Epsom salt is an easily available inexpensive naturally occurring mineral salt that has a variety of applications. It is used in medical science, agriculture, gardening and even for many home remedies for health and beauty.
Epsom salt is chemically Magnesium Sulphate and obviously
contain the element Magnesium.
Did you know Magnesium is the central atom in between four nitrogen atoms in
the chlorophyll molecule. For beginners, Chlorophyll is the pigment present in
leaves which is essential for photosynthesis – that’s plant food
production. Its so much important and that’s the reason why Magnesium is rightly
called as the MAJOR MINOR ELEMENT.
For beginners, the Major elements required for plant growth are the NPK –
nitrogen, phosphorous and Potassium and Minor elements like Magnesium, calcium,
boron, zinc, iron and others.
Now let s list out the best uses of Epsom salt in gardening and farming and how to and how much Epsom salt to use for each gardening task. Please watch this episode till the end.
- Seed Germination: Magnesium is proven to help in seed germination and helps by strengthening the cell walls and leading to much stronger seedlings. You should be aware of this problem called Damping off which affects the seedlings resulting in rotting and death of young plants.
Of course this topic needs another detailed episode to discuss in detail. But for now remember, to prevent this problem, Make a solution of 1 teaspoon of Epsom salt in 1 litre of water and spray it on the seedlings once ot twice daily. 1 teaspoon is roughly 5 gms by weight. - Improve Foliage Appearance and Strength: Meaning increase the greenery of your leaves or even lawn grass. As I said earlier, Magnesium is an essential component in the production of chlorophyll which is the green pigment in plants. For this you can make a foliar spray made of 1 teaspoon in 1 litre of water. Spray this once every 15 days to keep your plants lush green. If you are lazy or do not have time to make a foliar spray, you can even sprinkle 1 or 2 pinches of epsom salt around your plant soil. It is water soluble and can easily get in through the roots of the plant whenever you water the plant. Another method is drenching the plant with Epsom salt solution when you are watering your plants. For this you can use half a teaspoon per litre of water and drench your plants whenever you are watering them. This way it will uptake magnesium from the roots as well as from the leaf stomata.
- Treatment and Prevention of Leaf Curling which is due to magnesium deficiency. Of course there are many reasons for leaf curl and leaf discoloration whether upcurl or downcurl and there is a pattern to identify different micronutrient deficiencies. I have discussed in detail about leaf curl in one of my episodes.
To treat leaf curl, you can mix two teaspoons or 10 gms in 1 litre of water and spray this on your plant foliage. Make sure the foliar spraying is done max at the underside of the leaves, because the stomata or leaf opening for absorption are located in large numbers at the underside of the leaves. - Transplant Shock or Repotting Shock: When we repot a plant, the roots and the plant invariably face a bad situation what is called as transplant shock which can even kill your plant. To counter this You can follow two method. When you take out the root ball for repotting, you can just soak it for an hour in Epsom salt solution. Or alternately you can just water the plant with the Epsom salt solution immediately after repotting. The dosage is again the same proportion – 2 teaspoons in 2 litres of water per plant. Water this weekly once or till the plant recovers.
- Nutrient Absorption: Magnesium is a component of many fertilizer products because it facilitates the roots to uptake or absorb vital nutrients like nitrogen, phosphorus, sulfur and other nutrients.
- Magnesium-hungry crops and plants, like potatoes, roses, tomatoes, lemon trees, carrots, and peppers are very much benefited. You get healthier Fruits and Vegetables when you use Epsom salt once every 15 days or atleast once a month.
- Garden Pests like Slugs and snails are killed by Epsom salt. Directly sprinkle on these common garden pests.
- Get beautiful, healthy and big sized roses by using Epsom salt. As I mentioned rose is one of the magnesium hungry plants. Adding Epsom salt along with decomposed cow dung or vermicompost once every 15 days to your rose plant around the soil can really make a difference. You can also perform a foliar spray of Epsom salt solution as mentioned. The dose is same like 1 teaspoon in 1 litre of water.
- Adding it in Potting Mix: Magnesium sulfate is pH neutral, so it won’t significantly alter the soil PH. You can watch my detailed article on the Universal Cock-tail fertilizer powder we prepared by mixing a lot of stuff.
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Happy Gardening!
