Hello: I'm just starting into a vegetable garden patch. And by "starting", I mean I'm in the midst of building some small raised beds for a couple of small plots to keep the salad bowl full for the season (hopefully). I REALLY REALLY REALLY want to use organic soil that does not use any animal waste. By animal, I mean cow, horse, pig, etc. Earthworms castings are fine. I'd even be okay with fish meal - but worry my veggies will taste fishy - and I have a very sensitive taste so will pickup even a slight hint of fishy. In my search through the Lower Mainland I can't seem to find a vendor that sells a quality "certified organic" soil that does not include animal waste. Does one exist? If so, could someone please pass along the details. And of course... vendors that use "night soil" are completely out of the question.
Why don't you use your existing soil? Or import some topsoil with no amendments. To increase fertility, I have some organic fertilizer recipes I can share with you. That said, people have been farming with manure for millenia. What's the problem with that?
Thanks for the reply: Regarding existing soil: It's a new house so I don't know what the previous owners used in plant beds (i.e., pesticide, herbicide, etc.). For flowers and plants, I suppose I don't really care. However, where I will grow my food I absolutely do care. So I will start the vegetable patch with my own soil. Regarding manure: True, my grandmother used manurer so I grew up that way - and I'm sure the organic vegetables I buy in the store use manure. However, in my own backyard I was hoping to do without it completely. Vegan soil, so to speak. I don't have an issue with using fish - however, noted that as this is Bear Aware country it is not advisable to use fish or bone meal in your gardens as it is a bear attractant. Also, I think if I spend the extra money to buy organic seeds because I don't want the GMO and systemic pesticides, then it seems a bit silly to plant it into steer manure that is loaded with GMO/systemic pesticide based corn grain, animal byproducts, and antibiotics. I'm finding it hard/impossible to source a soil that is truly "certified organic" right down the cow doo-doo. I don't mind taking the time to source it. And I don't mind paying extra for it. But time is of the essence and I really would like to start a vegetable patch that is additive and chemical free. The cows from my grandmother's era ate grass, not corn and animal by-products, and weren't on a chronic diet of antibiotics. I'm of the opinion that if it's garbage in - it's garbage out and if I'm going to put poop in my garden I want the poop to be derived of natural organic ingredients. Oh, and yes - would totally appreciate the organic fertilizer recipes!
Organic fertilizer recipe with guaranteed success: 3 parts seed meal (if you can't get seed meal use the cheapest dog food you can buy) 1 part bone meal 1 part blood meal 1 part agricultural lime (calcium carbonate) 1 part dolomite lime (calcium/magnesium) 1 part gypsum (calcium sulphate) You can also add 1 part Kelp meal and rock crusher dust (free from any rock crushing operation) for trace nutrients. All the above (except crusher dust which is free for the asking) can be purchased relatively inexpensively from any professional ag store that serves farmers. Seed meal can be purchased at ag feed stores What you don't use now you can take with you if you move. Buy in 50 pound bags for maximum savings. Don't pay more per pound at a garden center by purchasing the smaller amounts they typically sell. To apply, broadcast 6 quarts over 100 square feet (10 x 10 feet). Dig into the soil with a shovel or rototiller. For higher demand vegetables, sidedress the plants with the fertilizer every couple of weeks, adding another 6 quarts total over the growing season.
Unfortunalty tree nuts recipe is no longer Organic as Seed meal is now GMO and the Blood and Bone meal come from slaughter houses supplyed by animals pumped full of anti-biotics and hormones. This is also the reason Organic Gardeners are leaning away from manure as it too is full of hormones and anti-biotics not to mention the animals themselves fed on GMO food. Organic fertilizer recipes WILL NOT WORK IF YOU HAVE NO SOIL LIFE. Transform' products................ I don't use them myself as I am compost crazy. Also, its best to learn about Compost tea, sheet mulching, EM ( effective microorganisms) Mycorrhizae and look up information on the Soil Food Web and Soul Organic Landscape Standards. There is alot of false and or misleading information about Organics out the these days as most look to cash in on our health. "I feel like one of those creepy moments where I say use the force." Good luck to you fellow Greenie
Where do you draw the line? The food products you compost may have non organic components somewhere along their growth line. Many certified organic farms use bone and blood meal to feed their soil. Will you find traces of hormones in dried blood? Will the soil enzymes/bacteria/fauna transform these into harmless substances? Regarding manure, If you are worried about growth hormones/antibiotics, try to get it from horses. Many horse owners feed their horses premium feed (which means highly mineralized) and don't use antibiotics or growth hormones. The fertilizer I suggest feeds the soil. If you don't want to use the seed meals (I am sure you could find organic if you tried) or dried blood and bone you can still use the other mineral based components which will still contribute to improving the soil. Many "composters" short change themselves as the produce they grow is a product of their soil. Unless you perform a soil test you don't know what your soil is lacking. Many soils are under-mineralized and therefore the produce from it is under-mineralized, meaning that it is not as healthy as it could be. Certified organic produce has been shown to be less nutritious that conventionally grown produce if the conventional farmer properly mineralizes/maintains their soil. I'm suggesting a combination of both methods along with composting. I have read extensively on how to improve soils and am not devoted to any one way of doing things. There is more to making top quality soils than just adding compost. If your soils are lacking minerals no amount of compost or fungi will create or add meaningful amounts in the soil. There are natural clays, rock phosphates/etc. that will highly improve soils combined with composting and other methods. The fertilizer I mentioned earlier provides most of those nutrients quickly and feeds the soil. Proper compost will take one to two years to make, and it doesn't go far if your garden is larger than a few square meters. What to do in the meantime?
