An essential part of creating a colourful garden, rich in different forms of plant life, is to grow healthy plants. We all know the importance of adding compost and vegetable waste to our garden soil and this will supply your plants with some of the major nutrients they require, but it can be a bit hit and miss. Some plants require more of a certain nutrient than others, and how do you know that your soil contains enough nutrients to keep your plants happy and in good health? Here is a short guide to the main nutrients your garden plants need and whether it is best to use man-made plant foods or organically produced alternatives.
The three major natural plant food elements are Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium. Potassium (K) helps improve the quality of a plant's flowers and strengthens its resistance to disease. Nitrogen (N) is needed for the plant to produce strong healthy stems, leaves and shoots. Phosphorus (P) is essential for sturdy root growth. There are some other minor nutrients that are essential for healthy plant growth. These include magnesium, which is needed for formation of chlorophyll in leaves; sulphur and calcium. Trace elements needed in varied and only small amounts are iron, manganese, copper, zinc, molybdenum and boron.
Even though your soil may contain certain amounts of all these elements, they may not be available in a form that is easily absorbed by plants, or in enough quantities. An example would be iron which is particularly needed by plants such as Camellia and Rhododendron to prevent their leaves from yellowing.
Man-made plant food versus organic
The big advantage of using man-made plant food products is that you can use different ones to match the different needs of your plants. They also allow you to better control the trace elements you put into the soil as they contain carefully balanced nutrients that are either quickly released or released more slowly over a longer period of time. However, if you prefer to use organic then there are some advantages and many different products available that contain recycled vegetable and animal wastes enriched with minerals and are one hundred per cent chemical free. Organic seaweed fertilisers have been shown to be very effective plant food and are particularly good for vegetables and grass. They can be bought both in pellet form or as a liquid feed. Pelletted poultry manure is another effective organic fertiliser as it is a useful source of nitrogen.
Remember, whatever type of plant food you choose, take particular care to feed those plants in garden planters with the correct amount of nutrients to offset the limits placed on their intake due to the confines of container growing.
Jo Poultney is one of two people behind Garden Planters. I have an RHS general certificate in horticulture. Garden Planters source unusual outdoor and indoor planters, and other garden related gifts - whatever your taste, be it traditional, modern or just a bit quirky, we will have something for you. I believe garden planters are an integral part of any garden - they enhance the overall design and say a little something about the person to whom the garden belongs. If you would like to know more about Garden Planters, visit our website at http://www.gardenplantersshop.co.uk
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