TOPIC: Fertilizing seedlings

Here is the Milorganite website http://www.milorganite.com/home/ Here is the wikipedia en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milorganite it states at the end that it could help with deer problems.

Hey Guys,

I went back and looked at my soil test results.

One of my hollows test results were like this:

PH 5.8, (P) phosphorous 11, (K) Potassium 120, (Ca) Calcium 1472, (Mg) Magnesium 236

On my soil test you could specify crop type \"Ginseng\" and I did.

Their fertilizer recommendations were:

30 tons (N), 90 tons (P), 120 tons (K) per acre.

I know a lot of the farmers around here use a chemical fertilizer that is 6/12/12 on N/P/K.

There is 43,560 sq ft in an acre.

43,560 divided by 250 sf = 174.24

So it would take 174 (250 sf beds) to make a acre.

If you put down 10 pounds of chemical fertilizer per bed that would be (10 x 174) 1,740 lbs of fertilizer per acre (less than 1 ton) per acre.

If you put down 100 pounds of chemical fertilizer per bed that would be (100 x 174) 17,400 lbs of fertilizer per acre (8.7 tons per acre).

So I am confused as heck at what they recommended per acre for my place.

I obviously don't understand how what they recommended per acre equates down to something like a 250 sf bed.

Doing simple math it sure does not seem to compute !

Good Luck on figuring that out.

TNhunter

TN and others,
I did some really \"rough math\" and I came up with these approximate figures from the numbers that you gave there. See if this makes any sense at all for the 250sqft. bed.
34lbs. of Nitrogen
105lbs. of Phosphorus
344lbs of Potassium

That number on the Potassium sounds high and I may have missed it completely. If this does not make any sense, just ignore it. If it sounds like it computes, I'll let you know my fee.

We'll stay at it, no matter what.
Hugh

Latt
This method of spraying fungicides 7 or so times a season for ten years may build up toxins. This method you discribe is called Woods Grown,and the customer should understand the possible risk to ones health.

Guy

guy wrote:

Latt
This method of spraying fungicides 7 or so times a season for ten years may build up toxins. This method you discribe is called Woods Grown,and the customer should understand the possible risk to ones health.

Guy

I agree with Guy,
When you get away from wild simulated then you're into woods grown or cultivated and should be listed as such because toxins will show up in test samples.

rootman

What you say may be true fellas. However this ginseng farmer has been doing this and selling his root as wild for years. I am not saying this is what is best. I am only stating what is being done and what has been done. I would rather consume ginseng root that has not been sprayed. I am curious as to why this is something that has not caused him an issue. Perhaps they simply do not test ginseng for toxin build up. Perhaps it is something that the officials do not see as a dangerous amount. Kind of like the produce we eat that has been sprayed. I know most large grocery chains have an organic section and this organic produce is almost double in price compared to the regular produce in the same store but they still sell the produce that has been sprayed. Makes me wonder for sure.
Thanks for the input guys. Guy, obviously you have been a successful ginseng farmer for years and you have made it with out overdoing it on spraying apparently. However, I took this quote from your previous post (Growing Ginseng For A Living) below and it clearly shows where you have mentioned Chemicals and Fertilizers??? Not saying you do this but it sure sounds like you have implied what needs to be done to be a successful ginseng grower/farmer.

\"Question 2
IF you live in an area where all the equipment and chemicals are available from companies offering their services, soil prep and sterilizing, planting, including seed cost , applicable fertilization and disease prevention programs, berry harvest and cleaning and stratifying for the 8 or more years, and the finally harvest drying and marketing of your crop,and you have zero overhead including the land and home then yes you can make a middle type class living off cultivating in the woods, trying to make the root look close to wild as time allows.

Or you can make a few extra bucks if you register as a farm ( for the tax right offs) work every friggin spare minute on your farm on your off hours from the full time job you need to keep ya going till any farm monies start filtering their way down to you. But don't worry it's only 8 plus years if everything goes your way.
But then again you can loose your shirt and the kids shirts to like most farmers now adays.

For the best advise go to the two largest ginseng growing ares in the U.S.and ask a few ginseng farmers not the conglomerate farmers just the family farmer - if you can find one!!!
remember the old saying - the grass always seems better after a few beers.

guy\"

Thanks,
Latt

Latt-

I talked to whom I think you went to see, at legnth some time ago. His description is a near match of what you described. If it's the same guy, mhe's very successful, and sells his products all over. He claims that his operation started from wild seed, 'way back when.

The burning issues you've presenced, regarding method, and representation of saleable product are major concerns that I have as well.

I think I'm going to do some soil amendments due to the understory I have to contend with, however, not too much after that. I want to \"be able to sleep at night\" when I sell one day. Just to get it started in first year, as the soil under my understory was so badly deficit in Ca and P and low ph.

I'm a straight shooter, and am just unwilling to represent something differently than what it is. If I ever have a crop [I'm hoping so!!!] I'll sell it as it was raised...

reply to Latts question.


1) I am curious as to why this is something that has not caused him an issue.

reply from guy -It's not an \"issue\" if you misslead your customers by calling it something it is not, why look for what sould not be there!

In Canada field grown or woods grown have preset guide lines for the amount of toxins allowed.

2) reply from guy -All farmers know of the pressures of following the crop trend or joining a corporation. Expences are minimized by alot of farmers farming the same thing so it will be cheaper to have the seeding and such done by the corp. than yourself because you dont' have to carry DEBT for your equipment. NO OVERHEAD.

For the best advise go to Marathon county find a family farmer that grows ginseng and has not joined a corp. and ask them how do I make an income of 50 grand growing ginseng.

I agree one hundred and fifty percent.

guy

Bojow...
What type of ginseng do you plan on growing?
cultivated? woodsgrown? wild-simulated? or wild?
since you are wanting to know how much fertilizer to use it would be safe to eliminate wild and wild-simulated from this discussion right? Since you are growing in the woods it would also be safe to eliminate cultivated ginseng from the discussion. Now that we have zeroed in on the question. we can start to get some answers.
Unfortunately, other than that, I am afraid that i cant be of much help to you since i only grow wild-simulated ginseng, no chemicals, pesticides, herbicices or fungicides just like nature intended, Good luck on your plantings. Hope i didnt confuse you more.