" To plant trees is to give body and life to one's dreams of a better world " Russell Page

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

My New Year's Resolutions - I will use only natural fertilizers

Well, dear friends, any new year comes with a good load of very wise and virtuous resolutions which are meant to radically improve our life.
On my personal long list ( which I will not confess entirely even under torture) there is one which says : I will try to eliminate all vile, chemical pesticides and harsh fertilizers and try (a conditional is due) to use only nature friendly stuff - mostly home concocted remedies, which should harm only the bad bugs and be friendly to all the rest...

 You might agree, that this is quite a challenge, since I live in the very heart of a town - and there are quite few ladybugs and Co. willing to cross the asphalt jungle in order to install themselves on my terrace and dine on my personal aphids... I have tried, believe me! I developed a special, super friendly attitude towards ladybugs and sand bees and other helpful insects, but their presence is really very thin...
You might remember that I had quite some nuisances with sawflies last year and one can do very unwise things when really desperate, so I hope that this year I will be less visited by them.

But pesticides aside, I will also try to feed all my plants as naturally as possible. Since I do not own horses or other manure manufacturing animals (cats do not count even if they are just too willing to help out ;-)  ), I introduced broiled horn and dried blood - I know it sounds quite scarry but it does wonders! I use ocassionaly coffe grounds and this year's big entry are ground eggshells.

This is a novelty for me - I have never used them before, but a combination of massive use of Pintrest (where this recipe apears in almost every gardening board) and a large egg consumtion during the past festivities, brought me to try this fertilizer.

The procedure is child easy - you let your eggshells dry out a couple of days and then you throw them in a blender and mix them as finely as you can. I tried to crush them by hand but the results were not aesthetically pleasing, since you have to disperse a handfull of the shells on the soil in your containers or arround the plant you want to feed.
So trust me, the finer the granulation the more discreet the effect,  afterall you do not wish to transform your garden into a compost pile! 


Before starting this new fertilizing method, I looked up for the chemical benefits of eggshells just to know what I was giving my plants:
“In addition to the calcium, the eggshells contain about 1% nitrogen, about a half-percent phosphoric acid, and other trace elements that make them a practical fertilizer. Calcium is an essential plant nutrient which plays a fundamental part in cell manufacture and growth. Most roots must have some calcium at the growing tips. Plant growth removes large quantities of calcium from the soil, and calcium must be replenished, so this is an ideal way to recycle your eggshells.” – Back Woods Home Magazine

You can use both cooked and raw eggshells, but make sure you do not give them to acid soil loving plants such as rhododendrons, azaleas, hostas, hydrangeas and camelias. For all the rest it is supposed to do a fairly good job, it is easy and clean and on top of everything it is a natural way of eliminating organic rubbish for those who cannot or will not get into serious composting! 

This is it and I will keep you informed about the results! 
I would love to get feedback from you if you have tried this before.

PS. Eggshells are supposed to work as a slug reppellent too!
PPS. I tried eggshell tea (shells macerated in water) but I find the foul egg smell not really appealing so I will stick with the method above.  

12 comments:

  1. Am adunat si eu o o cutie plina cu coji de oua :) Anii trecuti le incorporam in compost, dar am zis, sa schimb tactica si vizate erau in special rosiile fiindca anul trecut au avut carente de calciu. O sa pun si la trandafiri, cred ca o sa le placa :)

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    1. Multumesc! Tu ai avut rezultate la rosii? Eu am pus la toti trandafirii, dar e prea devreme ca sa vad vre-un rezultat. Anul trecut am pus coji de banane la trandafiri si functioneaza foarte bine. Le tai cu foarfeca in bucatele si in doua zile sunt negre si sfrijite de nu se mai vad, asa ca nu arata urat. Si trandafirilor le plac...
      De' banane, oua, in curand le punem si profiterolles... ;-) sunt mai gurmanzi/gourmet decat noi!!!

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    2. Anul asta voi pune coji de oua la rosii, o sa vad cum se comporta. La trandafiri pun si eu banane si coji de mar si zat de cafea, ii hranesc cu diverse :) Vreau sa cumpar si saruri Epsom, se zice ca le plac mult :)

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    3. Ha, Epsom caut si eu, dar inca nu am aflat de unde se poate cumpara!? eu mai pun si zatul de la ceai la tot ce iubeste pamant acid... rau nu le face, dar ca sa fiu sincera nici rezultate miraculoase nu am avut. Pana acum cel mai bine au mers cojile de banana si cornul macinat - pana anul trecut faceam rost si de balegar de cal, dar lumea se uita cam ciudat cand te bucuri ca un copil ca ai facut rost de o punguta... noi gradinarii suntem fiinte neintelese!

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    4. Daca gasesc iti spun de unde am luat. Trebuie sa vorbesc cu un agronom, cred ca exista asa ceva in farmacia lor dar cu alt nume ( e un sulfat de magneziu ). Zatul de la ceai il pun si eu la hortensii :) Faina de oase greu gasesc ... dar am mai gasit ceva ingrasaminte naturale ce au si asa ceva in compozitie. Plantele au un meniu variat :)

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    5. Am gasit saruri Epsom la farmacie... fara probleme, dar cam scumpisoare ca sa le folosesc pt toate creaturile... o sa vad daca rezultatele sunt intr-adevar atat de spectaculoase. te tin la curent

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  2. I also always try to use natural fertilizers as dried cowmanure, broiled horn and dried blood. Especially my Delphiniums like this. Eggshells I use for my roses, rests of coffee I give to my rhododendrons and peels of bananas also for the roses. I put them just under the soil, otherwise it's indeed looking as a rubbish heap.

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    1. happy to hear this! it encourages me...
      so far I could not see any significant results because the plants are dormant (more or less given the temperatures), but I am confident.
      I hope that it will fortify them and make them less prone to diseases. At leats this is my hope.
      I envy your delphiniums, never had a good hand with them inspite the fact that I looove them.

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  3. Hi RC, do you grow your plants in pots or in ground? If ground, then whatever kitchen waste you have, just dug them in the ground. You will have high yielding and healthy plants which will not be much affected by insects and pests also. That's what I do with excellent results, touch-wood, no problem with insects/pests.

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    1. thank you KL. Unfortunately I garden on a terrace and all my plants are in pots. Therefore they are more exposed to stress...
      Since I am in the middle of a city, composting is not an option so I try alternative solutions...

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  4. Great Idea. I have chickens so I have a lot of egg shells and up til now I have thrown them whole onto the compost pile. The blender is a great idea. Thanks. I also wanted to add the Book - "Green Thoughts"- by Eleanor Perenyi as one of my favorite garden literature books. She is so smart, funny and really researches what she writes about. She is still so relevant today!

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    1. Hi, oh yes, Perenyi is a very enjoyable garden reading! But my absolute favourites remain Capek and Henry Mitchell - can't stop laughing with them...

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