Fertilization

Today I want to simplify a complex subject and make it easy for beginners.

This is a subject that is very easy to overthink and that has many different methods associated with it so I will do my best to sum it all up!

What is fertilizer?

Most people associate the word “fertilizer” with artificial compounds you buy in bags at the store.

For the sake of this article, I will use the word to refer to “anything that adds nutrients to the soil”!

I want to change the way you might look at fertilizer. It doesn’t have to be particularly complex, and it can be almost-free as well!

There are way too many resources at your disposal in my opinion to be buying bags of fertilizer at the store when you could be focusing a few minutes of work on free material to feed your garden.

Methods

Compost:

Composting is one of those things that people way overthink. While there are people who go out of their way to calculate the best exact mix of nutrients that you should mix together for soil health, you really only need to know two things: organic matter breaks down over time, and use what you have.

Here are some good compost methods to look into:

• Berkeley Composting: This is a method of turning the compost to aerate it in a way that it breaks down in 18 days (which is quite fast!)

• In-Place Composting: This method is often the simplest. Take your scraps, dig a hole in the garden, and bury them. This can be a great option in a place that doesn’t allow compost piles!

• Hot Pile Composting: This is fairly easy but needs to be aerated periodically and should be about 3ft cubed (1 cubic meter) to start generating heat.

• Tumblers: I have not personally tried compost tumblers but they can work in some scenarios. I have heard mixed reviews.

Mulch:

I have explained mulch in-depth already, but I’ll go over it briefly here.

Organic matter breaks down over time, and that includes on the surface of the soil.

Sometimes the best way to add fertility to your soil is to mulch with something that will break down and add fertility! I recommend grass clippings, woodchips, or any plant material that is in abundance and excess (looking at you spearmint!)

Here are a few examples:

• Pine needles

• Leaves

• Grass clippings

• Woodchips

• Dead weeds

• Hay

If you are growing in woodchips, it may be worth it to inoculate the chips with mushrooms to really give it a boost.

The best method I’ve found for mulch if you don’t have much time or money is the “Chop-&-Drop” method. This involves cutting down plant material and then dropping it right on top of the soil. This works best if the plant hasn’t already gone to seed.

Use what you have in abundance!

FPJ (aka “Fetid Swamp water”)

This is one of my recent favorites inspired by Korean Natural Farming and David The Good.

1. Put water in a bucket (with a lid!)

2. Stuff plant matter into it to rot and ferment (close lid)

3. Let sit for at least 2 weeks, longer is fine

4. Water your plants with it!

The benefits of this is that the fermentation process breaks down the plant material into more readily available nutrients for the plants and encourages beneficial bacteria to both keep disease at bay, but also to farm nutrients and fix nitrogen for the plants nearby!

I tend to stagger five 5gal buckets and use one of them per week. (Yes it smells pretty bad, but the smell isn’t too widespread, and it mostly dissipates by the next day).

Alternate Methods: 

There are three alternative methods that come to mind as interesting ideas, but I have not tried any of them yet:

• Biochar: This involves making anaerobic charcoal and mixing it into your soil. The structure of charcoal provides aeration, water retention, and microbe habitat.

• Worm farming: Some people farm worms that are good at breaking down organic matter and use the resulting nutritious compost in the garden.

• Aquaculture: Some people create systems where they include fish and other aquatic animals to use the nutritious water for their crops. This is an ancient practice that goes back to ancient Mexico when they farmed on floating islands called “chinampas”.

Additional Notes:

There are 3 main nutrients that plants need to thrive:

• Potassium: Water regulation, stress tolerance

• Nitrogen: Plant growth

• Phosphorus: Reproduction, energy transfer, enzyme activation

I hope this inspired you to figure out your own fertilizer in the garden! There are so many methods and not all of them will make sense in your garden’s context, but don’t feel like you can’t experiment!

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