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Organic Rose Fertilizer: 2 "Magic"
Ingredients You Should Include!
By David Leach
I am
always being asked about what to put in organic rose fertilizer to make it
most effective.
Many years ago, a friend of my grandmother’s gave me some advice concerning
the planting of rose bushes. Her advice concluded with a simple post-script,
“...and don’t forget to put a banana peel and a used tea-bag in the hole
before you place the bush!” The banana peel was obviously organic material
high in potassium, but the tea-bag?
Roses
are heavy feeders and, with a few exceptions, will use almost as much fertilizer
as you can give them. That’s not to say that you should use huge doses, but
smaller doses more often. As a rose show exhibitor I come across many
rosarians who fertilize almost every day! The average gardener doesn’t have
the time to do this of course, so once a week becomes a great way to plan
your rose bush feeding, using a mix of organic and chemical.
Most rosarians, when pressed, will own up to using their own special organic
rose fertilizer mix, which they consider to be their own “special secret”.
The mix that is going to produce the biggest, healthiest blooms you would
ever see! Well, whatever fertilizer mix you plan on using, it should contain
the two “magic” ingredients the rose growers in the “know” are using. If you
want good healthy bushes and an armful of glowing blooms, then you need to
include these two ingredients in your fertilizing program.
The first is finely ground alfalfa. Rose exhibitors claim this to be the
secret to greener foliage and larger flowers, and it’s cheap! Alfalfa, as it
disintegrates, produces an alcohol called triacontanol to which roses have a
very positive response. A drink of this in early spring and it’s like a “kick
in the pants”, a wake up call to jump into action. Basal breaks are formed
from the bud union and these produce the new canes. New canes mean new
growth, increased vigor and a strong new bush. The alfalfa should be sugar
free, not the sort you would feed rabbits for example, and finely ground, for
it to act quickly. Two large cupfuls around each bush twice a year will do
the trick, with the first one put down in early spring. Two tablespoonfuls
would be enough for a container grown rose.
The second is Kelp, either in liquid form or granular. Kelp is an excellent
source of many trace elements and rosarians will swear it has magical growth
properties. It is made from the flat, rubbery looking seaweed that tangles
boat motors, but free from salt and applied to our rose beds once a year in
the spring, it becomes one of the miracle, organic rose bush stimulants. It
is high in potassium and provides an abundant supply of growth enzymes,
hormones and minerals. (About 60!) It strengthens stem cell walls so that
your roses don’t give up water so easily and get stressed during times of
drought and are much hardier in colder climes. Kelp also feeds the
micro-organisms in the soil, stimulating the soil bacteria which will allow
the other organic soil additives to thrive. A very small handful per bush in
early spring is all you need of this “magic” stimulant.
Don’t forget that all organic rose fertilizers require biological activity
and moisture to release the nutrients: mix your magic ingredients into the
dirt and water deeply. Don’t worry, they are also self-regulating, releasing
nutrients faster in the warm weather and slowing down in the cold: truly
magic!
To quote my Grandmothers friend again, “manure by the shovel and organics by
the spoonful!” …..and please do not forget the banana peel and the tea bag.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
Copyright
by David
LeAche
David
LeAche is author of http://www.rose-works.com,
where you can find out about rose types, rose growing and using petals, hips
and rose-water. Find out all about this site at http://www.rose-works.com/about-us.html.
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