fish carcasses form fertilizer

augiedog55 · January 4, 2012

heres a question i've got for you guys and gals. i fish alot and fillet crappies. would the dicarded part of the fish be a good soil amendment. ? basically i'm just taking the meat off the bone so its the skin , head , tail, gut ect are left.. I've read where the indians put a fish in the mounds when the planted maze. if yes is the answer how long should the carcasses be put in the ground before planting?
thanks
bruce.

sirtanon · January 4, 2012

Absolutely! My wife, who used to live on a farm in coastal Australia also worked in a fish-and-chip shop that got deliveries of fresh fish daily. There were lots of left-over fish bits and she frequently would take them home and bury them in her garden. She had GREAT results. We would do it where we live now, but we're in Phoenix, and don't really see much fresh fish.

Nevertheless, we buy fish emulsion and put that in our watering cans.. Fresher is always better, of course, so I say go for it.

augiedog55 · January 4, 2012

So if I buried them now it would be good to go by may?

sirtanon · January 4, 2012

I'd say so.. if you're concerned, cut them in half or quarter.. just make sure you bury them down at least a foot, especially if you get raccoons where you live.

Hermitian · January 4, 2012

Puree it in a food processor, then use it in soil mixes. If you have to store it, then mix it into a 5 gallon bucket with soil and keep a tight lid on it. Spray the outside of the bucket with lavender oil.

TexasSue · January 11, 2012

I use to live on the hot coast and we fished a lot. I buried every scrap and bone ! I grew 3' chard and 1 collard the size of a round table ....... In your cold area,the decay will take longer so use gloves when planting and good shoes as I found out the hard way several times but your garden will be FABOLUS !!

eddie46 · January 11, 2012

That is the way the native Indians taught us to plant corn. Bury the fish and plant corn. Some things never change.

ContainerTed · January 11, 2012

When we lived out in Moses Lake, Washington, I used to fillet lots of fish and bury the remains in my rose garden. Most were crappie and bass from Moses Lake itself.

I had the prettiest roses!!!!

(and lots of curious cats)

dice · January 12, 2012

The Love Apple Farm method uses a fishhead under each plant (and
lots of other stuff):
http://www.growbetterveggies.com/gro...how-to-gr.html

peebee · January 12, 2012

Just make sure its not in an area where dogs can be. I once had a dog dig up, and eat, an large fish head that was at least 6 months old. Needless to say, it was a very stinky, dirty dog I had on my hands that day. Since then, my veggie garden area has been fenced off. You'll have to dig quite deep as you might get cats in your yard too.

dice · January 13, 2012

Love Apple Farm suggest 2 feet deep for fishheads, but a fence is probably
a good idea anyway.

tuk50 · January 18, 2012

pruee it. My son was off work 3 months from stepping on a fish bone through a flip flop. Had to have major surgery to remove the tiny bone tip. Great fertilizer though.

maxfromaustralia · January 18, 2012

My nephew gave me lots of ocean fish and I fermented in water (in a covered barrel) for a year. It was great stuff (if a bit smelly when I opened it). I diluted it before fertilising.

Plantersville · January 19, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by tuk50

pruee it. My son was off work 3 months from stepping on a fish bone through a flip flop. Had to have major surgery to remove the tiny bone tip. Great fertilizer though.

I can relate to that.........
I've been throwing catfish carcasses in the garden for a long time and when I til the garden the bones come to the top so I til again to get em down under ground. Always wear boots when walking in the garden. My problem is the buzzards that gather in the tall trees after I bury a few. Dont know how they know Ive done it but they do.

tuk50 · January 19, 2012

Yeah, it was a catfish spine he found........
at least buzzards won't eat everything in the garden like my quail covey's........ LOL!

January 4, 2012	#1
augiedog55 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: oak grove mo Posts: 406	fish carcasses form fertilizer heres a question i've got for you guys and gals. i fish alot and fillet crappies. would the dicarded part of the fish be a good soil amendment. ? basically i'm just taking the meat off the bone so its the skin , head , tail, gut ect are left.. I've read where the indians put a fish in the mounds when the planted maze. if yes is the answer how long should the carcasses be put in the ground before planting? thanks bruce.

