Feed....

I'm going through a lot of Seaweed extract which is proving rather costly...so i had a bag of FYM lying around and thought Hmmm why not....
so i've put a fair few dollops in a big bucket and filled it with water.....i'll give it a good stir daily and leave for a while....should i have done this and will it be any good...i probably should have asked first but hey i'm a woman....advice greatly welcomed

 

Hi Loli

Seaweed not cheap , FYM wont provide much I dont think (feel good factor) and apart from the toms, courgettes and hanging baskets I dont feed anything else to the rest of the garden in August , just think its a waste of ££ and I like the hardy perenials/ plants and shrubs to start to ripen over August September ready for winter.


Spruce

 

Cheers Spruce...so do you think i've made a boob boob then...thought i was being clever

 

No "boob boob" , probably giving them a water will help out , as its quite scary how everything is drying up so quickly considering all the rain we have had since late March.

Funny enough had a letter from the Water Company Friday they think my meter has stuck as I am hardly using any , I rang them up and said " I HAVE ONLY USED THE HOSEPIPE ONCE THIS YEAR" because of all the rain they are sending someone out to check the meter rather than just estimate as they always seem to do !!! as I pointed out they owe me not the other way around as in over £100
Council about the fence , Enviromental Agency about the fence , now Water Board !!! who next !!!

Spruce

 

I 'm of the same thinking Armandii...can you believe i've just sown some Echinacea...thought i'd give it a whirl as round here i'd say we were at least 4 weeks behind the 'norm'....i know IF they germinate i'll have to overwinter them but hey ho they were free

 

Indeed it does :(. I buy in bulk, which is painful, but cheaper in the long run. I also only use it now-and-again, rather than as a regular feed, because I think whilst it has a great benefit there is a law of diminishing returns using it regularly. I also use it on potted plants in a gravel tray, rather than with them stood on bare ground / a surface that any excess just runs away. I fill up the gravel tray with my liquid fertilizer, stand the pots in it for 10 minutes (well, until I remember to remove them!) transfer them to an empty tray for them to drain into whilst putting the next batch into the feeding tray.

Between-times I feed with Miracle Grow or Phostrogen or whatever is somewhat more cost effective.

I think there is more benefit to this than perhaps Spruce does. I would chuck in any deep rooted weeds that you have too - bindweed and its roots, thistles, docks, and certainly any leaves that you can "harvest" from comfrey. These guys are all good at reaching deep into the soil and hauling up nutrients locked up down there, which are then available in their roots and leaves. The bindweed roots will rot when submerged in water, although try to keep any seeds of anything out of the mix.

Dilute to weak-tea colour and use on your plants. But I would alternate with fertilizers that are known to have the right mix of N-P-K and micro-nutrients, and your more expensive Seaweed

 

Thanks Kristen....i've got plenty of Bindweed to chuck in aswell....

 

Dab a bit behind your ears & tell Mr Lollimac that is about time he bought you some new perfume.

 

Zigy , Loli wants a duck !!

Spruce

 

Can't do that Zigster...coz he'd say it smelt lovely

 

Tell him you need "L'essence du Canard"

 

Kristen , I still think very little value in FYM put into a bucket of water as a feed.

Best use for it is improving the soil structure, "than perhaps Spruce does" if you have a opinion on whatever and you think its for the better just leave it at that no need to bring me in to your post.

Spruce

 

Like Armandii , I stop feeding , tom food ,early September . One point on containers and baskets as we start getting into late summer ( I know we didn't have an early or middle summer, but..) , they can get incredibly dry . The MPC becomes almost water repellant , you can water and it runs straight through the container. If you can get a largish gravel tray or similar , a good bottom watering of each container will do wonders Now I have the GK's paddling pool , I need to empty before our camping weekend in Wales - perfect for putting my containers in for a few hours !!