BAKERSFIELD, Calif (KERO) — Choosing the right fertilizer can seem like a tricky task, but Suzy Williams of Bolles Nursery has a few tips to help you pick.
Before you can make the right choice, you need to know how fertilizers are labeled.
"The three numbers you'll find on a fertilizer bag stand for N,P, and K. N is for nitrogen, P is for phosphorus and the K is for potassium. Those are the three things that are required by most plants to just be relatively healthy" says Williams.
The fertilizer you chose will depend on your needs and the time of year. When it's hot, look for low nitrogen fertilizer.
"In the summer heat, I like to use a fertilizer that's a little slower. I don't like big numbers" says Williams, "It pushes things up too much. When it's hot, you just want them to just hang in there, you just want your plants to get through the heat."
There are times when higher numbers are useful, especially when it comes to lawn care.
"Always in the spring, we want to push our Bermuda. If you have Bermuda and rye you want to push your Bermuda and you want to green it up" Williams says.
You could go as far as having a specific fertilizer for every application, but according to Wiliams, that's probably not necessary.
"I stick to two, I use Gro Power Plus and Gro-Power Flower and Bloom," she says, "The flower and bloom are for fruits, vegetables, newly planted things. Gro- Power Plus is a 5 3 1, it has extra humic acid in it for the soils that are hard and don't drain well, so little fertilizer goes a long way".
