Topic: Fertilizers...how do you do that then?!

[firstofficerspong]

I have used Chicken manure pellets on my plot usually before planting or sowing, and tomato feed on my tomatoes. I also dig in rotted stable manure in a fairly haphazard way  ;D.

I have never really worked out what other fertilizers to use and when. Are the pellets a good do-it-all solution or would people advise using other fertilizers in addition to or instead of them?

Thanks

John

[Kleftiwallah]

Chicken muck pellets are perfectly good as a fertilizer but other manures would improve the condition of your soil due to their mass and bulk.   Thinks like farmyard manure or stable manure, spent mushroom compost will improve your soil also.      Cheers,     Tony.   

[Ellen K]

I used a few packs of Miracle Gro last year and really saw the benefit in terms of size and vigour of plants.

For soil improvement you needs TONNES of farmyard/horse manure and compost but it does not add that much available nutrients considering the volume you are using.

So it is chicken pellets and Growmore on planting then Miracle Gro on watering for me.

But I am thinking of stopping the chicken pellets as they must be a product of the caged hen industry - something I would rather not support.  Likewise Blood Fish and Bone - where must that come from?

[kt.]

I use chicken pellets and farm manure but we sell loads of concentrated horse manure and concentrated chicken manure in 80 litre bags at our lottie shop.  One bag will do a full size plot for a year.  Many older plotholders and some new ones are using this method as opposed to shovelling loads of manure.

My dad swears by 6X which is what I am going to try next year when after I have used everything else I have presently.

http://www.6-x.co.uk/

[Robert_Brenchley]

We get tons (literally) of grass cuttings and autumn leaves dropped off by a local garden contractor, so I use that as a mulch and soil improver. Grass cuttings are also a fertiliser as they're rich in nitrogen, but dead leaves add nothing but humus. Pee is also a good source of nitrogen.

[Ninnyscrops.]

I alternated between one year horse and one year cattle manure for the first few years. Mainly to feed the crops and get the soil into a workable condition, it was clods of clay  ::), now I can actually rake it  :).

In my first year, 2005, I used branded liquid feed sold by everyone and anyone and I had lovely crops, but I've since tried to be more organic and this year, will try my own liquid feed from my wheely bins. It was very successful on the flowers and shrubs in the garden last year, so hope it will be good for the edible crops this year.

Ninnys

[Ru1]

As others have stated, I use a good quantity of horse manure and mushroom compost.

I also use growmore, bonemeal and fish blood and bone as general fertilizers.

I haven't used chicken pellets before, but my OH has bought a small bucket of them, so will be trying them for the first time this year

[strawberry1]

my neighbours use horse manure and are always battling with weeds, those that don`t battle have one big weed infested patch now. I use bfb, rock dust, comfrey and my own hm compost and my diddy little plot of 1000 sq feet in total, including shed and fruit, provides good veg and enough to feed us two all year. I don`t touch manure

I dangle a bag of comfrey in my water butt as all the plants like it and if there is a feed emergency, then I use miracle gro and 1 bottle lasts a full season

I have clay and it is already nice and friable after removing grass and weeds over 18 months of ownership. Compost and not walking on the beds did the trick

[tricia]

Sorry for hi-jacking - but where can I get Chicken Manure Pellets this year? I have always bought them in a bucket from Poundstretcher for £5 but they don't have them this year (or at least not yet!)

Thanks

Tricia

[phlips66]

hi tricia wilkinsons are selling large tubs of chicken pellets about £6

[Tee Gee]

The following link might help;

http://www.thegardenersalmanac.co.uk/Data/Fertiliser/Fertiliser.htm

The highlighted text are more links

Along with this;

http://www.thegardenersalmanac.co.uk/Data/Soil-Preparation/soil%20preparation%20ss.swf

[BarriedaleNick]

Sorry for hi-jacking - but where can I get Chicken Manure Pellets this year? I have always bought them in a bucket from Poundstretcher for £5 but they don't have them this year (or at least not yet!)

Thanks

Tricia

Homebase are doing big bags quite cheap - 15 kgs but cant recall the price..

[steve76]

Sorry for hi-jacking - but where can I get Chicken Manure Pellets this year? I have always bought them in a bucket from Poundstretcher for £5 but they don't have them this year (or at least not yet!)

Thanks

Tricia

Homebase are doing big bags quite cheap - 15 kgs but cant recall the price..

They were under  £5 a bag i got myself 4 the other day as price of manure around here has gone silly..

[dtw]

Blood fish and bone would come from the waste of the fish processing factories and carcuses from slaughterhouses.
Stuff which would otherwise go onto landfill, so I guess it's helping the environment.

[antipodes]

I get manure in the winter and usually dig home made compost in when planting. I also give a handful of organic fertilizer (shop bought) which is made from various things, inlcuding seaweed, when the plants are well established and water it in. I also tend to mulch with stable waste that contains plenty of horse poo and wee. That stays in when the plants are finished and gets dug over. My soil is very easy to dig and is now in very good condition. I try not to walk on it if possible and I mulch wherever possible.

[tricia]

Happened to be in the vicinity of a B & Q today - a 10kg bucket of the pellets cost £8.98 but it also happened to be 10% discount for seniors day too so I got a bargain!

Tricia

[Aden Roller]

Happened to be in the vicinity of a B & Q today - a 10kg bucket of the pellets cost £8.98 but it also happened to be 10% discount for seniors day too so I got a bargain!

Tricia

That's not a bad price these days. Our local garden centre's price is nearer £1 a Kg!

What a pity it's become so popular and widely used.... suppliers / retailers have increased the price so much over the last few years.  :(

[Ru1]

That's not a bad price these days. Our local garden centre's price is nearer £1 a Kg!

What a pity it's become so popular and widely used.... suppliers / retailers have increased the price so much over the last few years.  :(
[/quote]

If you have a B&M store by you, their Westland organic pellets are 3kg for £4.99.  It is a buy one get one free offer, so you can get 6kg for the price of 3kg

[Digeroo]

I use blood fish and bone which I get from a horticultural supplier but price has been rising very fast. 

I got chicken pellets cheaply in the Autumn, though there have been some suggestions that they attract foxes.

Leaf mould seems to attract worms.  The areas where I buried leaves are full of them.  So I hope to put in some more of these.  I am still very wary of manure having been caught by the weedkiller problems.   



 

[Aden Roller]

I use blood fish and bone which I get from a horticultural supplier but price has been rising very fast. 

I got chicken pellets cheaply in the Autumn, though there have been some suggestions that they attract foxes.Leaf mould seems to attract worms.  The areas where I buried leaves are full of them.  So I hope to put in some more of these.  I am still very wary of manure having been caught by the weedkiller problems.   
 

Chicken pellets certainly do attract foxes!! Great if you want the plot dug over but a real pest if you've just planted something. My spuds were up and down like yo-yos last year.  >:(