Don’t Forget to Feed the Leaves!

Usually we think of feeding or fertilizing our plants as adding fertilizer to the soil but the leaves can benefit as well. Foliar feeding is simply the application of fertilizer to the leaves of plants, giving them a boost of nutrients that they may not be getting enough of from the soil alone.

What’s the benefit of Foliar Feeding?
A foliar feeding helps address the immediate needs of the plant. The primary benefit of foliar feeding is that it is the fastest way to deliver a corrective infusion of micronutrients. There is also evidence that a periodic foliar feeding will increase the activity in the leaves, increasing chlorophyll production and photosynthesis which drives increased water and nutrient uptake from the soil

How does that work?
Plants absorb the nutrients through small openings on the stems and leaves called stomata.  Research shows that plants absorb fertilizers faster through the stomata on their leaves. Foliar fertilizers can be applied more frequently than soil fertilizer.

The frequency is dependent upon the plant type(s) that you are growing:

• Annuals every 3 weeks
• Fruit every 3 to 4 weeks
• Perennials every 6 to 8 weeks
• Vegetables every 1 to 2 weeks during the growing season

See our Foliar Feeding Guide for more info and tips from Dr. Buglady on our website.

See our wide variety of Foliar Fertilizers here.