Thoughts on fertilizer -- 2023
 

Fertilizers have taken a big jump in price (like nearly everything else). Are you going to change fertilizers this year?

I see that Menard's has "Chicken Poo" All Purpose fert. for $10.99/25# bag. Its analysis is 2-4-3. That's fairly mild, but still that is a really good price for a 25# bag of organic fertilizer.


[url]https://www.menards.com/main/outdoors/gardening/lawn-plant-care/plant-food/chick-n-poo-all-purpose-organic-fertilizer-25-lb/hgr243bb25/p-1500013962194-c-1463608034798.htm?tid=4246037665967289612&ipos=1[/url]


I'm thinking about giving it a try on a few plants next season. What do you think of dried, pelletized chicken manure for tomatoes?

[QUOTE=Greatgardens;769729]Fertilizers have taken a big jump in price (like nearly everything else). Are you going to change fertilizers this year?

I see that Menard's has "Chicken Poo" All Purpose fert. for $10.99/25# bag. Its analysis is 2-4-3. That's fairly mild, but still that is a really good price for a 25# bag of organic fertilizer.


[url]https://www.menards.com/main/outdoors/gardening/lawn-plant-care/plant-food/chick-n-poo-all-purpose-organic-fertilizer-25-lb/hgr243bb25/p-1500013962194-c-1463608034798.htm?tid=4246037665967289612&ipos=1[/url]


I'm thinking about giving it a try on a few plants next season. What do you think of dried, pelletized chicken manure for tomatoes?[/QUOTE]

The ratio is not correct, but we do know it doesnt have to be to get tomatoes. If you want to reach the genetic potential of the plant, it will require a soil sample and fertilizers with ratios that pertain to the tomato. This has all been worked out for years.

Look for Acti-sol hen manure…i have used it with great success.

Thanks for the replies. Since this is just a hobby, I'm not too particular. I checked, and Acti Sol is not available locally, nor at major retailers (without shipping from Canada). It was $38 for 1.5 kg (3.3 lbs.) at Amazon. But glad to hear that chicken manure works well for you, garden patch.

My plants are usually taken out by Septoria, spray or not. So what I've been doing for the past few years is to plant my "main crop" in EarthBoxes, then about a month or so later, I set out a smaller number of plants some distance away from the originals in grow bags. Works pretty well. The second planting lasts until a killing frost.

Texas Tomato Food is still about the same price.

It would be best to at least pick up something well before the growing season starts (supply chains and all).

[QUOTE=Tormato;769747]It would be best to at least pick up something well before the growing season starts (supply chains and all).[/QUOTE]


Excellent advice! I am also curious as to how inflation will affect the sales of garden products. I can imagine both positive and negative effects. My gut says that the negative will outweigh the positive.

For Earthboxes, I think Texas Tomato Food works best, but I have been using GreenLeaf Nutrients MegaCrop 1 part for a few years now.

This year, I did some Tomato EB with the Fertilizer Strip (Tomato Tone - Walmart 18 lb bag for about $20 online). I had stopped doing the Fertz strips for years and won't be going back.

But for Broccoli, Cauliflower, and later Tomato EB, I use MegaCrop.

In my super humid climate, it clumps together but it doesn't seem to make a difference putting it down the tube.

They have a chart on how much to use, and for Tomatoes and everything else, I use the veg mode. I don't even measure anymore.

They sometimes have a free sample (very good size) where you pay only for shipping.

[QUOTE=Greatgardens;769749]Excellent advice! I am also curious as to how inflation will affect the sales of garden products. I can imagine both positive and negative effects. My gut says that the negative will outweigh the positive.[/QUOTE]

Covid has changed patterns of behavior. In the food industry, many more people started cooking at home rather than going out for a meal. The grocery stores adjusted, getting some things right, and some things wrong. And, after close to 3 years, more people that want to eat out are doing so, and are back to cooking less at home. The results, here, have been huge swings in understocking and overstocking. With overstocking, I wait for the sales, as businesses need to constantly move product.

In the gardening industry, many new people started gardening because of Covid. It's unknown how many of them will continue. The stores will get things right, and sometimes get things wrong, as far as the amount and type of supplies go. While I expect inflation, and will not make predictions about shortages, I will buy early. And, in the fall, when the gardening season winds down, I will look for possible sales at that time.

Liquid Fertilizers
 

Have had great success with a locally sourced Fish and Kelp product from GsplantFoods.A good soil drench when needed per plant requirements work for us.

I've had good luck with chicken manure. I use my own aged chicken manure compost when planting out, then I sprinkle some Acti-sol Hen manure on all my plants whenever they need a boost AND it is supposed to deter rabbits :).

Before I had chicken manure/compost, I always put Tomato Tone in the planting hole.

Linda

When I could get chicken manure free or at very low price I used it regularly in soil preparation but I still used Texas Tomato Food regularly as a weekly or bi-monthly for the best results. My inexpensive local supply is no longer available so I use more cottonseed meal now in my soil prep.

I got a 100 lbs of pelleted chicken manure free one time and it worked very well and was much easier to use and much nicer to handle. If you can get it cheap I would certainly try it. One caution with any form of chicken manure and that it over use can be harmful to the soil texture and nutrient balance.

Bill

[QUOTE=b54red;769791]When I could get chicken manure free or at very low price I used it regularly in soil preparation but I still used Texas Tomato Food regularly as a weekly or bi-monthly for the best results. My inexpensive local supply is no longer available so I use more cottonseed meal now in my soil prep.

I got a 100 lbs of pelleted chicken manure free one time and it worked very well and was much easier to use and much nicer to handle. If you can get it cheap I would certainly try it. One caution with any form of chicken manure and that it over use can be harmful to the soil texture and nutrient balance.

Bill[/QUOTE]


Thanks for the info. I was not aware of issues with texture, etc. Could you please elaborate?

Chicken manure is fine. I think cow is best bang for buck in organic fertilizers. I just looked at black cow, and I see it's cheap but they say only 0.5x3. That's really odd, even fresh cow manure should be higher. The advantage of cow manure is a lot of organic matter/humic acids, really useful to mix with soil early spring.

[QUOTE=zipcode;769825]Chicken manure is fine. I think cow is best bang for buck in organic fertilizers. I just looked at black cow, and I see it's cheap but they say only 0.5x3. That's really odd, even fresh cow manure should be higher. The advantage of cow manure is a lot of organic matter/humic acids, really useful to mix with soil early spring.[/QUOTE]

Did you mean Black Kow? Big box stores like HD sell it.

If so, I bought it once, it looked impressive but I left it in a wheel barrow overnight and the next day it was light like sand. I tossed the bag into the bushes and over a year later when I picked up a disintergrating bag, it was a pile of sand.