I noticed that the pepper plants in my mother's garden are yellowing and
growing much slower than usual.

I know that my mother used manure(very sparingly) that was fresh (right
from the barnyard- not aged manure) and she also used Miracle Grow. I also
put in a lot of sawdust in the graden too (from a Catalpa tree trunk that
was recently ground up).

My mother used fresh manure in the past along with Miracle grow and we never
had this slow growth and yellowing in the past so I am thinking that maybe
it was the sawdust that caused the problem by maybe making the soil more
acidic?

It has been an unusually cold June so far in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and that
may be a contributing factor also.

Is there any way too check to see if the soil is too acidic? Could my
mother have put in an overdose of Miracle Grow?

Rade Savija said:

I noticed that the pepper plants in my mother's garden are yellowing and
growing much slower than usual.

I know that my mother used manure(very sparingly) that was fresh (right
from the barnyard- not aged manure) and she also used Miracle Grow. I also
put in a lot of sawdust in the graden too (from a Catalpa tree trunk that
was recently ground up).

Is the sawdust mixed into the soil? (Uh-oh) If it's a mulch, I'd pull as
much as I could off right now.

My mother used fresh manure in the past along with Miracle grow and we never
had this slow growth and yellowing in the past so I am thinking that maybe
it was the sawdust that caused the problem by maybe making the soil more
acidic?

It would more likely be that the available nitrogen is being used up breaking
down the sawdust. Acidity may or may not be contributing to the problem.

It has been an unusually cold June so far in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and that
may be a contributing factor also.

Definitely no help. Puts the pepper plants at a further disadvantage.

Is there any way too check to see if the soil is too acidic?

pH test kits are available. (Don't rely on cheap pH meters.) Or have a
soil test done through your state extension service.

Could my
mother have put in an overdose of Miracle Grow?

Not likely in this situation. What I would do is try giving the pepper plants
regular foliar feeds with liquified seaweed and fish emulsion (I don't use
MG or chemical fertilizers). Very diluted MG sprayed on the foliage might
help. Alfalfa pellets (or a rabbit food high in alfalfa) scratched into the soil
around the peppers might help counterbalance the sawdust. Mulch with
dried grass clippings or thin layers of coffeegrounds or cocoa shells (all
supply nitrogen).
--
Pat in Plymouth MI

Any technology distinguishable from magic is insufficiently advanced.
(attributed to Don Marti)

On Sat, 28 Jun 2003 05:34:25 GMT, "Rade Savija"
wrote:

I noticed that the pepper plants in my mother's garden are yellowing and
growing much slower than usual.

I know that my mother used manure(very sparingly) that was fresh (right
from the barnyard- not aged manure) and she also used Miracle Grow. I also
put in a lot of sawdust in the graden too (from a Catalpa tree trunk that
was recently ground up).

My mother used fresh manure in the past along with Miracle grow and we never
had this slow growth and yellowing in the past so I am thinking that maybe
it was the sawdust that caused the problem by maybe making the soil more
acidic?

It has been an unusually cold June so far in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and that
may be a contributing factor also.

This year has been an entirely ABnormal year here in PA - I
think all our stuff would have been dead by now (drowned),
except that it's in raised beds.

Yes, I think the cold wet weather may have been a
contributing factor. Peppers love heat.

Pat

"Rade Savija" writes:

My mother used fresh manure in the past along with Miracle grow and
we never had this slow growth and yellowing in the past so I am
thinking that maybe it was the sawdust that caused the problem by
maybe making the soil more acidic?

It would make the soil more acid. Hard to say whether that's the
problem, though.

It has been an unusually cold June so far in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
and that may be a contributing factor also.

Yes, peppers like it hot.

Is there any way too check to see if the soil is too acidic? Could
my mother have put in an overdose of Miracle Grow?

Possibly. Peppers don't need much beyond lots of long, sunny days. I
can imagine them being burned by too-heavy use of chemical fertilizer.
Call your county extension office and ask them how to get a soil test
done. Usually it costs a few dollars, and it'll tell you your Ph and
other things about your soil content.


--
Aaron

(Down below Pat K. Wrote) Is the sawdust mixed into the soil? (Uh-oh) If
it's a mulch, I'd pull as
much as I could off right now.

Yes - I did mix a lot of sawdust into the soil.

"Pat Kiewicz" wrote in message
...
Rade Savija said:

I noticed that the pepper plants in my mother's garden are yellowing and
growing much slower than usual.

I know that my mother used manure(very sparingly) that was fresh (right
from the barnyard- not aged manure) and she also used Miracle Grow. I
also
put in a lot of sawdust in the graden too (from a Catalpa tree trunk that
was recently ground up).

Is the sawdust mixed into the soil? (Uh-oh) If it's a mulch, I'd pull as
much as I could off right now.

My mother used fresh manure in the past along with Miracle grow and we
never
had this slow growth and yellowing in the past so I am thinking that
maybe
it was the sawdust that caused the problem by maybe making the soil more
acidic?

It would more likely be that the available nitrogen is being used up
breaking
down the sawdust. Acidity may or may not be contributing to the problem.

It has been an unusually cold June so far in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and
that
may be a contributing factor also.

Definitely no help. Puts the pepper plants at a further disadvantage.

Is there any way too check to see if the soil is too acidic?

pH test kits are available. (Don't rely on cheap pH meters.) Or have a
soil test done through your state extension service.

Could my
mother have put in an overdose of Miracle Grow?

Not likely in this situation. What I would do is try giving the pepper
plants
regular foliar feeds with liquified seaweed and fish emulsion (I don't use
MG or chemical fertilizers). Very diluted MG sprayed on the foliage might
help. Alfalfa pellets (or a rabbit food high in alfalfa) scratched into
the soil
around the peppers might help counterbalance the sawdust. Mulch with
dried grass clippings or thin layers of coffeegrounds or cocoa shells (all
supply nitrogen).
--
Pat in Plymouth MI

Any technology distinguishable from magic is insufficiently advanced.
(attributed to Don Marti)

Rade Savija wrote:

(Down below Pat K. Wrote) Is the sawdust mixed into the soil? (Uh-oh)
If it's a mulch, I'd pull as
much as I could off right now.

Yes - I did mix a lot of sawdust into the soil.

Ut, oh. Bloodmeal (or more poopy) is your friend.

Pat hit it on the head ... you have a recipe for N shortage going there. Two
thoughts come to mind.
1) the bloodmeal or additional source of N is a "quick fix" for this year
2) the N consumed by the sawdust this year will be (mostly) available next
year at which point your soil structure will also have been given a boost.

Bill

--
I do not post my address to news groups.

"Texas Tomatoes" wrote:

"Noydb" wrote in message
...
Rade Savija wrote:

(Down below Pat K. Wrote) Is the sawdust mixed into the soil? (Uh-oh)
If it's a mulch, I'd pull as
much as I could off right now.

Yes - I did mix a lot of sawdust into the soil.

Ut, oh. Bloodmeal (or more poopy) is your friend.

Pat hit it on the head ... you have a recipe for N shortage going there.
Two
thoughts come to mind.
1) the bloodmeal or additional source of N is a "quick fix" for this year
2) the N consumed by the sawdust this year will be (mostly) available next
year at which point your soil structure will also have been given a boost.

Bill

--
I do not post my address to news groups.



sounds like N or fe is lacking...sawdust sucks, it causes massive nitrogen
drift.

I don't know where you are reading the newsgroup, but some of the
messages you are responding to are over 2 years old.




--
Susan N.

"Moral indignation is in most cases two percent moral, 48 percent indignation, and 50 percent envy."
Vittorio De Sica, Italian movie director (1901-1974)