Fertilizer amount

[durable_now]

I have 25 tomato plants that are all blooming or have tomatoes forming.I am using miracle grow 15-30-15 fertilizer & I need to know how much do I apply to each plant 1 quart 1/2 gallon 1 gallon or more.
Thanks

[Urbanfarmer]

However much it takes to drench the rootzone.....whether that be 1 gal or 5 gals. You'll get a lot of flowers with that high P number (30), but that isn't what tomatoes want for maturing fruit. They prefer P to be less than N, and K to be much higher than N. The K is very important for tomatoes to ripen firm and sweet.

You'll get all the flowers you can handle with P at 25% of what you're using now. 30 is big-time overkill.

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by Urbanfarmer

However much it takes to drench the rootzone.....whether that be 1 gal or 5 gals. You'll get a lot of flowers with that high P number (30), but that isn't what tomatoes want for maturing fruit. They prefer P to be less than N, and K to be much higher than N. The K is very important for tomatoes to ripen firm and sweet.

You'll get all the flowers you can handle with P at 25% of what you're using now. 30 is big-time overkill.

Even the miracle grow tomato food is a ratio of 18-18-21.


Worth

[fredx]

Originally Posted by Urbanfarmer

However much it takes to drench the rootzone.....whether that be 1 gal or 5 gals. You'll get a lot of flowers with that high P number (30), but that isn't what tomatoes want for maturing fruit. They prefer P to be less than N, and K to be much higher than N. The K is very important for tomatoes to ripen firm and sweet.

You'll get all the flowers you can handle with P at 25% of what you're using now. 30 is big-time overkill.

So what fertilizer can I get that matches those requirements? & where is it available @?? Is it granular or a liquid concentrate or a WSF?

Thanks
fred

[Sun City Linda]

You might check out the nurserys near you. Where I live the big box stores pretty much just carry MG. Their (MG) Tomato Food is pretty good but gets pricey when you are growing a lot of plants.

I search the web, check Amazon, Ozbo and others to find most of what I use. If I lived in the Central Valley of CA, I would likely have more local choices.

I purchased what was labeled as a water soluable "ripening blend" last year on the internet because I needed high K. Seemed to do the trick.

[amideutch]

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...GW92Z6NPM67PBW

http://www.amazon.com/BioBizz-BIOGRO...ioBizz+BioGrow

[Cole_Robbie]

In a sandy soil, you can get away with applying phosphorous later, but in a clay soil, it needs to be worked in under the plant before planting.

[b54red]

You might want to try Urban Farms Tomato Food. I'm trying it this year and so far the results are as good if not better than anything I have tried and it is easy to apply with a calibrated hose end sprayer. I used a Miracle Grow formula last year that had a high N low P and high K formula and it worked very well. I got mine at Ace Hardware here but don't know if your nearest one will have the same formulation of MG.

Bill

[Tracydr]

I like a combination of fish emulsion and kelp. Not very high numbers but I can visibly see a change just days after using it.

[fredx]

Originally Posted by Tracydr

I like a combination of fish emulsion and kelp. Not very high numbers but I can visibly see a change just days after using it.

Where do you get the kelp at?? Bet it's pretty pricey!!!!!!

[Urbanfarmer]

Understand that kelp/seaweed fertilizer by itself is woefully low in NPK, along the lines of 0-0-1. Therefore it is typically used for the micro-nutrients, because there isn't anything else.

Find a full-service fertilizer that is formulated correctly for tomatoes. Once again, if you just throw alittle bit of this and alittle bit of that in the ground, you will be extremely lucky if you are successful.