21+ Organic Fertilizers and How To Use Them In Your Garden
List of Organic Fertilizers
Alfalfa Meal
NPK Ratio: 3-2-2
Alfalfa is commonly used as part of livestock feed. However, alfalfa meal is simply ground up so that it breaks down faster. This particular fertilizer has low amounts of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. As a result, alfalfa meal works at moderate rate of speed. The best use for this fertilizer is as a soil conditioner in the early spring prior to planting crops.Recommendation: Down To Earth Alfalfa Meal, 5lb
Cottonseed Meal
NPK Ratio: 6-1-1
This fertilizer has plenty of nitrogen, but it also contains fair amounts of phosphorus and potassium. The downsides to cotton seed meal are that it works slowly and that it is available primarily in cotton growing areas. However, this fertilizer is particularly useful for conditioning gardens in the fall before cover crops are planted or before mulch is applied. This gives the cotton seed meal time to break down fully so that the nitrogen present is readily available in the spring.Recommendation: Down To Earth Cottonseed Meal, 6lb
Corn Gluten Meal
NPK Ratio: 0.5-0.5-1
Corn gluten contains trace amounts of nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium. It is also good soil stabilizer but it works slowly. Therefore, you should add it in the fall so that it has time to break down over the winter.Recommendation: Soil Mender Horticultural Cornmeal, 40lb
Rock Phosphate
NPK Ratio: 0-5-0
This fertilizer is made from rocks that have been ground up. It contains large amounts of phosphate as well as other essential nutrients. The main benefit of using rock phosphate is that the elements it contains don’t dissolve in water. Instead they hang around in the soil until they’re used by the plants that are growing there.Recommendation: Espoma Rock Phosphate, 7.25lb
Cow Manure
NPK Ratio: 2.5-1-1.5
Manure in general has a high mass to nutrients ratio. It nonetheless contains respectable amounts of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Cow manure also works on gardens at a moderate rate of speed. These elements all help to make it an excellent compost additive. However, some weed seeds may survive being digested by the cows in question and this can cause obvious problems. You should also avoid manure leftover from industrial operations because it contains lots of salt. However, even regular manure can end up burning plants if too much is used or if it’s used too often.Recommendation: Black Kow Composted Cow Manure, 5lb
Chicken or Poultry Manure
NPK Ratio: 3.5-1.5-1.5
Having a lot of poultry crap on hand doesn’t mean that you’ll get comparatively high nutrient levels. Even so, this fertilizer contains slightly higher amounts of the three main plant nutrients than cow manure does. It’s also works in a somewhat faster fashion. The best time to use poultry manure is just after harvesting your crops or just before you begin another gardening cycle. As is the case with cow manure, you’ll want to be careful with this product because it can burn your plants if too much is applied.Recommendation: Espoma 3-2-3 Chicken Manure, 25lb
Earthworm Castings
NPK Ratio: 2-1-1
Earthworm casings contain decent amounts of all three vital nutrients. As a result, this type of fertilizer is considered a great addition to flower and vegetable gardens.Recommendation: Unco Industries Wiggle Worm Soil Builder, 30lb
Greensand
NPK Ratio: 1-1-5
Greensand comes from ancient sea beds. This high calcium fertilizer also contains iron, potassium, and other trace elements. However, the nutrient levels in greensand products can vary depending on their source.Recommendation: Espoma Greensand Soil Conditioner, 7.5lb
Compost
NPK Ratio: 2-1.5-1.5
Compost’s nutrient profile varies based on what is put into but it is often close to that of cow manure. It is a popular garden fertilizer. This is no doubt because it can be made for free and it works at a moderate pace. There are also a variety of ways that compost can be used in your garden. It can be used as a mulch or mixed with your garden soil. It can also be brewed into compost tea to use as a foliar feed. Gardeners who don’t have space for a large compost system can even get similar benefits from using worm compost bins under their sinks.However, compost can be alkaline in nature. This characteristic negatively affects how well plants living in the soil can absorb nutrients. Compost also has a high weight to available nutrient ratio. Improperly tended compost pile can additionally emit bad smells, which can quickly get city dwellers in trouble with their neighbors.
If you still plan on using it, compost should be added before or after planting. It’s also a good soil refresher in between growing seasons for gardens that are constantly in use. You’ll want to use half an inch to a full inch every time a new crop is planted.
