Bone meal fertilizer is a popular organic soil amendment that promotes healthy gardens by providing essential nutrients and promoting healthy blooms. It is a good choice for flowering sunflowers that die after a short period of use. Bone meal fertilizer, made from beef bones taken from cows, aids in root development, particularly in flowering plants and fruiting plants.
Bone meal is a key component in organic fertilizers, as it is high in phosphorus, one of the three major nutrients required for plant growth. It is often used to help plants establish after planting spring bulbs. Bone meal can be purchased at garden centers or made from cow manure or mushroom compost. However, it is important to leave a little hole in the soil before adding bone meal to your garden.
Bone meal provides a significant boost of phosphorus, which is essential for organic gardeners. It is also loaded with other vital nutrients. If you have very tiny seedlings, it is recommended to leave a small hole in the soil. Bone meal is an effective way to fertilize your soil and promote a healthy garden due to its nutrient content and ability to promote healthy blooms.
A typical NPK rating for bone meal fertilizer is 3-15-0, which is ideal for bulbs and flowering plants. By choosing the right fertilizer, you can ensure that your plants receive the necessary nutrients and support for their growth and development.
📹 This Magic White Powder Will DOUBLE Your Tomato Harvest!
Did you know there is a magic white powder that will double your tomato harvest? I’m talking about bone meal! Bone meal …
Do sunflowers like bone meal?
Organic options like compost, bone meal, and worm castings are essential for boosting the immune system of sunflowers, not just for their food but also for their resistance to pests and diseases. However, it’s important to follow recommended dosages to avoid fertilizer burn and test the soil before starting. Understanding the growth stages of sunflowers is crucial, and fertilization should be lightly applied after planting to support early development. As the sunflower progresses to the 8-10 leaf stage, a top-dressing of nitrogen is beneficial, as it boosts nitrogen uptake, fueling growth and grain filling.
What is the secret to growing sunflowers?
Sunflower plants are known to flourish in environments that receive six to eight hours of direct sunlight per day, making them a popular choice for those who appreciate the summer season. They are renowned for their vibrant hues and capacity to flourish in such conditions.
Can you sprinkle bone meal on top of soil?
To fertilize plants, mix the fertilizer with backfill soil when planting, sprinkle it on top of existing plants, and rake over the soil. For bulbs and spring-blooming plants, apply 1/2 teaspoon in fall and supplement again in spring. After using bone meal, lightly water the soil to break down and release nutrients over four months. Check the weather forecast before starting, as it’s easiest to apply when conditions are dry and the soil is in the upper layer.
Do coffee grounds help sunflowers?
Sunflowers are a popular and easy-to-care for plant due to their stunning appearance, attraction to bees, and fun family activities. In the UK, last May, 12, 100 people searched for “how to plant sunflower seeds”, more than four times the monthly average. Vine House Farm, home to the UK’s largest sunflower fields, has created a guide on how to grow and care for sunflowers. Nicholas Watts, who has been successfully planting and harvesting sunflowers for over a decade, provides seven easy-to-follow sunflower grow and care tips.
Sunflowers are a great way to start children’s green-fingered journey and are easy to grow. To prevent thistle caterpillars and weevils from affecting the flowers, coffee grounds can be placed around the base of the flowers. By following these expert tips, you can ensure the safety and health of your sunflowers and enjoy their vibrant blooms in your garden.
When should you not use bone meal?
Bone meal fertilizer is an organic fertilizer that is suitable for plants in acidic soil with a pH level of 7 or lower. It is not suitable for all soil pH levels, and overuse can be harmful. The right amount of bone meal fertilizer can be beneficial for your garden, but too much can disrupt the balance of nutrients, stunt chlorophyl production, and damage plants. It is best applied at the start of the growing season and doesn’t need to be repeated often. It is essential to know your soil pH before amending it.
Which plants benefit from bone meal?
Bone meal is a beneficial fertilizer for plants due to its high phosphorus content, which is essential for root vegetables like onions, garlic, carrot, and parsnip. It is easy for plants to absorb and take up, and is slow-release, providing benefits for months at a time. Bone meal can be added to planting holes for most plants, especially when planting bulbs in autumn. It also contains nitrogen, which encourages plant growth and promotes lush green foliage. Bone meal’s organic matter naturally encourages the improvement of micro-organisms, improving soil fertility and structure.
