[rec.gardens restored]

Phred wrote:
In article .com, wrote:
[snip]
I do have sweet clover and alfalfa growing wild in my garden, and I
encourage them because I need all the nitrogen and all the plants with
flowers I can get, but according to
http://www.fao.org/Wairdocs/ILRI/x5546E/x5546e05.htm there's a
particular species of bacteria (Rhizobium meliloti) that's symbiotic
with those plants. I suspect that it won't be symbiotic with the other
plants I mentioned (Caesalpinia, Calliandra, Dalea). Can anyone tell
me for sure?

No. :-)

I'm beginning to figure that out.

You don't say what species you will be using. It's quite
possible that some species in a genus will be exacting in
their requirements while others may be promiscuous.

With _Calliandra calothyrsus_, here's a quote from
http://www.fao.org/ag/agp/agpc/doc/Publicat/Gutt-shel/
x5556e09.htm
[ TinyURL: http://tinyurl.com/zj4wy ]
which also has lots of other good stuff about this species:
quoting
It is commonly stated that inoculation with Rhizobium is not
necessary (Zhou and Han 1984) but use of an appropriate strain
is advised when introducing the plant to new areas.
/quoting
....

As it happens, it's /Calliandra eriophylla/.

Thanks to all who replied. Here's an example of what I get when I look
for a particular species, /Caesalpinia gilliesii/.

"Nitrogen fixation None"
http://plants.nrcs.usda.gov/cgi_bin/plant_attribute.cgi?symbol=CAGI

"No fertilizing is required, these plants fix nitrogen in the soil."
http://www.monrovia.com/PlantInf.nsf/3e858bc84af1756c88256f0a00787e69/f018b4fc37a9469488256f250065bf53!OpenDocument&Clic k=882568470064D136.77a6cc4887b5c2ab88256f0e007d62a 5/$Body/0.2512

But maybe I'll find a consensus on some other species. Anyway, I think
the answer to my questions is, "If it looks like it's short of
nitrogen, give it some."

--
Jerry Friedman