Fertilizer ? What harm can it cause?
Chinmoy Tripathy
I have noticed a lot of posting that if you regularly add
fertilizer, it will emit toxic minerals, too much ions (which will
attract water and might cause root rot) etc etc.
can any one tell me or post what is the remedy for this. Like using a
special brand of fertilizer etc.
I use the cheap miracle grow, almost every week, mixed with water.
Is it harmful in long rum. My bonsais are about 6 months since I got
them, so dont have experience in predicting or observing. But dont want
to damage them either.
thanks
Chinmoy
Jim Lewis
> I have noticed a lot of posting that if you regularly add
> fertilizer, it will emit toxic minerals, too much ions (which will
> attract water and might cause root rot) etc etc.
>
> can any one tell me or post what is the remedy for this. Like using a
> special brand of fertilizer etc.
>
Fertilize once a week (or even two) in summer. Read the label and follow
the instructions on it and you will be fine.
---
Jim Lewis - jkl...@ix.netcom.com (Tallahassee, FL)
The end of the human race will be that it will eventually die
of civilization. - Ralph Waldo Emerson
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Nina Shishkoff
>
>I use the cheap miracle grow, almost every week, mixed with water.
>Is it harmful in long rum. My bonsais are about 6 months since I got
>them, so dont have experience in predicting or observing. But dont want
>to damage them either.
>
>thanks
>Chinmoy
Fertilizing once a week sounds just fine. I don't know the ingredients of
"Miracle-Gro", but I'd recommend you use a fertilizer that includes
micronutrients; i.e., chelated iron, Magnesium, Calcium, Selenium, etc. I
use "Miracid", which is cheap enough.
Nina Shishkoff,
Long Island Horticultural Research Lab
39 Sound Ave., Riverhead, NY 11901
Brent Walston
At 11:23 PM 5/8/97 -0400, you wrote:
>I have noticed a lot of posting that if you regularly add
>fertilizer, it will emit toxic minerals, too much ions (which will
>attract water and might cause root rot) etc etc.
>
>can any one tell me or post what is the remedy for this. Like using a
>special brand of fertilizer etc.
>
>Is it harmful in long rum. My bonsais are about 6 months since I got
>them, so dont have experience in predicting or observing. But dont want
>to damage them either.
>
>thanks
>Chinmoy
Chinmoy, et al
Regular use of any good quality fertilizer, either chemical or organic,
should not cause problems. Problems occur with under or over feeding.
Too much fertilizer causes salt burn. Salt in this sense is not (only) table
salt, but any chloride, nitrate, or other ionic compound. Salts are formed
from the reaction of an acid and base (alkaline compound). Table salt is
formed from HCl (hydrochloric acid) and NaOH (sodium hydroxide). They react
to form water and salt (NaCl).
Chemical fertilizers are made from salts that contain nitrogen, phosphorus,
and potassium. Organic fertilizers contain salts as well, in fact, many of
the same ones as inorganic fertilizers, but in a base of other carbon
(organic) compounds.
Two much fertilizer, either chemical or organic, can cause reverse osmosis
in the root system. Instead of water moving into the concentrated solution
inside the roots, the water from the roots moves into the more concentrated
salt solution of the soil. This dehydrates the plant and can cause wilt and
death of the tissues. This is the extreme case. The much more common symptom
of excess fertilizer, or any salt, is the 'burn' at the margin of the
leaves. This is very characteristic. The edge only of the leaf, nearly all
the way around will get dry, brown and crispy. This is usually, but not
always preceded by an intense green color in the case of fertilizer burn.
Excess table salt in the water can cause the same salt burn symptoms, except
for the green color. Folks who have water softeners should not use this
water for plants. The process replaces the calcium salts with sodium
chloride (table salt). Sodium is very toxic to plants in small amounts that
are not even detectable by taste. Heavy mineralized water can also cause
salt burn symptoms. Too much boron, a problem in parts of the west, causes
typical salt burn symptoms.
Bonsai soils are usually pretty much inert and often 'soil less', that is,
they have no native soil. Under these conditions, plants can sometimes not
get enough of the minor elements they need, calcium, magnesium, iron, zinc,
copper, manganese, molybdenum, cobalt, nickel. For this reason, it is best
to use a fertilizer that contains these minor and trace elements. Any good
soluble chemical fertilizer will add these, it will say so in the analysis
on the label, if they are in there. If it doesn't say, then you can be sure
that they are not in it. Adding some forms of organic fertilizer may also
help supply these minerals, especially animal biproducts. Using a small
amount of clean native soil (without a lot of organic material) can also
usually satisfy this demand. I say without organic material because it is
the rock flour portion of soil that will contain these elements. Many of
these elements are also present in ordinary tap water.
