So many fertilizer questions, so little time.

[Adair M]

If you want to use the Grow Big in the fertilizer bottles like we discussed above, here's the math:

2 teaspoons per gallon yields 6-6-4
1 teaspoon per gallon yields 3-3-2. 1x40 = 40 teaspoons per refill bottle or 7 oz per bottle.

In other words, pop the top, add 7 oz, top off with water and you're good to go.

Scott

Scott, you obviously paid attention in math class!

So here's a math problem for you:

Jonas imports a container of ClayKing bonsai soil. Each container holds 24 pallets. Each pallet has 48 bags of ClayKing. Each bag of ClayKing need 1/4 bag of sifted pumice to cut it. Paul sifts pumice, and the yield is 80% usable, and 20% is lost as too small. Of the 80%, one fourth is large, good for drainage, and the remaining is mixed with the ClayKing. Assuming that each supplemented bag of ClayKing/pumice mix will pot 3 three regular size bonsai and two shohin, how many spools of Gremel wire will be required to wire that number of trees?

 

[markyscott]

Scott, you obviously paid attention in math class!

So here's a math problem for you:

Jonas imports a container of ClayKing bonsai soil. Each container holds 24 pallets. Each pallet has 48 bags of ClayKing. Each bag of ClayKing need 1/4 bag of sifted pumice to cut it. Paul sifts pumice, and the yield is 80% usable, and 20% is lost as too small. Of the 80%, one fourth is large, good for drainage, and the remaining is mixed with the ClayKing. Assuming that each supplemented bag of ClayKing/pumice mix will pot 3 three regular size bonsai and two shohin, how many spools of Gremel wire will be required to wire that number of trees?

Would that be an African Clay King or a European Clay King?

Scott

 

[Adair M]

Would that be an African Clay King or a European Clay King?

Scott

What??? I don't know that!!


<whoosh>

 

[aml1014]

Scott, you obviously paid attention in math class!

So here's a math problem for you:

Jonas imports a container of ClayKing bonsai soil. Each container holds 24 pallets. Each pallet has 48 bags of ClayKing. Each bag of ClayKing need 1/4 bag of sifted pumice to cut it. Paul sifts pumice, and the yield is 80% usable, and 20% is lost as too small. Of the 80%, one fourth is large, good for drainage, and the remaining is mixed with the ClayKing. Assuming that each supplemented bag of ClayKing/pumice mix will pot 3 three regular size bonsai and two shohin, how many spools of Gremel wire will be required to wire that number of trees?

Would that be an African Clay King or a European Clay King?

Scott

What??? I don't know that!!


<whoosh>

I love Monty python!

Aaron

 

[markyscott]

I love Monty python!

Aaron

C'mon Aaron. Adair posts a serious question about Clay King and spools of wire and you act like we're talking about something silly like the airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow.

 

[jcrossett]

Lmao I'll I have to say. This went from nerd to stoner in about well from time of posts a few days but .....

Playing catch up so 10 seconds .

 

[Adair M]

C'mon Aaron. Adair posts a serious question about Clay King and spools of wire and you act like we're talking about something silly like the airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow.

I guess I shouldn't have posted that math problem here. It is one on the Boon Intensive Final Exam. Now, you'll have a heads up!

How many more classes until you graduate?

 

[Dav4]

 

[markyscott]

I guess I shouldn't have posted that math problem here. It is one on the Boon Intensive Final Exam. Now, you'll have a heads up!

How many more classes until you graduate?

I'm worried that I'll fail and have to start the series over again .... I'm on the 10 year plan already.

I think that I have three left.

Scott

 

[augustine]

I found a product in WalMart this year that I haven't seen before. It's labeled Jobes Organics and seaweed based powder fert. Added this to my rotation of different organic and inorganic ferts. Probably 1/2 price now if they have any left in stock.

For those that don't know you can get organics pretty easily in Home Depot or Lowes. They carry an assortment of Espoma products like Plantone, Hollytone for acid lovers, cottonseed meal, blod and bone etc as well as fish and seaweed emulsions.

Mix 'em in your rotation and make your plants happy.

 

[markyscott]

A little switcheroo the last two years. First - I’m back to bagging the fertilizer. Too much fine particle debris leached into the soil.



Sure get tired of filling all those bags though. But solid fertilizer on the soil surface and top dressing with high CEC combine to encourage surface roots. Very important.

S

 

[markyscott]

The other big add - actually a life-changing add for me - was the addition of this to my irrigation system.



Its made to fit on the hose bib, but with a couple of adapters, it can be plumbed right in to your irrigation system. Like this


Then fill up the container with your favorite liquid. Just make sure it’s colored so you can see when it needs to be replaced. The dial on the top controls the concentration - slow is 1/1000 and fast is 1/250. So on fast it will give you 250 gallons of fertilizer solution with a concentration of about 0.5 oz per gallon. If you want more, it comes with these washer inserts that will increase it even more. But for me, 0.5 oz per gallon is plenty for daily application. And 250 gallons is enough to make it for 3 weeks or so before the container has to be refilled. Automatic was major for me - I started every season thinking I would get religion and fertilize every week. But inevitably i would fail - like trying to cut down on calories.

