Organic compost is ideal for the vast majority of plants . Due to its natural origin, the roots absorb it much better and that ends up influencing their health. In fact, when they receive the nutrients at an adequate rate, their defense system is strengthened.
When we have something as important as a garden, whether in pots or in the ground, it is interesting to know how to compost organic to achieve an excellent harvest. Even if we only have ornamental plants, if we take care of them with products of natural origin, we are sure to see how they get more and more beautiful.
What are organic fertilizers?
Before going into the subject, let’s first see what they are, since this will make it easier to understand how they are made. Well, organic fertilizers are those that have a natural origin, be it from plants (leaves, branches, peels of some fruits, etc.), and / or from animals (basically manure, but it can also be urine). When this organic matter falls to the ground, it gradually decomposes thanks to the action of insects, worms, snails and by microorganisms such as bacteria and fungi, enriching it with the nutrients that are released.
But in addition, other changes take place in it, since its characteristics improve, being able to become lighter, which makes the air circulate more easily between the grains of sand that make up the terrain. Thus, the risk of waterlogging and, therefore, of root rot is reduced.
How do you do it?
The way of preparing organic fertilizer varies depending on the type, so we are going to see which are the most common:
Green manure
Image – Flickr / Huerta Agroecológica Com
The green manure is obtained from various types of plants: legumes (bean, soybean, lentils, etc.), cruciferous vegetables (carrot, arugula, cabbage, etc.) and Gramineae (wheat, corn, oats, etc.). What you do is plant them in the ground, and take care of them until they reach their final height but without letting them bloom. Afterwards, they are cut and chopped, to later bury them near the plants to be fertilized.
These are the nutrients it provides : mainly nitrogen, essential for plant growth; but also others such as phosphorus or potassium.
Compost
Do you usually throw food scraps in the trash? Well, we recommend you stop doing it. There are many leftovers that will be useful to plants: banana and egg peels, green leaves, fruit skins, flowers . You do not have to add meat or fish to the compost , since they fill up with fungi immediately and that would spoil all the work; but the thorns will do you good if they are cleaned with water.
The steps to follow are:
- Get a compost bin or a wooden tray about 40 centimeters high by whatever you want wide.
- Put a layer of straw 30 centimeters high, and on top of it leaves (green or dry), branches, and any other pruning. Then, pour plenty of water to moisten it.
- Now, add another layer of about 10 centimeters of food leftovers (you know: vegetables, egg and banana shells, flowers …). Re-moisten.
- The next step is to cover everything with a layer of about 10 centimeters of manure or powdered mulch, and add water again.
- After 15 days you have to turn it over, and again once a week.
It is important that the temperature is kept high, between 30 and 65ºC so that the organic matter decomposes well. If this is not the case, you have to add more layers of soil, mulch and / or garden debris, always trying to maintain a balance between all the layers.
To avoid bad odors, you can cover it with branches or leaf litter , but you also have to avoid over-moistening it.
The nutrients that compost provides are : nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and others such as copper, boron, zinc and iron.
Cow dung tea
You can find cow manure at any nursery or garden store. Once at home, follow these steps to convert it into liquid compost:strong>
- Find a place that does not get the sun. This is especially important if it is summer, since in the shade the smell will not be so unpleasant.
- If you have an old pillowcase you can use it to make manure tea. Tie one end with string.
- Then fill it with 14 liters of cow manure, and tie off the missing end.
- Now, put the cover with the manure in a container with water and leave it there for 4 days. It must be well submerged. Of course, do not cover the container because the production of gases will be high.
- After that time, pour the resulting liquid into a bucket of about 18 liters and dilute it in water.
Now, you can use it to fertilize, and you will thus obtain these nutrients : nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, and manganese.
Other types of homemade fertilizers
Finally, if you want to fertilize your plants with other homemade products, we recommend doing it with:
- Eggshells : you can chop them and put them on top of the earth. They provide calcium, which is a nutrient that intervenes in the transpiration of plants.
- Banana peels: chopped too. If they are thrown in the garden or garden, copper, manganese, potassium, and iron will be released. All of them will help them to breathe and grow better.
- Lawn and leaves : the remains of green pruning, as well as the leaves that fall from the trees can be thrown on the ground. Little by little they will decompose, and thus, the earth will be fertilized.
- Tea bags: tea leaves contain 5% nitrogen, so placing the bags around the plants in the garden is very interesting. Of course, we do not advise doing it in the pots as they could be filled with fungi.
- Vinegar : if you add a teaspoon of vinegar to a liter of water and then water the plant, you will provide it with iron, calcium, potassium, sodium and magnesium. These nutrients will help you perform your vital functions.
Do you know other organic fertilizers? We hope you found what you have learned here interesting.
