In article . com,
"Mike S." wrote:

This will be my second year of growing tomatoes in 5 gallon pots. Last
year I think I did pretty darn good considering it was my first year,
the weather was unstable, and I have a black thumb (I'm so bad at
gardening I even kill grass).

I think last year my biggest mistakes were not using a good fertilizer
(I used imitation Miracle Gro) and lack of calcium. That and those
pesky hornworms that ate two out of three of my tomato plants (I
really hate those creepy little things).

I live in a small town and it's very difficult to buy fertilizers
unless you want to get something in bulk, which I don't. I think I can
get Bone Meal at a local store and I have some imitation Miracle Gro.
Other than that, there's not really much available.

My plan was to mix the potting soil and Bone Meal when I plant the
tomatoes, but how much Bone Meal should I add?

After that, how often should I feed the tomatoes? And what can I use?
Like I said before, I limited in choices and I know I can get Miracle
Gro and maybe Bone Meal. I may be able to get Fish Emulsion, but what
kind of store typically sells that?

Will the Bone Meal and possibly Fish Emulsion be good enough for
fertilizing? And will they provide enough calcium? I'm assuming
Miracle Gro is a poor choice of tomato fertilizer, correct?

Mike,
Set up good conditions, plant and, keep soil humid, not soggy. The three
numbers on the fertilizer e.g. 5-2-2 stand for 6% nitrogen, 2%
phosphorous and, 2% potassium, respectively.

Nitrogen: Promotes leafy growth and green colour; organic sources are
blood meal, fishmeal

Phosphorus: Aids root health and seed development; organic sources are
bone meal, rock phosphates

Potassium: For strong stems and roots, proper water balance and disease
resistance; organic sources are kelp and wood ash.

5-2-2 is about what you would expect from fish emulsion. Fish emulsion
is good because it is nearly foolproof. In gardening, it is easy to kill
out of kindness because we want to give the plant everything that it
needs and we end up giving too much. Just follow the instructions. If
anything, the manufacturer will have you using the maximum required, so
that you will hurry back to buy some more.

If used according to instructions, the imitation Miracle Gro should be
OK for the plants. (If you were growing in the ground there would be
another long conversation about stewardship of the soil and your
responsibility to life on Earth but, we can save that for another time
because you are growing in pots, I presume with potting soil. The medium
is the message.)

Nitrogen is good early in the season because it encourages vegetative
growth but once up, you will want to cut back on it because you want
flowering and fruit development.

I find it usually takes me about three time at doing something new to
get the hang of it, so don't beat yourself up if you gaff it.

You may want to plant some basil as well. Nothing goes together better
than popping a fresh tomato wrapped in a basil leaf into your mouth.
That's livin'

Good luck,
- Bill
Coloribus gustibus non disputatum (mostly)