31 Days of MOO No. 21 MOO Bone Meal
Bone meal is a wonderful addition to your garden, encouraging strong root growth and adding phosphorous, calcium and nitrogen. And you can MOO it!
It's so simple too, almost as easy as buying it, only a whole lot cheaper.
Start by saving any bones - chicken, beef, lamb, pork, venison, fish - in the freezer. When you have a few, boil them in water for an hour, drain and remove meat and cartilage. Put the bones onto a baking sheet and roast at 230 degrees Celsius for an hour. Let them cool, then break them into small pieces. They should be brittle and crumble easily but if they don't a light tap with a hammer will break them down. Put the pieces into a food processor and pulse until the pieces are almost a powder; then process on high speed until you have a powder. Stop the food processor every minute or so and scrape down the sides and shake it up to make sure all the bones are powdered.
Store in an airtight container.
To use your MOO bone meal, sprinkle it generously over soil when preparing beds and pots for planting.
Use it during the growing season as a plant food, sprinkle bone meal evenly around the plant and gently dig or rake it into the soil, then water generously.
To use for new plants, add a small amount to each hole, add the plant and water well.
It's so simple too, almost as easy as buying it, only a whole lot cheaper.
Start by saving any bones - chicken, beef, lamb, pork, venison, fish - in the freezer. When you have a few, boil them in water for an hour, drain and remove meat and cartilage. Put the bones onto a baking sheet and roast at 230 degrees Celsius for an hour. Let them cool, then break them into small pieces. They should be brittle and crumble easily but if they don't a light tap with a hammer will break them down. Put the pieces into a food processor and pulse until the pieces are almost a powder; then process on high speed until you have a powder. Stop the food processor every minute or so and scrape down the sides and shake it up to make sure all the bones are powdered.
Store in an airtight container.
To use your MOO bone meal, sprinkle it generously over soil when preparing beds and pots for planting.
Use it during the growing season as a plant food, sprinkle bone meal evenly around the plant and gently dig or rake it into the soil, then water generously.
To use for new plants, add a small amount to each hole, add the plant and water well.