The reason for this topic is that a local lady gardener recently told me she was purchasing a liquid plant food from a garden centre to feed her vegetables, and even though it was a concentrate and hence diluted with water it was not going very far over her gardens before she had to buy another one, and the repeated cost was not something she could afford.

I agree some of the liquid plant foods might be economical to occasionally feed a few pot plants but feeding vegetables, fruit trees and ornamentals such as your roses would be an expensive diet and likely no noticeable improvement in growth or production.

The most common fertiliser for garden plants are man made synthetic NPK water soluble compounds.

Modern synthetic NPK fertilizers are heavily rooted in technologies and industrial surpluses from World War I and World War II.

While the individual chemical concepts existed earlier, the massive global production of water-soluble fertilizers was directly fueled by wartime explosives manufacturing. (When they stopped using them to kill people they used them to kill the soil life and grow sickly plants).

The NPK rating tells you how much nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium the percentage by weight of each nutrient in the bag:

First Number (Nitrogen – N):Promotes rapid green growth, stems, and lush foliage.

Second Number (Phosphorus – P): Supports strong root development, blooms, buds, and fruit production.

Third Number (Potassium – K): Strengthens overall plant health, water regulation, disease resistance, and hardiness against stress.

Synthetic NPK fertilizers are manufactured as water-soluble mineral salts (such as ammonium nitrate, monoammonium phosphate, and potassium chloride).

Immediate availability: When water, rain, or irrigation hits the granules or powder, they quickly dissolve into ionic forms.

Direct root absorption: These dissolved ions are immediately available in the soil solution for plant roots to absorb right away, without needing soil microbes to digest or unlock them first.

Prolonged use of synthetic NPK fertilisers or over use will acidify the soil harming soil life, microbes and earth worms.

The worst case is the over use of these fertilisers including Nitrophoska Blue that tend to lock up in the soil and plants do not grow.

In the past when the Prof on Maggie Barrys TV gardening program was throwing around Nitrophoska like confetti, some people followed suit and later would phone me to say that nothing is growing in their gardens any more.

If this happens to you then you need to drench the soil with Magic Botanic Liquid to unlock the minerals.

Small amounts of synthetic NPK fertilisers can be useful growth stimulates when used sparingly by side dressing plants.

Excessive use of nitrogen fertilisers force plants to grow faster and bigger than they would do naturally without them.

This means that the plants are putting all their efforts into growth which is ‘Forced Stressed Growth’ making the plants sickly and much more susceptible to disease and attacks by insects.

In Nature the diseases and insect pests are Natures Cleaners, their job is to break down and get rid of the sickly plants to make way for the healthy ones.

Hence the dilemma of commercially grown crops as they have to produce crops that are free of blemishes and no holes or be rejected by the Supermarket.

Also the faster they can grow a crop and harvest means the quicker they can get another crop in.

Thus they pour in the nitrogen and produce sickly plants which they have to protect from pests and diseases by many chemical sprays and used very frequently.

On the other hand plants grown naturally at their own pace will protect themselves from pests and diseases.

Naturally grown plants produce secondary metabolites­such as alkaloids, flavonoids, or pyrethrins­that taste bitter, deter feeding, or poison pests.

Then when attacked, plants ramp up internal defenses or trigger systemic acquired resistance (SAR) to warn and prepare uninfected tissues. ( Sprays of aspirin kicks into action the plant’s defenses.)

Using natural foods to feed your plants will overcome many problems and produce much healthier plants and crops that grow at their own pace relative to growing conditions and supply you with very high nutritious food that tastes so good you do not have to eat much to feel full and satisfied.

Any manures from any source are natural in Nature. All two leggeds, four leggeds and ones that fly defecate (poo) and urinate as they travel through their day, feeding plants and trees along the way.

Healthy soil full of worms and microbes break down the manures making it available to plants which then grow very healthy.

Animal and chook manure are supreme foods for the soil and plants. (Its what they have been eating for thousands of years).

You can get bags of horse, chicken manures which are available though Trade Me in many areas.

Traveling around country side one sees pony poo etc signs for sale.

Gardeners that have farming friends can collect manure from under shearing sheds or cow pads from paddocks.

The only problem is the weed seeds and in particular grass seeds in the manures which if applied to your gardens will give you a crop of grasses or weeds you do not need.

To overcome this; obtain a large plastic rubbish container with a lid and place the manure in the bottom third of the container, then fill to two thirds full with (ideally) non chlorinated water.

Obtain a paddle so you able to stir the solution every so often and all the weed seeds will float to the top where with a kitchen sieve you can scoop them out.

You can add other things like chopped up sea weed (with salt on), chopped up comfrey ( a favorite with many gardeners that grow it for the purpose of feeding gardens).

Wallys Fish Food which is teaming with beneficial microbes that will multiply greatly in the manure mix putting millions of beneficial bacteria into your soils.

Then simply after giving a good stir, ladle out the liquid manure and side dress your vegetable and plants with it.

Other than a bit of time and labor you can have one of the best plant foods in the world (Used for the last few million years so proven effective).

Wallys Real Blood & Bone and Wallys Rok Solid are two natural plant foods which are best put in the planting hole of seedlings or incorporated into the soil where sowing seeds.

Then side dress the plants later with your own liquid manure mix.

All going well next week, I will have a new natural product that will allow your plants to make better use of the foods you provide whether natural or man made.

You will need to use about half the food, natural or man made and get twice the results from just a monthly spray of the foliage! Amazing stuff.

VERY LIMITED SPECIAL

I have some 2.5 litre plastic bottles that have 2.5 litres of Wallys Fish Fertiliser.

We sell 1 litre of the Fish Fertiliser for $16.00 plus shipping. (About $12 to $17.00)

This very Limited special of 2.5 Liters for only $25.00 plus shipping. Value normally $40.00(Limit one per Customer)

Shipping for the 2.5 litres in a carton is $12.50 North Island urban address or $17.35 Rural

South Island $16.00 urban or $20.85 Rural delivery

The process used to manufacture Wallys Fish Fertilier is an enzymatic hydrolysis of fish at low temperature.

This retains the proteins, amino acids, naturally occurring vitamins, 7% to 10% fish oil (including Omega 3), and 7% to 10% hydrolysed fish bone.

The addition of both seaweed and a carbon extract of humic/fulvic acid to this blend increases beneficial bacterial and fungal activity and plant nutrient availability of both calcium and magnesium.

If you need other Wallys Products then we can include the special 2.5 Fish Fert in the order while stock last.

Order on https://0800466464.co.nz/product-category/specials/ and I will phone you when I receive the order and organise payment etc.

At www.0800466464.co.nz on sub title SPECIALS

Phone 0800 466464
Garden Pages and News at www.gardenews.co.nz
Shar Pei pages at  www.sharpei.co.nz
Mail Order products at www.0800466464.co.nz

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1The right not to be deprived of life except in accordance with fundamental justice (Section 8)

2The right not to be subjected to torture or to cruel, degrading, or disproportionately severe treatment or punishment (Section 9)

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4The right to refuse to undergo any medical treatment (Section 11)

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This includes the right to freedom of thought, conscience, religion, and belief,
INCLUDING THE RIGHT TO ADOPT AND HOLD OPINIONS WITHOUT INTERFERENCE (Section 1)

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