Filed under: Natural Fertilizer | Tags: boron, compost, fertilizer, iron, macro nutrients, macronutrients, micro nutrients, micronutrients, Natural Fertilizer, organic matter, zinc
You’re probably used to looking for the “fertilizer analysis” on the package of fertilizer you purchase. Normally, the package lists the N-P-K number, or the percentage of Nitrogen, Phosphorous and Potassium containd in the fertilizer. Those nutrients are called “Macro nutrients,” and they are some of the most important nutrients, needed in the highest quantities, by all plants. There are, however, other nutrients that plants need. If the plants don’t get these nutrients from the soil, you’ll know it because your plants will have problems. Here is some information about these micro nutrients, what they do for the plant, how to recognize nutrient deficiencies and how to treat them.
Boron
Boron is part of flowering, fruit and seed formation, metabolism (breaking down stored sugars), and water movement. If your plant is deficient in Boron, it will grow slowly, and the terminal bud at the top of the plant or end of a branch could die. Add organic matter like compost or a natural fertilizer to add Boron to the soil.
Copper
Copper is present in every part of the plant and is a catalyst for activity with enzymes. If your soil is deficient in copper, the tips of plants will die back. Muck soils are most likely to exhibit copper deficiencies. You can add copper sulfate to add copper. You need to be EXTREMELY careful if you add copper to your soil. It is better to add organic matter or a natural fertilizer.
Manganese
Plants need manganese for photosynthesis, enzyme catalyst, iron intake and vitamin uptake. If the soil has a dearth of Manganese, the leaves of the plants will look mottled in between the veins. Eventually, the leaves will turn white and fall off. The more acid the soil, the more available the manganese is to plants.
Zinc
Zinc plays a part in protein and starch synthesis, as well as seed development. It is a mobile nutrient, so lower leaves of the plant will show the effects first. An excess of phosphorous will cause zinc to become unavailable.
Iron
Iron is sometimes unavailable to plants in soils that are alkaline (have a high pH). Some plants can literally remove all of the iron from the soil. Blueberries are heavy iron consumers. Adding compost to the soil is one way to ensure that iron is available to all plants. Adding seaweed fertilizer to the compost pile or to the soil will also make iron more available to plants.
If your plants look unhealthy, try adding a natural fertilizer with macro and micro nutrients to the soil, or work in organic matter. Your plants will thank you!
Calcium
If your plants don’t get enough calcium, you will see it in the stems and roots of growing plants. Blossom end rot in tomatoes and peppers is a symptom of calcium deficiency. You can increase calcium in the soil by adding lime.
To grow fruits and vegetables productively means trying to grow the highest yield of crops possible in the smallest amount of space with the least amount of labor and expense possible. It’s also about showing good stewardship by making sure that you are not dumping chemicals on the earth that will poison future generations. This means avoiding chemical fertilizers that contribute to sterilizing the planet we live on. Natural fertilizers can produce high yields in the garden and can keep your family self-sufficient (in the sense that you can survive by eating what you grow.)
According to several high yield natural gardening methodologies (such as Metilieder method) having a sustainable high yield garden is one that is able to produce generous 
crops over time without depleting or poisoning the soil. It’s also important to be able to grow the food that you want to eat without working at it full time. This means that your garden must be able to sustain itself with minimum time and minimum effort. Let’s face it, if it’s just too much work, you won’t do it. So a true naturally sustainable garden should not cost you a lot of money and should be an enjoyable use of your time.
One of the best ways to avoid chemical fertilizers is to buy high quality seed that is known to produce high yields without the need for chemical dumping. The masters behind the high-yield natural method of gardening are called the Mettilieder method. It’s worth checking out. And when you get started, for maximum fertility, once you have purchased seeds be sure to take good care of them. Be sure to store them in a cool dry place to get the best yields.
Another part of high yield natural gardening is to extend the growing season by starting your seed indoors. You can also save energy and improve the health of your plants by planting your “started” seedlings on a south-facing slope because it warms up rapidly in the spring. And in the fall, the growing season also gets extended receiving more sun even on the shortest of days.
By being conscious of the “little things,” a gardener can not only eliminate the need for dangerous chemical fertilizers, but also make natural fertilizers much more effective.
What can sometimes be determined to be an organic or natural fertilizer can be a bit ambiguous, as some substances are considered to be organic in chemistry but are not considered to be very natural. For instance, folks who are familiar with organic fertilizers in the sense of them being “natural” would not think of substances such as urea and urea formaldehyde as being fully organic but they are defined as such in the field of chemistry.
Nutrient rich natural fertilizers, rather than organic should be the wise consumers choice. “Organic” these days just means a lot of government paper work is involved. What’s worse, an apple for example could be legally labeled organic and yet be devoid of any nutritional qualities. In the future new tools like brix readings will be used to help consumers make intelligent choices when purchasing fruits and vegetables.
The same can be said of natural and organic fertilizers. Always look for ingredients that sustain life. Whether you purchase them or make them yourself, natural fertilizers include seaweed fertilizers, fish fertilizers, manures, slurry, peat, worm castings and guano (bat droppings.) Certainly almost all plant life can be used as natural fertilizers as they degrade.
Mineral fertilizers also exist in the natural world and include limestone, rock phosphate and potash sulfate. Oddly, although rocks are natural, they are not inorganic in terms of the organic standards set by chemists. Still we think of these minerals as organic because we think of rocks that are found in nature as organic. In truth though, what is organic is defined by the definitions known to chemistry.
One of the noted drawbacks of using home made or even purchased natural fertilizer is that the results can sometimes vary because it’s difficult to predict the density of the nutrients in the natural ingredients. However, many of the new generation of natural fertilizers are manufactured in such a manner, the density of the nutritional components and its behavior in terms of enriching the soil and facilitating plant growth can be predicted with certainty.
Components in the existing soil also play an important role when it comes to enriching the garden and crops. One of the key components in good fertile soil is humic acid.
Humic acid is an important as well as very potent natural fertilizer because it is able to assist in the mobilization of soil nutrients so that high yield growth is achieved even though other nutrients in the soil may be low. Humic acid also helps release nutrients in a slower more consistent way. Yet another benefit of humic acid is that it helps to retain moisture in the soil and improves the soil quality and structure.
When shopping for natural fertilizers, always make sure one of the ingredients in the formula is humic acid. It’s one of the key building blocks for nutrient rich soil and lush plant growth.