To apply bone meal fertiliser, sprinkle it evenly over the soil or add to planting compost, ensuring it is mixed well. If adding throughout the growing season, gently fork it into the surface, being careful not to disturb plant roots. For established plants in containers, apply the fertiliser at the start of the season and then once or twice throughout the growing season to strengthen plants. For vegetable plots, add bone meal fertiliser and fork it into the soil before sowing seeds. For new plants, fork a small amount of bone meal into the planting hole and add it to the compost and soil. Water thoroughly.
What is the best fertiliser for sunflowers?
To grow tall sunflowers, support them with stakes and feed them weekly with a high potassium feed, especially tomato feed. Water them regularly during dry periods to prevent wilting. Leave the flower heads on the plants for birds, as finches and sparrows enjoy them. In late autumn, compost the plants. To collect seeds, wait for the petals to drop, cover them with nets, cut off the stems, cover the flowerheads with paper bags, and hang them in a warm, well-ventilated area for a few weeks.
Leave the seed heads on the plants for birds and collect your own seeds. Store seeds in an airtight container. With so many beautiful varieties available, the challenge lies in choosing the right one to grow.
How long does bone meal last in soil?
Bone meal is a crucial component in spring gardening, providing essential nutrients like magnesium, zinc, and calcium. It increases phosphorous in the soil, which is essential for strong root systems and helps grow large, blooming flowers, fruits, and vegetables. Calcium is also essential for plant growth when plants receive proper light and water. However, bone meal is not ideal for all soil types, and the ideal pH level is lower than seven. Soil testing kits can help correct acidity levels with products like Jobe’s Soil Acidifier.
To improve the health and abundance of your spring gardening project, consider using bone meal spikes and natural soil amendments from Joe’s Organics. They offer a wide selection of natural and organic products to help you create a beautiful and thriving garden.
How do you keep sunflowers blooming all summer?
To maximize the potential of your sunflowers, deadhead them until the end of the season. This will encourage new blossoms and seed production, and the next sunflower may form just inches from the deadheaded spot. Leave the last batch of spent flowers for birds and next year’s flowers. When the sunflowers seem to slow down, leave the last set of flower heads on the plant for birds, as they enjoy the seed heads and finches can pluck seeds out of them.
How long does it take for bone meal to break down in soil?
Bone meal, a mixture of ground animal bones and waste products, is used as a dietary supplement for monogastric livestock to supply calcium and phosphorus in the form of hydroxyapatite. It also serves as a slow-release organic fertilizer, providing phosphorus, calcium, and a small amount of nitrogen to plants. However, improper application of bone and meat meal products in animal nutrition can contribute to the spread of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy, known as Mad Cow Disease in cattle.
Proper heat control can reduce salmonella contaminants. Bone meal was historically used as a human dietary calcium supplement, but research has shown that calcium and lead have similar atomic structures, creating potential for lead accumulation in bones. The 1970s poisoning of American actress Allison Hayes with a calcium supplement made from horse bone containing high amounts of lead led to the development of more stringent importation rules by the EPA.
Is it possible to use too much bone meal?
Bone meal fertilizer is a slow-release fertilizer that is effective in soils with a pH level below 7, as alkaline soils limit nutrient uptake. It is not an immediate boost of nutrients and is only effective in soils with a pH level lower than 7. Overuse of bone meal can force other nutrients out of plants, such as zinc and iron, and cause plants to turn yellow and harm their chlorophyll production. Most soil-grown plants benefit from bone meal, but some more so than others.
Phosphorus is essential for plant growth, fruit and flower production, and photosynthesis. Some plants, like flowering plants like amaryllis or roses, benefit more from bone meal fertilizer, while alliums like leeks, onions, and garlic also benefit from it. It is important to store extra bone meal securely and ensure proper nutrient supply when needed.
📹 This MAGIC BLACK DUST Will Make Your Veggies Grow Like Weeds!
