There are two types of fertilizers. One is made of chemicals or inorganic materials. The second type of fertilizer is know as organic or natural fertilizers. You will need to decide with one is right for you and your soil.

Chemical or inorganic fertilizers

Chemical fertilizers can burn your roots, if applied in the wrong manner. Chemical fertilizers are really not good for your soil. Because they will kill the microorganisms in the soil. Besides the root system of the plants will absorb these chemicals and what goes into the plants will go into the fruits and vegetables Then when you eat these fruits and vegetables then the chemicals will be in you. If you use these fertilizers then they should be used on plants that are not eaten. Like flowers, ground covers, and such. You shouldn't use these fertilizers on your yard either. because they can be absorbed through the skin if you like to walk barefoot in the yard. Or lay down in the grass. Especially when children are present. I don't know of a kid yet that doesn't come in from playing in the yard that's not scratching because of playing in the grass.

While chemical fertilizers promote quick growth for you plants. It will also produce weak plants, because they do not have time to mature good root system. without a good root system it will cause under development of the plant itself. when plants are weak this will cause them to be susceptible to diseases.

Now on to Organic Fertilizers
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Organic or Living FertilizerThe reason I say living is because this fertilizer has living microorganisms living in it. Which is good for the soil and roots of the plants. Which in turn is good for the plants, and the fruits and vegetables that they grow.


Manures:
I like using animal manure, because I can usually get if for nothing. All I did was drive around for a little bit and found some places that had horses, goats, cows, or chickens. Most of the time they will be happy for you to take it off their hands.

I like horse and cow manure the best because they eat a lot of weeds, grass, or hay. Cows have the best digested food because they will as they say (chew the cud) which is recycling the grasses and hay that they eat. Horses have a tendency to half way chew there food, so you will get a lot of vegetation with their manure.

You can use pig manure only if they are fed vegetarian foods. But you have to be careful becasue pigs will eat meat also. This would not be good for your soil or plants. Just like dog or cat manure. I could give you all the scientific reasons why, and I will if you ask in the comment section.

Good Sources of Nitrogen are: cottonseed, alfalfa, fish emulsion.
Good Sources of phosphorus are: poultry manure, rock phosphorus, bonemeal.
Good Sources of potassium granite meal, kelp meal, dairy manure.

But if you are a newbie to gardening I would suggest sticking to the horse and cow manures, When using these manures, I always pile it up into a pile and wet it down cover it with a plastic painters cloth, or tarp. Then let it sit for about six to eight weeks. Turning the pile at least once a week. Be sure to keep the pile damp. This will cook the pile and any seeds that are in the manure. This will kill the seeds and they won't germinate. If you don't do this the seeds will start growing again, then you will have to deal with unwanted plants in your yard or garden.

There are many nutrients in your soil already, there is nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, salt, and in my case cliche'. These nutrients are vital for the plants to grow healthy and strong. Using compost will put these nutrients back into the soil. You can use eggshells for calcium. You can take these eggshells and crush them and soak them in water overnight. The next morning you can take this and pour on your plants. The plants will soak the calcium up in no time. You can also use the crushed eggshells in the garden by just sprinkling them around your plants. This will discourage soft skinned insects from crawling on your plants.

Compost Tea:

You can also use a compost tea, which is made up from organic materials. Take some compost and put it in a bucket or pot, then add water and let it sit for a few days. The water will turn dark from the nutrients in the water. Then pour this tea on your plants. They will love it, better than just plain water. If you want to give it an added kick, then put some manure into the tea.

TIP: I use a 5 gallon plastic bucket, drill a 1/2 inch hole in the side of the bucket. Then I glue (use water resistant glue) a kc nipple and valve into the hole. I then attach a 1/2 inch plastic drip hose on the kc nipple. I run the 1/2 inch plastic hose down the row of my garden. Then I poke holes into the drip hose where my plants are located. I do this for each of my rows. I built a bench to hold the buckets about three feet off the ground. This will gravity feed the tea down the hose and water the plants over time. All I have to do is fill the buckets with fresh tea when my plants need a drink. When the buckets run dry, just turn off the valves and refill the buckets. Add a little manure and compost in the buckets to keep the tea flowing.


You can find more information on my blog about composting.

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