Pre bonsai maple fertilizer advice

[snox7]

I am currently using miracle gro at half strength on my young maples and was wondering what others use with developing maples . I didn't know if maybe a slow release fertilizer like osmocote might be a better option for the trees .
Be keen to hear what everyone else uses , along with there feeding regimes.

 

[dbonsaiw]

I use osmocote and then liquid fert once a week during the growing season.

 

[snox7]

With osmocote which particular one do you use . Oh and do you sprinkle a hand full on the top or mix it into your substrate mix when repotting.

 

[Shibui]

I also use both Osmocote (or similar controlled release) and liquid fertiliser with occasional applications of organic pellets.
I would prefer to use 16-18 month Lo-start plus Osmocote but can't get that any more. 6-8 month release should be good because I figure most trees only need nutrients for half the year. Apply in spring and you're set for the rest of that season. Not sure what options you have available in the UK to choose from. Something that includes trace elements would be good.

Controlled release works better when it is incorporated into the soil. The nutrients are only released while the prills are wet so more effective in the soil. Sun and heat can degrade the coating too.

BTW, I use liquid fert at recommended strength. Half strength is only offering half the nutrients required for a plant. Good for established trees when the aim is to restrict growth but not so good when we want the tree to grow faster.

 

[snox7]

I also use both Osmocote (or similar controlled release) and liquid fertiliser with occasional applications of organic pellets.
I would prefer to use 16-18 month Lo-start plus Osmocote but can't get that any more. 6-8 month release should be good because I figure most trees only need nutrients for half the year. Apply in spring and you're set for the rest of that season. Not sure what options you have available in the UK to choose from. Something that includes trace elements would be good.

Controlled release works better when it is incorporated into the soil. The nutrients are only released while the prills are wet so more effective in the soil. Sun and heat can degrade the coating too.

BTW, I use liquid fert at recommended strength. Half strength is only offering half the nutrients required for a plant. Good for established trees when the aim is to restrict growth but not so good when we want the tree to grow faster.

Yeah seems I should of been using it full strength. We can get osmocote in the UK and will go for that along with a fortnight dose of miracle gro at full strength I think .

 

[NeedlesAndLeaves]

I use osmocote as well. If you can get it Osmocote plus would be great. It has micro nutrients added to it.
I couldn’t find de plus version here. Maybe in the UK they sell it?
So I use normal osmocote but in combination with Organic fertilizer (Vabomix 1 after a good tip) wich has all micronutrients in it.
And a biostimulant once every two weeks.

 

[Glaucus]

I use Osmocote Exact, which is the generation 3 version. And specifically I use LoStart 16 to 18 months. As I plan to grow my non-bonsai azalea plants in the same pot for that long.
They have a generation 5 version now and not sure what happened to gen4. It still seems most of the stuff they sell if the gen3 stuff.
The plus version I believe is a gen2 US consumer version. Not sure what they sell to consumers on the EU market.

Of course I mix it in with the potting soil when I transplant. I wouldn't use it otherwise.

As azaleas are light feeders I only sparingly added a bit of liquid chemical fertilizer.

 

[dbonsaiw]

With osmocote which particular one do you use . Oh and do you sprinkle a hand full on the top or mix it into your substrate mix when repotting.

I use Osmocote Plus because that's what's sold nearby. I sprinkle it on top and then muck around with the soil to work it in somewhat.

 

[NeedlesAndLeaves]

Osmocote alike ferts are mixed within (some) ordinary potting soil, but is this a better thing to do than to put it on top of the soil in bonsai?
It is a slow release synthetic fertilizer because of the waxy wrapping it is in. The little balls are filled with a synthetic fertilizer. Splash it and you will need sunglasses and it might spank your roots on every cheek is has.

I was wondering if putting Osmocote on top of the soil is less effective for growth, but safer for the roots, or is mixing it in the soil more affective for growth but more dangerous for the roots. Or does it not make so many difference at all. But what is your consideration I wander.

Both synthetic and organic on top seem to work for me. It is about the NPK combined with micronutrients taken by the roots (and leafs). But what works for me does not mean that there is no improvement. That’s why this forum is so great!

I know that fertilizers and soils are never ending subjects.

 

[Wulfskaar]

I think I'm under-fertilizing my trees. I've only been double-dosing Neptune's Harvest (3-3-3) every 2-4 weeks.

Is it too late to add solid, slow-release fertilizer? We have extremely mild winters here (no freezing), so the growing season is longer than many places.

 

[dbonsaiw]

but is this a better thing to do than to put it on top of the soil in bonsai?

I mix it into the soil a bit more so that I don't just wash it off with the waterings.

I was wondering if putting Osmocote on top of the soil is less effective for growth, but safer for the roots,

Not to jinx myself, but I've never had an issue (that I've known of). I have been known to add osmocote twice in a season, will use liquid fert more than once a week if I'm in the mood and will even use a higher concentration. All my trees are growing out and I just get a lot of growth (and ridiculous internodes). I tend to water heavily when I water, so I'm convinced I'm washing out the soil well and don't find the osmocote to release quickly.

Is it too late to add solid, slow-release fertilizer? We have extremely mild winters here (no freezing), so the growing season is longer than many places.

Don't take this as Gospel, but my opinion is that worst case you are just wasting fert but won't hurt the tree.

 

[NeedlesAndLeaves]

I tend to water heavily when I water, so I'm convinced I'm washing out the soil well and don't find the osmocote to release quickly.

I think this is most important.

