How to Increase Flower Bed Fertility

Good soil fertility results in healthy flower growth.

Flower beds with poor soil produce weak plants with sparse foliage and poor blossom formation. Increasing the fertility ensures your plants receive the nutrients they need to grow lush and healthy. Soil looses nutritive qualities as the growing plants absorb and use the elements in the soil. Preparing the bed properly before you plant will give the soil the right acidity and fertilization to promote plant growth. Perennial flowers also require yearly fertilization to replenish the nutrient levels in the soil.

Things You'll Need

• Soil testing kit
• Ground limestone
• Hoe, tiller or spade
• Compost
• Fertilizer

Instructions

1. Test the soil following the instructions in a soil testing kit. The test results indicate the soil pH and basic fertility requirements of the bed. Soil pH adjustments take up to nine months to occur, so test and amend the soil the summer or fall before the spring you intend to plant.

2. Sprinkle powdered limestone over the surface of the bed. Use the amount indicated as necessary by the test to bring the soil pH into a range of 5.5 to 7.0. Most flowers need a pH near 6.3.

3. Turn the limestone into the top 8 inches of soil. Use a power tiller, hoe or a spade to incorporate the limestone with the soil.

4. Cover the bed with a 2- to 4-inch layer of compost immediately before planting. Till the compost into the top 6 inches of soil. Use 1 inch of compost in the spring over perennial beds that already contain flowers.

5. Fertilize the bed with the type and amount of fertilizer recommended by the test results, or with 3 pounds of 8-32-16 slow release fertilizer per 100 square feet of bed. Work the fertilizer into the soil prior to planting annual flowers. Sprinkle the fertilizer on top of the soil 6 inches away from the plant stems in perennial beds. Water the bed after the fertilizer application so it soaks into the soil.

Tips & Warnings

• An organic mulch, such as wood chips or pine straw, protects the plant roots, stops weed growth and improves the bed fertility as the mulch decomposes. Mulch the beds in spring after planting annuals, or after new growth appears on perennials.

• Soil testing kits are available from garden centers. County extension offices also provide in-depth testing services.

References

• University of Connecticut: Suggested Fertilizer Practices for Flowers
• University of Alaska: Annual and Perennial Flowers