January 4, 2012	#2
sirtanon Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Phoenix, AZ (zone 9b) Posts: 796	Absolutely! My wife, who used to live on a farm in coastal Australia also worked in a fish-and-chip shop that got deliveries of fresh fish daily. There were lots of left-over fish bits and she frequently would take them home and bury them in her garden. She had GREAT results. We would do it where we live now, but we're in Phoenix, and don't really see much fresh fish. Nevertheless, we buy fish emulsion and put that in our watering cans.. Fresher is always better, of course, so I say go for it. __________________ I could sail by on the winds of silence, and maybe they won't notice... but this time I think it would be better if I swim..

January 4, 2012	#4
sirtanon Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Phoenix, AZ (zone 9b) Posts: 796	I'd say so.. if you're concerned, cut them in half or quarter.. just make sure you bury them down at least a foot, especially if you get raccoons where you live. __________________ I could sail by on the winds of silence, and maybe they won't notice... but this time I think it would be better if I swim..

January 4, 2012	#5
Hermitian BANNED Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Vista, CA Posts: 1,112	Puree it in a food processor, then use it in soil mixes. If you have to store it, then mix it into a 5 gallon bucket with soil and keep a tight lid on it. Spray the outside of the bucket with lavender oil. __________________ Richard _<\|\|>_

January 11, 2012	#8
ContainerTed Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: 6a - NE Tennessee Posts: 4,538	When we lived out in Moses Lake, Washington, I used to fillet lots of fish and bury the remains in my rose garden. Most were crappie and bass from Moses Lake itself. I had the prettiest roses!!!! (and lots of curious cats) __________________ Ted ________________________ Owner & Sole Operator Of The Muddy Bucket Farm and Tomato Ranch

January 11, 2012	#6
TexasSue Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Texas Z8 Posts: 24	I use to live on the hot coast and we fished a lot. I buried every scrap and bone ! I grew 3' chard and 1 collard the size of a round table ....... In your cold area,the decay will take longer so use gloves when planting and good shoes as I found out the hard way several times but your garden will be FABOLUS !!

January 11, 2012	#7
eddie46 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: SW PA Posts: 160	That is the way the native Indians taught us to plant corn. Bury the fish and plant corn. Some things never change.

January 12, 2012	#9
dice Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: PNW Posts: 4,743	The Love Apple Farm method uses a fishhead under each plant (and lots of other stuff): http://www.growbetterveggies.com/gro...how-to-gr.html __________________ -- alias

January 12, 2012	#10
peebee Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Southern CA Posts: 1,714	Just make sure its not in an area where dogs can be. I once had a dog dig up, and eat, an large fish head that was at least 6 months old. Needless to say, it was a very stinky, dirty dog I had on my hands that day. Since then, my veggie garden area has been fenced off. You'll have to dig quite deep as you might get cats in your yard too.

January 13, 2012	#11
dice Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: PNW Posts: 4,743	Love Apple Farm suggest 2 feet deep for fishheads, but a fence is probably a good idea anyway. __________________ -- alias

January 18, 2012	#12
tuk50 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Tucson, Arizona (catalina) Posts: 413	pruee it. My son was off work 3 months from stepping on a fish bone through a flip flop. Had to have major surgery to remove the tiny bone tip. Great fertilizer though. __________________ Hangin on for dear life!

January 18, 2012	#13
maxfromaustralia Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Australia Posts: 50	My nephew gave me lots of ocean fish and I fermented in water (in a covered barrel) for a year. It was great stuff (if a bit smelly when I opened it). I diluted it before fertilising.

January 19, 2012	#15
tuk50 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Tucson, Arizona (catalina) Posts: 413	Yeah, it was a catfish spine he found........ at least buzzards won't eat everything in the garden like my quail covey's........ LOL! __________________ Hangin on for dear life!