@peteS I believe nitrogen makes for more leafy growth, and maybe you require more buds and flowers. Our wonderful rose guru may see your post and give you the best advice. This is my second rose ready for picking. Madam butterfly. Valerie
Interesting that you say cats don’t like strulch @JessicaS. Last year I stewed alfalfa tea from hay then spread the spent hay as a mulch around and they didn’t go there either. This year I managed to get alfalfa pellets which are much easier to deal with.
@WhereAreMySecateurs Gertrude Jekyll has large, vicious thorns and can get fairly wide when kept as a shrub, just something to bear in mind if planting next to a seating area - it bites!
Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
@Nollie. It's interesting what you found re the alfalfa hay and cats. I wonder if the pellets will have a deterrent effect? I'm rarely troubled by visiting cats but I know it's a big problem for some. If you find they stay away from the area where you use the pellets it might be a way forward? Unless of course it's been tried before and failed.
Last year I stewed alfalfa tea from hay then spread the spent hay as a mulch around and they didn’t go there either. This year I managed to get alfalfa pellets which are much easier to deal with.
I have tried alfalpha pellets (over manure) for the first time this feb (in part to Nollie's recomm) and notice that, yes, the cats don't seem interested. They are are so determined that they will happily crap on chicken wire, so anything that genuinely puts them off is very welcome. I will keep an eye.
I do use RSPB sonic devices and they have worked pretty well, but not so good for deaf cats. A offending cat that is over 12 used to avoid the sonics when he was younger but now sits in front of it unbothered.
Thanks, Nollie, I will put the GJs out front to stop people peering into my front window then.😁
(If they ever arrive. DA use Hermes now?🙄 They're apparently still being processed. In the meantime, I made an order from Ballyrobert Gardens in Northern Ireland which was posted via Royal Mail and is already sitting in my hot little hands.)
I suspect it was just the texture of the spent hay mulch cats didn’t like rather than any inherent repellent in the alfalfa. I will still make alfalfa tea from the pellets, less bulky as they break down to a thin soup and no having to strain and wring out the hay. You can use the pellets direct though, a couple of handfuls spread around the roses as a slow-release fertiliser.
The theoretical benefit of fermenting the tea (needs a bit of warmth, I used a black bin in the sun) is that it releases a specific growth hormone in the alfalfa, plus I add fish emulsion, iron and magnesium to create a richer liquid feed. This was in place of rose food though. I think it might be nutrient overload if you use manure, rose fertiliser and alfalfa tea!
Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
Do you think this will be suitable as a first feed for my roses. It's soluble, but it was the only feed I could find were the nitrogen content was higher (I think) than the other two nutrients. The contents label was a bit confusing to say the least.
I use chempak no 2 for pretty much anything that requires a boost in pots and borders early in the spring (1-2 applications max). However please stick to their recommendations to avoid burning. The theory behind this is - nitrogen is more mobile than the rest and it is often lost in a productive garden or soil without cover and you are doing this this to replenish reserves. Beyond this period you may be encouraging soft leafy growth, which is not useful unless it’s leafy vegetable.
Planted a rose out on Sunday, and have just noticed a hole that's been dug, looks like it's going down into the roots. Any clues what might have done this, and why?
It's knowing what to do with things that counts - Robert Frost
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I just looked on the box containing Westland Rose Food.
It's 4--3.5--7
So not high in nitrogen?
I find the info confusing but that's the NPK content.
I'm sure @Marlorena will advise.
Interesting that you say cats don’t like strulch @JessicaS. Last year I stewed alfalfa tea from hay then spread the spent hay as a mulch around and they didn’t go there either. This year I managed to get alfalfa pellets which are much easier to deal with.
@WhereAreMySecateurs Gertrude Jekyll has large, vicious thorns and can get fairly wide when kept as a shrub, just something to bear in mind if planting next to a seating area - it bites!
I'm rarely troubled by visiting cats but I know it's a big problem for some. If you find they stay away from the area where you use the pellets it might be a way forward? Unless of course it's been tried before and failed.
The theoretical benefit of fermenting the tea (needs a bit of warmth, I used a black bin in the sun) is that it releases a specific growth hormone in the alfalfa, plus I add fish emulsion, iron and magnesium to create a richer liquid feed. This was in place of rose food though. I think it might be nutrient overload if you use manure, rose fertiliser and alfalfa tea!