We Buried Common Kitchen Scraps in the Garden and THIS Happened 🤯

Burying kitchen scraps in the garden is one of the most well-known practices in gardening - but does it actually work? And do some things work better than others? In this video, we strive to uncover the truth about burying kitchen scraps in the most thorough gardening experiment we've ever done!
IN THIS VIDEO
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TIMESTAMPS
00:00 - Intro
00:38 - Experiment Explanation & Parameters
03:25 - Digging & Filling
05:20 - Watering Tomatoes
05:40 - Two & A Half Week Update
07:52 - One Month Update
10:35 - Two Month Update
12:07 - Final Update
12:27 - Tomato Counts & Weights
13:23 - Conclusions
16:04 - Digging Up Plants
DISCLAIMER
Epic Gardening occasionally links to goods or services offered by vendors to help you find the best products to care for plants. Some of these may be affiliate links, meaning we earn a small commission if items are purchased. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. More info on our process: www.epicgardening.com/disclai...

[@epicgardening]

What growing experiment should we try next?

[@BestGranny10]

Broccoli

[@meancupcakes]

Caffeine dampened soil repels slugs. Not coffee grounds but diluted coffee

[@meancupcakes]

Could you try improving light in a dark shady corner with a reflective surface?

[@fpramparo]

Same but with commercial fertilizers

[@NailahRoberts]

Electro culture

[@elisabethdiamond]

An interesting experiment would be to do a second generation in those same holes with the now broken down dirt and see which does the best.

[@marym4186]

I wonder if catfish would win the next round because it is already broken down.

[@sonholee5769]

I was thinking the same

[@gardengatesopen]

I was thinking this too. I'm betting this would be the most fertile soil for the 2nd round of plants. Fish Heads Forever!!

[@lourencopedro1]

That's what I thought, maybe burying kitchen scraps is great but it takes time, as it takes to make compost

[@gardengatesopen]

AND- What if you put fish heads, or even just a whole fish in there, bury it a little deeper this time, like 3" deeper, then an inch of soil on top of that, THEN add an egg! Next, choose a perennial plant. Plant it in there. Would the result be the first year the plant is highly productive because of the egg? And the 2nd year it's even more healthy & productive because of the fish? I would think so... If I could dig a hole deep enough in my rocky soil, I would totally do that!!

[@donnaarthur1331]

My grandmother each year would hoe a trough between the planted rows of her garden and each day put the kitchen waste in the row and cover it up. She would start at one end of the row and work her way to the other end of the row, hoeing as many rows as she needed each year, even during off seasons. The following year she would plant the seeds and plants in the isles where she had buried the kitchen waste the previous year. Where she had planted the garden the previous year she would there hoe her troughs in which she would bury the present years kitchen waste. She never used commercial fertilizers, and she never had a compost pile. She had no problem with insects, and her garden produced greatly. This was part of my grandmother’s Pennsylvania German ways that she taught me.

[@jokerace8227]

Yes, what you describe is the main difference between what my Grandma used to do, and what he did here.

[@shirleytruett7319]

You had a very SMART Grandmother ❤

[@wakeleyfamily]

Wow! I think I will try this! Our dogs are constantly competing with me over my compost heap...I will cut out the middleman and see what happens!😅

[@susandickerson2663]

Love this!! Trying to figure out how to incorp w square foot gardening. I might have to move a spot to row gardening.

[@donnaarthur1331]

To me it is common sense to dig a trough in the isles between the rows and bury table scraps there and then plant in the isle the next year as my Grandma Solmie did. She gathered scraps all day and buried them each evening, so she had a mixture of scraps from all the daily meals and food preparations. Thus, with a variety of foods, an assortment of vitamins and minerals for earthworms to feast on and process for the soil. This also creates slightly raised beds each year that are full of a variety of nutrients for plants to choose what they need. Grandma was born in the mid 1880s, and learned her Victorian ways from her family. My late husbands family was from West Virginia, and they regularly buried parts of catfish and other fish they caught they did not consider edible around their rosebushes (and occasionally other landscape trees and shrubs) and it resulted in outstanding rosebushes. I encourage you all to look for gardening related books from prior to the 1940s at yard sales, book stores and libraries, because you will find a wealth of lost knowledge in them. All growing was “organic” and “sustainable” prior to this. It was during the 1940s when land grant colleges and universities agricultural programs that were heavily funded by the chemical companies pushing their newly created agricultural chemicals began pressuring farmers, gardeners, and even children and youth in 4-H to use their chemicals in their plantings. Also, seeds were open pollinated, where governments could not control the food supply.

[@bluesky7226]

After my Italian father harvested his crops in the fall, he would dig a trench of about 12 inches throughout the garden and throughout the winter he would add food scraps and just continue to add food scraps and cover up the trench. By the time he was ready to do his planting in the spring, everything was broken down, and his soil was ready to be planted. Obviously, that is the key to making sure that everything is broken down before you plant in it, otherwise the microbes breaking down those large items are robbing the plant of the nutrients that they need. Great experiment. Thanks for sharing.

[@shirleytruett7319]

Very smart ❤

[@mariahsmom9457]

Good idea im going to try this

[@loumonte658]

Your father's wisdom =top notch.

[@marciamackey3822]

NOBODY can grow veggies like an ITalian!

[@kristenb5177]

Yup you want to add your food scraps at the end of Oct / beginning of Nov so it gives the scraps enough time to breakdown for spring plant .🌻

[@lindab.716]

My brother regularly fished in the Pacific Ocean when we were teens in the 70’s (big fish 😳) After he cleaned them Dad buried the rest in Mom’s garden. You would not believe how productive that garden was 😊 She ended up winning a contest and appeared with her harvest in the local paper.

[@drizler]

When we go deep sea fishing the mate cleans all the fish on the way in. It looks like a scene from The Birds that Alfred would approve. Nothing makes it back to shore but the fillets

[@lindab.716]

@@drizler brother would also go out on chartered trips like that. We lived a couple miles from the beach and he would also go out on the rocks to fish. Dad taught him to clean his own fish. Years later he worked on charters and commercial line fishing.

[@TheActiveLifeLived]

I am doing the same with yellowtail every winter! When I have a good day out on the boat, I bury them whole!

[@cccsss9985]

This is why non-fisher-folk buy fish emulsion (rotted fish) to fertilize their gardens.

