Is your garden looking a little lacklustre lately? Yellowing leaves and stunted growth may indicate your soil needs a nitrogen boost. Nitrogen is like a daily multivitamin for your plants - it facilitates photosynthesis, produces lush green growth, and helps plants resist disease. Read on to learn 10 cheap, easy ways how to add nitrogen to soil.
Why Plants Need Nitrogen
Nitrogen is a macronutrient that all plants need to thrive. It plays several key roles:
Produces chlorophyll, giving leaves their healthy green colour
Helps plants absorb phosphorus and potassium
Aids in photosynthesis, the process that fuels plant growth
Builds amino acids, the building blocks for proteins
Boosts flower and fruit production for bountiful harvests
Without adequate nitrogen, plants appear stunted and yellowed. Their growth slows, and they produce smaller yields.
Adding nitrogen fertilizes the soil food web - all the microbes, fungi, and bacteria that support plant health. It also improves moisture retention and soil structure.
How to Add Nitrogen to Soil
You don't need fancy fertilizers to give your soil a nitrogen boost. Many common household items make excellent organic nitrogen sources.
Coffee Grounds
Coffee grounds are rich in nitrogen. Sprinkle them around plants or mix them into soil. They also lower pH, so use sparingly on acid-loving plants like blueberries.
Compost
Compost contains nitrogen and other nutrients plants need. Mix 1-2 inches into beds before planting or side-dress growing plants. Don't overdo it - too much nitrogen can burn plants.
Manure adds nitrogen as it breaks down. Compost manure for 6 months before using. For 100 sq ft, use 70 lbs chicken, 200 lbs cow, or 65 lbs horse manure.
Grass Clippings
Fresh clippings make a nitrogen-rich mulch or soil amendment. Let them dry before using them to avoid matting. Don't use clippings from lawns treated with herbicides.
Wood Ash
Wood ash adds nitrogen, potassium, and calcium and raises pH. Sprinkle lightly around plants or till into soil. Use in moderation, as excess ash can burn plants.
Alfalfa Meal
Alfalfa meal provides readily available nitrogen to boost growth. Till into soil before planting or side dress crops. Use 2-5 lbs per 100 sq ft.
Blood Meal
A blood meal is dried, powdered blood from slaughterhouses. It provides fast-acting nitrogen but can burn plants if over-applied. Use 1 lb per 100 sq ft.
Feather Meal
Feather meal is made from poultry feathers. It releases nitrogen slowly as it decomposes. Apply 2-3 lbs per 100 sq ft around plants.
Fish Emulsion
Fish emulsion fertilizers provide nitrogen and phosphorus. They have an unpleasant odour but nourish soil life. Follow label rates.
Plant Legumes
Legumes like peas, beans, and clover form symbiotic relationships with nitrogen-fixing bacteria. Growing them enriches your soil for other crops.
How to Tell if Your Soil Needs Nitrogen
Pay attention to your plants - they'll let you know if they need more nitrogen. Signs of deficiency include:
Yellowing leaves (chlorosis)
Stunted growth and smaller yields
Poor flowering and fruiting
Increased susceptibility to disease
Test your soil to determine exact nitrogen levels. Home test kits are inexpensive, or you can send samples to a lab for detailed analysis.
Nitrogen should comprise 2-5% of total soil composition. Anything under 1-2% indicates deficiency.
When to Add Nitrogen to Your Soil
Spring and fall are the best times to add nitrogen when plants are entering growth phases. Avoid adding nitrogen in summer's heat, when it may leash away before plants can use it.
The exception is side-dressing - sprinkling fertilizer around the bases of actively growing plants. It provides an immediate nitrogen boost.
Slow-release nitrogen sources like compost and manure can be added anytime. Apply in the fall for availability the following spring.
How Much Nitrogen Does Your Soil Need?
Follow package rates when using commercial fertilizers, manure, and meals. As a general rule of thumb for vegetable gardens:
Compost: 1-2 inches spread over beds, mixed into top 6 inches
Coffee grounds: 2-3 lbs per 100 sq ft
Alfalfa/blood meal: 2-5 lbs per 100 sq ft
Grass clippings: 5-10 lbs per 100 sq ft
Manure: See amounts recommended above
Too much nitrogen can burn plant roots, so moderation is key. More isn't always better.
Frequently Asked Questions:
What depletes nitrogen in soil?
