Which fertiliser ?

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superplanty

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Which fertiliser ?
« on: April 12, 2010, 11:58 »
I grow a variety of veg, spuds, salad crops, root crops etc. Which of the following would be best as a general fertiliser ?

Growmore.
Blood, fish and bone.
Chicken manure pellets.

Any views on this ? Thanks.

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JayG

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Re: Which fertiliser ?
« Reply #1 on: April 12, 2010, 13:32 »
They can all be regarded as good general fertilisers but that doesn't mean they are exactly the same!

Growmore is an man-made inorganic fertiliser with an NPK ratio of 7-7-7 (i.e. the 3 main nutrients are in equal proportions). It is probably the fastest acting of the 3 providing it rains!

BFB is obviously made from organic products, one of which is likely to be industrially-fished sand-eels which you may not approve of. Its usual analysis is given as 5-5-6.5 which is not that different from growmore but most of its nutrients are released over a longer period. I have had to stop using it because it seems irresistible to local urban foxes!

Pelleted chicken manure is again obviously organic, but not necessarily from organically-reared chickens. Analysis is around 4-2.5-2.5, so obviously needs to be applied more heavily than the other two to produce the same effect. Higher in nitrogen than the others so particularly suited to leafy vegetables. Reasonably quick-acting when well-wetted but pongs significantly until that point! Some say they have had trouble with foxes with this product as well but I have found they eventually learn that it's not such a good find after all and tend to leave it alone.


Not something to get too hung up about though; any of them will do a good job for you!  :)

« Last Edit: April 12, 2010, 13:37 by JayG »
Sow your seeds, plant your plants. What's the difference? A couple of weeks or more when answering possible queries!

One of the best things about being an orang-utan is the fact that you don't lose your good looks as you get older

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superplanty

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Re: Which fertiliser ?
« Reply #2 on: April 12, 2010, 14:13 »
Thanks for the detailed info JayG. Cheers.

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nipper31

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Re: Which fertiliser ?
« Reply #3 on: October 05, 2010, 15:16 »
B&Q do an Organic Living Vegetable Compost in 56 Litre bags. I know it's quite expensive at £5.28 per bag but I was looking for an organic/ethical alternative to the ones listed above.

Does anyone have any other suggestions or has anyone tried the B&Q product yet?

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mumofstig

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Re: Which fertiliser ?
« Reply #4 on: October 05, 2010, 15:24 »
B&Q do an Organic Living Vegetable Compost in 56 Litre bags. I know it's quite expensive at £5.28 per bag but I was looking for an organic/ethical alternative to the ones listed above.

Does anyone have any other suggestions or has anyone tried the B&Q product yet?

That is compost I take it, rather than a fertiliser?........cos they are not the same thing at all.

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TheSpartacat

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Re: Which fertiliser ?
« Reply #5 on: October 05, 2010, 15:41 »
@Nipper
Its a common misconception that compost is used to feed plants. It's actually more of a soil improver, rather than a fertiliser, though it does have some essential nutrients.
Adding organic material like compost to soil helps it retain water and nutrients, which otherwise would drain away.... and it also increases the amount of friendly bacteria that helps the soil to stay living, and these bacteria break down the organic matter more, making 'some' nutrients available to plants... and its a good medium for getting worms to do the work for you in rotating and breaking up the soil.
 
But if you want to actually feed the plants, you need a fertiliser or a decent amount of well rotted manure!

If you wanted to make your own, i would recommend making your own nettle tea for your brassicas, and comfrey tea too... rotting them down in a bucket of water gives you a very potent nitrogen feed that can be easily taken up by your plants! and you can make your own potash by burning untreated wood, and using that on your tomato beds?
« Last Edit: October 05, 2010, 15:49 by TheSpartacat »

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mumofstig

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Re: Which fertiliser ?
« Reply #6 on: October 05, 2010, 16:07 »
I agree with spartacat's take on 'made' compost............but, I was thinking that it was the kind of compost you grow things in, either in pots or tubs ?
This is a completely different thing again, but it also runs out of nutrients after about 6 weeks so would need fertiliser of some kind to grow any crops to maturity.

(I couldn't find it listed with B & Q on line, so I'm not sure)

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nipper31

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Re: Which fertiliser ?
« Reply #7 on: October 05, 2010, 16:08 »
B&Q do an Organic Living Vegetable Compost in 56 Litre bags. I know it's quite expensive at £5.28 per bag but I was looking for an organic/ethical alternative to the ones listed above.

Does anyone have any other suggestions or has anyone tried the B&Q product yet?

That is compost I take it, rather than a fertiliser?........cos they are not the same thing at all.

Oh silly me! Thanks for steering me in the right direction mumofstig   ::)



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