KayJones what do you mean by cube?
I know with Hostas they swear that Alfalfa is the way to go. I know I've heard that with the alfalfa pellets made for feed have been heat processed and this means that it takes away something. I'll have to find this info for more details. I was told just to go and buy alfalfa tablets at the health food store and soak a couple of these in water and feed the hostas with this. I've been doing this and the hostas love it. I will have definitely have to try this with the Brugs.
Thanks, Donna
Alfalfa pellets works wonders!!!
Wow - what an awesome thread!! Don't have much to add, except that I started growing alfalfa for a five foot iguana I rescued (staple in his diet) - iguana is gone but the alfalfa has turned out to be quite a blessing - my soil is hard clay and the alfalfa changes it into awesome black soil - incredible!! I've been doing the stinky-fertilizer thing for a couple years, just chop the alfalfa and let it soak - wonderful stuff. Alfalfa is very pretty, too, blooms light to dark purple depending on water, etc . I didn't collect seeds but always have tons, so if anyone wants to start growing their own I can send seeds in a couple months.
Is there any place that sells the pellets, or cubes in smaller quantities, I have big trouble with 50 pound bags.
Doris
Here's my 2 cents worth. I started using the Alfalfa pellets, thanks to the Brug Forum. I get my bag (think it's 25lbs) at the feed store (Southern States in my area). I take a scoop of the pellets and add it to a gallon of water. Stir well and it's ready to use in a couple of days! I originally started using it on my Brugs to encourage beautiful blooms and nice healthy looking leaves. Since it worked well on my Brugs, I started using it on other plants in my garden like Roses and Hostas. Well, I'm here to tell you that one of my Rose bushes, grew an extra 2 ft. in one season! Plus, it bloomed profusely!!! That alone convinced me to use Alfalfa on all of my plants! If it is growing in my garden this year, it's getting a side dressing of Alfalfa "soup"! :~)
Shirley,
Wow! Thanks for the explicit directions.... I'm going on an alfalfa pellet search.
My husband will completely think I've lost it, if he doesn't already...but he'll see, he'll see...
And if he gives me too much grief, we can always have alfalfa soup for dinner! LOL
Jackie
Jackie, try contacting "Feed and Grain" stores in your area. They probably will carry it.
The "Alfalfa Soup" DOES have a strong oder to it! My dog is always sniffing it and would try to drink it if I didn't keep a lid on the bucket!!
Thanks for the advice Shirley!
Dogs are something else...I'll bet mine would drink it too. :)
I'm in the middle of the city, but I know we've got feed stores not too far outside of Buffalo.
I will check into it this afternoon.
Jackie
Holy cow! this must be where everybody's hanging out LOL 206 posts here, No time to read them all but I was wondering about the alfalfa pellets how good they work, wonder if it's cause their green, cloriphil or something like that,? wonder if that has anything to do with it. I had some kelp granuals, quite expensive they are, but I had some in the freezer and put them on all the brugs, they seem to like it quite well, though I won't be doing this that often, I have a couple more bags in the freezer, when their gone, that will be all LOL< but I don't mind spending the money for the alfalfa pellets more often. Good to know they work so well.
been wanting to know about this subject
kathy
here are few links that might also help: http://www.dfsgardenclub.org/organics/fertilizers.htm , http://www.naaic.org/Alfalfa/Importance.html , http://www.dummies.com/WileyCDA/DummiesArticle/id-2497.html
i do realize it is a very lenghty thread, but it is filled with lots of info u do not want/need to miss.
Doris the info to ur question i believe is responded on May 30,2004 2:54 p.m. thread. try also local to ur area pet food stores for the alfalfa pellets. sorry i have not heard of the alfalfa cube.
Jackie there are also some Alfalfa for human consumption in health food stores, and i've bought some Alfalfa sprouts in the produce section of local groceries. i use Alfalfa sprouts for salad and soups. so there u go .... u might eventually land up with Alfalfa in the dining room table tonight. LOL!
Hi MaVie, glad to see ya.
MaVie, You are my kind of gal.... I like your thinking!!
Thanks again everybody...this is a great post from start to finish!
hi Linda, am so glad myself to be here too.
u're welcome. from what i have observed what the AP did on the brugs i grew last year, i could just imagine how Alfalfa will also give extra ump for our health.
whenever i read threads or online info on www i always make it a point to copy and paste what i believe would be useful for me in the future. i have created categories and sub-folders on my bookmark or favorites. done the same thing on my computer for easy access. i know i've said this one too many times in the past, but it works!
The bags of alfalfa cubes I buy are about 2x3" cubes, and in 50 pound bags. One bag will last me a whole season, and I love the smell - reminds me of my days on the farm.
I am so glad to see this thread. Over the last year or so, I have seen people selling small packages of AP at plant festivals and such. They raved about how good they worked in the garden. I wondered at the time if the pellets were the same as what you could find at the feed store. They were probably charging $5.00 or so for a pound or less! 50 lbs. for $6.00 sounds much better to me, so I will definitely give this a try.
