As I was cutting up a tasteless store-bought tomato for our salad, I was looking out the kitchen window onto our vegetable garden that is still buried in three feet of snow. I can’t wait to start digging in the dirt again and grow some fresh veggies! These store bought tomatoes taste like grass and I am SO ready to have some nice, juicy, flavorful tomatoes, picked fresh from the garden. Yum!
Veggies fresh from the garden taste so much better and are better for you, but what is their nutritional value? My garden has been there for many, many years. All the people that lived here before us have used it and taken from the soil, but what have they put back into the soil to help it grow veggies that are high in vitamins and minerals? Plants do not make minerals. Rather, they take minerals from the soil. If they don’t get the essential minerals from the soil they can’t make vitamins efficiently, and therefore you end up with a vegetable, or fruit, that is deficient in essential nutrients (minerals/vitamins). Our food’s nutrient value has dropped drastically over the years because we are not replacing the minerals that we are taking out of the soil. The fertilizer (whether it be organic or not) only supplies enough nutrients to help the plant grow lush and big. Plants only need 9 minerals to grow happily and healthy, whereas our bodies need 60 minerals. To help our crops reach their full potential when it comes to their nutritional value, we ourselves need to supply all the minerals to make that possible.
Wood ash is very high in minerals and in years past people would always sprinkle their wood ash from the fireplace or cooker in the garden. This added loads of nutrients to the soil. Last fall I burned some branches that were blown off our trees and collected the wood ash to sprinkle on my garden. I’m hoping that this will add much needed minerals to the soil. I’m also looking forward to adding some Blooming Minerals soil conditioner and plant food, containing up to 77 organically bound earth elements. I’ve heard so many good things about this stuff. Not only does it promote healthy plant growth, but it also feeds the plants all the minerals necessary to bare a crop packed with essential nutrients the way it was designed to be.
Think spring everyone!
2 comments:
Boy, I am ready for planting season, too! Garden-fresh corn, beans, okra, tomatoes, onions... mmmm!
When we moved into our home 2 years ago, our soil was PATHETIC! After two autumns of packing it with raked leaves, veggie compost piles, and anything else we can think of to boost the minerals, hopefully our soil is much improved this spring!
I completely agree with you....I hope Spring comes soon!! We have started some pepper, tomato and squash seeds inside (just so I could see some green growing!! :) ) I can't wait to really get to work in the garden and reap the yummy harvest!!!
We, also, try to keep adding nutrients to our soil with compost. It makes a big difference with the harvest of our fruits and veggies!!
Have a blessed day!,
Christy
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