Hi Gardeners!
This year, the garden board approved the purchase of some soil amendments for each gardener to use. This will help the garden as a whole in addition to gardeners individually.
I will unnecessarily remind you that these amendments are provided for all gardeners, so please just take what you need, and not more than that, to ensure that everybody gets some. If we have some left over for next year: awesome! It doesn’t lose potency.
We bought three dry nutrients:
- BrixBlend Basalt
- Fish Meal
- Kelp Meal OG
Basalt 2: Fish 1: Kelp 1 >>> 2:1:1 ratio; For a standard sized plot, use 1/2c:1/4c:1/4c
And one liquid
- Fish Hydrolysate with Kelp
Mix and apply anytime.
I am going to put a physical instruction sheet in the shed as well, but I wanted to put it here as a resource on how to us these amendments.
Basalt:
BrixBlend Basalt A paramagnetic stone powder from the Pioneer Valley of Massachusetts for remineralizing and enhancing the general foundational fertility of the soil. This pure basalt powder contains 49.3% silicon dioxide (SiO2), 13.3% aluminum oxide (Al2O3), 9.2% calcium oxide (CaO), 5.7% magnesium oxide (MgO) and many other trace minerals. FedCoSeeds.com
How to use: for a standard sized plot (32SqFt), use approximately 1/2 cup mixed with compost, or sprinkled on top & lightly raked in. Apply any time.
Fish Meal:
A byproduct of catfish farming in Mississippi, put through a hammermill to produce flowable particles that pass easily through a drop spreader or planter. No stabilizers or additives. Doesn’t smell bad (for fish meal) and handles extremely well. Once in the ground it does not continue to smell. Excellent source of nitrogen and phosphorus. Use as a sidedressing or mix into compost to provide added nitrogen and a bacterial boost. FedCoSeeds.com
How to use: for a standard sized plot (32SqFt), use approximately 1/4 cup with compost, or sprinkled on top & lightly raked in. Apply any time, but best in fall & spring to build soil.
Kelp Meal:
Kelp Meal OG Dried and ground seaweed contains trace minerals, enzymes and amino acids. An excellent source of naturally chelated elements. Brassicas respond well to it.
Added to animal feed, kelp provides dozens of chelated trace minerals, 12 vitamins and 21 amino acids, although mostly in concentrations too low to serve as the only source of micronutrients. Be sure to feed a well-balanced mineral premix as well. Kelp is an excellent source of iodine and vitamin A. Enthusiastically sought by livestock: I remember visiting a local farm several years ago where a loose goat followed me into the house so that she could stuff her head into the open bag of kelp sitting in the mudroom. Feed free-choice or mix in at 1–2% of total ration.
Harvested off the coast of Maine and processed at North American Kelp in Waldoboro, where they dry the live plants quickly at low temperatures for optimal preservation of nutrients. Certified organic. FedCoSeeds.com
How to use: for a standard sized plot (32SqFt), use approximately 1/4 cup mixed with compost, or sprinkled on top & lightly raked in. Apply any time.
Fish Hydrolysate with Kelp
Bring your own spray bottle: this stuff is applied to the leaves!
Hydrolysate with Kelp (2-5-0.2) 90% fish hydrolysate and 10% liquid kelp concentrate provides both the N, P & K of fish and the micro-nutrients and growth hormones of kelp. Can be used as a foliar feed, in drip irrigation and for better seed germination and seedling growth. Improves plant vigor and stress resistance, increases storage life. FedCoSeeds.com
How to use: 2–3 Tbsp/gal water for foliar spray. Note: For a standard-sized spray bottle, use about 1 tablespoon & fill up.