Tell me about fertilizers

[kfillmore]

We are just starting to learn about gardening. I find fertilizers confusing, especially because a lot of what I read is not talking about organic produce. I have read to use fish emulsion(?) and liquid kelp. Do different plants need different fertilizer? We have bought organic soil (in bags). We will be planting in containers.

thanks for any advice!

[Lovesong]

Well...

Fertilizing can be as complicated or as simple as you want. The truth is, that yes, different plants do need different fertilizers. Or rather, they need different nutrition. Some plants love composted cow dung, for some it is too rich and they prefer something lighter like nettle water. Some plants need extra nutrition that they don't really get from the fertilizer, such as bone meal (roses tend to love this) while yet others really just want to be left alone to their own devices.

So, it is really experimenting and reading up on the different plants you have planned to grow. For example, black currants just want grass clippings while raspberries love composted cow dung, the more the better. There just is no standard.

On top of that, different plants remove different nutritions from the earth. Since you are doing container planting, this might not be something you really have to think too much about, because I guess you will be exchanging all the earth every now and again.

As a general rule, though, we find hen fertilizer works wonderfully as an all round to keep things reasonably happy. We do dissolve it into watering cans, for ease of dispensing when we use it for container gardening. Just be aware it is a very smelly solution, and therefore something non-organic might be preferred.

[Chicky2]

We use rabbit poo and goat poo, both of which are cold manure, meaning they don't burn the plants and it doesn't have to be composted before using.  We also make it into tea and water some plants like that--we have to or our chickens will dig it all up.  We clean out the barns all year and put the poo right on the garden beds.  In the winter, we just dump it next to the beds, or right on top.

Using what is readily available to you is always the best option, imo.