[@mhansen09]

We do this too! Just make sure the raccoons don't dig it all up! Hahaha

[@mslorischoolsocialworker]

My mom used to help get yards ready for Master Garden tours. At one of them she saw the best soil she'd ever seen and assumed the gardener used a lot of compost. When she asked her if that was the case, the gardener said she had never used compost and that the only thing she did to improve her soil was bury kitchen scraps. I've been burying kitchen scraps for years (just barely under the soil to not disturb it too much) and think the important thing is to bury them not at the time of planting but at the end of the season, so that they've broken down when it's time to plant. Sometimes in the fall in rows where I wasn't able to cover crop, I throw kitchen scraps on top of the bed and then cover them with a thin layer of leaves and/or straw.

[@THEHORSELOVER235]

Do you toss meat in there too

[@Yenneffer]

That makes sense! Essentially the scraps turn into compost by the time you're actually going to plant at the start of the season.

[@nathanliteroy9835]

Yes. 2 important things that make for decomposition are oxygen and water, this is why you need to shuffle compost constantly or alternatively to to blow air through stuff like manure, there's no good decomposition withuot air in the deep parts of the soil. Water is very important too, nothing happens withuot it. This is why the most important part of soil preparation in professional plant growing happens in the autumn too - they plow the soil and add fertilizers so that bacteria had to time to work on macroelements and to incorporate it, and to recycle what it can why there's lots of water from the rain and thawing snow.

[@pattycb2537]

@@THEHORSELOVER235NO, no beef or pork or fat.

[@mslorischoolsocialworker]

@@THEHORSELOVER235 I've done fish but not meat. Usually just vegetable scraps, though.

[@GLorious_Creations]

I would have loved to see you guys taste test a tomato from each plant to see if you could tell a difference in their flavor too. Probably not a lot of difference but it makes me wonder. I think the lack of aphids on the Oxilis was the most interseting detail... a natural way to fight those annoying bugs!

[@suecorliss2874]

That a wonderful idea. Taste is what it's all about. 😮

[@TaxTheChurches.]

Yet the aphid covered plant did the best. Maybe they are harbingers of a good harvest.

[@DOLsenior]

My father was an avid fisherman. We had to bring the guts of the fish to the compost pile. His tomatoes were the best I've ever had.

[@sacrebleu1371]

​@@DOLseniorMy plants do great with fish carcass, especially if I end up with a salmon too old and gone, but I plant after it's been there a bit already decomposing, plus it was naturally in that early state on catch.

[@user-cw5cz5vr5i]

​@@sacrebleu1371Carp are in most places,they are a ready supply of fertilizer here in the US.

[@whateverthedaybrings2268]

I was always told that composting material drawns out Nitrogen. Which is why you compost material first and then add it. The fish heads did so poorly because the composting process used up all the Nitrogen. Long story short, add compost, don't compost while gardening.

[@jenniferbailey1580]

Native Americans reportedly put *a* fish head in under the plant bed they were starting, so each mound of corn, beans and squash had a fraction of what was under that tomato. And winter squash mounds were suggested like 6’ apart per the seed envelope yesterday. A couple squash plants per mound, say 9 corn and 27 beans again per 6’. I’m vegetarian so the fish heads were never something I had in my experimental archaeology but (especially with a good handful of nitrogen fixers in the mound) that’s a completely different bit of breakdown math than a bunch of meat and bones per 1 tomato as done here

[@DaDunge]

Depends on what breaks it down, bacteria will probably draw some nitrogen out but if you have plants which can form symbiosis with fungi then those will collect nitrogen and deliver to to the plants in exchange for carbohydrates.

[@user-re6jg8nf9u]

Just for info sake : my Grandparents had HUGE gardens my whole life, as long as they had their home together out in there City of Linden MI. It was known that the Veg. & Fruits: garden & trees, were basically my Grandfather's fare, with help from my Grandmother. The Flower gardens were only for my Grandmother to tend to. They equally managed the whole of their yard together. Neither the yard or the gardens.. ever had any form of Treatments. There were no weed killers or bug killers or commercial fertilizers ever used. My Grandpa tilled and cultivated the grounds throughout the season. When planting, he would initially before placing the plants or seeds ( seeds he kept from his produce - year after year ) put in his Compost MIX. That mix was everything chopped up and small. He had ; greens from the grass mowing, some leaves from their fruit trees, all the garden by product ( vines, leaves ,.. ) that showed no signs of spoilage or infestation of bugs, fruits and vegetables scraps, egg shells, coffee grounds AND Fish ( chopped up - from a WHOLE FISH ). The fish used were fresh, small and came right out of the lake from their back yard. They were Sun Fish and Blue Fish. Everything was chopped up small. All mixed in/together with tended to Compost of the same. They had the most Beautiful Gardens for years. Strawberrys, Raspberries, Purple Concord Grapes, 5 types, at least, of Tomatoes, Corn, many types of Peppers, Onions, Potatoes, Green Snap Beans, Eggplant..etc. for the vegetables. The trees were Black Walnut, Pear, and Apple ( Delicious) . Never have I seen more Fantastic gardens. Not a weed in sight !! Being with my Grandparents gave great fun and experiences. In my early years (8yrs. -- ) I started my own gardens with the knowledge I acquired from them. I had wonderful success with Vegetables gardens but no luck with flowers. I was successful with Shrubs and Trees. I guess I had my Grandfather's Green Thumb. He was a pure, ( so I was told by him and the family ) Full-Breed Indian. My mother was the one who handled growing flowers and definitely had the touch. Fish and Egg/Shells definitely work, but must be chopped up small. He used local, Small bred fish. I hope this helps. Best of luck in your business. I Love your tomatoes.... May GOD Bless you and the whole ( all employees ) of your business. Thank You for the productS AND the really cool video. 😊

[@Di-sg6mv]

Great story! Thanks for sharing!

[@jacquesinthegarden]

So interesting to see the long term progress of this experiment! Seeing how quickly everything's broke down has me considering composting in ground more often 🤔

[@epicgardening]

Similar here...

[@jenniferjsaracino]

A bokashy trial perhaps?

[@wolfmooch]

I do it all the time. I just do it in rows in between when j have the space.

[@Dot2TrotsLowCarbLiving]

My yard is too small for composting. I can't use leaves or grass (my HOA sprays). So, I directly bury my kitchen scrapes in my raised beds in the fall & winter (until soil freezes). I just put everything in 2 gallon freezer bags and store until the end of my growing season. I heard that the breakdown process heats up the soil, though I never tested. I mulch with straw and cover with chicken wire because of the skunks, raccoons and squirrels. Never had better soil.

