Plant fertilizer

A question for you knowledgeable gardeners...…
What is the best fertilizer for plants outdoors, either in the soil directly or in macetas?  I know nitrogen (Urea) is good for the pasto but this for plants like obeliscos, copas de oro, bugambilias, rosas, etc., etc.
Gracias en adelante.

I only do lawns, but I get excellent advice from the woman who owns the garden supply store beside the 7-1 in Riberas.

She does indeed give excellent advice.
They are open but with a barricaded front entrance so you'll have to ask for the advice at the entrance and she'll bring it to you.
I have mostly used Miracle grow for my plants in the past.
I know two things...
1) bugamiblia like acidic soil and doesn't like their roots permanently wet and soggy.
2) roses are very fussy

Go with your list of plants and she'll guide you in the right direction. My Areca palms in pots weren't very happy... she suggested time release fertilizer for grass and now they're happy again.

I wouldn't waste money on fertilizing bougainvillea, they really don't need it hereabouts.

With many plants/flowers, you can usually achieve a boost in growth and bloom with a fresh layer of compost, without chemical runoff into the lake.

I get a big bag of the Tiffany Blue little bits. That's what my gardner uses on the flowers, bushes and grass.

I read in the old days in Ajijic they used bat dung.  Supposed to be great for flowers.  Don't know where you would find it. forgot about bats maybe being linked to corona virous but I had read before bat dung is supposed to be some of the best fertilizer there is.

If using commercial fertilizer (natural topping mix is better) there are three numbers. The first is nitrogen, which encourages green growth, then potassium, which encourages fruiting or flowering. The third one escapes my memory. The topping mix, mostly compost, contains trace minerals which can improve the flavor, taste and fragrance of plants.
You are probably right about the bat dung. Especially fruit bats. It doesn't smell bad, bat experts say fruit bats smell like newborn puppies.They used to collect bird dung, called guano. There were actually wars fought over access to it. The colonial powers expansion into new territories was held back because there were not enough agricultural fertiliser to support expansion.

Sure got an array of suggestions….
Mike, I had planned of asking the lady at the Garden Center next to 7-11 anyhow, but I know, just like I got, there are many opinions.
Thanks all, I´ll call on my "bat army" when they are not busy out spreading disease.  

CHILLIN wrote:The colonial powers expansion into new territories was held back because there were not enough agricultural fertiliser to support expansion.

That brought a laugh out of me. When the English made Ireland an "English Colony", they didn´t know "bat shit" about the people, language, or the potato crops. Starved millions of people.

BisbeeGal wrote:I wouldn't waste money on fertilizing bougainvillea, they really don't need it hereabouts.  

With many plants/flowers, you can usually achieve a boost in growth and bloom with a fresh layer of compost, without chemical runoff into the lake.

That is exactly the advice of one of the most knowledgable nursery owners and landscapers in my area. He doesn't believe in using fertilizers- he says the plant then gets used to it and will suffer without it, whereas if you simply add some good compost once in awhile, its much better.

Native plants really don't need fertilizers- if they did, they wouldn't thrive in the wild.

The most amazing vegetable garden I ever saw was that of some friends of mine in Canada- their veggies were twice the size of anyone else'. I asked them what their secret was. Their urine. Urine is super high in nitrogen. They peed in a pail, and diluted it 10 times with water, and used that to water the plants. Of course they didn't pour it over the lettuce and such, just watered the soil around the plant.

ferret wrote: My Areca palms in pots weren't very happy... she suggested time release fertilizer for grass and now they're happy again.

I see a lot of sad looking Arecas in pots. Yours may indeed have needed some food, although I have arecas surrounding my property and I've never fed them anything and they are huge clumps about 30 ft. tall.
Most of the sad looking Arecas I see in pots are because people have them in the sun. While most palms like sun, Areca prefers shade.

Thanks mudgirl. They are not in the sun except for a couple of hours in the early morning. I usually put compost on the one garden bed that I have but a couple of years ago, I bought (from the store we're talking about) and added a layer of worm castings which had eggs in it. Since then, when I sweep up leaves and flowers, I add them to the same bed. Keeps the worms happy and the worm poop keeps the plants happy.
The rest of my plants have no choice but to be in pots. They all need halving and re-potting which isn't going to happen for a while. In the meantime, I'm just tryin' to keep 'em alive.

My plants are flourishing with the liquid compost I make from coffee grounds, egg shells, veg trimmings. No meat. I keep scraps in the fridge, in the blender jar until 3/4 full, add water to cover and blend. Pour into bucket or watering can, fill with water and use. Easy, clean and green.

Your best source of information is the large fertilizer stores on the highway northwest of Jocotepec. Usually you should use several different fertilizers depending on your soil and what plants you are trying to grow. The garden center in Riberas is usually not very helpful and is expensive.

That should be southwest of Jocotepec.

Fun facts:
Bogainvilla was originally from Brazil.
Those giant red geraniums were discovered right here, in the hills.
The third number in commercial fertilizer is phosphate, which is causing a lot of problems in water ways, including lirio in the Lake

ComputerGuy wrote:I only do lawns, but I get excellent advice from the woman who owns the garden supply store beside the 7-1 in Riberas.

Went today, she recommended something called Blaukron, which is helpful to most plants and for people who don´t want to analyze the soil and the specific needs of each kind of plant.  
Kind of like feeding all the kids in the orphanage, porridge.  

Due to the run-off effect and everyone being so close to the lake I would recommend using organic natural fertilizers. Bat dung also commonly known as guano is an excellent natural fertilizer. You can easily buy it in its tea form which a liquid concentrate. I use 2 tablespoons mixed in a gallon of water. I save my gallon milk cartons for this. Locally it is called guano de múrcielego, you can find it at most gardening stores here. You can also buy large sacks or costales of worm castings here which is an excellent natural plant fertilizer, by it self or even better generously mixed in compost and placed on top or gently mixed in the surface soil being careful not to damage the roots. Good luck, I hope this helps.

mudgirl wrote:

BisbeeGal wrote:I wouldn't waste money on fertilizing bougainvillea, they really don't need it hereabouts.  

With many plants/flowers, you can usually achieve a boost in growth and bloom with a fresh layer of compost, without chemical runoff into the lake.

That is exactly the advice of one of the most knowledgable nursery owners and landscapers in my area. He doesn't believe in using fertilizers- he says the plant then gets used to it and will suffer without it, whereas if you simply add some good compost once in awhile, its much better.

Native plants really don't need fertilizers- if they did, they wouldn't thrive in the wild.

The most amazing vegetable garden I ever saw was that of some friends of mine in Canada- their veggies were twice the size of anyone else'. I asked them what their secret was. Their urine. Urine is super high in nitrogen. They peed in a pail, and diluted it 10 times with water, and used that to water the plants. Of course they didn't pour it over the lettuce and such, just watered the soil around the plant.

Most of the plants grown in gardens here aren't native plants.

Most plants grown in gardens here are not native plants.

I use a fish emulsion tea and get it from Laura also. Plants love it, organic, and nontoxic. Except the smell!