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How often should I be fertilizing?
- Thread starter rlslmshdy
- Start date
Not certain how much of that you should use. I would think the objective is to have plants with lots of peppers and not too many leaves. Too much leaf and you will have too few peppers. Not enough ferts and you will also have too few peppers. Just judge them by their leaf color and growth rate, and how many peppers set. My hillside garden gets ferts longer than all my others due to run off. But still treat each individual plant uniquely vs. all or none. Different spots may drain differently.
If plants seem too short or light in shade, then yeah keep on going with the ferts. If your plant is loaded and a nice healthy green it may be time to stop for a bit.
On my hillside garden I used extended release ferts, bone meal, lime, mushroom compost, AND a fast acting liquid when needed. All my other gardens got the same, but got the fast acting just once.
Many of my upper hillside plants are getting the liquid tomorrow along with my watermelon. And a shot of Epson salts also. The lower hillside section is ok yet.
Oh and my tomatoes have never gotten the fast acting ferts. Just the extended release when set in the ground. Even on my hillside.
If plants seem too short or light in shade, then yeah keep on going with the ferts. If your plant is loaded and a nice healthy green it may be time to stop for a bit.
On my hillside garden I used extended release ferts, bone meal, lime, mushroom compost, AND a fast acting liquid when needed. All my other gardens got the same, but got the fast acting just once.
Many of my upper hillside plants are getting the liquid tomorrow along with my watermelon. And a shot of Epson salts also. The lower hillside section is ok yet.
Oh and my tomatoes have never gotten the fast acting ferts. Just the extended release when set in the ground. Even on my hillside.
You've applied quite a bit, but TT is a slow release fert. Your plants should be good-to-go for some time.
I'd do nothing for now and see how they grow over the next weeks. Too much of any fert will cause big problems.
Don't fertilize again until they start to look a bit pale or otherwise 'hungry.'
I'd do nothing for now and see how they grow over the next weeks. Too much of any fert will cause big problems.
Don't fertilize again until they start to look a bit pale or otherwise 'hungry.'
With Tomatoes, more ferts means tons less tomatoes. Yeah we all like nice dark green plants, but they are even pickier than peppers.Geonerd said:
I just tried to count the tomatoes on the plant a bird planted, No time release, compost or anything. Nada...Shorter plant, not as dark green, and while counting, I hit around 500 tomatoes on that 1 plant before I lost count. Never saw one with so many tomatoes for a plant that size and it just keeps making more and more. In a 5 inch wide area alone, there are like 20 tomatoes. What the heck did those birds plant? Or did Fukishima drop a speck of plutonium, there?
too many leaves = less peppers. lmao come take a look at my plants, and i'll prove this wrong. 
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I use half dose ferts every 15 days or so.
Underfertilizing is always better.
Watch your plants..they will tell you
Underfertilizing is always better.
Watch your plants..they will tell you
Purely subjective.
What works for you, may not work for others and vice versa.
Personally, I have been applying a five gallon mixture of Alaska Fish and Neptune's Harvest Seaweed at ~80% of recommended concentration weekly to my approximately 130 ft.2 raised bed. However, this year we have had quite a bit of rain, actually the most in the month of July since records have been kept (over one hundred years). So, my weekly routine fertilization will have been considerably further diluted from the rainfall.
Also, I have to agree with jedisushi06; I have several plants with some leaves over 12 inches long, and with such thick foliage, I can barely see any peppers. Yet, I find I and having to prop up the branches because there are so many pods, they are bowing to the point of breaking. I am sure the great amount of rain has contributed to the growth as much as my fertilization.
What works for you, may not work for others and vice versa.
Personally, I have been applying a five gallon mixture of Alaska Fish and Neptune's Harvest Seaweed at ~80% of recommended concentration weekly to my approximately 130 ft.2 raised bed. However, this year we have had quite a bit of rain, actually the most in the month of July since records have been kept (over one hundred years). So, my weekly routine fertilization will have been considerably further diluted from the rainfall.
Also, I have to agree with jedisushi06; I have several plants with some leaves over 12 inches long, and with such thick foliage, I can barely see any peppers. Yet, I find I and having to prop up the branches because there are so many pods, they are bowing to the point of breaking. I am sure the great amount of rain has contributed to the growth as much as my fertilization.
Tomato tone once a month...4tbsp or 1/4 cup is about right for the size of bags you have. In between the monthly TT, spray them with fish fert and Epsom salt on alternate weeks....you could also throw some Cal mag in that rotation. Also when they start fruiting work a handful of Azomite in the soil.
Azomite huh DawgNutts?
I'll have to try that. Never used it.
I'll have to try that. Never used it.