Fertilizing flowers in summer can't stop; add something to the water and you'll get strong roots, green leaves and more blooms

Lately quite a few flower lovers have come asking for help, saying their flowers lost all their vigor after blooming, with yellowing and falling leaves, and even the stems grew thin... This is malnutrition! Once the flowers finish blooming you have to fertilize quickly, but summer is so hot that a little fertilizer burns the flowers to death. What on earth should you do?

Summer fertilizing 1: Watering with liquid fertilizer

The Complete Guide to Flower Growing

Summer temperatures are high, and solid fertilizer easily burns roots; one careless move and you get fertilizer burn, yellow leaves and withered plants. Liquid fertilizer diluted with clean water is absorbed quickly by the roots and is less harsh, greatly reducing the risk of fertilizer burn.

1. Rice water (no smell)

Rice water must be fermented first: pour it into a plastic bottle and leave it on the windowsill for 1-2 weeks, then dilute it with clean water (rice water:water = 1:500) to water your flowers.

Once fermented, rice water is a natural organic nitrogen-phosphorus fertilizer. It can generally be used on flowering and fruiting plants, and after using it on pothos and pennywort the leaves also grow bigger.

2. Fruit peel water (no smell)

You eat a lot of fruit in summer, and all the leftover peels can be soaked to make liquid fertilizer: watermelon rind, melon rind, apple peel, tomato, cucumber and so on. Chop them up, put them in a plastic bottle, add some clean water and place it somewhere with good light. Open it twice a week to let the gas escape, and after 20-30 days of fermentation it's ready.

The fermented fruit fertilizer water is an acidic organic fertilizer. It can be used on common flowers like Chinese rose, Milan, gardenia, jasmine, hydrangea and so on; watering hydrangea with it can gradually turn it blue.

3. Yogurt and eggshell fertilizer

Don't throw away expired yogurt or milk at home. Add 200ml of clean water to 50ml of milk and shake well. Prepare 1-2 eggshells, wash them clean, let them dry and crush them, then put them into the yogurt water and cover with a lid. Open the lid along the way to let the gas escape too; flower lovers worried about the smell can add some pomelo peel to remove the odor.

The yogurt-eggshell fertilizer takes about 2-3 weeks to ferment. Once ready, take 5-10ml each time and dilute with water to water your flowers (fertilizer:water = 1:200). This fertilizer water is mainly rich in nitrogen and phosphorus, suitable for most flowering plants!

Summer fertilizing 2: Applying hole fertilizer

The Complete Guide to Flower Growing

Some flowers are tricky in summer: when nutrients run short they go dormant as soon as the weather turns hot, so you have to tuck in some fertilizer. As long as the fertilizer goes in the right place, you don't need to fear even the hottest weather!

1. Raw eggshells

Wash raw eggshells clean and dry them in the sun; they become crispy and easy to crush. For growing flowers, raw eggshells are better, because the nutrients haven't been lost to high heat. They are a great nitrogen fertilizer that makes flowers grow stronger.

If you have idle soil at home, you can mix in some eggshells; after 15-20 days of fermentation it becomes nutrient soil. You can also sprinkle them directly into the soil around the flower pot and gently turn the soil, which avoids damaging the roots during fermentation and also adds nutrients.

2. Soybean residue

The soybean residue left after making soy milk is also a great fertilizer, but it needs to be fermented. There's no need to drain the water; just put the residue in an airtight container, seal it tightly and wait 2-3 weeks for it to be ready.

Once the soybean residue fertilizer is fermented, bury it along the edge of the pot; for an ordinary-sized flower add 5-10g at a time, once a month in summer, and the flowers will bloom bigger and the flowering period will last longer.

Summer fertilizing 3: Base fertilizer

The Complete Guide to Flower Growing

When your flowers at home need repotting, or newly bought flowers need potting up, it's a great chance to add fertilizer. Don't forget it; toss in a little and save yourself a lot of trouble later!

1. Tuck some peanut shells into the bottom of the pot

For flowers with thicker roots like spider plant, clivia, cymbidium and so on, it's suitable to add some peanut shells to the bottom of the pot. They not only improve air and water permeability but also serve as fertilizer, and one application lasts 1-2 years! (Note: the peanuts must not be flavored.)

2. Professional slow-release fertilizer

Flower lovers who don't want to use homemade methods can also simply place some slow-release fertilizer at the bottom of the pot. Its fertility is mild, and placing it at the bottom of the pot in summer helps flowers adapt to the pot faster.

3. Nails and bones as pot bottom layer

Our fingernails and other animals' nails, such as cat claws, dog claws, horse hooves, cow hooves and so on, are rich in protein and calcium and make excellent base fertilizer.

4. Kitchen waste

Kitchen waste from home, buried in the soil and fermented for 1-2 months, can also serve as base fertilizer. It's even more nutritious than nutrient soil, and buried in the soil it doesn't smell much. Flowers given base fertilizer bloom more and more vigorously!

All-knowing flower lovers

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