The Best Organic Garden Fertilizer

Organic garden fertilizer is the choice for anybody interested in organic gardening. Even if you are gardening in a natural way, that does not mean that your garden will not need fertilizer. Plants deplete the soil of its minerals and vitamins, especially if similar crops are grown repeatedly in the same place.

Getting  the biggest and best fruits, vegetables and flowers from your garden you will need some type of organic garden fertilizer. If you have it, you can use compost produced in your own garden. If not, you have several other choices.

1. Manure and guano

One of the oldest forms of fertilizer used in both farming and gardening is manure or guano. If you have access to horses or other large animals you may be able to use their manure on your garden. However, it has the disadvantage of being rather odorous. If not aged properly,  there can be viable weed seeds that may sprout.

You will also want to think about whether the animals have been raised and fed organically. If not, their manure could contain chemicals and hormones that you may not want in your organic garden.

An alternative natural organic garden fertilizer is bat guano. This is one of the richest and most concentrated fertilizers for the soil that you will find. Containing high quantities of nitrogen and phosphorous, it is particularly good for flowering plants.

Bat guano is also reported to be effective in neutralizing or removing certain toxins from the soil. This makes it an ideal choice if you are converting a garden that has not been managed in an organic way in the past.

2. Seaweed

Seaweed extract is often used to produce organic fertilizer for gardens.  The extract can be mixed with water or other products to increase its mineral profile.

Seaweed or kelp is a vegetable-based source of fertilizer for gardens. It is particularly rich in iodine, potassium and other minerals. If used in its pure form, it contains no animal products and may therefore be more suitable for vegans and strict vegetarians than many other products..

Seaweed based organic garden fertilizer can help to promote disease resistance and healthy root and seed growth in your plants. It is especially good for leafy plants like tomatoes, bell peppers and corn. It’s  nutrients are delivered in a form that is very easily absorbed by plants.

3. Worm castings

They make good fertilizer and are particularly beneficial for the roots of plants including root vegetables and grass lawns

Worm castings will be formed naturally by the worms in your garden if you have plenty. You can see them left as thin spirals of fine soil on the surface  of the ground.   If your garden is newly established or you want to increase the variety of worm castings, you can buy either the castings or live worms from garden supply stores.

4. Bone meal

Many regular fertilizers contain bone meal, but you can also find organic garden fertilizer that is based on by products of animal farming including bone and blood meal. You can choose 100% organic fertilizer  if you want to be all organic, or one that is all natural.