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Garden Fertilizer

Applying the proper amount and type of garden fertilizer to your plants is a key step in planting a flourishing garden. This is the case with all types of gardens, whether you are growing, flowers, vegetables, fruits, herbs, etc. To understand how fertilizer works, and to pick the best fertilizers, you need to know what to look for in each of the three main nutrients (nitrogen, phosphate, and potash). The three numbers on a fertilizer bag represent the percentage of these three nutrients.

The first number indicates the percentage of nitrogen in that particular bag of garden fertilizer. Slow absorbing nitrogen is the best for the environment as well as for the growth of your plants. There is less of a chance the nitrogen will get into our water supplies, and you will have a more consistent source of nitrogen getting to your plants.

The second number represents the percentage of phosphate. Unlike nitrogen, phosphate stays in the same place, and stays in the soil a long time. For new gardens, mix the phosphate into the top four to six inches of the soil. Some recommend buying garden fertilizer with no phosphate, if it is an older garden, since phosphate stays in the soil for a long time, and too much phosphate can actually harm your plants. 

The last number is the potash percentage in the garden fertilizer. Potash dissolves rapidly and will move to the roots fairly quickly, like nitrogen. The slower the potash will dissolve the better for your plants.

 

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