[@magsj6474]

How deep do you bury the scraps? It gets a bit cold in the winter where I am and basically shuts down the compost but maybe actual soil would keep active?@@Dot2TrotsLowCarbLiving

[@NomaD_203]

This is the kind of content that I really love - side by side comparisons to test different methods. Coming from a coastal community with a strong fishing heritage, I can tell you that fish byproducts are definitely used to enrich the soil, but nobody is putting huge heaps of fish under each plant. Fish bones/scraps/entrails etc are dug into beds in the fall after harvest to allow them time to break down before spring planting, and this is done annually so the parts that take longer to break down have multiple season to finish the job.

[@albusandrose]

They should do this same experiment with the same elements but allow them to break down before they plant the plant. Like bury the items in the fall, and then plant in the spring over where they buried the item.

[@stevenmajewski3870]

This is exactly what I made a comment about, glad more people are saying it because even the early native americans knew this trick.

[@amazinggrace5692]

I saw him dump those huge chunks of heads and went “oh that’s not gonna work!”

[@Leo1903able]

I am new to gardening but have been burying my kitchen waste for over 6 months now. Being a mostly raw vegan a lot of seeds go into the ground along with the scrap and to my surprise, plants started to pop up everywhere within weeks of them being buried. I had yielded over 50 watermelons as well as cantaloupes and starter plants such as mango, papaya and Sapota plants....all from kitchen waste.

[@JWHealing]

YES thank you for making these very good points. No gardener puts 3 lbs of fish under each tomato plant, and yes give them time to break down first.

[@alexandradixon3775]

Many years ago my neighbors (a married couple) in a community garden had a method that seemed to result in terrific rich soil and amazing veggie production. They would cut up their kitchen scraps and freeze them until they had enough to bury in a square foot or so of their garden. When they harvested a section, they would dig down several inches, bury the kitchen scraps, cover them back up, then NOT GARDEN THAT SECTION for a couple of months until all of the kitchen scraps had decomposed. One possibility for why Roma and Eggbert did the best is that Roma had nothing buried under it, and Eggbert had mostly broken eggs which would have decomposed very quickly. So the plants' roots weren't *competing* with the composting materials. All the goodies in the soil went to the plants, not to breaking down the compost materials. If you left those six areas alone for another year then planted out six more tomato plants, you might see different results, because all of the buried materials would have broken down.

[@RubberRivet]

This reminds me of something my grandfather told me about sixty years ago. He said, a plant will grow not because of what you do to it, it grows in spite of what you do to it.

[@melissamoore6539]

A variable that wasn't tested was to make sure you had the same mass of additives to each plant and to emulsify to make sure you have the same surface area. There were WAY more fish heads than anything else and they were HELLA wet. I would happily redesign this experiment with you Kevin. It's literally my job lol

[@richg0404]

My thought too. My mother in law swore by the fish heads method and on head under each plant and she got soooo many tomatoes. He used way too much fish in that hole.

[@GameTimeWhy]

Do you do all this before planting or can you add fish heads and stuff after the plants are in? Sorry if it's a stupid question

[@meanqkie2240]

@@GameTimeWhy hard not to disturb the roots if you dig down to add to already growing/established plants. If you side dress shallowly, you’d need to cover the soil with hailscreen mesh to prevent scavengers digging. People do drill large holes in 3-4 inch pvc , insert at planting, then add scraps all season. Just takes longer to compost, but it’s the same principle as a keyhole garden with a center scrap tower. Lazy gardener method, still works.

[@JWHealing]

Yeah I'd say a repeat & redesign of the experiment is in order too. I agree that was way more fish heads than anyone would put under one tomato plant. Same with the eggs. I've heard one egg per tomato plant. Also the "Roma" plant is not a good enough control because it had way less soil disturbance so it's more of a no-dig version. It should have had an identical depth and size hole dug with the same steel mesh bag, just nothing in the bag, then the dirt filled in, then plant the tomato.

[@meanqkie2240]

@@GameTimeWhy it also occurred to me that tomatoes are one plant that will root all the way up the stem, so you could make a small raised bed around your existing plant, add your scraps to the former surface on protective screen mesh, remove lower branches, then fill with soil and cover new surface with more mesh around stem.

[@iankastelic5146]

This was fascinating! As a science teacher who emphasizes using control groups, I love that you included one! A gold star! However, On the Control plant, you did not show that you dug up the soil to the same depth, or had an empty steel cage underneath it. Strictly speaking, the lack of turning the soil underneath the control plant definitely could have affected the growth. Thanks for an interesting video!

[@toms169]

Exactly what I thought. The process of digging out the soil and placing the steel cage in will very likely have an effect.

[@simonfraser1491]

The seedling looked like the saddest seedling too

[@sharonwhiteman6874]

My thoughts too. Also maybe should have used cloned plants instead of seeds

[@terrydipaolo1545]

All of the 'no till' people are salivating, I'm sure.

[@Chronically_ChiII]

I skip videos without control groups.

[@alicetheegreet]

I save my eggshells and break them down to almost a powder and some various sizes and mix it with my compost. I get so much tomatoes that I can eat exclusively from my raised beds for 6 months and still have plenty for my neighbors to help themselves to.

[@littlebluesongbird]

Really great video. I ❤ the fact you made 1 video with continual updates instead of making three or four little videos making us getting recapped every step of the way. This was very efficient use of time for me and very educational regarding gardening. One of the reasons I keep coming back 🙂

[@thechaosgoblin]

I planted late tomatoes (mid-June). I just happened to take a seaweed foraging class that day and buried the extra seaweed when I planted the tomato *seeds* in the ground. The plants are so deep green and robust and I'm actually getting fruit in October. Definitely going to do that again next year 🙂

[@makemesmile004]

On the maine coast we have a locally made potting soil/compost made from rock weed and lobster carcass Excellent growing medium!

[@brandon9172]

@@makemesmile004 You should look into european green crabs too! I'm on the other coast and we've been getting tons, but I know they've been a big issue in Maine for years. If you have access to intertidal land you can throw pots out and get hundreds of them every week for fertilizer, and you'll help farmers and native species out.

[@makemesmile004]

@brandon9172 yes! Umaine is working on programs and many others too When I had water frontage I did that and it was beautiful 😍

[@BestGranny10]

Thanks for the tip!😁

[@HawkXe]

All of my tomatoes still have crazy amount of fruits.

