fertilizer help

TightenUp · September 2, 2012

"Target ratio for fertilizer product is: 2-0-1 ,which represents the fertilizer’s relative amounts of nitrogen (N), phosphorus

as P2O5, and potassium as K2O.

The estimated nitrogen (N) need of this crop/planting at spring planting is 2 pounds per 1000 square feet."

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i have a 100 square foot garden and this was the recommendation from the soil lab.

can someone help me out with finding the correct products and measurements of them. i only want to use organic products. here are a few i found but nothing close to what i need as my ratio.
dr earth blood meal 13-0-0
Palm Bunch Ash (0-0-30)

RayR · September 2, 2012

I think Alfalfa Meal would approximate that ratio.

edweather · September 2, 2012

If the amount is 2 pounds per 1000 sq ft, you only need a few (3.2) ounces for your 100 sq ft garden. That's pretty good, you must have good soil. IMO, for just a few ounces, you don't need to be that exact. A few ounces of any balanced organic fertilizer with a 3:1:2, or a 2:1:2 ratio, or something close to that, should have you covered.

Ken4230 · September 3, 2012

I think 4.5 cups of Earth Blood Meal + 1 cup of Palm Bunch Ash would give you a 2-0-1 ratio.
Mix this up and you are in business.

Ken

Quote:

Originally Posted by TightenUp

"Target ratio for fertilizer product is: 2-0-1 ,which represents the fertilizer’s relative amounts of nitrogen (N), phosphorus

as P2O5, and potassium as K2O.

The estimated nitrogen (N) need of this crop/planting at spring planting is 2 pounds per 1000 square feet."

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

i have a 100 square foot garden and this was the recommendation from the soil lab.

can someone help me out with finding the correct products and measurements of them. i only want to use organic products. here are a few i found but nothing close to what i need as my ratio.
dr earth blood meal 13-0-0
Palm Bunch Ash (0-0-30)

RayR · September 3, 2012

Ed, it's not that simple. Assuming TightenUp wants to be precise in applying an organic fertilizer to match the recommendations from the soil lab, it would take some calculating. You could use a calculator (like this) to figure how many pounds of an organic fertilizer you would need to match the recommendation of 2 pounds of N per 1000 square feet, but you would need to know how many pounds of N are in a ton of a particular organic fertilizer first before you could figure how many pounds to apply for 100 square feet. For organic inputs you would be talking pounds, not ounces for low NPK inputs. Too much work really and unnecessary for a small organic garden.

TightenUp, I agree with Ed that according to the lab test you've got pretty good nutrient content in the soil. Since they didn't recommend adding any Phosphorus, you must have a sufficient amount or an excess. They just recommend tweaking the N and K up a little at planting. That'good info to know.
Just use whatever organic fertilizers you want and follow the recommended application methods and rates and you'll be fine. Organics isn't rocket science, no need for precision.

TightenUp · September 3, 2012

the reason i'm trying to be as exact as possible i because i've had in issue the past 2 seasons which seams to be fixed but still popping up every once in a while.

last year i was getting blotchy ripening on all tomatoes. this season it was happening in the early stages of the season but has gone away.

the only issue i thought it could be from is the ph being a little high. last year it was 7.4, this year 7.01. the lab keeps telling me not to add compost and the ph should lower naturally however i did add a little soil acidifier last year.

this year all i did was add some chickity doo doo and worked it into the soil early and then added happy frog tomato 7-4-5

i spoke with a lady from the lab to go over all causes of the blotchy ripening and her theory was a little too much N or the plants werent spaced enough. so i dont want to overdue the N going into next season and i will put a few less plants in the garden(but i dont think this was the issue)

RayR · September 3, 2012

Blotchy Ripening is one of those physiological ripening disorders that has as many claimed causes as their are claimed cures. Some say it is sudden extremes in weather is a factor, some say too much N is a contributing factor, or deficiencies of K or Boron, other say cultivars without the uniform ripening gene are more likely to experience Blotchy Ripening.
I can't say myself since I've never seen a ripening disorder in my garden other than BER.
My soil PH is like yours and I have some plants spaced closer together than others, so I'm not buying into that theory either.

edweather · September 4, 2012

Ray, thanks, you're right. Rookie mistake on my part. I readover the actual nitrogen required part. I know how to calculate fertilizer stuff.......it's replying to posts at 1am when I get home from work that's the problem :-)

fortyonenorth · September 5, 2012

The fertilizer analysis translates to %N-%P-%K. So bloodmeal (13-0-0) contains 13% N. If the lab wants you to add 2 lbs. of actual N per 1000 ft. you would add roughly 15 lbs. of bloodmeal - or 1.5 lbs per 100 sq. ft. You can calculate the K requirement similarly - 1 lb. of actual K would translate to roughly 3 1/2 lbs. of the Palm Bunch Ash per 1000 sq. ft. or 5 1/2 oz. per 100 sq. ft.

