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Fertilizing seedlings

villa99

villa99

I've read that fertilizing cobras will speed their growth. My question is should I do it just after they germinate, or should I wait some time? Also, which fertilizers are best? Finally, is it beneficial to fertilize sarracenia or vft seedlings?
Thanks
 
I'd advise against using fertilizer, especially on seedlings since they can be very delicate. If you must, just use a very diluted mixture. "Miracid" is mentioned as a good one in Savage Garden but I've lost my trust for anything "Miracle Grow" so I just stay away from that. I wouldn't do it though, I'm done taking chances on my CPs.. but that's just me.
 
ChronoKiento said:
I'd advise against using fertilizer, especially on seedlings since they can be very delicate. If you must, just use a very diluted mixture. "Miracid" is mentioned as a good one in Savage Garden but I've lost my trust for anything "Miracle Grow" so I just stay away from that. I wouldn't do it though, I'm done taking chances on my CPs.. but that's just me.
Click to expand...

Very veeeeerrrryyyy diluted. :)
 
I don't use any kind of fertilizer either, but the late Rob Gardner found 1 tsp to 1 gal water to be best.
 
Eh, I'd stay away from untested ferts with seedlings. If you burn the roots on a larger plant, that's one thing, but a seedling has much less root mass, so if it looses some it could be a serious problem.
 
go do your homework tref- est. Stop moderating, not failing calc is more important. Or something.
 
I'm not saying anyone should use it, since there are unknown conditions (Pretty sure a well-drained pot to allow the fertilizer to be flushed away)... but Lawrence Mellichamp says 'Through experiments we find that various soil mixes (including peat:sand) may be used with a fertilization rate of 1/4 to 1/2 Tablespoon (per gallon of water) of Peters 15-16-17 fertilizer twice a month give greatly enhanced growth of the seedlings, allowing them to mature to flowering in as few as three years, while in the wild in could take as long as 12 years.'

Just stating that some fertilization techniques have been tested :)
 
Great! Thanks for the info. Since someone else has done the legwork giving us some good quantitative information, it may be worth trying something similar on a few plants. If it works out well, then all of 'em!
 
Hmm, interesting indeed. And certainly cheaper than the energy costs of the Bugweed 24/7 light and warming method which as claimed can yield flowering plants from seedlings in as little as three years also.

I wonder what would happen if you combine the fertilization with the lights and warming?
 
  • #10
One of the issues w/ fertilization is the 'enhanced' growth of algae / slime on top of the substrate. While mostly cosmetic, it can be an issue for seedlings ...
 
  • #11
How about foliar fertilizing? I guess that wouldn't be harmful on the root system, nor would it enhance the growth of algae. Anyone have any experience (specially with cobra lilies)?
 
  • #12
The most common and quickest way to foliar feed a plant is to spray it on the foliage. Some of the over-spray will inevitably end up on the soil where it will incourage algae growth. With seedlings, it's hard to not to get a lot on the soil. The other method is a bit more labor intensive and time consuming and that is to "paint" the solution on to the leaves with a brush or Q-tip. If you only have a few seedlings, it's no problem. If you have a bunch, then you'll be at it a while. And if you lose track of which ones you've done and which ones you haven't..... :censor:
 
  • #13
I've been inspired by this thread to do some experimenting. I'll post results down the road.

I dabbed a cotton swab in the diluted fertilizer and touched it to the heads of some sarracenia. The swab absorbed much of the water so it didn't drench the plant. We'll see what happens. The seedlings are a few months old and are separate from the non-fertilized ones.
 
  • #14
i've had nothing but positive results using a dilute Miracid solution, sprayed on Sarracenia seedlings, about every 3 weeks during the summer.
 
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