Now y'all, doesn't anyone want to GROW their own alfalfa? Honestly, it is pretty, will grow in the WORST soil and make it better...the more you chop the better it grows (and you don't have to buy AP's)...mixes well w/other plants & flowers (had it w/my poppies and it was perfect!)...and besides, if I don't get some requests for seeds I'm gonna pout. :(
I've probably missed all the good info skimming this thread...but the concept makes sense. Alfalfa is a nitrogen fixer...so the pellets should be high in N...and it would breakdown into a good organic addition to our awful soil (aka cinder). We are planting lots of palms...so I think I will try it with them....Thanks for the info, MVR....you are an inspiration...
Carol
Holy Cow I finished wow, MVR this is great I am so glad you started this and I found it. I have a ? what is the difference between pellets and Hay?Because i've seen hay in my pet store, but not pellets, when you say tea you just mean mixing it with water?
Carol, if not mistaken... u live near the beach right? if u can gather some sea weeds, try incorporating some in the AP tea u are to make. sea weeds is another great organic fertilizer. unfortunately, i am way in the bundok where things are difficult to find. i request some of my siblings to buy me the dried sea weeds. i presoak them the night before. the following day, i liquify the sea weeds and add to the tea concoction i make. here are some link that i hope will shed light on use of sea weeds
http://www.botany.uwc.ac.za/Envfacts/seaweeds/ , http://www.bestgardening.com/bgc/howto/compost02.htm , http://www.thriftyfun.com/happygarden/tf958813_gar.html , http://www.stonepylon.com/garden/wildedib.htm
if anyone dare ask, yes some seaweeds are edible. having too much left over of the seaweed i made into salad, is what led me to experiment using seaweed with my plants. i do remember when i was young, my grandma used seaweeds in her farm. it is just too unfortunate, i can not recall all things i have observed in the past.
this is the best time of the year to add seaweeds to ur plants. if u are to use seaweeds in the summer, make sure u use it in the very early mornings. if memory serve me right, not good idea to add during warmer part of the day. i have to find my notes on that one.
Denise, i do not know the difference as i have not use hay, only the pellets. pls. go back up and see May 30, 2004 3:54 p.m. i have explained how i make the formula i used in the garden. one more reason why i never venture into using the hay is b/c AP has other ingredients incorporated in the mix that i believe also contribute to plant growth.
folks, due to very limited budget, i have to find and be able to afford how to support plants i grow. i am greatful to the majority of friends i have here on DG who has been so kind to share their garden with me, where otherwise i won't be able to buy wonderful plants they have shared with me.
here is a photo of Alfalfa pellet bag i buy locally. see the ingredients in the formula.
sorry Margie, i did not mean to ignore u. i have a problem when i click to skip to new. instead of clicking to the newest thread, it always jumps to post a reply... the very reason why i miss some posted reply. Margie i used to pay $5.00++ for a 50 lb bag. my last purchase in Oct. '04 the price went up to $6.80. yes, these sellers are getting wiser. i get AP from a local farm animal food vendor.
Margie, if there are some local Korean store in ur area, try to get a 2 oz. bag of dried seaweed. i believe a bag is $1.99. that is what i use each time i make a batch of AP tea. i use only 1 cup of the entire formula for each plant. u got nothing to lose but gain a very healthy plant!
yes, Tam Tam, i have the space to grow. tell me how to send for some of ur Alfalfa seeds. i believe it is way too late now to plant them. i have to wait till next fall to plant them on the ground?
here is the photo of front of the bag
Yay!! You'll be surprised - the alfalfa sprouts in no time and keeps going - alfalfa is first to come up in Spring, even before crocus (I've even found some under the snow, green as can be!). I didn't think I had any seeds but I do, so send me your addy and seeds will be on their way. Just throw them on the ground when you get them (maybe half now and half after last frost) and wish them luck!! :) You won't have to buy any pellets this summer!
P.S. - I have a story to share - Alfalfa is used by farmers as a "rotation" crop to put good nutrients back in the soil. When my mom was a little girl in Minnesota she woke up one morning and looked out her window where there was a farmer's field and the field had turned into a LAKE!!! She ran to tell this amazing news to her mother, who smiled and told her to go jump in the lake she saw - anyone guessed it? It was alfalfa blooming!!!!!
sorry Angela, did not mean to mistake u with Margie. i always get thrown off each time i see San Jose, Ca. same thing happens when i read other threads... often times i would ask myself why did she say that? then it would dawn on me i got the wrong person in mind. my humble apologies.
today, i went to buy a bag of Alfalfa Pellets, the price from $6.40 is now gone up to $6.99. well i guess everything we buy these days, pricess has increased! i went to the same store, bought the same AP bag i always buy. indeed the price has risen.
another tip on buying AP, if u are using AP as fertilizer, do not forget to mention that to the sales clerk. AP use as animal feed, tax is incorporated in the price, which makes the price higher too! whereas if u tell them u are using it for fertilizer, u are not charge any tax fee.
I ran out and bought the AP! My dogs sure love it now I cant keep them out of my pots. I will have to make a weaker solution next time that doesnt leave residual on the top of the dirt.
Thanks MVR I cant wait to see the results of AP on the plants. I have already seen the results of the AP on dogs.
