Fertilizer for so many different plants

A question that I've had for a while: does anyone know of a balanced 3-1-2 fertilizer with calcium and magnesium? I haven't seen any so far. I figure that would be a great fertilizer to invest in.
 
wyanokie said:
A question that I've had for a while: does anyone know of a balanced 3-1-2 fertilizer with calcium and magnesium? I haven't seen any so far. I figure that would be a great fertilizer to invest in.
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I don’t think it can be done. My understanding and the reason you don’t find calcium and say iron in most water soluble fertilizers is because of the way it reacts with other components… So something like Jack’s 20 –20–20 doesn’t include it and you need to supplement. This is why I add things like Alaska fish, chicken poop or Cal-Mag
 
A little search.

Excess Phosphorus in Soil: Causes, Effects, and Management​

Excess phosphorus (P) in soil is a growing concern for gardeners and farmers, often caused by over-application of synthetic fertilizers, composts, or manures high in phosphorus Gardening Know How+1. Unlike nitrogen or potassium, phosphorus binds tightly to soil particles and does not leach easily, so it can accumulate over multiple growing seasons Gardening Know How+1.

Why It’s a Problem​

  • Nutrient antagonism: High phosphate levels reduce the availability of micronutrients like zinc, iron, manganese, and copper by forming insoluble compounds biologyinsights.com+1.
  • Plant symptoms: Induced deficiencies often cause interveinal chlorosis (yellowing between leaf veins), stunted growth, and poor flowering or seed set biologyinsights.com+1.
  • Root health: Excess phosphorus can limit colonization by beneficial mycorrhizal fungi, reducing root surface area and nutrient uptake biologyinsights.com.
  • Environmental impact: Phosphorus can be washed into waterways via erosion or runoff, causing eutrophication—algal blooms and oxygen depletion in lakes and streams biologyinsights.com+1.
 
Hey about sulfur. ...I got white things on my plants I think were spider mites. I tried something made of oils and it would only work two day at a time so I found a video about this powdered sulfur you mix with water and spray on the stems underside of leaves and soil and it works wonders. These whit things only show up when it's humid and that's about to end.... Dry season is coming. So my question is - is that sulfur absorbed through the leaves - so would it be helpful to just spray them down every so often anyway - like once a month?
 
TorontoJoe said:
In most “organic” products this is going to be the case as they can’t dial it right in.
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Actually, because they are too cheap to dial it in. It's easy to get 3:1:2 in a blend. I used to offer an "organic fruit fuel". Before trying to make a blend yourself, keep in mind that the U.S. NPK numbers are computed by weights of the constituents, not volumes.
TorontoJoe said:
Many don’t as they can’t really control it.
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What actually occurs is "they" find a source for moderately long-term production of something they think will sell (has existing demand), send samples off to a lab, then pay someone to create a label that meets the USDA and state requirements.
TorontoJoe said:
Could you please clarify what you wrote about binding nutrients?
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The NPK 5-3-2 chicken manure is inherently acidic, owing to both the N and the P. The smaller alkaline component is from the K. In soil chemistry processes, a third of the P is relatively free to associate with an equal quantity of alkalines. Often this is Ca in fertilized gardens.

Bloom formulas might seem like a great idea, but in the case of food production the phosphates can tie up other essentials in soils for years. Further, fruiting plants can only produce quality fruit to the extent that all necessary resources are available and have been absorbed (for the most part) by the plant. For example, if a dragonfruit plant is "ready" to produce a sizeable crop, it will (to the extent of its genetics). If it is not and you push it with phosphate, the quality will suffer.
 
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Charlie Dodgson said:
Actually, because they are too cheap to dial it in. It's easy to get 3:1:2 in a blend. I used to offer an "organic fruit fuel". Before trying to make a blend yourself, keep in mind that the U.S. NPK numbers are computed by weights of the constituents, not volumes.

What actually occurs is "they" find a source for moderately long-term production of something they think will sell (has existing demand), send samples off to a lab, then pay someone to create a label that meets the USDA and state requirements.

The NPK 5-3-2 chicken manure is inherently acidic, owing to both the N and the P. The smaller alkaline component is from the K. In soil chemistry processes, a third of the P is relatively free to associate with an equal quantity of alkalines. Often this is Ca in fertilized gardens.

Bloom formulas might seem like a great idea, but in the case of food production the phosphates can tie up other essentials in soils for years. Further, fruiting plants can only produce quality fruit to the extent that all necessary resources are available and have been absorbed (for the most part) by the plant. For example, if a dragonfruit plant is "ready" to produce a sizeable crop, it will (to the extent of its genetics). If it is not and you push it with phosphate, the quality will suffer.
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Good info. So in the event one wanted to feed say dragonfruit and insist on "non synthetic"... what approach would you take? Would a reasonable option be to use one of the above mentioned "organic" solutions and also take measures to manage ph?
 
TorontoJoe said:
When I inquired as to why they didn't include calcium in the jack's 20-20-20 they said that it would react negatively with the other contents.
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Looking at the label, I noticed that they use a standard N,P,K package combined with a standard micronutrient package. The manufacturer might produce their own, or purchase them on the production chemical market.

Calcium could be added by increasing the proportion of nitrate nitrogen relative to the proportion of urea nitrogen. However, much of agriculture might not appreciate this because Calcium is already in municipal and agricultural water supplies.
 
When I searched it for the Jack's is said:

They omit calcium because mixing highly concentrated calcium and sulfate together in a single dry powder causes chemical lockout .In concentrated form, calcium binds with sulfates and phosphates to create insoluble solids (like calcium sulfate/gypsum) that precipitate out of solution, making the nutrients unavailable to plants.

It was written on to say that the 20-20-20 is considered to be "part 1" of two part application
 
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