This Forum will close on Wednesday 27 March, 2024. Please refer to the announcement on the Discussions page for further detail.
Feeding trees
Blue Onion
Posts: 2,995
in Plants
I have a number of small/medium sized trees in my yard planted through landscape fabric mulched with rocks. Typically I would feed the soil to feed the plant, but that is impossible in this situation. Is there a recommended liquid feed I should give? Or can I sprinkle something around the drip line that will dissolve and go into the soil through the ground cloth? I have sumac, some sort of aspen, a cotton wood, a decorative cherry of some sort, a rowan, a lime, and a variety of others including some fruit trees. They are all between two to probably twelve years old (when our house was built, as it used to be field there).
Utah, USA.
0
Posts
The fruit trees will probably benefit from a good multi-purpose feed when they begin to flower and fruit. Either a liquid feed or some BF&B tickled and then watered in.
As far as the Rowan and Lime, unless your soil is spectacularly poor, I wouldn't worry about feeding them, Rowan especially grows pretty much anywhere. Keep an eye on them and give them a good watering if it gets too dry for too long, but in general if the trees are established the roots should be capable of providing enough water and nutrients.
Thanks.. I think I'll try to BF&B.. I already use that with the veg. Our soil is okayish, brought in top soil over top poor quality rock hard layer of clay. I was just worried as who knows how long it's been since those poor trees have had any new nutrients added. We got the house three years ago, and I haven't fed the established ones.. and the ones I planted only got quality organic matter mixed in with existing soil at planting. As they are mulched with rocks, nothing is getting in there to replace what they are using to grow.
Just keep an eye on the foliage through the summer. If it's as lush and green as it should be, don't worry about feeding them. Trees are remarkably efficient at feeding themselves.
In nature there is a balance. The leaves fall and collect on the ground, which rot down and are taken into the soil by insects. Animals poop, they die and rot into the ground, smaller plant life springs up and then dies and rots back into the soil.. it's constantly being used and replenished. Yards are an artificial environment in many dimensions. I bag my grass (rather than mower mulching it up back into the yard) to mulch my veg garden. My leaves are raked for veg garden mulch. The apples are collected up for the compost bin.. which all goes onto the veg garden. Etc. I'm sure you see the pattern.
I just worry about what my poor trees might be missing out on, but it's impractical to pull up all the existing mulch in order to put compost/manure around the drip line as one should.
If the roots have made it down to the clay layer, I wouldn't worry too much. The negative charge on clay molecules traps positive charged molecules (phophates, etc) and holds them in the clay. If they roots are down there they will get a hold of them. Give the trees an odd watering with a liquid fertiliser and it will filter down.