The sardine run has recently hit Durban and people have been pulling sardines out of the sea in bucket loads. If you’ve ended up with a fridge full of the little fish, and can’t face another sardine meal, then you can use them ‘as fertiliser like them Pilgrim fathers’, according to regular commenter and occasional blogger Khalid. Anyone tried this?
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sounds fishy!
Never. Love sardines, and still have some (from the first landing), cleaned (a sharp pair of scissors works well), masala-ed, lemoned and frozen for a friend from Class 1, but it has been whittling away with each week (baby potato wedges fried alongside them are even more fabulous than the sardines themselves, oh heresy). Good thing I’m busy tomorrow or the last three might vanish, friend be forgotten. Now where can I get some more, and not for compost either. The earth will have it’s share but not right now.
Oops, ignore apostrophe, sprinkled unnecessarily, what I really meant to say is where is the Indigenous Plant excursion Nial and will you be wearing a Sprig hat?
Niall (busy day)
No sardines for your roses then Pi
The garden fair is being held at Munies Field next to the Durban Botanic Gardens. I, unfortunately, will not be there. Visiting family in Cape Town … but I do like the idea of a Sprig (garden) hat!
@niall…epic fail.missing the biggest indigenous do in durbs.
sardines like dry leaves will need to rot to become humus/fertiliser.consequently there will be a negative nitrogen balance ( i think thats what they call )at first.so its not really feasible when theres ready made compost
if you are stuck on the fish idea,checkers used to stock a kelp derived fertiliser…brown fishy smelly pellets.
yeah, I know … but its my brother’s birthday so there is not much I can do about it.
Enjoy CT and the birthday lucky brother. No roses in my garden (not after watching Mum lose one every few months – not that that ever stopped her), but sardines are the sea’s precious harvest and easily managed with gloves, and then vinegar to sluice.
I shall go to the fair on Sun when it is quiet, claim my refund from the booksellers (fat chance, they’ll probably extract several times more with their fabulous books), and probably get a barrow of promising greenies like the cabbage tree zuluensis again (lovely name).
By the way that wonderful horticulturalist who runs the Wholesale Plant Nursery (Cliffview Road, Bellair on the first weekend of every month) is actually Peter Haig (of Haig’s Nursery, which his mother used to run – to which we got carted as kids). If Louise (his wife, who does lovely inexpensive pottery) hadn’t mentioned it I wouldn’t have guessed (not with a memory blurry with gardens).
As far as I know the fish trick used by the pilgrims in america was taught to them by the locals and was specifically involved corn. I think that fish was used to help germination (I hope that is the right term) of the seed. So if it is true, it probably is only a useful tip in very specific situations.
At any rate, in an urban context I would stay well away from meat products in compost/fertilizer, as it may attract rats and other vermin. That won’t make you or your neighbours happy.