ShiniKoroshi
Dental Floss Tycoon
I would give it a try if I had good organic soil to begin with. Ive always grown soil-less in media, bare root or sugar sand. Factors I consider are economy of effort and expense.
ShiniKoroshi Grow Blog 2025
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ShiniKoroshi
Dental Floss Tycoon
I ordered the Peter's Professional 20-10-20 General Purpose formulation with M-77® chelating technology <This link is the best price I found, 25lb for $59 +shipping.
No urea, no chlorine. Here is the data sheet.
No urea, no chlorine. Here is the data sheet.
ShiniKoroshi
Dental Floss Tycoon
Tofta is up over 4 feet and the largest leaves at 22 inches. New transplants in the background; 6 Ahus and 6 Tofta. These intend to top and harvest.
First wave of Little Yellow (foreground) and Little Dutch doing well.
Little Dutch
Also Little Dutch that something munched the center on. Ill bag this one for seed.
Orientals that were set last week including Japan8 and Prilep in 12" spacing.
Second wave of LY and LD got a little burnt but are still growing.
First wave of Little Yellow (foreground) and Little Dutch doing well.
Little Dutch
Also Little Dutch that something munched the center on. Ill bag this one for seed.
Orientals that were set last week including Japan8 and Prilep in 12" spacing.
Second wave of LY and LD got a little burnt but are still growing.
PressuredLeaf
Well-Known Member
I bet fish emulsion would be a nice fertilizer for tobacco. My only concern would be the salt content. Some emulsions, depending on this fish source, are pretty darn salty. If it’s not salty I can’t think of any other problems (except maybe the smell lol).
PressuredLeaf
Well-Known Member
That sds looks great. It’s nitrate based which tobacco loves in my experience. Too bad nitrate fertilizer is harder to find these days. Let us know how it works!
ShiniKoroshi
Dental Floss Tycoon
It worked extremely well for orchids back in the day, its pretty much the greenhouse standard around here. The lead grower at E.F.G. Orchids in Deland gave me the run-down on growing with water soluble fertilizer and lots of other growing wisdom that has served me well.
I have something like 75+plants in the ground now that were started with Southern Ag 10-10-10 and those ill transition to Peter's. Another tray of 72 that will be set in about a month which will only get Peter's. Then we can compare early growth stages between the two fertilizers to some degree. I really have no doubt Ill be impressed.
BTW- I did dig out my old Dosatron and it still works like a charm and meters pretty close to exact. Ill post pics once my big bag of fertilizer comes in.
It does have a distinct odor but not objectional, it's some what reminiscent of what I smell walking along the Lake Huron shoreline. My neighbor warned me that it would draw every critter from miles but that just wasn't the case, the neighborhood cat would walk by without a second look (not trying to hijack a thread but thought it worthy of a reply)
ShiniKoroshi
Dental Floss Tycoon
Opossums have been on bug patrol lately and they dig such nice neat holes without disturbing the plants. Wasps are getting to the little hornworms before I can. Certainly do not want to disrupt my helpful friends with fish tea.
BTW, how many gallons of that stuff would I need for 3 rows 5' x 24'?
PressuredLeaf
Well-Known Member
I used to hate wasps, until I saw them carry off leaf herbivores and even pollinating apple blossoms. I can’t remember the npk of the last fish emulsion I used, I think it was like 5-2-2? I also can’t remember the N recommendation per plant, but irrc it’s a couple of grams per plant. So, I think a jug of fish emulsion or hydrosylate would be more than enough for the amateur's tobacco bed.Opossums have been on bug patrol lately and they dig such nice neat holes without disturbing the plants. Wasps are getting to the little hornworms before I can. Certainly do not want to disrupt my helpful friends with fish tea.
BTW, how many gallons of that stuff would I need for 3 rows 5' x 24'?
One of the nice things about fish fertilizer is most of the N is supplied in form of amino acids. They are less likely to burn plants than ammonium or urea. For simplicity and consistencies sake, nothing beats nitrate I’m my opinion.
My garden is 24 x 30 to use the fish emulsion I mix 1 cup to 5 gallon water and apply using a garden hose siphon adapter, 5 gallons is more than enough to spray the plants and some at the baseOpossums have been on bug patrol lately and they dig such nice neat holes without disturbing the plants. Wasps are getting to the little hornworms before I can. Certainly do not want to disrupt my helpful friends with fish tea.
BTW, how many gallons of that stuff would I need for 3 rows 5' x 24'?
ShiniKoroshi
Dental Floss Tycoon
This is the thing I saw when looking this up. There is a mix ratio but no recommended dosing. Im targeting 400 PPM Nitrogen x2 per month which equals a LOT of fish tea. If I were to go the organic route I would use what is well established to work for tobacco, manure. And this is what my soil lacks, organic material.
Inorganic salts are readily available to plants while the subject of amino acid uptake is still being researched and not really conclusive. I know many love organic gardening, its just not something I find worth the trouble.
Black Kow- The Mature Manure - Black Kow Mature Manure
The all-natural organic way to improve native soils is to start with Black Kow composted cow manure - The Mature Manure. Black Kow has 10 times more nutrients than typical garden soil, and 4 to 6 times more cow manure than other brands. By mixing Black Kow cow manure with your native soil...
They are in Oxford, FL.
Bob
ShiniKoroshi
Dental Floss Tycoon
Thank you Bob, this is exactly what I was thinking. Ill work some of this in after harvest and plant nematode control marigolds. All that will get turned under during winter which will make for a better grow next year.
