Fertilizer

[Rob K.]

Can anyone recommend a good fertilizer that is chemical free? I'm asking about my personal residence.

I don't have a service come to spray my lawn because I am anti-chemicals. We eat natural and organic food and I avoid prescription drugs and and most other stuff made in a factory. I don't want my kids playing on a lawn that has bad stuff on it. I also have a nice garden that I wouldn't want exposed to any possible danger.

I tried the Jonathan Green type of organic fertilizer and it was very expensive and not very good. Lately, I've been using Milorganite which is very cheap, but not that good either.

If anyone has had good luck with a certain type, please respond. I would appreciate it.

[Jon Holdman]

By definition fertilizers are chemicals. There are very specific chemicals that plants need to grow. Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium, in particular, but also other elements. These have to come from somewhere. Perhaps you mean organic (from some natural source) rather than inorganic (manufactured.) In general, organic fertilizers (like manure or compost) provide less nutrients than inorganic fertilizers, so what you're seeing is somewhat par for the course. And have their own set of problems. These incidents like e-coli contamination have been traced back to organic sources, in some cases intentional (using manure for fertilizer) in others unintentional (water sources contaminated by runoff from feedlots).