A friend told me that he was planning on using miracle grow to fertilize his plants. I started writing my reply to him explaining why he shouldn't and why he should grow using organic fertilizers and after around a half hour of writing later the pm started to take shape. I decided it to be forum worthy. So without further adieu, here it is(It has been added to over the past few days)-
I strongly urge you to NOT use miracle grow fertilizer. You should only use organic ferts.
A friend of mine got me to switch to growing with 100% organic ferts this year. Over the course of the past few months I have witnessed the difference first hand.
Organic gardening has many advantages. Along with increased yield and potency, it also comes with a strong sense of pride.
I like to think of it like this;
Plants you/I grow are like children. They deserve the best most natural food possible and rely on us to provide it. They cannot go out and get it themselves. It is up to us to give them the best possible sustenance we can provide.
Plants consuming miracle grow is akin to us eating an entire diet composed of generic alge fortified with processed protein and carbohydrates. Sure, it will keep them alive, but would you want that as your diet? HELL NO! It is NOT optimal in the least.
You want steak and green beans with butter, etc.!! haha!
Natural nutes like hydrolyzed fish, kelp, composted cow manure, worm castings, dried blood, crushed shells, and composed grass are the plant equivalent to our steak and veggies and miracle grow is the equivalent to our 'generic alge fortified with processed bullshit'.
See what I'm getting at?
Giving plants those things provides the micronutrients that they need, other than the big 3(P-K-N; Phosphorus-Potassium-Nitrogen)
Just as a pure diet of carbs, protein, and sugar, will only get us humans so far, the same is true for a plant on a PKN- only diet. We need macro nutes like iron, copper, and vitamins....and plants need them too.
Giving them things like the aforementioned organic nutrient mixtures will provide the right macronutrients they need to grow to their optimal potential. The result will be a bigger, faster growing, stronger, and more potent plant.
Hell, if I ate as good a diet as I feed my plants, I'd be running a 2 minute mile and benching 50x my own weight. hahah!
At first, organic gardening might seem like more work, more expensive, and overall not worth the time, effort and money. Once you get into it, it is not as bad as it appears. Most, if not all of the natural nutrient sources mentioned above can be made at home or acquired cheaply.
Composted grass is simple. If you take a bunch of grass clippings and amass them in a pile, then cover them with a black tarp(optional but optimal) and water ever few days with the hose. The heat will break it down into rich black soil. At the same time, not only will you be creating composted grass, you will also be providing a prime habitat for worms. The worms will feed from the bottom up and will excrete their castings providing even MORE nutrients to the mix.
Hydrolyzed fish is tricky to make(from what I've read), but it is very doable. Here is a link to a website that explains the entire process of making it from start to finish-
http://gilcarandang.com/Now lets move on to dried blood.
Dried blood is not something people usually have laying around. Unless you're a hunter, your going to have to buy this one. If you are a hunter, you're in luck! For all you need to do is drain the deer or what have you as usual. Instead of doing it on the ground, do it in a bucket. Spread it over a flat smooth surface if possible and let it dry in the sun. Once its dry scrape it up and spread it or mix it with your soil. This will provide a good amount of macronutrients such as iron and an assortment of salts.
If you like what I've written so far, hit the +1 karma button under my name.
Peace
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Topic: Organic Gardening (Read 20164 times)