Healthy Soil = Healthy Plants
This means that you need to enrich your soil. Because most people are not making their own compost at home, they need to buy a fertilizer. Plant fertilizers purchased from the local nurseries often contain chemicals that may harm your plants. And also, these fertilizers can be a bit pricey. So why spend your hard earned money on these pricey fertilizers when you can make one yourself with just a little information?
So, How to Make Your Own Homemade Organic Fertilizers – Today I am gonna list out the Top 10 ways to enrich your soil.
Before that..
Making your own organic plant enriching formulas is really easy and fun. It should be noted that most people understand that the best way to get good garden soil is to use compost to amend the soil. Of course, that is true. Compost can be made at home out of leftover food scraps and lawn clippings, and so it is virtually cost-free.
While it may not be the most exciting of gardening topics, nothing is more important than having a basic understanding of fertilizer. All fertilizers are classified into two basic categories: chemical/synthetic – Inorganic and or natural/organic. I have discussed this in more depth in my previous video on NPK Crystals Fertilizer – the link is shown in description and also perhaps somewhere in a link towards top right corner of this video.
SO coming back to our List of Easy Household Fertilizers
There are actually quite a few common items found in your kitchen, and elsewhere around the house, that can be used as plant fertilizer.
The First in the List is – Aquarium Water
Water your plants with the aquarium water taken right out of the tank when cleaning it. Fresh water only please, do not use water from a salt water tank. The fish waste makes a grreat plant fertilizer.
Then Next – Bananas
Bananas are not only tasty and healthy for humans, but they also benefit many different plants. When planting roses, bury a banana (or just the peel) in the hole alongside the rose. As the rose grows, bury bananas or banana peels into the top layer of the soil – that’s called Top-soil. I have a separate video explaining what is Topsoil and subsoil in detail.
Anyways Both of these approaches will provide the much needed potassium that plants need for proper growth. So banana provide mainly potassium.
Cooking Water
Many different nutrients are released into the water that food is cooked in. Water that is used to boil potatoes, vegetables, eggs, and even pasta can be used as a fertilizer. Just remember to let the water cool before applying it to your soil.
Then very important one – the Egg Shells
Egg shells are rich in Calcium and contain about 1% nitrogen, about a half-percent phosphoric acid, and other trace elements that make them a practical fertilizer. Calcium is an essential plant nutrient which plays a fundamental part in cell manufacture and growth. Most roots must have some calcium at the growing tips to grow effectively. Plant growth removes large quantities of calcium from the soil, and calcium must be replenished, so this is an ideal way to “recycle” your egg shells. Simply crush them, powder them, and sprinkle them around your garden soil.
Epsom Salts
1 tablespoon of epsom salts can be combined with 1 gallon of water and put into a sprayer. Apply once a month, directly to the foliage for a quick dose of magnesium and sulfur.
Wood Ash (Like From Your Fireplace )
Ashes can be sprinkled onto your soil to supply potassium and calcium carbonate. Don’t use ash in areas where you are trying to maintain acid-loving plants – the ashes are alkaline and can increase alkalinity in the soil.
Green Tea
A weak solution of green tea can be used to water plants every four weeks. Use one teabag to 2 gallons of water.
Next interesting item is – Your Hair
Have you ever wondered, Hair is a good source of nitrogen. A good source for this hair is not only your hairbrush but also the local barbershop or beauty salon. Many of these establishments will save hair for your garden, if you ask them for it. But do not limit yourself to only human hair. Dog hair, horse hair, and cat hair also work very well.
Cow Dung or Horse Dung when dry and decomposed
- make an excellent fertilizer. It can be used as a soil amendment just by sprinkling it on top of the soil. Alternatively, it can be dissolved in water alone or combined with another organic fertilizer and applied.
Matches
The old fashioned easy strike matches are a great source of magnesium. To use this as a fertilizer, simply place the whole match in the hole with the plant, or soak the matches in water. The magnesium will dissolve into the water and make application easier.
Powdered Milk
Powdered milk is not only good for human consumption but also for plants. This source of calcium needs to be mixed in to the soil prior to planting. Since the milk is in powder form, it is ready for use by your plants.
NPK Crystals Fertilizer Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y654mtxQKmY
Epsom Salt in Gardening: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1jw4b1LelE
Milk in Gardening: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61WEepnGMYY