 

[NeedlesAndLeaves]

I think I'm under-fertilizing my trees. I've only been double-dosing Neptune's Harvest (3-3-3) every 2-4 weeks.

Is it too late to add solid, slow-release fertilizer? We have extremely mild winters here (no freezing), so the growing season is longer than many places.

I use the 1st of October as a last application of fertilizer. It is about 1 month prior to first expected frost. Not low on nitrogen perse.
(Nitrogen won’t stimulate new growth, pruning will).

 

[pandacular]

Another option in addition to osmocote is other solid fertilizers. Personally I use whatever solid fertilizer is on sale, and fill some of these baskets with it. I like this over osmocote as I can remove it and control when it's applied (such as after black pine decandling or during the hot part of the summer). For very young stock, it likely doesn't matter.

Like others, I also use liquid fertilizer. I alternate between Miracle Gro and fish emulsion weekly. When I get some more refined trees, I might replace the Miracle Gro with something a little bit less strong.

 

[NeedlesAndLeaves]

Björn Bjorholm made a great video about it on Eisei-en.

It is not a free access tutorial..

Bonsai tutorials online – Bonsai-U – Eisei-en

www.bjornbjorholm.com

 

[pandacular]

Björn Bjorholm made a great video about it on Eisei-en.

It is not a free access tutorial..

Bonsai tutorials online – Bonsai-U – Eisei-en

www.bjornbjorholm.com

This is a great video, and includes a PDF schedule. Nice, thanks for sharing.

Andrew Robson posted this video a few weeks ago on YouTube.

 

[Shibui]

I think I'm under-fertilizing my trees. I've only been double-dosing Neptune's Harvest (3-3-3) every 2-4 weeks.

Is it too late to add solid, slow-release fertilizer? We have extremely mild winters here (no freezing), so the growing season is longer than many places.

Not sure what double dosing means but liquid fert every 2-4 weeks is OK. A bit more often won't hurt. 3-3-3 is one of those crazy equal fertiliser. Plants don't use NPK in equal amounts so much of that P and K will just be wasted.
No point fertilising trees without leaves. They need leaves to take up water and nutrients and can't make use of nutrients while dormant.
Evergreens slow but are still active through winter here. I get good response to light fertiliser application on pines and junipers through winter. Other evergreens will probably also benefit from winter fert in non freezing climates.

Osmocote alike ferts are mixed within (some) ordinary potting soil, but is this a better thing to do than to put it on top of the soil in bonsai?
It is a slow release synthetic fertilizer because of the waxy wrapping it is in. The little balls are filled with a synthetic fertilizer. Splash it and you will need sunglasses and it might spank your roots on every cheek is has.

I was wondering if putting Osmocote on top of the soil is less effective for growth, but safer for the roots, or is mixing it in the soil more affective for growth but more dangerous for the roots. Or does it not make so many difference at all. But what is your consideration I wander.

Sounds like you have picked up some misconceptions about how controlled release ferts work.
Nutrients can only come out of the prills when there is water on the outside of the prill and only when that water has less nutrient than inside the prill so it is extremely difficult for the nutrient solution in the soil to get strong enough to hurt roots. Splash water on Osmocote and you'll only get water in your eyes.
Mixing Osmocote in with the soil is both effective and safe for the plants.

 

[Glaucus]

The explanation of osmocote is actually kind of vague. They say it involves both the dissolving of the resin as well as osmotic pressure across the resin membrane. Not sure if that means the fertilizer is coated in many layers of two types of resins.

Osmocote 101: the story and science | ICL US

More than 50 years ago, Osmocote launched as the world’s first coated fertilizer. From Osmocote’s foundational technology to ICL innovations that drive it today, professional growers trust the Osmocote way.

icl-growingsolutions.com

At first I thought there was just one resin membrane, and just osmotic pressure. Then I thought it was many layers of resin that would dissolve one at a time. And there is no actual osmosis. But it seems it could be a combination of both. Probably there is nutrient transfer across the resin. But it also dissolves. So it can be both mechanisms with the same material as well. It might be they don't fully know the contributions of each. They just have this resin material that seems to work. Then tried different formulations to get the nutrient release curve they desire.

Release rate is controlled by temperature and moisture. And it is designed to be slow release. Not sure if people think synthetic fertilizer is somehow the devil. But the whole idea of the product is that it releases slowly. Not rapidly. Osmocote is market leader for fertilizers in the nursery industry. Some 100 billion nursery plants are grown worldwide every year. Many of them are grown with osmocote. If osmocote would burn these plants and 'spank their root cheeks' because the product is faulty, Osmocote/ICL wouldn't be market leader. The largest nurseries in the world would stop using their product and they would go broke if they cannot fix their product and their reputation.
I also think they patented the resin and even their competitors license the resin from them. And put their own fertilizer in their resin. Which is why there are different consumer brands with the Osmocote trade mark on it.

Bonsai in substrate is something else. But this thread was created to be about prebonsai maples. Just putting slow release pellets inside the potting mix is such a time saver when growing plants at scale.

 

[NeedlesAndLeaves]

Sounds like you have picked up some misconceptions about how controlled release ferts work.

A faulty translation from my side. I meant crush the balls instead of spalsh.
It reveals the fertilizer inside of the balls. Which makes it normal direct heavy fertilizer without the wrapping.

The sunglasses and root spanking was obviously a figure of speech.

 

[Glaucus]

Wait, then what were you trying to say? I am confused. Say it in Dutch if you'd like.