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Premium Plant Foods, Fertilizers & Supplements
Eating a fast-food diet might keep you alive...
But would your health be at it's best?
Probably not. Most of us wouldn't think of feeding our children or pets anything less than a well-balanced diet. But what about all the plants in our lives? Prized houseplants, vegetable gardens, bonsai trees, orchids, landscaping, lawns?
Your plants are living organisms as well, and like people and pets, they have specific nutritional requirements that must be satisfied for them to achieve their optimum state of health and therefore, productivity.
Most gardeners are familiar with the term N-P-K, which are abbreviations for the three primary, or macro, nutritional elements that plants need to grow. Nitrogen (N), is the element that is mostly responsible for stem and leaf, or vegetative growth; phosphorus (P) is required for seed germination, photosynthesis, and is essential for flower and fruit formation; while Potassium (K) controls the plant's water balance, improves stem rigidity and cold hardiness, enhances flavor and color on fruit and vegetable crops, increases the oil content of fruits and is critical for leafy crops. Most commercially prepared fertilizers are comprised of a percentage of these nutrients, by example a 10-10-10 all-purpose plant food contains 10 percent nitrogen, 10 percent phosphorus, and 10 percent potassium, by weight, with the remaining 70 percent usually composed of an inert filler material.
But science has proven that plants need more than just N, P, and K to lead healthy, productive lives. Other macro-nutrients plants require are sulfur, magnesium, and calcium. Sulfur is important because it is responsible for imparting the true flavors in many vegetables. Magnesium is vital for nut and fruit formation and is essential for the germination of seeds, as well.
Calcium is a structural component of plant cell walls, controls the water movement in cells and is necessary for cell growth and division. Some plants must have calcium to utilize nitrogen and certain other minerals at all.
But wait, there's more to plant nutrition than just the macronutrients. They also need micro-nutrients, also known as trace elements. These nutrients are just as necessary to healthy plant (and human) growth, only in much smaller amounts. Iron, manganese, boron, zinc, copper, molybdenum, chlorine, nickel, sodium, cobalt, and silicon all are vital building blocks for proper plant development and maturation. Unfortunately, most commercially prepared fertilizers do not contain any of these micro-nutrients, many of which are necessary for a plant to fully utilize the primary nutrients!
Without a full complement of these vital plant nutrients, plant growth and development slows or even stops completely. Only by providing every element a plant needs to grow in the proper proportions, will you truly experience the full flavor of fresh vegetables, the overpowering fragrance of roses and other flowers, and the true essence and aromatics of culinary kitchen herbs.
You & Your Plants Deserve Only The Best!
Fortunately, many forward thinking plant food manufacturers have recognized the deficiencies of mass-produced fertilizers, and have begun to offer new and complete formulations of granular and liquid plant foods that address the entire nutrient requirements for successful plant growth. Considered by many to be the "micro-brews" of the fertilizer industry, these high-quality and complete plant nutrients are available at most Earth-Friendly, Water-Wise Retail Garden Supply Stores.
These cutting edge plant nutrients are especially valuable and are widely utilized for container grown plants, including hanging baskets, bonsai trees, orchids, and others where the available nutrients are generally limited. By replenishing all of the critical nutrient elements, including vital trace and minor elements, the plant will perform to a much higher standard.
Many of these new liquid plant foods and granular fertilizers are formulated for specific plant varieties, various phases of plant growth, growing media, and other targeted growing circumstances. Fertilizers labeled as "Grow" formulations that are ideally suited for general houseplant growth, leafy vegetable greens such as lettuce and spinach, and other plants that don't bloom in a traditional fashion. "Bloom" formulas enhance the fruiting and flowering stage of all blooming plants, including cucumbers, melons, tomatoes, peppers, cut flower crops, orchids, roses, and others. Some of these new fertilizers are multi-part, which enables growers to mix custom NPK formulas for specific plants, differing stages of plant growth, and climatic changes.
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Healthy Soils Produce Healthy Plants
