Use These 7 Homemade Fertilizer Recipes in Your Garden (2024)

FAQs

How do you make homemade garden fertilizer? ›

To make compost, take all your scraps (like eggshells, fruit peels, and coffee grounds) and put them into a pile with leaves, sticks, and other organic debris. Overtime, the microbes will break the pile down and turn it into fine fertilizer, which you can mix into your soil.

Most gardeners should use a complete fertilizer with twice as much phosphorus as nitrogen or potassium. An example would be 10-20-10 or 12-24-12. These fertilizers usually are easy to find. Some soils contain enough potassium for good plant growth and don't need more.

Most fertilizers that are commonly used in agriculture contain the three basic plant nutrients: nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Some fertilizers also contain certain "micronutrients," such as zinc and other metals, that are necessary for plant growth.

You'll need four to six tablespoons of coffee grounds, one teaspoon of cinnamon and one cup of club soda. Simply mix the ingredients until well combined and use on a bi-weekly basis for a slow release of nutrients without causing the soil's acidity levels to rise too much.

You can use kitchen waste to make compost. Combine scraps with grass clippings and leaves, and you've got one rich source of natural fertilizers. Coffee grounds, eggshells and fruit and vegetable peelings are great choices for composting.

You can broadcast dry fertilizer (1 pound for each 100 square feet of garden or 100 feet of row) over the entire garden plot before planting. Then after planting, side-dress along the plant rows. The fertilizer should be applied 2–3 inches to the side of, and 1–2 inches below, the seed level or plant row.

Look for a fertilizer that has a high middle number, which represents phosphorus, in the N-P-K analysis. Commonly available fertilizer analysis that are great for tomato seedlings include 8-32-16 and 12-24-12. Mix the fertilizer with water according to package directions.

Most fertilizers contain three main nutrients: nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus. Each of these fertilizer ingredients provide your lawn with specific benefits that will help your lawn flourish.

How to use 10-10-10 fertilizer for vegetable garden? ›

Water to moisten the soil and distribute the fertilizer to a 12- to 18-inch depth. Apply in early spring or autumn when roots are actively growing.

Organic farmers can and do use composts of plant and animal materials and uncomposted plant materials are allowed under Federal NOP (National Organic Program) guidelines. Raw manure can be used, but must be applied at least 120 days prior to harvesting most crops.

In most cases, the grounds are too acidic to be used directly on soil, even for acid-loving plants like blueberries, azaleas and hollies. Coffee grounds inhibit the growth of some plants, including geranium, asparagus fern, Chinese mustard and Italian ryegrass.

It's okay to water plants with leftover coffee or to add coffee grounds to the compost pile but learning when and why to use coffee in the garden will protect your plants. Only use black, unflavored coffee with this method to offer plants a source of nitrogen which can fertilize certain indoor and outdoor plants.

Some plants like rhododendrons, azaleas, blueberries, gardenias and blue-flowering hydrangeas require a lower soil pH to thrive and coffee grounds won't do that.

Homemade fertilizers, such as compost, well-rotted manure, or compost tea, can be effective in providing essential nutrients to your plants. Just ensure that your homemade fertilizer is well-balanced and not too concentrated, as excessive nutrients can harm your plants.

You can mix a continuous-release fertilizer, such as Miracle-Gro® Shake 'n Feed® Tomato, Fruit & Vegetable Plant Food, into individual planting holes, work it into furrows, or use a turning fork to mix it into beds.

Add one-and-a-half tablespoons of epsom salts, one-and-a-half teaspoons of baking soda, and a scant one-half teaspoon of household ammonia. Don't add any more than that. with ammonia, a little goes a long way. Fill the jug with plain tap water, put the lid back on, and swish it around to mix everything up.