[@stormraven4183]

I love how exited you two are about the broken down fish. It would be interesting to plant again next year in the same spots, with no additional scraps, to see which made the best compost for next year.

[@masnaringquest4626]

I'd like to see the fish heads ground up for easier breakdown and see of it makes a difference with less surface area.

[@pattrainor1234]

So glad that you did this with a video process to answer lots of my questions. I have buried kitchen waste (from our school) over time but just planted anything over it as I was trying to build a healthy environment for any kind of plants. I have used eggs in each tomato plant with success but always success with compost. As I am active in a community garden, our leader used a mixture of Epsom salt, bone meal and fertilizer, then we add compost and cover with soil. This is our 17th year coming up and our community garden is a huge boon for the seniors, the school and community at large. We are volunteers and pick and prep for the community on Friday mornings. We had to set strict time limits (open from 10:00-12:00) as people come earlier and earlier and our produce was skimpy. We also have flowers and people can pick for weddings and such at no cost. Most importantly, it is on school grounds, so traffic is controlled and although too many of us are retired and now more limited, it keeps us young and purposeful. Newer and younger folks are coming alongside. We are paying it forward in a good way. In this time of polarization, hate and such, it is great to work with a range of people for the good of everyone. (Yoda message there.) Nina

[@headybrew]

Absolutely fascinating. As an extremely lazy gardener, I feel vindicated after telling countless people on facebook that making all these crazy concoctions and teas and such is just too much work. Just compost the dang weeds. Just compost it all and be done with it.

[@jimandsteffunnydellafiora4475]

Tell us about your stinging nettle stew! Please?

[@brigidlaffey7343]

There’s no hard work involved in making brews or Teas. One just adds the required items to water and lets it sit. Dilute after the required weeks and feed away - comfrey/banana peels/ horse,cow,sheep manure, egg shells - any combo, all, or just one. Easy peasy. Simply requires application of self. And still compost your weeds 😊😊💜

[@carolwisniewski6740]

I used to bury fish scraps over 2 foot down under rose bushes. I think the first year it's too acidic. The second year, the growth was amazing. It was almost like you could tell when the roots hit that area. I also wondered about sunlight. Could that have had anything to do with the better success at the egg/nothing end? They were very bushy. I would suggest putting them even further apart. Very cool experiment. I love stuff like this!

[@yesgogood7304]

I think the hole is way too deep, in South Africa, I just bury all organic material into the garden, in a random 10-15 CM deep hole and in time worms will come and eat them. So initially might not be every household organic material, but later yes, because those earthworms will eat them away like within 3 days. Your problem is that you just dig too close to the plant, you just needed to dig further away, you should see micro root growing out from the roses, the more you feed the soil the faster it get decompose and you will feel the soil get very loose as the worm get feed and grow in numbers. In rainy times, then you can see earthworms comes out and get into the paving area, at the end they needed to breath air. You know it is too shallow as it will smell, but as long as it did not smell then it is deep enough, as worms don't live that deep, micro bacteria also don't live that deep. The most lucky things is that I am a cat person, so no dogs to mess things up.

[@carolwisniewski6740]

@@yesgogood7304 I grow my tomatoes from seed indoors. No matter what I do, they get spindly by the time I plants them. I bury them deep, sometimes even burying them sideways so only the leaves are exposed. Sometimes I even get plants popping up from the soil where the stem is. I usually grow the same 4 varieties and always try a 1 new one, annually.

[@randallblack5677]

Early on, the Roma control looked like it might get less afternoon sun and more water retention. Later it shaded its companion while being an early target of the aphids and won re: ripe fruit. Do aphids stimulate early ripening?

[@jenniferkeeponfighting7561]

New sub!! Loved it. I use my fish tank water in addition to regular watering when I do my water changes and it makes plants EXPLODE in size, health, and production!!

[@EminMusicEmsy]

Do you put the fishtank water in all your plants or only specific ones? I heard it's best for citrus so I'm always throwing it in my citrus when I do water changes, but are you also noticing it having luck with other types? If so I may start throwing it in more than just the citrus.

[@jenniferkeeponfighting7561]

@@EminMusicEmsy veggie garden, ALL flower pots and outdoor plants. It's liquid gold ✨️

[@EminMusicEmsy]

@@jenniferkeeponfighting7561 Thank you! I'll start pouring it in more than just the citrus! :)

[@gailschwindt8970]

Thank you, this study will make my life so much easier. I do let my garden rest after 7 years of growing. This has helped greatly.

[@HattoSora]

Only Kevin and Jacques can react to broken down fish heads with the same awestruck ferocity of a twitch streamer and not be cringy while still being entertaining and educational 😂

[@jacquesinthegarden]

😂

[@Chet_Thornbushel]

New idea- Epic Gardening live Twitch streams 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

[@user-fc5kd7lj3l]

I put a big fish head in garden. Had a 3 day90° weather. Went out to water and found ground bubbling with maggot. Million on neighbors house.like a horror movie. Hosed them down, bunch of crows can in, and helped get rid of them. Never again! Anyone else have this problem?

[@danajorgensen1358]

Only problem here is.... I was taught that burying food scraps was an off season thing; you do it at the end of the growing season to prepare the soil for the following spring.

[@TatyanaFermon]

exactly! growing up we had a huge garden which our family had for like 4 generations... ALWAYS in the end of the season before winter and then add some fertiliser (also natural) like a month before planting...

[@MrMeow-iq7kq]

His video is insulting to peoples intelligence. I don't think it was aimed at everyone but rather people who dont even grasp something as basic as these things needing to be broken down/composted first. After burying them like that, I thought he'd at least give it a few months or whatever before starting... but nope... >.> You know... SOMETHING other than just plopping it in just as it is. It wasn't a real test. I feel cheated and my time wasted.

[@VinzClorthokeymasterofGozer]

Dad always said the same thing about burying fish scraps after cleaning our catch. "It's for next year." He also had us bury them between rows in the summer, and would move the rows back and forth into the fish cemetery rows each year. I was never sure it did much more than give us a fish cemetery and give Dad something to do.

[@VashtiPerry]

@@MrMeow-iq7kqI think it was really aimed at the garden videos that make claims about this type of stuff. Not to insult anyone.

