They’re just flowers, it’s ok to use a synthetic fertilizer, right?

If you aren’t eating the plant, it’s ok to use a non-organic (synthetic) fertilizer, right? Did you answer this question with a “yes”? Think again. There is a lifetime of science demonstrating the long-term negative ecological effects of synthetic fertilizers (And if I say ecological or environmental, at the end of the day it means you and me. We don’t exist in an impenetrable bubble on this planet!). Let’s touch on one simple scenario: You give your flowers some synthetic feed, diluted in water, on the edge of your driveway. Some of the water soaks into the soil and because you have a sloped driveway, some of it runs off into the storm drain. This joins all the other run-off (from the thousands of people doing the same thing on a beautiful Saturday morning) and eventually finds it’s way to our beautiful and life-giving ocean. Even if you live 1000 kms from the ocean that run-off flows into a watercourse somewhere where you live, and it is poisoning it. And yes, the run-off may even be reaching the ocean so very far away from you. What’s the big deal? Well, synthetic fertilizers are the major, if not sole, culprit for ocean “dead zones” (places where ocean environments have become toxic to most of the life that used to thrive there!)There are at least 400 of these dead zones around the world. We all love to see whales. We love to eat salmon or prawns. We love to wonder at the beauty of the ocean. Why would you ever want to put all that you love at risk? We certainly wouldn’t do this with our loved ones. Synthetic fertilizer is a quick “fix” with long-term repairs required. Think bigger than that flower bed, just because you aren’t going to be eating it. Everything is connected in our world.