It's ironic that the lab said to not add compost (analysis varies, but roughly 1-1-1) since that's pretty much what they're calling for in their recommendations. If I were you, I'd just add the compost. Regardless of what your lab tells you, I guarantee you will not create any problems by adding some extra organic phosphorus. Remember, most labs (unless they state specifically that this isn't the case) are geared toward synthetic recommendations.

edweather · September 5, 2012

Fortyonenorth......agree. I have had a couple of soil tests done by my county office. The chance that I sent them in the "perfect" sample was small, which is why I use the results as a good tool, but not necessarily gospel.

September 2, 2012	#1
TightenUp Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Jersey Posts: 1,183	fertilizer help "Target ratio for fertilizer product is: 2-0-1 ,which represents the fertilizer’s relative amounts of nitrogen (N), phosphorus as P2O5, and potassium as K2O. The estimated nitrogen (N) need of this crop/planting at spring planting is 2 pounds per 1000 square feet." --------------------------------------------------------------------------- i have a 100 square foot garden and this was the recommendation from the soil lab. can someone help me out with finding the correct products and measurements of them. i only want to use organic products. here are a few i found but nothing close to what i need as my ratio. dr earth blood meal 13-0-0 Palm Bunch Ash (0-0-30) __________________

September 2, 2012	#3
edweather Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Southeast GA, USDA 9a, HZ9, Sunset Z28 Posts: 396	If the amount is 2 pounds per 1000 sq ft, you only need a few (3.2) ounces for your 100 sq ft garden. That's pretty good, you must have good soil. IMO, for just a few ounces, you don't need to be that exact. A few ounces of any balanced organic fertilizer with a 3:1:2, or a 2:1:2 ratio, or something close to that, should have you covered. __________________ You'll be surprised what you'll never have to do, if you put it off long enough.

September 3, 2012	#5
RayR Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Cheektowaga, NY Posts: 2,466	Ed, it's not that simple. Assuming TightenUp wants to be precise in applying an organic fertilizer to match the recommendations from the soil lab, it would take some calculating. You could use a calculator (like this) to figure how many pounds of an organic fertilizer you would need to match the recommendation of 2 pounds of N per 1000 square feet, but you would need to know how many pounds of N are in a ton of a particular organic fertilizer first before you could figure how many pounds to apply for 100 square feet. For organic inputs you would be talking pounds, not ounces for low NPK inputs. Too much work really and unnecessary for a small organic garden. TightenUp, I agree with Ed that according to the lab test you've got pretty good nutrient content in the soil. Since they didn't recommend adding any Phosphorus, you must have a sufficient amount or an excess. They just recommend tweaking the N and K up a little at planting. That'good info to know. Just use whatever organic fertilizers you want and follow the recommended application methods and rates and you'll be fine. Organics isn't rocket science, no need for precision. Last edited by RayR; September 3, 2012 at 11:31 AM.

September 3, 2012	#6
TightenUp Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Jersey Posts: 1,183	the reason i'm trying to be as exact as possible i because i've had in issue the past 2 seasons which seams to be fixed but still popping up every once in a while. last year i was getting blotchy ripening on all tomatoes. this season it was happening in the early stages of the season but has gone away. the only issue i thought it could be from is the ph being a little high. last year it was 7.4, this year 7.01. the lab keeps telling me not to add compost and the ph should lower naturally however i did add a little soil acidifier last year. this year all i did was add some chickity doo doo and worked it into the soil early and then added happy frog tomato 7-4-5 i spoke with a lady from the lab to go over all causes of the blotchy ripening and her theory was a little too much N or the plants werent spaced enough. so i dont want to overdue the N going into next season and i will put a few less plants in the garden(but i dont think this was the issue) __________________

September 4, 2012	#8
edweather Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Southeast GA, USDA 9a, HZ9, Sunset Z28 Posts: 396	Ray, thanks, you're right. Rookie mistake on my part. I readover the actual nitrogen required part. I know how to calculate fertilizer stuff.......it's replying to posts at 1am when I get home from work that's the problem :-) __________________ You'll be surprised what you'll never have to do, if you put it off long enough.

September 5, 2012	#9
fortyonenorth Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: NW Indiana Posts: 1,150	The fertilizer analysis translates to %N-%P-%K. So bloodmeal (13-0-0) contains 13% N. If the lab wants you to add 2 lbs. of actual N per 1000 ft. you would add roughly 15 lbs. of bloodmeal - or 1.5 lbs per 100 sq. ft. You can calculate the K requirement similarly - 1 lb. of actual K would translate to roughly 3 1/2 lbs. of the Palm Bunch Ash per 1000 sq. ft. or 5 1/2 oz. per 100 sq. ft. It's ironic that the lab said to not add compost (analysis varies, but roughly 1-1-1) since that's pretty much what they're calling for in their recommendations. If I were you, I'd just add the compost. Regardless of what your lab tells you, I guarantee you will not create any problems by adding some extra organic phosphorus. Remember, most labs (unless they state specifically that this isn't the case) are geared toward synthetic recommendations. Last edited by fortyonenorth; September 5, 2012 at 09:59 AM.