Help with fertilizer

[ChinaVoodoo]

What is blood meal sir? Just dipping my toes in this year…

Dried blood. A nitrogen source.

 

[RoperLegacyWoods]

Dried blood. A nitrogen source.

Sounds gruesome, where do you source it?
Also, if I may ask a question?
I’m tilling my garden bed for the first time from lawn grass. Is there a generally recommended fertilizer to use if you don’t have a soil test?

 

[deluxestogie]

If it was a reasonably healthy, well established lawn prior to tilling, then you probably won't need to apply any fertilizer for the first growing season. In subsequent seasons, just find some low-chlorine 10-10-10, and apply it at the designated rate for tomatoes. A soil test gives you a vague place to start, in case there are unusual conditions, such as soil that is already overly acidic or alkaline. For the scale of a home garden, there is little concern for spending money on excess fertilizer (as compared to the challenge of balancing the books for large-scale farming).

Bob

 

[GreenDragon]

Contact your local Agricultural Extension office or Master Gardener program. Soils generally don't vary much across a county. They should be able to provide you with a general idea of your soil makeup and characteristics.

 

[ChinaVoodoo]

Sounds gruesome, where do you source it?
Also, if I may ask a question?
I’m tilling my garden bed for the first time from lawn grass. Is there a generally recommended fertilizer to use if you don’t have a soil test?

Is really common at gardening centres here. You can get it at Tractor Supply Co. in Anderson Indiana. You could probably support wal*#@rt too, if you wanted.

 

[RoperLegacyWoods]

Is really common at gardening centres here. You can get it at Tractor Supply Co. in Anderson Indiana. You could probably support wal*#@rt too, if you wanted.

Awesome, thanks for the tips. How’d you know I live in Anderson Indiana?

 

[deluxestogie]

Awesome, thanks for the tips. How’d you know I live in Anderson Indiana?

 

[RoperLegacyWoods]

Of course! I’m still new to forums and such. Not a true Luddite mind, just not as invested in phones and internet stuff. I’m not even sure I attached the picture in my grow blog this morning……

 

[loui loui]

I used to grow lots of peas, some squash and tomatoes. They all grew well except when excessive rain fell. Lost 80 tomato plants due to rain 4 yrs ago.
Haven't had a garden for the last 3 yrs..
Thanks for the tip

If tomato liked your soil the soil should be fine for tobacco. Tobacco and tomato plants are related to eachother and like the same type of soil.

 

[johnny108]

Alfalfa becomes more balanced between N and K in subsequent years because your effective N% goes up.
If you wanted to play it safe, you could apply
250gK/100square feet
250÷0.018= 13888g = 31lbs alfalfa per 100 square feet

You would still need another 150-(13,888x0.0065) = 60g of Nitrogen per 100square feet.

Once again, i would recommend blood meal :
60/.12= 500g/100 square feet. (about a lb)

Think about the soil texture too. The effect of 30-50lbs of alfalfa and 0-1lb of blood meal every year, vs just some chemical powder is not insignificant.

ChinaVoodoo- where did you learn these calculations for fertilizer application?

 

[ChinaVoodoo]

ChinaVoodoo- where did you learn these calculations for fertilizer application?

Chemistry, physics & corrosion classes.

 

[ChinaVoodoo]

Fertilizer calculations, (if you're into that kinda thing)

There are a lot of different fertilizer recommendations out there, and they are often dependent on regional soil composition and soil test results. The purpose of this thread is to explain how you take these recommendations and figure them into how much to actually apply. I will be taking...

fairtradetobacco.com

 

[johnny108]

Fertilizer calculations, (if you're into that kinda thing)

There are a lot of different fertilizer recommendations out there, and they are often dependent on regional soil composition and soil test results. The purpose of this thread is to explain how you take these recommendations and figure them into how much to actually apply. I will be taking...

fairtradetobacco.com

Thanks for the link! Looks like I studied the wrong stuff to grow tobacco..