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Lake Stevens, WA, USA

I now have a 55 gallon plastic barrel with a lid that I bought for the purpose of watering my pumpkin plants with warm warter (warmed by the sun). My question is this: Do I mix water soluable fert. in it and use the warm water for fertilizing, or do I use the warm water just for watering without fert. or should I use warm water all the time?

And, I guess part two of this question would be: Do I use this warm water (as you suggest for the first question) from the day I plant my seeds, or do I wait to start using warm water until I have started setting pumpkins?

If I recall correctly, Geneva Emmons uses warm water, and it seems to be doing something for her.........

Thanks,
David

4/9/2002 2:40:56 AM

Utah

David-
I would suggest using warm water all the time.
as far as fertilizing... It is really up to you.
I assume the lid comes off and the fert would be
easy to mix? how are you getting the water from
the barrel to the plant?
gravity feed or pump ? hand water with garden hose,
drip line or soaker hose ?
If you can do it an keep the fert mixed in and
not just settling to the bottom and it won't clog
your hose. then i say go for it. it should work
fine.
how big is your patch ? one barrel might not be
enough to provide all the water you need.
it can vary but AG's need about 1- 1 1/2 inches
of water per week. if you have a 1000 sq ft patch
it takes 623 gallons per week to cover the entire
patch with 1 inch of water. (1 gal = 231 cubic inches)
or 89 gallons per day- every day.
of course if your plant only covers 1/4 of you patch
you might not need to water the whole patch but
you want to water an area that is bigger than you
plant.

gordon

4/9/2002 11:16:28 AM

No Place Special

what makes warm water better than normal temperature or colder water? Everyone seems to say warm is better, just wondering what the theory or reason behind this was? Thanks, Mike

4/9/2002 2:08:16 PM

Roanoke Il

Mike a plant grows best at around 85 degrees when using ground water the temp is normally around 55 degrees so the idea about warming the water is that it takes less time for the ground and plant to warm up if using warm water . so beeing the plant will grow quicker. so will the fruit.

4/9/2002 2:35:14 PM

Lake Stevens, WA, USA

I bought a bag of calcium nitrate (15.5% nitrogen, 19% calcium)and on the bag it says "solution grade".

Does this mean that it is a water soluable fertilizer that would get applied just like Miracle grow, or does it mean something different?

David

4/10/2002 1:12:57 AM