Feeding Your Container Garden Plants
By Larry Gildea

Every type of plant needs a basic amount of nutritious ingredients, much like the human body, in order to function and grow. It doesn't matter if you plant in the spring, summer or fall; plants need a continuous flow of nutrients to keep them healthy and strong.

Some of the most vital elements to healthy plants of all types are nitrogen, which helps stimulate growth, and phosphorus, which helps plants to form healthy, strong roots and potassium to help develop bloom and foliage. In addition to these basic necessities, plants also need a wide range of micro nutrients, or trace elements, that may be lacking in many garden soils and fertilizers, as well as potting mixes. The most common of these trace elements are copper, magnesium, boron, and iron. These trace elements serve plants in the same way they serve humans. Such invisible yet vital elements help to fight against disease.

Seasons have a lot to do with the need for extra nutrients as well. For example, the rising temperatures of late spring and early summer helps buds grow. Still, those buds will need extra nutrients to form properly. In addition, the root of the plant will grow longer as well, seeking out those extra nutrients so that it can send them to the buds. In a container, there's nowhere to go - so you need to supply those extra nutrients to the soil for that wonderful growth spurt.

If the soil in your container pot is well drained and rich in nutrients as well as moisture, those buds and roots will develop into healthy, beautiful plants.

Because container plants have even more specialized needs and because they are only able to utilize the soils and mixes that are available in its container, it is up to the gardener to know how and when to provide those extra nutrients. Because of this, and the fact that even the best potting soil may be lacking in some of the basic essentials for optimal growth and health, and those nutrients tend to leak out as you water, a container plant needs special attention and care.

Using a specially formulated and high-quality potting mix will give your plants a good head start, because they contain continuous release ingredients that will feed your plants slowly and steadily over a period of time.

However, feeding your container plants, vegetables and herbs doesn't stop there. You may need to water certain types of plants on a weekly basis to ensure a constant flow of nutrition into your container. There are many different types and forms of plant food, from slow release to liquid and dry forms. We'll introduce those in a moment.

However, no matter which form of plant food you end up choosing, it's important to know how often to add these nutritious elements to your plant. For example, vegetables and annuals and perennials often need to be fed weekly, while herbs can be fed around every other week according to need. Trees and shrubs can get by with an extra feeding once a month. Before you start feeding everything in your container garden, make sure that you are neither under nor over feeding specific plants.

While plant food adds nutrients and enzymes to your container plants, which is a good thing, as with anything, too much of a good thing can be bad. The same goes for plant food. Too much plant food can kill your plants. It may cause the edges of leaves to yellow and curl, and even stunt the growth of certain species. It's always a good idea to follow package directions of any type of plant food or fertilizer and if you're still not sure, ask an expert.

Copyright © Larry Gildea, All Rights Reserved.

Dr.Larry Gildea has authored several articles on gardening. Dr. Gildea has created these gardening websites, http://www.gardeningbonanza.com

Gardening Bonanza.com covers many types of gardening, including, bonsai design and cultivation, container gardening, flower gardening, rose gardening, hydroponics gardening and several others - http://www.organicgardensystems.com

Organic Garden Systems.com is dedicated exclusively to organic gardening. And in his blog, http://larryseasygardening.com

Dr. Gildea discusses all types of gardening.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Larry_Gildea
http://EzineArticles.com/?Feeding-Your-Container-Garden-Plants&id=986972