I am currently using a 24-8-16
2006-06-24 15:18:35 · 0 answers · asked by greghaverkate 1 in Home & Garden ➔ Garden & Landscape
MASTER GARDENER TO THE RESCUE!
First, there is no miracle in a box. Every wonder why farmers or other major agricultural growers don't have their barns piled high with green and yellow boxes of Miracle Gro? Less bang for your buck. It's over priced & it's not that great of a product. What it has going for it is... it's easy and it's everywhere. I assume you are not growing 10 thousand acres of pumpkins, so the cost of Miracle Gro shouldn't put your family out in the street? But in case you should ever decide pumpkin farm'n is a dream job for you at some future date, let me save ya a few bucks and give you better pumpkins.
You already noticed the three numbers listed on all chemical fertilizer. They tell you the percentage of each of the three macronutrients inside the package.
NITROGEN (N), PHOSPHORUS (P), and POTASSIUM (K). Listed in that order. N-P-K. i will use your numbers as an example.
Your box of miracle gro has the numbers 24-8-16.
It containes 24 % nitrogen. Nitrogen is for the leafy bits, foilage, etc. Lots of N = lots of green bushie stuff. The middle number means you have 8 % phosphorus. Thats the stuff that makes more flowers and the blooms. Lots of P = lots of flowers and bigger blooms. Last we have the number 16. 16 % potassium. To make it simple, that's the stuff that sorta helps the other stuff do it's job over a longer time period. Unless your soil was way out of wack, lots of K isn't very important to the average home gardener. N and P are the top guns.
You see a bag with the numbers 21-0-0. 21% nitrogen, no P or K. You'd use that on grass, or other leafy stuff, where lots of foliage. Another bag may read 6-56-3. In that case youre going for the flowers and don't want all the other bushie stuff. You'll find numbers like that in products like "Super Bloom". The name says it all. For your pumpkins, K isn't important, so I won't bore you farther. The pricing of plant food is important too. P costs twice as much as N. So they toss you lots of N cause it's cheeper. So Miracle Gro gives you lots of green bushie parts you end up trimming off later, and not so much of the stuff flowers are made from. Any, inexpensive balenced fertilizer would make your pumpkins very happy. A 20 pound bag of a 6-6-6 will cost you less then a 2 pound box of Miracle Gro.
Save this info. If you ever do go into the pumpkin growing line of work, it will save you thousands of dollars every season.
It's like my answers. I give great answers, but noone takes the time to read them. Everyone wants it fast and easy. The same ones who buy Miracle gro 'cause it fast & easy.
THERE IS NO MIRACLE IN A BOX!
2006-06-25 00:44:19 · answer #1 · answered by ? 6 · 15⤊ 0⤋
Fertilizer For Pumpkins
2016-12-11 13:53:17 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, the Miracle Grow product will work on pumpkins just fine....
Professional gardeners recommend a very high middle number, for flowering plants (50 to 70 range), and the others really depend on the type of soil you are using. For veggie gardens tho, what youve got there, sounds about right.
We've had pretty good results with Miracle Grow on our garden plants.
Good Luck!
2006-06-24 15:27:38 · answer #3 · answered by thewrangler_sw 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Pumpkin Fertilizer
2016-10-05 10:59:36 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
If used very sparingly it should be OK.However i have had good luck with 10-10-10.
2006-06-24 15:28:00 · answer #5 · answered by curious_john 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Try this link, it might help but I'm not sure....I'm not an expert on pumkins lol.
2006-06-24 15:26:28 · answer #6 · answered by Jenn 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