Delisa, with regard to the dogs and the AP in your pots - that would concern me, if the pots have fert on them and, or anything else that might upset the dogs. Probably unlikely, but I'd rather err on the side of caution, yada, yada. I don't put out any sort of pellets that are dangerous to dogs and wild life, just to be on the safe side...dogs will do such crazy things, I had one that ate a 10lb sack of bird seed and she had never paid any attention to it in the past. Who knew??!! She lived to bark about it, but it surely gave me a scare!
My boyfriend and I were talking last night and he was so impressed I knew what H202 was - that brought on a story from him about one of his dogs eating rat poison and the vet said to have him drink H202 - sure enough, everything in the dog's tummy came out and the dog was fine. Yet another use for hydrogen peroxide!
Hmmmm. Over the counter hydrogen peroxide is used to induce vomiting in dogs, like when they might have eaten rat poison, and it works. My H202 bottle says: "In the event of undiluted internal consumption, do not induce vomiting, drink as much water as possible and seek prompt medical care." So, I would never give straight H202 to an animal.
When my daughters little toy terrier ate a prescription pill they called poison control and were told to do the same thing and it worked. My neices large dog just ate a pair of her undergarments recently and was told the same thing by the vet.
So it must work differently on animals than it does on people.
So Tam Tam, does Alfalfa bloom blue? You have me so curious now! And can you tell me, does the alfalfa plant have deep roots? If you plant it do you need a tractor to turn your soil over, or can you pull it by hand and lay it flat down for the winter?
I almost planted some last fall for winter to cover my plot but i was afraid it would drop lots of seeds and I would be pulling up alfalfa like weeds all summer.
I'm not sure but I think the kind of water it gets determines the bloom color - some of mine do bloom blue, in the same place every year, but most are purple - deep dark purple gets lots of water; paler purple out in the "back forty" (haha), not so much water. The blue is actually around the woodpile, so maybe it's getting different nutrients. YES the roots are soooo much fun to dig out - I've let the alfalfa grow in "plots" for a couple years and then when I have something new to plant I pull out the alfalfa and glory in the gorgeous black dirt. I do not mind pulling it out, but they ARE very strong roots. Now, I live in a subdivision with just a regular yard - not a farm or anything. If you were doing this in bigger plots you'd want to use a tractor. I don't remove the "bones" until spring - figure the more they disintegrate the better the soil. Here's a pic of the alfalfa coming up now along my wall - you can see the "bones" from last year.
I get my horse feed at Walmart. Maybe it is available at your Walmart aswell.
Our Super Wal-mart only sells cat, dog, and bird food, nothing else, wish they did.
I was talking to a friend who does alot of veggie gardening, and he told me that he uses a tomtato fertilizer than has alfalfa meal in the mix. Could this relate to what's being discussed here, that Solanaceae all might respond to similar "food?"
What a fantastic thread? How have I missed this?
I will be posting any significant changes.
Thank you so much, MaVie!
I agree! I think I'll call around and check to see if the local feed store's out here carry this. I love the organic way! I didn't have much luck finding any last year :( Maybe they can order me some
Ok .... I've been doing the AP tea on my plants in the basement for two weeks now and then I got brave and tried the foliar feeding..... I don't think I did it right ...... I put in the H202, the pamolive and I had Peters so I used it ...... into a spray bottle that hooks on the hose. I filled the spray bottle up with water - (probably shouldn't have done that ) set the dial at 1 1/2 (whatever that means) and sprayed away ..... I've either killed everything or I helped everything......
I do have a question about the AP - Does a bucket of it go bad..... If I don't use all of it will a batch last a week before I should swap it out ...... ?
Doris and Julie this site claim http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/9008/alfalfa.html walmart/Wallyworld/SuperWalmart or K-Mart [in the pet dept.] would sells different forms of Alfalfa. i do not know if it is true, i have not check the pet dept. of local Walmart here.
edited wrong links that were accidentally put in. sorry!!! 3/9/05 4:50 est
Jackie i believe it is the same. always remember albeit pellets, cubes, hay or sprout, they are all the same, except their different content works different. this site is for human consumption http://www.localharvest.org/store/item.jsp?id=2884 , http://life.ecureme.com/EatingWorkingout/HealthyTeas/t-index.asp
Gracie.. i do not see anything wrong with the left over batch u got. i have read people try to cure it. http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/486459/ as was stated by others. i would guess it will have some foul smell???
This message was edited Mar 9, 2005 4:54 PM
Thanks MaVie!
Very interesting links, as always. :)
Jackie
Thanks MaVie!
since i was ask before to place all info in one thread. here are some Epsom salts general info http://doityourself.com/garden/fertilizewithepsomsalts.htm , http://www.epsomsaltcouncil.org/garden_benefits.htm , http://www.epsogrow.com/html/epsomsaltlawn&garden.html , http://www.care2.com/channels/solutions/self/290
Wow, these links you've posted have a lot of great information MaVie...thanks for taking the time to post them for us to read. Very interesting information. I think I may have to try this method of fertilization as well as AF pellets this Summer.
Off to start some tomatoe plants before the last frost !
:-)
Julie