On 6/21/13 3:42 AM, mj wrote:
I seem to be having better luck using Miracle Grow instead of 10 10
10. My question is does it have to diluted and poured at the plant
base or because I have an irrigation system can I just sprinkle some
around it? Has anyone tried this? Would it burn the plant even if it
does not come in direct contact with the plant? With the installation
of the electric fences things are growing well, I just would like to
optimize the season. Thanks for any help or ideas.

MJ


For general fertilizing, I use a house-brand of lawn food that is
21-0-6. Yes, I use it in my shrub and flower beds. I do this only once
a year, early in March. I am sure my garden would be more lush if I fed
it more often; but then the additional growth would require additional
water, which is quite precious here. (Counting electricity, natural
gas, and water, water amounts to 58% of my total utility bills,
averaging almost $140 per month for my two-person household and less
than 1/5 of an acre of garden.)

The zero in 21-0-6 represents phosphorus. Phosphorus is generally
wasted when applied to the soil surface. It does not readily travel
through the soil to plant roots. Instead, it should be applied as
superphosphate or bone meal to the bottom of the hole when planting,
where the plant roots will find it. Furthermore, phosphorus is a major
pollutant of streams and lakes. A good handful of bone meal will last a
flowering plant many years.

Some of my plants require special fertilizing at special times. My
camellias and azaleas are fed once a year after all blooming is finished
with a slow-acting commercial camellia-azalea food. My dwarf citrus are
in very large pots with fast-draining mix; since nutrients tend to leach
out, they are fed every three weeks from March until October with either
commercial citrus food or ammonium sulfate, with an additional large
pinch of zinc sulfate. Roses require abundant nutrients; mine are fed
monthly from March through October, alternating between ammonium sulfate
and a commercial fertilizer containing a systemic insecticide.

One size does not fit all.

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean, see
http://www.rossde.com/garden/climate.html
Gardening diary at http://www.rossde.com/garden/diary