Easy. Cheap. This DIY fertilizer renews itself not just year after year but four times throughout the year. The perfect ratio of N, P, K. And you’ll have more of it than you know what to do with so its perfect for sharing.
I am talking about comfrey tea.
Ever heard of it?
Comfrey is a prolific grower! It is a powerful, medicinal plant, but it is also a huge staple in gardens, permaculture systems, food forests, and planting fruit tree guilds.
It has a deep taproot, and grows in the harshest conditions, you can completely neglect it and it will still grow huge and create more plants for you! You can cut it down to the bare ground four times a year and harvest more than your arms can carry on each plant.
Why is this important?
That deep taproot and the incredible gift of nature has provided a plant that pulls up the perfect ratio of Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium, and all you have to do is cut the leaves and lay them on top of your soil, your garden plants, the base of your trees etc. Use this plant as a mulch and it will provide free fertilizer for your gardens for the rest of your life.
Want to take it a step further?
Make comfrey tea!
All you have to do is get a large trash can with a lid, place all those comfrey leaves in the trash can, stuff it full, and then fill it to the brim with water, cover with a lid, and let it sit for a few months.
That is it. That is all you have to do.
When your plants need a boost simply dip your watering can into the trash can full of fertilizer you made and water them. This is great for house plants too.
I prefer to do this with the last harvest of comfrey I do during the fall. Comfrey dies back during the winter. I will make my tea sometime around October and it is ready for spring planting come April. I can use it all summer long and then replenish it again next fall.
I love things that are easy and cheap. And I love plants I can neglect and they thrive.
Happy fertilizing!
Lauren
