AusBonsai

The blurb put out by the manufacturer tells that the prolonged use of DL will turn the soil Alkaline.
Azaleas will not tolerate Alkaline soil. It is a strong poultry manure. I have never used it on Azaleas.

Arthur Robinson who specialises in Satsuki Azaleas uses and preferes Miracle gro for Azaleas.
He has some magnificent Bonsai Satsuki's I just wish he would post a couple here.

Cheers Pup

Hartos wrote:DL on Azaleas definately a killer.
Dont have technical and scientific knowledge of why but it happened too many times to ignore. On one occaision they were placed under the bench which my figs were on and when I put DL on the figs the run off water went to Azaleas, result = strong Ficus but 30% Azaleas dead.

Very interesting, and I guess from now on the DL stays off them. Never had an issue 'till this year with them tho

Ken

Will natives also cop the bad alkaline effects of DL like the azaleas? I have noticed some leaf burn on an azalea i recently fertd with DL. But natives seem to be doing good at the moment. Cheers.

I find that the DL can be put on by the truck load. I usually put it on pretty thick and like jester said about that other guy I usually put it on my figs thickly like mulch, they seem to love it so I'm not worried about puttng too much DL on my trees. Also add it to the potting mix when I repot. BUT one thing I find is to NOT put it on your lily pily they do not like the stuff at all, just stick with the natives osmocote I reckon for your lily pilys
all in all though I say pile on the DL, ut works well on the right trees esspecially the FIGS.

Hugh

Figs are like Goats they will devour any thing. Melaleuca's are a different type of tree all plus 250 of them. A majority of what are used as Bonsai are swamp dwellers, or at least in area's where water inundation is a regular occurance.
So the soil tends to be more acidic, therefor DL is not what I use, or would recommend, on the 17 different varieties of Melaleuca that I grow. I have been growing them for 20 + years.

I use inorganic Miracle gro for azaleas and Phostrogen ( which is becoming increasingly difficult to get ) this can be substituted with Yates Fruit and Flower it has the same N.P.K. as Phostrogen.

Cheers Pup

Good Thread I currently have 2 qsl figs in straight dl and 2 in bonsai soil and 4 in straight diatomite the 2 in dl just get watered the other ones get fert with miracle grow and a tea mix I make (spoke about in another thread) I also use dl socks which is dl in a pantyhose(not mine ) made to size ,I use these so that I get the fert without whats left behind .You would be suprised at the dregs ,I suspect the buildup of this is what causes alkaline problems.Back to the figs the ones in dl are growing really well I had noticed that one day watering as I was blasting away and had opened the top of dl (it tends to dry and cake in full sun) that it got fly blown and a few maggots were there .The figs in soil get the tea mix and miracle grow and extreme health ,and finally the ones in diatomite are booming they get fert extra with dl tea mix(very cost effective ) I also have an azalea "sao to me" which I had been giving tea mix and it was healthy but not flourishing and had been told to give miracle grow and seasol only and now the tree is powering on ,so I would have to agree with the results .Pup with regard to swamp loving trees do you think swamp cypress would be similar ,I have a tree in a fairly waterlogged bucket and was considering throwing heavy dl at it?
Cheers
Tony

swamp cypress would be similar ,I have a tree in a fairly waterlogged bucket and was considering throwing heavy dl at it?

hey mate,

i have a swampy starter, i potted it up to a larger grow pot as the one it was in was tiny, and i keep it in a water tray that is constantly refilled with water, the water in the tray only lasts a day, i have just recently put 30mm of DL on the surface and filled the water tray with DL as well, i am thinking of moving it to a larger water tray, like a 4 litre ice cream container and filling that with water and DL, i also feed it with miracle gro, seasol, and fish emulsion as my usual feed regime, plus some other stuff occasinally.

the tree has doubled in height and thickness.

i have a pretty heavy feeding regime though aswell, but it works for me and i havent had any adverse efects with anything yet!


jamie

Thanks Jamie It's good to get a break from water and fert with this rain .I have been thinking of planting my swampy in the ground for a bit ,maybe 2yrs? Any tips for ground growing swampys appreciated everyone
Cheers
Tony

check out the thread i just ressurected on bretts swampy, it talks about power feeding.

sounds like a good concept, plus some scarring to increase taper.

jamie

Pup wrote: Arthur Robinson who specialises in Satsuki Azaleas uses and preferes Miracle gro for Azaleas.
He has some magnificent Bonsai Satsuki's I just wish he would post a couple here.

Please if you can Pup, ask Mr Robinson if he could contribute to this forum, great Satsuki bonsai are a rarity in this country, yet they are one of the most revered and desirable exotic bonsai species.
Arthur's expertise and the inspiration that could be drawn from viewing his trees would be of immense value to us all.

Cheers
Mojo Moyogi

I use both the campbells organic life and nutrog sudden impact on my azaleas with great results they are all growing like mad. My azaleas in the garden I mix just a handful of dolomite in with those ferts which will cause some growers to jump up and down but I have very acid soil. Since I have been giving them just a little dolomite I have seen no trace of red spider mite which in the past has been a real plague.
Craig

Many of the Neutrog products are based on aged chook manure, like DL, often with a seaweed compost as well. I like their products and don't mind giving them a plug, I really loved their organic potting mix, it was finely sieved and brought all my plants along beautifully, but haven't been able to source it lately. I hate finding huge lumps of bark in a potting mix - how the heck is a baby parsley seedling supposed to cope with something the size of Ayers rock in their pot?

Wow, thanks everyone for your replies!!

This is what I love about this forum, I am able to post a question and get a multitude of answers which are based, most importantly, from personal experience. There is only so much we can gather from books and so by helping one another through our experiences I feel is the best way.

I have used DL in the past and some trees liked it and some died as a result. I also tried putting loads on in an attempt to get faster growth but again found some trees liked it and some didnt. It has always been on the fence for me as it is a relatively organic slow release so sounds good on paper but may not be the magic bullet I was looking for.

Your right too Ant, I need to stick to my fertilising routine and get into the habt of doing it. Im thinking the best way to keep the momentum up is to fert one week and then seasol the next.

Keep the info comming guys! I love it!

BonsaiBoy87

Jamie you have made the comment a couple of times when I have posted a picture of one of my Melaleucas.
( Quote I have to learn to keep them alive!!!.) Could it be the large doses of DL, as I have said I do not recommend or use it on my natives.
It does not work for me in any shape or form on Natives or Azaleas.


Cheers Pup

So this may explain the brown blotchy type appearance of my Mel. leaves.