For Occasional Use by a Lazy Gardener
If a landscape that I'm responsible for needs fertilizer, one of these four fertilizers will be applied: ammonium nitrate, ammonium sulfate, ammonium phosphate, or soil sulfur. In keeping with my gardening philosophy, they are the simplest, cheapest fertilizers you can buy.
I am reluctant to use combination weed killer or pest killer and
fertilizer. If landscaping has weeds or pests, I'll buy the right
single-purpose product. I am also reluctant to apply "time-release"
products because in my experience, they are timed for the typical
Eastern lawn and garden.
Ammonium Nitrate: This is
straight nitrogen for a growth enhancer. It has to be used very
carefully because too much nitrogen at once "burns" the plants, doing
more harm than good. It's useful for stimulating growth in a Bermuda
lawn that needs killing, or adding to a compost bin to speed up the rate of decomposition.
Ammonium Sulfate:
I use this to give a lawn a boost in the spring, and simultaneously add
sulfur to free up some iron from the alkaline soil. This is less likely
to burn plants than ammonium nitrate, but still has to be spread
lightly.
Ammonium Phosphate: Vegetable gardens and some
flowering plants need phosphorus to enhance flowering and fruiting. I
use this in vegetable beds, at about 1/4 the recommended dose.
Soil Sulfur:
Soil sulfur is the wonder-working fertilizer for desert landscapers.
The alkaline southwest soil has ample iron, but it is locked into a
chemical form that plants can't use. Scattering a pound of soil sulfur
onto each 100 square feet of landscaping at the start of the summer
rains liberates enough iron to keep most desert plants happy for several
years. It is slow-working but reliable.
Fertilizer application tips:
Don't rely on the fertilizer package to tell you how much to use. Your
lawn and garden can thrive on much less than the listed amounts, or none
at all. It's better for the plants if you apply several light doses a
week or two apart than one heavy dose. Calculate how much you need, then
divide it into several applications. Water thoroughly between
applications.
Read about the typical available nutrients in your
area's soils. You don't need to have expensive soil tests run unless
the plants are failing to thrive. Whatever the local soil has adequate
amounts of can safely be left out of the fertilizers you apply. For
example, alkaline desert dirt has plenty of calcium (we call it caliche)
and potassium. It is short on nitrogen, phosphorus and available iron.
Read about the requirements of the plants you are growing. Using too
much or the wrong kind of fertilizer can decrease fruit and flower
production, slow growth, or even kill the plants.
Don't apply
fertilizer as a routine thing, because it's on the schedule, or because
you read somewhere that it's needed. Wait until you know the plants need
it. "Fertilizer runoff" is a major source of water pollution.
Fertilizers I Don't Use:
Specialty fertilizers for palm trees, citrus trees, roses, pansies, and
orchids with all trace metals and minerals? I don't use them. If I have
to buy a special micronutrient product to coax a plant to do well, it's
the wrong plant. I have a long list of plants that are too fussy about
their diets to bother with, and an equally long list of plants that do
well with desert dirt and minimal care.
