Hey there guys! It's about time to side dress the veggies I have in my garden with some sort of all-purpose fertilizer. In my gardening supply bucket I have fish emulsion and bone meal. What types of fertilizer would you suggest I use for the following plants at this point in their lives? (They are all still pretty small seedlings, nowhere near flowering or fruiting)
I have carrots, tomatoes, spinach, sugar snap peas, and cucumbers.
I also have basil and cilantro, if those need fertilizer.
Thanks!
Fish emulsion and some bone meal
Organic fertilizer in general, releases very slowly so you don't get the same kind of boost you would get from a side dressing of synthetic fertilizer
In organic, you have to be in it for the long haul and build up the soil web. Feed the soil so it can feed you.
Remember to keep adding organic. I am experimenting with using compost as part of my mulch. A thin layer of compost on top the soil with newspaper mulch for weed control. The soil organisms should reach up and pull it down eventually.
Minimum tillage. I haven't been able to completly go no till, as I have too much nutsedge, but I am trying to layer more with compost and compostable mulch and balancing my crops so I have heavy feeder corn followed by scavenger Asian greens and green manures, mostly cowpeas and soy beans with cowpea inoculent.
Organic fertilizer in general, releases very slowly so you don't get the same kind of boost you would get from a side dressing of synthetic fertilizer
In organic, you have to be in it for the long haul and build up the soil web. Feed the soil so it can feed you.
Remember to keep adding organic. I am experimenting with using compost as part of my mulch. A thin layer of compost on top the soil with newspaper mulch for weed control. The soil organisms should reach up and pull it down eventually.
Minimum tillage. I haven't been able to completly go no till, as I have too much nutsedge, but I am trying to layer more with compost and compostable mulch and balancing my crops so I have heavy feeder corn followed by scavenger Asian greens and green manures, mostly cowpeas and soy beans with cowpea inoculent.
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applestar
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If you don't mind your garden smelling like the tidal waters near the ocean, you could foliar feed with the fish emulsion. Hose-end liquid fertilizer sprayer works well (you can repurpose or buy one -- if you buy, get the kind with adjustable concentration dial). Foliar feeding makes the nutrients more readily available to the plants.
Some people say this attracts cats, etc. vermin. I personally couldn't stand the smell and it seemed to attract flies.
I prefer to foliar feed with diluted AACT (actively aerated compost tea). You can add some (smaller amount of) fish emulsion at the very end of brewing time (a couple of hours before using) and by the time this gets diluted for foliar feeding, it doesn't smell so strongly. I use a watering can.
...actually, I call it foliar feeding but this is more like overall drench. For actual emergency *foliar* feeding, I use a pump sprayer with fine spray.
I have THINGIE that you connect to the hose and drape a thin tubing in a bucket of concentrated liquid,bwhich is supposed to draw the liquid into the hose and dilute as you water with the hose. I was going to use it with my AACT and garden hose until I realized my garden hose water is chlorinated and not suitable. Same for the hose end fertilizer sprayer.
I haven't used bone meal in a long time, but I think that works well as side dressing -- I believe nitrogen and phosphorus, right?
I'm currently using soaked alfalfa pellets and bran (and commercial organic fertilizer).
Some people say this attracts cats, etc. vermin. I personally couldn't stand the smell and it seemed to attract flies.
I prefer to foliar feed with diluted AACT (actively aerated compost tea). You can add some (smaller amount of) fish emulsion at the very end of brewing time (a couple of hours before using) and by the time this gets diluted for foliar feeding, it doesn't smell so strongly. I use a watering can.
...actually, I call it foliar feeding but this is more like overall drench. For actual emergency *foliar* feeding, I use a pump sprayer with fine spray.
I have THINGIE that you connect to the hose and drape a thin tubing in a bucket of concentrated liquid,bwhich is supposed to draw the liquid into the hose and dilute as you water with the hose. I was going to use it with my AACT and garden hose until I realized my garden hose water is chlorinated and not suitable. Same for the hose end fertilizer sprayer.
I haven't used bone meal in a long time, but I think that works well as side dressing -- I believe nitrogen and phosphorus, right?
I'm currently using soaked alfalfa pellets and bran (and commercial organic fertilizer).
If you have good rich soil and all purpose fertilizer (Epsoma garden-tone type) mixed in, shouldn't need anything.
As for fish, is mostly N, so good for green leafy things (basil, spinach, parsley etc). I keep reminding folks to check the Alaska brand at the box stores as it is deodorized. Not totally without smell, but close.
If you have home grown compost can always work some in around plants. Check your local garden centers for different things. We now have not one, but 2 local entities bagging worm stuff mixed with other richness and peddling through the local stores. Also check for Lady Bug Brand (Johns Recipe and other products). I use Johns on the seedlings and starts.
As for fish, is mostly N, so good for green leafy things (basil, spinach, parsley etc). I keep reminding folks to check the Alaska brand at the box stores as it is deodorized. Not totally without smell, but close.
If you have home grown compost can always work some in around plants. Check your local garden centers for different things. We now have not one, but 2 local entities bagging worm stuff mixed with other richness and peddling through the local stores. Also check for Lady Bug Brand (Johns Recipe and other products). I use Johns on the seedlings and starts.
Usually side dressings are with nitrogen fertilizer. Organic fertilizers are difficult because for the most part the nitrogen is slow and plants require nitrogen for growth. Nitrogen is also volatile so it disappears fast in the soils.
Fish emulsion is good, but it does attract cats, flies and complaints from the neighbors especially if you use it regularly.
There are granular fish fertilizers like sustane, it has a smell but usually not as powerful as fish emulsion
You could also use blood meal or Scott's organic lawn fertilizer which is also higher in Nitrogen.
Depending on the bone meal, the N is low to zero. Bone meal would contain calcium and phosphorus. Calcium would be good for plants like lettuce or tomato especially is very acidic soils.
I did an experiment with beets
Beets should be side dressed at about 3 weeks
I did one group with sustane (4-2-4)
One group with sustane and kelp meal ( kelp meal has a P of about 40)
One group with sustane and bone meal (bone meal was 4-15-0)
The group with sustane and bone meal did best, but I did not repeat the experiment and I did not take into account that there were actually two different varieties of beets in the planting and the smaller beets in one section may have been because of variety and not fertilizer.
Fish emulsion is good, but it does attract cats, flies and complaints from the neighbors especially if you use it regularly.
There are granular fish fertilizers like sustane, it has a smell but usually not as powerful as fish emulsion
You could also use blood meal or Scott's organic lawn fertilizer which is also higher in Nitrogen.
Depending on the bone meal, the N is low to zero. Bone meal would contain calcium and phosphorus. Calcium would be good for plants like lettuce or tomato especially is very acidic soils.
I did an experiment with beets
Beets should be side dressed at about 3 weeks
I did one group with sustane (4-2-4)
One group with sustane and kelp meal ( kelp meal has a P of about 40)
One group with sustane and bone meal (bone meal was 4-15-0)
The group with sustane and bone meal did best, but I did not repeat the experiment and I did not take into account that there were actually two different varieties of beets in the planting and the smaller beets in one section may have been because of variety and not fertilizer.