I just sent in my Dixondale onion order. I was sorely tempted to purchase their onion fertilizer, but resisted thinking that I would like to know what the Dave's Garden folks use to fertilize their onions. So how about it? What do you use?
Fertilizing onions
In the past I broadcast 200 lbs per acre of 19-19-19 on the whole garden. I think I will try side dressing with nitrogen
next year.
Their fertilizer is probably overpriced. Go to a farm store & get something similar.
Bernie
I used their high priced stuff once and never saw a difference, Now I just go with potassium at planting time and then side dress with ammonia sulfate every two weeks untill the onion begins to bulb up then I stop.
That sounds good. Now, when I go to the farmer's co-op do I just ask for potassium and ammonia sultate or are there brand names I should look for? I don't know why, but I feel I should know this......My brain is in Monday-mode...
does garlic need extra potassium too?
Potassium will help garlic form roots but what garlic really needs is composted animal manuer.
In fact buy a couple bunnies you would be surprised mow much poo you could collect.
Buy four bunnies and see how long for the neighbourhood skunk to oogle your poo.
You mean like lama droppings? I can get buckets and buckets of that.
I have the same question as terri_ about potassium and ammonia sultrate. Are these dry, granular additives?
Your manure should be composted before you apply it.
Good source of disease otherwise.
Composted chicken poo and bedding are in the bed already waiting for our little buddles of joy (the onions). I put last year's onions in a new lassagne bed and had pretty good luck. Looking to perfect my onion growing techniques this year. The multiplying onions and the shallots are doing well so far. Got their first frost yesterday and this morning. I do have a light row cover over them to keep the crow out and that may be helping.
Llama manure can be used immediately. They have seven stomachs, the manure is not hot. The lama farm is nearby and I used it for several years before I had dogs. They like to roll in it! Silly dogs.
Here's a good article if you are interested: http://www.yellowrosefiberfarm.com/Docs/Getting%20Started/CQ0608ManureBenefits.pdf
Onions: High Phosphate. Put some in the planting holes under the starts. Then, after they start growing well (about 3 weeks later), side dress with Ammonium Sulfate every two weeks. One inch of water per week.
Enjoy!
oops! Wrong Pic.
So gymgirl, do I just go to Home Depot and ask for a bag of phosphate and one of ammonium sulfate?
Uh, that's the part I haven't quite worked out yet.
I hear that if you buy too much Ammonium Sulfate?, the ATF might come down on you for bomb making...
Hold up just a minute. Just remembered that someone had sent me a reply on using phosphate. I'll go find it and repost it....
Here's the reply I received when I asked if there was anything that is available to the onions that works faster than the Bonemeal I had been using as a source of phosphate:
Quoting:
Well, it's sacrilege from an organic standpoint, but triple superphosphate will be available much sooner.
The thing about phosphorus is, we usually apply WAY more than the plants need. This is because of the peculiar chemistry of phosphorus in the soil. In plants there's easily 10-20 TIMES as much nitrogen taken up as phosphorus or potassium. But in many natural mineral-based soils, phosphorus is "locked up" in chemical reactions within weeks or months of application and then only slowly becomes available to plants as the soil weathers. Over a period of time, after the same area has been repeatedly fertilized with phosphorus, it's possible to stop adding phosphorus altogether because the natural slow release will provide plenty for plant growth. Sorta like rock phosphate. In fact, exactly like rock phosphate! ;o)
BTW, potassium (the third number) is usually added in excess of plant needs for the opposite reason: it is leached rapidly through most soils and needs to be added in amounts large enough to account for that natural loss through rainfall and irrigation leaching.
If you REALLY need to give plants a quick phosphorus boost, you can always locate a dealer in hydroponic supplies and purchase a little soluble Potassium Phosphate or Ammonium Phosphate. They will dissolve in water and feed the plants very quickly. The same reactions will gradually lock up that phosphorus as well, but you will at least get a burst of uptake first. Start small and work up - as with most soluble fertilizers, no more than a tablespoon per gallon of water.
If by chance you are gardening in containers and not using a mineral soil, you may end up with the opposite problem: too much phosphorus accumulation. But that is another topic for another time...
Whew! my eyes have glazed over. I'm really not a scientific type. Thanks though gymgirl for posting it. I think I'll just go grab a couple of buckets of llama yama and call it good.
I use seabird guano, which is high in phosphorus, from here:
http://homeharvest.com/guano.htm
ooohhhh honeybee.....there you go, giving me links to cool stuff. Maybe I need to Unwatch this Thread! :-|
MaryMcP - I must have been in a "buying mood" yesterday because I ordered T-posts, trellis netting and hoop loops for next season's garden.
I looked through several online seed catalogues, but resisted the temptation to purchase seeds just yet.
Then I asked hubby to make space in the garage so I can have lumber delivered for more raised beds.
Fertilizer is next...
HoneybeeNC,
Take a before and after pic of your garage for me...
Gymgirl - actually the garage is pretty much organized. The stuff that needs to be taken out of there is going to Goodwill. It's already in boxes, we just have to get around to taking it.
Uh, so send a pic of an organized garage. I may have lots of questions. In the process of organizing my own and need ideas of how someone I actually know did it!
I got enough 6x16 glue lams to make 5 4x8 raised beds But I think I will bolt them togeather and make them 5 feet wide and leave the ends out. By now your thinking the guy has a screw loose and that may be true but he also owns a small for tractor and a 48 inch wide roto tiller to work behind it.
Curious, why do we always build 4x8 beds? is it just simpler to work with pre sized lumber lengths? Curious cuz I hate that middle stretch section...
My new RBs will be along my fenceline, 3 ft. wide ...
Mine are also 3x6, with a wider bed it's difficult to properly work the mid-section. Maybe eweed is tall enough that this is not an issue.
32" wide also works with the 4 x 8 lumber.
My beds are 24ft long by 36 inches wide. They were 48 inches wide, but I found it difficult to reach into the center.
Right now the beds are of various depths, from 6 inches to 10 inches. I have found deeper beds take far less water, so I'm planning to make them all 12 inches deep.
What you plant in your beds can make a difference how wide is best. my new ones will be five feet wide to accomodate my tractor. I will weed from each side with my hoe. I hear you about reaching . But to me I find a 3 foot bed just won't grow the right amount of produce.I got rid of all my 3 foot beds and have all 4 foot ones now but will soon have some 5's to go with. And the length the longer the better.
eweed - one advantage we have is that there are only two of us to feed. I can understand that with children at home, one would need larger beds to accommodate the need for more plants.
Bee my kids have flown the coop thats my g daughter who is 9 or 10 now. I grow lots because I feed the neighboors.I also grow lots because I love to grow things and am good at it.
That picture is just special to me it is the first time Abby and I got to enjoy each others company.
This message was edited Dec 4, 2011 12:19 PM
I love that picture too. You have a boutiful harvest, in more ways than one!
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