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Do you use fertilizer and if so, how do you apply it?
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Posted by katiepoo z4 MT (My Page) on Tue, Jun 14, 05 at 13:29
| Howdy Folks,
Just installing my dripworks irrigation system and wondering if I should call and add on a in-line fertilization unit. I just tilled 60 tons of manure into my clay loam and am wondering if I might need to do more. It is my first year so I am not sure how robust the soil will be with the manure addition. I don't really fetilize in my home gardens, which are mostly perennials. Does anyone use fertilizer in a drip irrigation system? Is it better to just take my little 2 1/2 gallon tank out there and spray individual varieties? Since my season is so short, I want to make sure my little flowers grow fast and get all they need.
Thanks,
Katiepoo |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Do you use fertilizer and if so, how do you apply it?
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| An average loam soil will have 4000 pounds of nitrogen, 4000 pounds of phosphorous, and 20,000 pounds of potassium per acre in the top eight inches most of it in forms that are unavailable to plants. Many minerals present in the soil are most available to plants if the soil pH is neutral to very slightly acid. Soil in my region is neutral. We do not run fertilizer through the irrigation system. If your irrigation water is alkaline, you will have to adjust it to increase soil fertility. Your county ag agent is your best source for information. We use organic mulches and green manure crops for soil fertility. We do use bone meal at planting time on our large dahlia crop. But, hey, I think we need to use alfalfa like LizaLily because we want 100 blooms per day on our Chilsean's Pride dahlia. In correcting deficiencies of minor elements, it is important to realize that the difference between a therapeutic dose and a toxic dose is pretty small for some of the nutrients. Essentially, what we use here in the Great Lakes Region is probably going to have no bearing on what someone uses in your area. Talk to growers in your area and your ag agent. We have received valuable information from both. |
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