Mark S. Fuller

To Neptune's Harvest

I could hardly believe my eyes when these enormous Sweet Potatoes, weighing between 4 and 6 Lbs., emerged from our little Organic Garden in October 2008.

My Organic Gardening partner, Maureen, and I thought we would take a chance to grow some Sweet Potatoes at a small Community Garden, owned by Ann Fisk, in Rockport, Massachusetts, in May of this year. Ordinarily, Sweet Potatoes prefer the long, warm growing seasons of the Mid-Atlantic States, so we did not expect to have a great deal of success with these in our short-seasoned climate. In a mound of soil enhanced with compost, then covered with a black plastic sheet with holes cut through, we planted the rootstocks, called 'Georgia Jets', which were ordered from Jung's Supply Catalog. We started feeding them with Neptune's Harvest and continued to do so – according to the directions on the label – approximately every other week. These are the results, in only five months. We had hoped to have just a few at best. We harvested bucketfuls of various sizes. We are, of course, more than a bit amazed. And we have been met with 'stunned' expressions when showing these huge anomalies around the Community.

The benefits of applying Neptune's Harvest has been shown in other areas of the Garden also. We are still harvesting green leafy vegetables, in October, such as Swiss Chard, which were planted in April. During the hot, dry summer months, those plants had shown some signs of fatigue, however, in the days following their feeding of Neptune's Harvest they would stand tall and firm. We have also had great success with Brussels sprouts, which had failed in previous years, yet have grown to nearly five feet tall this year.

Another surprising example of the benefits of using Neptune's Harvest was shown in the recent recovery of a Tomato Plant which a friend had in his yard that had produced only two pieces of fruit by mid-season and had essentially stopped growing. We began feeding it with Neptune's Harvest in early August. The Tomatoes that plant eventually produced, in mid-October, filled nearly half of a large paper shopping bag.

As a proletarian Gardener, it is quite apparent that the value of the additional production gained by the application of Neptune's Harvest far exceeds the purchasing cost. Our need for utilizing supplemental fertilizer has been found in just this one item. We have been practicing our chemical-free, Organic Gardening techniques for many years. The results we have seen from using Neptune's Harvest can reasonably explain how 5 Lb. Sweet Potatoes can be grown in New England's climate. Much appreciation is had for the folks at Neptune's Harvest for providing Organic Gardeners with such an extraordinary product.

Mark S. Fuller
Gloucester, MA