Foliar Feeding

[puglvr1]

Hi Patrick, can you tell me how much granular 0-0-50 you apply on your trees? I found this intructions on one of the Ebay sellers but its a little unclear to me how much to apply to my 4-5 year old mango trees appx. 5-6ft tall. Thanks!!

From one of the Ebay vendor intructions...
"Per Plant:
For small plants sprinkle ½-1 teaspoonful of Sulfate of Potash around base of plant making sure not to expose Potash to plant foliage."

[Patrick]

I use a heaping handful per inch of trunk, spread evenly in a ring from inside to outside the drip line..

[puglvr1]

Thanks Patrick!!

Nancy

[mangomandan]

This is the distributor and product I use.. It's make up is 0-0-50.

http://www.thelandscaperstore.com/page/plantfoods/18876/

I placed an order this distributor last night. This morning at 10:30 my order was already at UPS.  Impressive service!

[Guanabanus]

Note that the active ingredient of this PhytoFos seems to be the same as that of "Organocide Plant Doctor" (not Organocide 3-in1):  "mono- an di-potassium salts of phosporous acid."

[BestDay]

It's been over a year.  Is everyone happy with their new foliar feeding products?  I want to start a foliar feeding program and was interested in what people thought after a year.

Bill

[Mark in Texas]

I like Spray N Grow products.

Then you like sodium.  Check out the analysis. 

[Mark in Texas]

It's been over a year.  Is everyone happy with their new foliar feeding products?  I want to start a foliar feeding program and was interested in what people thought after a year.

Bill

Hard to beat Dyna-Gro products.  They are complete and have up to 16 essential elements.  !/2 tsp./gal. with a Spreader-Sticker aka surfactant.  Highly recommend DG's Foliage Pro - 9-3-6 or the standard 3-1-2 ratio for tropicals.  N nitrate to ammonical ratio is spot on.  http://www.dyna-gro.com/936.htm
 

Mark

[TnTrobbie]

I like Southern AG citrus foilair spray. I try to do it the 1st of every month in the evenings. Sometimes the results are instantaeous greening of the leaves. Cheap, easily accessable (HD has em on sale frequently) and healthy trees going on almost 2 years. Nitrogen from the mulch.

[BestDay]

Yes the southern AG foliar citrus does sound good and I can buy it from Home Depot.  I need to look into the Dyna Gro products. Do either of these have iron?  Would they be considered a complete foliar spray?  I'm looking for something simple and reasonably priced.

For the people that weren't using foliar sprays and then started what kind of difference did you see?

Bill

[Mark in Texas]

I need to look into the Dyna Gro products. Do either of these have iron?  Would they be considered a complete foliar spray?  I'm looking for something simple and reasonably priced.

Bill, I just gave you a direct link to the product.

I raise wine grapes and did my Foliage Pro foliar spray about a month ago.  I now have a jungle.  Seriously, it is incredible what positive results I've recently had.

Mark

[BestDay]

Mark, thanks for sharing your experience using this product.  I did see the direct link you gave.  I guess I should have better stated my question.  The Dyna-Gro looks to be a near complete foliar spray but looks to be a little light on the iron.  Several of my trees have very yellow leaves that I suspect is an Iron deficiency.  Would it be safe to mix the Dyna-Gro with Southern AG Citrus nutritional spray or the Southern Ag Chelated General Purpose Minor Element Nutritional Spray?  If so which one?

Bill

[Mark in Texas]

It would be safe to use the Dyna Gro Foliage Pro without the other stuff. Every time I used the Ag Citrus I got leaf burn and some weird leaf chlorosis which I assume was caused by an imbalance in one element over the other.

[Mark in Texas]

Mark, thanks for sharing your experience using this product.  I did see the direct link you gave.  I guess I should have better stated my question.  The Dyna-Gro looks to be a near complete foliar spray but looks to be a little light on the iron.  Several of my trees have very yellow leaves that I suspect is an Iron deficiency.  Would it be safe to mix the Dyna-Gro with Southern AG Citrus nutritional spray or the Southern Ag Chelated General Purpose Minor Element Nutritional Spray?  If so which one?

Bill

Forgot to mention Jack's Classic Citrus FeED which has triple chelated iron. 20-10-20.  You'll get greening action with it.

[BestDay]

Thanks for the info Mark.  I ordered the Foliage Pro and some Southern AG Citrus Nutritional Spray.  I will try just the Foliage Pro first and see if the trees green up.  If not I will use a half dose of the Citrus Nutritional Spray.  I also order the Southern AG Spreader Sticker, Southern AG liquid copper and Plant Doctor Organocide.  I'm going to try small dosages of the Organocide year round and see if seems to help.  I'll only use the copper if I have to, to protect blooms.

Bill

[phantomcrab]

I have begun using the Foliage Pro on my citrus trees to mitigate the effects of citrus greening. Here is a communication from Dr. Robert Rouse of UF. He actually recommended the Southern Ag mix for this but it is lacking NPK. Patrick's mix would probably work as well. The trial has been underway for 7 years and the HBL infected experimental plot is producing fruit normally.

