Fertilizer and Stimulant Dosage
As one of the first things a grower should consider before planting is the question of fertilizer, specifically which type to use and how much will be needed. Today, there are numerous fertilizers and supporting products on the market, and navigating through them can often be challenging.
Therefore, in the following lines, we will familiarize ourselves with most of the available products and discuss their dosage and expected consumption.
Fertilizer Composition
All basic fertilizers contain the same components: nitrogen (nitrogenium), phosphorus, and potassium (kalium). These three elements are classified as primary biogenic elements. Other substances in fertilizers include: calcium, sulfur, magnesium, or so-called secondary biogenic elements, and lastly trace elements: boron, chlorine, manganese, iron, zinc, copper, and molybdenum.
Primary Biogenic Elements
1) Nitrogen (N)
In fertilizer production, nitrogen compounds are used, as nitrogen itself is a gaseous element. The most common compounds are ammonia, urea, ammonium nitrate, etc. Organic nitrogen sources can be bat guano, bird droppings, or found in Chilean saltpeter (sodium nitrate). Nitrogen is a significant factor, primarily for plant growth.
- • Plants with sufficient nitrogen compounds can be recognized by having large green leaves and growing quickly. However, it's necessary to supply other needed substances to prevent weak stems and breakage.
- • With a nitrogen deficiency, we observe slowed growth and leaves begin to yellow, starting from the lower layers upwards. Yellowing is caused by the plant's reduced ability to create chlorophyll. And how can we fix this? By adding growth stimulators or bat guano. Increased nitrogen amounts are administered within 4-6 days.
- • Unfortunately, an excess of nitrogen is also not beneficial to plants. Excess manifests as root growth slowdown and leaf darkening, which completely turn brown and then fall off. And how to solve this mess? By flushing the growing medium by watering only with water with adjusted pH for the following 3 days.