[@MrMeow-iq7kq]

@@VashtiPerry probably shouldn't focus on the word usage. It's easy to take things out of context like that. It's a turn of phrase in this case, where it isn't even taken as an insult but is meant as a form of expression. The video was pointless and misleading as they did not conduct the experiment properly at all for the sole purpose of making a point that could have been made separately. Who'ever they aimed it at, the rest of us are sitting here expecting the steps to be followed properly to really see what the results would have been.

[@user-ot5qi4pj2n]

Thank you! I haven’t had a garden in the last 4 years due to health problems. I am ready this year to make a small garden.❤

[@mrtaser556]

love this experiment. I have been burying indiscriminate kitchen scraps in my garden this year but just started planting. I am excited to see the results.

[@ramonatamiyasu9297]

My husband hooked up our kitchen sink "in sinkerator" to deposit our kitchen scraps organic matter directly outside to our compost pile. Works great but does need added drier materials like straw, sand, ashes, sawdust, to balance the liquid. No wasted effort and gorgeous rich compost for planting and top dressing.

[@SaaSyTechMama]

Wow. Incredible idea I love this. When I get my own place I'm having my partner set this up for us!

[@polobik4231]

Using ashes is such a great idea! Way better than just keeping loved ones idling in jars somewhere in the house, let's give them a new life!

[@capuchinosofia4771]

@@polobik4231 the fact you thought of human ashes before even thinking of ashes from a bbq/asado/fireplace 😭😭😭🤣🤣🤣

[@kindnessfirstandlove2192]

@@capuchinosofia4771lmao I am cryyyyying 😂😂😂🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@mimilong3817]

This is an excellent idea for everyone to create fertilizer excellent soil for farming your yard…especially considering the high cost of food. Small livestock is great. Hopefully most people will do this soon and in the process, eat much healthier. There’s something about all kinds of food additives in corporate food. Plus, agribusiness is in it for themselves. Bill Gates comes to mind buying up all the farmlands.

[@aj9675]

This was like going back in time nearly 60 yrs, my dad and I use to dig a starting trench at the top of the vegetable garden then spread evenly with literally everything, old newspapers, kitchen scraps, leaves, grass cuttings even old clothes until it covered the bottom at which point we would used the soil from in front backfilling the last one while at the same time creating a new trench, finally working our way down the whole vegetable garden, it wasn’t just a seasonal thing but an all year long one until we reached the end of the garden when we’d start a new trench back at the top and continue the cycle all over again. Never needed to use any compost or fertiliser and we always had bumper vegetable crops, so much so that we gave a lot away to neighbours.

[@DovidM]

This is an excellent method. It might sound like a lot of labor but compare it to the labor of composting in one section of the yard, and then redistributing the finished compost where it is needed.

[@hopefulforhumanity5625]

Did you plant on top of the filled trench or next to it?

[@mariannesouza8326]

@@hopefulforhumanity5625 Hmm 🤔, I wouldn’t have thought about that. I hope the poster returns to answer your question. 👍🏼

[@iman3gb]

Full of Organic matter

[@asteria4279]

Interesting method for a large garden with extra space! Saves work in the end and maybe helps with scavengers getting into the compost.

[@MentalHealthCounselorTeacher]

I am going to plant a garden this year. This was a fascinating video to watch. My parents grew a big garden in Ukraine and I have not had any big experience in this field. Thank you for posting.

[@msmdare]

Thank you for this! I’m such a neophyte at gardening . My Grandfathers had Victory gardens their whole lives. My Dad gardened too. So learning these tips will keep me from following trends and tips that you already saved me from!

[@TheAlaskaMom]

I love this! You should replant in the same holes next year and see what happens now that these items are fully decomposed.

[@redcyan77]

It would have been interesting to do a soil test before and after to see what the nutrients were.

[@elenikominos7404]

My Grandmother taught me this. No waste. No expense.

[@Di-sg6mv]

Wow, GREAT EXPERIMENT! Thanks guys for all the work involved and sharing this with us!

[@PalmettoParatrooper]

I forgot some fish in a cooler for a few weeks. I left them in that cooler with the water they were already in for about 4 months total and watered half of my tomatoes with it. There was nothing left in the water except scales and bones. That half of my tomato plants got the largest and produced the most.

[@TheTurtleTribalNation]

That’s awesome

[@Extortionism]

I was also wondering about the results if the fish had been mostly broken down instead of in large, fresh chuncks.

[@bethb8276]

The smell must've been horrendous though, I turned green just reading that! Lol

[@sproutingemily]

🤢

[@robinmaibals1193]

So you inadvertently made fish emulsion?

[@andros1000]

This is possibly the most interesting garden experiment I have ever seen. I would have probably spaced the tomato plants a little wider apart if possible, to minimize transfer of nutrients amongst them, especially during watering, especially during the hurricane you went through. There may or may not have been other control issues, such as angle of light and length of exposure to light for each bush. Actual percentages of ripe vs ripe tomatoes would have been nice on the otherwise great graph you put up. Also, it would be interesting, even as a follow up video, to hear about the taste quality of each batch of tomatoes, taste being ostensibly the most important factor in why one grows tomatoes in the first place. Does the nature of the substrate added come through in the taste of the tomatoes? Were there catfishy-tasting tomatoes, and were there more floral, or more aromatic ones? Which ones had the best, the worst, or the blandest taste? Which ones were best in recipes? Which ones lasted longer? Which ones were easier to cook with based on skin thickness, overall juiciness, or amount of seeds? The moral of the story is quite clear, though, plant in an already rich soil or administer only expertly prepared fertilizer or well aged compost with fine particles. Loved this!

[@jonathanh3530]

One plant per category is not scientific. If they did 5 plants per category then I would have more faith in the experiment.

[@kristinebradof4846]

@@jonathanh3530 My thoughts exactly, more replicates.

[@lucasroth4486]

Just eat the tomatoes and get on with it 😂

[@moonbladem]

Fascinating experiment and results. Thanks for doing this and showing us!

[@grantritchey7509]

Loved your thoughtful garden experiment. I've gardened for about 45 years and made my own compost for 35 of those years. I haven't read any comments yet, but I'm guessing I won't be the only one to suggest the timing of the introduction of "stuff" to improve soil before planting is just as important as what. Composting breaks these items down over time, so I'm guessing if you put everything back in place and repeat your experiment, adding nothing, they'll all come out pretty equal. Great good gardening fun though. Thanks!