Did you know there is a magic black dust that will make your veggies grow like weeds? I’m talking about blood meal! Blood meal …
If you enjoyed this article, please “Like” and share to help increase its reach! Thanks for perusal 😊TIMESTAMPS for convenience: 0:00 Introducing Bone Meal Fertilizer 1:21 Why Bone Meal Boosts Blooming 3:24 Phosphorous Supplementation Myths 5:52 How To Apply Bone Meal Fertilizer 9:16 Bone Meal Application Schedule 12:02 Adventures With Dale
You can tell by listening to you that you are WELL versed in gardening! I enjoyed it! My father passed away in 2006 and for many years prior, he had a tomato garden every single year that I think he grew just so he could share them with all of our neighbors, friends and church members. The first year after he passed, my mother and I wanted to honor him by growing his crop of tomatoes, so we went to our nursery and asked how we should prepare the soil and we were told to begin 3 months prior to planting. We followed their directions of digging up the garden well and loosening up the soil, removing old roots etc. and put down bone meal along with fertilizer and something else that I cant remember, mixing it well and deep into the soil. When planting time arrived we added a bit more and holy cow the garden was HUGE! The plants were giant and strong and the tomatoes were huge, beautiful and tasted wonderful! We had never seen a more beautiful sight and honestly wondered what in the world we were going to do with so many tomatoes!! I finally bought white bags and with the help of my computer printed off a picture of my father and nephew in the garden holding some of his prize tomatoes from the previous years and printed “With Love from John’s tomato garden” on the tags. We loaded up the bags with tomatoes, stapled them closed and added the tags and delivered them to all the neighbors, friends and church members. This was a wonderful way for us to remember our father/husband and taught us about the use of bone meal, which we had not previously used but is now used regularly.
You’re the best! After perusal what others had to say about blood meal and bone meal and when and how to use each, I didn’t get much out of them. Went to yours and it was (as you always are) full of good, clear and consiste content. You get right to the point and don’t talk about things that are irrelevant and you show us HOW you do things in your garden. I so appreciate that! EXCELLENT article!
I put bone meal in the dirt of 8 bell pepper plants after perusal this article. I was out of state and when I returned, one of little plants was laying down. I picked it up and one side was covered in little peppers. 26 peppers on a 12 inch plant. I checked my other ones, and all had a combination of peppers and flowers exceeding 25. It was one week from the time I fed til I returned. I wished I could attach photos. I texted them to all my veggie buddies and they’ve already ordered the bone meal.
Thanks MG for another informative article. I didn’t know this is how you apply bone meal, down around the roots and above layer. Learning more about how the bone meal needs to get mixed in and slowly broken down first before the plant can take them up great advice. I also learned to optimally, fertilize several weeks before planting during the break down period, if possible so the soil is ready. All good stuff to know.🌱 From CA🏖️take care.
There is a gardening show here in Australia called Gardening Australia. In the early 2000 one of the presenters, Colin Blundell, always swore by and used blood and bone for the vegies and fruit. As I am new to vegie gardening and have been thinking about it and you have now confirmed it for me. Thank you for the way you present and share your knowledge.
I used bone meal for the first time in my garden last year and WOW. It was the most successful garden I’ve ever grown. I wondered about repeat applications, which I didn’t do, but now I will. I’m also zone 8a living in coastal VA. Off topic but….I’m hoping to order my orange and lemon trees this week. You convinced me to invest it those, so I’m going to try it. Give Dale a skritch behind the ears for me! He’s such a good boy!
My grandpa was a commercial fisherman here in ARKANSAS.. He told me many years ago to throw a fish carcass into the hole before putting the plant in… I can attest that it works like crazy! I’m guessing the bones and micro nutrients are the key? A natural fertilizer that breaks down over time… love your website. Thanks.
I’m in the DIY camp also. We raise our own grass-fed beef and lamb (and venison). We also have chickens. I pressure cook the bones. The chicken bones turn to mush pretty quickly. The beef bones take longer but also do eventually get brittle enough to break into small pieces. I use the first cooking for broth/stock, then use the bone broth for other purposes. Mostly I just toss the bone pieces into the compost, but now I’m thinking of being more purposeful with it’s use 🙂
0:35 I enjoyed your article on bone meal. I already had some on hand from planting my fall bulbs. I’m looking forward to having Olympic size thriving tomatoes this year. (Bone meal “lines”…😂 too funny) Also very thorough explantions of the N-P-K numbers and how plants use each one. Thanks for the “reasons to use bone meal crash course.” Very informative and useful!! 🍅🌿🌼
Very good job with this article! I am a UF graduate in IPM (Integrated Pest Management) and apply fertilizer for a living. You put together a nice cohesive guide for beginners to understand. We all have out tricks to what works in our given environment. Phosphorus is a missing link for most soils and a few more products would jump start your garden even further. Keep up the good work! I enjoy your website. P.S Leelanau Sweetglo is an amazing watermelon, that is how I found your website !
