Experienced gardeners know the advantages of using organic fertilizers and biologicals in addition to regular application of organic compost. Try them for your gardens to enhance the health and vitality of your flowers, fruits, and vegetables. Fertilizers not only strengthen your plants with all the micronutrients they need but also help them generate vibrant blooms and bountiful produce. The experts at Lyngso Garden Materials explain how organic fertilizers can help you achieve attractive and healthy gardens.
Organic Fertilizers and Biologicals are a Gardening Essential
Starting a home garden in your yard? Setting up pots and planters on a balcony? Adorning a window with a splash of green? No matter how small or large your garden is, using organic fertilizers is critical to the health of your soil microbiology and the growth of your plants.
What are fertilizers? Why are they essential? Made up of three key macronutrients, nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K), also called N-P-K, fertilizers enrich your soil and make it more conducive for your plants to thrive.
N: Enables lush and dense plant growth
P: Supports the transfer of energy throughout the plant for root development and flowering
K: Helps strengthen plants’ ability to resist disease and withstand difficult growing conditions
Without balanced N-P-K, your soil may not be able to provide adequate nutrition to the plants. Getting a soil analysis, understanding your soil quality, and using the right choice of fertilizers to amend your soil structure can help you achieve the garden of your dreams.
What Is the Difference Between Organic and Synthetic Fertilizers?
The difference between organic and synthetic fertilizers is that organic fertilizers are derived from natural sources and contain essential nutrients that slowly release into the soil over time. In comparison, synthetic fertilizers are artificially created chemicals designed to load up your plants with nutrients through a fast-release mode. As a result, you may notice a quick growth spurt in your plants, but it could be short-lived. While synthetic fertilizers provide fast results, they can also harm beneficial microorganisms in the soil and cause long-term environmental damage.
Top Advantages of Organic Fertilizers
1. Enriches the Quality of the Soil
Organic fertilizers enrich the soil quality by increasing its organic matter content, improving soil structure, and enhancing its water-holding capacity.
2. Provides the Micronutrients That Your Plants Need in Tiny Amounts
Micronutrients like iron, zinc, and copper are essential for plant growth and development and can be supplied in small quantities through organic fertilizers.
3. Enables Long-Term, Sustainable Nourishment and Development of Your Plants
With a slow, steady release of nutrients, organic fertilizers offer sustainable, long-term plant nourishment and development, avoiding over-fertilization and nutrient leaching.
4. Enhances Beneficial Microbial Activity in Your Soil
Organic fertilizers promote the growth of beneficial microbial activity in the soil. This helps break down organic matter, making nutrients readily available to garden plants.
5. Prevents Toxic Runoff Into Local Waters
Organic fertilizers release nutrients slowly, reducing the risk of fertilizer runoff and preventing toxic runoff into local waters, which can cause algal blooms as well as contaminate the groundwater.
Top Disadvantages of Synthetic Fertilizers
Synthetic fertilizers can have negative effects on the environment and human health, as well as on the long-term health of plants and soil. Compared to organic fertilizers, synthetic fertilizers:
- Do not enhance the soil quality as they directly feed the plants in high doses
- Could disturb the water balance in plant tissues, which can cause browning or other damage to your plants
- Do not provide long-term nutrition, thus making your plants dependent on regular infusions of fertilizer for survival
- Wash off from your garden into local water bodies, causing chemical pollution, bioaccumulating nutrients in our waterways, and threatening the survival of fish and other aquatic life
- Negatively impact beneficial microbial life in your soil
What Are the Different Types of Organic Fertilizers?
From compost and manure to fish meal and alfalfa, refined organic fertilizers may include products that:
- Build mineral content
- Add microbes and nutrients
- Improve soil health
- Provide plants with primary minerals (N-P-K)
- Do all the above
Besides organic fertilizers, you may also want to look at biologicals and minerals that improve nutrient uptake and root growth, while also fighting crop pests and diseases. They are available in liquid, granular, and powder form.
Biological products can include living organisms, such as mycorrhizal fungi or beneficial bacteria, packaged in easy-to-use, environment-friendly formulations. They help to keep your plants pest and disease-free.
Mineral products contain precious minerals that are mined or milled from ancient volcanic dust or sedimentary deposits. While some contain secondary minerals, such as calcium, sulfur, and magnesium, others contain the microminerals, such as copper, zinc, and iron. Minerals make for an effective additive to enhance root structure and promote overall plant health.
Our favorite Organic Fertilizer with added microbes is Bio-Live. Use this as an all purpose fertilizer for vegetables, fruit trees, ornamentals, shrubs, flowers and more!
Shop Quality Organic Fertilizers at Lyngso Garden Materials
At Lyngso, we believe in feeding the soil and letting the soil feed the plants. The organic products that we stock help build soil structure, allow air and water to reach deep into the plants’ roots, and promote robust and healthy plant growth. Choose from a variety of organic fertilizers, biologicals and minerals that nourish your plants and help them flourish. Whether you grow flowers, fruits, vegetables, or ornamental plants, our experts can assist you in selecting the right products to sustain them.
For over 60 years, we have been serving the gardening needs of customers across the San Francisco Bay Area.
To buy quality garden supplies or learn more about using organic fertilizers in your gardens, speak to the experts at Lyngso Garden Materials. Call us at 650-364-1730 or visit our store.
