Feeding
Pond plants need food too....
Pond plants are no different to their most of their terrestrial counterparts. They all benefit from the same basic elements that stimulate strong healthy growth. Predominantly Nitrogen, Phosphorous and Potassium (NPK). Water lilies, like all pond plants, are heavy feeders. To get the best results from your pond, it is important to provide them with a good source of nutrients.
At Oz Watergardens, we have developed our own Australian made and owned brand of slow release fertilisers for pond plants, to help stimulate beautiful flowering, lush green foliage and improve plant growth.
Why we use tablet slow release fertilisers rather than organic fertilisers?
As Australia’s largest producer of waterlilies and ornamental pond plants, we have commercially tested many products. Manures and composts can be used successfully in a pond. However, if we compare them all in a commercial application on the hundreds of thousands of pond plants that we produce…the problems and limitations become more apparent.
How do you accurately measure how much to apply….How big is a handful?
How old is aged compost or manure before it is safe to use?
How do you minimise the nutrients from leaching into the pond water….creating a murky pea-soup green pond?
How do you add fertiliser to an established pond plant?
Consistent performance....
Oz Watergardens Pond Plant Fertiliser Tablets are slow release fertilisers, which when applied according to the instructions, provides a complete range of essential nutrients and trace elements to the roots of pond plants. We recommend the slow release fertilisers over organic fertilisers as the tablets provide consistent performance and easy application of an accurate measured dose. They are also the only Australian made and owned slow release fertilisers from someone that actually grows water plants commercially. We don’t just sell it, we use it!!
When should I feed my water plants?
• Repotting or dividing
When repotting or dividing your water plants, it is an ideal time to add the slow release fertilisers to your Aquatic Planting Mix.
• Summer
Repeat the application over the Summer months, to stimulate new flowers and encourage lush growth (see Summer maintenance).
• Spring
Slow release fertilisers should be added to your pond plants in Spring, as the new growth starts to show in your pond plants (see Spring maintenance).
How to apply.... slow release fertilisers.
When adding slow release fertilisers to established pond plants, it is very easy to do with a tablet. Just remove the pot from the pond and using a tool (like a broom handle) to push a hole into the soil, at least half way down the container, being careful not to damage the plant.
How much? This depends on pot size or plant size, but as a guide, we recommend that only one Oz Watergardens Pond Plant Fertiliser Tablet is added to a 14-15cm pot and two tablets to a 20-30cm pot.
Insert the required dose of tablets and then cover them over with the soil from the pot. That way you are actually feeding the plant roots and reducing the possibility of the fertiliser getting out and stimulating an algal bloom.
To find out more about slow release fertilisers, such as Oz Watergardens Pond Plant Fertiliser Tablets, just follow the link….