Buy Tobacco Leaf Online | Whole Leaf Tobacco

Espoma Tomato Tone

Status
Not open for further replies.

ProfessorPangloss

Amateur Kentuckian
Joined
Dec 18, 2014
Messages
486
Points
28
Location
The Bluegrass
I've used other Espoma products with great success over the years, but this year I've got a huge garden, so I bought TomatoTone (3-4-6) for the tomatoes and GardenTone for the rest. Here's a comparison data sheet for the various Espoma fertilizers, excluding TT which is at the bottom of this post.

My reasoning for asking about this on the tobacco forum is that since tobacco is a nightshade, it makes sense to treat it similarly to the tomato in some respects. In fact, I met an old farmer at the hardware store who commented (we were looking at the same flat of Rutgers tomatoes) that on his farm they used to plant a perimeter strip of tomatoes with the tobacco because they'd already broadcast tobacco fertilizer. I was already there to buy the TomatoTone, so I took it as an omen.

Anyway, apparently Espoma has modified the formula. I have the new one (right side in pic). I want to know if I can maybe use it to brew a fertilizer tea to feed my tobacco seedlings. The survivors were transplanted up into 3" peat pots after the damping off debacle of a few weeks ago. The Perique was done a few days before the Catterton, and it seems correspondingly ahead like it just caught a growth spurt. However, the color is not as bright as other members' seedlings and I suspect nutrients are at fault. I have the seedlings on my back porch where they get some morning sun, and I've been rotating them in and out so they don't get sunburned (I have noticed a little greying and leaf die off). So far so good.

anyway, what do you guys think? Can I use this stuff sparingly to get some action? My tomatoes have only been in the ground a few days and some of them have already greened right up and put on some serious height.
 

Attachments

  • image.jpg
    image.jpg
    85.8 KB · Views: 7

Jitterbugdude

Moderator
Founding Member
Joined
May 22, 2011
Messages
4,266
Points
113
Location
Northeast Maryland
Interesting stuff. I had never paid much attention to Espoma products. I thought they were all just commercial salt fertilizers. This stuff has a nice base of different strains of bacteria. It should make a healthy addition to a brewed fertilizer tea just make sure you add something for the bacteria to feed on like molasses or sugar.

The fertilizer on the right (of your picture) is probably more suited for tobacco since it has less Phosphorous in it.

Have you had a soil analysis done?
 

ProfessorPangloss

Amateur Kentuckian
Joined
Dec 18, 2014
Messages
486
Points
28
Location
The Bluegrass
I haven't. I just haven't gotten around to it. The dirt is black and loamy - just excellent so far. I'm looking forward to what I get from it.
 

Chicken

redneck grower
Founding Member
Joined
Aug 28, 2011
Messages
4,631
Points
83
Location
FLORIDA
I'd use the one on the left..a proper bacca fertilizer is 6-6-18...at least that's what I haul to every bacca farm I've been to..and it likes the trace element boron
 

ProfessorPangloss

Amateur Kentuckian
Joined
Dec 18, 2014
Messages
486
Points
28
Location
The Bluegrass
That's the old formulation - apparently unavailable now. I'll have to look into how to organically add boron to the mix on the right. Part of the fun puzzle. Thanks for the tip on boron!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top