If you happen to notice small circular black spots, your plant probably has what is known as the Black Spot. The spots have fringed edges, and are a sign of a disease. Artificial sprays may be used to treat the spots, but the affected leaves should be removed from the plant, as remaining leaves will allow the disease to spread to the rest of the plant.

If you notice that the canes of your roses seem stunted or malformed, they probably have a fungal disease known as powdery mildew. Evidence of this is seen on the plant in white powder spread by the wind, and the leaves will start to curl and turn purple. It is best to treat the plant with Funginex or Benomyl to treat this fungal disease.

If you start to see orange-red blisters begin to form on leaves that turn black during the fall, you should collect the leaves that come down in the fall, as they are signs of a disease called rust. Removal of the leaves is important as the disease can survive the winter and attack new sprouts in the spring. Spray with Benomyl or Funginex every 7-10 days.

If the leaves or the flowers of the plant appear to be stunted or malformed, you may have spider-mites living on the rose. They are easily found, yellow, red, or green spiders usually found on the undersides of the leaves, where they proceed to suck the juice from leaves. Use Orthene or Isotox to take care of the infestation.

If you notice mottled leaves, or if the leaves have small white webs under them, chances are it was caused by aphids. The brown, green, or red bugs have a soft body, and are often found clustered underneath the leaves and flower buds, and will also suck juices from tender buds. You can treat this with Malathion or Diazinon spray.

If your flowers don’t open, or are deformed when they open, Thrips could be the reason behind the problem. They are slender, brown-yellow bugs with fringed wings that also suck juices from flower buds. Cut and discard the infested flowers. Orthene and malathion may also treat this problem.

More and more backyard gardeners, small farmers and even the bigger agricultural farms nowadays are using organic fertilizers in their gardening and growing process. The increase in the use of this is due to the higher demands for organic produce and the big advancement to the business position once a certification is awarded to it for “going green” and being concerned about the ecological balance of the world.

The average person, however, may wonder if there’s any substance to all these buzz words. Are synthetic fertilizers really that bad for agriculture and dangerous to animals and people? Are organic fertilizer really all that much better and safer? If so, why? And what are “organic fertilizers” anyway? This article will try to answer these questions for you.

WHAT ARE ORGANIC FERTILIZERS?

Non organic fertilizers are made from synthetic or artificial chemicals while the organic fertilizers are made from natural elements and materials. It may seem easy to differentiate the inorganic with the organic, but there are some facts about the organic that can be misleading. One example of issue is the misunderstanding of the composition of the mineral limestone, saltpeter and mine rock phosphate. People know that these are technically inorganic, but they are used for centuries as safe and good organic fertilizers since these are natural minerals.

Actually, organic fertilizers are directly created from various organic materials that are already decayed and rotted naturally. Just like the decaying process of dead plants and animals, the original compositions of the body become a biomass of high quality nutrient making the broken components of water and minerals the organic materials.

Organic fertilizers are easy to create. The simple and common form of this is the compost from animal manures. Since this is readily available, contains a high nutrient value, and more affordable, many farmers and backyard gardeners use the compost as organic fertilizers. Some farmers also use directly on soil some dead plants or leaves, grasses, seaweed, peat, food leftovers, and many more.

WHAT’S WRONG WITH INORGANIC CHEMICAL FERTILIZERS?

Many inorganic fertilizers contain synthesized chemicals that do not occur naturally in nature, and thus can become harmful. The introduction of such chemicals, if used extensively over time, can throw off the local environment and ecosystem.

Chemicals used as fertilizers will extensively affect everything and everyone. This happens because when it rains and the chemicals are washing into the soil. As the rainwater flows through the varied bodies of water, more and more living things in and out of the water are affected. The chemicals will also reach the groundwater, which is where drinking water comes from.

Lastly, inorganic fertilizers are absorbed by crops and plants. Once people eat the produce that came from those crops, the chemicals will stay in their body and will result in health problems. Eating produce with chemicals for only a single time may not harm anyone, however if you continue to consume products grown with inorganic material, you will eventually see its bad effects on your health.

WHAT MAKES ORGANIC FERTILIZER BETTER?

Organic fertilizers are made from natural occurring organic materials, which include plants and animal matter, and because of this there was no problem introducing it into the local environment.

When it comes to crop growth, using organic fertilizers resulted to positive outcome. Synthetic fertilizers come as concentrated chemicals which means less is used, whereas the organic fertilizers are already diluted and requires the use of more. Even though this is the case and it does take more organic fertilizer to do the same as synthetic fertilizer, the benefits of using organic material far out weight inorganic products. When using organic material the soil will slowly release the nutrients into the soil, which will eventually increase the crop growth rate for a better production.

According to a 32- year study performed in Sweden, the best thing about organic fertilizer is that it increased the yield rate of crops by 15%. The inorganic fertilizer only produced a 50% yield rate compared to the organic producing a phenomenal 65% yield rate.

We hope that you have found the answers to your questions regarding organic fertilizers within the words of this article. This is just the tip of the iceberg and further reading is advised. If you are planning to use organic fertilizers on your backyard or farms, try doing some more research so you can learn about the right organic fertilizers for your type of garden and its benefits. Organic gardening, organic farming and organic lawn care, like most subject requires serious study to implement the best tools and techniques for best results.

DISCLAIMER

The article is intended for information about organic fertilizers, organic farming and organic gardening only. It should not be regarded as scientific or expert advice in its own right. The information has been taken from secondary sources and is given here in good faith. We recommend you conduct your own research with expert & scientific sources prior to making fertilizer purchases or applying any fertilizer technique mentioned here.

Some people think that lawn care can only be properly handled by the professionals, but this is anything but true. As long as you are at least remotely informed and aware of the different issues that are important to overall lawn care and health, then you should have no troubles at all and you can save yourself time and money by DIY lawn care.

DIY lawn care is not difficult at all as long as you have and are willing to spend the time and effort that is required. There are a few basic DIY lawn care tips that are important to know in order to have the healthiest and most beautiful lawn possible and without having to call in a lawn care professional.

DIY Lawn Care Tips

When it comes to lawn maintenance, one of the most important steps is mowing. You need to make sure that you mow your lawn regularly, and that you leave the lawn clippings on your lawn after mowing, as this provides a fantastic source of slow-release nitrogen for your grass.

Watering is also crucial, and you need to apply at least 2.5cm of water per watering, and this can be measured by placing a container on the lawn while it is being watered, as long as you make sure to distribute the water across the lawn evenly. Remember that excessive watering is just as bad as under watering, as it can lead to poor growing conditions and disease problems.

Another of the most important DIY lawn care tips involves fertilizing. Compost is definitely one of the best fertilizers, and generally works well on all lawns. It is a fertilizer which will not only add organic matter to your lawn but as well will supply both major and secondary nutrients to your lawn, which are needed for proper and healthy growth.

Aerating is another crucial process in lawn care, and this is what allows your lawn to receive a better flow of water, air and fertilizer, as well as vital nutrients that come from the plant roots, allowing them to grow more easily through the soil. You need to aerate your lawn when you notice that the ground is hard and compacted, thatch is building up, or when water does not penetrate well when you irrigate.

By taking into consideration these and other DIY lawn care tips, you will able to start and maintain a beautiful and healthy lawn all by yourself, without having to spend time and money on bringing professionals in to do the job for you.