EARTH-KIND Garden Fertilization
Just as people need nourishment, plants must have nutrients to grow and
flourish. Plants need a balanced diet with all of the necessary nutrients
readily available for their use. Plants will grow at optimum rates if nutrition
is furnished on a "when needed-as needed" basis.
If you incorporate the knowledge that plants need a continuous source of
nutrition with the realization that the major pollutant of ground water
is nitrates from plant fertilizer applications, then the idea of using slow-release
fertilizers to feed plants small portions of the nutrition they need makes
EARTH-KIND sense. Fertilizers which gradually feed plants rather than deluging
them with excessive nitrogen are not only environmentally-sensible, but
they also enable plants to grow at optimum rates. This is why slow-release
formulations are recommend-ed for all plants, whether they are vegetables,
flowers, trees, shrubs, groundcovers or lawns.
When fertilizing gardens, use a product containing slow-release fertilizer,
a sulfur coated or plastic-covered urea. When choosing a slow-release fertilizer,
it is
important to note that the higher the percentage content of sulfur-coated
or plastic covered urea, the more EARTH-KIND the product is. The chance
of groundwater contamination from excessive nitrates washing through the
soil is lessened when greater amounts of slow-release, sulfur-coated or
plastic-coated urea are present. Of course, the more slow-release fertilizer
present, the more expensive the product, but safeguarding the environment
is certainly worth the cost difference!
Some of the better fertilizers will have at least 50 percent of the total
nitrogen content of the bag as sulfur-coated or plastic-coated urea. This
information can be determined by reading the Guaranteed Analysis found on
each bag of fertilizer. Remember, the higher the percentage or units of
sulfur-coated or plastic-coated urea, the more you and the environment benefit.
To insure that you have the ultimate EARTH-KIND product, you should not
only look for the "slow-release" nomenclature on the bag, but
you should also examine the Guaranteed Analysis which indicates what percent
of nitrogen (the first number on the bag) is derived from sulfur-coated
or plastic-coated urea.
So why should you use slow-release fertilizer in your gardens? It has the
following advantages:
- Makes more nitrogen available as a nutrient to the plant.
- Resists leaching or washing through the soil into the water supply.
- Decreases risk of fertilizer burn associated with heavy applications
of conventional fertilizers.
- Releases independently of microbial and bacterial action.
- Offers controlled-release feeding for 10 weeks.
- Stimulates a more drought-tolerant plant.
The use of slow-release fertilizer for gardens can insure better growth
and a healthier environment - truly an EARTH-KIND concept.¶