Organic manure is a well decomposed material used in organic agriculture it is free from chemicals, harmful organisms and weed seeds either it is from animal or plant origin.
Organic fertilizers are fertilizers derived from animal matter, animal excreta (manure), human excreta, and vegetable matter (e.g. compost and crop residues).Naturally occurring organic fertilizers include animal wastes from meat processing, peat, manure, slurry, and guano.
How to prepare Organic Manure at Home
Organic manures are natural products used by farmers to provide food for the crop plants. Organic manures are beneficial in the cultivation of crops. They increase the organic matter in the soil which in turn releases the plant food in available from the use of crops. Organic manures enable a soil to hold more water and also help to improve the drainage in clay soils. They even provide organic acids that help to dissolve soil nutrients and make them available for plants. Organic manure is being increasingly popular for organic farming.
Why Use Organic Manure?
Using organic manure will help you grow the healthiest vegetables. Organic manure can come from lots of different sources – it is simply best to use what is easiest to get. There are three types of organic manure: animal, green, and wood ashes. Using some of each will give your garden the best possible soil and grow the best vegetables. Organic manures in the garden will release half their nutrients the first season and half the next season, so they feed the soil slowly over time.
Adding organic materials to the soil does more than just add nutrients; it will improve moisture retention, help with drainage, and improve the soil structure. Organic manure will also ensure that your plants will have all the nutrients that they need to produce top quality produce.
Cover Crop Manure
Green manure can be made in a couple of different ways. We can plant a cover crop which we will let grow for a season, then cut and till under. Cover crops can also be grown and cut and added to a compost pile to be used later on the garden. The advantages of this type of crop are that it will choke out weeds, it will improve the soil once it’s tilled under, and it will help with soil erosion. The disadvantage is we can’t plant in that area until the cover crop is finished and tilled under.
Some of the best cover crops are oat, rye, cow pea, millet, fava beans, mustard, clover, vetch, buckwheat, lupin, fenugreek, sun hemp, alfalfa, and velvet bean. All of these crops are excellent sources of nitrogen and will also provide other nutrients to our soil.
Mineral Manure
Minerals gradually release into the soil over long periods of time. They can take years to finally break down into nutrients our vegetables will use. Some will help right away, like Epsom salts. Other types of minerals to use are green sand, gypsum, hard-rock phosphate, soft-rock phosphate and limestone. All of these added to your garden soil will help our plants grow over long periods of time.
Composting
We might also start a compost pile, if we have room. We can add grass cuttings, garden waste, leaves, and kitchen waste (but don’t add animal fat or meat to our compost pile). You will let this sit while we turn and water it occasionally. After 3 to 6 months, we can use it in our garden as fertilizer or as mulch for our vegetables.
Another possible type of compost is a worm bed. Worm beds can be used even if we don’t have a lot of space. Just add the worms and the organic material to the worm bed and let them do the work. The soil the worms produce is high quality and will work well in the garden. It can even be used in potted plants.
By
Madhumalar.R
Assistant Professor
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