Black Kow- The Mature Manure - Black Kow Mature Manure
The all-natural organic way to improve native soils is to start with Black Kow composted cow manure - The Mature Manure. Black Kow has 10 times more nutrients than typical garden soil, and 4 to 6 times more cow manure than other brands. By mixing Black Kow cow manure with your native soil...www.blackkow.com
They are in Oxford, FL.
Bob
As someone who knows well and appreciates the immediate results of salts, I've learned that the "worth it" parts of using more natural sources of nutrients comes in season 2+ of growing in a particular spot. Building a robust soil ecosystem seems to (eventually) result in a garden that is more versatile and lower maintenance with similar yields. If you get too eager with the npk you get great results, but also a near permanent commitment to always having to apply it.
ShiniKoroshi
Dental Floss Tycoon
Agree. I should have been specific about the "not worth it" concerning the teas. Im sure they are fine as foliage spray and soil boost. To host organisms in an ecosystem we need fibers and solids for them to munch on (decompose). We get plenty of that with animal poo not to mention a great source of microscopic decomposers.
As it stands now my plots are basically a slow-drain, feed-to-waste hydroponic system because this area is poor draining Wauchula Fine Sand. Im getting away with this only because its been especially dry here. Its a starting point and as long as the Luck of the Irish is with me Ill continue growing, learning and making plans to address the deficiencies of my soil in time for next year. In a perfect world I would call up my local rancher to bring a load or two of composted cow manure. Bagged compost, marigolds and maybe some peat are a solid plan B.
As it stands now my plots are basically a slow-drain, feed-to-waste hydroponic system because this area is poor draining Wauchula Fine Sand. Im getting away with this only because its been especially dry here. Its a starting point and as long as the Luck of the Irish is with me Ill continue growing, learning and making plans to address the deficiencies of my soil in time for next year. In a perfect world I would call up my local rancher to bring a load or two of composted cow manure. Bagged compost, marigolds and maybe some peat are a solid plan B.
ShiniKoroshi
Dental Floss Tycoon
Fertilizer arrived but they sent Peter's Professional 20-10-20 Peat-Lite Special instead of the General Purpose. This should be fine though since the only difference is it has more micro-nutrients which may work better for my fabulous fine Florida sand. I have my stock tank mixed up and it took a while but I remembered my old formula; 3 gallons hot water to 7 lb fertilizer with the mixing ratio on the dosing pump set at 1:128. This will give me just over 400 gallons of applied mix at just over 400 PPM Nitrogen. I plan on the first dose tomorrow night. However, weather forecast has us getting 10 days of rain starting Wednesday. Wish me and my tobacco luck!
Tip of the day; Can't control the weather or the growth of plants. We can do our best but results are never guaranteed. Realizing this we learn that its all a game and will continue to be enjoyable and fun so long as we don't take things too seriously.
Tip of the day; Can't control the weather or the growth of plants. We can do our best but results are never guaranteed. Realizing this we learn that its all a game and will continue to be enjoyable and fun so long as we don't take things too seriously.
ShiniKoroshi
Dental Floss Tycoon
Everything is growing so well. Little Yellow on the right, Little Dutch on the left and Orientals in the back.
LY in foreground. I pick the grass sprouts as they become big enough to bring the roots too.
The LD that was growing oddly is doing much better after I removed all growth except what I suspected as the center.
Orientals: 11 Canik at the right, then 12 Ege, 4 Prilep and 8 Japan8. As I suspected (hoped), the smaller orientals that I repotted did catch up with the one with a better start. The one small one in the Prilep row was one with a crooked stem and it started to grow a sucker. I snapped off the bent stem and what is growing now is the sucker. There is another Prilep with a bent stem that I picked the sucker and left the crooked stem. We will see which one does better.
Ahus and Tofta: 3 each that are grown, 6 each set out not long ago. Some of these new plants have curled (up) edges on the leaves. Not sure why and Ill see if the condition persists.
More LD on the left, LY on the right. These were set the same time as the Ahus, Tofta and Orientals.
The only variety that is posing a challenge is Prilep (left 3 rows). Next year Ill try something along with giving Prilep its own seed tray. Meanwhile the rest in this tray (J8, LD & LY) are about to get clipped and fed. I still need to dig that row too. lol
The mighty Dosatron. I built this cart over a decade ago and I always enjoy using it.
LY in foreground. I pick the grass sprouts as they become big enough to bring the roots too.
The LD that was growing oddly is doing much better after I removed all growth except what I suspected as the center.
Orientals: 11 Canik at the right, then 12 Ege, 4 Prilep and 8 Japan8. As I suspected (hoped), the smaller orientals that I repotted did catch up with the one with a better start. The one small one in the Prilep row was one with a crooked stem and it started to grow a sucker. I snapped off the bent stem and what is growing now is the sucker. There is another Prilep with a bent stem that I picked the sucker and left the crooked stem. We will see which one does better.
Ahus and Tofta: 3 each that are grown, 6 each set out not long ago. Some of these new plants have curled (up) edges on the leaves. Not sure why and Ill see if the condition persists.
More LD on the left, LY on the right. These were set the same time as the Ahus, Tofta and Orientals.
The only variety that is posing a challenge is Prilep (left 3 rows). Next year Ill try something along with giving Prilep its own seed tray. Meanwhile the rest in this tray (J8, LD & LY) are about to get clipped and fed. I still need to dig that row too. lol
The mighty Dosatron. I built this cart over a decade ago and I always enjoy using it.
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PressuredLeaf
Well-Known Member
Nice looking plants, they have grown a lot since you last photo,
ShiniKoroshi
Dental Floss Tycoon
ShiniKoroshi
Dental Floss Tycoon
She has land, tractor and a great smile.
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