July 1, 2022

6 Reasons to Use Blood Meal in Your Garden

6 Reasons to Use Blood Meal in Your Garden

Looking for a new plant food that supports luscious foliage, gives plants a quick boost for healthy growth, and builds the long-term wellness of your soil? Blood Meal is a perfect choice.

If you’ve never used Blood Meal before, it may sound intimidating. Rest assured, just like every other True Organic product, our Blood Meal is easy to use, food safe, and supportive of both plants and soil.

 

1: Blood Meal is an easy-to-apply, dry amendment.

As True Organic’s Director of Research & Development, Ehsan Toosi, PhD, puts it, “The Blood Meal you get in a True Organic bag doesn’t resemble blood in any way.”

So what exactly is Blood Meal? The name really does explain it all. Blood Meal is a dry amendment made from animal blood — in our case, cows. Blood is dried, processed, and packaged into a granular fertilizer that’s simple to apply, just like any other.

 

 

 

2. Blood meal is an amazing source of nitrogen.

This natural resource is very rich in nitrogen and gives plants a quick-release supply of this vital nutrient. Nitrogen is an essential macronutrient for plants’ photosynthesis process and supports luscious foliage. It helps plants grow fast, strong, and green!

Good nitrogen content in soil will result in lush, green leaves and healthy plant growth and fruiting. Yellow, withered leaves are often a sign of too little nitrogen in soil.

Nitrogen also helps lower the pH of soil, so acid-loving plants benefit from blood meal applications.

That makes it perfect for heavy feeders like corn, broccoli, spinach, and other leafy greens.

Just be mindful of how much you apply! Because blood meal has such a concentration of nitrogen, over-applying is detrimental to plants. Too much nitrogen in your soil can damage or even kill your plants! Follow the application instructions on the back of the bag carefully.

 

3: True Organic Blood Meal is sustainably sourced.

The cow blood we use for True Organic Blood Meal comes from slaughterhouses that are using other parts of the animal for other finished products. By utilizing a natural by-product of the cattle industry, we’re doing our part to ensure that nothing is wasted.

“When you think about it from the big-picture perspective, we’re upcycling undesirable waste,” Ehsan Toosi says.

True Organic has always been committed to a sustainable approach — it’s why we do what we do. We know the planet’s resources aren’t infinite, especially when it comes to agricultural resources. But with thoughtful production and good research, our industry could be the most influential link to a sustainable future on Earth.

 

 

 

4: True Organic Blood Meal is food safe.

Just like every other True Organic product, our Blood Meal goes through rigorous safety processes to ensure we bring you the safest and highest-quality plant foods on the market.

Of course, we know you’d never intentionally consume plant food! But think of it this way: what you apply to your edible garden will eventually end up on your dinner plate.

We’re proud to be a worldwide leader in food safety, with diligent safety measures certified by Bureau Veritas, a world leader in testing, inspection, and certification services. Read more about our food safety practices and what that means for your garden (and your kitchen table).

 

5: Blood Meal helps rebuild challenged soil.

Sure, Blood Meal gives your home garden a quick shot of much-needed nitrogen — but one of the best things about Blood Meal is how much it bolsters long-term soil health.

“In a soil that’s sandy and doesn’t have a lot of natural fertility to it, Blood Meal is a good choice because it has a low carbon-to-nitrogen ratio,” our Vice President of Research & Development, Ramy Colfer, PhD, says.

Thanks to its high nitrogen content, Blood Meal infuses soil with helpful nitrogen over a long time (although our Blood Meal is not a slow-release source of nitrogen because of how it’s processed). As Blood Meal decomposes in soil, it gradually supplies nitrogen to microbes and plants for a period of several weeks to a few months, depending on conditions.

And for gardeners who use compost with a lot of brown/carbon-heavy material (leaves, grass clippings, paper, etc.), Blood Meal is a great addition. It will help balance the soil’s carbon-to-nitrogen ratio so plants can thrive.

 

6: Blood Meal might keep pests away.

Yes, might.

While it’s not a proven method, many gardeners over the ages claim that using blood meal helps deter pest animals like squirrels, deer, and rabbits (Rodale’s Ultimate Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening, 2017). It’s said that these animals dislike the smell of blood. It’s worth a shot!