Fertilizer practices

In my quest to become as organic in my gardens as possible, I have followed several practices to attain the organic balance in my gardens.  I have instituted a system of cover cropping at the end of each season, I collect and mulch my leaves and grass clippings throughout the summer and fall months, I compost most months of the year, I use an adapted system of crop rotations and I collect and use rainwater for watering.  These are considered to be what are called regenerative organic gardening practices.  I modeled them after practices that have been developed by the Rodale Institute over their many years of actual field research at their Kutztown Pa. facility.
I used to be a very strong advocate of the raised bed system called Square Foot gardening.  While it was productive, I noticed that over the years, I had to continually add fertilizer to the soil which I did.  I did not find that the soil maintained it's fertility without an aggressive composting and fertilizer regimen.  And, the fertilizer regimen bothered me for many reasons.  The reason I was gardening was to produce vegetables that didn't have the inputs such as chemical fertilizers.  While SFG had it's certain advantages, I began a quest to become organic.
I stumbled upon the Rodale Institute while watching a segment on Growing a Greener World that is hosted by Joe  Lampl.  It spiked an interest in them so I searched out their website and, through the years, I have adopted as many of their practices for my small garden as practical.  And, the results have been very pronounced.
I have always stayed away from chemical fertilizers in my garden as much as possible.  But, there rarely was a year when I didn't use them at least once or twice a year.  Due to my adherence to the practices listed above, one of the most striking results is that over the last two years, I have not used any fertilizers whatsoever.  And my plants have been healthier and have been producing more vegetables than they ever have.  Through the inputs and practices previously discussed, I have been able to stop applying herbicides and such items too.  I feel better about that.  I know what I am growing intimately and I know I can trust that my crops are as organic as almost any I would buy in a grocery store.  Additionally, my vegetables are fresher and more nutritious than the store bought ones given their very short time from garden to kitchen table.
It is very rewarding and I take pride that I have been doing this far longer than organic has been in fashion.  I've known that my vegetables have always been healthier for me.  I just didn't like the idea I had to use the fertilizers and chemicals that I really didn't trust.  And once you see and taste the difference, you too will understand why you too should grow organic in your backyard.
Well, that's all I have for today.  I now have to go out and dig out from the 29 inches of snow mother nature just delivered to the Baltimore area.  Big fun today.  Happy Gardening everyone!