[pbs] Fertilizer decisions
Jane McGary
janemcgary at earthlink.net
Mon Mar 23 14:46:11 EDT 2009
I use a soluble complete fertilizer on my bulbs that are grown in
containers, and the current difficult winter makes it difficult to
decide when and how much to apply.
First, during periods of heavy snow rabbits invaded the bulb frames
and chewed off the emerging foliage of a number of genera (Crocus,
Ornithogalum, Tecophilaea, and all the Themidaceae, primarily). This
won't kill the plants, but it will certainly set them back. Since the
nutrients the plants draw from the soil (i.e., the fertilizer) must
be converted to stored food by photosynthesis -- a physiological
process that occurs in the leaves -- it seems that applying
fertilizer to plants that lack a normal amount of foliage is
unproductive. Is it actually harmful?
Second, it has been colder than average all winter. Usually I'd be
applying the second of three spring "feeds" right now. But does the
cold temperature mean that the plants will not be growing as actively
(I notice that many of them are flowering on shorter stems than
usual), and therefore be unable to utilize as much nutrient?
I'd be glad to hear comments on this from some of our members who
have professional knowledge on this subject.
Jane McGary
Northwestern Oregon, USA
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