[@rodl12]

I only bury vegtable kitchen scraps during the late fall and winter so by spring they are completely decomposed which I believe makes a huge difference from your experiment. I also add egg shells but I ground them to a course powder and then add them to my garden which produces a great bounty of tomatoes.

[@MrMeow-iq7kq]

I thought that was how he was going to do it when I clicked on the video.... had me screaming at the start. This is not even a real test he is doing... its just to send people a message. Why bother if he isn't going to do it right?

[@kathryncrawford8914]

When I filled up a new raised bed I threw kitchen scraps on top of sticks with leaves attached, then the top 8 inches or so was dirt. It's been 2 years now and that bed still gives me a consistently higher yield than my grow bags that I put traditional compost into.

[@cynthiasiddall1285]

Thank you great idea

[@runescapeppl41]

For your egg shells; how long after using an egg do you grind them down? Or not at all?

[@SeekingGreetings]

​@@runescapeppl41 ok

[@johngalt97]

Experiment variations: 1)emulsify the materials, 2)combine in each the whole and emulsified materials in two separate plantings, 3)each planting variation done with pre-composted amendment. I totally dig this facet of gardening, and would be far more motivated by it, and then making a 'parameters and results' video. Fun!

[@MrLandslide84]

Me too, I am trying to cross peppers in my closet this winter for my gardening fix. lol. I am going to try to recreate some peppers that popped up this year due to the work of the bees. Should be fun.

[@cf8959]

This video came in the nick of time. I'm just about ready to plant my garden. Totally shocking results. Thanks guys!

[@tinameiling3646]

Thank you! That was very interesting!! I like how you do and documented everything. I´m interested to see the same experiment with bokashi.

[@MsWDWFAN1]

My grandmother buried her scraps and she had beautiful gardens! Some would sprout & grow and she'd get more veggies. It's been so long ago but I remember she harvested tomatoes and eggplant. She could grow anything! Definitely had a green thumb! 👍💚

[@PearaRiwhi-ug4fe]

I've used all these in my garden including fish heads etc..not catfish heads just mullet and kahawai nz fish. I never planted immediately on top I waited about 9 days watered the soil then planted my veggies. An amazing display of growth within 2 weeks began. The "Roma" pile amazed me and it just shows how amazing natural soil is. I so enjoyed this experiment and while I won't change how I work in my own garden it definitely helps me to think more when I begin a new area that hasn't been used before. Thanks so much

[@bronsonperich9430]

Chur. I figured your fish heads would have way less than his nē?

[@dreamgypsy54]

My mom would use fish scraps from cleaning fish to put in the hole she’d dig to plant a tree, sometimes a whole dead fish, but in two years the trees were 10-20 feet tall!!

[@patrickwilson9783]

Kina juice bro mixed with puha and bananas

[@annahau8588]

He used too many fish heads. 1 would have been enough.

[@abdurraheemgreen2339]

Brilliant! Also thumbs up for the sheer commitment to actually make this video!

[@marshallking-ls1lz]

Very much enjoyed this clip. I make my own compost from grass clippings old rotting branches and leaves.. put all my kitchen scraps in a blender and add it to my compost pile, works very good.

[@amyberg1413]

Really interesting! I have been burying my kitchen scraps for years. I got tired of making a compost pile and now dig random holes in my gardens and dump in the scraps. I do not do it near plants during growing season. I have never dug up any of the scraps, they all decompose fairly quickly. I have an increase number of worms and awesome rich soil. So much easier than maintaining a compost pile and tossing it.

[@kathyplaza9883]

I do the exact same thing with the same great results you are getting. I also put in Winter Rye as a cover crop in the Fall over what I've dug in the plant kitchen scraps and garden debris from the Summer planting.

[@awhite9221]

I just dump my scraps in the ground too. Got many thick worms and nice dark soil that I use in my grow bags instead of buying garden soil.

[@gracehuey5160]

This was a fascinating experiment. I love your long term videos where we get to see the results at the end, as opposed to waiting months for a follow up video.

[@csokilany]

This was fantastic! Thanks for doing the work and sharing!! Highly appreciated!!

[@Chiclette-ld1xx]

Wonderful experiment and thank you for posting it all from start to finish. Wow!

[@fuzzytale]

It would be interesting to redo the experiment next year in the same holes and see which one has the better soil a season later

[@TrekMTBikeRider]

By far one of your best videos. You should repeat the experiment next growing season to see if the results are similar.

[@RaoneG34]

No. In vegetation what does that emana like 2 vegetation or 3 and 4

[@aliciam3753]

I loved this video! The nerd in me was fascinated!!! Do more of these videos. I’m all in!

[@donnaarthur1331]

It is interesting that you blend your scraps first! Good idea!

[@user-gt8ot1yo1y]

Please do more of these experiments, they are fascinating and very educational!

[@bethanyg153]

I think I’ll use this in my 7th grade science class to teach about control groups and eliminating extra variables. Good job, epic!

[@saraholden5213]

I noticed that the garden soil you started with looks very optimal. I've never started with soil that optimal. But I never trucked soil in. I created optimal soil on the beds with 4 foot high piles of pulled and cut weeds over which I sprinkled a little fertilizer. I had to do this yearly to keep the fertility up and the flea beetles and pests down.

[@richricogranada9647]

What a tidy and neat gentleman. All looks so good around your house.

[@dawnjackson6741]

The fish heads probably created higher temperatures while breaking down in the nets. I bet if you did the same experiment in proximity to the plant you would get a better result. Also please try this with corn next year! Would love to see the outcomes. You guys are the best!

[@wayfaringfarmer2724]

Awesome video and experiment. An old friend of mine told me this is how he grew all his crops, never bought any inputs. He would use anything he could get his hands on… didn’t matter what. The KEY FACTOR he said was giving it 2 months before planting. Great channel!!!!

[@enargins]

Fascinating video! Thanks for sharing. Would be interesting to see how the plants would do next year if you planted them in the same soil samples.

[@Oktopia]

Timing matters for decomposition. Grinding things smaller and putting them in the ground way sooner than the plants get in will get a better result.

[@PinnacIeSaint]

All in all I think it was a really interesting experiment. But I scanned through some of the comments to see if anyone caught onto something I noticed. Which was the amount of sunlight. Through out the whole video at each segment I noticed the plant with the table scraps always had more sunlight. While as you went down the row the sunlight went dimmer. So I'm wondering if that played a factor. Also I really think it would have cool to do a Taste comparison. Altimentally I think I would compost first then plant. All of that stuff together probably would have made an awesome compost.

