The one thing I learned about gardening this year

Since I moved to the Montreal suburbs, I have become an active gardener. I used to apply generous amounts of fertilizers. I also got into serious trouble. My lawn died. Not because I burned it, but because I got a bad case of grubs. Several of my perennials died also or fail to come back healthy after the winter. I learned the hard way that most perennials are better off without any (chemical) fertilizer.

It turns out that in most cases, chemical fertilizers are overrated. As a rule, you should not use them.

• Fertilizers may contain toxic material which stays in your soil and your vegetables.
• Fertilizers may increase the acidity of the soil, which is bad for most plants.
• Fertilizers make your soil poorer, not richer over time.
• Fertilizers tend to kill the microorganisms in your soil, rendering natural composting difficult.
• Fertilizers make your plants less resilient to disease and drought: artificially sustained growth is not always a great idea. Are you really in a hurry or do you want more robust plants?