It is not known precisely how much of these trace elements are needed for
plant growth and the amount varies with the species. In general the amounts
are quite small, measured in parts per million. The amounts are so small,
that the lack of a specific mineral is rare, but it does sometimes occur in
soilless mixes. Taking any of the precautions above will prevent it. For
example, copper pipes will usually add enough copper. Some of these elements
are needed as catalysts for plant reactions and continually reused.
Back to fertilizer. The major elements needed for plant nutrition are N, P,
K. As I stated above, it doesn't matter to the plant where it comes from,
the salts will ultimately be employed by the plant in exactly the same
fashion. The major benefit of organic fertilizer is that it slowly releases
nitrogen, which is usually quite soluble and is leached out of the soil by
water. Since we usually fertilize regularly anyhow, I don't consider this a
big problem. Timed release fertilizers release these salts in a similar
fashion. Some even have a urea (organic compound) based coating which acts
to slowly release the salts inside the bead. There is of course, controversy
about additional benefits of using organic fertilizers.
Personally, I don't care if someone uses an organic or inorganic (chemical)
based fertilizer. I maintain that they ultimately do the same thing, provide
the plant with the essential elements. I am not trying to get anyone to give
up using organic fertilizers. I do try to dispell the belief that organic
fertilizers are far superior in the totally artificial system of bonsai. If
we were talking about organic gardening, I would have to agree, since
organic fertilizers in that system also do wonders for the structure of the
soil and the ecology of the microorganisms. In bonsai, this is artificially
manipulated, and in fact we try hard NOT to have the organic portions of the
soil compost, which will then cause soil collapse and poor drainage.
Additionally, we often drench the soil with fungicides which will KILL many
of the beneficial microorganisms as well as the pathogens.
As far as the health of the plant is concerned, we know that heavy
fertilization will weaken the plant in some ways and strengthen it in
others. We also know that slightly underfertilizing will do the same thing.
Adequately fertilized plants will grow at moderate rates, have good green
color, and usually exhibit excellent health. Pushing the plants beyond these
rates can adversely affect the health of the plant, cause large leaves, and
excessive internode lengths. Undoubtedly, there are times, to push plants
hard, such as in training to develop trunk caliper. There are also times to
keep the nitrogen limited, but in balance, such as when reducing leaves and
developing ramification.
But for the most part, I maintain that complicated fertilizer schemes are
not nearly as good as an excellent grasp on how a plant grows for
manipulating its growth. Pruning skills and the timing of top and root
pruning are very much more important than whether a plant is getting
20-20-20 or 18-6-12, or is fed with fertilizer cakes. In addition this, it
will still be impossible to have excellent bonsai if you do not work to
understand the various styles and the elements of design. These things take
years to learn, I can teach you how to fertilize in ten minutes.
Brent
Evergreen Gardenworks Northern California USDA ZONE 8 SUNSET ZONE 14
bon...@pacific.net http://www.pacific.net/~bonsai
Arnold Melvin
Hi Chinmoy,
If I'm not mistaken, you live in D.C.? Go to a MD or VA and Get Peters
20-20-20 for your water based fertilizer if you can. I don't know what
composition is for miracle grow anymore since I have only used it for
vegetable gardens about oh, 10 yrs ago.
Then look to Mr Persiano's "Superfeeding" program for establishing your
tree growth further.
Also, You must be in the Chemistry field worrying about "ions", don't,
the reason being if your soil is well draining and, you don't sit your
bonsais in tubs of water all day, you will never have to worry about root
rot.
It is too bad that I did not get to meet you and anyone else on this post
at the PBA show but, I was unable to attend.
Sincerely,
Arnold Melvin USDA ZONE 6/7
Member: Peninsula Bonsai Society Hampton, VA
VA Film Commission
Madme...@juno.com
On Thu, 8 May 1997 23:23:43 -0400 Chinmoy Tripathy
<chi...@IX.NETCOM.COM> writes:
>I have noticed a lot of posting that if you regularly add
>fertilizer, it will emit toxic minerals, too much ions (which will
>attract water and might cause root rot) etc etc.
>
>can any one tell me or post what is the remedy for this. Like using a
>special brand of fertilizer etc.
>
>I use the cheap miracle grow, almost every week, mixed with water.
>Is it harmful in long rum. My bonsais are about 6 months since I got
>them, so dont have experience in predicting or observing. But dont
>want
>to damage them either.
>
>thanks
>Chinmoy
>
