Steps for Making A DIY and homemade hibiscus fertilizer recipe at the comfort of your home.
What are the hibiscus plants?
Hibiscus plants produce lovely flowers which are exotic and are very popular in the tropics. A hibiscus flower is a nice flower to have in the house. To keep this flower healthy and flowering, you will be required to use fertilizer on it.
Lack of use of fertilizer on the flower may lead it to wither and have yellow leaves since it refuses to obtain some nutrients it needs to get from the soil. Although too much fertilizer could be bad for plants as it could cause acidity.
Most hibiscus flowers are kept in pots. Therefore, they have limited access to nutrients in the soil, so they need fertilizer. You can either choose to buy fertilizer or decide to do it yourself using household items.
What to look for in fertilizers.
When you decide to use a fertilizer is you to choose whether you use a slow-release or water-soluble fertilizer. Then when checking fertilizer labels, you need to look for the symbols nitrogen (N) phosphorous (P) and Potassium (K). These are important to provide positive nutrients to the soil.
The nitrogen could hurt the plant if used in excess or in limits. Nitrogen is useful in promoting healthy leaves. Phosphorous is good for large blooms and also for the growth of a good root system. Then the potassium is good for root development and overall plant health.
How often to use fertilizer on a hibiscus flower.
The number of times you use fertilizer depends on the type of fertilizer chosen. If it is a DIY fertilizer, each item you use will have its frequency depending on selected items.
The soluble and slow-release fertilizers also need to be balanced in terms of nutrients. The water-soluble ones should be used at low strength, and the slow release ones need to be used at least four times per year as they are easier.
How to make homemade fertilizers.
Use of coffee grounds as a homemade fertilizer is one of them, and coffee gives nitrogen, magnesium and potassium in the fertilizer. You dry the coffee used grounds on a piece of newspaper and leave in sunlight for two to three days. Then you sprinkle it over the soil close to where branching begins.
The other DIY is you use egg-shells that have gone through a food processor. The egg-shells have 100% calcium carbonate. You grind the egg-shells into fine particles and sprinkle over the soil.
Another one is if you have a fish tank in your house, then the dirty fish water you use to water the hibiscus. So there is no need to use any fertilizer as the fish have already done all the work.
Another homemade fertilizer is the Epsom salt. You use 1 tablespoon of Epsom salt and 1 gallon of water. It contains magnesium and sulphate, which are two nutrients necessary for plants. You combine Epsom salt and water and use this water solution on the plants. Repeat this method once every month.
The other homemade fertilizer is vinegar fertilizer. Here you use one tablespoon of white vinegar and one gallon of water. You combine the water and vinegar. Then use this solution to water the plants, and you repeat this every three months. The acetic acid in vinegar increases the acidity in the soil.
The other is the use of cooking water as a homemade fertilizer. The food we cook releases plant-healthy nutrients into the cooking water after boiling. The water you use to boil vegetables, eggs, potatoes or even pasta is full of nutrients that can be used as fertilizer. Before using this water for the plants, you need to make sure it cools first.
Another homemade fertilizer is the use of wood ash. Wood ash contains calcium carbonate and potassium, so it is suitable for the plants. You should make sure the ash used does not have any charcoal or lighter fluid which could hurt the plants.
Gelatin powder can also be used as a homemade fertilizer. Gelatin is rich in nitrogen and is suitable for house plants. You dissolve one pack of gelatin powder, one cup of hot water then add three cups of cold water. You then pour the solution directly to your plants and repeat this once a month.
Horse feed is another great homemade fertilizer. Horse feed contains molasses which makes an excellent fertilizer. Here you just sprinkle the horse feed directly on the soil. Or you can simply dissolve it in a bucket of water and add another fertilizer in it and apply on the soil drench.
You can also use matches as fertilizers. Match sticks are a great provider of magnesium. You can either insert a whole match stick directly into the soil or just dissolve the match sticks in water and pour this water directly into the soil.
Powdered milk is another product. It is a good source of calcium. You simply mix a few cups of diluted powdered milk into the soil before planting.
Where to buy a good and affordable fertilizer.
Fertilizers for Less is a good site where you can look for cheap and effective fertilizers at an affordable price. You can email them at sales@fertilizerforless.com for more DIY articles.