Dr. Rouse:
I attended your presentation about citrus greening at the Sarasota Fruit and Nut Society in July 2012.
I wrote down the foliar spray compositions that were being used at a trial at Immokalee but there is no mention of how often the spraying was done, what were optimal spray (weather) conditions or at what time of year spray was effective.
Is there a web page that specifies these parameters? Should regular ground fertilization be continued at normal rates?
Thanks-
Rouse,Robert E
   
May 28 (6 days ago)
      
to me

Richard, the most important and essential ingredients in the mix are the macro and micronutrients.  They should be sprayed on the foliage 3 to 4 times per year.  The timing would be when the tree is producing new flush shoots.  New flush comes in the spring when new growth begins, again when the summer rains begin and in the fall about late August to early September.  The summer rains keep the tree flushing with new growth all summer making it an opportunity to make 2 applications about 4 to 6 weeks apart.  The regular ground applications of fertilizer should be continued.  There is not currently a website where this information is given.

[dongeorgio]

I use a 3/4 strength mix of SoAg's Citrus Nutritional, PhytoFos, Millers 20-20-20 (with minors), Elemental Cu, Sequestrine 138Fe, and Class Act spreader/sticker.

I apply 15 gallons of it broadcast with a backpack sprayer over everything on the 15th of every month, when I get to each tree the branches stretch toward me like arms from a bad sci-fi movie...

I guess they like it!

I have noticed while using this mix over the past year and a half, I have almost completely eliminated the need for pest control...

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[/size]Patrick,[size=78%]

[/size]  I am attempting to adopt your routine.  Firstly, has it changed at all since you last posted this?  Secondly, in what quantity per gallon do you use the [size=78%][/size][size=78%]Millers 20-20-20 and the [/size][/size][size=78%]Class Act spreader/sticker?[/size]
[/size]
[/size][size=78%]Thanks,[/size]
[/size][size=78%]George[/size]

[Mark in Texas]

May have found my Love Potion 99 - Keyplex 350 DP, Dyna-Gro Pro-Tek and whatever NPK soluble food I fancy at the time to increase uptake and nutritional value.  Last couple of times its been a 35-5-10 with iron. 

[Mark in Texas]

I use a heaping handful per inch of trunk, spread evenly in a ring from inside to outside the drip line..

Just a personal observation on other trees, not mangos.  The feeder roots are far beyond the drip line on a mature tree.  I have found large roots including feeder roots as far as 60' from the drip line of an oak tree for example.   I think putting plant food anywhere near and inside the drip line of a mature tree is a waste.   I know this first hand by snagging a tractor pulled subsoiler (3 pot. chisel) on roots located 50' or so from older trees.

[zands]

I use a heaping handful per inch of trunk, spread evenly in a ring from inside to outside the drip line..

Just a personal observation on other trees, not mangos.  The feeder roots are far beyond the drip line on a mature tree.  I have found large roots including feeder roots as far as 60' from the drip line of an oak tree for example.   I think putting plant food anywhere near and inside the drip line of a mature tree is a waste.   I know this first hand by snagging a tractor pulled subsoiler (3 pot. chisel) on roots located 50' or so from older trees.

In the last two years I have dug up and replaced a few fruit trees. I always check out the feeder roots. They obviously do not radiate out equally in all directions. If you really want to fertilize feeder roots then some digging and marking would be a good idea. This takes time but I am going to do it on a tree or two. Then throw fertilizer exactly where feeder roots are

Meanwhile I have a three foot diameter thick mulch around mangoes and others (not avocado)  I apply fertilizer onto the mulch not to the dripline for feeder roots like everyone says to do. I use my hands to quickly bury the fertilizer a few inches under the mulch where it is wet and will dissolve to go into action

This seems to encourage roots growth going downward like tap roots to chase the fertilizer as it gets washed downward. So they are feeding there below the trunk and not just the feeder roots we always hear about

[Mark in Texas]

Good plan Zands.  I get 2 cu. yds of compost from our landfill for $10.  May not sound like much until after you've finished shoveling it!

[MangoFang]

So Mark....how often do you spray your Love Potion #99?


Gary

[Tropheus76]

On a weekly rotating basis I spray 8 gallons of Liquid Seaweed, then Liquid Fish, then Liquid Neem and the Dyna-pro soap. Note the Liquid fish is not emulsion but actual liquefied fish. I usually wait until late evening. I just started this process this year and thus far am very impressed with the results. My apple trees are looking great and actually have a few this year(they are still only a few years old and the newest ones haven't sinc'd up on blooming cycles. 

Neem does not stop leaf miners in citrus though, but I am seeing much less damage from grasshoppers, caterpillars, and other munchie bugs.

[Mark in Texas]

So Mark....how often do you spray your Love Potion #99?

Gary

Whenever I feel a hot flash coming on. 

I read my plants and when they need something I try to give it to them.  We FINALLY got rain last night (exceptional drought status) and when I can get back into the field I'm spraying whatever I can get to with a foliar spray.  Will probably do a more balanced spray of a 23-2-27 with ProTek, Keyplex 350DP and a surfactant.  And I hit everything I can with the same thing - tropicals, grapevines, pecans, veggies, peaches, roses, etc.  I pull a 40 gal., tank with a mounted 5 horse gas powered pump and with one hand on the steering wheel and the other on a handgun with a cone T-jet tip, get after it.

Good luck

[MangoFang]

Yeah, thanks.....so spray EVERYTHING, ya?

Actually made the rounds last night with my hand held 2 gallon sprayer -
ProTekt and kelp and something else...oh, and the surfactant....crossing
fingers it WILL help proTecT the mangoes with our coming heat wave -
next five days 100+.....

Gary