Fertilize/feed the plants?

markd42 · July 20, 2012

Hello all, I have never used fertilizers or fed my plants over the years and I usually do pretty well. Maybe I can do better with a feeding program? My plants went in my Westchester County NY garden a little late this year (1st week June), but the garden is full of very healthy plants (about 50 of them) and all have nice fruit set. I can tell the Jaunne Flamme and Sungolds are starting to turn. I do use Daconil every couple of weeks as I suffered terrible from fungal diseases last year. Anyway, is it too late for me to apply some kind of fertilizer or feed? If not, what can I do to feed the plants without messing up the continued setting of fruit? Ive heard that fertilisation can favor foliage production and in turn thwart fruit production.

TightenUp · July 20, 2012

i am using happy frog granular tomato fertilizer. i applied once a week after plant out and once after first fruit set. i think this is a general rule however not one everyone follows.

if your garden has been productive in the past and looks healthy now i dont think i would advise changing anything. if it aint broke dont fix it

TightenUp · July 20, 2012

as far as the fertilizer encouraging foliage production- if the fertilizer has a high nitrogen level this can happen.

zabby17 · July 20, 2012

mark,
If you do fertilize, use a fertilizer that isn't too high in nitrogen---as tightenup says, that's what causes foliage at the expense of fruit. Fertilizers are usually labelled with three numbers, and the first is nitrogen; the kind that is meant for houseplants, most flowers, and leafy things will have a higher first number than the other two. That's what you DON'T want. You want all the numbers to be the same, or the middle one might be a bit higher---something labelled vegetable fertilizer or tomato fertilizer, probably 10-10-10 or 15-15-15 or so. Granular form.

f you are growing in the ground (as opposed to containers), and things are going well and your soil is good, then I also agree with tightenup---if it ain't broke, don't fix it!
You'll get the most bang for your fertilizing buck if you do as tightenup and fertilize shortly after you plant out in the ground (give them a few days to settle in first), and/or around the time the fruits start to set. Sounds like all is well established and you have plenty of fruit already set and ripening this year, so I wouldn't bother. If you want to try it next year, you might find you get slightly bigger and more productive plants.

I usually only manage one round of fertilizer, sometime in the first month or so after planting, and I do think it helps improve my yield a bit, but some beds don't get it some years and since my soil is good they still do pretty well.

I DEFINITELY see a difference in my container plants if I fertilize or not, however. Makes sense, since the small amount of soil in a container will run out of nutrients before the end of the season if you don't add more in....

Good luck!

Z

July 20, 2012	#1
markd42 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: New York Posts: 60	Fertilize/feed the plants? Hello all, I have never used fertilizers or fed my plants over the years and I usually do pretty well. Maybe I can do better with a feeding program? My plants went in my Westchester County NY garden a little late this year (1st week June), but the garden is full of very healthy plants (about 50 of them) and all have nice fruit set. I can tell the Jaunne Flamme and Sungolds are starting to turn. I do use Daconil every couple of weeks as I suffered terrible from fungal diseases last year. Anyway, is it too late for me to apply some kind of fertilizer or feed? If not, what can I do to feed the plants without messing up the continued setting of fruit? Ive heard that fertilisation can favor foliage production and in turn thwart fruit production.

July 20, 2012	#2
TightenUp Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Jersey Posts: 1,183	i am using happy frog granular tomato fertilizer. i applied once a week after plant out and once after first fruit set. i think this is a general rule however not one everyone follows. if your garden has been productive in the past and looks healthy now i dont think i would advise changing anything. if it aint broke dont fix it

July 20, 2012	#4
zabby17 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Ontario Posts: 211	mark, If you do fertilize, use a fertilizer that isn't too high in nitrogen---as tightenup says, that's what causes foliage at the expense of fruit. Fertilizers are usually labelled with three numbers, and the first is nitrogen; the kind that is meant for houseplants, most flowers, and leafy things will have a higher first number than the other two. That's what you DON'T want. You want all the numbers to be the same, or the middle one might be a bit higher---something labelled vegetable fertilizer or tomato fertilizer, probably 10-10-10 or 15-15-15 or so. Granular form. f you are growing in the ground (as opposed to containers), and things are going well and your soil is good, then I also agree with tightenup---if it ain't broke, don't fix it! You'll get the most bang for your fertilizing buck if you do as tightenup and fertilize shortly after you plant out in the ground (give them a few days to settle in first), and/or around the time the fruits start to set. Sounds like all is well established and you have plenty of fruit already set and ripening this year, so I wouldn't bother. If you want to try it next year, you might find you get slightly bigger and more productive plants. I usually only manage one round of fertilizer, sometime in the first month or so after planting, and I do think it helps improve my yield a bit, but some beds don't get it some years and since my soil is good they still do pretty well. I DEFINITELY see a difference in my container plants if I fertilize or not, however. Makes sense, since the small amount of soil in a container will run out of nutrients before the end of the season if you don't add more in.... Good luck! Z