“I thought adding plant food to the water would be best for my plants. What is the difference between feeding the plants and feeding the soil?”
Organic Fertilizers and Soil Amendments
At Giordano’s Gift and Garden we sell fertilizers and soil amendments for every gardener’s needs, and we are committed to providing organic products as much as is practical, so there is the smallest negative impact on the environment. Organics are natural ingredients that beneficial microbes digest as food and then make nutrients available for plants. Feeding the soil preserves the natural biologic interactions that support plant survival and growth. Also,organic fertilizers have a much lower chance of leaching through the soil and contaminating the water table.
We do recognize that instituting a full program of organic gardening is a commitment and life choice that may seem complex at first, but will reap benefits in higher yields and better quality crops.
Chemical Fertilizers
Chemical fertilizers feed plants directly and do not address the soil, because they are in a form that plants can absorb immediately. While direct plant feeding sounds attractive, it adds no beneficial attributes to the soil. In fact, over time chemical fertilizers can deplete the soil of nutrients. In this regard the soil is acting simply as an anchor to hold plants in place. This approach is OK if you are only looking for short term results. However, when organic matter is not replaced in the soil, over time beneficial organisms eventually die out, the soil becomes hard, airless and less productive.