Going organic-ish without large expense

[Steve Magruder]

I got a soil test back that says my soil pH is fine but I need 2-3 lbs. N, 1-2 lbs. P and 1-2 lbs. K per 1,000 sq. ft. 20 lbs. of 10-10-10 were recommended but I'd like to consider organic substitutes if they are not too expensive.

I am thinking of using Steer Manure Blend from Home Depot to amend the soil, but I'm unsure of how much to use. In place of using 20 lbs of synthetic 10-10-10, how much of the SMB should I use?

Also, I need to figure out how to fertilize as I transplant the tomato plants and what to add at later times, all organically if possible.

Thanks in advance for suggestions. I'm new to organic practices and would like to start at the simplest, least expensive end of the scale for now.

[Steve Magruder]

I should note that the actual area of my garden is 132 sq. ft.

[COMPOSTER]

I don't know anything about the steer manure blend and can't find an NPK analysis on the bag. Might not be too bad to amend your soil with but I'm not sure there is any fertilizer value to it. As far as an actual organic type fertilizer you might want to look into pelleted chicken manure. The products I have used in the past are Cocka doodle doo and Chickity doo. They seem to work well and are easy to apply.

[COMPOSTER]

Steve it seems odd that the test shows you need almost twice as much N as P & K and 10-10-10 was recommended. Anyway, the chickity doo doo is 5-3-2.5 which seems more in line with your soil test. I believe you would only need 4-5 lbs of this type of product for 132 sq st.

Glenn

[RayR]

This might help Steve

How to Convert an Inorganic Fertilizer
Recommendation to an Organic One


and this one...

How to Convert an Inorganic Fertilizer Recommendation
To an Organic One

[Cole_Robbie]

I'm not an organic grower, but I like Alaskan Fish, Bat Guano, and Greensand for N, P, & K respectively. Rock Phosphate is cheaper than guano for P as well. Kelp/seaweed products are popular for micronutrients. You can also buy beneficial bacteria/fungi. www.fungi.com and www.kelp4less.com are good sites to at least window shop. Local retail outlets might carry some of the same stuff. amazon has a lot, too.

The people on here who report the best results in small spaces like yours typically incorporate massive amounts of organic matter of some kind. It feeds the good bacteria, and if you get enough of them thriving, your NPK levels don't matter as much.

[RebelRidin]

Espoma's products may be readily available in local retail, Gardentone, Tomatotone, Planttone, etc. They have varying NPK ratios to work with and all qualify as organic. Planttone is 5-3-3 and matches up fairly well to your soil test identified needs.

[Redbaron]

If you want cheap I would go down to Starbucks and get some coffee grounds. About enough to fill up a 5 pound can. (dry weight) Spent coffee grounds are free. Or if you drink a lot of coffee just save it up yourself. Spread it evenly on your garden and rake it in. Then when you mow your grass save the grass clippings and lay 6 sheets thick of news paper on the ground covered with the grass clippings about 3 inches thick. Then spray the hose down over the whole thing just till the paper gets wet through the grass clippings. Later when you are ready to plant your tomatoes just pull away the grass clippings and punch a hole through the paper, plant your tomatoes and pull the grass clippings back around the base of the plant.

That's it. You are basically done for the year. No weeding, no more fertilizing, just stake your tomatoes when they need it and pick the red ones. If the grass clippings get decomposed too much just add some later.

Oh and BTW I highly recommend planting some dwarf Marigolds here and there between and around the plants. Decorative and beneficial at keeping out some pests while attracting good insects like pollinators. Probably the only organic pesticide you'll need is BT caterpillar control, (a bacteria that makes caterpillars sick) which you can buy at WallMart. Or you can just pick the bugs off by hand. Hope that helps.

[bughunter99]

This is a link that will give you a good idea of what you can put together that will work for you. Note that as Cole Robbie said, you will want to have lots of organic material-leaves and what not incorporated into the soil. It is the micro-organisms in the soil that free up the nutrients from the additives for your plants to use, and they want organic material!

http://www.cheapvegetablegardener.co...hat-nutrients/

I like to use alfalfa pellets from the feed store, bonemeal, compost, wood ash, epsom salts (just a bit), fish emulsion(when I cook fish for the family, the non-edibles get ground up for the garden), a few ground up Tums or egg shells. I also will spread around coffee grounds, cocoa bean mulch, composted manure if source known and healthy, leaf mulch, string algae and fish poo from the pond, granite dust for the trace minerals.

Stacy

[Steve Magruder]

Originally Posted by COMPOSTER

Steve it seems odd that the test shows you need almost twice as much N as P & K and 10-10-10 was recommended. Anyway, the chickity doo doo is 5-3-2.5 which seems more in line with your soil test. I believe you would only need 4-5 lbs of this type of product for 132 sq st.

Glenn

I think the 10-10-10 was recommended to meet the minimum N needs (2 lbs.) while giving the maximum P and K. There were other fertilizer blends recommended, all ensuring that the minimum 2 lbs. N was met. I had thought that tomatoes do best with not overdoing N anyway (emphasizing fruiting over a lush plant).

As for Chickity Doo Doo, from its website, it appears to be offered at a local fruit market. I'll call later today and see if they actually have it and how much it costs. Thank you for the idea.

[Steve Magruder]

Originally Posted by RayR

This might help Steve

How to Convert an Inorganic Fertilizer
Recommendation to an Organic One


and this one...

How to Convert an Inorganic Fertilizer Recommendation
To an Organic One

Thank you. These were definitely a help.

[Steve Magruder]

Originally Posted by RebelRidin

Espoma's products may be readily available in local retail, Gardentone, Tomatotone, Planttone, etc. They have varying NPK ratios to work with and all qualify as organic. Planttone is 5-3-3 and matches up fairly well to your soil test identified needs.

I did a computation and figured out that an 8 lb. bag of Planttone would be more than enough to amend my soil. This may be the easiest available choice and seems reasonably priced. Thanks for the info.

If I amend the soil with Planttone, then I have to figure out what I do next. Do I do anything additional with fertilizer as I plant? Do I follow up with additional fertilizers and when? What do I use at these later times?

[Steve Magruder]

Basically, what I'm asking is: Is amending the soil of the garden plot enough to grow tomatoes the entire season? If not, how do I maintain the plants' growth organically during the season?

[Redbaron]

Originally Posted by Steve Magruder

Basically, what I'm asking is: Is amending the soil of the garden plot enough to grow tomatoes the entire season? If not, how do I maintain the plants' growth organically during the season?

As organic material decomposes it releases additional nutrients. So yes it can be enough. That's why I suggested the mulch and the grass clippings. Green grass has good levels of nitrogen and other nutrients. If you start running low and your plants look like they need a boost. Just add more grass clippings.

"Brown" mulches like leaves generally decompose slower and pull nitrogen out, but temporarily. So use them for cover in the winter. Then next spring do the same thing. Higher nitrogen amendments (compost, manure, The PlantTone you decided on etc) in the spring for a blaze of growth. And maybe a small amount through the year in grass clippings. Brown mulches like leaves in the fall.

Follow that general rule of thumb every year, making small adjustments according to your soil tests, and eventually you'll have the best of the best "Victory Garden" around!

[Steve Magruder]

Since I mulch my grass clippings back into my grass, I don't have grass clippings to use.

What commercial organic fertilizer could I use during the season? Could I just add more Plant-tone around the plant?