I totally agree with mineralization, Glacial Rock dust is the key as well as Rock Phosphate. Bio-dynamics uses collodial rock dusts mixed with water using a vortex but many find this way to far out. I also agree where do you draw the line? Horse manure if Organic is great and once experienced with it it can also be used to extend your growing season, you would just need to rinse the salts out which would in turn leach most of the + charged soil elements and perhalps turn anaerobic for a time from the excess water needed to flush the salts. As for compost taking 2+ years that is hogwash. I just finished an inoculator batch in 57 days using a C/N ratio of 26:1 it is finished and ready to be used as a light top dress and in compost tea. The indore method take 6 months, the U of C method takes 60 days, the Bio-dynamic methods take 5-6 months, Vermicompost takes 6 months, sheet mulching takes 2 years, and Bokashi takes a week in the bucket and 6 months to turn to Humus. Most people go wrong thinking they need 2 ft or more of compost in their beds, they don't. A top dress in spring and fall along with mulching and compost teas are all you need. You don't feed the plants you feed the soil organisms. I was not aware that you can use blood and bone in Canada, I know you can't in Organic Landscape Managment , I also know what is not allowed in Canada is allowed in the U.S under their Organic Standards , example Sewer Sludge can be used in the states on an Organic farm but here they would never be Certified if the did as they contain antibiotics, growth hormones and other pathogens commonly refered to as Prions. Prions do not break down in compost and remain in the soil. I will agree with tree nut that plants and soil microbes can and do break down these materials and elemnts but it takes time. Don't get me wrong tree nut, your recipe rocks or it did. I have used nearly the same ingredients myself but things change.A good replacement for the Seed meal could be an Organic Rabbit food and for the bone meal a flavoring of wood ash , also if its for veggies perhalps a diluted solution of warm water and Organic mollasses will help as it feeds the bacteria you will need to grow healthy veggies.
After putting my garden soil into an ideal mineral balance, adding composted plants and manure, and using the recipe I have mentioned above, I grow crops that are so far above what you can buy in a grocery store it is amazing. For example my nantes carrots grew up to 12 inches long and 2 inches thick and were incredibly sweet and tender. My kids won't even eat store bought carrots raw now. Other plants did equally as well. I used alfalfa meal for seed meal because it had the highest protein (nitrogen) levels compared to other seed meals, and as far as I know is not genetically modified in Canada. Edit: I should also mention I used humic acid in my garden soils which to me made the soil come alive biologically (My garden soil started as nutrient deficient flood plain river sand). It makes a huge difference in a veggie garden... I used the granular form http://www.blackearth.com/products/
Well, I finally assembled my raised beds today - ready for soil and planting. And then I stopped dead in my tracks. The garden centre sold me "Dutch Treat Potting Soil" but I can't find any information about what is in it - or even if there are any additives, etc. I stood there staring at the bags for 20 minutes before I finally resigned to not filling the raised beds just yet and continuing my search for a soil that is organic and does not use any animal byproducts. I realize that manure, blood, bone, etc. add important nutrients and will make a garden thrive - but is it not possible to accomplish a healthy and vibrant vegetable garden that is based strictly on vegetarian source materials? I do want to (and will) learn all I can about composting - but that will take time - and the compost will take time. I would really like to have at least a small vegetable garden this year and so time is not on my side, so I must rely on a purchased soil. Am I the only person who is on this quest? Feels like I'm searching for the holy grail.
Daisy, I understand your pain. I too have made the decision not to add animal derived products into my garden. My self imposed ban includes a fish products as well. After a few failed attempts using self made compost alone (maybe not enough of it was the issue) I have found great success with alfalfa pellets. alfalfa meal works too, but the pellets are inexpensive and not as dusty to work with. I simply mix into the soil and plant as usual. (instructions are on the bag) Mid summer I mix up a batch of the pellets in water and give everything a good drink. I don't even worry about making a tea like the manufacture recommends, I just stir it up well and away I go. The results are amazing!! My crops are way better than they ever were, even back to my old days of using commericial fertilizers. My theory for my success is the boost in microbes along with the minerals and nutrients in the pellets provide the perfect feeding combination for the plants, whether it be vegetables, flowers, or fruit. The product I use also has the advantage of being certified organic, which is also a great plus as certified organic alfalfa is very difficult to find. Alfalfa Green is the product name and can be found with a little digging and a few phone calls. Good Luck!
Thanks for the information - I'll look into it for next season. I ended up buying dirt with manure - it proved impossible to find a mix that didn't contain anything. Paid a premium price and then nothing grew - not sure if it was the soil or the raised beds (they are 3 feet off the ground) or the fact that I started planting so late in season. I guess we'll see next year.
Daizy, seaweeds that pile up high on the beach after a winter storm should be a good source of organic material for your garden. I would leave it out in the rain for a few days to remove the salt and then either dig it in to the soil or add it to compost. In either case it would be good to next cover it to keep the rain from leaching away the good, soluble parts.
Seaweed's great, but resist the urge to go for the rotted, easy drifts high up on the beach: in my experience, these older piles are full of seeds from beach/shoreline plants that when transplanted to the cozy environs of the garden, explode on the scene and plague you for years. Stick to the fresh stuff, and you'll be good.
