Fertilizers what kind do you use?

[plantmanky]

Just for general intrests I'm curious what kinds of fertilizers bonsai people use for their trees. I for one have used osmicote for both nursery stock and bonsai, Miricle-grow (who doesn't), and Natural types like Hi-Yield blood, bone and fish meals. Most of these I use in the spring and summer with an iron supplement and during the fall months I use 0-10-10 for flowering trees. I'm actually intrested in what others use on their trees and why.

[BillsBayou]

I use fertilizer cakes on my established bonsai. That or liquid organics of some sort.

I use the new Miracle Grow in the prefilled bottles for just about everything else where I want vigorous growth.

I'll use bat guano from time to time. Or fish emulsion. I switch between the two for no rhyme or reason.

I use Dyna-Gro Pro-Tekt Silicon solution on my chinese banyans as a way to ward off the Cuban laurel thrips. Funny thing about this stuff: Don't mix it with anything else in your watering can. I thought I'd kill two birds with one stone by putting a couple of tablespoons of the silicon solution in my watering can, then a couple of tablespoons of liquid fertilizer (also a Dyna-Gro product). The two reacted immediately to form something which looked like mashed potatoes. Now when I apply the Pro-Tekt solution, I do it 2 days away from fertilizing my plants.

I don't use high nitrogen fertilizers at this time of year, just the low grade stuff, fish/bat, to keep things green. In October I'll lose the nitrogen altogether. I'm USDA Zone 9B, so I get a wider window for nitrogen than in more frost-prone areas.

Tropicals, however, get low nitrogen all winter long in the greenhouse. They're complain if they don't. I don't want to hear it.

[lewisjk]

I would never use time-release fertilizer. You never know when those little capsules are going to pop. I like more control over when my plants get fed. Besides, it is conceivable that local weather conditions could cause a lot of them to pop at once, causing problems.

Beyond that, I tend to use whatever is cheapest whenever I happen to run low. Plants need NPK and trace elements. Period. They don't give a dang what the brand name is so long as it is more or less "balanced," and there is wide latitude as to what "balanced" means. Trees use what they need. The rest goes out the drainage holes next time we water. For that reason, I use a balanced feed all year long; just fertilize less often in winter.

[plantmanky]

I would never use time-release fertilizer. You never know when those little capsules are going to pop. I like more control over when my plants get fed. Besides, it is conceivable that local weather conditions could cause a lot of them to pop at once, causing problems.

Those capsules (called a prill), are manufactured to be temperature and moisture sensitive and release the right amount of fertilizer according to the ambient temperature and water content of the soil. Osmicote for example, makes different types for different areas of the country just because of that property. I have used it for years and because I'm in the Southern part of the country where we have hot summers I get the southern formulation. Getting the right formulation will preclude problems. They can pop from handling issues.

[lewisjk]

Those capsules (called a prill), are manufactured to be temperature and moisture sensitive and release the right amount of fertilizer according to the ambient temperature and water content of the soil. Osmicote for example, makes different types for different areas of the country just because of that property. I have used it for years and because I'm in the Southern part of the country where we have hot summers I get the southern formulation. Getting the right formulation will preclude problems. They can pop from handling issues.

Ok lets just pretend that you put 200 little capsules, poured at random from the bottle. The bottle has an even mixture of capsule a-b and c, but you get by chance 80% a and 20% c. If the temperature/moisture trigger hits "a" after you apply it, you're gonna get a heavy dose of whatever.

Or maybe I'm just too anal retentive and like to KNOW when my trees get fed.

[plantmanky]

Ok lets just pretend that you put 200 little capsules, poured at random from the bottle. The bottle has an even mixture of capsule a-b and c, but you get by chance 80% a and 20% c. If the temperature/moisture trigger hits "a" after you apply it, you're gonna get a heavy dose of whatever.

Or maybe I'm just too anal retentive and like to KNOW when my trees get fed.

hehehe, I'd never say anyone was anal retentive in public! LOL Your just a good caretaker of your trees and I applaude you!!!!! Actually, "a" will release just the same as "b" or "c" because the mechanism of release is the material the prill is made of. It acts like an expandable membrane with pores and regardless of the size of the prill the membrane is the regulator of releasing the food. On a side note, I don't use them on my finished bonsai because I don't like to see them in the soil. In general minor fluctuations are not a problem as long as the dosage applied to the container is correct. I generally use them on my trees in training where I'm not quite so observant.

[frankp0]

I have been reading about the various forms of nitrogen used in fertilizers - mainly on sites about orchids. Most of the cheaper fertilizers use urea for the N component. Urea takes some time to break down before plants can use it. Research at Michigan State Univ has suggested that either ammoniacal or nitrate forms are available to the plant more rapidly than urea. There is a formulation known as MSU (Michigan State Univ) that is 13-3-15- with 8 Calcium and-2Magnesium. Research at Michigan determined that watering every time you water with a N concentration of 125-150 ppm does great for orchids. I bought some and will try it on my orchids and bonsai. I will probably use 200 ppm for bonsai. See http://www.firstrays.com/nutrition.htm It is available in 25 lb bags but some orchid dealers sell smaller 1 pound or 2 pound jars.

I also useDyna-Gro Pro-Tekt Silicon. The directions say to make up your diluted solution of it first then you can safely add a fertilizer. In fact, the bottle says "Always use Pro-Tekt in conjunction with a complete nutrient formula but never combine concentrates. Dilute with water before mixing with other nutrients".

I mixed a gallon jug of Pro-tekt (1/2 tsp per gal) then added the MSU fertilizer and had no problem with the mixture.

Frank

[plantmanky]

Research at Michigan State Univ has suggested that either ammoniacal or nitrate forms are available to the plant more rapidly than urea.

Frank

Frank,

I'd be intrested in hearing about your results and your specific formulation. I've often stayed away from ammoniacal forms of nitrogen like Ammonia sulphate, as it's known to release very rapidly and will burn the roots if your not careful.

[lewisjk]

We're seldom in a rush to get nutrients to our trees. If we care for them properly, there's no need for rapidly pushing the N into the trees. It is, I suspect, better for them to get it slowly.

[frankp0]

[quote="plantmanky]Frank,

I'd be intrested in hearing about your results and your specific formulation. I've often stayed away from ammoniacal forms of nitrogen like Ammonia sulphate, as it's known to release very rapidly and will burn the roots if your not careful.[/quote]
plantmanky,
The research at Michigan State used a low concentration of N and they use it every time they water. The N concentration most often seen is 125 -200 ppm (parts per million). MSU fertilizers are usually available in two formulations- one for well water and one for tap and RO (Reverse Osmosis) water that has added Calcium and Magnesium. I bought the tap/RO version 13-3-15 - 8 Calcium - 2 Magnesium. My orchids are liking it.