- Heavy rainfall washing nitrogen away - Over-tilling soil - Harvesting crops without replenishing nutrients
What are signs my plants have too much nitrogen?
- Excessive leafy growth with few flowers or fruit - Flopping or falling over (inadequate stem strength) - Increased susceptibility to disease - Wilting despite adequate moisture
Is urine a good source of nitrogen?
Urine does contain nitrogen. However, there are health risks associated with using human waste. Animal urine can be used in moderation if composted for at least 6 months first.
Grow Lush, Healthy Plants with Proper Nitrogen
Now that you know how to boost your soil nitrogen, you can grow thriving, vibrant gardens and bountiful harvests. Pay attention to signs of deficiency, test your soil, and add nitrogen-rich amendments as needed. With a little TLC and the right nutrients, your yard will flourish!
Composting of organic material is a great way to add a nitrogen-rich fertilizer to your soil. Did you know that coffee grounds, egg shells, tea bags, grass clippings, and fruit and vegetable kitchen scraps are all great additions to your compost pile? Remember, patience is a virtue in the composting game.
Composting of organic material is a great way to add a nitrogen-rich fertilizer to your soil. Did you know that coffee grounds, egg shells, tea bags, grass clippings, and fruit and vegetable kitchen scraps are all great additions to your compost pile? Remember, patience is a virtue in the composting game.
How to make homemade nitrogen fertilizer recipe #1: Fill a 5-gallon bucket with grass clippings. Cover grass clippings with water and leave for three days. Mix 1/4 cup of Epsom salt with two cups of urine.
Farmers apply nutrients on their fields in the form of chemical fertilizers and animal manure, which provide crops with the nitrogen and phosphorus necessary to grow and produce the food we eat.
10-10-10 is called an all-purpose fertilizer because it can be used on almost any type of outdoor plant, including vegetables, shrubs, trees, flowers, lawns, and houseplants. Generally, it can be applied to any plant that doesn't need one of the three macronutrients in higher amounts.
Let's begin with nitrogen, because it's the nutrient needed in greatest amounts and the one most readily lost from the soil. The richest organic sources of nitrogen are manures, ground-up animal parts (blood meal, feather dust, leather dust) and seed meals (soybean meal, cottonseed meal).
Anhydrous ammonia is generally the cheapest source of N; however, the method of application is less convenient and requires more power to apply than most other liquid or dry materials. Nitrogen solutions (28 to 32 percent N) are a mixture of urea and ammonium nitrate in water.
Coffee grounds have a high nitrogen content, along with a few other nutrients plants can use. In compost, they help create organic matter that improves the ability of soil to hold water. Several independent pH tests on coffee grounds show that they tend to be acidic.
Chicken manure has the most nitrogen, followed by horse manure and cow manure. Fresh manure needs to be composted or rotted for at least six months to a year before you can use it in the landscape or garden.
Fertilize: The most effective way to prevent and treat nitrogen deficiency is to fertilize the soil with a nitrogen-rich fertilizer, such as urea, ammonium nitrate, or fish emulsion.
Coffee grounds contain several key nutrients needed by plants, including nitrogen, potassium, magnesium, calcium, and other trace minerals. These are all nutrients that plants need to grow. The grounds are particularly rich in nitrogen, making them a great addition to compost.
For instance, if you've recently planted grass seed, a slow-release fertilizer like 10-10-10 can provide sustained nutrients, helping to establish a lush, green lawn. The goal is to feed your lawn with the right amount of nutrients at the right time to achieve the best lawn possible.
A homemade fertilizer mix can be made by combining different nutrient-rich ingredients in a compost bin or pile. If you're not sure what your plants need, aim for a 10-10-10 NPK ratio – 10% nitrogen, 10% phosphorus, and 10%potassium.
NPK 20 20 20 is a highly concentrated, balanced plant fertiliser. It contains equal parts nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. It is ideal for growing plants in poor quality soils as it provides a high amount of each of the three essential plant macronutrients.
'Banana peels contain lots of potassium, which is one of the three main macronutrients that plants need, and also phosphorus. However, they do not contain nitrogen,' says Homes & Gardens' gardening expert Drew Swainston.
Fertilize: The most effective way to prevent and treat nitrogen deficiency is to fertilize the soil with a nitrogen-rich fertilizer, such as urea, ammonium nitrate, or fish emulsion.
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