Over the years, I have read, many times that high nitrogen fertilizers are the kiss-of-death for fig production and fig quality.  It can cause soft, weak growth, and lead to cracking, and inferior, figs.  Who wants this?

I'm lazy.  I go to Home Depot and buy Miracle-Gro, dilute, and dump it on my fig trees.  I try to buy the low-nitrogen formulas, but sometimes, I just buy what's on sale.  Not good.

Please give me some alternative brands and list the proportions.  I've even read that the much recommended "Foliage Pro, 9-3-6" has too high a nitrogen content.

Fig season is here.  Soon buds will bust and I want to do the right thing with the fertilizers.

So...what brands, what formulas, and, how much?  I tried organic, slow release fertilizes and I got a wonderful crop of disgusting houseflies hovering around my plants, and the stench smelled like an overripe, Mafia hit.  No more.

Thanks for the help.


Frank

Frank... I have used Osmocote fertilizer(for plants and vegetables)on my figs with no problems.  It is a slow release fertilizer(small crystals) and is gradually absorbed into the soil, so that one application in the spring time lasts me all season.  Like all fertilizers its importaint to read manufactures instructions so as not to over fertilize.  I never checked to see what the nitrogen content is, but it really keeps my fig trees growing at a nice steady rate all season.

Vince...

Thanks for the reply.  I will check out the Osmocote ferts.

Frank

Have you tried the method that Joe Morle suggest? I have been using it for the last two (2) seasons with success. It's at the bottom of the page.

http://www.figtrees.net/

The 9-3-6 is not too much nitrogen unless you put too much around the plant.  If you put the right amount it will do fine.

Whats always worked in my yard miracle grow 24.8.16 .
Pictures from 2011 of some fig plants.

I was told years ago by Chris, the owner of Belleclare Nursery, to always use a high flowering fertilizer like a 10-20-10, 15-30-15 or something similar. The 3 numbers represent Total Nitrogen, Phosphate and Potash in that order. The higher Phosphate number gives higher fruit production. It's worked great for me over the years. Decent growth and lots of figs. I hope this helps.

Thanks for the suggestions. 

I dilute the Foliage Pro 9-6-3 when I water, and Miracle-Gro is used at 1/4 the recommended rate with each watering.  My trees look great, and I get very nice figs...but can I do better?  Internodal distances seems a bit long on my fig trees, and on many photos that get posted on this forum.  Take a look.

I would still like to know about fertilizer selection for fig growing.  I know about the lower nitrogen formulas and Joe Morle method.  They all seem to work to a point.  Even Martin, who has far more experience growing figs than I, has his tried and true methods.  But look at his first number...24-8-16.  That's a high nitrogen formula.  Martin gets perfect figs each year.  So, what's the answer?

I was hoping for a little more science behind the fertilizer selections.  Why do so many sources warn about high nitrogen formulations being detrimental to fig production and fig quality?

Just curious.

Frank

Frank, that's a question I have had for a long time.... There are so many opinions.

There are 2 Osmocotes.  One's a 14-14-14 which is what I've been using.  I also use miracle grow 15-30-15.  I can't tell you it's optimal.  Long internodal distances also have a lot to do with lack of light, but you probably can't change that much.

I also have Fertilizer Anxiety Disorder !

Is there a saport group ?

All of those numbers scare me !

Fertilizer is a funny thing. Some people swear by what they use and will say all the others are dangerous to fig trees.

It's just me, but I think any fertilizer will do for my trees as long as I don't over do it. Last two years, I gave handful of osmocote slow release once they get out of garage, and once again in early June. On top of that I use regular MG on young trees until they are at height I like every week. For the trees that're putting on the figs and I don't want too much vegetative growth, I give them MG blooming formula. Also, I usually water before fertilizing to help flush salt and previous fertilizer.

I haven't had any issue due to fertilizer yet. Oh.. mime are are container culture.

I realized that when I posted the original fertilizer questions, that this thread would open up a whole lot of debate.  That's fine.  But I still want to know why high NITROGEN formulations are not good for use on our fig trees.  All fertilizer will work...unless mixed in toxic proportions.  But we are all smart enough to dilute our fertilizers.

So...what's the deal with the high nitrogen warnings?  Look at the Italian Fig Cultivation thread...specifically, where fertilizers are discussed.  There is a clear implication that too high a nitrogen formula is not great for fig production and quality.  And that's just one example.  There are more.

Still curious.


Frank

Plant experts say that the right/optimum fertilizer proportion of NPK required by them is 3:1:2
(e.g., 9-3-6; 24-8-16; ...).

too much nitrogen, ie out of proportion (to what the plant  requires for normal growth) in relation to the other two ingredients, will encourage lots of lush new growth of foliage at the expense of fruit/flower production. 

