Roses are one of the plants that many gardeners love to grow indoors, out in the garden, or in hedges. Roses bring vibrant beauty with many colors and always attract people with their proud beauty.
Therefore, most people choose roses to decorate in front of the house, in the garden, or in front of the gate. However, a common question regarding the care of this plant is fertilizer. Many people question whether specialized fertilizers for roses can be used for vegetables and fruit trees.
Can you use rose food on other plants? Does fertilizer for roses have any special ingredients? Let’s learn about the composition and uses of rose fertilizer in this article.
What Is A Fertilizer Specifically For Roses?
Rose fertilizer is actually a specially formulated fertilizer for roses. Like other fertilizers, it has the effect of providing nutrients necessary for the growth of rose plants. Why do manufacturers name it rose fertilizer?
Simply because of the popularity of this flower in every home and every garden. They are almost everywhere because everyone loves the beauty and fragrance of roses. Therefore, many manufacturers have created fertilizers specifically for this market.
Normally, fertilizers on the market contain indicators such as NPK – Nitrogen (N), Phosphorous (P), and Kalium (K). Their value is equivalent to about 2% Nitrogen, 3% Phosphorus, and 3% Potassium. In addition, fertilizers also provide other micronutrients that plants need such as Iron (Fe), Copper (Cu), Zinc (Zn), and many others.
To differentiate themselves with a special formula specifically for roses, manufacturers add another compound and sell them as “Rose Food”. Therefore, a chemical fertilizer for roses may contain Diammonium (N) phosphate (P) and Potassium chloride (K). However, looking at them, rose food is not too different from other fertilizers on the market. Rose food has additional ingredients in proportion to the growth of roses.
Can You Use Rose Food On Other Plants?
Yes, you can absolutely use rose fertilizer for vegetables and other plants in the garden. Rose food will provide the necessary nutrients for plants in the greenhouse and outdoors. This fertilizer is very beneficial for all common crops.
It stimulates plant growth, and root development and increases yield. Plants such as tomatoes or potatoes will increase in quantity and flavor when using rose food. In particular, it also helps control pests such as aphids and other insects that attack plants.
You can use rose food for other flowers like carnations, irises, daisies, and other flowers. It is also suitable for fertilizing vegetables such as tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, cucumbers, and others. You can also use rose food to grow herbs like mint, basil, thyme, and others.
However, you need to use the correct amount of fertilizer as the manufacturer recommends on each crop such as plants or fruit trees. Too much fertilizer will cause the plants to go into shock and die due to excessive stress.
Read more: Can You Use Chicken Manure As Fertilizers For Fruit Trees?
What To Note When Using Rose Fertilizer On Vegetables?
The ratio of NPK in rose food can vary by different manufacturers such as 2:3:3 or 4:3:2. This ratio will ensure the growth of roses and other vegetables.
Generally, fertilizer manufacturers recommend applying at least 1 pound of 10:10:10 fertilizer per 100 feet and 2 pounds of 5:10:10 fertilizer in the same area for vegetables. Therefore, if you use rose fertilizer for vegetables, you will have to fertilize with a large amount. It will also be a big expense that you should consider.
Therefore, you should not use rose food to fertilize vegetables in their early stages. Because in this stage, vegetable plants need a lot of nutrients to develop their root system. In particular, vegetable plants often grow with a dense density and a fast growth rate, so fertilizing roses will be wasteful during this period.
In the early stages when you grow vegetables, you should prepare the soil, add compost, fertilize fully, cover with mulch to prevent weeds, and maintain moisture in the early stages of growth. After the vegetables have grown well in the early stages, you can use rose food to fertilize the vegetables during the growing season.
Rose food is quite safe to fertilize because it has a low nitrogen content. Therefore, this fertilizer will cause less leaf burn and plant death than other fertilizers.
Frequently Asked Questions About Rose Food?
Here are some questions many gardeners ask about rose food. We have compiled below to give you more information about this fertilizer.
Q: What plants can I use rose food for?
You can use rose food for most garden vegetables. This fertilizer specially formulated for roses is suitable for most vegetables. Because it is an organic fertilizer and the mechanism of action is slow release, it will not cause leaf burn in vegetables.
Q: Can I use rose food for crops?
Yes, you can use this fertilizer for certain plants in your garden. However, it is not suitable for all crops because it can be harmful.
If you want to use rose food on all your houseplants, use less fertilizer than when fertilizing roses for safe results. In addition, for plants that require high-care techniques and specialized fertilizers such as orchids and other species, you should not use rose food for them.
Q: Do roses need special fertilizer to grow?
No, roses or any other plant do not need to use specialized fertilizers with high costs. The specific names of certain fertilizers also make the product price higher than that of conventional fertilizers.
Roses can still grow and develop normally when using natural fertilizers such as chicken manure, plant-based compost, or manure. However, rose food can stimulate roses to bloom larger, more vibrant, and recover faster when attacked by pests.
Q: Is it wasteful to use rose food for other plants?
Rose food will cost more than regular fertilizer. So if you use it for most plants in the garden it could be wasteful. Because each plant species has different nutritional needs. Therefore, you do not need to use specialized fertilizers to fertilize all the plants in the garden.
If you want to save money when caring for roses, you can completely use natural fertilizers from manure or compost plants to create fertilizer. Chemical fertilizers are not always good if you apply too much or at the wrong time.
Summary
Rose food is a fertilizer created by manufacturers with a number of ingredients and a special ratio for the growth of roses. However, in general, the chemical composition and uses of rose food are similar to other fertilizers on the market.
This fertilizer can be used to fertilize other flowers such as chrysanthemums, irises, carnations, etc. Some vegetables will also grow well with rose food such as tomatoes, peppers, vegetables, eggplant, cucumber, etc.
You need to use the right amount of fertilizer and fertilizer time to achieve the best effect. Do not over-fertilize as your plants are prone to burn or reduce their ability to grow during the growing season due to excessive stress.