Almost fell off my chair with your bone meal/straw demo. Just about snorted out my tea, lmao. Thanks for the information. I’ve put bone meal in my potato pots, per your instructions. Now I’ll add it to all of my other seedlings that fit the criteria. Thought they’d all be in their pots by now, but today is raining with mid 40’s daytime temp and low of low 30’s tonight. It was 86 two days ago. Sigh… crazy spring in north GA.
I’ve researched at least a dozen or more “expert” gardeners / farmers” on YouTube.. I’ve watched dozens and dozens of articles… Probably hundreds… Now I have it narrowed down to 2… Thanks for saving me the efforts of testing my soil, as well as a test kit I trust I don’t need… Also, I’m going to take your view on adding bonemeal for phosphorus..
How often do you do the bone meal and AP fertilizer in your fabric pots? Is it every 2 weeks like I do the liquid fertilizer and fish fertilizer? Also I just watched another article where he said don’t fertilize when it’s too hot of weather? I really love your articles and advice, it has helped me very much!
alot of ppl tend to forget how important iron and magnesium are to the soil! I add a small amount of epsom salt( magnesium), and I rust iron nails in a bowl to get iron water, put small amounts of those in a watering container, fill and add to each plant, just a little soaking around the plant stem in the ground! It makes the shiniest, healthiest bearing of tomatoes and bell peppers for sure! Thanks for talking about the phosphorus… i may add some this year, because our rain has shit off. We got the first rain in over two weeks yesterday! The plants were growing but needed watering, and as soon as I watered them…. an hour later it rained!!!! A good soaking… mich needed! I tend to not add anything and ise Diatenaciois earth to protect plants from aphids and potato bugs as well as japanese beetles ( especially for my dads 100+ year old family grapevine! ) they destroy leaves on anything green!
I’ve been using bone meal for years. I mix1/3 cup into the planting hole along with 1/4 cup of organic veggie fertilizer and 1/8 cup of Azomite, but after perusal your brilliant article I’m going to start dusting bone meal on the root ball as well when planting. Thanks for including fish emulsion in your article I’m a big believer in it as well. And with that one you can use a straw. 😅
Totally unrelated but I love how you put your rain barrels. We were wondering how to raise them up high so gravity could be used to water our outdoor plants and that’s a great cheap way to do it and still looks nice. We are installing 2 rain barrels this year. Our water bill is insane where we live! This will help. Just ordered some bone meal, thanks for the article!
My tomato yield in Sacramento CA last year was poor, plants had very vigorous foliage, (don’t think nitrogen was deficient). Just planted the new ones about 10 days ago and didn’t prep w/ bone meal. A few minutes ago after perusal this article, ten to twelve 3/8″ diameter holes got poked into each tomato mound (within a 14″ radius of each plant) next sprinkled in 2/3 cup of bone meal per plant. Probably not as good as the method shown here, but got the fingers crossed and will follow up w/ how things went in September.
Just found your website and absolutely LOVE it! ❤️ I saw you mentioned in another comment thread that bone meal is good for fig trees. We have a HUGE fig tree at th home we recently bought. Do I have to mix the bone meal into the soil or… How should I apply it? The tree is well established and we’ve harvested 2 very productive years.
While I agree with your point about soil testing for phosphorus being unnecessary, one thing that should be tested before using bone meal is the PH. Bone meal will increase the soil’s PH, and if your soil already has a very high PH, increasing it further could make other nutrients unavailable to the plant. If you have a high PH soil, you may want to also use a soil acidifier in addition to the bone meal.
A great article. I always use bone meal even if I can’t afford to buy any other type of fertilizer. I don’t usually side dress my tomatoes but always side dress my peppers. One problem I have had is when adding bone meal to a planting hole is racoons will dig the seedlings up, therefore I have taken to broadcasting it and raking in a few days before planting.
