When it comes to gardening, there are plenty of tips and tricks that sound bizarre but do wonders in transforming and enhancing our outdoor spaces, and gardeners have been offered another tip that may seem strange but has plenty of benefits.
Benedict Vanheems, a gardening expert, shared his five secrets for growing amazing tomatoes on growveg.co.uk. One of those gardening hacks included burying fish heads in the soil. The gardener initially dismissed the idea until a little more research revealed just how beneficial it is.
He wrote: “Fish is loaded with nutrients which, as it breaks down into the soil, the tomato’s roots can trap into.”
Fish fertiliser provides essential nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (NPK), as well as other beneficial micronutrients and minerals. It also enhances soil health and promotes beneficial microbial activity.
According to Benedict, Native Americans have been using the method for thousands of years, planting the ‘three sisters’ of corn, squash and beans over fish and achieving “great results”.
To boost your tomato plants using a simple fish fertiliser, put a couple of fish heads into each planting hole and cover them with a layer of dug-out soil.
Benedict added: “This serves as a buffer between the roots and fresh fish until it has started breaking down a bit, and should hopefully help to mask the smell from wandering wildlife and pet cats and dogs.”
Go ahead and plant your tomato on top, before back-filling with the soil, making sure to bury the bottom few inches of stem up for good measure. Remove the seedling leaves, as well as the first pair of true leaves as it will enable deeper planting.
You should then finish up with watering the plant with a weak liquid solution that will give plants “a bit of a lift and help settle them in”. Benedict says that once your plants start flowering, give them an occasional liquid feed of either tomato fertiliser or a home-made liquid.
While the fish fertiliser is a great and simple way to give tomato plants a little boost, it might not be for everyone. Therefore, Benedict recommends comfrey leaves as an alternative.