[@jujubesification]

I came here to find this comment. I figure it could be important to try to control for sunlight, as well!

[@industrialathlete6096]

In my opinion and observation, sunlight is one of the Most important 'ingrediants' in growing garden vegetables.Next is water(lack of or too much).Next would be soil fertility and 'condition' of the soil!

[@wendyjomendy]

No Africans bury food scraps too. I dated a man from the Congo his family are professors at UC Davis and they bury food scraps well the ones that grow from the ground anyway because trees that have fruit and leaves and nuts they fall to the ground in the wild. It's not rocket science!

[@TomJones-tx7pb]

From growing tomatoes hydroponically, I gotta say the plants drink huge amounts of water.@@industrialathlete6096

[@joeshmoe7967]

At about 9 minutes, it looks pretty even, but one would have to see the morning until night sun to see how much difference. Unless too hot, there is no such thing as too much sun for a tomato. Best tomato plant I have grew was in a garden that got sun dawn to dusk. A single plant with over 150 good sized tomatoes. I think good soil an some basic fertilizer works well. If I were to put scraps in, I would till them in during the fall. If I had a lot, I would make a compost heap. - Cheers

[@unwind4068]

When growing from seed we would expect there to be at least two different phenotypes. It is possible your noodle plant lost the gene lottery, and the control was just a very vigorous pheno. If you are planning a 2.0 next year definitely use clones to eliminate this variable. Fun experiment, keep up the great content!

[@caljerm]

This ⬆

[@michaelthomas7898]

More than likely clones to start with.

[@unwind4068]

@@michaelthomas7898 I believe he said they are sprouted from seed.

[@llbailey9946]

Even if they were clones, the starting plants should have been barerooted to compare root mass, and the initial plant number of leaves and stem planting depth controlled for or compared. Really need a matrix, not just one plant of each.

[@eekee6034]

If you can't have clones for whatever reason, start 20-odd plants (more than 12) and when they're ready to plant out, pick the most evenly matched 6 for the experiment. It's still not as good as clones because they might react differently to the soil they get planted in. EDIT: And, as someone way down in the depths of the comments pointed out, the control should have had a metal mesh.

[@moonlightqueen452]

❤great job. I've never seen an experiment of such. Thanks for sharing. I'll look for more videos like this 😊

[@elizabethpeacock9054]

Thank you for the effort put into this. I hope to do an experiment by comparing adding "smoothie" of comfrey leaves vs. adding nothing as a control. I'll do that this growing season and document the results. I'll share the results if I can figure out the best way to share those results with KZbin.

[@wrenwry]

Ok, I can already tell this is gonna be a massively helpful video. Thank you so much dude.

[@yeevita]

Love this. It actually re-affirms, to me, the burying of all earth materials in the garden, especially for people who have very little space. Personally I think it means bury it but not directly under the plant. So for example, bury it, then cover with soil and mulch and fertilizer/amendments, then the plant. Give the stuff some time to become decomposed before the plant roots get there and need it. Super experiment! For me, I bury scraps, garden weeds, etc before I need to plant, or off to the side or in a corner. Course, in my area, I also need them for moisture retention, not just to break down. My soil still needs way more organic materials.

[@healthyfreesoul]

I’m not even into gardening, and I found this fascinating! I am into soil, earth, and the concept of regenerative farming, but not in a hands on way. Just knowing that localized farming needs our activism to stay strong!

[@user-rn7jo6zs2q]

This video was great. I'm composting my kitchen scraps by drying them by my fire all winter and will crush them up for spring container gardening. Last year I used a bit of fertilizer. I'm curious about this working. Maybe by breaking it down first gives it an advantage. Thanks for your sharing❤

[@amymckenna5134]

My thoughts are that Roma may have done best, as the natural microbial layer was not disturbed like the other ones were. Goes along with the belief that you should not till your garden in the spring, right before planting. It's interesting regardless, and I hope to see more of these!

[@stevenmajewski3870]

My dad always put the fish scraps in the garden the year before planting. He grew easily 4 foot tomato plants. They were not romas though and from experience romas are usually not as big. One of the best in size things he grew were zucchini which were like 5-6 pound monsters. Honestly, just making a general compost pile over a year ie. table scraps, a little vegetation, fish scraps, ect., let it break down with soil mixed in for a year, and then using it to plant in is best. Also, my dad went as far as to bring in trucks of dirt from his friends property and sifted out the pebbles. It was some of the darkest soil he had ever seen.

[@iprobablyforgotsomething]

Does soil being dark always indicate that it's rich in nutrients?

[@stevenmajewski3870]

@@iprobablyforgotsomething as apposed to red or gray indicating clay, yes. Not all rich soils are good for growing stuff in though, under pine trees you will find rich black soil but it is much too acidic to grow most thing in.

[@reginastevenson-swint8676]

It's what I do,I add everything in it. All veggie scraps,egg shell,leaves, fish. In about 6 months cause of the amount its rich worm boasting soil. The tomatoes are sweet,plump,delicious and plentiful. /

[@Ringmybellofseefeld]

Loved this experiment. Incredibly interesting and very useful. Thank you.

[@lisalee2885]

Awesome one 👍👍parts of this should be shown in schools..great knowledge

[@stephenhope7319]

That is an interesting experiment that should continue into future years. However, I think for most of us novice gardeners, the best takeaway would be to add all those ingredients to our compost and use it evenly in our planting beds. I still consider myself novice even though I have been growing veggies etc in 9b Sacramento for 40 years. Love your channel, good info.

[@maryschrier651]

One year I did trench composting over the winter in one of my raised beds. I dug a hole, filled it with a bucket of the kitchen scraps /old fridge leftovers and covered it with the soil from the hole dug next to the first hole. I trench composted both long sides of the 3' wide beds. In the spring, I planted broccoli , cabbage and cauliflower plants over the compost. WOW! The plants were very vigorous and produced gorgeous heads .

[@Nakijead2]

Excellent, excellent video. Absolutely gob smacked. Thank you so very much for doing this experiment.

[@christageno5583]

Y'all are the best! Thank you for doing all that work for us

[@Migsies422]

Super interesting! The results make sense to me, since decomposition makes a plant compete for oxygen so it had the least competition in the control plant. I would be curious to see how these various scraps categories would compete against each other in a partially buried beside the plants, instead of underneath. That would keep the decomposing materials up in the highest couple of inches or so of dirt where roots are typically sending feeder roots for nutrition without forcing potentially toxic & oxygen deprivation conditions directly under the plant.