Hello everyone, Whenever my plants start showing blooms, i give them few shakes of epsom salt. Blooms of the tomatoes and peppers never drop. It’s not a lot of tomatoes or peppers, it’s just ok. I only gave bone meal to my tulips and daffodils. I’ll put bone meal everywhere to see how it works. Thanks to share.
Yup! Good call! I’ve been using bone meal for decades for great crops. The one impediment was when my Cairn Terrier started eating the bone meal imbued dirt (Willy-Gilly! What are yo doing? — But it tastes so good!😂) and I had to bury it all very early in the spring before planting. Still worked, but not as well as continuous top-dressing. But why does Dale’s food bowl look like the something out of the Hunger Games?
Question: What about adding bone meal into your seeding soil mix. I start with a potting soil, mixed with worm casting soil and then perlite. 1/3 each medium. Would adding bone meal also be beneficial. PS Great presentation. I learnt so much. I do Lasagna gardening, in my third year and this year I think I will add to reconstitute the soil. Thank you
Good article, the credit card lines had me lol! Here’s a cautionary tale about bone meal for ya. Keep out of reach of dogs… may of 2019 my dog got hold of a bag of bone meal and ate about half of it. It pretty much solidified in her intestines so she was completely blocked. $5000 worth of surgery and treatment saved her life.
the calcium in bone meal is also super important for yield and growth. while phosphorous is great its very easy to deliver enough to the soil for a plant to get enough. a good supply of calcium + micronutrients will unlock the genetic potential of your tomato much more than phosphorous. i use oystershell flour, fish bone meal gypsum and fish hydrolysate so that I always have a good supply of calcium for my maters.
Well done man.. Ive used the stuff for my tomatoes and dahlias, late fall and again around the first weeks of June. I have been slowly patterning myself into the calendar. Using the 23rds as reference points. I also add at planting, but only the one other time over the season, thanks for sharing your seasonal feedings schedule.
I’ve planted some of my tomatoes, can I go back and work some into the soil in my containers? Also my micro determinate tomato plant..6″ already has blooms, should I take those off to let the plant grow a little more? The tomato is from seed from The Tomato Growers in Florida you recommend. I r also planted my cucumbers in my raised beds can I go back and add it? BTW..I learned a lot from this article I’ll use when I plant my next round of determinate tomatoes! Thank you so much!!
That credit card sketch would have made a great April 1st short! lol We generally use Blood, Fish and bone as an all rounder, tomato feed and i am making jadam with sea weed and some other plants. Pretty sure my neighbours think we are up to something dodgy as we have uv lights in the windowsill for our tomatoes and a light box made out of foil! They don’t know about the mushrooms we grow in our bathroom! lol All legal Pearl Oyster mushrooms though. Overall, people are more accepting of using UV lights and growing mushrooms indoors but we sometimes get raised eye brows. It is usually people who can tell the difference between a tomato plant and the other type. Even my hubby was a bit wary about us growing oyster mushrooms at first until he tried them.
Im off the grid and make my own bone meal from.fresh bones and also any i find. I also have many empress trees (paulownia) in different stages as companions for shade plants, to absorb carbon at enormous rates and a great thing is their huge leaves are full of more nitrogen than most plants. As far as the phosphorus thing. I dont test the yraditional.way but have henbit and red dead nettle all over. Their color tells you the levels close enough to know and you know instantly if its available or not.
I almost fell for that line. However closer to the 70s for me. We used to hang red Christmas tree bulbs on our leafy green plants that we Bone mealed.. using the line under the tomato starter tip next year… Right now using the clothes line method, with bricks as anchor system…. I lollipop the plants ad far as 2 1/2-3 feet up the main stock, pile some mulch mound around the base, spread it out and plant low growers around it, like onions or carrots or even a ground crawler. Like watermelon. Cucumber, or pumpkins. Me? Oh I’m doing watermelon, and pumpkins for the grandkids…. Thanks for asking and thank you for the great idea. Two thumbs up liked, Shared and Subscibed!
