If they aren't rooted I wouldn't give them any fertilizer but some B1 and/or Superthrive is a good idea.

I agree.. If they are rooted you can start them out with a diluted dose of fertilizer..
Kylie

Do not fertilize, you want them to root. Your focus is to root and when they go into the soil I would wait until they have been in the soil for a month before fertilizing.

I forgot to say that they have been in soil/rooted
for more than two months now. I'm thinking, then...
it's ok to give them a diluted solution.
Thanks. Margaret

If they've been rooted for a couple months then a feeding is fine but since they are still inside and will be for quite some time I'd only use a diluted fertilizer every few weeks.

I'm sorry but again I wouldn't fertilize them until they go outside and have been out there for a couple weeks adjusting to being outside.

Silly question:

Why/Why not fertilize them now while they are inside growing??...I'm really wondering, because I don't know how it works.

I've been alternating diluted miracle grow on all my "babies"...They want to be watered, so I thought it would be ok to at least alter the waterings...Mine have been actively growing for over two months and growing great, although they could use a bit more light, but I think they're ok since they growing :)

Please can you explain why/why not??...What is the plant doing that they would/would not need a boost of fertilizer.

My inquisitive mind would like to know :)

Thanks guys...knotz

knotz, it's a waste of fertilizer and also sends a message to the plant to start growing. You want them to focus on the roots so it will be able to support later top growth. It also makes for a better plant in the long run. Seriously folks need to look at the last frost date and when they can go outside. They also go into a sort of shock when you toss them out that is why you will see ours all stripped of leaves. The winter set of leaves are paper thin and will tend to sunburn. I have 3 months here before I know it's safe, last year we got frost and snow on the 20th of April. Let me tell you ours were out and the damage wasn't to bad but those that we did allow to leaf out in the Brug-house, well spinach comes to mind.
I will also tell you we had some Vulc. seedlings that we did push and these are the ones that didn't make it when we had that power outage. I noted the tags and each of them when we put them in for winter didn't have the root systems like the others. This is what we can report from
what we have done. A good rooting system is important to support the plant it will become? I will tell you the Vulc. that we just gave bloom booster to have huge roots, currently no leaves as we watch what they are doing. We are only watering with rain water during the winter months.
Hope that helps? Different varieties require different treatments, those with greenhouses like Eddies can keep them active with lights and heat. But if one keeps them dormant to fertilize them will awaken them, so if you have a couple months yet before going out, do you honestly want them to keep growing or just maintaining? We all know that these do not starve when not fertilizing, when we see them blooming in the winter months and if one start early they can be come spindly, growth inside is not like the growth outside. We here can take a 2 footer and have it shoot upwards of 10-12 feet with the proper fertilizer in less than a few months. But too we know when one pushes a plant to do what they do with this conditions the plant will be wasted in no time. The effects of over fertilizing can scare you, even when you push with half strength. Okay now I need my coffee!

Wow, thanks karma!!...

So, I left all the new leaves on my "babies"...Should I take them off or is it too late since I've already been fertilizing them lightly.

They're growing great and no sign of bugs.

knotz

knotz, I'm just one grower and I'm betting others will tell you differently. But in the long run, the goal is to have plants that are healthy and lasting? We were all newbies at one time so it's a learning process. One really needs to learn what one can and can't do for their zones. Honestly it's your money that you spend on fertlizer, right? It's about getting more blooms for the money and timing.

I give very diluted feedings to the brugs that I allow to grow inside over the winter. Like KHT said you don't want to encourage growth but the foliage on my plants and my plants in general look much better if they get a little more then seaweed and B1 over the winter. I don't feed dormant plants or newly rooted cuttings, just things like variegated foliage and some of my slower doubles that don't go dormant. This is what I've found works best for me but we all keep our plants under different conditions.

Not to hijack this in too different a direction, but I have a question about pot progression. I took cuttings in late September and initially rooted them in cut off 12(?) oz pop bottles, progressing to cut off liter bottles late december. They're well leaved under lights and roots are now nicely circling the liter bottles. I could probably move on to 1 gal nursery pots but it would pretty much max out my light shelves. How big to you take your cuttings potwise until you can move them outside which is likely another 3 months here even with a greenhouse.........just curious.
Thanks,
Will

mantorvillain, I wouldn't do anything but leave them in the liter bottle until spring. I have found the more root bound they are come spring the better plant they make. In the spring put them in the gallon pot or plant in the ground. If you go the 1 gallon route, when you see the roots come out of the bottom come let's say end of June bump up to the 5 gallon pickle bucket.

Thanks KHT....holding at the liter level it is. I'm pretty fortunate in that our local recycling center lets me rummage in the bins otherwise I'd never have enough containers based on the amt of pop we drink......and the best one's of all seem to be the plastic liquor bottles which are much more rigid than the pop containers.
Will