Washington Gardener Magazine is the award-wining publication for Mid-Atlantic gardeners be local gardeners.
Wednesday, February 02, 2011
Video Wednesday: Salad Box Talk at Seed Exchange
Montgomery County Master Gardener Mary McKnight gives tips on the Salad Table/Salad Box project at last weekend's Washington Gardener Magazine Seed Exchange in Maryland. Our Virginia Seed Exchange takes place this Saturday and there are still spaces if you'd like to join us. Find out full Seed Exchange details here.
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Hi,
ReplyDeleteI would love to talk to you about an issue that I feel is a hot topic in environmental news. I have written an article that I think your readers would be interested in seeing on your blog.
I'm looking to promote that idea that by encouraging grocery shoppers to branch out from their usual selections and to join the local food movement, they can help create a more sustainable agricultural system.
Kori Bubnack
k.bubnack@gmail.com
Posting this for Carol Allen:
ReplyDeleteHere is a bit more information to help gardeners navigate reading a fertilizer label. The terms water soluble1 and water insoluble2 define a chemical form of nitrogen. Most brands of fertilizer available to the home owner contain both soluble and insoluble forms of nitrogen. Most organically sourced forms of nitrogen by their nature are water insoluble. Water insoluble takes more time to become available to your plants. There is an advantage to having some fertilizer immediately available and some available later.
Any form or brand of fertilizer can be over applied. Slow release granules, such as Osmocote or Nutricote will still leach excess nitrogen into the ground or sewer if the nitrogen releases from the granule when the plants are not ready/able to use it. The problem with the granules is that you cannot remove them once they have been applied! Woops, you’ve now got excess nitrogen leaching out of your salad table!
A better management practice is the periodic application of a dilute fertilizer (nitrogen) that would more accurately supply nitrogen to the plants when they need it. Liquid fertilizers (and some granular) afford that better control. The fertilizer formulation will still consist of both water soluble and water insoluble types of nitrogen.
~ Carol Allen
InsectIndex columnist
Washington Gardener Magazine
1 Urea, Ammonium Nitrate, Ammonium sulfate
2 Composted manures, cocoa meal, bone meal, alfalfa meal, cottonseed meal, blood meal, etc. & home grown compost is the best!