Miracle grow & a few other ??

Somebody posted on here about the great results from miracle grow. I put some on my first year plants and they seemed to respond but they are all real small. Came up a few weeks ago but seem to be growing very slow though they look healthy. I know they are developing roots and don't expect cones but with the claims on here I was expecting a bit more aggressive growth.

How often should I apply the miracle grow?

I have 3 cascades and one willamette. The willamette broke ground first and grew to 6" and has since stopped. It still looks very healthy just no vertical growth. Weathers been warm too so thats not a problem. Cascades are already starting to climb the lattice only slowly.

Now worried about it, just curious.

THanks
Alan

Long recent thread here:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f92/miracle-grow-175070/


No reason to apply miracle grow at this point in their growth phase.

READ THE LABEL! Most Miracle grow product are slow release over time. The time being every 3 to 4 months.

Vigorous growth happens with heat. If you are still having cool mornings the growth will be steady and underwhelming. But as soon as the heat comes and the moisture hits they will boom. Some of my 3 and 4 year olds grow well over a foot a day in early summer. And the new, unused shoot will overpower the yard in a hurry if not inspected regularly.

I always made a habit of checking the yard every other day until summer and then daily once the heat came. I would look for new sprouts over 6 Inches and cut them and inspect for any sign of insect infestation.

Them fooking catterpillars are hard to spot and can devastate a hop yard in a matter of days. Better to look for sign of nibbles rather than the actual bug.

Mites can also take over very rapidly in summer. And are really hard to spot early on.

Randar said:

Long recent thread here:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f92/miracle-grow-175070/


No reason to apply miracle grow at this point in their growth phase.

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I agree and disagree. For Nitrogen no, no need. But for Potassium, Phosphorous, and other micronutrients a balanced fert is fine.

Or better yet, compost!

If you have acidic soil you may need the P and K, otherwise you are probably not adding much on it's own with a chemical fert. I have basic soil high in both, so I don't gain much from adding additional P or K to the soil except when trying to enhance a "bloom".

Agree on well aged compost and top dressings, though.

And if you don't know anything about your soil, you can get a good profile analysis done by soil testing services such as this one:

http://www.asmlabs.net/pricing.html

There are similar places all over the country, and it's not too expensive if you just moved into a new region you're not familiar with or are just a science geek that wants to take a scientific approach to gardening and fert applications.

Randar said:

If you have acidic soil you may need the P and K, otherwise you are probably not adding much on it's own with a chemical fert. I have basic soil high in both, so I don't gain much from adding additional P or K to the soil except when trying to enhance a "bloom".

Agree on well aged compost and top dressings, though.

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Agreed on all counts but, not many of us are inclined to check the pH of our soils. Many just try to grow it and if it won't just assume the soil is poor and move on.

So, if you were a non enthusiast grower it is a simple application to spread out some 10-10-10 slow release fert. Being slow release the chances of harm are minimal and the possibility of benifit is more moderate.

While you and I, and some others, may be more inclined to test and amend for optimal conditions. Most are just the "plunk in dirt and water it" type gardeners. Miracle Grow is perfect for that.

Randar said:

And if you don't know anything about your soil, you can get a good profile analysis done by soil testing services such as this one:

http://www.asmlabs.net/pricing.html

There are similar places all over the country, and it's not too expensive if you just moved into a new region you're not familiar with or are just a science geek that wants to take a scientific approach to gardening and fert applications.

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Yes!

But even I am too cheap to send off samples for testing. My soils are too variated and I'd spend 100's to get all the areas sampled and tested properly.

At the very least. A grower should have a cheap inductance type pH probe despite it's poor accuracy. For many of us brewers, we have a much more accurate tool to utilize if we dare.

Your soil varies that much? The soil in my 2 garden plots varies only marginally as I have amended them differently over the years, but all of my soil is alkaline in the ~8 pH range, Only areas that vary much are around my rose/azalea/rhododendrons and blueberry bushes, where I have made specific efforts to lower the pH.

Yup. At one end I am almost 20 foot above the rock table. At the other I am barely 4 foot above. Most of the soil is clay but all of the beds were amended prior to my ownership with ???? something that resembles a blended soil.

At the low end I have seen a variation in pH of 3. the higher stuff is still clay but drains MUCH more readily than does the lower clay shelf. It is truely ODD. I have done my own perk tests and have seen a 1 foot diameter by 1 foot deep hole drain witha difference of 45 minutes depending on whether it's the hilltop or the base.

Basically, I have to do specific adkustments for each location. And taht is beofre I even consider the plants needs for pH or soil type. It's a real PITA but, it keeps me busy and in the sun.

Of the 10k+ plus square feet of yard area i have I prolly have about 1/3rd+ of that dedicated to gardens of some sort or another and my tastes are very ecclectic. Everything from bluebonnets to bleeding hearts. Last time I took accounts I have over 200 different plants throughout the gardens, and I have added maybe another 100 this year.

The best fertilizer for my hops has been compost tea. Easy to make and good for growth. I have used MG with success but feel that compost tea is awesome.

I am more interested in what type of insect repellent used amongst this crowd. I hear that Diazonine is good but there are others. Has anyone used these substances before? Last year I got blasted by Japanese Beatles and want something this year to combat them. Any suggestions other than Diaz.
?

Willie3 said:

The best fertilizer for my hops has been compost tea. Easy to make and good for growth. I have used MG with success but feel that compost tea is awesome.

I am more interested in what type of insect repellent used amongst this crowd. I hear that Diazonine is good but there are others. Has anyone used these substances before? Last year I got blasted by Japanese Beatles and want something this year to combat them. Any suggestions other than Diaz.
?

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I attack the beetles in the ground with Benificial Nematodes from the local nurseries. For insect control I "wash" the plants daily to inhibit the comfort levels for any traveling lodgers. when I see an infestation I start with Organocide and get stronger as needed for specific controls.

Best bet for Japanese beetles is to get them in the ground. If you don't mind using insecticide the Bayer grub killer stuff works great. If you and your neighbors treat for them you can at least limit the populations to "fly-ins".

There are whole threads on here about Japanese beetles as well.

Wow! Great info everyone. I see that the last few posts are pertaining to insect issues. Has anyone used Sevin on there hops? Is it safe to use? I have to much yard to do ground applications for the DARN! beetles.

I save a couple gallons of my aquarium water each week and feed that to the hops. That water has plenty of NPK and CSM+B to keep the aquarium plants happy and the hops seem to like it too.

Save yourself lots of $$$ and buy the NPK/CSM+B in half pound bags from aquariumfertilizer.com. Mix your own "miracle gro" for a fraction of the cost since it has all the same ingredients that miracle gro has. You are paying for water when you buy that crap. Buying the nutrients themselves will last you an eternity since it takes less than a tsp of each mixed in a gallon of water.