Fertilizing the plants in your lawn, yard and garden can be tricky. Part of the reason is because when it comes to fertilizing, more does not mean better. It is possible to overfeed your plants. An excess of fertilizer can damage and maybe even kill your plants. Prior to applying any fertilizer, it is a good idea to have your soil tested so you can select the type and formula that suits your plants’ needs. If this is done our plants will reward us with bigger flowers, bigger leaves, and bigger fruits and vegetables.
If we assume that all of the nutrients essential to plant growth are present in the soil or are floating in the air then what is the point of fertilizing? Certainly not all plants can access the key nutrients found in the soil or in the air. Every type of soil has its' own mix of nutritional ingredients, so before considering what fertilizers a plant may require, we need to consider the soil in which a plant is growing.
Intensive farming, construction, and traffic can alter soil chemistry and structure, limiting the nutrients that plants can use. In some cases, the nutrients are not naturally there to begin with or have been leached out over time. For these reasons, we, the diggers of the dirt and keepers of the garden, must replenish, replace, or help release those elements that are beyond the reach of our plants.
The three major plant foods are nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. All plants need these to maintain good health. Those nutrients such as calcium, magnesium and sulfur, are required in smaller quantities. Very small amounts of other nutrients are also vital but rarely deficient in garden soils. One exception is alkaline soil, which is unable to release manganese and iron, and causes yellow leaves on acid-loving plants. Many commercial general-purpose fertilizers have equal amounts of the major plant nutrients, together with other nutrients that are not always readily available in the soil.
To make plants grow faster, what you need to do is supply the elements that the plants need in readily available forms. That is the goal of fertilizer. Most common fertilizers supply only nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium because the other chemicals are needed in much lower quantities and are generally available in most soils. Nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium availability is the big limit to growth.
Part of the problem with fertilizers is that many people overdo it, believing that if a little is good, then a lot is better. Some folks think fertilizer will fix a sick plant; it will not if the underlying problem has to do with incorrect soil pH or a virus or ground that is too wet, for example. An excess of fertilizer often damages a plant, attracts pests, wastes money and, through stormwater runoff, pollutes waterways .
Each fertilizer is specially blended by Zimmerman Tree Service or our suppliers to meet the exact nutritional requirements for your trees, shrubs and lawn. The materials are then applied utilizing proper techniques that will promote optimum vigor. Fertilization will be applied at the specific intervals that will promote plant health.
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Note: ISA is the International Society of Consulting Arboriculture. ASCA is the American Society of Consulting Arborist.
