Fertilizer suggestions for soil with high iron, low NPK

5 years ago

I'm in western NC, so I have red soil that tends to be high in iron and/or manganese, but I'm not sure about nitrogen. My soil isn't so much "Carolina clay" as it's not that dense, but it's the same color.

The area I can use for gardening was full of tree saplings (maple, beech, oak, and field pine), greenbriar, and poison ivy 2 years ago. I cut the trees down and hand-pulled the ivy, then spent the last year digging up the tree stumps, and cleaning out the thatch and remaining ivy in the ground. I know that all of those probably sapped most (if not all) of the nutrients from the soil :-(

It's time to transplant my peppers to the ground; I have way more sprouts than intended, so I intend to put half in the ground and half in pots, then I'll see what does best where. But before I do... should I till in some chicken or horse manure? Or buy a compost/manure mix? Or fertilizer pellets? Or should I just plant and add liquid fertilizer if necessary, based on how they grow?

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Comments (5)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
5 years ago
I know that all of those probably sapped most (if not all) of the nutrients from the soil :-(

==>> i doubt it ..

this type of fert logic.. imo.. is limited to high performance farming operations ... and again... imo ... has nothing to do with home gardening ...

plant your plants .. and find out what happens ... and react accordingly ... dont waste product nor money ...

if you want to spend a little money to FIND OUT.... rather than speculate ... pay for a good soil analysis ... and again.. react accordingly ...

ken
gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
5 years ago
The only way tp know if NPK is lacking in your soils is to have a professional soil test done. And many testing labs will then tell you how and what to apply to bring things up to par.

Nitrogen is the most heavily consumed nutrient but it is also the most difficult to measure. Many labs do not test for it at all. N is the most volatile and mobile of the basic plant nutrients and available N can change with time of day and weather conditions, as well as time of year.

Mulching with compost or very well aged manure is one way to assure N will continue to be available without the willy-nilly application of fertilizers.
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Jason, zone 7A, near Greensboro NC
Original Author
5 years ago
OK, I think I'll just plant and see what happens. I meant to have a professional test done, but there's no local place here so it involves sending it off to a lab... and I procrastinated :-/

One good thing about living in rural NC, I have TONS of people giving away chicken, cow, and horse manure... I could get 10 dump truck loads delivered today, for free, with one phone call!! :-O I really might get some (maybe one load) and have it dumped at the edge of my property, then I'd have it in a few years if I need it.
lindac92
5 years ago
Get 2 loads and have it dumped....it diminishes in volume as it ages.
Our lakes and rivers are clogged with algae mostly a result of fertilizer run off. from farms and from home owners applying fertilizer 3 times a year whether it needs it or not.
Stick with the chicken stuff!
Jason, zone 7A, near Greensboro NC
Original Author
5 years ago
Same here with the runoff, but I think our excess comes from hogs. The EPA was supposed to do something about it 4 or 5 years ago, but... politics :-/

Thanks for the tip, though! I'll order 2 loads of chicken manure today. Luckily, I have 5 acres of land (4 acres undeveloped, my house and lawn being about 1 acre and dead-centered) so I can dump it out of the way and forget about it.