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To compost or not to compost? That is the question.

There’s a lot of controversy over the use of chemical fertilizers and organic fertilizers these days. Many people argue that chemical fertilizers do more harm than good. This is why most have turned to organic fertilizers for their plants’ main nutrient-base as opposed to chemical fertilizers.

Chemical fertilizers are “processed” fertilizers. Chemical fertilizers can provide an accurate supply of nutrients to plants with the right mix of Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium, something an organic fertilizer cannot always do. Organic fertilizers typically contain a large percentage of one of these three major nutrients and have low content levels of the other two.

But because chemical fertilizers are processed, the highly acidic substances found in chemical fertilizers contribute to the alkaline content in soil. Alkaline reduces the presence of soil nutrients which are essential for the plants’ growth and overall health. Organic fertilizers, on the other hand, contain less chemical substances. Thus, organic fertilizers are less likely to add to the acidic level of soil. Less acid means more nutrients.

Agricultural studies show time and time again that the key to a healthy garden is soil teeming with microscopic life. The acids in chemical fertilizers can kill these essential micro-beings. In contrast, organic fertilizers support them. There are no substances present in an organic fertilizer that can adversely affect or hinder microscopic life. Thus organic fertilizers prove not only beneficial to plants but to the microorganisms found in soil as well.

Some people argue that chemical fertilizer is still the way to go. Nutrient retention in soil are known to be the primary function of microorganisms but with the concentrated nutrients of chemical fertilizers, the need for microorganisms in gardens is not that pressing. This is only partially true.

Nutrients found in chemical fertilizers tend to evaporate or leach beyond the root system of plants and into ground water. This tendency of chemical fertilizers is not only harmful to humans (chemical fertilizers are the known culprits in contamination of drinking water), but wasteful as well. Plants can only need so many nutrients during their growth cycle. Any excess is wasted or stored in the soil organisms’ food banks to be later tapped into by plants when food is scarce. Now since organic fertilizers promote microscopic life, they in effect provide plants with a steady, albeit slow, supply of nutrients.

The merits of organic fertilizers do not end there. Most people agree that organic fertilizers are a cheaper alternative to the industry processed chemical fertilizers. True that commercially packaged organic fertilizers cost more per pound of nutrients compared to chemical fertilizers. But traditional backyard organic fertilizers like manure and compost are absolutely free.

So to compost or not to compost? It’s not even the question to ask.

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