NPK Fertilisers for Daylilies Plants
Fertiliser Basics: What is NPK
Growing daylilies can prove challenging if you aren’t aware of fertiliser basics. Fertilisers play an important role when it comes to daylily care and in this article, I would like to share a few basic concepts about NPK fertilisers, so you have perfect daylilies growth.
Nutrients or Elements in Fertilisers
Let us begin with what NPK actually stands for. Well, NPK denotes three nutrients or elements that are known to contribute greatly to ensure the growth of plants in right amounts. These three elements are most commonly present in different kinds of fertilisers. There has even been a rating developed known as the NPK rating which specifically determine the element concentration in different fertilisers. N stands for Nitrogen, P stands for Phosphorus and lastly, K stands for Potassium.
Each of the three elements has their own contribution in promoting the healthy growth of the plant.
- Nitrogen is considered to be the one responsible for promoting and ensuring the growth of the leaves. Nitrogen is greatly helpful when it comes to vegetation. Next,
- Phosphorus is actually the one responsible for ensuring the proper growth and strength of the roots which are one of the main collectors of nutrients from the soil. Phosphorus also ensures proper growth of the shoots of the plants. Lastly,
- Potassium is primarily responsible for the promotion of the growth of flowers and fruits of all the plants. You may notice that each element focuses on promoting the growth of a specific part or area of the plant. If these three are found in good concentrations in a fertiliser, all the areas of the plant will be properly supported and they will definitely grow healthy.
With these in mind, the NPK rating is an important thing that you have to consider when looking for the perfect fertiliser to use for your daylilies or other plants. The better the rating, the more recommended the fertiliser is for your plants. NPK can definitely provide holistic support to your daylilies and it can be considered as a very powerful package to keep daylilies healthy all throughout.
Trace Elements in Fertiliser
Most plant owners may not be aware that there are a lot of trace elements in the different kinds of fertiliser that they use. Daylilies, require certain elements in large amounts, while others, in just minimal levels. Three of the most common trace elements that can be found in plant fertilisers are Copper, Manganese and Zinc. Each of these three contributes to the proper growth of the daylilies.
- Copper is an important trace element. It is required for the effective formation of the plant pigment, chlorophyll in the plants. It is also an important component that facilitates the conduction of various plant processes necessary for their survival. If daylilies have a good supply of copper, it is as if they have a stronger defence against infections, especially infections against those caused by fungi.
- Manganese is also considered as a very important trace element in fertilisers because it plays a role in various metabolic reactions. It also contributes to the most important plant process known as photosynthesis. Its main function in the said process is the promotion of the production of the plant pigment, chlorophyll. Manganese is also responsible for making the plants absorb Calcium and even Phosphorus more effectively as a result leading to proper germination and growth of the daylilies.
- Zinc is another important trace element in fertilisers. It is responsible for promoting the growth of several important substances for various plant processes and enzymatic reactions. Zinc is important in the production of chlorophyll like the two previously stated trace elements.
Slow Release Fertilisers
There are many kinds of NPK fertilisers that are made available in the market nowadays. If you really want to be sure about the growth of your daylilies, you have to be wise enough in choosing the right type of fertiliser to use. One of the increasingly popular types is known as the slow release fertiliser.
The slow release fertilisers are known to have a lot of benefits. With these fertilisers, how they work is the nutrients and minerals are given to the daylilies, part by part, over a long period of time 3, 6 or 12 months. This means that the daylilies have a continuous and stable supply of nutrients. This can be very convenient for the plant owners or the gardeners for several reasons. First of all, they would need less effort to fertilise their daylilies from time to time. Gone are the days when they just have to spend most of their time applying fertilisers. With slow release fertilisers, once in a certain schedule will already be enough because of the long term release of nutrients and minerals. Also, the plant owners will definitely be able to save money from buying too many fertilisers.
Slow release fertilisers are greatly preferred by most daylilies. With this kind of fertiliser, daylilies generally grow well and healthy. If you are looking for the best type of fertiliser to use for your daylilies, one of the best choices that you should definitely consider is the slow release fertiliser.
The Compost: Things You Need to Know
One of the best materials that you can use to keep your daylilies and even your soil healthy is known as the compost. For those who may not be aware, compost is actually a combination of organic materials that are geared towards enriching the soil for optimum growth for your daylilies. It is actually considered as a fertiliser for plants and it has been widely used not only by small scale farmers or gardeners but even by huge farming industries.
The compost is actually made of easy to find materials and some of the components of compost include leaves, animal manure and food wastes. You just have to combine all these materials and wait for sometime before they turn into humus or the actual substance which you can combine with the soil. The compost is greatly rich in nutrients and what is really impressive with this soil supplement is the fact that it is all organic. It means that it is actually less expensive and it is definitely safer to use. You can even be of great help to the environment because you recycle some materials for compost use. If you decide to use chemical soil supplements or fertilisers, you cannot be sure about the safety and the efficiency of the results that you will get. Some chemicals can be greatly damaging to the daylilies, the soil and in general, the environment. Why waste money and take the risk in using chemical based fertilisers when you can actually produce a safe, effective and really cheap soil supplement on your own in the form of a compost?
There are many places you can buy fertilisers for your daylilies in Australia, for example, you can order through a website and get your fertiliser delivered, you could also go to your local nursery, some fertiliser places will even order or make you a special mix for your daylilies, if you live in the country like me you can just get the fertiliser right next door from your neighbour but you have to make sure that you select the right fertiliser for your daylilies, one that is low in nitrogen so you have premium daylily flowers at flowering time in your garden.
These are some of the most important things that you definitely need to know about the explanation and understanding of NPK contents of complete fertilisers, slow release fertilisers, trace elements in fertilisers and the organic compost to help you grow the most beautiful daylilies.