Hi MG. I have a small 25×6 garden with 6 ft tall welded wire to keep the many deer out. Last year I added iPhone controlled drip irrigation manly because of access with the fence but it has been great for those times I am on vacation for half a month. I just watched this article and it reminded me about trying to insert an “injection fertilizer” feeder into my slow moving water source. Is this something you have tried? I was thinking of using the fish fertilizer I have just like the one you use. I live in the ATL area and will be on the lookout for bonemeal today as I will try to plant and get my watering system online this weekend. I just subscribed so will be looking forward to more tips. -Mac.
O just came across your articles and have watched several of them. You do what I have been taught to do by my mother, which she was raised on a farm when she was growing up. BUT you have taught me some New tips and tricks. Loving you articles the more I watch them and I share them with my brothers because they do gardening now as well. Thank you and keep up the Fantastic articles.
Note all the natural wood mulch he uses. That’s a big tip right there. Bone meal helps, yes. But it does take awhile to break down. I do like the lean towards organic supplements. The fish emulsion is another supplement that really helps. He is really doing several things here, along with plenty of sunshine and attention.
I use bone meal. However, I can’t add any phosphorus to my beds at all for awhile. Two years ago I used so much bone meal and when I sent my soil to Auburn for testing, I had extremely high levels of phosphorus. They said don’t add any phosphorus for a long time, some said for three years. You have to be careful using this. Phosphorus doesn’t leach out of your soil like nitrogen does. In fact, if you have too much phosphorus, it will likely leach zinc out of your soil. I listened a little and what you said was interesting about two years the soil level has probably changed. I didn’t plan on testing my soil this year. I’m wondering if I should be adding phosphorus again?
phosphorous from leaves falling in swimming pools is a major cause of accelerated algae growth, regardless of the amount of chlorine added to the water. The rare earth element Lanthanum is added to the pool water to precipitate out the phosphorous, bringing algae under control. You don’t want phosphorous in your swimming pool, but your plants definitely need it.
Dale is the goodest boy lol. So i recall you in another article (from winter) talking about determinate and indeterminate tomatoes. Would determinate tomatoes not continue to produce (during winter) if i dig them up to overwinter? Will they not continue to do well the second year or would cloning them be a better strategy? I ask because I have other plants (Perennial Brassica) that make larger leaves (and in general better harvest) if i just clone them even though they don’t die.
I have grown over 150 varieties over 20 years. My best tip is to plant your tomatoes in the ground and do not feed nor water them. Only water if they start to drop fruits or flowers. Remove all sideshoots from indeterminate varieties and remove all leaves below any fruits. If you have never grown tomatoes before and want an easy variety, I can highly recommend a determinate dwarf variety called Balconi Red. There is no need to remove any sideshoots and you can get three in a window box as the plant will get no bigger than your head. The fruits are small and tasty. If you grow them in a container, you will need to feed them.
The key to entice more blooms is the “P” in NPK, for example the “P” stands for Phosphorus but the real ingredient is in the Phosphate which slightly less the what is say in percentage by weight for example, if you buy a 4 lb bag that contains 14% phosphorus you are getting approximately 0.47 lbs of phosphate from a 4 lb bag which is still good.
I went through some of your older articles to see if you ever discussed why commercial tomatoes tend to be flavorless. I couldn’t find it. I was wondering if you could do a article on that. I googled it and they said it had to do with DNA? And it’s better to go with heirloom tomatoes. What is your thoughts on this? If you’ve already done a article, maybe you could give me a link. thanks! 😃
I’m growing tomatoes by seed for the first time this year and so far, so good. I have 27 beautiful babies! They’re about the size of the ones you planted in this article right now. I’ve given them Miracle Grow in their water 2 or 3 times but I think they’re needing something more because some leaves are curling and I read that and a purple color mean that they need nutrients. I think they’re a lovely rich green color but they do also have a bit of purple, too. I don’t want to plant them for another several days and wonder what I can do for them until that time. What do you suggest?
Is it too late to add bone meal to my peppers if they are already blooming? They are in containers. Only a couple have any peppers – the others just have blooms. I am in Central Florida and it’s plenty hot here. I was told that since Jacks 20-20-20 doesn’t have calcium that I should add calcium (cal-mag or gypsum). Does bone meal take care of this too?
