Bat Guano.....a/k/a The Search for Organic Fertilizers

[peeweelovesbooks]

Hello all.

I've wanted to experiment with organic fertilizers for a while now.

I purchased some worm tea fertilizer with natural rooting hormone and anti--fungal additives. While I have researched the worm tea and I think it would be something beneficial, I can't stomach the smell of the additives. To me, the smell is just foul.

So, I was doing more research online and there's this thing called bat guano. Yes, bat poop. I was fascinated to learn, as I shared with my fellow chat members, that bat guano from different parts of the world have different NPK ratios.

So, I looked around the site, and I purchased a small bag of Mexican Bat Guano. Besides now having to speak spanish to my orchids while fertilizing them, is there anything else I should know about this product?

What organic fertilizers have you used in the past? Do you still use them, if so why? if not, why not?

Do you think organic fertilizers are better or equal to other types?

I will post the results of my little experiment as soon as it is possible. Wish me luck!!

[axle]

For the bat guano you may want to brew a tea with it like you would with worm castings, it's too powdery to apply directly to open media mixes.
Also an air pump and airstone is great to have for brewing teas too, and a little dab of molasses.

I don't believe that 'organic' is superior to 'chemical' fertilizers, or vice versa. Chemical fertilizers supply nutrients directly in the form of micro and macro nutrients, while with organics you are supplying food for microorganisms to eat and poop out those needed nutrients.
In the past I've used;
bloodmeal, which supplies nitrogen, and breaks down quickly (gets eaten and pooped out pretty fast) this is probably to 'hot' for orchids

bonemeal, is a good source of phosphorus and calcium. orchids don't need much phosphorus from what I hear though.

Kelp/seaweed, once this stuff is washed of any seasalt residue it's a great source of potassium and many other macro nutrients.

bat guano can vary in npk values but is also a great source of macro nutrients

worm castings are my favorite by far, great source of macro nutrients, plus it's a great source of beneficial bacteria and microbes as I'm sure enzymes and other goodies. also supplies a small amount of nitrogen. terrestrial plants can often be grown in straight worm castings.

You can get very creative too, I've used other such things as rabbit food (alfalfa pellets), coffee grounds, and other strange things from around the kitchen.

While I've had great success with organics in keeping terrestrial plants, I'm hesitant when it comes to using organics for my orchids, the microorganisms you're culturing are going to work against you and start eating the pieces of bark and coco in your potting mix. Your media will break down much quicker than if using only chemical fertilizer.

[ToddsterVonCattMan]

I'm with you , PeeWee, I want to try a high nitrogen guano. I've been using earthworm castings for the last several months, particularly on newly repotted plants, and I have really noticed my outdoor growing orchids—mainly masdevallias, Catts, Paphs—responding very well to it (repotting stress much reduced, growth excellent on the masdie's, despite a hot early summer). I've mainly just top dressed the pots with the castings, but have brewed a tea as well. My orchids also get healthy doses of MSU RO water formula, occassionally Dyna-Gro Grow formula, and Neptunes fish/seaweed once a month too...

Bat guano has such a rich and successful and long history in horticulture it seems like a natural for my orchids...

[Ray]

The nutrient ions absorbed by the plants are identical, whether from organic or chemical fertilizer sources.

I personally prefer "chemical" fertilizers because I always know exactly what I am feeding my plants. With organic products, there is always a great deal of variability.

It is also well-established that plants need a wide array of mineral ions beyond N, P, & K. Does anyone know the chemical make-up of their guano beyond those three macro elements? I have looked, and nobody seems to supply that info. If you're going to use organic products, I think you're wise to follow Toddster's example of providing them and chemical nutrients to make sure your regimen is complete.

Yes, guano - bat or bird - and other manures have long been used in horticulture, but I don't want poop in my greenhouse or home. I read an article that showed that most guanos contain a wide array of yeasts and fungal spores too, and I'd really rather avoid potential pathogens.

Native North Americans used to bury dead fish in their fields too, and that was a VERY good fertilizer. Anyone want to try that?

Truthfully, I think it's more a matter of personal preference than anything else, but it is easier to control plant nutrition with "chemical" fertilizers.

[got ants]

Ray, I actually DO use fish by products in my organic compost bin. It's pretty easy to do and avoid the smell by making sure they are completely covered, and not disturbed for a while (while it breaks down). I mostly only add the viscerated parts, no bones. Bones would probably be great, but I use my potting material by hand. And that's all I need it to get stuck by a bone with this goody material.

[Ray]

I'm aware of fish products. Fish Emulsion has been a standard fertilizer in the orchid world as long as I can remember, but unlike your compost bin, there is a - let me say this gently - "distinct" fragrance associated with its use.