I have just finished putting some camellias in a half/half mix of john
innes number 3 and ericeceous compost (hoping that this is the best ratio
of mix ) and I have been advised to use plenty of acid type feed.

After going to the local garden centre I'm shocked to see how *expensive*
acid feed it is for just a small packet.

I think there is iron in it so is there any way to make up a cheap acid
feed my self?

For instance use some ordinary phostogen mixed with rusty nails or brillo
pads? Thanks.

Great post John.

I use a home brew compost made from coffee grounds and pine needles. It
gets very acidic i.e. ph 5.5 or less and works OK on blueberry bushes
which need a strongly acid soil. It's possible to mulch the plant base
with these ingredients and let the composting take place right there. My
only advice if trying the compost-in-situ technique would be don't let the
coffee ground 'cake' too much. keep them well mixed with something else
like paper, grass clippings, anything really and spread widely around the
plant. You can soak the paper in a weak solution of citric or nitric acid
which also produces the desired effect. Both are readily available as
crystals very cheaply for descaling purposes and are safe to handle. The
combined mush smells horrible (stale coffee especially) and takes a while
to get going as a compost. Nettle and Yarrow encourage the
micro-organisms - nettle alone will do a great job if you don't have
yarrow nearby. A little diluted honey or even sticky brown sugar like
muscavado will also help - in tiny amounts.

I'd love to hear from others about home grown solutions to this one.

TJ


A comment about general feed, I keep a couple of dollops of horse manure in
a bucket of water and that makes a good feed :-)