"Charles Manoras" wrote in message

"HumanJHawkins" wrote

Charles Manoras wrote:


Would it be effective to also add some fertilizer
in order to stimulate future and further growth
(spread, height and diameter)?

If so which one?

I have been told that a 3-1-2 ratio is best... It doesn't
matter
whether it is a 3-1-2 fertilizer and you put a lot on, or a
24-8-16 and you put just a little.

If you are going to fertilize only once or twice a year, get
a
slow release fertilizer. If you don't mind the extra work, a
weak
water soluable fertilizer like Miracle Grow, applied every
two
weeks or so is great.

Also, those who really know what they are doing change the
fertilizer with the season. In the spring, bamboo is shooting
and
leafing out. So, a high nitrogen fertilizer like a 28-3-3
grass
fertilizer is a good choice. However, in the fall there is a
lot
of root and rhizome growth. So a "root-blast" type fertilizer
(I
forget the numbers) is better.

And, note that the three numbers in fertilizer are not the
only
things a plant needs. They ARE the most important, which is
why
they get their own numbers. But some fertilizers like Miracle
grow (and many others) have a lot of the other minerals that
plants need.

I am no fertilizer expert, what do these three numbers mean?

The first number is the percentage of nitrogen by weight.
The second number is the percentage of phosphorous by weight.
The third number is the percentage of potassium by weight.

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Travis in Shoreline (just North of Seattle) Washington
USDA Zone 8
Sunset Zone 5