Homemade Fertilizer

[CrealCritter]

There's officially a shortage of ammonia at Dollar General, I grabbed the last two 1/2 gallon bottles at $1.00 each . At the rate of one tablespoon per gallon of water I have enough to make about 256 gallons. My onions are gonna be happy . Before and after pictures to follow.

Jesus is Lord and Christ

 

[Chic Rustler]

curious to see what happens. i didnt fertilize my onions at all this year and they are pretty big, but i do the back to eden thing and throw manure on top of the garden all winter too.

 

[CrealCritter]

curious to see what happens. i didnt fertilize my onions at all this year and they are pretty big, but i do the back to eden thing and throw manure on top of the garden all winter too.

Like corn, onions are heavy nitrogen feeders. If your corn produces in your soil without any ammonia nitrate, then your onions should do fine also. Most all soil is deficient in nitrogen around here. That's why I see farmers with big tanks of anhydrous ammonia around planting time. Most always it's corn that's being sowed.

Jesus is Lord and Christ

 

[Chic Rustler]

Like corn, onions are heavy nitrogen feeders. If your corn produces in your soil without any ammonia nitrate, then your onions should do fine also. Most all soil is deficient in nitrogen around here. That's why I see farmers with big tanks of anhydrous ammonia around planting time. Most always it's corn that's being sowed.

Jesus is Lord and Christ

when we grow corn in the garden i mulch it heavily with manure and compost several times. when i grow corn outside of the garden i also used a balanced fertilizer.

 

[CrealCritter]

when we grow corn in the garden i mulch it heavily with manure and compost several times. when i grow corn outside of the garden i also used a balanced fertilizer.

You are in Texas, I'm sure the soil is a lot different there, than here in southern IL. We get a lot of rain and need fertilizer to keep up with what the rains make less abundant in the soil, expecially at the beginning of growing season. The best approach here is to flip the soil over by plowing deep. That way the good black top soil is covered down deep to rot, for the roots to find and the clay is at the top to help get things established without washing away the seedlings during down pours. Think of it like a clay pot almost filled with black dirt, covered in clay with and slow drainage. My current garden spot was plowed deep, like a good 12 to 14 inches deep the good stuff is at the bottom rotting away.

Jesus is Lord and Christ

 

[CrealCritter]

This is I believe my best onion I've got growing in both rows. I gave each 50 foot row about 18 gallons of ammonia mixed at a rate of 1 tablespoon per gallon of water I have 6 1/2 gallon brew buckets. I'll know in a week or so if the ammonia and water worked or not. The leafs should turn dark green if it worked.

But in the mean time I can say my hands are very clean at the present moment anyways.

 

[Chic Rustler]

You are in Texas, I'm sure the soil is a lot different there, than here in southern IL. We get a lot of rain and need fertilizer to keep up with what the rains make less abundant in the soil, expecially at the beginning of growing season. The best approach here is to flip the soil over by plowing deep. That way the good black top soil is covered down deep to rot, for the roots to find and the clay is at the top to help get things established without washing away the seedlings during down pours. Think of it like a clay pot almost filled with black dirt, covered in clay with and slow drainage. My current garden spot was plowed deep, like a good 12 to 14 inches deep the good stuff is at the bottom rotting away.

Jesus is Lord and Christ

one thing about Texas soil is its different everywhere. i have beach sand for a foot or so and then red clay. a few miles over its all a thick black soil thats sticky and heavy. a few miles the other way and theres white clay like stuff. i think maybe decompossed lime stone or something.

my garden soil is what ive built with mulch, compost, manures and other organic matter. ive FINALLY got a few worms. the mulch has been great for me. i dont have to water or weed as often and i can plant as close as i like and still get good harvest. 5 years in the making. 5 years of feeding the soil and countless wheel barrows of woodchips and manure.

 

[Chic Rustler]

This is I believe my best onion I've got growing in both rows. I gave each 50 foot row about 18 gallons of ammonia mixed at a rate of 1 tablespoon per gallon of water I have 6 1/2 gallon brew buckets. I'll know in a week or so if the ammonia and water worked or not. The leafs should turn dark green if it worked.
View attachment 19050

But in the mean time I can say my hands are very clean at the present moment anyways.

i bet youll see darker greens in a couple days.

 

[CrealCritter]

one thing about Texas soil is its different everywhere. i have beach sand for a foot or so and then red clay. a few miles over its all a thick black soil thats sticky and heavy. a few miles the other way and theres white clay like stuff. i think maybe decompossed lime stone or something.

my garden soil is what ive built with mulch, compost, manures and other organic matter. ive FINALLY got a few worms. the mulch has been great for me. i dont have to water or weed as often and i can plant as close as i like and still get good harvest. 5 years in the making. 5 years of feeding the soil and countless wheel barrows of woodchips and manure.

I hit a patch of that white clay here where my wife wanted to plant flowers. That stuff is like a rock. The only thing I know to do is bust it up with a pickaxe, work in some organic matter and hope her flowers take. The holes where I dig are very slow to drain. Your right it's like rotted lime stone or something. I'm so glad it's not in the garden or I would have to dig it out of there and replace it with dirt. White clay is the worst to try and grow in. Give me a little red clay and I'm ok.

I've not had a garden in sandy soil, I can see why you would want to work in massive amounts of composted organic matter. I would do the same.

Jesus is Lord and Christ

 

[CrealCritter]

Might be hard to see with the picture but it's the same onion just after 2 days of 1 Tablespoon ammonia to 1 gallon water mix. New growth coming up dark green, darker green than the prior growth. I'm calling the ammonia water mix a success already. The proof is plain for me to to see. So CR was right "after a couple days", plus CR makes homemade bacon

So there you have a cheap homemade nitrogen fertilizer to green things up. Try it maybe on a test spot on your lawn. See if it works like it did for my onions

Jesus is Lord and Christ