S

 

[Rid]

I’m trying out carpenter bees As organic fertilizer this year

 

[KiwiPlantGuy]

The other big add - actually a life-changing add for me - was the addition of this to my irrigation system.

View attachment 186962

Its made to fit on the hose bib, but with a couple of adapters, it can be plumbed right in to your irrigation system. Like this
View attachment 186963View attachment 186964

Then fill up the container with your favorite liquid. Just make sure it’s colored so you can see when it needs to be replaced. The dial on the top controls the concentration - slow is 1/1000 and fast is 1/250. So on fast it will give you 250 gallons of fertilizer solution with a concentration of about 0.5 oz per gallon. If you want more, it comes with these washer inserts that will increase it even more. But for me, 0.5 oz per gallon is plenty for daily application. And 250 gallons is enough to make it for 3 weeks or so before the container has to be refilled. Automatic was major for me - I started every season thinking I would get religion and fertilize every week. But inevitably i would fail - like trying to cut down on calories.

S

Hi Scott,
Just a quick question. I use a EC/CF Meter (truncheon) to measure my water output as to what strength the diluted solution comes out as.
Do you have an idea how strong via a CF reading you would use and what strength differences would you recommend in development vs refinement stages?
Sorry , long winded ?
Charles

 

[markyscott]

Hi Scott,
Just a quick question. I use a EC/CF Meter (truncheon) to measure my water output as to what strength the diluted solution comes out as.
Do you have an idea how strong via a CF reading you would use and what strength differences would you recommend in development vs refinement stages?
Sorry , long winded ?
Charles

Hi Charles. Sorry, I’ve never used one of those devices. But for me, the difference between fertilizing trees in development and refinement has to do with timing, not strength.

S

 

[MichaelS]

Hi Scott,
Just a quick question. I use a EC/CF Meter (truncheon) to measure my water output as to what strength the diluted solution comes out as.
Do you have an idea how strong via a CF reading you would use and what strength differences would you recommend in development vs refinement stages?
Sorry , long winded ?
Charles

It depends on the sensitivity of the tree. But generally, you can give 1 dS/m twice or thrice per week, or 1.5 dS/m once per week. Most hydroponic systems give around 2 constantly but the medium remains wet so there is no variation in salinity.

 

[MichaelS]

Opps double post

 

[KiwiPlantGuy]

It depends on the sensitivity of the tree. But generally, you can give 1 dS/m twice or thrice per week, or 1.5 dS/m once per week. Most hydroponic systems give around 2 constantly but the medium remains wet so there is no variation in salinity.

Hi MichaelS,
Thank you for helping. I am a little confused re salinity. Is this (hydroponic ) strength because they are continuously flushing the roots so no soluble salt build up?
Sorry as I can’t see the difference between strengths of 1.0 and 2.0 ( yes double) but if you water every day soluble salt build up shouldn’t be a problem. Isn’t bonsai just another form of hydroponics ?? Media plus food and feeder roots.
Charles

 

[MichaelS]

Hi MichaelS,
Thank you for helping. I am a little confused re salinity. Is this (hydroponic ) strength because they are continuously flushing the roots so no soluble salt build up?
Sorry as I can’t see the difference between strengths of 1.0 and 2.0 ( yes double) but if you water every day soluble salt build up shouldn’t be a problem. Isn’t bonsai just another form of hydroponics ?? Media plus food and feeder roots.
Charles

Hi Charles,

You can afford to give hydroponic crops optimum EC (salinity or fertilizer concentration) because they are constantly wet and it (the EC) won't change. In a bonsai pot or any pot for that matter, the EC of the water in the medium ( fertilizer concentration in the potting mix) doubles when half of the water evaporates from the pot. Therefore you either give the highest EC and never let it dry or give half the amount so you can allow it to dry without salinity issues. Obviously if you water between feeding, the EC will drop dramatically and very quickly depending on the capacity of the mix to hold nutrient salts. In other words, in theory you can feed every day with the optimum fert concentration for that particular plant, or once every 2 days with double the concentration or every 4 days with 4 times the concentration so that ''on average'' the plant gets the same amount of fertilizer. But obviously the higher the concentration the greater the danger of damage. So in reality, experience shows that the lower the concentration, and the more frequent the application, the better/safer. That's why fertilizer companies have worked all that out for you and put the instructions on the packet. You can vary those directions as you experiment with stronger or weaker and more or less often than recommended.

 

[Adamantium]

Hi Charles. Sorry, I’ve never used one of those devices. But for me, the difference between fertilizing trees in development and refinement has to do with timing, not strength.

S

Sorry if I missed this, but what is the timing, then? All of my trees are pre bonsai, starting to leaf out. Should I wait until they harden?