In the Okanagan we tend to have very sandy soil or heavy clay soils with very little organic matter. Sandy soil has limited mineral nutrients or ability to hold applied nutrients (fertilizer). Soluble mineral salts (e.g. Potassium sulfate) applied in large doses to soil with a low ability to hold it will not yield results.

In addition, rainfall and overwatering can cause excess pesticides and fertilizers from your lawn and garden to run off via storm drains into our creeks, impacting the health and habitat of fish and aquatic organisms. As well, according to the City of Kelowna, we are overwatering our outdoor landscaping by 50%.

Soil conditions contribute to 80% of plant health, according to arid climate soil expert Dr Jean Reeder at Colorado State University. If your soil isn’t healthy, your plants won’t be. If you feed and nurture the soil, you feed the plants. Plants can exhaust a fair amount of energy that might otherwise have been used for growth, flowering, seed production or root development scrounging the soil for mineral nutrients.

If you find you need to add nutrients to your soil, you’ll have the choice of organic or inorganic. Inorganic fertilizer has some pluses in its favor. It is usually cheaper than organic fertilizer and it acts more quickly. However, it does nothing for the soil and in some cases actually damages the soil with its higher salt content. So inorganic fertilizers don’t actually amend the soil, they simply feed the plant. It is kind of like a human being trying to survive on vitamin supplements and no substantial food. There have also been some recent studies that claim plants build up a resistance to inorganic fertilizers and require more and more of them to get the same results.

Organic matter is the only amendment that aids both the fertility and the texture of the soil. Whether it’s animal manure or plant humus, you’ll be feeding the soil and the whole ecosystem that exists there. The soil in turn will feed your plants.