Newbie - Help please with seaweed and liquid feeds in general!

[emarisa28]

Hello! I must warn you that i will ramble on a bit here. Listing all of my curiosities and problems, so i apologise in advance. Im hoping that by listing them all together, anyone can comment on a bit that they know about? Got an allotment late last year and after all the rain died down this year ive spent a while clearing it out and applying manure (in Jan/Feb) to the beds.
Ive been growing things at home ready to transplant. So far i have planted out a courgette plant and some beans. I didnt have any compost really to mulch with so i just added some potting compost to the ground and spread dried grass cuttings around the courgette. She hasnt done to well, i think that slugs have been eating her. And one leaf has gone slightly yellow. Should i have been feeding her?

Im pretty confused with liquid feeds, planting in the ground is different to pots! I got some dried ground seaweed and following guidelines for making a 'tea', leaving it to soak in water for 3 days. Its now very dark in colour. How much should i dilute this when feeding plants - or just dilute to a light tea colour? And also, can you feed plants seaweed in this way when they are young (eg, the courgette plant at the 3 leaf stage). I know that with comfrey you have to wait a while - but can i use the seaweed until they reach the point when they are needing comfrey? And what would you suggest is a good liquid feed for brassicas? I really dont know much about mulching etc so im hoping that liquid feeds will be ok....

So any information you have about feeding young plants, and also how often you should 'feed' them would be very much appreciated. I dont want to fail on my first year, especially as i have managed to grow these things in pots before! Thanks so much!

[Bill HH]

It is a very complex subject, apart from feeding my tomatoes with Tomorite I don't make liquid feeds. I prefer good old blood fish and Bone in most case or Chicken manure pellets. I cant get real manure being in a town. I also try to feed my plants with my own home made compost and that works very well. What I do know is that many so called teas can stink to high heaven and have been linked to certain diseases that can infect humans. There is a wealth of information on google or you tube just enter "liguid fertilizer" or similar

[Knight of Albion]

Seaweed (bulk or in liquid form) is an excellent soil enricher and plant fertilizer. It is very high in trace minerals and if you're wanting healthy, organic vegetables you'll find nothing better than seaweed for this purpose.

And as it is entirely natural, it is free of chemicals - and the slaughterhouse by-products, that most other plant fertilizers contain.

[Potstubsdustbins]

Didn't know they contained steak or lamb.

[emarisa28]

Knight of Albion

thats why i opted for seaweed. Im trying to make a liquid fertilizer using it, so i have a more natural feed. I didnt manage to get much compost down over winter as i only got it in Feb so wasnt much time really. I soaked the seaweed for 3 days, so now i have a couple of litres of a dark liquid. How much should i dilute it for young plants? Im guessing until its a 'weak tea' shade?
Thanks

[Knight of Albion]

thats why i opted for seaweed. Im trying to make a liquid fertilizer using it, so i have a more natural feed. I didnt manage to get much compost down over winter as i only got it in Feb so wasnt much time really. I soaked the seaweed for 3 days, so now i have a couple of litres of a dark liquid. How much should i dilute it for young plants? Im guessing until its a 'weak tea' shade?
Thanks

Yes, it's concentrated now and the darker it is, the richer it is. So you won't need a lot of it. I'm finding it hard to be specific without seeing it, but obviously the more concentrated it is the less you'll need.
As its young plants you're dealing with, yes its best to start with a fairly weak mix and then build up as you deem necessary.

[Two_Sheds]

a courgette plant ...one leaf has gone slightly yellow.

did you harden it off before planting out?

what would you suggest is a good liquid feed for brassicas?

You probably won't need to feed them at all, in your first year ~ there's plenty of nutrient in soil.

Over the years you need to replace the nutrients that your veg takes out, and you do that by making compost, as much as you can.

[Sanjo]

Emarisa you haven't said whereabouts in the country you are and it can make a difference to the advice given.
For instance, I would have said it was far too early for a courgette to be in the ground but it does. of course, depend on whether your area is free of frost. As Two Sheds also asked - did you harden her off. As a Newbie perhaps you don't realise that's advisable, or even what hardening off is?
Hesitate to advise re that in case it comes across as patronising, if you already know what it is?

[Two_Sheds]

My courgettes went out this week, now that night temps are in double figures

[Alison]

My courgettes went out this week, now that night temps are in double figures

But if you did this round here it would be too early, as somebody further up said, it really does depend on where you are.


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[emarisa28]

Hey, im in sunny london! I did harden her off for about 10 days. But the nights were pretty cold and i didnt know what to mulch with so i used dried grass. I think she needed feeding and am trying to rescue her. Tho slugs have eaten one leaf! Ive got another 2 plants which im holding back on. Id put in some compost and BFB, but i was away for a week and it didnt rain much. On the plus side, my broccoli rabe is shooting through. And my spinach is huge! And ive quite a bit on my balcony im getting ready to transfer . Im using BFB on soil for everything, tho that is only because i didnt have seaweed to add a few months before. Thanks peeps. Exciting! Fingers X for the courgette

[Two_Sheds]

i didnt know what to mulch with so i used dried grass. I think she needed feeding

You don't need to mulch, and you don't need to feed until the plant is fruiting

[Two_Sheds]

the nights were pretty cold

that's the problem, right there.



I'm concerned that you might think a mulch is a protective, warming, device for the plant? Or have I got it wrong?
If so, you mean fleece, not mulch.

A mulch protects the soil, not the plant