There are entire books and college classes on the science of soil and fertilizer. At the risk of glossing over the immense amount of work that so many have done to bring us this knowledge, let’s just say that the best all-purpose plant fertilizer has some combination of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, along with smaller amounts of nutrients like zinc, manganese, magnesium, and many others.
If you want to make the most of your efforts, a soil sample test will tell you what you need to balance your soil.
Another good reason for a soil test? Researchers at Brown University in Rhode Island found that “lead-based paint spread more than 400 feet from nearby water towers, and often penetrated more than 12 inches below the soil surface.”
The quality of your soil is important, but the safety of your soil might be even more-so.
Is it contaminated with old lead paint that chipped off your house? Used oil from someone changing their motor oil in the backyard? Perhaps arsenic from the treated wood on your old deck? Maybe the manure runoff from the farm uphill? Chemical waste from the old factory upriver? Leaky septic system? Pesticides? Or maybe your home is newly built on land that was once an industrial site?
In the articles below, we dive into everything you need to know about soil and fertilizer, such as soil safety, improving soil quality, drainage, using fertilizer, making fertilizer, and growing your best, most nutritious garden. And you can learn even more in our How to Grow a Vegetable Garden: 10 Things Every Gardener Needs to Know Before Starting a Food Garden freebie. Enjoy!
When you’re looking at plant food for hydroponics, things can get a little confusing. Typically, in gardening, we think about oxygen, water, soil, and sunlight. But the entire equation is different with hydroponic gardening. Our “sunlight” usually comes in the form of grow lights. And, of course, you can generally arrange those to provide the […]
I’ll be the first to admit that I planted many a garden without soil sample testing. Looking back, that probably explains a lot. The poor production, wilting, stunted growth, and just the plain old failure to thrive were more common than I’d care to remember. But it doesn’t need to be this way. Soil sample […]
Okay, maybe learning how to fertilize container vegetables isn’t the best-kept secret in gardening, but for years it sure as heck felt like it. I can’t begin to tell you how many plants I over or under-fertilized throughout the years. Yellowed or brown wilting leaves signaled, to me, that the plants needed more water and […]
While you may only need sunlight, soil, and water to grow a garden, adding in some organic fertilizer for vegetables and herbs can kick things up a notch. Think of it as the multivitamin you take to boost your energy a bit or the treats you give your dog that helps with that shiny coat. It’s just that little something extra that takes your garden from bountiful to calling your neighbors to come get some squash because you have 5 tons of it.
Unlike taking the SATs, testing soil pH levels in your vegetable garden should not induce stress-related hives and anxiety. On the contrary, finding out your garden’s pH level is pretty darn easy and can make a big difference in how well your garden grows.
Before I started composting, I didn’t love the idea. I knew it would need to be far from the house to keep the gross out, like flies, smells, and rodents. And who is really going to bring their dinner out into the woods to compost?
You can find an all-purpose cleaner, all-purpose flour, all-purpose anything, really. It’s nice that way. All your needs get taken care of with one item. It’s true for plant fertilizer, too. You don’t need to buy one for your tomatoes, one for your carrots, another for your herbs, and so on. Even better, the best all-purpose plant fertilizer is free! Or at least cheap.
