Iām trying not to have to buy a special fertilizer for every freaking houseplant I own. So I have two: a 5-1-1 fish emulsion fertilizer and a 0.5-1-0.5 African violet fertilizer. For the orchids, I kind of alternate between them, and dilute them both quite a bit. Any thoughts on this regime?
Fish emulsion is high nitrogen, so itās going to cause plants to push foliage ā often at the expense of their root system. Any flower fertilizer is going to be higher in phosphorus, which is also not ideal for roots unless the plant is already well-established. You donāt need a different fertilizer for each type of plant. You need a fertilizer regimen thatās going to be primarily beneficial to your root system, and as a close second that will support the plant through each season. If you want to simplify the system, using one low-strength, balanced fertilizer (like a 5-5-5 or 10-10-10 or 1-1-1) consistently (plus good watering and flushing habits) will do more for orchids than switching between fertilizers.
6 gillningar
Does a balanced fertilizer provide enough nutrients like calcium
1 gilla Technically no fertilizer guarantees calcium because they are specifically focused on providing macronutrients Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium (N,P,K). Calcium is sort of a micronutrient but itās constantly needed and not used up quickly. Depending on where you live, a lot of tap water has calcium in it and people are giving it to their plants every time they water. If youāre not sure about your water, you can give a cal-mag supplement every so often.
1 gilla
What specifically does Cal-mag do for plants? Any info would be greatly appreciated! TIA!
1 gilla Calcium is important for root tips, cell structure, and water uptake, magnesium is part of chlorophyll so helps with photosynthesis. Plants need both in small but steady amounts; however, too much can be detrimental and cause nutrient lockoutā ie the plant struggles to take up nutrients and water.
1 gilla I do use Cal-mag, but Iāve never really understood why it was so beneficial. So TXS for your insightful comment!
1 gilla
I use Growth Technologyās complete on all my plants. Can be used on soil and semi hydro. I get great results!
2 gillningar