Purchasing Organic Fertilizer

Is this Truly an Organic Product?

 

Purple Milkweed Seedlings

   
  It is important that we all have bucket lists; things like biking the entire Great Allegheny  Passage or taking a class at the community college even if you are older than the professor.

 One of the goals for my native plant business is to become an organic farm. I am not sure that even if I reach that goal I would be willing to pay the application fee. Just the same it is something I am striving towards. 

 
   Last season I fertilized my potted native plants with Aerated Fish Fertilizer, (this is made right in my rain barrel) compost and Indigenous micro-organisms. All three of these will make an interesting blog post that may have to wait until the fall. I am embarrassed to admit that when my seedlings are young and still under florescent lights, I use a diluted solution of Miracle Gro. Since this keeps them healthy and disease free I have hesitated to try something new. I decide that when seed quantity wasn’t an issue I would begin to experiment with organic fertilizers. The bounty from last fall finally provided that opportunity.
 

Suffering Purple Milkweed

Read the Label 

 

   I feel fortunate this year to have plenty of milkweed seedlings, losing a few plants would not be ideal but it is a risk I was willing to take. If I am ever going to become an organically operated business I need to begin experimenting. Sadly, I do a better job of reading saturated fat levels on cereal boxes than I do choosing a good organic fertilizer. The first mistake I made was not thinking for myself and taking the advice of a well meaning clerk.

Worm Castings and  More Than I Expected

I was looking for something quick and easy that I could apply to my young natives during their first few months they were indoors. I had purchased products from the company the clerk suggested before; I foolishly assumed that all of their items were organic. This was my second mistake. It contained worm casting so of course it was fine. I diluted the recommend amount and fed my beloved Purple Milkweed seedling. The funny thing was during the time I was working I was certain I could smell the ammonia used in traditional fertilizers. I must be imaging things I thought, of course worm casting are organic. What else would they be?                                                                  

 Healthy second year Asclepias purpurascens

 I quickly realized that I need to swallow my pride and read the label. Yes, I was correct it did contain worm casting but also all the same ingredients in Miracle Gro. This added insult to injury, I now realized that I had paid a ridiculous amount of money for pumped up Miracle Grow.

I am not sure what bothers me most the fact that I had been foolish enough not to read the label or the mixed message the company seemed to send.

A few days later my seedlings began to appear stressed, I realized that I had “burned batch” of Purple Milkweed. The best I could do was to replanted them in new soil and transfer them into the shade. At this point it appears that I will sustain a loss how much remains to be seen.

Word to the wise... be careful so that you don’t get burned!
 

It your are interested in learning more about Purple Milkweed you might enjoy visiting my site.