How much should i dilute my fertilizer for my seedlings

novicegardenerevan

13 years ago

Hi i recently bought some liquid fish emulsion for my seedlings at what ratio should i dilute it to?

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Comments (5)

kerwee41
13 years ago
I don't use fish emulsion as fertilizer but I know many people do. Supposed to be good stuff.

When growing most plants I use the Miracle Gro granulated 24-8-16 fertilizer at the regular strength, but for seedlings I dilute it to 1/4 regular strength for about the first month. I think full strength might burn the tiny seedling roots. Seems to work well, haven't had any problems yet.

Good luck.
jaynine
13 years ago
I use it at regular strength as for houseplants-our brand suggests 1 tablespoon per gallon of water, trying to fertilize every other week and being careful not to overwater. I know people who use a more dilute solution with every watering. I'm really not sure you can 'overdo it' with fish.
Hope this helps.
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From the American Rhododendron Society (rosebay) website: "Never use aluminum sulfate to increase soil acidity as it is toxic to many plants including rhododendrons. This is a most important point! Under no circumstances should you use aluminum sulfate (Al2SO4) around your rhododendrons. As was pointed out in a previous article, soluble aluminum is toxic to rhododendrons. The chemical, aluminum sulfate, is soluble in water thus the aluminum component is immediately available Â and toxic - to the plants. As the pH level of the soil decreases, the aluminum component becomes increasingly soluble Â and thus increasingly toxic. Therefore, although aluminum sulfate will certainly reduce the soil acidity, it can, and will, quickly injure and may even kill your rhododendrons. Even though the plants may tolerate small quantities of this material, why should any quantity of a toxic material be added to the soil when other perfectly safe materials such as sulfur are available?" And since azaleas are just a varietal form of rhododendron, the same concerns apply to them as well. So yes, Luis' comment is entirely accurate.
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I would start fertilizing at 4-6 weeks or when the cotyledons dry up and fall off. They are what holds enough nutrients to get them through to transplant stage IMO but if you used a potting mix with fertilizer instead of seed starting mix then they should be good to go until planting out. Fish emulsion is normally mixed (depending on brand) @ 2 tbsp per gallon. The conversion for that would be 1-1/2 tsp per gallon for 1/4 strength. Personally I would use something higher in phosphorus for good root development instead of nitrogen for lush foliage. Top growth matters very little until after you get them in the ground or permanent home but with good roots comes good plants that can pretty much support themselves in good soil.
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morz8 - Washington Coast
13 years ago
novice, I dilute whatever product I'm using to 1/4 strength for seedlings too. Slowly, I'll work up to half. Rarely do I use stronger than half strength on containerized plants either indoors or out no matter how mature. Nothing I'm growing has ever complained :)

It's hard to undo too much, you could always add more if your plants are showing symptoms of needing something more.
keriann_lakegeneva
13 years ago
I 2nd and 3rd what others have said.

1/4 dilution then move up to 1/2 dilution.

Keriann~
kerwee41
13 years ago
With granular fertilizer it's better reduce the dosage on seedlings and young plants. Older plants can take larger amounts of fertilizer but tender seedlings would have some issues with granular fertilizers mixed at "full strength".

Not sure about fish emulsion but might be a good idea to take it easy the first few fertilizer applications until some good roots develop.

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How much should i dilute my fertilizer for my seedlings

Comments (5)

kerwee41

jaynine

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morz8 - Washington Coast

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