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WTH is fallspate, or whatever that thing he says is in human urine? If you didn't watch the video, I highly recommend you do. It's hilarious. "The whole famliy can contribute!" And he also poured about ten gallons of the stuff on that tiny bunch of impatiens or begonias or whatever, which didn't seem to be blooming very profusely, by the way. I get more blooms by not fertilizing at all.
WTH is fallspate, or whatever that thing he says is in human urine? If you didn't watch the video, I highly recommend you do. It's hilarious. "The whole famliy can contribute!" And he also poured about ten gallons of the stuff on that tiny bunch of impatiens or begonias or whatever, which didn't seem to be blooming very profusely, by the way. I get more blooms by not fertilizing at all.
I read this thread a little while back and just figured it had to be a bad joke and didn't want to waste time reading a bad joke thread. sigh.... Yes TXNGL in its own sad way it had me in stitches, too,
For those of us who actually help real gardeners in the real world and have heard all sorts of mistaken beliefs these kind of tips are the equivalent of listening to advice on blood letting using leeches as a cure for diseases. Science and medicine have come a long way from those days and actually find some uses for those leaches but it also has shown that all the other things that were supposedly "cured" were not.
In the so called "old days" people had very little to help them grow food and every minor trick that appeared to help was passed along as "wisdom" and people slavishly believed, making excuses if something didn't work and if it did coincidentally it was seen as absolute proof. People also were absolutely sure that plants that looked like your foot would cure foot ailments and plants that looked like heart would make your heart hale and hardy again. Both the best tricks and the medicinal herbs would help every once in a while, usually in a minor way. Most often when they were tested carefully they did not really do anything and sometimes they actually did harm. In some cases as with the urine it may work but do you really want the aroma of fresh pee in your garden competing with the flowers? Never mind the possibility of disease, excess nitrogen and certain salts depending on the eating habits or diseases of the source of the pee.
In this day and age relying on old wives tales and old time remedies seems like wanting to get old time medical tips on how to cure an infection rather than getting an antibiotic. The antibiotic will act much more swiftly and is more likely to make you fully healthy, but you can make the choice to experiment, I'm not going to stop you.
For those who really want to grow plants there are lots of proven organic methods and products that will get the job done that have had some vetting and are at least safe. Otherwise enjoy the "experiments".
I've been having great luck in planting green/snap beans among all my other vegetables. The ones closest to the bean plants seem to thrive much better than ones further away from the bean plants. The butternut squash planted in the bean patch did extremely well and the one outside the bean patch only so-so.
For mulch, I've been using the sheep's wool that is too dirty to spin so it is not only hair (which I'm hoping will add protein to the garden, not just nitrogen) but it also has sheep manure on it for fertilizer. In any case, it does hold a lot of moisture for the plants.
The only fertilizers used in the garden are semi-composted bunny manure and "bunny berry tea". All imported fertilizers are just too expensive to use so we have to make do with what we have.
I've been adding chunks of broken up concrete and chunks of coral around plants that aren't so fond of acid soil and that seems to cheer them up. There is also occasionally bits of baking soda or hydrated lime sprinkled near acid loving plants although we have a pretty acid soil already.
There is also home made charcoal crushed up and mixed in with the garden soil to help hold the nutrients in the soil. They call it "bio-char" these days and some folks get real happy about it.
Oh, occasionally some Epsom salts are sprinkled around the tomato plants. Dunno as if that counts as fertilizer or not. The plants that have it sprinkled around them seem to have thicker stems.
I don't know how much of this stuff really matters or not, but if one is out there fussing about in the garden, it's generally improved overall even if all the things done aren't all that effective. Just being out there checking on things seems productive.
I read this thread a little while back and just figured it had to be a bad joke and didn't want to waste time reading a bad joke thread. sigh.... Yes TXNGL in its own sad way it had me in stitches, too,
For those of us who actually help real gardeners in the real world and have heard all sorts of mistaken beliefs these kind of tips are the equivalent of listening to advice on blood letting using leeches as a cure for diseases. Science and medicine have come a long way from those days and actually find some uses for those leaches but it also has shown that all the other things that were supposedly "cured" were not.
In the so called "old days" people had very little to help them grow food and every minor trick that appeared to help was passed along as "wisdom" and people slavishly believed, making excuses if something didn't work and if it did coincidentally it was seen as absolute proof. People also were absolutely sure that plants that looked like your foot would cure foot ailments and plants that looked like heart would make your heart hale and hardy again. Both the best tricks and the medicinal herbs would help every once in a while, usually in a minor way. Most often when they were tested carefully they did not really do anything and sometimes they actually did harm. In some cases as with the urine it may work but do you really want the aroma of fresh pee in your garden competing with the flowers? Never mind the possibility of disease, excess nitrogen and certain salts depending on the eating habits or diseases of the source of the pee.
In this day and age relying on old wives tales and old time remedies seems like wanting to get old time medical tips on how to cure an infection rather than getting an antibiotic. The antibiotic will act much more swiftly and is more likely to make you fully healthy, but you can make the choice to experiment, I'm not going to stop you.
For those who really want to grow plants there are lots of proven organic methods and products that will get the job done that have had some vetting and are at least safe. Otherwise enjoy the "experiments".
Heck of a post, Em, thanks! I hadn't even thought of the things that might be in that pee. Medication is the first thing that comes to mind. Pregnant women? You're talking hormones. Many other people, you're looking at anti-depressants, pain meds and antibiotics. No thanks. I'll take my "chances" with granular fertilizer.
Urine contains urea. Urea is nitrogen. You want free pee for your plants? Get a dog to pee on them. Or collect your own and pour it on them. Go on, have at it. And you don't have to be preggers for it to burn the jeebers out of your plants.
lmao... hey now, I am 33 weeks along, will send out pee to the highest bidder, plenty of supply considering I am in the bathroom every hour at this point, LOL.
It's never too late to start bottling and selling it, Starry! What is your due date? How exciting for you!
Thank you! April 30th, which is why I am chuckling at the flats of seeds I planted this weekend. It might be quite the exercise to get them into the ground
I do have a question about old wives' tales and marigolds though - my tomatoes had a very, very low yield last year in my first attempt at a square foot garden. Neighbors told me I needed marigolds to attract the bees to pollinate (makes sense to me) - think I need to make that adjustment this year?
Marigolds do not, repeat DO NOT keep tomato hornworms away.
Works in my garden, and has for 35 years. Worked in my grandfather's garden before that; he kept a garden for 60 years.
Maybe we're just special.
Quote:
Originally Posted by TinaMcG
OMG, this is the thread from hell.
If this thread vexes you so, by all means feel free to stay away.
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