Recommendation: Michigan Peat Garden Magic Compost, 40lb
Soybean Meal
NPK Ratio: 7-2-0
Soybean meal is high nitrogen fertilizer that also contains low amounts of phosphorus and calcium. Local growing conditions tend to affect how fast this product is absorbed into the soil but this process normally occurs at moderate rates of speed. However, soybean meal is fairly useful as a long term soil conditioner.Recommendation: Down To Earth Organic Soybean Meal, 5lb.
Blood Meal
NPK Ratio: 12-1.5-0.5
This fertilizer is created from the powdered blood of butchered livestock. While it is high in nitrogen, blood meal is low in other elements. It is also highly acidic and likely to burn plants if too much is used at one time. You should definitely proceed with caution. It’s best to apply blood meal to the soil before planting anything in it. Even so, blood meal’s fast-acting nature makes it a good tonic for ailing plants. You will need to pour this fertilizer over the plants roots according to the package directions and then possibly cover everything up with mulch.Recommendation: Espoma Dried Blood Meal, 3.5lb
Bone Meal
NPK Ratio: 4-20-0
It’s no surprise that bone meal is made from ground up cow bones. This high phosphorous fertilizer also contains plenty of nitrogen. Bone meal works at moderate speeds to encourage flower production and root growth. As a result, it is great for flowering plants, bulbs, and fruit trees. However, bone meal is mostly used as a soil amendment for spots with high nitrogen levels where plants keep getting burned.Recommendation: Job’s Organics Bone Meal Fertilizer, 4lb
Feather Meal
NPK Ratio: 12-0-0
Feather meal is very high in nitrogen. However, it doesn’t contain any calcium or phosphorus and it only works at moderate speeds. If you plan on using this fertilizer in your yard, use it prior to planting in order to give the soil a nutrient boost.Recommendation: Down To Earth Feather Meal, 5lb
Seabird Guano
NPK Ratio: 10-10-2
Seabird guano is gathered from islands that have low rainfall and arid climates, both factors which help it retain high levels of nutrients. Seabird guano contains large levels of trace elements along with decent amounts of nitrogen, phosphorus, and calcium. In fact, it is considered to be among the world’s best organic fertilizers.Recommendation: Down To Earth Organic Seabird Guano, 5lb
Bat Guano
NPK Ratio: 10-10-2
Bat guano is a fast-acting fertilizer that contains a wide variety of nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, calcium, and various other minerals. It is not as high in these components as seabird guano but it is more readily available. Since some of the nutrients contained in bat guano are water-soluble, this fertilizer is probably at its most effective when used as a foliar spray or a compost tea. You can also apply it between crop plantings and as a soil refresher in the late spring.Recommendation: Hydrofarm Guano Grow Crazy, 3lb
Fish Meal
NPK Ratio: 5-2-2
Due to its high nitrogen levels, fish meal is a fairly fast acting fertilizer. It also has decent amounts of phosphorus and calcium. It is good for corn crops.Recommendation: Down To Earth Fish Bone Meal, 6lb
Fish Emulsion
NPK Ratio: 2-4-0 to 5-1-1
This product is made from partially decomposed fish. As a result, it often has a bad odor. Fish emulsion fertilizer is high in nitrogen but it contains no calcium or potassium. It is also very acidic and should be used lightly to avoid burning plants. Fish emulsion nonetheless acts immediately once it is applied, which makes it a good treatment for leafy species that are suffering from low nitrogen levels. However, some plants may not tolerate it very well.Recommendation: Alaska Fish Fertilizer Concentrate, 1qt
Shellfish Fertilizer / Shell Meal
NPK Ratio: 5-2-5
This fertilizer is made from crushed up seafood byproducts. It contains plenty of calcium and some phosphorous as well as a large quantity of trace minerals. Shell meal also contains an element called chitin, which helps ward off pesky nematodes.Recommendation: Neptune’s Harvest Crab Shell Fertilizer, 12lb
Liquid Kelp Fertilizer
NPK Ratio: 1-0.2-2
This is a kelp based fertilizer created by cold processing. Kelp contains small amounts of the main three fertilizer components but it’s quite high in trace elements. It is also a good source of growth hormones that can help plants reach their full potential. This liquid fertilizer is typically mixed with water and used as a foliar spray or poured into the soil around plants.Recommendation: Maxicrop Liquid Seaweed, 32oz
Seaweed
NPK Ratio: 1.5-0.75-5
Seaweed is a fast acting fertilizer that’s often available for free along most coastlines. It contains all of the major three nutrients in small amounts but also contains plenty of zinc and iron. Seaweed is considered highly beneficial to grain crops as well as those that need high levels of potassium.Recommendation: Down To Earth Kelp Meal, 5lb
Comments
Post a Comment