Products and How to Apply to Your Garden 

Organic inputs in small quantities can be expensive or hard to purchase. BOGI buys commercial quantities of key inputs and distributes them in our 'shop'. These products are available for members.

They can be bought at the monthly meetings or by contacting the BOGI shop coordinator, Mike Apap.

So here are our products, what they do, how much to apply and how to apply them.

Organibor

This organic form of boron is safe to plants, unlike other forms. One application will supply boron to the plants for two years. This is particularly important in sandy soils and in crops such as paw paws, avocado, and zucchini. Use at 100 g per 10 square metres. 

For fruit trees: each fully grown fruit tree generally has a root area of about 4 to 8 square metres, so apply 40 to 80 g spread over this area. 

Measure the quantity on your kitchen scales and get the rate right. 

Liquid lime

Supplies calcium to the soil in a form that allows the soil bacteria to make the calcium readily available to the plant. Apply as regular soil drenches using 4 ml liquid lime mixed in water to each square metre. Initially, use every 2 months. After 6 months, use it every 6 months. Shake well before use.

Liquid kelp

This seaweed product is a booster for the plant and soil microbial life. It supplies minor trace elements and plant growth agents. Apply prior to planting as a soil drench and then monthly as a foliar spray or in a watering can. For quantities and how to apply, see below.

Fish Hydrolysate 

This fish product supplies nutrients to the plants and soil microbes. Apply the same as Liquid kelp.

Foliar sprays: 10 ml per litre - mix in a spray can and spray the leaves on both sides till they are moist. Do this monthly for best results.

These rates may appear low. However, repeated monthly in addition to the base fertiliser before planting, they give the best results.

Soil drenches: 2 ml per square meter. These are best done before planting as part of base fertilising.

1. Calculate the area to be treated in square metres: e.g. a three-metre-long and one metre wide bed is 3 metres square, 
2. Multiply that by 2 to find the millilitres needed, in this case 3x2ml= 6ml.
3. Mix 6 ml of the product in a watering can and water evenly over the bed.

Molasses       

Molasses boosts general microbial life. It is available in small quantities at many shops.

Measure the area to be treated in square meters, multiply this by 8 to find the millimetres needed, mix this in a watering can and water evenly over the bed.