Liz,
I found a website that suggested using Schultz plant food...1-2 drops to a quart of water. Then it said to "dip-saturate" the plant. Exactly how do you do that? It was also suggested to do this enriched water concept every time you water. Isn't that too much? I don't want to burn my little tree. Is this Schultz plant food a fertilizer?
While I am not familiar with this specific product it must be a relatively dilute product if they suggest using it every time you water. This sounds like a bad idea to me. One of the reasons that I always try to move people away from watering by immersion is that any minerals or salts that may be present in your water or introduced through fertilization will tend to accumulate in your soil and will eventually cause trouble. By watering from above with clear water you help to flush out anything that builds up.
If you have suggestions about a certain type of fertilizer, I would appreciate that information. I'm not too certain about what I should use for my tree and how often it should be done. I live in New York....on Long Island. I don't think that our water is hard, but should I be using only distilled water for my tree? We do not use a water softener at all.
There are many different techniques and products that you could utilize. I have primarily used a general purpose water soluble product and home made organic cakes, each has advantages and disadvantages. The primary argument against chemical fertilizer, besides resiting them on principal, is that it they provide nutrients in spurts. This may be a problem with a highly refined, "finished" tree but for most on this forum that should not be an issue. Organics are weaker and slower acting providing a constant, steady release of nutrients, which some feel is superior especially for "finished" trees. Being weaker however, you must use more of it more often, so convenience of use is an issue to consider. For instance, the cakes I mentioned can cover one quarter, or more, of the surface of my soil and don't look attractive. They tend to get moldy and attract insects and animals, not to mention that they are a nuisance to make.
There are of course other options such as seaweed or fish emulsion. There are also products that while organic in nature resemble pellets or small tablets. These tend to be imported and probably on the expensive side. Many swear by these but I have not yet made that leap.
For someone with only one, or a few, tree/s by far the simplest method is to simply use a balanced (10-10-10 or 20-20-20) water soluble product that can be found at any hardware store, garden center or home remodeling type store. Use the product according to directions. With a heavy soil and since it is the "off season" a frequency of about once a month sounds about right, certainly no more than every two weeks.
As far as hard water goes, softened water is not healthy for your trees due to the salts that are used in the softening process. My well water is definitely hard and I use it without any concern. But again I do not practice or espouse watering by immersion so it does not become an issue for me.
I hope this answers some of your questions. Look [url=https://www.evergreengardenworks.com/fertiliz.htm]
HERE[/url] for more information.
Norm
