite mixed with compost for hanging baskets and annual pots, after which the used compost in the latter goes to the tip.
These aren't fertilisers but improve aeration and drainage in pots, vermisculite also reduces the risk of damping off for new seedlings. .
Hi all, I think we can take it for granted that we all have our own methods of what to use and what not to, me. like i said, I dont like using chemicals of any sort on the garden, and the wife wont let me use cow or horse manure, so it means ive got to use composting material, shes the boss in our house but dont tell everyone. one question ive got though and that is using grit when you take cuttings etc. I see these gardeners on tv using what looks like pebbles not grit and i sometimes wonder how the seeds germinate! just what is the size of the grit to use? is it ok to buy gritty sand from a building supply or what. Any help appreciated. Eddie.
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I'm not sure what is or isn't organic so rule of thumb me thinks, anything I've made is organic but stuff bought might not be.On that basis, I use horse muck and leaf mould as additions to home made compost to feed the ground and make liquid seaweed to feed plants.
Then I have a selection of bought stuff like FB&B, growmore and bone meal which is used generally in pots mixed with compost or spread in holes when planting flowers, shrubs etc...depending on the plant.
Then I have stuff to give vegs a quick burst like sulphate of amonia and potash.
Why on earth does it matter if a fertiliser is organic or not?
Non organic fertilisers just supply NPK. growmore, sulphate of potash and ammonium sulphate come into this bracket.
Organic fertilisers supply micronutrients such as selenium, and copper which are only needed in tiny amounts. Its a bit like us living on a diet of boiled rice and fried fish. we would still get adequate protein, fat and carbohydrate but we would be missing all the vitamins and minerals needed in small quantities. Feeding plants on quick fix inorganics leads to poorer quality veg in my opinion. Also, adding humus back into the soil with compost or manure, stabilises the soil, enhances its water holding properties, and stops sandy soils blowing away in a gale.
inorganic does nothing for soil structure as Verdun says
there for no air,water retaining material, even adding soot and ash from the BBQ or fire adds structure
soot and ash help to warm the soil as they a dark in colour.
James
I use fish, blood and bone on my borders - a sprinkle in spring. I use microrhizzal funghi when planting, I think it really helps the plants get going. Other than that, the plants in the borders generally get by with generous mulching of compost or leaf mould. I use comfrey tea for tomatoes and other potted flowering plants, and also "stinky juice" from my bukashi food composter. Plants seem to love that. Have used pelleted chicken manure in the past also, which seemed good but as I haven't got a car, haven't bought a big tub of that for a while. Maybe next year.
My bought stuff is only used in pots along with vermisculite when potting up seedlings or spread ontop of seed trays to improve germination and I use perlite mixed with compost for hanging baskets and annual pots, after which the used compost in the latter goes to the tip.
These aren't fertilisers but improve aeration and drainage in pots, vermisculite also reduces the risk of damping off for new seedlings. .
Hi all, I think we can take it for granted that we all have our own methods of what to use and what not to, me. like i said, I dont like using chemicals of any sort on the garden, and the wife wont let me use cow or horse manure, so it means ive got to use composting material, shes the boss in our house but dont tell everyone. one question ive got though and that is using grit when you take cuttings etc. I see these gardeners on tv using what looks like pebbles not grit and i sometimes wonder how the seeds germinate! just what is the size of the grit to use? is it ok to buy gritty sand from a building supply or what. Any help appreciated. Eddie.
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I just buy a bottle of organic liquid seaweed and that seems to do the job. I haven't used anything else to compare it to though.