Miracle Grow fertilizer is an extremely popular all-purpose fertilizer designed for flowers, vegetables, trees and shrubs. However, overfertilizing can harm plants; to ensure maximum success always follow directions carefully.
Water soluble, and can be applied with either a watering can or drip irrigation system for easy application to any indoor or outdoor plant.
Nitrogen
Miracle Grow is a water-soluble fertilizer designed to quickly provide plants with essential nutrients. This instant nutrition earned Miracle Grow its name; when mixed properly with water it can provide all of the essential vitamins and minerals they require for healthy growth and bloom. But overuse or misuse could prove harmful; the chemicals contained within Miracle Grow could potentially harm plants if overused or misused.
Miracle Grow contains high concentrations of nitrogen, an essential nutrient for plant growth. Too much nitrogen may result in leggy or spindly plants which do not develop well and even become deficient in other essential elements like phosphorus and potassium if taken in excess. Therefore, to ensure success when using Miracle Grow for different kinds of plants it is vital that you know its appropriate ratio with other fertilizers.
Miracle Grow can cause irreparable harm to soil when overused, by adding too many chemicals and salts into it, disrupting natural microbial cycles essential for plant health, producing off-chemicals which are toxic to bacteria, fungi, worms and other organisms that work to breakdown organic matter in soil.
Miracle Grow products typically contain around 24% nitrogen, although this may differ depending on which formula is being used. Each Miracle Grow formula will have different ratios of nitrogen to other essential nutrients like phosphorus and potassium; for instance, tomato and vegetable-specific formulas typically have a higher nitrogen concentration than formulas designed for flowers and grasses.
Phosphorous
Phosphorus is an essential nutrient for overall plant health, aiding with photosynthesis and protein production as well as root development and cell function. Phosphorous-enriched fertilizers may provide extra phosphorous boost to newly planted seedlings or help address deficiencies caused by insufficient levels.
But excess phosphorous in soil is problematic when it winds up in ponds, lakes, streams or rivers, where it can create blooms of phosphorous-fueled algae that degrade water quality. Lawn-loving suburbanites aren’t alone either – agricultural practices account for 45% of phosphorus pollution in San Francisco Bay; farmers spread manure with too much phosphate content onto their fields to promote lush grasses and healthy crops while simultaneously adding too much of this essential nutrient into the ground – only for it then to wash off into local waterways or eventually into local waterways before finally washing off into local waterways and ultimately the bay itself.
Commercial fertilizers often feature three bold numbers on their labels to indicate the percentages of primary plant nutrients they contain – nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium (N-P-K). These nutrients are vital components that contribute to strong, vibrant plants.
High phosphorous fertilizers typically include rock phosphate and hair and bone meal as the key ingredients, and may also include flower/vegetable boosters or garden soil enhancers. A simple soil test can be the best way to determine whether your soil needs more phosphorous.
If your soil tests indicate the need for high phosphorus fertilizers, try selecting one with natural sources of this vital nutrient. Mushroom compost has an average 20% by weight concentration, while hair contains 26% with slow release times of 4-12 months. You could also purchase burned cucumber skin fertilizer which contains plenty of phosphorous as well as medium release times or bat guano which may be hard to come by and quite costly.
Potassium
Miracle Grow fertilizer is a water-soluble fertilizer designed to give plants all of the essential nutrients they require for growth and development. Packed with nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium in precise proportions for maximum impactful results, Miracle Grow can be safely applied as instructed on its package for best results. It can be used on vegetables, flowers and grasses alike! Additionally, potted plants or soil amendment applications can all take advantage of Miracle Grow’s multiple uses! It should always be mixed and applied according to instructions for best results!
Potassium chloride contains roughly 60% of its weight in potassium by weight, also known as muriate of potash, making it one of the highest sources. Used extensively in farming for crops that require low salt or chlorine levels to grow properly. Unfortunately it’s not suitable for gardening use due to potential plant burn issues if too close when applied.
Kupfern Sulfate can also help provide soil with large doses of potassium; it’s a soluble salt that mixes easily with water to be applied directly to plants as fertilizer. While not as potency as potassium chloride, potassium sulfate offers plenty of the essential nutrient. Unfortunately it lacks nitrogen or phosphorous; so for optimal use you must combine other types of fertilizers together with it.
Alfalfa or lucerne can provide another source of potassium that can be added to soil. Being a legume, its roots absorb nitrogen from the air and convert it into forms that plants can use. Furthermore, this cover crop can be tilled under soil to release slow-release potassium benefits that will benefit plants over time.
Boric Acid
Boric acid, a water-soluble white compound with antifungal and antimicrobial properties, occurs naturally and has antifungal and antimicrobial effects. Commonly used to treat vaginal yeast infections, it’s also an ingredient used in over-the-counter medication to treat outer ear canal infections like Otitis externa. When exposed for extended periods, however, long contact can result in chemical burns to skin and eyes – however these issues have yet to be thoroughly researched.
Boric acid can also be an effective means of disinfecting tools and equipment as well as sterilizing metal surfaces, making it the go-to choice for disinfecting tools and equipment. Its flame retardant properties make it popularly applied to glass products for their flame resistance while its glaze-forming capabilities make it widely used across ceramics, pottery enamels soaps and teeth whiteners as well as jewelry manufacturing processes as an etching agent for metal surfaces in electric condensers as well as being utilized as welding flux by blacksmiths.
Boric acid does not absorb readily through skin contact but quickly when swallowed and can damage kidneys and central nervous systems if in direct contact. Breathing boric acid may result in burning sensations, stomach cramps, headaches, tremors, reduced energy and low red blood cell counts.
Miracle Grow is a commercial fertilizer mix containing both macronutrients and micronutrients, including nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium and sulfur in larger amounts, while micronutrients include vitamins and minerals needed in smaller quantities but still essential to their growth, such as calcium, iron manganese and magnesium. Furthermore, Miracle Grow contains additives like urea urea phosphate potassium chloride boric acid ammonium phosphate as well as ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA), all designed to enhance absorption of nitrogen phosphorous and potassium into plants.
Ammonium Phosphate
Miracle-Gro is a water soluble fertilizer available both liquid and dry forms, the latter of which must be mixed prior to use. Both varieties can be applied via garden hose aerators; while its liquid counterpart can also be mixed prior to application via pre-mixers. Both products have been designed for most flowers, vegetables, trees, shrubs and houseplants.
Micronutrients provide essential support to a plant’s survival and growth, with nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium and sulfur among others being the macronutrients needed in larger amounts. Magnesium, calcium, iron manganese zinc are among the many micronutrients which aid a plant’s success and strength of growth.
Miracle-Gro is not always beneficial because of the excess nitrogen it adds to plants, leading to harmful off-chemicals which harm soil microbes and earthworms. A better option would be making your own plant food using weed tea rather than purchasing and applying Miracle-Gro.
Create an organic tea from non-herbicide treated weeds, then sprinkle it on your plants for fertilizing. It will be healthier and cheaper than buying Miracle-Gro, lasting the entire season of outdoor tomatoes, peppers, roses and potatoes.
Miracle-Gro should be avoided because its water soluble synthetic fertilizers attempt to take the place of naturally occurring soil microbes with artificial, salt-laden fertilizers that contain harmful elements that deplete their nutrition sources and harm living organisms that provide plants with essential nutrition. Instead, consider organic compost, worm castings or other natural methods as better ways to sustainably feed your garden – these will also create rich and healthy soil conditions – you’ll find these products readily available in most home and garden stores if they must use synthetic products look for one made of sustainable ingredients or find one which uses sustainable ingredients such as they would use synthetic products made with sustainable components if necessary.
