heh heh... dare I say it? The only fertilizer I usually use on bulbs is compost? It's true though. But if you fertilize with another type, go for a tomato type fertilizer with a low 1st number and higher second and third. You don't want a high 1st number since that describes the percent nitrogen (which encourages lush leafy growth, which may be more susceptible to floppiness and rotting). If your bulbs have already bloomed or are in bloom, use a liquid fertilizer or water the dry stuff in well. It needs to get down to the roots quickly while the bulbs are still in active growth.

Usually you mix soil from several locations in the orchard, sometimes doing seperate soil and subsoil samples although for a home orchard just the soil sample should be enough. pH amendments (either lime or sulfur) are best applied in late fall. Nitrogen can be applied in late sept. to mid-oct. and you might as well include anything else at this time (P, K, boron, whatever). You can also apply it in early spring, which is what Cornell recommends. The advantage of the fall aplication is getting the N into the buds so it's there as they open in the spring, otherwise it takes longer for the tree to pull it up. Also, sometimes the soil is excessively cool and wet in spring for proper uptake. This is why urea is often included in first bud-break spray.

Quote from Cynthia's roses, "What is this fertilizer you speak of??" Seriously, I made an unusual effort this year and fertilized them all once in the spring, though I didn't notice any particular difference from last year. Every year I pull out the liquid fertilizer and swear I'm going to top up at least the wimpy roses later in the spring and summer with a weak solution, and every year the bottles get rained on and that's about it. At least by fall I have the excuse not to bother. I agree in principle with not fertilizing in the last 6-8 weeks before the first hard frost, but I've hardly put that to the test even remotely any year. By Halloween however I'll probably go put away those extra bags of fertilizer and Ironite that have been sitting on my front porch since April. I think that counts as fertilizer work, right? Cynthia

Nutrients are different from amendments. And I add neither :-) It has long been determined that amending individual planting holes is of no benefit to plants and in fact, can prove detrimental. Especially when dealing with a clay soil, as the enriched, amended soil in the planting hole absorbs moisture from rain and irrigation that is unable to drain freely because of the heavy, slower draining clay. The result is a bucket of overly saturated soil surrounding the plant roots and a very real risk of root rots. Working with your native soil is always best but if you do need to amend - and sometimes there are valid reasons to do so - amend over the largest possible area you can manage. Hydrangeas are not "heavy feeders" and do not require a lot of fertilization. I have never fertilized any of mine except those I grow in containers. But I do mulch all my plantng beds with compost each season and that adds to soil quality and provides some nutrient supplementation. You can add nutrients to fine tune flower color on macs but I prefer to wait to see how they adjust to my soil conditions first before coming on strong with aluminum sulphate or similar product.