Bone meal is harmful to eat in large amounts because it can form obstructions in the stomach/intestines. -edit- This was actually taken care of from the link posted before http://www.petpoisonhelpline.com/poison/bone-meal/ Also, on the N content of bone meal...if it's steamed it's nearly bare of N (though some claim values of 2-3 N (NPK)). If it's dried/crushed it can contain a 4-5 N (NPK) value of N. That said, almost all commercial bone meal is steamed and personally I'd ignore it's N content given it's lack of quick availability anyway. This post was edited by nc-crn on Tue, Dec 17, 13 at 20:15

all my cliches in one fell swoop i am cheap ... if it costs money.. i dont spend it... except on plants ... i am always leery of the guy selling the plants.. wanting to sell me other stuff ... if a soil test indicates something is missing ... then act accordingly ... which might loosely translate into... NO GUESSING .. and just whipping stuff around ... they are not children.. plants do not need to be FED ... presuming you have any kind of non sterile soil ... and newbs need to clearly understand such ... as with any chemical.. or organic.. it is used/applied.. in reaction to a known problem ... if you dont have a problem... it would follow.. that you dont need it... see above re: soil test ... all said.. a little of this or that ... IN MODERATION... most likely.. isnt going to harm things ... all i am saying is.. it probably not REQUISITE ... its more of a psychological issue.. and a plant physiological need ... [meaning.. dont treat them like babies... they arent] ken

Ok, so I worked in some bone meal into one of my pots...yuck...it smells bad...reminds me of the flack fish food I used to feed my fish when I was a kid. It didn't smell until I watered it. I'm glad I only put it in one pot...I don't think I'll be using it for my potted bulbs, especial since the pots are in the house at the moments. I'm pleased with the results I got with using the all purpose 24-8-16 Miracle Gro. I have some 15-30-15 Miracle Gro...I might try that and see if I can tell a difference. Although, I would think one would want as many leaves as one can get during the summer...more leaves = photosynthesis and that = more food for the plant...I would think. All of my bulbs have been doing much better since I started feeding with 24-8-16 for the past two years. My initial question to the "Amaryllis Man" was how to get my seedlings and small offset bulbs to grow bigger faster and he recommended the bone meal. I think I'm going to start a new post asking how to get my baby bulbs to blooming size ASAP. Thanks for all the input about bone meal. I guess I need to plant more hardy bulbs so I can use up my bone meal.

Trailrunner, Oh- coyotes may be your culprit for sure then! a2zmom- WE ARE NEIGHBORS GIRLFRIEND!!! I LIVE IN ROXBURY.. THE OTHER SIDE OF DOVER! I hate to dissapoint ya, but girlfriend you HAVE bears in Randolph..!!Now it depends where in Randolph you are.. I am in the Berkshire Valley section of Roxbury- bordering Wharton & Jefferson & Kenvil. But I happen to live on a street that cuts into the Berkshire valley Wildlife mangement area.. - about 2000acres of preserve...haha So we got BEARS. one got my garbage last week. I have SEEN the coyotes dead and alive in person just taking a walk AND a little more than a year ago, a MOUNTIAN LION ran infront of my car- in front of my HOUSE! I am NOT kidding you. I called all my neighbors- i thought it was their dogs.. they called me the next morning..it was on the news.. a mountain lion in Roxbury.. it made complete sense. My mind oculd not comprehend what i was seeing- but i kept telling everyone it was not a deer, it was a very large dog with an extremely thick and long and low tail and it RAN sooo gracefully- like no other dog i have ever seen. DUH- cuz it ran like a CAT. me not beign a cat person.. i didnt make the connection.. I googled it.. and that is what i SAW with my own eyes my dear. Welcome to the STICKS! No one ever thinks of NJ this way. anyway- more importantly.. when you coming over??!! LOL