Let me drift mildy off topic for a second.  I attended a raised bed gardening class put on by our local independent bookstore who brought in a fellow who run a nursery.  A couple things I learned, one relating to fertilization.

Here’s the way he put it - we’re all taught this in grade 5, then proceed to forget it as we get older.  Plants don’t eat soil or fertilizer.  They make their own food from the sun - photosynthesis.  Yes, they need some trace elements that may be removed from the soil by harvesting, but that’s about it.  It makes perfect sense when put that way.  We know grass will grow in the cracks of concrete, and if you’re Canadian you’ve probably seen cedar and pine trees growing out of the sides of granite cliffs.

So my intention with this garden isn’t just to use organic fertilizer, it’s to use no fertilizer.  I’ve got soil and compost as described previously. I expect I’ll turn our compost pile into the garden each year as well.  But that’s it.