Calcium is inportant for tomatoee. Bone meal is not the only source you can use. Dolomite lime or gypsum work wonders as well. Free drywall scraps work well if you dont want to buy an amendment . Eggshells, chalk, azomite, and ground oyster/clam shells work too. Give less broken down less available forms such as shells longer to compost before planting. Water and nutrient uptake depend on calcium in tomato plants. Blossom end rot is due to calcium deficiencies and watering issues.
do you ever test your soils after adding lots of animal product to see if any contaminants were added? or would this never be an issue? mainly speaking of animal manure, bone and blood meal feather meal and other things like this. some say these products can come from farms where antibiotics, pesticides and more are used on the animal and it ends up in your soil system and some things possibly your plants. I don’t see the information to back it and i didn’t hear you mention here but i am curious, also if these products could add a lot of heavy metals and if that even matters.
Is bone meal a different form of calcium like gypsum? Sheetrock is gypsum and you can go to any Lumber Company and they will give you the spacers that came between the bundles of sheetrock because they’re just throwing them in the dumpster and they’re going in the landfill. The way I understood it bone Mill was a synthetic and Gibson is natural or organic? Don’t know but get all your free Gyptian calcium at your local lumber company you may have to dumpster dive?
Thank you for an informative article. I agree with most of what you said and I noticed you used fish fertiliser separately. I also use bonemeal whenever I plant anything, but in the UK we can buy blood, fish and bone (dried blood, dried fish meal and bone meal mixed together), which is the full three course meal for plants. It’s very convenient, is this not available in the USA?
Here in Australia we can buy a Product called “Blood and Bone” ! It is sort if light Orangey Brown similar to,Turmeric Powder colour ! I have not seen “Bone Meal” or the equivalent namesake in our Garden Nurseries here for sale ! Blood and Bone does work well for Vegetable Plants but not sure if it actually doubles the Yield of the Vegetable ! I agree with @ips2435 ! It depends on how the Plant(s) is/are looked after with Nutrients to give one the best Crop !
Just discovered your website a week or so ago, and I’m grateful I did. I live in a zone 3b in Canada. Trying to find the same products as used in articles from the US has proven to be extremely frustrating. There is Amazon, but our prices compared to the US prices are ridiculously high most times or I can’t find the item at all. Okay I’m done complaining now lol. What I’m wondering is we could only find a bag of bone meal and blood meal combined, last fall. It isn’t finely ground either. I will try and find bone meal by itself again, but if I can’t find it, is it so awful to use the combination product we already have? Thank you in advance. 🙂
For those who want to read on after the battle of waterloo there was so many dead and grave pits, during the following year the locals ground the bones of the dead soldiers and sold it on as fertiliser, so basically selling soldiers in powdered form back to their own country and as the saying goes ‘wheat grows better after a big battle’
I would not advise utilizing it as a standalone solution, but rather as a component within a blended organic mixture, such as those offered by DrEarth, Espoma, and Down to Earth. Following its application, my gardenias, lonicera, and vitex plants experienced significant growth, although subsequently ceased to produce flowers and exhibited a minimal leaf count. I suspect that the substance contains an excessive amount of calcium, which is impacting the soil’s pH levels. I am currently endeavoring to rectify this issue for my plants.
All this is great but the best thing you can do is what you discovered about tomatoes and that is a not too hot slightly shaded well aired area. I have a tomatoes that produces all year around and it’s location is the fundamental reason it is so prolific. It’s protected as it’s semi protected from a verandah,gets full sun in winter but shaded at peak noon in summer . In winter infra red energy off the house bricks keeps the tree from being too cold. It seems 12 degree C soil temperatures to 25C. I add home made compost twice a year plus worm casting ..wee every so often . It produces all year .
I’m sure there’s some Karen’s out there who are not going to appreciate the chopping bone meal with a straw joke but personally I thought it was freaking hilarious! 😂 I’ve ordered a lot of your ideas in lines of bone meal … Planting Kellogg’s breakfast tomatoes and black cherry tomatoes this year. I also am trying to get my 4 year apple trees to flower and produce fruit. Enjoy the website Happy growing!
I am no expert but I have always heard not to get tomato plants wet when watering and at 09:12 you do just that. Have I been told wrong about the water issue or I am wrong, or does it even matter. thanks I use bone meal but it is in small pellets, I will look for the powder bone meal. Do you have a link to buy some? thanks happy harvest