Feeding plants

How often should I miracle gro and also how much water should I be giving my plants and how often?

Your question is very vague. Please supply more specifics.

What varieties? Where are they planted (soil or pots)? If in pots, how big? If in soil, what type and has it been amended in any way? What is the formulation of fertilizer (N-P-K)? How old (and large) are the plants? Are the plants healthy and green or are they showing any signs of nutrient deficiencies?

If the plants are planted in the ground, I would recommend taking a soil sample and submitting it to your local Cooperative Extension office (or other appropriate agency) for testing. They can make excellent recommendations specific to your situation.

In general, my rule for watering is to water to saturation, then don't water again until the soil is dry - just before the plants begin to wilt. Avoid overwatering (which does not mean adding too much water in one watering - it means watering too frequently), as it leads to root rot diseases and generally stresses plants.

first of all knowing the type of plant is most crucial!!


+1 on shakybones response!!

There's not really a cookie cutter answer for this. Too many variables depending on your soil conditions, weather, etc. I use Fish Emulsion as a fertilizer a 5-1-1 & 0-10-10 and feed about every 3 weeks as the directions say. I've been watering everyday but I think that has been too much. I'm going to switch to 1 or maybe 2 waterings per week. Depends on what the weather does. Triple digit heat is expected for the next week at least. I would suggest you start with a liberal watering twice a week and see how things react. Much like brewing you'll have to tweak it here and there to find what works best for your situation.

Ive just been feeding my plants 24-8-16 Miracle grow once a week, 1/2 Tsp(half dose) in 1 gallon of water.

So far they have been doing really well, it brought a few of mine back from the brink that had not grown in over 3 weeks.

Ive also heard good stories about things like Super Bloom which is super high in phosphorus, which is what hops and other flowering plants want during flowering since they are more or less done needing high nitrogen to grow.

I have two cascades on pots which are 12 feet, two fuggle one is about ten foot also in a pot, a centennial at about 15 foot in a pot a chinook also in large pot about 12 feet tall very bushy also. I used potting mix by home depot some sand manure and mushroom compost all in equal parts. I water almost every day but usually just a gallon probably less. I have 5 cascade rhizomes on the way and a Columbus crown also on its way. They will be planted in the ground. I have not used fertilizer but all are forming cones. This is my first attempt at growing

I use a 10-10-10 mixture that seems to really do them good. U want to keep the nitrogen at a lower or equal value to the rest of the nutrients. Hops do not like a lot of nitrogen . Also a little goes a long ways.

DerrangedPOJO said:

I use a 10-10-10 mixture that seems to really do them good. U want to keep the nitrogen at a lower or equal value to the rest of the nutrients. Hops do not like a lot of nitrogen . Also a little goes a long ways.

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Hmm? Where did you get this info? I haven't read a ton on it, but I seem to remember hops liking a fair amount of nitrogen?

Where do you find fish emulsion

Fish emulsion kinda stinks and is slow to release its nutrients. It's okay for long-term building of soil fertility, but for container plants in storebought potting mix, I'd recommend sticking with soluble fertilizer like Miracle-Gro or Peter's.

For vegetative growth, I'd constant feed (meaning use this rate at every watering) a balanced fertilizer (20-20-20, etc.) at ~200 ppm nitrogen (so dilute it to that range, then add to plants). An easy way to do this is by mixing a stock 16x solution and using a relatively inexpensive Siphonex or HoseOn 16:1 injector that attaches to the hose at the faucet.

For flowering, I'd switch to a 10-30-20 or 10-52-20 (or some similar formulation) at the same concentration.

That's just my recommendation. YMMV.

When you water, do so until the soil is saturated and water drains from the bottom of the pot. This will help leech excess salts from the pot. Then, don't water again until the soil is almost dry - stick your finger in a couple of inches and feel it. In time, you'll learn to tell when to water without feeling it every time.

If your plants appear to have nutrient deficiencies, you should probably check your soil pH. Different elements are more or less available, depending on the soil pH. Potting mix tends to run on the acidic side, and fertilizers can increase that acidity over time.

I've bought my fish emulsion at Lowe's and Tractor Supply.

Do you just layer it on top and water or should it have been mixed when planting? I'm about to plant some rhizomes I was given

My neighbor picked his gish emulsion up st home depot... I was gonna trade him a months worth of dosing for a coiplenhome brews soni dont have a whole bottle of stinky stuff layin around if it didnt work, I maynjust go get some now...

It's in liquid form and mixes in water. 2-3 tbsp per gallon depending on what kind you get.

What about high nitrogen fertilizer or ten ten ten? Or is the fish better?

That should be fine, but the common theme seems to be that they love more Nitrogen when the bines are climbing, but once they start to show some cone growth then it is best to switch to something that is high in Potassium & Phosphate, but lower in Nitrogen. My next feeding will just be with my 0-10-10 now that some cones are starting to show.