Carol Steinfeld

A light, entertaining book about the benefits of urine as natural fertiliser.

This book, wisely in my view, tells you all kind of interesting historical facts about urine, shows urinals designed by artists, has photos of urinals in unusual places, etc. before getting into the hard data about actually using the stuff in a practical manner.

It gets you more comfortable about the subject before diving in.

I came across this book many years ago and was mildly sceptical, but I applied dilute urine, as directed, on my rather limp and yellowing French beans.
Two weeks later, the vigorous beans were green and growing fast.
I was a convert.

I've used urine as a fertiliser ever since - not on salad crops such as lettuce, where there is a risk of contamination - but on pretty much everything that I grow. Tomatoes thrive on it: so do squashes, runner beans, flowers, lawns (best applied before rain on lawns so you know it will wash in quickly and then you'll be more comfortable walking on the grass). The list is endless.
It's also great as a compost activator or for accelerating the rot of leaf-mould.

The simplest trick is to keep a plastic, screw-top milk bottle in your toilet, then you can fill up your supply without worrying about anything smelling.

You can save a small fortune on commercial fertilisers.

I'd have rated the book higher if it wasn't getting a bit old now. It was published in 2007 and the section on toilets is bound to be out of date, though the principles are pretty basic..… (más)