Confused about which fertilizer to choose for your garden? Stick with us as we walk you through how to determine what nutrients your plants need, how to read fertilizer labels, and how to choose a good organic fertilizer.

Does your garden need fertilizer?

Fertilizer. It is a necessary ingredient to any garden. But sometimes I feel like my garden is pickier than my five year old. And changing it’s mind just as often. Let’s review this year shall we…

I started the year out using my favorite fertilizer- fish fertilizer. Everything was going just fine, except for my poor little tomatoes. They were weak and struggling, so I decided to give them an extra boost and purchased a slow release fertilizer. Thus- my fertilizer routine changed to fertilize everything but the tomatoes with the fish fertilizer. Then in mid-May, my beans were yellow. Really yellow. Yellow leaves are a sign of nitrogen deficiency. A quick look at my fish fertilizer showed that my nitrogen percentages (more on this later) were too low to help my beans. So I switched to a high nitrogen fertilizer. My beans got better. They look great and are getting heavy with delicious, beany goodness. But now, let’s talk about my cucumbers. For weeks I have only had male flowers, no females, which is unusual. I use heirloom cucumber seeds and the same seeds were heavy producers last year, so I did some research. The problem? Too much nitrogen. Sheesh. Talk about a headache.

Does every plant in my garden require something different?

Well, yes. Different plants have different needs. Different plants leave different nutrients in the soil and take different nutrients. That is why crop rotation is so important. During the year you will probably find that some plants have differing nutritional needs, even when they are in the same soil. However, all plants have a need for some level of the three main ingredients in fertilizer: Nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K). When looking at commercial fertilizer, you will usually see three numbers displayed in big bold print on the front of the package. This is the fertilizer grade and indicates the percentage of each of these nutrients present in the fertilizer. For example, the fish fertilizer I use has a grade of 5-1-1, so 5% Nitrogen, 1% Phosphorus, 1% Potassium. Easy, right? If the front of the package does not have three numbers displayed, look on the back for the breakdown… the label looks a bit like the nutritional info from a package of food.

Easy to read fertilizer grade on my fish fertilizer bottle.

The grade information on the back of a fertilizer package.

Now the question is- which fertilizer do you choose for your garden?

One way to decide is to get your soil tested. This will probably give you a good idea on what you need. Another way is to read your plants… they really do have a lot to say! You should choose a fertilizer based on what your plants are lacking or are prone to lack in the nutrient department. It is up to you to decide if you want to use different fertilizer on different plants or to choose one fertilizer for everything.

Organic Fertilizers = The Long Game

Gardens really benefit from organic fertilizer. Composting provides a great natural source of fertilizer. Manure can also be used, but be careful as “hot manure” (aka fresh manure from most animals) can be dangerous to plants, causing plant burn from the roots up. Llama (my personal favorite) and alpaca manure is ok to use fresh. All other manure should be composted first. Never use dog or cat feces. Grass clippings, worm castings, eggshells, bone meal and coffee grounds are all excellent additions to garden. All of these organic additions are worked into the soil and provide long term benefits to the garden. Good gardens start with good soil. Because of that, it will probably take a longer time before you really see the benefits.

Commercial fertilizer is a great source of adding nutrients quickly and will allow you to see results sooner, but they are not a substitute for healthy soil. With that being said, I apply some sort of fertilizer weekly. My garden just does better with it. In my opinion, this is the best way to add the supplements that my plants clearly need and clearly need now.

The Magic of Llama Manure

My dad raises llamas and on a recent trip to visit him, I brought home a big bag of llama manure. One benefit of llama manure is that it doesn't stink... thank goodness, since it was a 1000+ mile drive home! When I finally made it home, I filled a five gallon bucket about half way up with manure and then filled the rest of the bucket up with water. I let this sit for about 24 hours and then used a cup to water my plants with the "llama tea" I had brewed. I sprinkled the remaining manure bits throughout my garden and around my trees and bushes. Over time, the manure will break down and provide long term benefits to my soil and will serve as a long lasting fertilizer.

My llama tea brewing... I was especially grateful for the odorless nature of the manure during this stage!

My tea as I was adding it the garden. My daughter loves to have tea parties and was mortified when she learned that I made a tea out of poop.

Some left over bits near my carrots.

Final Words

When you feel that your garden needs a commercial fertilizer, standing on the fertilizer row of your local nursery can be overwhelming, there are so many choices! My advice- choose a fertilizer that is complete (does not have a “0” in its N-P-K grade rating), is easy to apply, and is meeting the needs of your garden. Lauresa and I both love fish fertilizer. It is organic, but gives your garden a good dose of direct benefits… so it is a bit like the best of both organic and commercial worlds. If you feel like your plants are lacking a particular nutrient, get a new fertilizer with a higher N, P, or K number- personal preference will be just fine!

Happy Gardening!

Mariah