WHERE IT ALL BEGINS: THE SOIL - Growing Chinese Vegetables in Your Own Backyard - page 214

sometimes called trace elements: boron, copper, manganese, molybdenum, and zinc.
The best way to ensure that your vegetable garden has enough of them is to use lots of
compost or other sources of organic matter. All organic materials are good sources, as
well as minerals including rock phosphate and granite dust.
Deficiencies of micronutrients are most often caused by soils being too acidic or
too alkaline. This is especially true for iron. If your plants develop chlorosis (the classic
symptom of iron deficiency in which leaves turn pale or yellow but veins remain deep
green), it rarely means your soil lacks iron. It usually means the iron is locked up by
soil that's too alkaline (as after over dosing with lime). Testing your soil's pH is the first
step if you suspect a deficiency.
Oddly spotted or deformed leaves may indicate micronutrient deficiencies bad
enough to interfere with your harvest. Try foliar feeding. Give your plants fish emulsion
or fish-and-seaweed fertilizer, pouring it over plants so it wets the leaves. Plants can
absorb nutrients more quickly through their leaves. That should help with this year's
harvest. At the end of the season dig more organic matter into the soil to improve the
overall supply and balance of micronutrients.
How to Fertilize
In general, follow the application rates on the package, as these will vary with each fer-
tilizer. The easiest way to keep your vegetables well fed is to incorporate fertilizer into
the soil at the beginning of the growing season and supply more as needed as plants
grow. Use an all-purpose blend, or a fertilizer specifically formulated for vegetables
(one such formula is 4-6-6). Mix it well with soil. Phosphorus, in particular, doesn't
move through soil easily, so it's important to get it where roots can access it.
Most vegetables need supplemental feedings. You can scratch granulated fertilizer
alongside plants, but it's easier to use a fish-and-seaweed fertilizer or fish emulsion.
These are liquids, so you mix only a tablespoon or so per gallon of water, and you feed
the plants as you water. Synthetic liquid fertilizers are also available. Some of these are
concentrated, so to protect soil organisms, dilute to half or quarter strength and feed
more often. As with any synthetic fertilizer, it works best in soils with abundant organic
matter.
If you like to fine-tune things, feed leafy crops, such as amaranth, with a formula
that's higher in nitrogen. Look for a product in which the first number is greater, such
as 3-2-2. For rooting and fruiting vegetables, such as Chinese radishes and cucumbers,
look for a formula in which the first number is lower, such as 2-4-1.
For container gardens, there's another option. Time-release fertilizers are engin-
eered to release nutrients over a longer period, so they don't wash out as quickly. The-