Ok...I broke down and did it.

DevilDuck

DevilDuck

Trying to nurse my plants back from some severe hail damage, I broke down and went to a real nursery for some advice. The guy I spoke with was a botany major and extremely knowledgeable about the crappy New Mexico soil we have. Apparently, we have a high salt content, and the junk food I was feeding my plants (Miracle Grow... don't laugh, they seemed to love the stuff last year) has a high salinity content as well...hence, I locked up all of the nutrients that the plants need to thrive and repair themselves.

So---
I got a bag of this for once a week feedings:
570965.jpg


...and this:
peace-veg.jpg


^ has something called Mycorrhizae & Humic Acid which is apparently great for root stimulation according to all of the articles I've read. The guy at the nursery was practically slobbering on the bag because of the micorrhizae and what it does in conjunction with our soil.

With about 2 months left in the growing season, this should be interesting...to say the least.
 
Interesting I never had a Peace of Mind before :)
Good luck and hope all is not lost --- sadly I have about a month and a half left before frost
 
DevilDuck said:
has something called Mycorrhizae...
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I am pretty sure thats the same stuff that they are adding to pro-mix now days. I hear very good things, just wish it wasn't so expensive.

Sure hope you get your plants back to health!
 
am I reading the NPK ratio on the Super Bloom correctly (12-55-6)? that's a pretty high P reading, please post a report on the results. good luck with resuscitating your plants.

wait 'til Pam reads about the Miracle Gro...
 
chilliman64 said:
am I reading the NPK ratio on the Super Bloom correctly (12-55-6)? that's a pretty high P reading, please post a report on the results. good luck with resuscitating your plants.
Click to expand...

You know, Miracle Grow makes a Bloom Booster with a similar NPK ratio...

It's not the kind of thing you want to do early in the season, but this far along it might get him some a few late peppers.


wait 'til Pam reads about the Miracle Gro...
Click to expand...

Ha! I don't need to say anything, he's learned feeding his peppers the equivalent of a high sugar diet isn't so good for them.

I'm going to check out that Peace of Mind fertilizer, too, Devil Duck. Looks like it could be good stuff. Let us know what you think, would you?
 
Just my 2 cents here: When using "bloom boosters" for toms & chiles, you can sometimes overload the plants with nitrogen (12 is pretty high), causing more foliar growth, not flower/fruit production, despite the high P count. Most nurseries carry just P in granular form, fairly cheap. Also, Indonesian bat guano from worm's way is almost all P. We've made the mistake of letting the plants get too much N late in the season and lost any opportunity for late fruit.

If you've had a salt buildup from fertilizers, all you can really do is flush out the soil multiple times before adding more stuff. Repotting with new soil will save your plants too.
Good luck amigo!
b
 
DevilDuck said:
Well...I better see some results. $36 for an 18 pound bag....and it was on sale!
Click to expand...

I think starting the year with the Mycorrhizae would yield better results than ending the year with it, but getting it in your soil is probably a good idea.
 
Well, I have to say... I see a notable improvement. Where I had little seedling cups supporting the lower branches before the hail storm, I no longer need them at all. All of the plants look really perky and VERY happy.

Next year should be interesting for sure!
 
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