[@anitasiu123]

Pm

[@nancyschuring5921]

Loved this as I do all Epic vids, but having all phases of the experiment in one, to watch the whole thing was great ... then I don't miss the follow up! ❤

[@DovidM]

Organic matter that is a foot down is undergoing mostly anaerobic decomposition. It would not be competing for oxygen.

[@JJbug102]

I think it would be really interesting to see the macro/ micro nutrients available now in the soil with a soil analysis

[@androkiboi]

the most educational experiment with food scraps I found on YT! Excellent job!

[@joyfulparadise]

Thank u so much for doing this experiment! Sometimes simple is best.

[@gryphonrampant1]

I would feel better about the control being a true control if it had also had one of the wire bags and disturbed soil, potential air pockets, etc. I think the fish needed to be smaller pieces and waaaay deeper to be effective. It looks like Noodle's roots were trying to escape living right in that rotted meat. It would be interesting to see a round two on the same locations now that the material has had time to more fully decompose.

[@Kass686]

Exactly what I was thinking, he needed to disperse the fish parts in between patches of soil all inside that bag, they didn't break down enough. It might not have been able to drain properly either and suffered some root rot

[@jabien]

Also came here to say this. Also, interested to see what the results would be if they planted in the same spots next season.

[@kariannecrysler640]

I enjoyed this. For the fish though, we never planted on top of fresh guts/heads. I live in a 4 season climate & fall & winter were when we put the fish scraps in the ground. In spring we tilled then planted. I have always thought of it as in place composting because we never had fish left by the time we planted. I believe that might be the difference from the experiment.

[@SMITH-lw3rv]

Guys that was great. Do what others have suggested, plant again just using the existing holes and soil and see what happens. 🙏🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

[@joeshmoe7967]

Watching in early march 2024.....spring is coming, gotta get hyped for a new season. I always like to try something new. Last year I skipped getting seed potatoes, and settled for a 5 pound bag of egg sized potatoes, from the grocery store. That turned in to about 20 pound ss good move. Will try again this year. Wish I had as big a garden space as yours. Over all great video. - Cheers

[@plantylvjourney]

Can we get more experiments like these? This was amazing and very interesting

[@morganconley7111]

This is the first video in a long time (on any channel) that I've actually watched and paid attention to the whole way through. My ADHD is so bad but this one actually kept me engaged. I'd love to see more experiment videos like this one!

[@JustSayn880]

outstanding information!! What a great testing! Love it! Thank You!!!

[@namarhodge568]

Great experiment and a very well-done video. This sort of confirms to me that I'm on the correct practice path in my garden. Thanks

[@unnamed2737]

This is what I do with my juicing pulp! Well sort of, I bury them just to the side of my plants, not directly under. Works so fast because it’s all tiny bits. I have an ecxoerinent going right now with some butchering scrap. I don’t have a dog to feed those animal odds and ends to after butchering so we dug a deep hole, covered them well, and put a huge 2x2 block over it. It’s been many months and nothing dug into it, no smell, and the nearby plants are growing like crazy. Next summer I’ll be planting a pumpkin or melon in that space and see how it does.

[@RaoneG34]

Bro 15:37 what's Vegetation means ?

[@smoofollowingqalroundthewo206]

I’m sure you have a neighbor with a dog or two who’d LOVE those scraps! 😁

[@unnamed2737]

@@smoofollowingqalroundthewo206I’m not concerned with feeding other peoples pets. I am concerned with building the best garden soil I can though. And it worked well. We dug up the hole a few weeks ago and all we found were a few claws left.

[@virginiawilson3884]

So, the funny thing for me is my 3 babies, in order, weighed the same as Eggbert, Oxalis, and Noodle. The little one, Flora, was 8 weeks premature due to preeclampsia. She's 1 now, an absolute delight, and I can't wait to have them all in the garden with me this year. This was a wonderfully well-executed experiment. Science teachers should show this video in their classrooms.

[@jennyedmiston6930]

Scraps under soil - great test 👏👏👏 Thank You 👏👏👏

[@stephensmith811]

great gardening project! Thank you for sharing that process and evaluation. Very informative!

[@aeastman59]

very interesting experiment! I think the outcome of the buried kitchen scraps (scrappy) was important though - it shows how those scraps can help build the soil even though this year the plant was sort of average... building the soil is an important goal... some people dont have room for a compost pile so adding kitchen vegetable scraps directly to the bed is still worth something to the soil building goal... it was so interesting to see how each one looked underground at the end too! thank you!

[@janetlohmeyer3464]

Great info! I purchased a 60v drill and several augers, the largest being 9 inches in diameter. My plan is to drill a lot of holes in my vegetable garden and put my vegetation from the garden in those holes with the shredded cardboard I’ve been saving, leaves and water and let Mother Nature compost those materials in the ground all winter. My husband used to dig a huge hole in our vegetable garden at our former house and do the same thing and we had great soil. I will not let him do that any longer since he’s had open heart surgery! He thinks I’m a little “crazy” for buying the heavy duty drill and augers, but I did get 2 drilled yesterday with just a little bit of trouble. By the way I’m 73 years old. I bet I’m the only 73 year old woman to buy this set up!

[@juliepoolie5494]

I want to do this too! But I’ll just use a bulb planter this time and look into augers. I’ll put shredded cardboard and leaves, some veggie fruit kitchen scraps , more leaves. Basically making an in ground worm bin! The soil in my raised bed (on its first year) needs help.

[@janetlohmeyer3464]

@@juliepoolie5494 Keep us posted next spring to let us know how your project works out. I save egg shells and I freeze them until I have a lot of them. I them I put them in the oven at about 350 degrees to kill any bacteria. I then put them in my food processor and I save them until I can use them in the garden. I am going to put them in the holes that I drill in the vegetable garden.

[@juliepoolie5494]

@@janetlohmeyer3464 I will! I’ve been saving my egg shells too! Worms love them. Happy gardening to you!

[@BETTERWORLDSGT]

I came up in the country and small towns, lived on a couple different Farms, left that for a career in 89 and a few years ago I did some gardening in the backyard where I currently live. I've put crushed eggshells and ashes in for Tomatoes, as well as Coffee grounds. What I miss most though was fresh eggs and well water! Nothing like the cool clean well water!