Organic Fertilizer

Organic fertilizer is the best soil amendment you can add to your garden. Do you want to grow healthy, nutritious vegetables in your garden? Of course you do!

Organic fertilizer is easy to make

It does not take much to set up a biochar oven, we even show you how to make one. There are so many benefits to making your own biochar organic fertilizer. The number one reason is your soil will be so rich it will spur your seeds into strong healthy plants that will produce a high quality fruit or vegetable. And isn’t that what your want?

But just as important, making biochar helps the environment even more than you can imagine. But we will get to that later.

For now, we want to share a video with you that was sent to us from Malawi. Following our simple directions, they built their own biochar oven. They made a video of their first burn. Take a look:

They decided to use corn cobs for their biochar, because that is what is available to them. But you can use whatever biomass waste, i.e. dead plants, leaves, shrub and tree trimmings, grass cuttings, any biomass you need to dispose of.

All 3 Goals Achieved

Their goal is to clear the air, make their own organic fertilizer to restore the soil and provide smokeless cooking charcoal. And they have achieved all three goals!

We were very pleased when we received a follow up email from them “I am writing to show off that today we have made about 5 bags of biochar.”

What is most impressive is that “they” are a group of Nuns living in Malawi.

Sister Mary continues in her email “I have shown the sisters how to do it so anyone can make. I got an idea of mixing cow dung with biochar to make the little balls but my sisters could not allow me to try it because they are very pleased with the maize cob biochar just as it is. They call it “the charcoal of maize cobs”, the sisters have concluded that whoever invented biochar must be having two heads not one. So we say Congrats!” 

We love to hear stories like these!

Applying the 3 R’s to biomass (Reuse, Reduce, Recycle)

When we talk about the 3 R’s, we are usually referring to plastic, non-organic garbage. But we can apply the same principals to organic waste, especially our kitchen and garden waste.

Reuse – biomass has a second life when you turn it into biochar

Reduce – proper disposal of biomass helps clear landfill space and reduce carbon and methane emmissions

Recycle – combine your biochar with your compost to create a powerful organic fertilizer soil amendment

Earlier I said “making biochar helps the environment even more than you can imagine”.

Living trees and plants play a critical role in balancing our environment. Once they die they begin emitting the carbon that they have stored. Leaving plants to rot and decay is not healthy.

Managing the waste through a biochar system captures the carbon and sequesters it, helping to balance our environment. Putting biochar back in our soil enriches the microbe life, which in turn enriches the soil, cleans up metallic and chemicals, retains water where it is most needed, and purifies our water.

Sister Mary is an amazing example of how with a little determination anyone can set up their own biochar oven, dispose of biomass properly, and reap the benefits of your biochar! So, what is stopping you from setting up your own biochar system?

Everyone needs to know about biochar. Why? Because it plays an important part in helping reverse global warming. We need biochar to become part of our everyday vocabulary and the standard way to dispose of biomass waste.