Urban Gardening - Paper as Soil

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One of the basic requirements is gardening is good soil to grow plants. However, in urban areas, sources of good soil are limited making it impossible to grow plants at home. In my previous post, there are several ways to prepare your soil for gardening.

Last weekend, while fixing our garbage, I saw a plastic bag full of scratch papers like old reviewers of Matthew, carton boxes, newspapers, and others. Instead of putting into the garbage bag, I used it in my “mini” urban garden. Yes, there are several uses of paper in gardening. 

One common and widely use of paper in gardening is mulching.

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Mulching is the method of retaining moisture in the soil, improving the soil fertility and reducing the growth of weeds. To start mulching, the paper is wet to facilitate decomposition then lay around the newly planted crop. The paper will allow the water at fertilizer to reach the soil thus reducing the sunlight and nutrition to the weeds.

Instead of using the bag of paper in mulching, I am going to use it as soil or compost.

Remember that paper came from trees thus, organic in nature. The shredded paper can be broken down the same way as other garden waste making the soil nutritious. However, there are still some restrictions in using paper as soil or planting material.

The decomposition of paper uses nitrogen from the soil. And this nitrogen is needed in the plant's growth. To counteract this, instead of paper alone, mix it with nitrogen-rich material upon composting. Grass, weeds pulled from the garden, or vegetable peelings are some nitrogen-rich materials.

How I made my compost using paper?

In a large pail with drain holes, since this is for urban gardening, put a layer of torn or shredded paper. 

Top this with garden soil or compost soil. I used the soil mixed with kitchen wastes like vegetable peels, eggshells, rotten fruits, etc.

Add another layer of torn or shredded paper.

Topped with sawdust. You can use rice hull or dried leaves or grass cuttings.

Finally, add a layer of compost soil or plant materials such as grass pulled from the garden, leaves collected from pruning, dried leaves, or chicken manure.

Water and let it stand for 3 days to 1 week before planting your vegetables.

I will make an update on my urban garden using paper as compost or soil.

Have you tried using paper in gardening too?

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Create Your Soil for Urban Gardening

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In the previous post, Mommy shared how she declutter and organized our kitchen. Wondering where I was?

I was in the rooftop organizing my small urban garden.

Living in a subdivision , like us, lots for planting crops are limited. But this will not hinder your passion for gardening.

I made several attempts in growing vegetables in pots but none of them are successful since the place has only limited sunlight and teh soil I used in not good which are the most important things in growing plants.

Our kitchen roof is made of concrete and used only to store unused materials at home, this can be a perfect place to grow vegetables. There is also enough sunlight in this area.

But how to have your urban gardening?

I posted some tips on how to start urban gardening in the Chemist Dad site. Aside from the tips mentioned, picking the right soil is also important. Living in a suburban area will be quite difficult to find good soil for gardening. Doing your compost will be a great help but you will not have enough amount of soil to be used.

Where do I get my soil? Here are some ideas:

Rice Hulls

Eggplants and Tomatoes grown in soil with ricehulls

Our hometown is Nueva Ecija and it was known to be the rice bowl of the Philippines. When we go home, I get a few sacks of rice hulls and bring them to Bulacan. You can mix this with a regular soil or with chunks of decaying wood.

Saw Dust

Lettuce transplanted to soil with saw dust

There is a lumberware near our home here in Bulacan. I asked if I can buy some of the sawdust they produced in cutting lumber. Luckily, they gave it to me for free. The same with the rice hulls, you can also mix this in regular soil, either sandy or clay type of soil.

Home Rubbish

Trash coming from the peeling of fruits and vegetables are great materials to make healthy soil. All you need it to chop it into a smaller size to make decomposing faster, place in a container, cover with soil, and water. Keep doing this layer by layer every time you have rubbish from your kitchen. Using dried leaves or twigs can be included in your compost.

Animal Manure

Animal (chicken, cow, pigs, horses) have been used as organic fertilizer on farming. It is better if you are going to mix this first with regular soil. The manure can help improve the soil for it to hold more water and nutrients making it more fertile.

Cow dung are good source of nitrogen and organic carbon while chicken manure is highly concentrated with nitrogen and phospate which are essential for plant growth.

Having your vegetable garden at home will give you lots of benefits. You can have freshly-picked vegetables and cook them directly in the kitchen.

Here are some of the harvested vegetables straight to the kitchen.

Tortang Talong Special

Ginisang Munggo with Ampalaya and Sili

Ginisang Talbos ng Kamote

Adobong Sitaw

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