Feeding Question

[BB48]

I havent been very good a feeding plants in the past except tomatos as they have a bottle all their own. This year I want to be more organised at feeding everything but then I start to read up on it and get confused with all the potash and nitrogen stuff. Is there a clear and simple way to tell what feeds which plants and when? I bought some Miracle grow but is that OK for everything?

thanks
BB

[solway cropper]

Any general fertilizer will work fine for most things if you follow the application rates. Fruit need extra potash which is why you have tomato feed. You can use that on anything which produces lots of fruit but it gets a bit pricey if you try to feed an orchard on it.

[maypril]

I start to read up on it and get confused with all the potash and nitrogen stuff. Is there a clear and simple way to tell what feeds which plants and when? I bought some Miracle grow but is that OK for everything?

Miracle grow is really designed for producing flowers, but it is very high in nitrogen too which is good for your green leafy vegetables and herbs.

I'd guess it'd be nice for any veg that require a lot of growth and a lot of flowers (but not plants where you pinch flowers out). So good for runner beans, broccoli, courgettes, strawberries, that sort of thing.

If you want a full armoury of fertilisers, go for the following four:

General Purpose (blood/fish/bone or growmore) - For fertilising a bed before planting.
Root Veg Fertiliser - For potatoes, turnips, carrots, parsnips. Also useful for establishing good root growth in young plants.
Tomato Fertiliser - For any fruiting crops, tomatoes, strawberries, courgettes, etc. Use it once the flowers start appearing.
Nitrogen Fertiliser - For leafy veg or for increasing growth in young plants before flowering starts.

[Two_Sheds]

It's more important to feed plants in containers than those in the open ground (which are more able to find their own food). When to feed? never

It's worse to over-feed than to under-feed though, and Bob Flowerdew said on GQT the other week that he gets more & earlier fruit from his tomatoes if he starves them (because they think they are dying and so start producing fruit).

I use a bit of BFB before planting (organic, general purpose) and use diluted comfrey tea (organic, home-made, free!) when watering once a week or once a fortnight.

[womble]

It's worse to over-feed than to under-feed though, and Bob Flowerdew said on GQT the other week that he gets more & earlier fruit from his tomatoes if he starves them (because they think they are dying and so start producing fruit).

Bob Flowerdew says quite alot about this sort of thing, I've listened and read him for years, what he says makes sense, but there is a middle ground.
I have found if you do water and feed the tomatoes sort of normally, but treat them a bit hard, they grow well and you still get a good crop.
He often talks about overwatering and feeding and if you do that, it's true you get a later crop and a much bigger one and the taste is often diluted.

I think with BF, although I really like him, sometimes you need to remember he grows a huge amount of stuff and doesn't always need to get the maximum out of the crops he grows.

[BB48]

thank you - that is very helpful. I did buy some potato feed - can I use if for all root veg?

[maypril]

I did buy some potato feed - can I use if for all root veg?

As a general rule, yes you can.