Questionhow to use the sheep organic fertelizer for indoor plants?how often?how much?
AnswerLet's visit the Sheep 201 website:
www.sheep101.info/201/nutrientmgt.html
N-P-K for Sheep, like other Manures, varies. One will tell you it's 1.4-0.5-1.2. Another source will tell you it's .7-.3-.9. A lot depends on what the Sheep had for breakfast. But the bottom line is, it's good for your Soil. We'll assume your Soil is not over-endowed with Phosphorus and you can amend it with Sheep Manure after a reasonable time for curing. Besides, there's more to Sheep Manure than N-P-K. Sheep 201 points out,
'In addition to the three major elements, [Sheep] Manure also contains essential micronutrients (Boron, Calcium, Copper, Iron, Magnesium, Manganese, Molybendum, Sulphur, and Zinc).'
Manure in general is superior to fertilizer. As they point out at Sheep 201, 'The nutrients in Manure are a mixture of inorganic and organic forms...The organic forms come from the remains of plant tissue, cells, and bacteria that are in the Manure. They are slow-release nutrients that the plants cannot use right way. They become available to the plants as the Manure decays.'
When you mix packaged Sheep fertilizer into GARDEN Soil -- as opposed to POTTING Soil -- microbes get to work converting the organic matter in the Manure into a very potent, rich Soil amendment. Trouble is, you want to use this stuff on POTTED Plants -- am I correct? Your 'indoor' plants are not growing out of the living room floor; they are in pots. And that changes everything. Because there are fewer microbes in your Soil -- especially if you are only using Packaged Soil from the garden center or Home Depot. Very few microbes. Not much conversion.
What you need in addition to the Sheep Organic Fertilizer is MICROBES!
And that is SO easy to get. All you need is a handful of real American dirt! No kidding! If you have a Woods or Forest nearby, even better, because you'll know that no one messed with this Soil. It's exactly the same stuff that God made when he created Earth. It's down there, waiting for someone to come along to get a handful and innoculate their potted plants with microbes and organic matter.
Yep, that's what you gotta do.
If you had a microscope, my friend Reihaneh, you would see tiny little things squirming and jumping and darting all over the slide. Bit ones, little ones, busy as bees, converting organic matter all over the place. That is what you need. And then, Reihanen, your Sheep Organic Fertilizer will have microbes lining up for dinner in your Soil, generating N-P-K in perfect doses for any plant you put in there. For real.
That said, I have to tell you this is an expensive way to grow plants. Save that Soil and use it as an innoculant for any plants you grow. Just a little goes a long, long way.
Thanks for writing. Your followups invited.
THE LONG ISLAND GARDENER