The tomatoes are winding down, the sun is setting a little earlier each day, and there's a subtle crispness you can (finally!) feel in the breeze. If you're a home gardener like me, you may be enjoying the last wave of your summer harvest and tending to your beds to prepare for fall plantings.
Heirloom tomatoes and shishitos from my latest harvest.
I've been pruning my basil and cilantro, harvesting the last of my heirloom tomatoes and shishitos, and caring for the Brown Turkey fig tree I recently picked up at the farmers market and transplanted. Meanwhile, I'm planning what I'd like to grow (and eat) this fall. I'm choosing from the UC Master Gardener Program's recommendations for September planting: beets, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, carrots, green onions, kale, lettuce, radishes, spinach, sugar snap peas, strawberries, and more (see the full list here).
I've learned that this is also an important moment to pause and nourish the soil. After a full summer of feeding squash, peppers, and tomatoes, the soil is tired and hungry for nourishment.
It's important to work with the biology that's already been built. There's a full summer's worth of root exudates, fungal networks, and microbial communities in the soil. Instead of tearing everything out and starting from scratch, I'm taking a moment to support the rich soil life that's already there with nutrients from both sea and land. I'll add a layer of finished compost to the surface, along with an application of Sweet Fish Brew and Wool Pellets to give the microbial community a boost before planting.
Sweet Fish Brew feeds both the plants and the soil life, and it's made from whole fish caught locally along the Central Coast. Because it's cold fermented, it preserves bioactive nutrients that heat processing would destroy. These include amino acids, proteins, and a wide range of marine trace minerals like zinc, manganese, iodine, and selenium that inland soils often lack.
If Sweet Fish Brew is the gift from the sea, Wool Pellets come from the land. They're made from the wool of Merino sheep raised locally by Cuyama Lamb. You may have spotted their flock grazing to reduce wildfire fuel at places like San Marcos Foothills Preserve and North Campus Open Space. Soil microbes break the pellets down slowly, releasing a steady supply of nitrogen, sulfur, and potassium over several months rather than all at once. They also improve soil structure. Each pellet absorbs water and swells, holding moisture in the root zone, and as the fibers break down they loosen the soil and open up space for air and roots. Where Sweet Fish Brew gives my soil a quick boost, Wool Pellets are the slow and steady companion that keeps feeding it all season long.
Planting kale and applying Sweet Fish Brew and Organic Wool Pellets.
I saw firsthand how my vegetables thrived this summer. My neighbor stopped by in July to tell me he'd "never seen a tomato plant so large!" I'm confident that Marino Soil Foods is a big part of why, and I'm excited to see how my soil life (and harvest) grows this fall.
If you're mapping out your fall garden, we'd love to hear what's going into your soil. And if you give either product a try, please tell us how it goes! You can reach us at info@marinosoilfoods.com.
Until next time,
Hannah
About me: I'm Hannah Hislop, a lifelong gardener from Goleta, and I help share the story behind Marino Soil Foods (among many other hats!). My connection to Marino began through Get Hooked Seafood, where I've handled operations and customer service over the past year. My favorite crop to grow? Strawberries.