ALLEGANY CO., N.Y. — Your vegetables from your own garden taste better than store-bought, right? Did you know you can assure even better results, with longer shelf life and a boost of nutritive value, by making sure your plants get all the minerals they need?
Plants need the three “macro” (meaning “big”) elements of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium found in all commercial fertilizer preparations – it’s the N-P-K percentage shown on the package. But plants also need other minerals in order to thrive. Some of them are also called “trace minerals,” because they may be needed only in tiny amounts, yet their absence or too much of them can result in sick plants. Calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), sulfur (S), iron (Fe), boron (B), zinc (Zn), selenium (Se), silicon (Si), vanadium (V) and many other minerals work together in a complex balance to produce disease-resistant, strong-stemmed plants that set abundant fruit with good flavor.
Whatever is present in your garden soil will determine the nutrition (and taste!) present in your garden’s produce. Like you, your plants “are what they eat.” Make sure your soil is full of the minerals your plants need by incorporating plenty of compost, especially the no-cost kind made from shredded leaves mixed with your kitchen waste, including coffee grounds and egg shells for calcium. You can also add rock powders to make sure all the needed minerals are present – these are sold by garden centers and online by seed companies. Azomite contains the “A to Z” of trace minerals, is inexpensive and totally non-toxic. Kelp powders, glauconite or other sources of trace minerals are often included in potting soil mixes and commercial balanced fertilizers.
But for any soil amendment to help you grow better produce, the soil pH must be correct for the crop you are growing. Soil pH affects mineral availability. Our U.S. Dept. of Agriculture has abundant online resources that show the preferred pH for various food crops. Have your soil tested at the next Allegany County Master Gardeners pH clinic event – watch our Facebook page or website for informationallegany.cce.cornell.edu. or call us at (585) 268-7644 Ext. 23.
—Deb Bigelow, Master Gardener Volunteer
Cornell Cooperative Extension of Allegany County
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