Question about fertilizer

My flowerbeds have been planted for 2-3 weeks now with mostly annuals and some perennials. I was wondering which fertilizer to use now? I have read articles concerning fertilizers that promote growth vs. those that promote blooming. Which do I need at this point? Thank you

I don't use any but what is in the miracle grow soil. Of course that doesn't help you any, does it? ☺

If your soil is properly amended, there should be sufficient nutrients to get them going and looking good. You should start by doing a simple soil test, and it's really not too late for that. Many garden centers will test your soil this time of year. At least you'll get a general idea of the nutrient composition of your growing environment. If you want to fertilize, a general purpose, controlled release fertilizer should be sufficient. I'm not a big fan of water soluble fertilizers (and I'm not really much of a fan of slow or controlled-release fertilizers either, but that's a discussion for another day). If your beds are in a place where they get full sun, a slow-release fertilizer will probably break down faster than the label indicates. However, plants grown directly in the ground (as opposed to containers and hanging baskets) generally don't need a major boost in nutrient. Most people tend to over-feed their plants, which does very little good.

I would use a fertilizer to promote growth at first and then switch soon to fertilizers to promote blooming. I find the most success with organinc fertilizers. There are a lot of different ones you can use. There are way too many to list here. This is a subject I am really into and have been studying for a long time. Its fun to do experiments. I have created a webpage to share with everyone about what I have learned over the years. Its full of information on organic fertilizers that can be added to soil and water to make your plant grow faster, healthier and yield more flowers and food than ever before! A lot of them you prolly have not heard of before. You can check it out at

http://sites.google.com/site/allabouteverything1234/

Organic fertilizer enriches the soil.Chemical fertilizer feeds the plant.Which is better?The debate goes on.Here is what I know.Use chemical fertilizer and the plant grows huge.You don't get alot of flowers,but the plant grows.Use too much or incorrectly and you run the risk of burning the plant.Therefore,I like organic.If you want to keep it simple.Eposma Plant Tone is great.You can use it on any kind of plant,even your lawn.Any place worth there salt has it.Its available in 5 lbs,10 lbs,25 lbs,50 lbs.If you use too much,you are just wasting it.It will not hurt the plant.I use it at planting time for annuals,hit it again when in full bloom.For perennials,I hit them when when they break dormancy and again when in bloom.Thats it,simple.Can you guess which size,I buy?LOL,Edge

You're right about excess nutrient inhibiting plant growth. Plants need a certain amount of stress to remind them of their mortality and to tell them it's time to reproduce; they really don't need much in the way of nutrient, they just need it at the right time. It's all in the manner of nutrient delivery; I use a fertilizer which provides beautiful results using up to 6 times less nitrogen than the popular water solubles and slow release fertilizers. That way you don't get the huge foliage growth with no blooms. A fertilizer that relies on the plant's ability to figure out when and how much it needs (and plants can do that, my experience has convinced me of it) will result in a healthy plant and good flowering. That may sound goofy, but I've taken tissue and media samples of diverse plants fed with the same fertilizer and have achieved nutrient levels in both which indicate that plants discriminate as to which nutrient they will absorb and how much. One plant will have a high concentration of one nutrient in the tissue with a corresponeding absence of the nutrient in the media, while another species will do just the opposite. In addition, if you're doing containers and hanging baskets, and are using container media, you won't have the necessary mychoraizal elements needed to break down organic material.

Advantages of slow release fertilizers are that the nutrients are available gradually over time. This means that the gardener can fertilize less often, and the nutrients are provided slowly and steadilly. This is how most plants prefer to be fed and helps them grow well. Think of it like a baby being fed fruits and veggies, versus steriods. One might have a great result for a short time period, but the other is more sustainable (and natural!). Most slow release fertilizers (organic and synthetic) release at specific (warm) soil temperatures. The benefit of this is that plant roots generally are most active in warm soil and therefore the slow release fertilizer will start to make fertilizer available as soon as the plants actually needs them. As the plant roots become more active (in warmer soil) more fertilizer will automatically be released.

www.slowreleasefertilizers.com might help take the worry out of your fertilizer selection process.

There's one caveat to be aware of when using traditional "slow release" fertilizers. The rate of nutrient release of most slow release fertilizers is dependent upon soil temperature, generally guaranteeing their release rate at an average soil temperature of 70 degrees. During the growing season, soil temperatures can increase to over 100 degrees, even up here in Illinois where I live. This is even more pronounced with containers and hanging baskets, as they have more surface area exposed to sunlight. At a soil temperature of 100 degrees, the rate of nutrient release in these fertilizers can increase by up to 40 times. Therefore, if you're using this type of fertilizer, moderation is the best course.

I'd sprinkle some 8-8-8 throughout the flower bed and forget it. It is cheap and mild and just gives a little nudge to the plants.

Just bought 50 lbs. of "Plant Grow". When our gardener saw it he said "It's no good", you wasted your money".
Any comments about Plant Grow?

Never heard of it myself.

Do you have a link to a website for it or anything? I've never heard of it either but if there was a site that listed what it is, what's in it, etc someone could probably tell you something more about it. Or else at least describe what's in it--what N/P/K ratio do they list, what else do they say on the label, etc.