Re: timing of foliar feeding
- To: pumpkins@mallorn.com
- Subject: Re: timing of foliar feeding
- From: S*@aol.com
- Date: Sat, 5 Sep 1998 14:00:45 EDT
In a message dated 98-09-04 14:55:11 EDT, you write:
> I think this is a question for a plant biologist... is one time of day
> better than another for foliar feeding? I'm concerned about washing the
> nutrients off the leaves because I mist so much. That suggests feeding the
> plants at the end of the day after misting or verrrrrrrry early in the
> morning before misting starts. Will the plant prefer one over another?
>
> Who knows, but this could be the secret of the 2,000 lb gourd. Just watch
> - it will turn out to be some hidden critical variable.
>
> Dan Shapiro
>
Funny you ask this! I was just trying to look up that info again. I am pretty
sure I read research that early morning is when nutrients are taken up from
the leaves from foliar feeding the most. Later in the day, the plant shifts to
converting the nutrients into carbs, etc. ALSO, I know as a fact that
nutrients are absorbed many times better on the lower leaf surfaces than the
upper leaf surfaces. 2-10 times better, at least!
And in an old gardening book, I read about foliar feeding research, and how
foliar feeds are absorbed better in the morning and hardly at all at night.
But they found out that adding a teaspoon per gallon of regular table sugar to
the foliar feeding solution increased the take-up of the foliar feed, even at
night! I have never tried it since I just spray both leaf surfaces until they
are saturated in the morning or no later than the early afternoon.
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