Which fertilizer to use for what?

rabidbun

Thanks, will have a think then as I def don't have space for that alas. They're large pots so need something to refresh them now and again... Perhaps I need to try and fit in a composter or something if I am to avoid chemicals...

oldtractor

as much homemade compost as possible ,even if it means collecting the neighbours garden waste and kitchen waste to add to the compost heap. horse manure,mushroom compost,comfrey and green manures sown in the veg plot over winter.

splodger_seedswapper

i don't bother adding anything artificial to my garden or allotment plots - just manure and home made compost mostly - plus leaf mold - occasionally get soil conditioner from a local garden waste recycling centre

some areas / plants get a sprinkle of ash / soot - and that's about it - my soil is lovingly looked after and doesn't need anything else

[Deleted User]

I use comfrey (bocking 14), dried seaweed, compost and rockdust and also a little bfb. The only manure I use is a little dried and treated manure from marshalls and I am very selective about where I put it. I am talking a few handfuls. My veg is glossy and very very healthy. My neighbour uses lots of manure and his veg is very poor

aminopyralid is still around

http://chat.allotment.org.uk/index.php?topic=76047

edit: I also sow green manure

Lotus-eater

valk_scot wrote: »

I don't feel that specific feeding is that useful, unless you're either growing greenhouse crops or trying to win the local show with your mammoth veg. Home made compost & well rotted manure, dug in or used as a mulch, covers most of the bases when it comes to general plant nutrition. A wormery is useful to use up things you can't compost and comfrey and seaweed (extract or fresh) can provide extra micronutrients, either in the form of liquid feed or chucked in the compost bins. The old adage of feed the soil rather than feed the plants is one of the underpinnings of organic gardening, remember. Keep your soil in good heart and you don't need to bother about the actual chemistry of it.

Yes you're right, but people do use fertilisers, I do myself, so you don't want to be feeding fruiting plants fertiliser high in nitrogen, or you'll get lots of green and not much fruit.
Same, you want to be feeding leafy greens nitrogen rich fertiliser. But obviously not too much when it's cold, or too much altogether, otherwise they will be very attractive to pests.

This post by nicos on the vine has some useful info.
http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/grapevine/growing-techniques/n-p-k_14880.html

I've seen lots of reports that the majority of veg patches are over fertilised, not under. I think that for gardeners that have only been GYO for maybe a few years, this could be a real possibility. I find that it takes you a few years to get a good idea of the nutrient content of your soil and how best to feed it.
Of course you could get a nutrient analysis done in a lab and see what you have to start with.
But as Valk says, all you really need to do, is add lots of manure and garden compost in most soils and this will give you a good base line. Although most stuff will like a pick me up of a bit extra.

It depends how you grow as well, if you grow in raised beds, then you are growing closer than on an allotment usually, so you need more fertile soil.
And of course it depends what soil you have, clay won't need as much fertiliser as sand for example.

Sambucus_Nigra

Absolutely - clay holds nutrients and you don't have to add anything usually....

This is interesting reading with regards to fertilisers

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/may/17/exploding-watermelons-chinese-farming

Sambucus_Nigra

kittie wrote: »

I use comfrey (bocking 14), dried seaweed, compost and rockdust and also a little bfb. The only manure I use is a little dried and treated manure from marshalls and I am very selective about where I put it. I am talking a few handfuls. My veg is glossy and very very healthy. My neighbour uses lots of manure and his veg is very poor

aminopyralid is still around

http://chat.allotment.org.uk/index.php?topic=76047

edit: I also sow green manure

It is - it's very very painful when you realise your spuds are forked [so to speak]. We lost 90% of the use of our plot last year; and some things are still affected again this year. I see Aunt Sally is still upsetting people on the allotment forum. [insert roll eyes smilie here]