Doing a little research on N-P-K is is well worth the effort. I learned a lot when doing some recent searches.
> High nitrogen (N) produces lots of vegetative growth.
> Plenty of Potash (P) aids in fruit & flower production.
> While Potassium (K) also promotes strong growth and improves uptake of nutrients.
The above info is not complete but does give a general idea of what's going on in those numbers & letters. 

Jazzbass pointed out and linked the formula that Joe Morle has always used. From what I understand, Joe has always had strong plants and great fruit production.

The Belleclare brochure/handout also provided some great info on a fert program: http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post/Belleclare-BrochureHandout-from-the-Nursery-6189106?highlight=belleclare+brochure 

 Bill Muzychko of Bill's Figs also outlines what is sure to be a good fertilizer routine: http://figs4fun.com/bills_figs.html

I'm betting that any one of these fert programs will produce good results. My personal plan is to glean a little from each one of them (as well as others) and adapt them to my particular growing conditions & needs.

One point that does stand out from all of them is this though; If you plan to use the Belleclare routine, be sure to use the granular limestone. I'm guessing that any of the "pelletized" fast release limestone could not be used in the concentrations recommended by Belleclare Nurseries.   

Hope this helps.........

what bill said above. i had trouble with Kathleen's Black putting on the figs. don't get me wrong, KB grows like weed, but it won't put on figs. just grow and grow. so i did two things, pinch and change to high potassium fert. i'm sure pinching is what did the trick, but whatever helps. now i'm getting figs. but like gorgi said, what is suggested is 3:1:2 for general well being of the tree. i just don't think that make all that much difference in my containers since there won't be much of a build up. they get flushed out before my next fertilizing. and i water on top of that before adding more. 

lime is another thing. when i got my trees, i heard lot about lime. so first thing i did was added some dolomite limes when i repotted. i just top dressed them. 

i think MG regular on is 3:1:2. blooming is something like 1:2:1 or something. they have tomato ones that has also different ratio and rose ones. i want almost 1:1:1 before that worked well also. i think some people swear by 10:10:10 or 15:15:15. 

I have to agree Pete. A balanced fertilizer will do just fine as long as you're careful not to over-do it (just like anything). That, along with a boost or two of lime, could be the most simple and effective way to go.

I knew a gardener in FL who always used 10-10-10 on all his fruit trees with really great results.

Doesn't have to be complicated to get great results.

doesn't organic taste better?

Go organic. Blood meal for your nitrogen all plants need nitrogen for good growth. And bone meal phosphorous for fruit production. Use just blood meal early on to promote growth. Dwendle down after a bit with half and half. Then finish up with bone meal. Mid season. If you live cose to a slaughter house you could get blood for cheep or nothing. Save egg shells dry and grind to powder to add calcium to the mic.

While I agree with,Alan,That tree in ground do not need fertilizer,I also know that tree in pot need fertilizer,and the most important lesson for me is not to overdo ,apply more than needed.
I did apply more in the past,the 10/10/10,kind and killed a handful of trees.
I would say for fig trees,in pots apply about half of what the instructions on the  bag say.
To be on the safe side.
I applied more than needed of Osmocote in a few pots,but ,good surprise with Osmocote,it did not burned the plant like 10/10/10 did.

Grant and Bill nailed it (in posts #16 and #17).  Want top growth?  Plenty of nitrogen will do that (assuming all other required conditions are met, and no other nutrient is far out of balance).  It's all a balancing act, and as pointed out by many above, one way to avoid messing up the balance is to not give too much of anything.  A little bit of finesse is better than blasting the heck out of the thing.  Moderation is one way to avoid blasting the heck out of it.  :-)

Mike   central NY state, zone 5

Does anybody add lime to there fertilizer or water?

The fertilizer does not need to be balanced with each application just balanced over time.  On all my several 100 fruiting plants and I use ammonium sulfate ( 21-0-0 ) almost exclusively and I fertilize with it weekly at a tsp per gallon.  I apply the fert through the spray heads.  About once every 2 months I will give them a balanced granular fertilizer so they get the p and K but they only need it now and then while the nitrogen is constantly used.    I know it may seem odd to apply sulfur to figs but it is a needed nutrient and it does not affect the PH of the figs at all.    The nice thing about ammonium sulfate is it clings to the soil and resists being washed through which is important on my sandy soil.  

Do any of you use a product like AZOMITE  to ad micro nutriants to the soil or for a folier spray ?