The case in summary Annemor Hatlenes in the Kongsberg gardening team is one of many who use urine as fertilizer in the garden, a practice that has become increasingly popular in Norway Dealer Trond Svendgård has sold urinals for half a million and are currently sold out. Patent holder Klara Lövberg says that the idea behind the urinal comes from an environmental and ecological perspective. Since 2009, they have sold approximately 20,000 gold jugs. Professor Anne Spurkland explains that urine is a good fertilizer because it contains nitrogen compounds and phosphate. Urine is also climate-friendly, natural and free. Spurkland recommends watering plants with diluted urine, but warns against watering leafy vegetables just before harvesting. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAI. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. – Do you want to see what I have in the greenhouse? This is a pee pot, says leader of the Kongsberg gardening team, Annemor Hatlenes, as she lifts up a green pot with a red, heart-shaped lid. – I wanted this for Christmas a couple of years ago. Then they laughed at me, the others in the family, she says and takes the heart from the jug. Then she asks news to get out of the greenhouse before she lifts her skirt, sits down over the jug and steps off on behalf of nature. – Now I’m going to pee, then we’ll go and water a bit. Gold water, she chirps. When asked if watering with pee is a bit … um, strange, Hatleness replies: – There are natural minerals in it, which the flowers like very much. Much better than full fertiliser! Urine is an energy boost Anne Spurkland can elaborate on this. She is a professor of medicine, researcher in molecular immunobiology, specialist in transfusion medicine and author. Also gold water enthusiast. Professor and researcher Anne Spurkland explains the benefits of urine. Photo: Gunnar Lothe – Why is urine suitable as fertiliser? Because it contains nitrogen compounds and phosphate, of which we excrete a certain amount every day. This can be collected and used as fertiliser. In practice, it would be suitable to dilute 1 to 10, begins the committed professor and continues the lecture: – With diluted urine on plants, you will get fertiliser, it gives an energy boost! Can be immediately used by the plants. Spurkland explains that artificial fertilizers require energy to produce. It also contains phosphate, which is a limited resource, while phosphate in urine is recycled. – Urine is a natural waste product. There is more talk of a circular economy. For hobby growers, manure is also difficult to obtain, and not necessarily ready for use. – Although artificial fertilizers contain simple nitrogen compounds, which the plants can use directly, phosphate in artificial fertilizers is a limited resource, points out Spurkland. Said in a distilled and clear way: Urine is climate-friendly, natural and free. Urine Urine is a solution of organic and inorganic substances that is excreted through the kidneys. The kidneys make the urine by filtering or purifying the blood. We excrete approximately 1–1.5 liters of urine per day. The amount of urine produced is affected by, among other things, the body’s salt and fluid balance and by certain hormones. The most important inorganic substances in the urine are sodium and chloride. These substances are secreted in amounts of a total of 10–15 grams per day, depending on the salt intake. Source: Great Norwegian Lexicon Sold urinals for half a million Urine as fertilizer is certainly nothing new on the planet. But recently it may seem that it has taken off completely. At least in Norway. Dealer Trond Svendgård is actually sold out of urinals when news contacts him. – It’s probably not our bestseller, but at least it sells quite well – considering what it is and the price, it’s a watering can after all! he says, laughing. Trond Svendgård is a little surprised that sales are booming. Photo: Henning Rønhovde / news – Then you can sit and pee right on the watering can. It is mixed with water – and then you feed your plants, laughs Svendgård. Svendgård says that the patent originates from Sweden. – We took it in mostly as a curiosity. Much to my shock, it started selling out. Klara Lövberg says that the idea springs from an environmental perspective. Photo: Guldkanna Patent holder Klara Lövberg tells news that it was her mother who invented the “Guldkannan” – and that the idea is rooted in the environment and ecology. – We have sold a total of around 20,000 gold jugs since 2009. We don’t have that many dealers in Norway yet, but there we sell around 200 per year. – Gold water is worth its weight in gold! In the greenhouse in the garden at Kongsberg, Annemor Hatlenes has just done the necessary thing: Filled up with golden water. Annemor recommends urine as fertiliser. Photo: Anders Haualand / news Then she gets the garden hose and shoots out. – Here there is one part pee and ten parts water. Extremely cheap and natural fertiliser. And it works, she says and trudges out into the lush garden with the jug in her fist. – Gold water is worth its weight in gold. And then you don’t have to go to the bathroom when you’re working in the garden. Just go to the greenhouse, says Annemor and fills the jug. Photo: Anders Haualand / news Fertilization of plants takes place. It sprouts and grows, and the flowers maybe sparkle a little extra? The grass is greener on both sides in Annemor’s garden. (V) Stepmother. Refill. And emptying. Plants and flowers, as numerous as Abraham’s offspring, welcome us in an explosion of color. Purple, blue, yellow, white. Some nod heavy with pollen with plump flower heads. Still others glow a modest red. – I came home from holiday yesterday. This should have been the clip, it’s amazing what happens in just a few days. It has really grown. Here come dahlias, she says and lets it rain on them from the jug. – Do you think it’s a bit of fun to think that you’re watering with pee? – Yes. Many are shocked, then. Especially men. They just “no?” But it works and is cheap. Gold water is worth its weight in gold! Ble Nytt på nytt theme Professor Spurkland himself has a urinal. She has had it for a couple of years. – There are two of us who use it. For men, this is quite okay. They can only have a bucket in the shed, as it were. And it works just fine. But women who have to urinate must sit down. And if we try to hit a cup, it will be a pig. Here you can see Anne Spurkland as a guest on Nytt på nyt, where she speaks warmly about golden water in particular, to the delight and laughter of the other guests: That’s why it became a jug. With heart lid. For urine irrigation in the garden. – Gold water! Urine doesn’t sound as delicate. People get a bit skeptical when I say that I watered my vegetables with gold water, Spurkland laughs. – You say you don’t have that many dinner guests? – I don’t think the dinner guests should care. But sure, you don’t water leafy greens with golden water right before you harvest them. Let it rain first, advises Spurkland. Published 28/07/2024, at 07.42
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Fertilize the garden with golden water – urine mixed with water
